Updated - Review below! (Pics added) South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

I just booked a VERY last minute trip with a friend, to South Africa. Leaving on August 11th! Spending part of the time in Cape Town and part in Kruger National Park. Has anyone been? Have any tips, suggestions of things to do and see (we have a bunch of things planned and booked, - Table Mountain, winery, penguins, and I forget what else - but all ideas welcome!)

I'm so excited!!! This has been at the top of my bucket list for so long!

I posted my review below, with a few pics, but a few more are in an album. Can't begin to say enough great things about this trip. I LOVED it sooooooo much!!!!

Added some pics, but can't get most of them to post (too big). Added some more pics to an album

(sorry the review is so long )

And just an FYI - we did get Hepatitis A & B vaccines and took malaria medication. None of it was absolutely necessary, (because we went during their winter, so malaria was not really a concern) but better safe than sorry

Message edited 8/26/2019 2:08:01 PM.

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

No recommendations, but OMG - I am SO jealous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

I’ve been to Cape Town twice. It is amazing. I’ve never been to Kruger. One of my exes was South African.

I did two winery tours. My favorite winery is Simonsig. You need to decide if you want to go to Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, Paarl, or Contantia. I wish I could remember the name of the amazing place I had a great wine, but I can’t. I’m sorry.

Please have lunch at one of the wineries.

Groot Constantia is too commercial. As is Nederburg. Get yourself on a proper wine tour. Don’t forget to drink lots of Pinotage.

I’m not sure where you will be in Cape Town, but the V&A Waterfront offers pretty good food. I have had a few good seafood meals there.

Be very careful of your surroundings. You can run into a bad situation. I had one situation where someone came up to me at my hotel doorstep and got pretty angry after I shooed him away. The other time I was with my ex and he was South African and he was very wary of car jackings.

Table Mountain is beautiful. Do the hike up to the top and explore.

Cape Point is the most beautiful thing ever.

The prison where Nelson Mandela stayed is a great visit. Then you can go and take a boat ride to the seal island.

Definitely visit a township. It’s really important to see this side of SA.

And don’t forget your Afrikaans: Howzit (how are you) and Mooi (pretty, nice) ! Oh and lekker (delicious). Do not use this on non-Afrikaaner.

If you have any questions, let me know.

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

You may need vaccinations to visit, I'd look into that with your quick upcoming trip.

Have a great time!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

You will have a Blast!!!

I would do anything to go back again.
And I did not say that prior to going!!!

We went in October for 15 days; started out in Cape Town and ended up more north for Safari.

I cannot put into words how beautiful Africa is. I cannot put into words how nice and friendly the people are there. Like; I can't even!!! I got very emotional and cried when I left. And I don't usually cry. LOL

Cape Town is just absolutely gorgeous. Their coastline is spectacular! Be prepared to shop!!! Everything in Africa is so cheap. Even the conversion to Rand was super cheap!! While they do take Rand; which we had; they also take US money. After calling a few; I ended up using a credit card that did not charge international fees; and that is what we used mainly for our trip.

We did whale watching in Capetown. WE did see the Penguins. Just Absolutely adorable!

Went to Table Mountain. However, we did not do Kruger. But we weren't far from it.

We went to Stellenbosch; the winery region. Again, absolutely gorgeous! The wine I fell in love with; I found here in the US; so I was ecstatic!

After a week in Capetown; we headed north to Botswana and Zimbabwe for the rest of our tour to do Safari.

I cannot say enough great things about South Africa. You will enjoy every second.

The required vaccinations were Hepatitis, Tetanus and Malaria. Malaria is not really anything to worry about in South Africa. But its advisable to have the Malarone with you anyway. Malaria causes flu symptoms and is easily treatable. Again, not prevalant in SA.

I cannot wait for you to come back to tell us what you thought!

ENJOY! ENJOY! ENJOY!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Posted by tray831


You will have a Blast!!!

I would do anything to go back again.
And I did not say that prior to going!!!

We went in October for 15 days; started out in Cape Town and ended up more north for Safari.

I cannot put into words how beautiful Africa is. I cannot put into words how nice and friendly the people are there. Like; I can't even!!! I got very emotional and cried when I left. And I don't usually cry. LOL

Cape Town is just absolutely gorgeous. Their coastline is spectacular! Be prepared to shop!!! Everything in Africa is so cheap. Even the conversion to Rand was super cheap!! While they do take Rand; which we had; they also take US money. After calling a few; I ended up using a credit card that did not charge international fees; and that is what we used mainly for our trip.

We did whale watching in Capetown. WE did see the Penguins. Just Absolutely adorable!

Went to Table Mountain. However, we did not do Kruger. But we weren't far from it.

We went to Stellenbosch; the winery region. Again, absolutely gorgeous! The wine I fell in love with; I found here in the US; so I was ecstatic!

After a week in Capetown; we headed north to Botswana and Zimbabwe for the rest of our tour to do Safari.

I cannot say enough great things about South Africa. You will enjoy every second.

The required vaccinations were Hepatitis, Tetanus and Malaria. Malaria is not really anything to worry about in South Africa. But its advisable to have the Malarone with you anyway. Malaria causes flu symptoms and is easily treatable. Again, not prevalant in SA.

I cannot wait for you to come back to tell us what you thought!

ENJOY! ENJOY! ENJOY!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

This is on my list, please post all about it when you get back!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

i've also been to Cape Town twice, it is amazing!

i'd add Kirstenbosch botanical garden, Camps Bay beaches (although in aug i'm not sure the temps). Fairview winery is fab, they also do cheese (say hello to the goats).

careful on Table Mountain of the baboons. they can be aggressive. they can also stop traffic to mate

Have a blast!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Posted by tray831

Posted by chilltocam

I just booked a VERY last minute trip with a friend, to South Africa. Leaving on August 11th! Spending part of the time in Cape Town and part in Kruger National Park. Has anyone been? Have any tips, suggestions of things to do and see (we have a bunch of things planned and booked, - Table Mountain, winery, penguins, and I forget what else - but all ideas welcome!)

I'm so excited!!! This has been at the top of my bucket list for so long!

Chilltocam.........August 11th is coming quickly!! How freaking excited are you getting? How long are you there for?

Please post your pics when you get back and tell us everything you loved!!!!

Yay! Yay! Yay!!!
I am really so excited for you!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

How was your trip?? Have any pics?

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Posted by klingklang77

Posted by Diane

How was your trip?? Have any pics?

Yeah, I want a full review!

Re: South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Super long review – but we did and saw so much! AMAZING trip for sure!

Sunday, 8/11 flight was from NY – Johannesburg – almost 15 hours, definitely not fun, but definitely worth it. Then about a 2 hour flight from Jo-burg to Cape Town

Monday, 8/12: Checked into our hotel around 1 pm (I think) – SunSquare Cape Town City Bowl- good location, nice, modern, clean and friendly, helpful staff.

Dropped our bags and headed out. Grabbed some lunch at a local fast food place that had been recommended – Nandos. It was very fresh and good, especially for fast food. Then went to the Greenmarket Square craft market (it closes at 5 pm and we knew this was going to be our only chance to get there. Bought lots of local crafts (I wound up buying so much stuff – not just at the market - that I had to buy an extra suitcase!) It’s definitely one of those places where you have to bargain, but prices are so cheap, that we felt kind of bad haggling over what was really only a few dollars at most.

That night we went to the V&A Waterfront area – an area with pretty views, lots of cute shops, restaurants and bars. Had a nice dinner at Quay 4 – food was ok, but we definitely enjoyed getting acquainted with some South African wines!

Tuesday, 8/13: Had 2 half day tours scheduled – Cape Point & penguins in the morning and wineries in the afternoon. On the drive to Cape Point the scenery was AMAZING – it really is so beautiful there! Drove through Chapman’s Peak, with stops overlooking Hout Bay and Noordhoek Bay. Every turn in the road revealed a more spectacular view than the last. It really was a beautiful drive. At Cape Point the funicular was not operating and our driver (who was a really terrible tour guide – so much so that we wound up getting our money back) told us we didn’t have time to climb to the top (which we actually would have had enough time), so that was disappointing, but nothing we could do about it, so moved on. After leaving Cape Point we went to Boulder Beach to see the penguins! They are sooooooo cute! Loved seeing them in their “natural” environment, from mamas sitting on eggs, to newborns, “teens” and adults. They were just so much fun! Loved watching them waddle around, dive into the ocean, making nests etc. Really something great to see.
Then that afternoon we had a tour of 2 wineries scheduled, in the Stellenbosch region. First stop was L’Avenir – it was a great experience in a beautiful setting. Each place setting for the wine tasting was set with 5 wine glasses and a slate board with 5 different cheeses, in a beautiful “French chateau” style room. The sommelier provided a lot of information about the wines and why each cheese was selected to be paired with each wine. We then had a tour of the wine cellar. It was an overall great experience. We then had to rush to the second winery because the tour guide (same one from the morning) was terrible at timing and planning. The second winery was Marianne – the wines were good, but the overall experience was not because we got there so late and had to rush through everything.
That night we went to dinner at the Taj Hotel (we wound up making friends with a family on the wine tour and that was where they were staying and they invited us to join them for dinner). The hotel was beautiful – at least what we saw of it. It was a lot of fun and the food was very good. We went to the bar in that hotel afterwards and stayed there until we returned to our hotel.

Wednesday, 8/14: My friend that I was travelling with had booked a shark cage diving experience that I did not want to do, so I booked a whale watching tour that included a stop at another winery! The night before, my friend was terrified – not of getting close to the sharks, but of how cold the water was going to be (around 55 degrees!). And even though it was cold, she loved the experience and had nothing but great things to say about it. My tour was a trip to the whale watching boat area, in Hermanus Bay. I was the only one on the tour, which was a little strange, but this time the guide was excellent and provided so much information on the history of S. Africa and the things we saw on the drive to Hermanus (about 1 ½ hours away). We got there early and I had time to walk around the town of Hermanus which is a beautiful little seaside town with cute shops and restaurants and more beautiful views. I did the whale watching tour with Southern Right Charters – we saw about 7 different Southern Right whales during the 2 hour boat ride, which I really enjoyed a lot. Then I had lunch in Hermanus and was off to another winery – the Bouchard Finlayson winery. Again, really enjoyed the wines and the scenery was stunning. On the way back from the winery, the driver stopped at another, smaller area to see more penguins, which I could never get enough of and was so happy to do. After we both returned from our excursions, we went to dinner at a restaurant near our hotel, VIXI Social House – nice atmosphere, very good food and drinks.

Thursday, 8/15: We booked a morning tour of the Townships – it was heartbreaking to see the conditions that people live in, but I’m so glad we saw it. It is something I will never forget and makes me remember how truly privileged and lucky I am (we are) and how little “life” annoyances are really nothing in the scheme of things. During that tour we stopped at an elementary school and were welcomed by a kindergarten class with cute songs and so many hugs and smiles! We brought coloring books/crayons and some candy, that the kids were so excited to receive – loved seeing their smiles. That afternoon we took the cable are to the top of Table Mountain (would have loved to have hiked up, but we didn’t have time). The views from the top are unbelievable! Although we hadn’t timed or planned it that way, we wound up being there for sunset, which was again, AMAZING! That night we went to dinner at a place called Moyo (several locations, we went to the one in Blouberg, about a half hour away). That location is on the beach and they have some outdoor tables made of surfboards that are over little pools so that your feet are in the water when you sit. (It was too cold when we were there, so we sat inside). The food was delicious and the atmosphere of the restaurant was really nice. A woman came around doing little traditional face paintings, so we had that done too.

Friday, 8/16 – Sunday, 8/18: We left for the Kruger area – first a flight to Jo-burg (about 2 hrs) and then from there a 45 minute flight to Hoedspruit airport (which is definitely the smallest airport I’ve ever seen). We stayed at Kapama, which is a private game reserve on the edge of Kruger. Kapama has 4 separate lodges. We stayed at Buffalo Camp which consists of 10 luxury “tents”, so a maximum of 20 people. I cannot begin to describe how much I LOVED it there. Everything about the lodge was beyond amazing. The people. The service, the food and the lodge itself were all above and beyond anything I could ever have imagined. I truly hope I can go back there again some day. Each day, you are taken out for 2 game drives – one from 6:30am-9:30am and the second one from 4:00pm-7:00pm. We saw so many amazing animals – zebra, giraffes, African buffalo, hippos, rhinoceros, elephants, lions, kudu, impala, wart hogs tons of different types of birds – all right there, in front of us at every turn. Definitely one of the most amazing experiences of my life! On one of the days we went to an elephant sanctuary/orphanage. My friend and I were the only ones who went that day and we got to have such close up direct interactions with the elephants – got to feed them, touch them and just be amazed by them! And while we were there, bunches of zebras and wart hogs came walking right up to us because they have learned that some of the elephant food gets dropped on the ground.

Sadly, we had to leave for home on the afternoon of the 18th. It was definitely a trip of a lifetime and one of the few places I’ve been that I would absolutely love to return to (I usually feel that there are so many new places to see, that even if I loved somewhere, I’d want to see something new). I would highly recommend a trip to South Africa for anyone!

Message edited 8/26/2019 11:53:41 AM.

Re: Updated - Review below! South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

View on the drive to Cape Point

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Re: Updated - Review below! South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

View from the roof top bar of our hotel

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Re: Updated - Review below! South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

Penguins!

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Re: Updated - Review below! South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

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Re: Updated - Review below! South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

L'Avenir Winery

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Re: Updated - Review below! South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

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Re: Updated - Review below! (Pics added) South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

WOW...sounds like an amazing experience! Please post pictures when you get a chance.

As I was reading, I was opening new tabs on my laptop to see all the places you mentioned. Everything looks incredible.

Can I ask how you went about booking something like this last minute?
Did you do a package of something or did you research and book everything on your own. Sounds overwhelming if you did it that! lol

ETS: I see you posted pics. Probably as I was reading the review! More please!!! Also how was the weather? I know you said it's winter right now. Was it cold? Or fall like temps?

Message edited 8/26/2019 1:00:35 PM.

Re: Updated - Review below! (Pics added) South Africa - Cape Town & Kruger National Park

awesome! Thanks for sharing.