Description
14 Day Coast & Karoo; Backpackers Tour
This tour starts and ends in Cape Town
High-lights
Table Mountain, Cape Point Np, Elgin Zipline, Arneston Caves, Plettenberg Bay, Ocean Safari, Tsitsikamma, Addo Elephant park, Oudsthoorn, Cango caves, Ostrich farm stay, Route63, Franschhoek wine tour.
Optional Activities while on tour (Own Cost)
Great white shark diving, Sky-diving, Black water tubing, Bungi Jumping, Canopy Tour Tsitsikamma, Adventure Caving Cango Caves and much more. Your guides will have a full list of all the activities.
Day 1 Cape Town
Arriving at the Cape Town airport your guide will meet you; from there we will make our way to our place of stay. Once settled in your guide will inform you about the tours and all that is included in the tour.
Late afternoon we make our way to table mountain. With its spectacular views over the Cape this is the start of your tour.
Meals: Dinner (Restaurant)
Accommodation: Backpackers
Day 2 Cape Peninsula
Today starts off with an early morning breakfast where after we make our way to Cape Point National park. This is where the two oceans meet. Indian and Atlantic Oceans. From here we make our way down to Boulders beach where you can observe the Penguins that make this awesome place their home.
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Accommodation: Backpackers
Day 3 Cape Town to Arniston
Leaving the Cape behind us we make our way to the fishing village of Arniston. We stop off along the way and our first activity for the tour starts in Elgin. This I one of the best ziplines in the world and lasts around 3 to 4 hours.
After finishing the zipline we make our way down to Arniston for the night, arriving late afternoon
At first only a fishing community, Arniston has become a holiday destination and its hinterland a region for viticulture. The fishing village, characterized by its lime-washed and thatched houses, remains unspoiled and has been declared a national monument in its entirety. Fishermen still go to sea in boats of the style that would have been familiar to locals in the early nineteenth century, although now under contract to larger commercial enterprises. Whale watching is a popular tourist activity.
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Accommodation: Self-catering Lodge
Day 4 Arniston
Today is a day where we will explore the surrounding parts of the south coast in the Arniston and Cape L’guhlas.
Our day starts off with a hike down to the caves where the once stranded explorers lived in. This may change as we need a low tide to go down to the caves. So we may do it later on that day depending on the tide. We will also visit the fishing village and the harbor where the fishermen do their business.
We also visit the most Southern Point of Africa in Cape L’guhlas and explore the surrounding towns.
Meals: Breakfast & Dinner
Accommodation: Self-catering Lodge
Day 5 Arniston to Knysna
Leaving Arniston after breakfast we make our way inland for a bit and then take the road over the pont that crosses the breederiver, and then from there we do a short stop off in Witsands before heading towards Knysna. Once on the main road we stop of Mossle bay and then make our way to Knysna.
Accommodation: Brenton on sea cottages
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Day 6 Knysna to Plettenberg Bay
After a late morning start we visit the coast town of Knysna and also the surrounding parts of the garden route. You guide will also drive you to the Eastern heads where the sea meets the estuary that makes Knysna such a spectacular coastal town in the garden route. From here we make our way to the Garden Route Elephant park for a short tour before moving onto the coastal town of Plettenberg Bay
Set along the spectacularly scenic Garden Route in South Africa, the coastal town of Plettenberg Bay is a popular holiday destination. The Portuguese explorers called it the ‘Beautiful Bay’, and it’s easy to see why – Plettenberg Bay is a picturesque, charming town with endless pristine beaches, tranquil lagoons, clean rivers, indigenous forests and a dramatic rocky peninsula. Playground to the wealthy, beach mansions overlook the Indian Ocean, often dotted with luxury yachts, while leisure time is given over to polo and golf, among other things. However, all kinds of visitors will feel at peace here as simply swimming in the warm water on a safe beach is a great way to experience the beauty of Plettenberg bay
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Accommodation: Backpackers
Day 7 Plettenberg Bay
After a late morning the guide will take you down to the beach where you’ll meet up with the guides and the people from Ocean Blue safaris for your day our on the ocean. Once you have everything needed and after everything about the ocean safari has been explained to you, we make our way out to sea. This will take you into the bay and also along the way you may see seal and in the months of June through to August Plettenberg bay has the Southern right whales visiting the coast to give birth and also breed.
Accommodation: Backpackers
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Day 8 Plettenberg Bay to Tsitsikamma National Park
Today is a short driver to the Tsitisikamma national park, so there is time to explore the area. We visit the Birds of Eden and also Monkey Land which is situated on the road to Tsititsikamma. We also stop of at the worlds highest bungi jump bride and also do a canopy tour in the forest before going down to the national park.
When Tsitsikamma National Park was established in 1946, a marine protected area was also incorporated along the 80km of coastline. This was the first marine national park in Africa. Worldwide this is one of the largest single unit Marine Protected Areas with a ‘no take’ policy that includes fishing.
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Accommodation: Tsitsikamma National park
Day 9 Addo Elephant reserve
Leaving the Tsitsikamma after breakfast we make our way to the addo elephant reserve. The afternoon you will have the opportunity to explore the park and your guide will have also booked you an open vehicle game Drive for the evening.
The original park has subsequently been expanded to include the Woody Cape Nature Reserve that extends from the Sundays River mouth towards Alexandria and a marine reserve, which includes St. Croix Island and Bird Island, both breeding habitat for gannets and penguins, not to mention a large variety of other marine life. Bird Island is home to the world’s largest breeding colony of gannets – about 120,000 birds – and also hosts the second largest breeding colony of African penguins, the largest breeding colony being St. Croix island. These marine assets form part of the plan to expand the 1,640 km² Addo National Elephant Park into the 3,600 km²
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Accommodation: Addo National Park
Day 10 Graaf – Reinet
After an early morning game drive in the Addo, you can enjoy a few hours and relax and enjoy a late morning breakfast. Once departing from Addo we make our way up to the small town of Graaf – Reinet. The afternoon we will visit the Camdeboo National park.
Camdeboo National Park was proclaimed as South Africa’s 22nd National Park under the management of South African National Parks on Sunday 30 October 2005. It covers an area of 194 square kilometers.
The Park is located in the foothills of the Sneeuberge, or Snow Mountains, with an elevation of between 740 and 1480-metres above sea level.[1]
Following an extensive process of negotiation and discussion between government, conservation groups, and concerned stakeholders, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, announced the intention to proclaim South Africa’s 22nd National Park in the area surrounding Graaff-Reinet. This was made possible by the World Wide Fund for Nature in South Africa (WWF-SA), which donated the 14500 hectare Karoo Nature Reserve to be the centrepiece of the project.
A public consultation process was followed to decide on the new name for the park, culminating in the choice of Camdeboo National Park.
The Karoo Nature reserve was established in 1979 when the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the World Wildlife Fund recognised the urgency for conservation measures in the Karoo biome and listed this action as a world conservation priority.
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Accommodation: Lodge
Day 11 Oudtshoorn
Leaving Graaf –Reinet we make our way through the Karoo, your guide will stop off at one or two of the small towns along the way for a break. Once in Oudtshoorn we make our way up to the Cango gave in time for you tour in the caves
Located along the well-known Route 62 in South Africa´s beautiful Klein Karoo, the charming town of Oudtshoorn is known as the ostrich capital of the world. It is surrounded by numerous ostrich farms and the golden arid landscape of the Karoo. Visitors can enjoy the locally produced wine and port; sample ostrich meat and biltong; learn about the ostrich feather boom at the C.P. Nel Museum; and visit the world-renowned Cango Caves, the largest cave system in Africa featuring ancient rock formations and sparkling stalactites and stalagmites.
Optional activities for the morning (Own Cost)
Other popular activities include: mountain biking, paragliding, horse riding, and taking a day trip to the quaint town of Prince Albert over the scenic Swartberg Pass.
Accommodation: Lodge
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Day 12 Robertson
After a late morning and once everybody is back from the mornings activities we make our way down Route 62 to Robertson for the night. Once in Robertson you have some time to relax after a busy mornings going on’s
Breede River Valley
Situated in the spectacularly scenic Western Cape Province, the Breede River Valley is home to some of South Africa’s greatest wine producing areas. The partially navigable river offers the unique prospect of wine tasting while cruising along its calm waters. This picturesque valley is peppered with a handful of quaint farming towns including Robertson, Ashton, Bonnievale, McGregor, Tulbagh and Montagu. It falls along the incredibly popular Route 62, which is said to be one of the longest wine routes in the world. Soak up the magnificent views of majestic mountains meeting fertile plains swathed in vineyards; sample a wide variety of delicious local wines and immerse yourself in the relaxed country atmosphere.
Optional activities: Other popular activities include: canoeing, fishing and hiking.(Own Cost)
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner
Accommodation: Lodge
Day 13 Franschhoek
After a later morning and still time to do some of the activities in the area we depart for the small town of Franschhoek.
Later today your guide will have booked you on a Tram wine tasting tour to end of your holiday. Franschoek is a spectacular place to enjoy an afternoon wine tasting at some of the wine farms that are on offer with the tram tour.
Franschhoek’s original inhabitants are the Khoisan peoples, who continue to live in this place.
In 1688, French Huguenot refugees began populating the valley establishing farms and businesses bringing with them their experience in agriculture. The name of the area soon changed to le Coin Français (“the French Corner”), and later to Franschhoek (Dutch for “French Corner”), with many of the settlers naming their new farms after the areas in France from which they came.[3] La Motte, Champagne, La Cotte, Cabrière, La Provence, Bourgogne, La Terra de Luc and La Dauphine were among some of the first established farms
Accommodation: Lodge
Meals: Breakfast and Dinner (Restaurant Dinner)
Day 14 Cape Town international Airport
After a relaxing morning your guide will drive you through to the Capet Town international airport for your flights back home or to your next destination.
Meals: Breakfast
What’s included in the price:
- Transport
- Services of a driver/guide
- Meals as specified in the itinerary
- Activities specified in the itinerary
- Accommodation as per itinerary
What’s NOT included in the price:
- Flights, visas (if required), personal travel insurance (compulsory when travelling with Bluechilli)
- Meals & drinks not specified in the itinerary
- Items of a personal nature
- Gratuities
