South Africa

[Lu Lu]

I was wondering if anyone here has been to South Africa and might be able to offer some tips for how to even begin to plan a holiday.

I feel very very confident planning anything to the States but anywhere else in the world I feel lost and every time I google something I get more confused. What I really need is a forum like the Dibb for South Africa!

We might be looking at going next summer (2021) and would like to incorporate a safari, maybe wine tour, see Cape Town and maybe even Sun City but not sure where to start. Might it be best to go to speak to a travel agent about it? Thinking Trailfinders?

[Flower2603]

Hi, I lived in SA for a few years and went back to Cape Town last year.

Don't forget our Summer is their Winter, although, it's not as cold as here, it gets very cold at night and first thing in the morning.

Sun City is fun, a couple of nights will do. There is a few good safari lodges next door at the Pilanesburg, you will see giraffes, elephants, lions if you're lucky.

Cape Town has lovely beaches but the water will be really cold if you're going during their Winter.

Johannesburg has a lot to offer too, it's close to Sun City, so if you fly in to Joburg, they have Lion and Rhino park, an elephant sanctuary, a couple of others worth a visit too. They have Monte Casino which is a great visit. Rosebank is very trendy with markets and the like, Sandton City shopping is worth a visit. The food is amazing and the people are extremely friendly. Soweto has tours now with hotels and restaurants, Nelson Mandela's home is a fantastic visit.

There is the Garden route, vineyards down by Cape Town and further up is the Kruger.

A country with so much to offer. I'd do my research on the places I'd like to visit first, look at flight prices and include a car, it really is so difficult to get around without a car, although they have uber now in Cape Town. Robben Island is a great visit, book early as it does get booked up and can change last minute if the seas are rough is don't book for your last day, in case you need to change it.

I'd try and do it myself TBH I think you'd save a lot of money.

[princessnicki]

I agree with the above poster, my husband is South African and the places mentioned are where he would suggest to go if he ever went back. I would definitely do your research especially with how unsafe a lot of the country is. The places mentioned above such as Cape Town, Sun City are ok though. The weather is beautiful out there now if you could go in our winter

[Lu Lu]

Thank you both. I agree doing ourselves will give more flexibility but also will be much cheaper but I am worried as it is completely different to anywhere we have been before and I am concerned about safety so the risk averse part of me wants a planned tour type thing.

All your suggestions sound really exciting - we'd need to be selective about what to book in!

I was wary about going in August because of the weather - what are average daytime temps? We always take our main holiday at the end of August and it would be weird changing that but we could consider Easter time instead.

[Omega1]

We've been to SA five times but we always book flights, car hire and accommodation ourselves. We have stayed in some delightful B&Bs and the owners are really helpful with local info eg best restaurants, places to visit and places to avoid. We have never had any safety issues and felt safe everywhere we have been - there are areas of our local cities here in the UK that we wouldn't go in to day or night! Being informed is the key to staying safe.
The southern area of the western and eastern cape is our favourite place - Cape Town (Hout Bay), Franschhoek, Hermanus, Knysna and Plettenburg. Beautiful scenery, excellent food and wine and friendly people. Franschhoek is our favourite spot in the world - the food and wine are unbeatable, lots of high end restaurants but not stuffy. Last time we were there we had a meal at Richard Branson's winery (Mont Rochelle) the meal was £54 inc a bottle of wine - it was the dearest meal we had the whole holiday. I have to say it probably wasn't the best meal we had, but it was very good and the setting is sublime.
Driving is easy (on the left) roads are quiet and driving standards are as good, if not better, than the UK.
We've done safaris on the Eastern Cape - private game reserves which were good but expensive. The best game viewing we had was on a cool, rainy day in the Kruger where we did a self drive game drive (£36) and saw lion, hyena, hippo, rhino, giraffe, zebra, buffalo and many more - but no leopard. It was an amazing day.
My advice would be not to overthink the safety issues but take advice and be vigilant - there's a massive difference between being risk averse and risk aware.
We've never seen the attraction of Sun City - why go to a manufactured resort when the real, beautiful Africa is on your doorstep? Similarly, Johannesburg is not my favourite city - that is the only place my safety alert was in full swing.
The Drakensburg Mountains are fabulous and last time we were there we did a 4x4 trip over the Sani Pass into Lesotho (Google it).
We're planning our next trip for Jan 21. Go for it!

[Lu Lu]

Thank you all, will do some reading on your suggestions x

[Lu Lu]

Last question - for now.

I know the temperatures can get low in August but is it a good time of year to go otherwise? The only other time of the year we could probably go whilst our kids are still in school is Easter but temps don’t seem much higher then. We can’t get 2 weeks in over October or December at the moment.

I don’t mind it being slightly cooler as long as we see some sun!

[Guest]

It is a long time since my trip, but I went very early September and it was fabulous weather wise. I would have no qualms about going in August. I didn’t explore the whole country, I flew to Cape Town, did some day trips from there like Stellenbosch and Cape of Good Hope, then we hired a car and drove the Garden Route. I would have liked to have gone to Kruger but I was in my 20s and couldn’t afford it.

Other than the first few nights in Cape Town, I didn’t book any accommodation, just drove and rolled up anywhere looking for rooms, it was not peak season and there were plenty. The dining and wine were also all done on the fly and were excellent. Would like to go back with DH one day but he is not keen.