South Africa 2017

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12 A day in the game reserve life of a private Top: Elephant at Madikwe Private Game Reserve. Bottom left: Monkey at iSimangaliso Wetland Park; Bush colours; Lionesss in the Kruger Lodges on private reserve include all meals and generally all drinks, both alcohol and soft drinks. The more information you can give the lodge about your clients, the better they will be able to cater to their needs and the more special the experience will be. RISE AND SHINE Morning: After a pre-dawn wake-up call guests gather for tea or coffee in the lodge, before embarking on an exciting safari game drive at sun-up, typically lasting three hours. The early morning is one of the best times to view wildlife and to see predators such as lions on the hunt or elephants seeking out new areas to forage. Open-top safari vehicles generally take a maximum of six passengers, each with an eagle-eyed ranger and tracker who know the reserve well and can spot animals that guests often miss. When a good sighting is made, the rangers in the camp’s vehicles communicate with each other by radio to alert them to animal sightings. This also ensures that the animals are not disturbed by having too many vehicles around them at one time. The limit is often just two vehicles at a sighting. Tea and coffee with snacks are generally served halfway through the safari drive at a scenic location, whether that be by a river filled with hippos or a vantage point overlooking the surrounding bushveld. Back at the lodge, guests enjoy a full breakfast on the deck with views out over the bushveld or forest. Some lodges offer guided walks with rangers, who take guests South Africa’s winters require warm sweaters or jackets for morning and evening game drives, although the lodges also provide blankets and rain capes. Smart clothes are not required for dinner out out into the bush. Not only does this give visitors a chance to experience the game reserve on foot and see the smaller creatures and plant life, it also helps them work up an appetite for lunch. A bush walk is a must do and enclosed shoes are required. Alternatively, guests can just enjoy the facilities of the lodge. Lunch is generally served in a lodge location that overlooks the bush or an animal watering hole. Afternoon: As the day hots up after lunch guests can choose to relax in their rooms or take a dip in the swimming pool, if the lodge has one. Some lodges have rooms that come with their own plunge pool. Afternoons are also a good time to enjoy a massage at lodges that feature a spa. Many lodges offer a high tea, usually served on the deck, from which guests can look out for nearby game on the move. Early Evening: As the sun starts to set and the day cools off it’s time for another game drive in the ebbing daylight, stopping halfway for sundowners – alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages of choice - as you watch the sun set over the Africa bush while listening out for the calls of birds, monkeys and hyenas. Driving through the bush in darkness is a completely different experience, the eyes of nocturnal animals such as prowling leopards or bush babies lighting up in the tracker’s spotlight while overhead the stars shine brilliantly in the ink-black sky. Back at the lodge there is time for guests to soak in a hot bath before dinner. Dinner can be served in the lodge, in the boma (an open outdoor space around a fire pit), or out in the bush. Most lodges rotate dining locations to make things interesting for guests. saspecialist.southafrica.net
13 Find your wild Whether your clients are looking to dive with great white sharks, jump off a decommissioned power station or ride world-cass rapids, there are no shortage of adrenalininducing thrills in every province of South Africa. Tiger tiger: Battle tenacious fighting tiger fish, renowned as the best African game fish, on a two- or three-night luxury houseboat cruise on Lake Jozini in Kwazulu-Natal. Besides fishing, pontoon tender boats take passengers close to the shore for game viewing and bird watching. The prime tiger fishing season runs from September to April. Surf’s up: Catch a ‘supertube’ at Jeffreys Bay in Eastern Cape. Foaming breakers up to three metres high create fast, hollow waves riders can surf through, making it one of the top surfing destinations in the world and attracting surfers from around the globe. Good surfing conditions, produced by strong westerly winds, can be found on approximately 150 days of the year. Fall guys: Soweto’s brightly-painted twin Orlando Towers – actually decommissioned power station cooling towers – offer adrenalin junkies either a 100-metre bungee jump between the towers or the chance to abseili down them. Then there’s the latest extreme craze: the world’s highest SCAD (suspended catch air device) freefall experience sees ‘jumpers’ hurl themselves into one tower before plunging 70 metres down into a to a huge net– and without a harness. South Africa’s blue skies make it an excellent place to skydive. There are ‘drop zones’ close to Cape Town, along the Garden Route, in KwaZulu- Natal and around the Johannesburg area Get cagey: Experience heart-pumping thrills whilst cage diving among great white sharks at Gansbaai, two hours east of Cape Town in the Western Cape. Alternatively, come face to face with ragged tooth sharks at leading KwaZulu-Natal diving spot, Aliwal Shoal, located 45 minutes south of Durban. Going underground: South Africa is not just stunningly beautiful above ground it also has some amazing subterranean wonders to explore. The Cango Caves, 30 kilometres from Oudtshoorn in the Klein Karoo, comprise huge chambers and narrow passageways that can be explored on easy-paced or more or adventurous tours. River fun: The Orange River, South Africa’s longest at 2,200km long, stretches along the border between Northern Cape and Namibia and offers a wealth of adventure for outdoor enthusiasts including guided rafting, canoeing and fly-fishing trips. Tours, which can last from half a day to a four-day expedition, often start in Augrabies Falls National Park or the |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld National Park, which straddles the Namibia border. Both offer adventure tour options. Take a hike: Suggest your clients turn a blind eye to the cable car and hike up Table Mountain instead. The Platteklip Gorge hiking route, which starts a few metres to the right of the lower cableway station, is the most direct route - and the most challenging. Top: Guided rafting on the Orange River. Bottom left: Diving among great white sharks at Gansbaai; The amazing Cango Caves; great surfing in the Eastern Cape saspecialist.southafrica.net
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South Africa 2017

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