Eastern Cape Safaris

The second largest province in South Africa, The Eastern Cape has long been renowned for its private game reserves close to the principal town of Port Elizabeth, and these are a great reason to visit. Shamwari is perhaps the best-known of these, offering superb game viewing and the chance to visit the Born Free Foundation, which looks after predators previously held in captivity across the world. Continuing the conservation success story of the area is the beautiful Samara Game Reserve, sitting in the heart of the semi-desert area of the Great Karoo and currently in the midst of a major animal relocation project which is seeing big game returned to the area for the first time in over 100 years. Many visitors also like to visit Addo Elephant Park, just outside Port Elizabeth, on a tailor made Eastern Cape Safari holiday.

For history buffs, the area is home to some interesting battlefields sites as the Frontier War was fought here between the indigenous Xhosa people and the European settlers. Less-celebrated than the battle sites in KwaZulu-Natal, these are nonetheless fascinating areas to visit with some superb historians based in the town of Graff-Reinet to show you around.

The coastal areas are also well-worth a visit, with some pleasant seaside towns found in the more Westerly part of the province, including the surfing mecca of Jeffreys Bay and the quaint St Francis Bay and Cape St Francis. Whilst not an overly captivating town, Port Elizabeth has some good hotels for overnight stays and is well-connected to the rest of the country by air. Heading East, the area known as The Wild Coast has some amazing coastal scenery and plenty of walking trails, so we can offer trips of between 4 and 10 days rambling along the stunning coastline.