The Eastern Cape is a lovely area that is malaria free. Visitors will travel through greatly varied terrain from the lush coastal areas to the dry beautiful Karroo. You will have beautiful views of the Indian Ocean and will be able to walk on the spectacular beaches. You will have the opportunity to view the Mountain Zebra which has been brought back from the verge of extinction and also Addo Elephant Park where you will view elephants in their natural environment.

Day 1:

We will meet you at the Port Elizabeth airport. We will travel to Tsitsikamma National Park. This is spectacular with indigenous evergreen forests. There are a number of activities that visitors undertake. We take the Woodcutters Journey and a boat ride up the Storms River Gorge. The first night will be spent at the Tsitsikamma Lodge.

Day 2 - 3:

Travel to the Addo area where we visit the Addo Elephant National Park. Here visitors will see wild elephants up close and there will be numerous photo opportunities. There are also many other antelope species to be viewed and photographed in the reserve. Additionally we can arrange horse rides and hiking on the many trails throughout the reserve. Depending on the size of the party, we will be staying at the Valley View Bed and Breakfast or the Zuurberg Mountain Inn. We will dine at one of the numerous quaint little restaurants where cuisine is of a world class.

Day 4:

Today we will travel to the Karroo in the Graaf Reinet area, to visit the Valley of Desolation, Karroo National Park and the town of Graaf Reinet, with its numerous museums. Then on to the town of Nieu-Bethesda to view the famous Owl House. This is now a museum but was the home of Helen Martin, who was a recluse artist. She had an assistant Koos Malgas and they worked together to filled the house and grounds with creative colored glass and cememt sculptures. Most of their work was conducted at night. This evening we will be staying as Bloemhof, a country mansion built at the turn of the last century. This is country hospitality at its very best.

Day 5:

We will visit the near by Mountain Zebra National Park to view and photograph the rare Mountain Zebra which have been brought back from the verge of extinction. We will also view other species of game unique to this area such as Black Wildebeest, Red Hartebeest, Eland and Cape Buffalo. There is some interesting bushman (san people) rock art to be seen in this area and we can hike to the area to view this ancient art. We will again spend the night at Bloemhoff.

Day 6-7:

We will travel today to one of the following big five private reserves. At the private reserve, we will have the opportunity to view and photograph: Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Rhino and Cape Buffalo.

• Shamwari
• Schotia
• Amakhala

All of these areas provide luxury accommodations and excellent cuisine.

Day 8:

We will awake early and share our last breakfast together and review the highlights of the tour. We can visit some curio shops where you will be able to make some last minute purchases of local treasures for yourself and your friends at home. Lastly, we will bid you farewell as you are returned safely to the Port Elizabeth Airport for your flight back home. Though this is defined as an 8 day tour, there are so many additional activities in the area that it can easily be extended to additional days.

Port of arrival and departure: Port Elizabeth