Walking South Africa

Head to the international airport and board your overnight flight to Johannesburg. On arrival you will check into a hotel close to the airport and rest before your 14 day walking adventure.

On arrival make your way to Rivonia Lodge, where you will stay overnight and rest before your 14 day walking adventure.

You depart Johannesburg, stopping at sights like Pilgrims Rest and God's Window viewpoint, before arriving in the late afternoon at Graskop Mogodi Lodge where you will stay for two nights in a twin bed chalet with an en suite bathroom. The lodge has amenities like a pool, bar, and restaurant. On your first full day, after the lodge's breakfast, you take a long canyon rim hike along the Blyde River, returning for a group-prepared lunch. You spend the afternoon exploring forests and waterfalls. Dinner is provided by the lodge. On your second day, after another lodge breakfast, you check out and continue your Mpumalanga journey.

After an early breakfast make your way to Kruger National Park. You enter the national park in an open safari vehicle and spend the day on an exciting game drive, as you hope to see elephants, rhinos, and possibly the elusive leopard. You stop for a picnic lunch before completing your game drive in the late afternoon as you exit the park and make your way to Makuwa Safari Lodge in the Greater Kruger area. You will stay two nights in a twin room with en suite facilities. A highlight of your tour is the early morning game walk the next day with a local ranger. Quietly you venture into the bush, learning the tracks and other signs of the wildlife you hope to find on foot.

You enter the Kingdom of Eswatini, passing lush farms before reaching the mountains. You spend 2 nights on the outskirts of Malalotja Nature Reserve, with a full day to hike through the seldom-explored mountains to a beautiful waterfall. This challenging 4-6 hour hike has uneven paths and steep sections. The Swazi people have a rich culture, so you visit craft and medicine markets on day 7 in Mbabane. You stay in mountain chalets with en-suite facilities at Hawane Lodge. The lodge provides breakfast and dinner. After 2 nights, you continue your journey through eSwatini’s mountainous countryside.

Crossing into South Africa you will head towards Zululand Lodge in the private game reserve. En route, you will enjoy game drives in Mkhuze Game Reserve and watch the wildlife from a secluded hide. The following morning visit a key rhino conversation area in the Hluhluwe Game Reserve. In the late afternoon you will walk through the lodge conservancy which is home to over 540 species of birds. You will spend two nights at the Zululand Lodge in a permanent tent with an ensuite.

You leave the Zulu bushland, passing scenic hills and valleys where Zulus, British, and Boers battled. In Dundee, you visit the informative Talana Museum before settling into your lodge. The next day you explore the Isandlwana battlefield then hike for 4-5 hours, tracing the steps of British fugitives through Zululand hills to Buffalo River. Later you see Rorke's Drift. You spend 2 nights at Bella's Rest Guesthouse in twin rooms with en-suite facilities. Breakfast is provided, you prepare picnic lunches, and dinner is at your own expense at local restaurants.

You witness the grandeur of the Drakensberg or "Barrier of Spears" Mountains. Staying overnight at the mountain base (alt. 1600m), you spend a full day hiking the trails before taking an invigorating swim in the clear streams of Royal Natal National Park. The next day you continue exploring the crisp mountain scenery. You spend 2 nights at Thendele Chalets in the park, with twin/double en-suite rooms. The lodge provides breakfast on the first day, while the group leader will help you make the remaining meals. After refreshing in the mountain splendour, you continue your journey from the Drakensberg.

Start the day with an early breakfast and make your way to Witsieshoek at the foot of the magnificent Sentinel peak. At the end of a rough gravel road you will start your trek (which includes a short chain ladder section) to the top of the Drakensberg Amphitheatre and the beautiful Tugela Falls with unparalleled views down into KwaZulal-Natal. After the walk you will make your way to the Witsieshoek Mountain Lodge (the highest lodge in the Northern Drakensberg) where you will stay in a twin room with an ensuite.

After a leisurely start to the day, with the chance to spot the endangered bearded vulture soaring above you will make your way back to Johannesburg. The tour ends at 5pm, where you will be driven to the airport, ready to catch your overnight flight back to the UK.

Land the following day feeling refreshed and healthier, with a whole album's worth of pictures of South Africa's beautiful landscape.