Magnificent South Africa Trip

Old Sep 9th, 2009, 11:58 AM
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 28
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Magnificent South Africa Trip

We just returned from the most magnificent trip to South Africa. All of my very high expectations were fully met. We arrived in Johannesburg via Delta Air Lines direct flight from Atlanta at approximately 6 pm. Although the flight was 15 hours long, we were able to relax in our flat bed. I slept almost 8 hours and I am usually unable to sleep on planes.

A porter immediately came to help us with our luggage and even got a wheel chair for my mother. We stayed at the Intercontinental Hotel which is about 100 feet from the international terminal. The check-in was fast and the room was very nice.

The next morning the hotel staff took us to the Federal Air booth, which is right around the corner of the hotel. We were then taken to the Federal Air terminal to board our flight to Sabi Sands and our lodge, Singita Boulders.

Once we arrived at the Sabi Sands airport, we were met by Scott, our Ranger, and James, our tracker. Singita is probably one of the loveliest places on earth. The villas are luxurious, beautiful and huge. The service is outstanding. The food, simple delicious. I can honestly say that I've never experienced the level of service we received at Singita, even though I've stayed at some of the best hotels in the world. The word "no" is simply not in their vocabulary. Although my mother has severe mobility issues, every single Singita employee made sure she was well taken care of and every and all effort was made to ensure her well-being.

The game drives were thrilling and awe inspiring. We were supremely fortunate to see an actual pride of lions stalking a herd of gazelles and then taking down 2 of them. According to our Ranger, to see an actual hunt in daytime is very rare indeed. Another day we saw another pride of lions napping in the early morning on the airport tarmac! We were able to see the big 5 within 2 days of arrival.

Although we originally thought that this would be a once in a lifetime trip, we have now decided that we will return to Singita in the immediate future. My mother, who was not keen on going to SA or on safari, is now a Singita convert. Kudos to all the staff, particularly Marianda, one of the managers, Scott and James, our Ranger and Tracker, respectively, Gift our lovely butler, Kerryn, the spa manager, etc. Every single employee always had a smile and a welcome for each and every guest.

After reluctantly leaving Singita, we flew to Cape Town. We arrived at the Cape Grace hotel at 5 pm. Lovely huge rooms, recently renovated, with a view of the marina and Table Mountain. Unfortunately, the food was really bad, which surprised us greatly. First night had dinner at Signal Restaurant, which is the signature restaurant for the hotel. I had a nice curry soup, but the rest of the meal was literally and figuratively forgettable. The only other dish I recall from the meal was my mother's Kingsklip, local delicious fish, which was tremendously overcooked. The wine was quite good, Ernst & Co. Merlot 2003.

2nd day we did a tour of Cape Town and vecinity. Cape Grace handled our tour requests with Jarat Tours. We had a Mercedes Benz to take us around and our tour guide was the great Tony Bolland (email: [email protected]; Tel. 074 101 1922). Couldn't see Table Mountain or the Twelve Apostles - covered in clouds. It was drizzling and windy. All trips to Robben Island were cancelled as was the the funicular up Table Mountain. Dinner was at 95 Keerom (italian cuisine). The food was good, not great. We did have an excellent Cabernet Sauvignon: Whole Berry Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 from Springfield Estate. Cape Grace offers a great service for its guests, free transportation anywhere within a 10 mile radius of the hotel in a BMW 7 series sedan.

The 3rd day of our Cape Town trip was a full day tour of the winelands. Visited Vergelen, Warwick and Ernie Els winerys. Magnificent lunch at La Petite Ferme. For starters, I had the mushroom and bacon soup. So yummy I could have had seconds. My mother had venison and I had the chicken curry (as you can see, I love curry). The dessert was to die for, freshly baked apple cobbler with cinnamon ice cream. You can make reservations at [email protected]. Still no view of Table Mountain.

4th day was a full day tour of Cape Penninsula. Went to Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point. Another magnificent lunch at Harbour House. We decided to share the seafood platter for one. Enormous portions. More than enough for 2 people. Included fresh oysters, calamari, crayfish, Kingsklip, the best mussels I have ever eaten, etc. Still no view of Table Mountain.

5th day - return to Johannesburg. Finally saw Table Mountain. Half an hour later, covered in clouds again. We again stayed at Intercontinental Hotel. Our round trip to Cape Town was on South African Airways. Great service and clean, comfortable planes. We decided to buy business class tickets due to Mom's mobility issues. Worth the extra cost.

Practical info: 1. Luggage storage. We left part of our luggage at the Federal Air locker. Perfectly safe. The Johannesburg airport also has luggage lockers in the lower level of the international terminal.
2. Malaria. We took Malarone (antimalarial drug); no side effects at all. In fact, did not see a single mosquito during our stay. I also bought Ultrathon mosquito cream from Magellan's just in case.
3. Winter garb. We stayed at Singita 8/27-31/09, which is the end of SA's winter. Although the mornings and evenings were very, very cold, by noon the temperature was in the high 80's. Therefore, it's important to take clothing you can layer. I would also recommend an insulated jacket for those people who, like us, are not used to cold weather.
4. Laundry. Since Singita has laundry service, you can also decide to take fewer clothes. I bought mesh packing cubes from Magellan's and they were a great investment. Clothes had much fewer wrinkles and I was able to easily pack my duffle for safari.
5. Binoculars. Take binoculars. I brought along Steiner Safari 10x26 which I bought thru Amazon. Singita does provide binoculars for guests.
6. Cameras. Take an extra camera. One of our cameras died during our trip and we were fortunate to have a back-up.
7. Memory cards. Take extra memory cards. We ran out of memory on one of our cameras and the Singita shop was out. Even though we thought we had enough memory, on safari there are so many things to see and record you just run out. However, Marianda burned the photos and videos onto a DVD for us. She even kept a copy of everything on her computer in case something happened to the DVD on transit.
8. Electricity converter plug. I didn't know that none of our converters would fit. SA electrical outlets are pretty unique and converter plugs were impossible for us to get. I tried in all of the airports and different shops we visited to no avail. We were fortunate that Singita provided various plugs in all guest rooms. In fact, I offered to purchase one of the plugs since we were going on to Cape Town after the safari. Marianda, however, was kind enough to give it to me as a gift (and for my next Singita trip). I have now found out that Amazon offers several options for SA electrical outlets.
9. Skype. In order to cut down on international call costs, I enrolled with Skype. I was able to call family and friends by using Singita's wi-fi and dialing thru Skype.
10. Tipping. There is no formal source of information on tipping in SA. We tipped according to the level of service. For example, the porter who took care of us when we arrived brought a wheelchair for my mother, luggage cart, put all of the luggage on the cart, took us to the Intercontinental, etc. We tipped him R100 (about $15.00, which is a lot of money per SA standards). Bellmen should be tipped about R10 per bag. With rangers and trackers it's a bit more tricky. Since we were so happy with our ranger (he really went out of his way for Mom, accompanying us to our villa to help her along the way, etc.) we tipped him $100.00 per day. Most people tip a ranger approximately $25.00 per day. We gave our tracker $50.00 per day, as well as our butler.

I hope I've covered all important points of our trip. I'll close this posting by saying that South Africans are some of the warmest and kindest people I've had the pleasure to meet. I feel truly blessed to have been able to visit this magnificent country and cannot wait to return. The colors, sounds and smells of Africa are indescribable. There are extremes everywhere. Beauty and death go hand in hand in the African bush. Africa truly transforms you.

Thank you to all who gave me Cape Town recommendations.
alund is offline  
Old Sep 9th, 2009, 05:52 PM
  #2  
 
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 174
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
We stayed at Singita Boulders on our first trip to South Africa in 1998. Your report brought back lovely memories of our stay there. We returned from our 3rd trip to South Africa a few weeks ago and I have been very slow in getting my trip report together--so much to say. Thanks for taking the time to write a report. You gave some very good info!
agswimmer is offline  
Old Sep 10th, 2009, 03:39 AM
  #3  
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 4,215
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Obviously you really had a great time!
Very useful information provided!

Regarding the tipping: These guys hit the jackpot being privileged to be of service to your party; hopefully nobody else takes these as a "guideline" ;-)

You will cherish your memories for the rest of your life!

SV
spassvogel is offline  
Old Sep 10th, 2009, 06:35 AM
  #4  
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Posts: 14,440
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
"My mother, who was not keen on going to SA or on safari, is now a Singita convert." That says it all. Is the convert returning and taking her daughter? After all you have to return the adapter.

"Africa truly transforms you." That says it all too.

Very helpful hints, especially the gadgetry ones. Those SA plugs are real oddballs. I had the wrong one too but was able to buy one in Cape Town. You're right to BYOBinocs, though. Extra camera and extra memory cards are also good ideas. Sorry you were in need of both on this trip.

Singita to the rescue with spare binocs if needed, an adapter to go, and burning CDs for you.
atravelynn is offline  
Old Sep 10th, 2009, 10:01 AM
  #5  
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 5,286
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thanks for the report - loved Cape Grace. We were also surprised by the soso food. Trying to find 8 people to go on safari so I can try Singita at Castletons. Singita is high on my list for places to go someday. My mother loved being in the bush so much more than expected and I'm addicted!

I wish Apple would make it possible to download from a camera to an iPod. That way you have a backup. Most camps don't do the DVD thing for their guests, and I'm always scared I'll lose the tiny little memory cards with all my memories on them!

I'm used to the cold, and I use a hat, mittens and a coat on the game drives in the winter. No one believes me how cold S Africa can be.

SV - I didn't think their tipping was so out of line, esp for Singita, assuming it was for 2 people, not 1. It's only about double what I normally do, and I feel those of us who can afford it can tip a little extra when the service is outstanding.
christabir is offline  
Old Sep 10th, 2009, 12:05 PM
  #6  
 
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
christabir -
you can buy a $30 camera connector from Apple that allows you to download from a camera to an iPod. But, I believe the newer 120GB iPods don't support the connector, and a 2GB card download almost completely drains the battery on my 30GB iPod. I wish I could get a splitter that would allow me to plug in the iPod to external power while downloading - then I could download my 4GB cards. For now, we only use the iPod to back up 1GB and 2GB cards.
travel255a is offline  
Old Sep 10th, 2009, 05:08 PM
  #7  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 29,053
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
great report thanks
rhkkmk is offline  
Old Sep 11th, 2009, 03:50 PM
  #8  
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thank you so much for your report. My husband I are also from ATL. We leave for SA in two weeks and will be on the same Delta flight, also in business class.

Can you tell me if they provide noice canceling headphones? I've heard they do but wanted to verify before we left ours at home. I'm so happy to hear you were able to sleep on the flight. I usually can't sleep on planes but have been hopeful because the flat-beds look pretty comfy!

After weeks of research we are also booked at 95 Keerom. I'm wondering if you recommend we keep this reservation or try something else? It seems the reviews have been somewhat mixed. We are also booked Bizerca.

Thanks also for the weather update. I hadn't really planned on packing any warm weather clothes for our safaris. I guess I'll need to pack shorts and polar fleece.

It sounds like you had a fantastic trip! Thanks again for your review!
Shelle2 is offline  
Old Sep 11th, 2009, 03:56 PM
  #9  
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Posts: 2,138
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thanks for posting about your trip.
Femi is offline  
Old Sep 12th, 2009, 01:48 PM
  #10  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 28
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Shelle2

Delta did provide noise canceling headphones (not Bose like AA does). 95 Keerom was a big disappointment, to tell you the truth. I was expecting fabulous italian and ended up with just okay. I would recommend going somewhere else.

I forgot to mention that the food in SA is pretty cheap compared to other countries. For example, at 95 Keerom we had a bottle of wine, starters, main courses and one dessert for about $87.00, including tip. That's what you would pay for a so so bottle of wine in NYC.

With regards to weather, as we left SA they were going into spring. I don't know if the mornings and evenings are going to be as cold as when we were there. You can check Singita's web site for average temperatures during spring.

For iPhone users like me, I did download some apps that were of great use during my trip: TipStar is for calculating tips - if you're going dutch or with friends, it can divide the bill by the number of diners. Also, currency converter, which I constantly used.

SV and Christabir - tipping can be very subjective. But Christabir hit it on the nose. Given the level of service, the fact that we were so extremely happy with the whole experience and having the means to give a good tip, we felt they all deserved it.
alund is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Original Poster
Forum
Replies
Last Post
deladeb
Africa & the Middle East
5
Jun 10th, 2016 05:38 PM
Pamo2
Africa & the Middle East
12
Oct 2nd, 2011 05:58 PM
laslonimne
Africa & the Middle East
3
Jul 20th, 2011 12:05 AM
fingerprints
Africa & the Middle East
7
Jun 3rd, 2005 08:24 AM
azmngal
Africa & the Middle East
6
Apr 18th, 2005 07:44 PM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are On


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -