DestinationS • July 2016
Four ways to see more of South Africa
Want to visit a variety of destinations on your next trip? A new tailor-made service from British Airways Holidays allows customers to create a multi-destination itinerary, book various hotels and select car hire for any part of their trip. Here The Club shares four itineraries to help you make the most of a holiday in South Africa – whatever your destination
Explore the Garden Route
Fly into: Cape Town
Fly out of: Port Elizabeth
The Garden Route is a spectacular 200km road tracing the shoreline of the western and eastern Cape, conveniently situated between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. The name comes from the verdant vegetation that lines the road.
Pick up a car in Cape Town and spend a few days exploring the area’s vineyards (visit Stellenbosch or Franschhoek to sample the famous rich Pinotage). Then head along to Mossel Bay to pick up the Garden Route. Along the way are lush forests, great lakes and beautiful beaches. The route ends in Plettenberg Bay, where you can stretch your legs by tackling the Plett Trail. From here, hop back in the car and make your way to Port Elizabeth. In a little under three hours you can be unwinding on soft golden sands.
Take a history tour
Fly into: Johannesburg
Then fly on to: Cape Town
Visit Johannesburg to get a feel for South Africa’s rich cultural history. Explore the meandering mines that earned Johannesburg its ‘City of Gold’ tag in the 1880s. The Kromdraai gold mine, in the scenic Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, is like stepping back in time. Head on to Soweto to discover more about South Africa’s poignant apartheid past: visit the former home of Nelson Mandela and look for the blue heritage plaque marking Desmond Tutu, who lived on the same street.
Then fly to Cape Town to take a tour of Robben Island prison where Mandela was held captive. The tour guides are all former political prisoners. While in Cape Town, visit majestic Table Mountain. If you don’t fancy the hike, the Cableway takes passengers from the lower cable station on Tafelberg Road to the mountain’s plateau.
Safari options for everyone
Click the image above to take a tour of the Lalibela Game Reserve and Safari Lodge
Fly into: Johannesburg
Then fly on to: Port Elizabeth
Drive to Hoedspruit in the Kruger Park area and embark on a thrilling safari adventure at one of Limpopo province’s host of game reserves. Kruger National Park is one of South Africa’s most iconic safari destinations, offering everything from ‘family-friendly’ to ‘honeymoon’ and ‘self-drive’ safaris.
Want to get even wilder? Fly to Port Elizabeth for a stay at Lalibela Game Reserve and Safari Lodge. Consisting of 7,500 hectares, it’s home to the ‘big five’, as well as other predators such as cheetah, hyena, jackal and lynx. Book a stay at the Tree Tops Safari Lodge. Luxury safari tents are perched high on thatched platforms, with spectacular views over the thickly wooded valley.
Swap the city for awe-inspiring nature
Fly into: Johannesburg
Then fly on to: Zimbabwe
Explore the best of Africa’s natural and man-made worlds. Start your trip in vibrant Johannesburg, where historic attractions, sensational shopping and world-class dining await, before flying on to Zimbabwe. Here you can experience the spectacle of Victoria Falls, described by David Livingstone as ‘The smoke that thunders’.
Continue to Hwange National Park or cross the border into Botswana and Chobe National Park in search of wildlife. Fly back to Johannesburg and head on to Durban to experience all that the incredible KwaZulu-Natal province has to offer. Gaze at the towering basalt peaks of the Drakensberg Mountains and visit the sobering battlefields and locations featured in the 1964 film Zulu.
The new Customise Your Trip service at ba.com allows customers to create a multi-destination holiday with total flexibility to combine flights in and out of different airports, book multiple hotels and select car hire for any part of their holiday.
This article has been tagged Destination, Travel Tips