julia1130

Hi - we are a fun-loving couple in our 30s (living in Chicago, IL) who will be flying in and out of Cape Town on 4 January through 16 January, 2012. We are really open minded as to how to structure our honeymoon, so ANY suggestions on what we can do with the time we have are welcome! We would like a mix of city and nature-related stops - some relaxation would also be nice! We are NOT restricted to S. Africa. Thanks in advance for any "tried and true" suggestions!

christabir

Are your flights booked? If not, fly into CT, out of JNB. But going with the above, I'd spend time in CT -tons to do, plus beach time. Then I'd safari in the Kruger region at a private concession for 4 nts minimum, more is better, then maybe Rocktail or other KwaZulu Natal beachfront for a few days of r&r and deserted beach before your long flight home? Lots of other suggestions if you want them, so let us know. I think I hit all of your requests?

qwovadis

http://www.luxurylink.com/fivestar/t...outhern-africa

One and only CapeTown marina suite and a Kruger Safari for me

Great values...

travelzoo.com good safari discounts/packages also

Congrats!

VanessaHobson

Hi Julia 1130,

I would recommend that you take advantage of direct flights between Cape Town and Kruger to make the most of your time. And as christabir suggested it would be best if you could change your departure flight from JNB.

Cape Town is a phenomenal city, but to get under the "skin" so to speak I would recommend you try out a boutique hotel - they are uber luxurious, with excellent attention to detail and the staff know your names, rather than just your room number. They will spoil you rotten if it is your honeymoon.

http://www.mysafari.com/blog/africas...otels-305-view

So that you're not rushing around I'd probably suggest an itinerary something like:

4 Jan: Arrive CT. Collect hire car. Spend 4 nights here.
8 Jan: Drop hire car. Fly to Kruger Mpumalanga Airport. Meet transfer to lodge. Spend 4 nights here. (Possibly split 2 nights, 2 nights at different lodges in different areas to maximise wildlife viewing)
13 Jan: Early a.m. departure from lodge, probably miss your a.m. game drive but catch direct flight to LVI (these flights are on Mon/Wed/Friday. Spend 3 nights here.
16 Jan: Fly to JNB and depart or catch connecting flight to CPT and depart.

This blog on most romantic safari lodges will also inspire you: http://www.mysafari.com/blog/most-ro...odges-266-view

There are so many options avaialble, you have Mozambique, Zambia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, even Malawi or Namibia that you can combine with South Africa. You do have a limited amount of time though so be careful not to try and squeeze too much in.

This might also help you plan:
http://www.mysafari.com/blog/doing-i...safari-37-view

Also WHERE you go depends largely on how much you are willing to spend: http://www.mysafari.com/blog/how-to-...oliday-82-view

Hope that is helpful to you.

julia1130

Thanks so much everyone! This is super-helpful!

To answer a few questions - we do have flights booked, but they are with miles (and we connect through JNB anyhow on our way back to chicago), so we may be able to change them - looking into it!

RE: Budget - we have $$ to spend but do not really enjoy "first-class" traveling as much as blending in with locals and staying in boutique hotels... We want to maximize our time there so are flexible with budget.

RE: Area covered - again, we are open but would rather not rush if we can see similar things closer to/within SA.
I love the idea of a few days in cape town, a few on safari and a few at the beach!

Any suggestions on specific safari companies/lodges, hotels, beaches etc?

Thanks a million!

braaiseason

Hope you realise it is the height of season & school holidays, Cape Town & Kruger will be very busy.

On my honeymoon after leaving CT we took the N2 route, stopped at Witsand a very small village on the coast & less touristy & felt very romantic, then stayed in Knysna, went on safari in the Eastern Cape then took a flight from PE to Durban for a week.

Beaches in Cape Town would be trendy Camps Bay, Llandudno, Hout Bay, Noordhoek, nature at Cape Point, Boulders & many scenic drives.

christabir

To save some travel time/expense, you could do Phinda and Rocktail Beach Lodge. Easy to fly to Richards Bay or Durban (bigger airport, a bit further) from CT and get road transfers to the camps. Doing Kruger area camps might add an extra travel day. But both are luxurious. But both are excellent, too.

The Kruger area camps, especially in Sabi Sand, have great wildlife viewing. Phinda is excellent, but not as big nor as long established. There are camps at all price points - from about $300 per person per night to over $1000 per person per night. Mala Mala is not included in this site, but is highly recommended as well:

http://www.sabisand.co.za/

12 nights in country? I would do 3-4 CT, 4-6 Sabi Sand area camp (or Phinda), 3 somewhere on the beaches of KwaZulu Natal. I'd do Rocktail Bay only because it's so private, and they have turtles that season. More safari is better, but that's why I go!

MSashesSA

Cape Town won't be too busy. I live here and its not crazy in December/Jan like Kruger will be. Stay in CT for a lot of the time. You can rent a car and drive to some of the rural places nearby. There are many small towns within and hour or so from Cape Town. Try Hermanus, Betty's Bay, Paternoster (idyllic seaside town on the west coast), Strandfontein and many others.

braaiseason

Not sure about the above posters comments but December is traditional holiday time when the Jo'burgers hit CT, a simple journey that takes 5 minutes would take ½ hr when they're in town!

sue5250

CT for about a week - there is a lot to see and do - hang out and get the feel and smell and sounds of the city - visit the townships , Stellenbosch, Franshoek (wine farm area and great food) tour the peninsula, some great beaches, Long Street area, mountain walks etc - You could do a day drive to Hermanus - one way along the coast.
On your way back to the States a trip to Victoria Falls and Chobe would be wonderful - you could do an all inclusive tour from Jhb

KayeN

Hi Julia

I won't comment on city/beach time as not my interest at all! Gameviewing is another matter! I have been to a few countries and more than a view game reserves and for a short visit of around 4 to 5 nights I would stick with one lodge as I think that staying in one place ensures better gameviewing. For me, the Sabi Sands is the way to go and in the Sabi Sands I now only stay at one reserve, MalaMala. I stay at Main Camp but if I was on my honeymoon I think I would splurge and stay at Rattrays!

Good luck and congrats!

Kind regards

Kaye

Rejoice

Congrats and if you are open to suggestions please include Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe) in your itinerary and you wont regret it. Still there, do go for the Boma experience to engrave the moments and also remember to mingle with the locals.

l was lucky to be hosted by Veneto Adventures late last year on my own honeymoon and we still have the memories as fresh as ever and so many souverniors. We tasted Mopane worms, the local beer, went to their tarven and tasted their pap and stew...they sang beautiful accappella and romantic songs that they later explained their meaning and it was beautiful.

ianthistlewood

Congrats! My wife and I got engaged in Cape Town a few years back (Chapman's Peak at sunset) so can confirm it is a suitably romantic place for a honeymoon. Have been to SA several times, and a large part of my family live there, so below is a collection of hints and tips. Happy to add more details if you want to post here or private message me...

Cape Town

Cape Town is incredible (my favourite city in the world), and I think 4-5 days is a decent amount of time to spend there. Suggestions:

Rent a car. Spend one day touring the cape via Chapman's Pass, down to Cape of Good Hope then up the other side via Simonstown to visit the Boulders Beach penguins. You could then re-enter Cape Town through Constantia, have a glass of wine at one of the vineyards, and head on through Camp's Bay back into town. Driving in Cape Town is fine - good roads, reasonable standard of driving, on the left though.
Couple of restaurant tips: Chapman's Peak hotel does the best calamari in Cape Town, if not the world. Bertha's in Simonstown is down by the dock and is a good spot for lunch if you're in the area seeing the penguins (the peri peri mussels are HOT!).

Spend another day touring the winelands. Obviously one of you will have to be designated driver, particularly as the cops in SA have massively tightened up on drink driving, no more so than around the winelands, nabbing squiffy tourists. My favourite vineyard is Delheim (http://www.delheim.com/) which is a little off the beaten track. A picnic at Boschendal is a nice treat (ring a day or two in advance to book). If you really want to push the boat out, have great food, and stunning views then put on your best clothes and head to Delaire near Stellenbosch (http://www.delaire.co.za/), or to La Petite Ferme near Franschoek (http://www.lapetiteferme.co.za/) who did very good value lunch and evening meal deals last time I was there.

If the weather is clear and you want to go up Table Mountain drop all your other plans and just go. The weather can change in an instant in CT, so take the opportunity when it presents itself. Despite having been to Cape Town several times I've never been to Robben Island (either fully booked or weather too bad) but my family have and say that despite being a bit touristy it is well worth it.

Best beach for my money is Llandudno. Freezing cold water but beautiful location. Again, easier to reach by car.

This may sound a bit naff but I think the red and blue tourist buses are great - give you a bit of history, an overview of Cape Town, and can drop you at Table Mountain before you hop on the next bus.

Last time we went we stayed at Cape Rose Cottage (http://www.caperosecottage.co.za/) in Camps Bay. Small place run by an English couple, excellent attention to detail. Check it out on trip advisor - does pretty well, and justifiably so. Lavender or Aquamarine Suites are best. The garden view room is OK but no view so would suggest finding somewhere else if that is all they have available.

Safari in Kruger

I've been several times and it's still my favourite place for game driving in Africa. Personally, I think two days actual game driving is plenty (I only did one day last time), but everyone is different when it comes to safaris.

I've stayed both inside the park (several years ago at Letaba) and just outside the park (more recently at Kruger Park Lodge). If it's your first time I'd recommend staying in the park itself - it's more expensive, but it's just not quite the same staying outside.

Jo'Burg

Personally, I wouldn't bother. Although the suggestion to fly into Cape Town and out of JHB is a good one if you plan to Safari in Kruger. Maximise your time in SA outside of Jo'Burg.
If you do end up there you could:
- EAT at (the slightly touristy but fun nonetheless) Carnivores. Assuming you're not herbivores, in which case steer clear, and ignore the next suggestion. Or, eat at my favourite restaurant in Jo'Burg - Thundergun (in Randburg, an area of Jo'Burg): https://foursquare.com/venue/1585589. A very unassuming local restaurant that does fantastic meat dishes. Dare you to attempt the 'Lone Ranger' ribs!
- VISIT the Lion and Rhino park. Pretty average game driving but they have lion and leopard cub enclosures and allow you to go in and play with the cubs (for a small fee).

Garden Route

A drive along the Garden Route east from Cape Town is good. You can do the largest bungy jump in the world along this route (if that's your kind of thing). Knysna is a lovely small town. Can thoroughly recommend KKB cooking school, primarily for the beautiful accommodation they have, but also their 'You Look We Cook' evenings on a Wednesday - great food, fun environment. Book ahead.

Outside SA

Given the relatively short amount of time you have I would stick to SA, and give yourself some relaxing time. A combo of Cape Town, Garden Route and Safari at Kruger would easily fill your time.

Having said that, the itinerary VanessaHobson suggests above is a good one, so some comments on Vic Falls to complement it:

Victoria Falls is amazing, and you could fly up there (into Livingstone, Zambia) for a few days from Jo'Burg. My brother has stayed at the Royal Livingstone (http://www.royal-livingstone-hotel.com/) and said it was the best hotel he has ever stayed in, a claim he doesn't make lightly. It is super expensive though.

Livingstone itself is not particularly interesting but there are tons of adrenaline activities to do - bungy jumping, microlight over the falls, white water rafting, gorge swing (meant to be scarier than the bungy!).

If you want to do something a bit different and hippie then head to Jungle Junction on Bovu Island (http://www.junglejunction.info/). This is not a honeymoon luxury type of place, but it is beautiful, isolated and fun. Sunset canoe rides, communal eating, drinks by candlelight, big sky, lots of stars, journey there in the back of a pick up truck and by mokoro (wooden canoe). 2 nights is a decent amount of time to stay. I wrote about it here: http://helen4ian.blogspot.com/2011/0...mushrooms.html

You've picked a fantastic place to honeymoon. Good luck with the wedding, and enjoy every moment of the honeymoon.