South Africa - Safari & City

Itinerary: 

We're on a 3 day safari in Kruger National Park, which is an hour and a half fight from Johannesburg, and then we're off to Cape Town for 4 days.

Kruger National Park

After a 39 1/2 hour journey...a 12 hour flight from Los Angeles to London, an 8 hour layover, another 12 hour flight from London to Johannesburg, another 6 hour layover and finally a one and half hour flight into the bush, we arrived at Kruger National Park.

We're exhausted from traveling but our adrenaline kicks when they ask if we'd like to go out on the evening game drive. Our first sighting is a heard of elephants about 30 yards away. 

I always imagined the game drive would be like visiting a zoo but I was completely wrong. Seeing these animals in the wild from an open jeep is an experience that's hard to explain. 

This was the first time on vacation that I truly felt as if I was on the other side of the world.

On the evening game drives, we would have a "sundowner". We'd stop in the middle of a clearing and just enjoy the amazing African sunset while sipping on a cocktail and some fresh h'orderves that our guide would cook up on a portable camping stove.

Singita Boulders Lodge:  (about US $1,630-3,200 per person per night, all inclusive).
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Amazing exotic, romantic resort! The best we've ever stayed. One night after returning from our game drive cold and dusty, we discover that our butler has a hot bubble bath waiting for us with about 50 candles lighting the entire bathroom. There's also a bottle of champagne on ice along with chocolate covered strawberries. What a way to end a day!

Singita Boulders Lodge has been voted "best hotel in the world over 15 times" by various international travel publications and reader surveys.

It is an all inclusive resort that includes all meals, a personal butler, all drinks, including premium wines, spirits and liqueurs (excluding champagnes), and 2 open Land Rover safaris per day accompanied by experienced guides and trackers.

Cape Town

After a quick 2 hour flight from Johannesburg, we arrive in Cape Town. We're staying at the Mount Nelson Hotel. 

Mount Nelson Hotel: (about US $355-1000 per night, including breakfast).
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The Mount Nelson Hotel is an Orient Express hotel, do I need to say more? Old world glamour, luxury and style all rolled into one. Amazing service from front desk all the way to house keeping and everything in between. The list of celebrities that have stayed here is endless. There's way too many to even list them. Check out this link to see for yourself.

From our room we have an incredible view of Table Mountain. Most of the time the top of the mountain is covered in fog, which is referred to as a "table cloth". The first morning we wake up, we're in luck. The mountain is completely clear. We take the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway all the way to the top for some breathetaking views.

The next day we decide to go out and explore. We decide to hire a private guide and let them do the driving so we can enjoy the sights. We hired Hylton Ross Tours for a 2 day private tour based on the great reviews that I read online. The reviews were right. Great company with very friendly and knowledgable guides. I highly recommend them. The first day we're heading south to the Cape of Good Hope.

The tour continues with a stop at Boulders Beach, home to a colony of African penguins.

The next day we head out to explore the infamous South African wine country. Our destination is a town called Stellenbosch.

We end up meeting some friends that we met while on safari and spend the day wine tasting and lunch at the beautiful 300 year old Vergelegen Wine Estate. 

I highly recommend a trip to South Africa. It's a very long trip and expensive but it's a trip that I guarantee that you'll never forget! I'm already planning a return trip to Africa. Next time, it's Kenya for the great wildebeest migration.