Family South Africa Safari & Mozambique Island Escape

Catch the overnight British Airways flight from London Heathrow to Johannesburg, landing at breakfast time tomorrow.

To ease your arrival process after the long flight, you will be met off the aircraft and escorted through passport control and baggage collection, before being handed over to your driver for the road transfer up to the Madikwe Game Reserve. The drive is around 4 hours, so you will arrive at your home for the next 4 nights, Madikwe Safari Lodge where you will be in a family room at their beautiful Lalapa Lodge, built especially for families. Enjoy a late lunch and some time to relax before meeting your guide and fellow guests for afternoon tea and head out on your first game drive – a chance to start spotting Africa’s fabled Big 5.

Madikwe is one of the most beautiful game reserves in all of South Africa, with the deep red soils lending a dramatic hue to your game drives, whilst the Dwarsberg Mountains provide and impressive backdrop to your view of the bush. Few reserves in South Africa offer such diverse and intense game viewing, especially not in the malaria-free environment that makes Madikwe so attractive for families. Lion, leopard, rhino (both black and white), elephant and buffalo – the members of Africa’s Big 5 – can all be spotted here, along with other highlight species such as giraffe, cheetah, wild dog and hyena. Of course, varied antelope can be seen throughout the reserve, along with a huge variety of birdlife. As Madikwe is a private game reserve, night time safaris are a big part of the experience and guides are allowed to drive off-road when faced with appropriate sightings, both of which significantly enhance your safari experience.

Apart from the undoubted luxury the lodge offers, one of the stand-out features of a visit to Madikwe Safari Lodge is the quality of the guiding and safaris for both adults and children. Whilst many lodges do offer family safaris (and very good ones at that) the guides here really take things to the next level, ensuring game drives are engaging and interesting for both parents and children, making for a more wholesome family travel experience. Equally, they can split parents and children of needs be, allowing adults time to relax by the pool or enjoy longer game drives, whilst children have a more interactive learning experience, help to make pizzas or look for bugs with their guides. Of course, plenty of time is dedicated to relaxing, enjoying the sunshine and superb food, warm natural hospitality and engaging staff for which the lodge is renowned.

Enjoy a final morning game drive and breakfast in the lodge before being collected and transferred by road back to Johannesburg. Spend the night in the Southern Sun O.R. Tambo Airport a hotel ideally located for accessing the airport tomorrow and with ample facilities to keep you occupied this afternoon. You can spend this afternoon at leisure unwinding after a busy safari.

After breakfast catch the hotel shuttle back to the airport for the morning flight across to Vilanculos on the Mozambiquan coast and from there it is a boat to Anantara Bazaruto where you will be spending the next 5 nights in this tropical island paradise. The villas are perfect for family life and there are two swimming pools, one adults-only and one family-friendly.

When lounging on the beach, paddling in the sea or swimming in the pool isn’t enough, there are many water-based activities to enjoy at Anantara Bazaruto. At the dive centre you can try your hand at snorkelling, fishing, water skiing and diving. There are also opportunities to see an amazing array of marine life including dugongs, turtles, dolphins and whales.

Sadly, today is time to leave, but not after a final morning relaxing on the beach, after which you will take a boat back to Vilanculos. Connect on to your flight to Johannesburg and then the onward, overnight, British Airways flight to London Heathrow.