The month of the trip – November 2023
“I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up and was not happy” ~Ernest Hemingway, Green Hills of Africa.
Africa is what every wildlife enthusiast’s childhood dreams are made of. Those hours of watching National Geographic and the Discovery Channel, those thrilling stories of naturalists and conservationists in magazines, and, offcourse, the love of the movie Lion King. Everything points to only one continent — the only one that is at par with Asia in being mysterious in its unique way.
South Africa is the perfect country to get a taste of the continent, especially for African newbies like us. Undoubtedly, it was in our top 5 countries list for a long time. The more we researched, we found that it had something for everyone – from land-based wildlife to extensive marine life, from museums to art galleries, from vineyards to botanical gardens, from hiking trails to clubs and shopping hubs, from bunny chow to grilled Hoek and Brai! We couldn’t ask for more and found this to be perfect for our month of break from the office.
South Africa has a well-developed tourism infrastructure and is not overly expensive for young Indians. It was an easy and relatively inexpensive DIY trip. SA is a vast country with exciting experiences every step of the way, and planning a trip can become overwhelming quickly. So, we decided to go with the best (top sights and overviews) for our first trip. We broadly divided it into two parts –
- Western Cape Coast
- Kruger National Park
South Africa is certainly a ‘big-gish’ country. This is in no way a comprehensive itinerary. On our first trip, we wanted to cover what was on top of our list ONLY, just so we could relax yet deal with FOMO in the healthiest way possible :D. As usual, our main focus was luxury birdwatching, ie.. enjoying the sights, experiences, and culture along with birding without too much hustle. ‘Self drive’ is the best way to explore both these parts of this country at our own pace, so that’s what we did – and that’s what all our adventure was all about!
Itinerary for 30 day trip to South Africa
**This includes adjustments of days which, in retrospect, would have improved our trip.
*Kruger National Park = KNP
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Total = 30 days
03 days – Cape Town
Cape Town is a really sprawling city, with suburbs stretching across the mountains and hills of the country’s southernmost edge. The geography of this land is what makes this town a very unique and beautiful place to be. On one side the majestic Table Mountain and it’s siblings tower over the city and on the other side it’s the vast blue Atlantic Ocean. In every direction that you see, marvelous sights await to be absorbed and clicked. We have not included any hikes, as they can be time and energy-consuming and should be kept for your subsequent trips to Cape Town when you have already seen the top sights – unless offcourse hiking is the top interest.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Visit Table Mountain
- Visit Company Garden and South African Museum
- Explore V & A waterfront and the Two Ocean aquarium
- Walk around Sea point promenade and multiple white sand beaches
- Go Kayaking in Atlantic Ocean to see the local dolphin pod
Where to Stay: Studio 44
Where to Eat: We made dinner and breakfast in the apartment. Lunch was usually one of the cafes/restaurants around the place we were exploring. Each site has an eating place within it’s premises.
How to move around: Booking an UBER for each trip is the best bet. It’s safe and lets you avoid parking and traffic problems. It’s readily available in all tourist destinations. If there is no time restriction, buying a day passes for hop-on / hop-off ‘Red Bus’ is a good option.
Where to buy ticket: All (or atleast most) tickets/passes can be booked online. Cable car running and weather status for Table mountain visit too is available online to plan your trip better.
Read the full description of our days in Cape Town here and our trip to Table Mountain here. V & A and aquarium – here and Gardens and Museum here and here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
02 days – Hout Bay
Hout Bay is a cozy little suburb of Cape Town, just 30 minutes drive east of Cape Town’s city center. Formerly a Manganese mining town and now a small charming fishing harbour town sprawled on the valley of Table Mountain National Park is perfect for a short stay away from the chaos of Cape Town. Geographically, it’s in a cove on the Atlantic coast sectioning off a small bay. The cove is guarded by Iconic Sentinel Peak on one side and Chapman’s Peak on the other side.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Visit Kirstenbosch botanical garden
- Go Snorkelling with Fur Cape seals (try spotting Buffel, the lone elephant seal)
Where to Stay: Brightwater Lodge
Where to Eat: We had dinner and breakfast in the apartment. Lunch was usually one of the cafes/restaurants around the place we were exploring. Each site has an eating place within it’s premises. Best place to try fried Hake! (Fish on the Rocks) (Fynkos)
How to move around: Booking an UBER for each trip is the best bet. It’s safe and lets you avoid parking and traffic problems. It’s readily available in all tourist destinations. If there is no time restriction, buying a day passes for hop-on / hop-off ‘Red Bus’ is a good option.
Where to buy ticket: All (or atleast most) tickets/passes can be booked online. Tours can be booked from their websites.
Read the full description of our day in Hout Bay here and our trip to Kirstenbosch botanical garden here. We realised it much later that visiting gardens from Hout Bay is much easier than from Cape Town.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
02 days – Simon’s Town
Simon’s Town is a port town on the eastern side of the Table Mountain National Park on the coast of False Bay. It is a suburb of Cape Town and can easily be reached in one hour. It’s a quaint little town with one of the most mesmerizing coastlines lined with tidal pools, white beaches, yacht clubs, and fishing villages. While driving from Hout Bay to Simon Town its best to go around Cape of Good Hope and explore the region for the whole day. Then stay the night at Simon’s Town.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Visit Cape of Good Hope and national park around it.
- Visit the African penguin conservation center.
- Go for Phelagic birdwatching tour.
Where to Stay: Boulder Beach hotel
Where to Eat: We had dinner and breakfast in the apartment. Lunch was usually one of the cafes/restaurants around the place we were exploring. Each site has an eating place within it’s premises. (Cape Point Food Shop)
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet.
Where to buy tickets: All (or at least most) tickets/passes can be booked online. Tours can be booked from their websites.
Read the full description of our day in Simon Town here aloong with our phelagic birding trip. Our trip to Cape Point & Cape of Good Hope here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
02 days – Hermanus
Hermanus marks the (unofficial) beginning of the Overberg region of South Africa. It’s the first big town beyond the Hottentots-Holland mountains which run sort of parallel to Table Mountain Range but on the eastern side. The cliffs of Hermanus around Walker’s Bay make it very easy to spot huge whales chilling or breaching from land and that’s what makes Hermanus unbeatable whale-watching capital of the world.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Walk the Cliff Path and spot some whales from shore
- Go on Whale watching tour
- Go for Shark watching tour (Gansbai)
- Go birdwatching in saltpans
Where to Stay: Oude Schuur Boutique Guesthouse
Where to Eat: We had dinner and breakfast in the apartment. Lunch was usually one of the cafes/restaurants around the place we were exploring. (Fusion Restaurant)
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet. Hermanus Dassie is a Hermanus-based transport/taxi service.
Where to buy tickets: All (or at least most) tickets/passes can be booked online. Tours can be booked from their websites. Cliff Path is free!
Read the full description of our days in Hermanus here, along with our whale watching trip and our brief visit to Gansbaai.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
01 day – St’ Agulhas
St’ Ahulhas is the true southernmost point of the continent of Africa. This unassuming, non-touristy, super windy, rocky beachfront is where the cold Atlantic Ocean (Benguela current) meets the warm Indian Ocean (Agulhas current). This mixing and merging makes it one of the best places to go fishing. But it is the worst place to be on a boat or ship. Very frequent rogue waves occur here, and the ocean is quite shallow and rocky. Irony huh? It’s a graveyard to approx. 130 ships in the past.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Click picture on the ‘actual’ southern most tip of African continent
- Deal with the most harsh wind, straight from Antarctica.
- Birdwatching opportunities in farmlands en route to and from St Agulhas is divine.
- Coastal walk around southern most point
Where to Stay: Unfortunatly, we never stayed in St Agulhas but were very close to booking a room in Cape Agulhas Guesthouse. That’s aperfect recommendation
Where to Eat: We din’t eat anything during our roadtrip as it was getting too late. We only munched from our picnic basket. Though there are multiple eateries in the area.
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet.
Where to buy tickets: Free of cost!
Read the full description of our drive to and through St Agulhas here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
02 days – Wilderness
Wilderness is a small beach town less than 30 mins beyond George. It consists of an essential market complex or town center close to the beach in the valley and residential houses sprawled over the surrounding Outeniquea Mountains. Touws River splits the town. Its branch, Serpentine River, connects it to Island Lake (It’s the first of the series of three big lakes in the area). The area around the lakes and the hills around the town are all part of Wilderness Nature Reserve. It’s not a usual stopover for usual tourist so enjoy the quiet and sleepiness of Wilderness.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Excellent birding near Ebb and Flow rest camp, along Touws River.
- Drive to Map of Africa and peep into gardens and farms on the way for birding off course!
- Take the loop around the hill and lakes for some fruitful birding.
- Visit FairyKnow bird hide and surrounding areas along the Serpentine river
Where to Stay: Wilderness Lake View Self-Catering – A bit away from town center but close to the beach and overlooking island lake. These cozy apartments are owned by the warmest host we we have ever met.
Where to Eat: We had dinner and breakfast in the apartment. Lunch was usually one of the cafes/restaurants around the place we were exploring. (Blue Olive Restaurant)
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet.
Where to buy tickets: Free of cost!
Read the full description of our stay in Wilderness here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
02 days – Plettenberg Bay
Plettenberg Bay is a high-end tourist town famous for surfing waves and hosts many international championships. The town also often hits news due to unfortunate Shark attacks. :/ . Just be careful and be where the lifeguards are. Unfortunately, we were tired after our continuous driving and maybe a bit under the weather and decided to not do any outdoor activities. Plus, we had kept only 1 day here, we strongly suggest 2 days. ANyway, following were very much in our itinerary.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Hike on Roberg Nature Reserve (its Fur seal vs Great white shark activities have been featured in BBC’s Planet Earth) – It’s totally worth the effort.
- Visit one of the largest aviaries in the world – Birds of Eden
- Check out the surfing scene at the beach
- Check out Conservation center for birds of prey
Where to Stay: Castleton Plettenberg Bay
Where to Eat: We had all meals in the apartment.
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet.
Where to buy tickets: All (or at least most) tickets/passes can be booked online. Tours can be booked from their websites.
Read the full description of our stay in Plettenberg Bay here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
01 day – Port Elizabeth
Gqeberha, formerly Port Elizabeth was our last stop on this epic coastal road trip from Cape Town. Its a long straight road between Pettenberg Bay and Port Elizabeth but it passes over very deep and very beautiful gorges and river deltas. The beaches of Port Elizabeth are great for beach combing. Strong currents often deposit marine plants and animals on the beach. This city has some of the best beaches as well as a very big harbour which can accommodate huge ships.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Hiking to Storms River suspension bridge, Tsitsikama National Park. (Enroute)
- Get a photo with Bloukrans Bridge, and if you dare – bungee jump from it! (Enroute)
- Walk the Beach road at sunset and spot Dolphins and whales very close to shore.
Where to Stay: Town Lodge Gqeberha. We stayed here and it suited our purpose to crash for a night and had airport transfer. But i would like to mention, its an old-ish hotel with old-ish looking interiors. For us, it dint bother.
Where to Eat: De Kelder Restaurant
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet.
Where to buy tickets: All (or at least most) tickets/passes can be booked online. Tours can be booked from their websites.
Read the full description of our stay in Port Elizabeth/Gqeberha here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
Visiting Kruger National Park truly gives you a special understanding of why so many South Africans make this trip a cherished tradition every year, almost like a heartfelt pilgrimage. The excitement of staying alert and searching for wildlife and birdlife for 12-13 hours—sometimes alone—through its vast forests and grasslands quickly becomes an addictive adventure. That adrenaline rush from unexpected sightings and extraordinary moments is unlike anything else; it’s something words can hardly capture—I’ve tried and fallen short! While guided safaris are fantastic, there’s a unique magic in exploring on your own and getting lost in the beauty of KNP. Spring and summer are wonderful times to see babies, chicks, and cubs, but be prepared for the midday heat. Autumn and winter generally offer more pleasant weather for your adventure.
Johannesburg is a well-connected metropolitan city. You can directly fly in here if you want to skip the West Coast bit of this itinerary. According to this itinerary, take a domestic flight from Port Elizabeth > Nelspruit (almost all flights go via Johannesburg as a layover). From Nelspruit, we hired another self-drive car and drove to the Malelane Gate of Kruger National Park. We need to show our accommodation and safari bookings to get a permit at the main gate. No fee required.
03 days – Berg en-dal (SouthKNP)
Things to do in your first trip –
- Walking the Rhino Trail clearly marked inside the Rest camp.
- Do birdwatching as well as small nocturnal and herbivorous wildlife watching within the camp.
- Visit Matjulu water hole during sunset. S120 & S114 along with the strech between Berg en-dal and Afsal Picnic spot.
Where to Stay: BA3 .
Where to Eat: Rest camp restaurant. However, the above-mentioned cottage is equipped with a kitchen, and the restcamp shop has all the basic groceries. Afsal Picnic spot is also a great option for a quick lunch/coffee.
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet. Early Morning, afternoon, and after sunset safari rides in a camper truck can be booked through SAN Park website.
*All bookings and info can be gathered via SAN Park website.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
03 days – Satara (CentralKNP)
Things to do in your first trip –
- Walking the Inner Perimeter Walk clearly marked inside the Rest camp.
- Do birdwatching as well as small nocturnal and herbivorous wildlife watching within the camp. Checkout the Amrula trees.
- S40, S12, S100 & N’ wanetsi – Satara – Orpen roads, along with the stretch between Satara and Skukuza.
Where to Stay: We had booked BG2. But I would recommend you book BD2 as that comes with a kitchenette. However, if i remember correctly, none of them have interior kitchen, its in the front yard.
Where to Eat: Rest camp restaurant. Skukuza has several restaurants, and it’s where the headquarters are, so it has all the fancy stuff. Nkuhlu Picnic area & Tshokwane Trading Post & Picnic Site is also a great option for a quick lunch/coffee.
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet. Early Morning, afternoon, and after sunset safari rides in a camper truck can be booked through SAN Park website.
*All bookings and info can be gathered via SAN Park website.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
03 days – Letaba (CentralKNP)
Things to do in your first trip –
- Walking the Riverside camp walk clearly marked inside the Rest camp.
- Visit the Elephant Hall
- Do birdwatching as well as small nocturnal and herbivorous wildlife watching within the camp. Cicadas can be LOUD!
- Spend time on Letaba bridge, S94 & S131 roads, along with the stretch between Letaba and Oliphants.
Where to Stay: We had booked BG2U. It had great location. BUT I think the rest camp in under renovation, so perhaps check latest info before you book.
Where to Eat: Rest camp restaurant. However, the above-mentioned cottage is equipped with a partial kitchen, and the restcamp shop has all the basic groceries. Oliphants rest camp restaurant has an outstanding vantage point.
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet. Early Morning, afternoon, and after sunset safari rides in a camper truck can be booked through SAN Park website.
*All bookings and info can be gathered via SAN Park website.
**Beware of Tuskers North of Satara, they are bigger than anything you have seen before.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
02 days – Punda Maria (NorthKNP)
Things to do in your first trip –
- Check out the inhouse hide overlooking the waterhole within the Rest camp.
- Do birdwatching as well as small nocturnal and herbivorous wildlife watching within the camp. Punda Maria is popular as the best birding destination in Kruger.
- Spend time in Pafuri picnic site. It’s serinity and variety of birds is extraordinary.
- Checkout Crooks corner! and huge Baboa trees.
- The loops around the restcamp- S99 loop & Klopperfontain loop are good to explore.
Where to Stay: We had booked BG2. Punda Maria is the first camp constructed by the SA rangers in 1919, and this particular accomodation were the ranger barracks. Even though they are renovated and modernised, the orignal barrack feel is still present. The whole camp is uphill, thankfully, BG2 is close to the restaurant and lowest in elevation. It has a semi-kitchenette.
Where to Eat: Rest camp restaurant. However, the above-mentioned cottage is equipped with a partial kitchen, and the restcamp shop has all the basic groceries. It has Pafuri picnic site on one side, but it has no food options. Shingwedzi rest camp on the other side, whose restaurant has an outstanding view of the river with good food. BUT keep in mind Punda Maria is extremely isolated, and there are long stretches of grasslands with scarce traffic between Punda Maria and other rest camps/picnic sites.
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet. Early Morning, afternoon, and after sunset safari rides in a camper truck can be booked through SAN Park website.
*All bookings and info can be gathered via SAN Park website.
**Beware of Tuskers North of Satara, they are bigger than anything you have seen before.
Read the full description of our visit to Kruger National Park here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
We exited Kruger National Park from Punda Maria Gate.
01 day – Polokwane
Polokwane is a perfect stop over from Punda Maria Gate to Johannesberg. We took R81 based on what Google map showed us. This road runs parallel to the western boundary of Kruger National Park, and we were heading south on it. Other alternate is N1, which I am sure is far better. But we enjoyed our chosen route. We were here only for 1/2 a day but we made most of it!
After sleeping in rest camps for 2 weeks (nothing to complain about!) It was nice to splurge a little and enjoy some urban comforts. Polokwane is a giant industrial town but is also famous for its football stadium, built during the FIFA 2010.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Polokwane Game Reserve is a great choice to explore.
Where to Stay: Park Inn by Radisson , close to the highway and with excellent comforts.
Where to Eat: We had all meals in the hotel.
How to move around: Driving a hired car is the best bet.
Where to buy tickets: All tickets/passes can be booked online. The Game Reserve is quiet empty most times so tickets can be bought on the spot too.
Read the full description of our brief stay in Polokwane here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
03 days – Johannesburg
Johannesburg plays so many roles in South Africa. It’s historical, political, geographical, demographic, and financial importance looms over this sprawling and flourishing metropolitan. It was also going to be our exit point back to India, so we decided to stay close to the airport and, after our suburban wildlife-watching endeavours, surrendered the car and booked an UBER to explore the city sights.
Things to do in your first trip –
- Rietvlei National Park is located on the borders of Pretoria and Johannesburg.
- The Union Buildings in Pretoria (enroute)
- Apartheid museum is one of the top sights, and is extremely heart-wrenching.
- Mahatma Gandhi’s estate
- Cradle of humankind
Where to Stay: Holiday Inn was our usual go-to choice
Where to Eat: We had most meals in the hotel. Rietvlei National Park has an outdoor café. It’s perfect for a quick meal with the best views. Even the Apartheid Museum has a cafe in its premises.
How to move around: Take UBER into the city. Driving a hired car is the best option for suberbs and intercity travel.
Where to buy tickets: All tickets/passes can be booked online. The Game Reserve is quiet empty most times so tickets can be bought on the spot too.
Read the full description of our brief stay in Johannesburg here.
Go up to the itinerary summary.
Map of roadtrips –
https://maps.app.goo.gl/patUsYimju4QUfFc7
https://maps.app.goo.gl/SXPSC4uZnxsXwxLW9
Some pointers before you book your South African adventure –
- November in the southern hemisphere marks spring, nearing the end of whale watching season on the whale coast, and the start of bird migration and courtship in Kruger National Park. Our trip began at the whale coast and ended in Kruger to experience both wildlife movements. We chose an open-jaw trip, flying into South Africa via Cape Town and departing via Johannesburg, a circuit reversible for autumn and winter.
- Flight tickets are always the first thing to book once our base travel plan is ready. From India, flying to and from Johannesburg is cheaper than flying to Cape Town. The process is straightforward, check here to know latest norms and cost.
- The best way to explore is by hiring a car and self-driving. We used Uber in big cities like Cape Town and Johannesburg; ensure you have enough money in your Uber account or exact cash, as drivers rarely have change. For long-distance travel, we rented a car or took a domestic flight. Fuel, driving rules, and services are similar to India, and Indian licenses are accepted. We chose AVIS for car hire, and their service was excellent.
- Always look at the road while driving. I mean literally on the road. The animal density is much higher than India in this country. It is unbelievable how many times we say random tortoise crossing the road.
- All entry tickets/permits are available online here with easy digital payment options. Buy wildcards before you book any national park permit/stay. Wildcard owners get a waiver on the conservation fee while booking national park permits!
- During our trip, we were never lost. We found a lot of information on where we were going and what we need to do online as well as offline. I have a habit of pickup free pamphlets everywhere. This gives me a more accurate info about a lot of things/maps/phone numbers etc..
- It’s always good to hire a guide but if time/money etc.. is a restraint like us downloading audio guide apps like Voice map is really helpful. Specially in places like Table Mountain.
- Keep emergency numbers handy on phone and paper. Research snake bite info and latest contacts online. Hotel owners may also have this info, so ask them beforehand.
- Birdwatching is a thrill in South Africa and buying some books and apps is recommended to help ID your spotting. Book are readily available in souveneir stores.
- SA has a major powercut problem. Download electricity app – ESP “EskomSePush” to get alerts for powercut in your area beforehand.
- Tap water is not trustworthy for drinking without boiling in SA. Especially due to frequent power cuts. Better to buy a big bottle of water from the supermarket before road trips, etc.
- We are very proud of our flexibility when it comes to food abroad. We are able to eat everything/ anything available and have no apprehensions as long as it tastes good. We can confidently state that we did not have any problem in that category during our trip to SA. All restaurants we went to were great, but due to budgeting and time restrictions, we did try cooking some meals in-house, and we were easily able to find all the needed ingredients in neighbourhood grocery/super markets. Shoprite, Woolworths, Pick’n Pay, and SPAR are popular chains of supermarkets found everywhere. They do not keep hard liquor and beer, though. For that, we used to visit Tops (a side store of SPAR). In KNP, the restcamp/picnic spot stores are well equipped with general groceries and meats as well as beer and other liquor. Having said that, let me emphasise that we were not shopping for typical Indian cuisine ingredients. Only general groceries and western/local cuisine stuff.
- We found Internet to be patchy outside cities and certainly in KNP. Offline maps were lifesavers.
- M-type electricity converter is for Indians visiting SA. Especially for KNP, I recommend carrying an extension cord with multiple sockets in it for the trip. Sometimes there was no other electrical plug in the room apart from AC socket. We requested guys at the SAN park reception for a voltage downgrading plug so we could connect our multi plug and charge our camera battery etc..
- SA , atleast the places we went is a card centric economy. We did not find anyone preferring cash. We were not aware of this and took extra cash, which we bought back almost unused. Forex card/Credit card is way to go! I think only in the northern parts of KNP once there was an internet disruption and the restaurant manager accepted cash as the card machine did not work. The only other place we used cash was when we tipped KNP safari / tour guides.
- Tips are mandatory in restaurants and taxis.
- Buying a local sim cards is always beneficial and its easy to get at the airport. We bought one MTN sim at capetown airport which I used during the trip and Sunny activated his international roaming on Vodafone (Vodacome in SA). Signal strength was good through out. Although its worth mentioning that Vodafone/Vodacone had some signal in KNP throughout even if it was a bit patchy but MTN gave up entirely. Thankfully there was wifi everywhere.
- Our SA trip was the first one where we explored the idea of getting laundry done abroad. Either our homestay had the option of inhouse laundry or the community one was close to where we were staying. I think it was a good idea and most comfortable. It enabled us to pack only a couple of clothes for a month-long trip across varying temperatures. Even in KNP the self-laundry was excellent
- Airport authorities in South Africa came to us as a bit of a surprise. Maybe because we had not been to USA till then. 😀 . I admit that most problems were because of our own misunderstanding of baggage rules. Our overall baggage was under weight but per piece weight was not balanced as per rules. SO we ended up paying thousands of Rands for it during our domestic flights. ALL the domestic flights! This broke our budget by a big chunk. Later we also observed that they were not allowing even tiny bottles or jars of moisturisers/creams in handbag—even 100 ml of water. Thank god there we dint have any problems.
- It was funny that cart shopkeepers and store cashiers could identify that we were Indians and called us to their cart using hindi terms and spoke to us about Bollywood. Even the UBER drivers surprised us multiple times talking about their wives and daughters watching hindi soaps on tv. Hurrah! to India’s soft power and Indian diaspora in SA.
- We are not very big souvenir shoppers but we like to pickup any unique handicraft piece that we see and lies in our budget. In SA we saw a lot of tribal handicraft sold by the tribals themselves. Very much like our own. We also did a lot of beachcombing 😀
- During our month in SA, we felt safe and welcomed, but we heed warnings based on horror stories and recommend common sense and alertness while travelling. Outside the cities, the country is very much safe. Whether in India, Cape Town, Paris, or New York, behave like a humble yet smart tourist, avoid dark corners during exploration, and know what areas are safe. While some daylight crimes do happen, most are avoidable. We took UBERS at all times when in the city, carried little valuables stuck to main roads, avoided dangerous areas, retired before darkness and did detailed research to stay safe.
” All I wanted to do now was get back to Africa. We had not left it, yet, but when I would wake in the night I would lie listening, homesickfor it already. ” ~Ernest Hemmingway, Green hills of Africa.
Hope this blog has inspired you to plan your trip to South Africa when (you are) on a break!.
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