10-Day Highlights of South Africa and Victoria Falls

Welcome to South Africa!

Arrive in captivating Cape Town, where you are met and transferred to your hotel. Overnight there for the next three nights.

Be sure to make time to wander the bustling Victoria & Alfred waterfront (most of the luxury hotels we book are right there, making access as simple as walking out your door). The popular seaside walkways are lined with refurbished historical buildings, museums, boutiques, craft markets, hotels, bars and cinemas. Dine at world-class restaurants with superb views of the buzzing harbor and Table Mountain. The Two Oceans Aquarium is also located here and tours of Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned, depart from the Waterfront daily.

Meals included: n/a
Mid-Range Accommodations: The Commodore Hotel

Depart the city for Table Mountain's lower cableway station for a 5-minute revolving cable car ride to the top. Table Mountain is 1067 meters above sea level and affords amazing views of both the city and the peninsula as you explore the summit. You will either start or end with Table Mountain depending on the weather.

Sense the depth of history as you drive past Parliament Buildings, City Hall, the Slave Lodge, and the Castle of Good Hope, originally built as a maritime replenishment station and now the oldest surviving colonial building in South Africa! We walk around the Grand Parade square which has its own historical significance, and hear the brief history of District Six en-route to a visit at the Company Gardens where we walk through the landscaped gardens.

Learn more about the history of the Bo-Kaap and its people as we move up the cobblestone hills to the Malay Quarter, and marvel at the ice-cream colors of the quaint Bo-Kaap homes. Trace the moves of a professional diamond cutter as he creates every girl's dream stone with a visit to a diamond cutting factory. After learning more about the history of diamonds and gold in South Africa, we drive past the V&A Waterfront and Cape Town Stadium.

The afternoon is free to explore the V&A Waterfront.

Meals included: Breakfast
Mid-Range Accommodations: The Commodore Hotel

Cruise along the exquisite stretch of coastline known as Millionaire's Paradise - from Clifton to Camps Bay, to the exclusive beach hamlet of Llandudno - towards the charming working harbor of Hout Bay. Embark on an up-close-and-personal Seal Island cruise (not included).

Wind along the legendary Chapman's Peak Drive, hugging the cliffs and relishing the breathtaking ocean views, before arriving at our lunch spot of choice (included) at the Cape of Good Hope Section of the Table Mountain National Park.

Meander back along the coast towards the City, visiting the historic naval port of Simon's Town and the endearing penguin colony at Boulder's Beach.

Meals included: Breakfast
Mid-Range Accommodations: The Commodore Hotel

Enjoy a full day celebrating the grape, visiting the exceptional winelands region, and appreciating its heavenly scenery. The area is rich with history, and travelers can't help but feel it as you move through the region to experience a wine cellar tour and tasting, where you'll learn all about the process of winemaking, from grape to goblet.

Visit the exquisite little town of Franschhoek, pass by the impressive Huguenot Monument, and in a town with a reputation for gourmet fare, where else could you choose to enjoy lunch (lunch cost is not included so you can decide from an open menu).

Wind your way to the heady heights of the Helshoogte Mountain Pass to meet the charming university town of Stellenbosch on the other side. Stroll through this little town, absorbing the quaintness, and sneaking into the odd shop or two (on Sundays not all galleries and shops are open). Enjoy a wine tasting at two different wine estates where you will be able to purchase your favorite wine to take back home.

Meals included: Breakfast
Mid-Range Accommodations: The Commodore Hotel

Today, you will be transferred to the airport in time for your flight to Johannesburg. Here connect with the flight to Kruger's Mpumalanga International Airport.

You are met and driven to your safari lodge, where you will eat lunch and enjoy a brief orientation and tour of the lodge. After a brief rest and then high tea, enjoy your first game drive in this revered home of the Big 5.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner
Mid-Range Accommodations: Idube Game Lodge (Sabi Sands)

Enjoy the full palette of activities and stunning variety of big game in the area today. Travelers typically enjoy an early morning game drive, then a long, relaxed siesta around the lodge in the heat of mid-day, then another game drive in the afternoon into evening, which routinely turns into a night game drive. At night, following dinner, a fire is lit and guests of the camp often linger around the campfire and enjoy a glass of wine and conversation below the star-studded skies.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Mid-Range Accommodations: Idube Game Lodge (Sabi Sands)

Experience another day in this wildlife paradise, with big cat viewing rivaling anywhere in Africa.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Mid-Range Accommodations: Idube Game Lodge (Sabi Sands)

Transfer to the local airport for your flight to Victoria Falls. Arrive, meet and greet, and transfer to your hotel.

Victoria Falls is an original natural wonder of the world and arguably the most impressive waterfall in the world. No trip to southern Africa is complete without a stay here, it's simply a world-class sight to see.

Evening Sunset Cruise on the Zambezi River.

Meals included: Breakfast
Mid-Range Accommodations: Shongwe Oasis (Vic Falls)

This morning, enjoy a guided daytime tour of Victoria Falls. The afternoon is free to relax or book an optional tour.

Easily one of the world's most stunning waterfalls, Victoria Falls - also known as "the smoke that thunders" - unleashes huge columns of spray as the mighty Zambezi's water (as much as 1.5billion cubic feet of water per second in the rainy season) spills over across a Basaltic chasm that is.5mile wide and over 350 feet high. The views of it from either Victoria Falls or Livingstone, Zambia are comparable, though some travelers take the time to view it from both sides.

You will have lunch at the famous Lookout Cafe.

The afternoon is free to relax or go shopping.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch
Mid-Range Accommodations: Shongwe Oasis (Vic Falls)

Today, transfer to the airport in time for your flight home or extend your stay.

You have many options to extend. For example, extend for a day of class 5 rafting on the Zambezi River or extend with a safari experience to northern Zimbabwe (such Hwange National Park) or over to Chobe in Botswana.

Meals included: Breakfast