South Africa Walking Safari to Kruger & Zululand

Day 1 - 2: Mpumalanga - South Africa

This South Africa Walking Safari begins with a tour briefing at 06:30 am in Johannesburg and then we head east into the Mpumalanga Province.

In the afternoon we visit the gold mining town of Pilgrims Rest and stop at the God's Window viewpoint overlooking the Lowveld. From here we will take a leisurely stroll to Mac Mac Pools, before making our way to our accommodation near the escarpment. We stay in en-suite chalets, at a lodge with a pool, bar, restaurant and telephone.

On day two, the morning is spent exploring the Blyde River Canyon, one of the most scenic areas of South Africa. We set off on a moderate hike that takes us down the rim of the canyon, offering scenic views of the Three Rondavels and the Blyde River. Blyde River Canyon is the second largest canyon in Africa, after the Fish River Canyon. It is quite possibly the greenest canyon on earth, due to its dense subtropical vegetation. Mpumalanga is a spectacular destination and, after lunch, we spend the afternoon rambling through the forests, admiring the waterfalls in this beautiful setting.

There is an option of taking the Graskop Gorge Lift, which lowers you down for a walk through the lush Afromontane forest below (own expense).

• Breakfast on Day 2/Lunch on Day 1 & 2/ Dinner on Day 1 & 2
• Overnight: Lodge, en-suite, swimming pool, bar, restaurant
• Includes: Entry to Gods Window, Mac Mac Falls & Blyde River Canyon
• Walk: Mac Mac Falls, 2-3 km (leisurely), Blyde River Canyon (moderate)
• Travel: 400 km, about 6 hours excluding stops

Day 3 - 4: Kruger National Park & Greater Kruger - South Africa

After an early breakfast, we head for Kruger National Park today, where we spend the day game viewing. We drive south through the wilderness, going in search of an abundance of wildlife, including the Big Five - lion, leopard, rhino, buffalo and elephant. Look out for giraffes, zebras, hippos, antelopes, wild dogs, hyenas and much more, along with a rich diversity of birds. Our professional safari guides will impart their extensive knowledge of the ecology, fauna and flora in the area, on our game drive in the bush. We break during the day for a picnic lunch and leave the park in the late afternoon and make our way to our accommodation in Greater Kruger Park.

Day four begins with an early breakfast and then another exciting opportunity to view more big animals and smaller creatures from our open safari vehicle. Keep your cameras and binoculars ready for action. We'll spend the day finding more of the Big Five family for which the Kruger as famous and feeling more at home in the bush and its never-ending variety of wild inhabitants. Lunch will be a tasty picnic break and then we continue our game drive until late afternoon when we head back to camp

In the evenings we relax around the campfire before retiring to our twin-share Meru tents with en-suite bathrooms. We are immersed in nature at the tented camp which is located in the Big Five Balule Private Game Reserve, forming part of Greater Kruger.

• Breakfast (x2) / Lunch (x2) / Dinner (x 2)
• Overnight: Safari Lodge with en-suite bathrooms & swimming pool
• Includes: Entry to private game reserve & Kruger National Park, game walks, full-day game drive
• Walk: Big 5 Game Walk, 3-4 hr with ranger (leisurely)
• Travel: 250 km

Day 5 - 6: Malalotja Nature Reserve - Kingdom of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland)

On day 5 of the South Africa Walking Safari, we enter the Kingdom of Eswatini and travel through a fertile fruit farming area, on our way up into the scenic mountains of Eswatini.

We embark on a challenging 4 to 6-hour hike through this rarely-visited, remote mountainous reserve. On the following day we travel through Mbabane, the capital of Eswatini, and take the opportunity to visit the craft and medicinal markets, which reflect the rich cultural heritage of the Swazi people.

We spend two nights on the edge of the Malalotja Nature Reserve in chalets with en-suite bathrooms.

• Breakfast (x 2) / Lunch (x 2) / Dinner (x 2)
• Overnight: Chalets, en-suite (x 2)
• Includes: Entry to Malalotja Nature Reserve, morning Game drive on day 5
• Walk: Malalotja Waterfall Hike, 4 - 6 hr, (challenging)
• Travel: 200 km, about 3 hours plus 2-3 hour drive from Kruger

Day 7 - 8: Zululand Game Reserves - South Africa

Crossing back into South Africa, we head for Zululand in the KwaZulu-Natal Province and our accommodation in Msinene Nature Reserve.

Once settled we go on a nature walk with our local guide who will point out some of the 540+ bird species found in this reserve. We track the bashful and elusive Nyala antelope found in the riverine vegetation of the Msinene River.

The following morning we visit Hluhluwe Game Reserve (the oldest game reserve in Africa) which is important for its intensive rhino conservation efforts to protect both the black and white rhino population in this famous park.

Back at the lodge, a hearty dinner is served.

• Breakfast (x 2) / Lunch (x 2) / Dinner (x 2)
• Overnight: Tented Lodge, en-suite
• Includes: Entry to Hluhluwe Game Reserve
• Walk: Msinene River Walk, 2 - 3 hr (gentle)
• Travel: 400 km, about 6 hours excluding border crossing and stops

Day 9 - 10: Zulu Battlefields - South Africa

Leaving the coast behind, we head inland through the hills and valleys of Zululand to Dundee town. This area is known for its fascinating history of warfare and the many battles fought between the Zulus, British and Dutch Boers. We visit the Talana Museum, which is a mine of information about the area and then spend the rest of the day relaxing, in preparation for our challenging hike tomorrow.

On Day 10 we visit the Islandlwana battlefield before we undertake a challenging, but exciting, 4 to 5 hour hike, retracing the footsteps of two British fugitives through the undulating hills of Zululand to the Buffalo River. After our hike, we visit Rourke's Drift, made famous by the film 'Zulu'. Then it's back to our lodge with a pool, restaurant, telephone and free WiFi access, for a relaxing evening. We stay in twin-share chalets with en-suite bathrooms.

• Breakfast / Lunch (x 2)
• Overnight: Lodge, en-suite twin-share, swimming pool, bar, restaurant, telephone
• Includes: Rourkes Drift, Islandwana Battlefields, Entry to Talana Museum
• Walk: Fugitives Drift Trail, 4 - 5 hr (challenging). Complete hike is dependent on the Buffalo River water level crossing.
• Travel: 350 km, about 5.5 hours excluding stops

Day 11 - 12: Royal Natal National Park, Drakensberg - South Africa

Today we head for the majestic Drakensberg or Ukhahlamba "Barrier of Spears" Mountains.

We stay in en-suite chalets with twin or double rooms, at the base of the mountain range, some 1600 metres above sea level. This afternoon there is free time to rest before our moderate, full day hike, on the mountain trails. We may cool off with invigorating dips in the clear mountain streams of the Royal Natal National Park.

The brisk mountain air is a refreshing companion to the beautiful views, as we relax at our lodge.

• Breakfast (x 2)/ Lunch (x2) / Dinner (x 2)
• Overnight: Chalets, en-suite twin or double
• Includes: Entry to Royal Natal National Park
• Walk: Tugela Walk, 5.5 hr (moderate)
• Travel: 180 km, about 2.5 hours excluding stops

Day 13: Drakensberg - South Africa

After an early breakfast, we make our way to Witsieshoek, at the base of the impressive Sentinel Peak. We start our challenging hike at the end of a rough gravel road. Our hike includes a short chain ladder section to the top of the Drakensberg Amphitheatre and the magnificent Tugela Falls, the highest waterfall in Africa.

At a height of 3000 metres, the views over KwaZulu-Natal are incredible. We then descend to our lodge at 2300 metres overlooking the Mont-Aux-Sources mountain range. We overnight in twin- share bungalows with en-suite bathrooms, at this lodge up in the mountains.

• Breakfast / Lunch
• Overnight: Bungalow, en-suite twin
• Includes: Entry to Sentinel Peak mountain walk
• Walk: Amphitheatre Walk, 5 - 6 hr with section of chain ladders (challenging)
• Travel: 120 km, about 2 hours excluding stops

Day 14: Johannesburg - South Africa

The days starts at a leisurely pace as we prepare to make our way back to Johannesburg. This fabulous walking tour ends back in Johannesburg at approximately 17:00 when we part ways.

• Breakfast / Lunch
• Travel: 360 km, about 5 hours excluding stops