Activities in South Africa
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Aquila Game Reserve Wildlife Safari from Cape Town
10 hours (Departs Cape Town, South Africa)
by Viator
Visit the incredible Aquila Game Reserve -- the closest game reserve to Cape Town – on this full-day safari tour! With hotel pickup from your central Cape Town…Not LP reviewed
from USD$232.02 - All activities
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Clifton Beaches
Giant granite boulders split the four linked beaches at Clifton, accessible by steps from Victoria Rd. Almost always sheltered from the wind, they are top sunbathing spots, despite the lack of local facilities. Local lore has it that No 1 and No 2 beaches are for models and confirmed narcissists, No 3 is the gay beach, and No 4, the busiest, is for families. If you haven’t brought your own supplies, vendors hawk drinks and ice creams along the beach, and you can hire a sun lounge and umbrella.
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Circe Launches
Although increasingly given over to tourism, Hout Bay’s harbour still functions and the southern arm of the bay is an important fishing port and processing centre. From here you can catch a boat to Duiker Island (also known as Seal Island because of its colony of Cape fur seals, but not to be confused with the official Seal Island in False Bay). Three companies run cruises daily, usually with guaranteed sailings in the mornings. The cheapest, with a none-too-spectacular glass-bottomed boat, is Circe Launches; the others are Drumbeat Charters and Nauticat Charters.
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Spier
There’s something for everyone at this mega-estate, a major sponsor of the arts, which offers golf, horse riding, a cheetah-conservation project, a performing-arts centre, beautifully restored Cape Dutch buildings and several restaurants, including the spectacular if somewhat cheesy African-themed Moyo. Its wines have improved over the years, and in the tasting room you can try lots of other vineyards’ wines. There’s also a good hotel, the Village at Spier.
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Cradle Nature Reserve
About halfway between Pretoria and Johannesburg is the Cradle Nature Reserve, a more upmarket take on the wildlife experience, with wildlife walks and drives, and palaeontological tours. Home base here is the Cradle Restaurant, offering international cuisine, a cocktail bar, a log fire in winter and one of the best restaurant views in the country. Accommodation is offered in charming self-catering thatched cottages at the Forest Camp.
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Grande Provence
A beautifully revamped 18th-century manor house is home to a stylish restaurant and a splendid gallery showcasing the best local artists. In the tasting room you can try the very easy-drinking Angel Tears blends or the flagship Grande Provence red (tasting R50). The Jonkershuis lounge (used for meetings and conferences) is worth a look, and if you really want to push the boat out, the luxurious Owner’s Cottage is available to sleep in.
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Gold Reef City
Gold Reef City has one foot in the past, but this time provides a light-hearted and reasonably rip-roaring take on gold-rush Jo’burg. Ninety per cent Disneyland clone, this theme park only offers a token nod to historical authenticity, but provides ample means for filling a spare afternoon, especially if you have kids in tow. It features scary rides, a Victorian fun fair and various reconstructions, including a bank, brewery, pub and newspaper office. Visitors can watch a gold pour, and see an entertaining program of ‘gumboot’ dancing, a traditional miners’ choreographed dance. There are numerous places to eat and drink, plus the Gold Reef City Arts & Crafts Centre and an…
reviewed
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Lion Park
Near Lanseria airport is a Lion Park where you can see rare white lions as well as the boring regular kind. The main attraction is the opportunity to feed giraffes or to play with baby lions at Cub World.
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African Story
Full-day tours led by Bruce Story including wine, cheese and chocolate tastings at four wine estates in the Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Paarl regions.
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Shakabarker Tours
Shakabarker Tours operates out of St Lucia and conducts a range of excellent wildlife tours, including a chameleon tour.
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Greyton McGregor Trail
A day of hiking in the majestic fynbos-clad Riviersonderend Mountains, between Greyton and McGregor.
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Taste of Africa
Offers something different from the zoolike township tours. It offers tours where you can explore Soweto on foot or by minibus with a local guide, hang out with locals in a shebeen, and visit areas far from Soweto’s beaten tourist track for a more authentic experience. Staff can organise rooms in guest houses in less-visited parts of the township as well as shack accommodation (R100 per night).
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Siviwe Tours
As well as regular walking tours, English- and Spanish-speaking Siviwe Mbinda offers two-hour bicycling tours around Langa (R180 if you get yourself to Langa, R300 if Siviwe comes to pick you up). In his spare time he’s helped local kids form a gumboot dance troupe, which he can arrange to perform.
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City Sightseeing Cape Town
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Queer Johannesburg Tour
Run on the first Sunday of the month by the Gay & Lesbian Archives of South Africa at Wits University. Gay or straight, the tours offer a fascinating insight into gay Jo’burg, taking you deep into the heart of Hillbrow and Soweto, and providing plenty of background on the role homosexuality played in the gold mines and the struggle against apartheid. Tours start at 9am, last four hours and cost R300 per person.
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Imbizo Tours
Specialises in tours to Jo’burg’s gritty townships, including shebeen tours and overnight township stays, and it also offers a one-day Mandela’s Struggle Trail tour through Gauteng.
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4WD Trails
The longest and most established of Kruger's 4WD trails is the Lebombo Motorised Eco Trail, a rough, rugged 500km 4WD route along the eastern boundary of the park, departing from Crocodile Bridge and ending at Pafuri. The trail lasts five days and costs around R4900 per vehicle (maximum of four people per vehicle). You'll need to provide your own vehicle, food and drink (it's completely self-catering).
Only five vehicles are permitted at a time on the trail (plus the vehicle of the ranger who accompanies you). Book well in advance through central reservations. There are also four shorter trails, all averaging about four hours, and costing around R460 per vehicle plus an…
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Groot Constantia
A superb example of Cape Dutch architecture, Groot Constantia is set in beautiful grounds. Not surprisingly, it can become busy with tour groups, but the estate is big enough for you to escape the crowds, if needs be. In the 18th century, Constantia wines were exported around the world and were highly acclaimed; today you should try its sauvignon blanc and pinotage.
As you approach the estate the large tasting room is first on your right. Further on is the free orientation centre, which provides an excellent overview of the estate’s history, and the beautifully restored homestead, now a museum. The interiors have been appropriately furnished; take a look at the tiny slave…
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Wilderness Trails
Kruger's wilderness walking trails are one of the park's highlights, and a major attraction of the Southern African safari experience. They are done in small groups (maximum eight people), guided by highly knowledgeable armed guides and offer a superb opportunity to get a much more intimate sense of the bush than would ever be possible in a vehicle. The walks are not particularly strenuous, covering about 20km per day at a modest pace, and are appropriate for anyone who is reasonably fit.
The itinerary of each walk is determined by the interests of the group, the time of year and the disposition of the wildlife. Most wilderness trail walks last two days and three nights,…
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Solms-Delta
In its current incarnation, Solms-Delta has only been a business a blip compared to some of its venerable neighbours, but it’s already producing eight wines including the delicious Solms-Astor Vastrap and eminently quaffable Cape Jazz Shiraz, like a lambrusco but not so cloying. Vines have been grown on these lands for over 300 years and the farm’s history is set out in the estate’s Museum Van de Caab, in the original wine cellar. This remarkable museum tells the story of the Delta wine farm from the perspective of the people who worked and still work on it – the presentation of extensive research is excellent. Outside you can see the archaeological site of the farm’s…
reviewed
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Boschendal
Tucked beneath some awesome mountains, this is the classic Winelands estate, with lovely architecture, food and wine. Note that the Taphuis wine-tasting area (where tastings cost R15, or R25 for a formal tasting with a guide) is at the opposite end of the estate from the Groot Drakenstein manor house and restaurants. Its reds, including cabernet sauvignon and merlot, get top marks. The blow-out buffet lunch (R240) in the main restaurant is mainly a group affair. Far nicer, especially in fine weather, is Le Café, where you can have a snack or something more substantial. Also very popular are ‘le pique nique’ hampers (adult/child R135/59, minimum two people) served under…
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Lesedi Cultural Village
Off Rte 12, the Lesedi Cultural Village is a very cheesy and touristy (but fun) experience. You’re taken on a journey through Xhosa, Ndebele, Pedi, Zulu and Sotho cultures, touring their traditional villages to see an approximation of the traditional way of life, with plenty of dancing and singing along the way. You get to eat an African feast at the restaurant, visit a shebeen or lapa, and you can even stay the night in one of the villages in pretty swish, very nicely decorated huts. The full ‘African Experience’ costs R500, or you can opt for lunch or dinner only (R350) or just the show (R220). Kids under 12 years are half price. It’s a good idea to book, especially…
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Klein Constantia
Part of the original Constantia estate, Klein Constantia is famous for its Vin de Constance, a deliciously sweet muscat wine (R330). It was Napoleon’s solace on St Helena, and Jane Austen had one of her heroines recommend it for having the power to heal ‘a disappointed heart’. We can’t guarantee that, but we can say that while Klein Constantia doesn’t offer the frills and bonuses of other wineries, it’s still worth visiting for its excellent tasting room and informative displays. Also try the riesling, sauvignon blanc and marlbrook, a classic Bordeaux-style blend. At the estate’s entrance, pause to look at the karamat (saint’s tomb) of Sheik Abdurachman Matebe Shah; he…
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Wildlife Drives
Early morning, sunset and night Wildlife Drives depart from Twee Rivieren, Nossob, Mata Mata and Kalahari Tented Camp. These can be booked at the lodges, and are the only guided drives in the park. We recommend trying at least one of the wildlife drives when visiting the park. They take place in 20-seater open vehicles and you have a better chance of spotting animals, especially the big cats, when accompanied by a trained ranger. At least four people are needed for a tour to depart.
Tours that include wildlife drives can be organised from Upington.
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Oude Molen Eco Village
The only organic farm within Cape Town’s city limits, and a showcase for sustainable development, can be found at the Oude Molen Eco Village. This is only one of the several grassroots-style operations occupying this once-abandoned section of the buildings and grounds of the Valkenberg mental hospital. You can volunteer to work at the farm through the Willing Workers on Organic Farms scheme, as well as stay at a backpackers lodge called Lighthouse Farm Lodge, go horse-riding with Oude Molen Stables or eat at the excellent café and farmstall Millstone.
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