South Africa
14 days from $7263 pp with roundtrip flights
Crafted for travellers who want a distinctive, conservation-forward South Africa safari, this journey arcs from Johannesburg into the sculpted ridges of the Waterberg Biosphere, north to Limpopo’s Soutpansberg/Mapungubwe belt, then east into a Greater Kruger private reserve (e.g., Karongwe, Makalali or Timbavati) before sweeping the dramatic Panorama Route and settling inside the legendary Kruger National Park. It balances iconic big-five encounters with guided walks, hide time and cultural context—delivering pace, variety and genuine atmosphere.
In the Waterberg, golden-hour game drives and a rhino-focused briefing set a conservation tone, while dusk waterhole hides frame kudu silhouettes and jackal shadows. Limpopo deepens the story with baobabs, San rock art and river-confluence viewpoints, plus dawn birding and a community conservancy visit that ties livelihoods to wildlife corridors.
The private-reserve chapter sharpens the lens: flexible routing, ethical off-road tracking, AM/PM 4×4 safaris for lion, leopard and elephant, optional walking safaris and a starlit sleep-out deck. The route then unfurls along Blyde River Canyon to central and southern Kruger (e.g., Satara and Lower Sabie), where full-day river loops, photographic hides and optional night drives reveal cheetah-friendly grasslands and life along the Sabie River.
Seamless transfers, expert rangers and thoughtful pacing keep the focus where it belongs—on the veld’s low light, the language of tracks and the hush that falls as constellations lift. This is a richly textured itinerary that blends wildlife, landscape and culture into a signature South African narrative—distinct, immersive and ready to publish.
Day 1 : OVERNIGHT FLIGHT FROM NEW YORK TO SOUTH AFRICA
Day 2 : JOHANNESBURG ARRIVAL → WATERBERG BIOSPHERE (WELGEVONDEN/MARAKELE)
Day 3 : WATERBERG — RHINO FOCUS & WATERHOLE HIDE AT DUSK
Day 4 : WATERBERG — GUIDED BUSH WALK & OPTIONAL HORSEBACK SAFARI
Day 5 : WATERBERG → NORTHERN LIMPOPO (SOUTPANSBERG/MAPUNGUBWE BELT)
Day 6 : LIMPOPO — BAOBABS, ROCK ART & RIVER CONFLUENCE VIEWS
Day 7 : LIMPOPO — DAWN BIRDING & COMMUNITY CONSERVANCY VISIT
Day 8 : LIMPOPO → GREATER KRUGER PRIVATE RESERVE (KARONGWE/MAKALALI/TIMBAVATI)
Day 9 : GREATER KRUGER — BIG-FIVE TRACKING (AM/PM DRIVES)
Day 10 : GREATER KRUGER — WALKING SAFARI & WATERHOLE TIME
Day 11 : PANORAMA ROUTE → ENTER KRUGER (SATARA ZONE)
Day 12 : KRUGER — FULL-DAY RIVER LOOPS (SATARA ↔ OLIFANTS)
Day 13 : SHIFT SOUTH — LOWER SABIE & PHOTOGRAPHIC HIDE
Day 14 : KRUGER → JOHANNESBURG (SHORT FLIGHT OR ROAD) & HOMEWARD CONNECTIONS
Board your long-haul flight bound for Johannesburg. As city lights thin to stars, the outline of your South Africa safari sharpens—Waterberg sandstone ramparts, Limpopo baobabs, and the storied savannahs of Greater Kruger and Kruger National Park.
Travel Notes: Keep power banks, medication and valuables in your carry-on. Hydrate and stretch periodically on the overnight sector.
Touch down in Johannesburg, then drive north into the Waterberg Biosphere, where ironstone ridges and acacia plains glow copper at dusk. After check-in, roll out for a golden-hour game drive: giraffe tilt through thornveld, rhino graze the clearings, and francolin stitch the quiet with evening calls.
Wildlife Focus: Waterberg blends savannah and mountain bushveld—great for rhino, kudu, jackal and raptors riding the updrafts.
Join your ranger at first light for a conservation-led briefing and tracking drive, reading spoor and fresh middens. Rest through the heat, then slip into a discreet waterhole hide—kudu step soft as smoke, jackal ghosts the margins, and a copper sky deepens to violet.
Good to Know: Neutral layers and closed shoes are best; bring a light jacket for cool evenings on open vehicles.
Go on foot with an armed guide to decode the bush’s fine print—termite mounds breathing the earth, dung beetles rolling galaxies, hornbills threading fig shade. This afternoon, opt for a gentle horseback safari along ridgelines for far-flung savannah views.
Optional: Private photographic tuition at the hide; ideal for low-light and animal-behaviour shots.
Arc north into Limpopo—a country of baobabs, sandstone kopjes and long horizons. Arrive to birdsong and warm wind; sundowners catch the Soutpansberg flushing rose-gold.
Travel Notes: Expect 4–6 hours’ road time with comfort stops; keep a scarf for A/C and dust, and water within easy reach.
Trace ochre-toned San rock art panels, then drive to a sweeping river confluence lookout. Binoculars scan for raptors and storks riding thermals; at dusk, a gentle night drive looks for genet and shy aardwolf.
Wildlife Focus: Beyond big game, the Soutpansberg excels for birding—rollers, hornbills, eagles and summer migrants.
Coffee steams beside the hide as kingfishers needle the shallows and purple rollers flash neon. Later, meet a community conservancy to see how grazing plans, craft and tourism sustain wildlife corridors—conservation you can feel.
Good to Know: Bring small notes for locally made crafts; purchases directly support livelihoods at the park edge.
Roll east to a Greater Kruger private reserve. After check-in, your first off-road (ethical) tracking evening sharpens the senses—fresh lion spoor ribbed in sand, elephant shadowing riverine figs, a quilt of constellations forming over camp.
Optional: Upgrade to a sleep-out star deck—netted bed, lantern glow, the Milky Way stitched from horizon to horizon.
Dawn and dusk 4×4 safaris follow a chain of signs—alarm calls, drag marks, a tail’s whisper in grass—and reveal the day’s protagonists: amber-eyed leopard, stately giraffe, a battalion of buffalo kicking dust into late light.
Wildlife Focus: Private reserves offer flexible routing and fewer vehicles—superb for predator behaviour and photo angles.
Feet on earth for a guided walking safari to learn tracks, plants and wind. Midday is for the hide and the passing parade of nyala and warthog; evening returns to the veldt under a sky pinned with stars.
Travel Notes: Soft-soled shoes are best for walks; carry a light daypack with water, hat and sunscreen.
Thread the Panorama Route—Blyde River Canyon, Three Rondavels, cliff-edge lookouts—then enter Kruger National Park near Satara, a mosaic of open plains and marula clusters ideal for big cats.
Optional: Short scenic helicopter add-on over Blyde (weather-permitting) for canyon perspectives.
A full-day Kruger safari works the river loops—elephants crossing like grey islands, hippo churning oxbows, and lions glass-eyed in riverine shade. Picnic breakfast with hornbills for company; sundown hums to cicadas.
Wildlife Focus: Central Kruger is cheetah-friendly country; scan open grass for tails flicking above seedheads.
At dawn, roll south toward Lower Sabie, where riverine forests draw elephants, nyala and a scatter of cats. Mid-afternoon, settle into a photographic hide as oxpeckers fuss and water thickens with reflections; optional SANParks night drive caps the day.
Good to Know: Kruger camps have shops and fuel; keep speed limits and gate times in mind on self-drive sectors.
Ease out of the park after a sunrise loop. A short hop from Skukuza or Hoedspruit to Johannesburg trims transit time (or travel by road), connecting smoothly with your onward flight—head full of tracks, light pooled on waterholes, and the long hush of the bush.
Travel Notes: If flying out of the bush, keep passports and electronics accessible for quick security. Seat the left/right side based on runway views—ask at check-in.
| Start Date | End Date | Price | Note | AVAILABILITY | Booking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, 3 Nov, 25 | Sun, 16 Nov, 25 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 1 Dec, 25 | Sun, 14 Dec, 25 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 5 Jan, 26 | Sun, 18 Jan, 26 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 2 Feb, 26 | Sun, 15 Feb, 26 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 2 Mar, 26 | Sun, 15 Mar, 26 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 6 Apr, 26 | Sun, 19 Apr, 26 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 2 Nov, 26 | Sun, 15 Nov, 26 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 7 Dec, 26 | Sun, 20 Dec, 26 | $7263 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 4 Jan, 27 | Sun, 17 Jan, 27 | $8071 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 1 Feb, 27 | Sun, 14 Feb, 27 | $8071 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 1 Mar, 27 | Sun, 14 Mar, 27 | $8071 | GUARANTEED | Book Now | |
| Mon, 5 Apr, 27 | Sun, 18 Apr, 27 | $8071 | GUARANTEED | Book Now |
Below are similar category, similar price range alternatives to the previously listed properties. Final hotels may vary by date; if substituted again, we’ll match star level and value as closely as possible.
| Region | Hotel / Lodge (Alternative) | Category | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Waterberg | Mabula Game Lodge | 4-star | Classic bush lodge on a private reserve with AM/PM game drives, pool and spa; easy access from Johannesburg. Well-suited to first-time safaris and families. |
| Limpopo (Mapungubwe/Soutpansberg) | Leokwe Rest Camp, Mapungubwe National Park | 4★ equivalent | Stone-and-thatch chalets tucked among sandstone outcrops near San rock art and the famed river confluence; ideal for baobab country and scenic viewpoints. |
| Greater Kruger (Karongwe) | Karongwe River Lodge | 4-star | Riverside suites on a private reserve with ethical off-road big-five tracking, boma dinners and a relaxed, contemporary feel. |
| Kruger National Park (Southern) | Jock Safari Lodge | 5-star | Elegant suites on a private concession inside Kruger with riverbed views, expert guiding and productive predator territory. |
Notes: If any of the above is unavailable, we will propose an equivalent (e.g., Kololo Game Reserve in Waterberg; Madi a Thavha Mountain Lodge in the Soutpansberg; Shiduli Private Game Lodge in Karongwe; or Rhino Post Safari Lodge inside Kruger) maintaining a similar star category and price bracket.
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