melissaeric

I'm getting married at the end of August 2006 and we are planning a three week honeymoon. The basic itinerary is outlined on our wedding website http://www.ericlovesmelissa.com/index.cfm?fa=honeymoon
I'm just looking for suggestions on what to see and do in Cape Town and the winelands and for any thoughts about the safety situation in Mozambique. Also any thoughts about our safari choices are welcome. Thanks!

jasher

Hello Melissa,

All of your accommodation (safari and non-safari) looks great. I've stayed at Phinda (Forest Lodge) and really enjoyed it. The guiding is wonderful and the gameviewing is superb -- you'll love it. Sandibe is known to pull out all the stops for honeymooners, and CCAfrica will ensure that you have great food and service at both camps. I've travelled with them several times and have yet to be disappointed.

WINELANDS:

If you enjoy wine-tasting, pick up the lastest copy of John Platter's South African wine guide, the bible for wine in SA. It is full of information about award-winning vintages, winery opening hours, and facilities at the wineries. If you want to do some advance planning, you can take a look on

http://www.platteronline.com

I'd also recommend a dinner in The Tasting Room at Le Quartier Francais -- I've eaten at some of the best restaurants in the world and my meal at LQF stands out as one of the best I've ever had.

If you'd like to get up-close and personal with some cheetahs, you can meet some ambassador cheetahs from the DeWildt Cheetah Research Centre at the Spier wine estate.

CAPE TOWN
I'd highly recommend a visit to Robben Island and the District Six museum, as well as high tea at the Mount Nelson or the Twelve Apostles.

Going up Table Mountain is a must -- you can either hike it or take the cable car.

Visiting the penguin colony on Boulders Beach is a lot of fun.

Cheers,
Julian

thit_cho

I also stayed at the Polana in Maputo (great, colonial hotel). Don't miss the shrimps at Costa Verde, about 10 minutes north of Maputo -- the hotel will arrange a taxi. The restaurant purportedly stayed open throughout the hostilities, and has been visited by a very eclectic bunch of celebrities (we sat under Englebert Humperdink's autographed glossy photo).

Michael

melissaeric

Thanks for the advice! So what do you think of Maputo? Is it a cool city? Lonely Planet named it one of the top 10 cities on the rise, which is what got us interested in it.

thit_cho

I visited Maputo in 2002, and while its definitely worth visiting, I'm not sure why its numbered among the "Top 10 Cities on the Rise." There is enough to see for a couple of days, including markets, colonial buildings, interesting natural history museum with a very strange collection of elephant embryos, and plus the Polana is a great place to spend time. I visited two markets, including the fish/food market in a colonial building downtown. But, I preferred the much larger market, with all sorts of stuff, including various bones, skins, feathers and quills for every type of animals, that is a bit outside town (its in the Lonely Planet to Mozambique that had been issued just prior to my visit). I thought the market was safe and I wandered by myself, but, depending on how much you have traveled, I could see some being intimidated by the crowds, smell, entrails, etc. in that market. Its also a giant maze and you really have to keep your bearings to get back to your taxi.

Plus, Costa Verde is a great spot for peri-peri shrimps and beer. Its one of the most memorable meals I have ever had -- great location, food and history.

melissaeric

We're only going to be there for two nights and one full day, so hopefully there will be enought to see. I love markets. My favorite so far was the night market in Chaing Mai. Is Costa Verde a different Restaurant than Costa Du Sol? That's the only one I have read about.

thit_cho

Costa del Sol is the correct name (my mistake). I knew it was something like that.

melissaeric

I have another question -- does any one have recommendations for specific rooms at either Phinda Forest or Sandibe? Thanks!

ElliottNYC

Melissa, I am also getting married in July and going to S. Africa on my honeymoon. We too are using CCAfrica for a portion of the trip and they have been awesome so far. Have you done any investigating for Johannesburg hotels as yet? We have to stay there for a night too and I'm not quite sure which hotel to choose. Any ideas?

melissaeric

Originally they booked us at the airport hotel, but we weren't excited about that so we got moved to the Melrose Arch, which is supposed to be a cool "trendy" hotel in a nice suburb of Joburg. I understand Joberg isn't very safe, so we weren't sure if we would even go into the city center.

melissaeric

We will end up having half a day in Johannesburg... is there anything worth seeing, or should we just hang out in Melrose, one of the Northern Suburbs.

thit_cho

The Soweto tour is a worthwhile half-day visit, and can be arranged through any top hotel.