Stunning South Africa and the Garden Route

Our home for 3 nights in Cape Town was the Southern Sun Waterfront – a 4* modern hotel with a lovely bar, pool, 2 restaurants and within walking distance to the V&A Waterfront. They do offer a regular free shuttle service which we used each day finishing at 11pm. We used the hop on hop off city bus service – this is a great way to get around. We used it to get to Table Mountain (tickets were included and definitely recommended to book in advance); expect queues during high season. We also took the bus down to Camps Bay too. I booked a full day to visit Stellenbosch and Franschoek including 3 wine tastings – highlight being the running of the ducks at one of the vineyards!

On Day 3, we collected our car which had GPS so the city was easily negotiated – plus you drive on the right-hand side so no difficulty there! First stop, Betty’s Bay (less commercialised than Boulders Beach), a natural penguin habitat. Then a stunning drive down to Hermanus where we spent 2 nights self-catering at the Windsor Hotel, a fabulous cliffside location. We enjoyed the many restaurants (Char’d and Bientang’s Cave are highly recommended) and dolphin and whale spotting here! Being close to Gansbaai, I booked a great white shark diving experience with Marine Dynamics – these are the experts and we had an incredible up close and personal cage dive!

Continuing along the N2, after a 4 hour drive along the most spectacular scenery, we arrived at Wilderness, a lovely seaside town. Just a quick overnight here, before driving towards Plettenberg Bay. We had a Skydive on the agenda, but unfortunately this was cancelled due to high winds. So we stopped at Bloukrans Bridge which is the highest bungee jump in the world. An incredible sight and you can have a cup of tea whilst watching from the bridge!

Our next 2 nights were at the very special Hog Hollow – a beautiful and peaceful lodge hotel, set overlooking the Tsitsikamma Mountains with breath-taking views. As our son is 16, we had booked 2 adjacent lodges. Welcome glass of bubbles, canapes before group dinner, our rooms had tea/coffee, biscuits and popcorn and NO TV... FABULOUS! To end the night, they leave a bedtime story book on your pillow and the following morning after a scrummy hot breakfast you wake to find your car has been cleaned!

Here, we also visited the Elephant Sanctuary at The Crags. I wanted to see for myself what this interactive experience offered and if it was ethical to sell on to my customers. I was not disappointed, the elephants are all orphaned or rescue, their dedicated handlers were so happy and enthusiastic to show us around their night shelter and forest area. We had a ‘hand in trunk’ walk and were able to feed these gentle giants and learn about the anatomy, touching their huge feet and bristly tails.

We ended our African adventure with 3 nights at the 5* Pumba Private Game Reserve. Just a 3.5-hour drive from Hog Hollow, we wanted to arrive for the 430 game drive. After an unusual drive down a dirt track for a few miles, we left our car for the duration at the main entrance, were welcomed with a drink and taken by jeep to our lodge. Pumba is one of the most highly rated safari destinations in the world, let alone in South Africa and we could see why. I had booked the family chalet, Bush Lodge side, which consisted of a private entrance hall leading off to 2 separate rooms, both with glass enclosed lounge area, huge bed, roll top bath, shower (inside and out!) with a huge wrap around balcony with plunge pool overlooking the spectacular savannah. Perfect. This is an all-inclusive resort and both rooms had fully stocked bars, with beers, wine, chocolate and treats. The Bush Lodge here has 11 luxurious chalets and the Water Lodge has 12. Both lodges each have their own restaurant, bar and lounge.

Our game drives were at 0630 and 1630 each day. On the morning drive we had a mid-safari stop for hot chocolate, tea or coffee (with a dash of Amarula!) with flapjack and melon. In the evening, we stopped for G&T, wine or beer with wraps and biltong. One of the good things about Pumba was that the ranger who takes you out on each game drive is the same throughout, so you get to know each other well and crucially they know what animals you have seen and have yet to see. The jeeps are sparsely occupied so everyone has a fantastic view and these guys are experts in tracking and tracing the countless animals in such a huge open expanse. Our ranger Denise was super interesting and full of information. Highlight was seeing the beautiful and rare white lions, a herd of elephants up close and a baby hippo just weeks old! In between game drives, you can indulge in the Spa and also take part in Archery, Bird tracking, Fishing and Star Gazing which are included.

Breakfast is served on the game viewing deck and then a 3-course fine dining meal is served in the main restaurant, before you retire to the fire-pit under the stars to relive your exciting adventures.

A sad farewell on our final day, we drove 90 minutes to Port Elizabeth airport, a short connection to Jo’burg, then onward to Dubai and back to Newcastle. With only 2 hours time difference there is no jet lag even though it is a long flight.

The South African roads are easy to navigate, wifi was everywhere and a lot of hotels also have English plug sockets. The people are friendly, however always observe safety rules – do not wander around the city at night (use Uber), keep valuables close, don’t drive the N2 at night (due to wildlife wandering!) and please tip where you can. It is a very poor country and you will see miles of shanty towns along the way.

Overall, it is one of the best holidays we have ever had, the landscape is absolutely stunning, the food and drink incredibly cheap. The best time to visit for decent weather is from November to April. We encountered dassie, penguins, lizards, baboons (on the road!) and on safari there were the famous white lions, cheetah, hippo, rhino (with baby), vervet monkeys, giraffe, elephants, wildebeest and warthog to name a few.

Please get in touch if this amazing destination is on your bucket list!