I have just returned from the most fabulous trip to South Africa and Zambia and would really highly recommend going to both areas.

We spent 5 nights in Cape Town and stayed at The Southern Sun Cullilan which is a lovely hotel about 10 minutes walking distance from the Victoria and Albert water front. Cape Town is a wonderful place and there is so much to do. We did not hire a car but had a private guide called William who took us to all the main sights and we did exactly what we wanted to do at the same price as the organised tours. From Cape Town you can do many excursions and visit many places. We visited Hermanus as I wanted to see the whales. We also saw the penguins at Boulders bay, a really beautiful sight. Another must is Cape Point which is a huge national park but stunning. Another place we visited was Stellenbosch which is a beautiful and historical little town on the Wine route. There are so many different ways to do South Africa if you have the time and although we did not drive the roads, cars are perfectly safe. The V&A Waterfront is really lovely with lots of restaurants and boat trips to do if you so desire. The steaks were the best I had ever tasted and so well priced also.

We then went on a 3 night safari to Kareiga, a Safari lodge in a malaria free zone. It is a beautiful place, only very small but you do see lots of wildlife; in total we had 6 game drives and saw animals such as lions, elephants, hippos, giraffe, water buffalo, wildebeest, lots of birds and more. And, the guides were excellent in spotting animals. Our accommodation was lovely with its own plunge pool, ideal for honeymooners or couples. The food at our lodge was fantastic, always 3 courses and because we were on an all inclusive basis our drinks were also included. The evenings were mainly spent having our evening meal and then just sitting and chatting to our guides and fellow guests exchanging animal stories.

Next stop was Zambia for 4 nights and we stayed at The Thorntree Lodge which is on the Zambezi River. It is very small with only 9 rooms but I really loved this property as you got a real feel for being out in the bush with the wildlife. The people are very friendly and because it is so small you get to know everyone. We had some wonderful meals exchanging stories and looking at pictures of what everyone had done, and hippo watching!

On our first night we did a sunset cruise and we saw lots of birds and hippos in the river popping up their heads and fighting with each other. We went to Livingstone Island where Livingstone first saw the Victoria Falls and we had lunch and a tour of the island with wonderful views of the falls. I swam to the edge of the falls into a pool called Devils Pool, very scary but the photos look fantastic and I was so proud of myself. My husband also did a micro light flight over the falls or you can also do a helicopter ride. On another day we walked to the falls and saw them from different viewpoints and there was the most wonderful rainbow over them. I also did an Elephant Safari where you ride on the elephants for about an hour and get to know them; these had been saved from various awful situations in Zimbabwe. I also did ‘Walking with the lions’ where you spend time with some lions watching them play and slumber and you do actually get to walk with them and stroke them. It is all part of a conservation scheme to reintroduce them back into the wild into Zambia, very well done as I cannot stand the thought of animals being used just as a tourist attraction. Also, our lodge included a game drive so again we got to see more animals such as elephants, giraffe, water buffalo and many more.


If you want a holiday that is very interesting, really well priced and with lovely people then go to South Africa. It is also well worth adding on Zambia as it did not cost a lot more and I would not have missed this part for anything.