Cape to Vic Falls Grand Explorer

An epic accommodated journey through Namibia, Botswana and Zambia covering Fish River Canyon, the wildlife in Etosha Pan National Park, the Okavango Delta, Sossusvlei in the Namib Desert and the amazing Victoria Falls!

Price: (Valid: Jan 2010 – Dec 2010)
€2,145 pps + local payment of ZAR 1900 pp
21 Days Safari

Highlights * Cape Town – Cape Point Tour * Fish River Canyon – walking * Namib Desert – Sossusvlei dunes * Swakopmund – dune boarding & quad biking * Twyfelfontein – rock engravings * Etosha NP – game drives * Okavango Delta – mokoro excursion * Victoria Falls – white water rafting

Departs from: Cape Town - Ends: Livingstone

Includes
* 18 nights cabin / hotels / chalets and 2 nights tented camp in Okavango
* Entrance fees
* Use of equipment (including sleeping bag & pillow)
* Transport in minibus / safari truck & 4WD
* Meals as per itinerary
* Professional guide
* Okavango Delta mokoro excursion

Cape to Vic Falls Grand Explorer Itinerary

Meal codes [B = Breakfast, L = Lunch, D = Dinner]

Day 1 CAPE TOWN [Guest house]
Cape Town is one of the most picturesque cities in the world, with the majestic Table Mountain providing its central focus. After a tour briefing at 8:00am, we visit the African Penguin colony en route to Cape Point Nature Reserve, and spend the rest of the day relaxing on Hout Bay beach. We sample some of Cape Town’s culinary wonders at a local restaurant in the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront (own expense).
Includes: Entrance fees to Penguin colony & Cape Nature Point
Overnight: Guesthouse / hotel - twin rooms with en-suite facilities
Distance/time: Full day Cape Peninsular tour is 160km which takes between 6 and 8 hours.

Day 2 CEDARBERG [Chalet BLD]
The Cedarberg is a massive rock wilderness whose giant sandstone boulders have been sculpted by wind and rain into bizarre and artistic shapes. We head north to the Cedarberg and explore the rugged landscape on foot before relaxing in chalets for the evening.
Includes: Entrance fees, and walk in the Cedarberg
Overnight: Chalets – 2 twin bedrooms, with 1 bathroom shared between 2 rooms
Distance/time: 250kms, ± 3½ hours, excluding stops for sightseeing

Day 3 GARIEP RIVER [Tented Lodge BLD]
We make our way into the more arid regions and entering Namibia, we stay at a lodge on the Gariep River. Namibia's southern border river flows quietly and peacefully and the river valley is hardly affected by tourism. The riverbed is sandy, the water clean and clear. Time free for swimming and relaxing or you can adventure down the river in canoes (own expense).
Includes: N/A
Overnight: Tented Lodge – twin permanent tents with shared facilities, restaurant & bar
Distance/time: 500kms, ± 7 hours, excluding stops for sightseeing & lunch
Optional Activities: Half day canoe safari

Day 4 FISH RIVER CANYON [Lodge BLD]
The Fish River Canyon, situated along the lower reaches of the Fish River, is one of the most impressive natural beauties in the southern part of Namibia. With its depth of up to 550 metres, the Fish River Canyon is the second largest canyon in the world. We make our way to the canyon and in the afternoon we watch as a spectacular sunset slips over the canyon’s rim.
Includes: Entrance fees to look out point at Fish River Canyon
Overnight: Chalets – twin rooms with en-suite facilities
Distance/time: 300kms, ± 4 hours excluding stops for sightseeing & lunch

Day 5 - 6 NAMIB DESERT [Lodge or Tented lodge BLD]
The parched Namib Desert has endless orange dunes blown into sharp ridges by the sand-shifting wind and at Sossusvlei they form a gateway into the Namib Desert. We will walk to Sossusvlei, explore Sesriem Canyon and watch dramatic sunsets over the world’s highest sand dunes.
Includes: Entrance fees to Sesriem Canyon and Naukluft National Park
Overnight: Lodge or Tented lodge – twin rooms with en-suite facilities, restaurant, swimming pool & bar
Distance/time: 550kms, ± 7½ hours excluding stops for sightseeing & lunch

Day 7 – 8 SWAKOPMUND [Guest house Bx2 Lx1-]
Swakopmund is a popular seaside resort with a slightly nostalgic atmosphere, characterized by numerous colonial buildings. In terms of flora, both the Welwitschias Mirabilis and the Kokerboom are exclusive to Namibia. These strange plants only grow on the stony plains of the north Namib and many beautiful specimens surround the coastal town. Swakopmund is also the adventure activity capital of Namibia. Day free to explore the town or try quad biking / dune boarding (own expense).
Includes: N/A
Overnight: Guest House – twin rooms with en-suite facilities & restaurant.
Distance/time: 350kms, ± 5 hours excluding stops for sightseeing
Optional Activities: Quad biking, Sand boarding, Skydiving, Ocean canoe safari, Scenic flights & many more

Day 9 – 10 DAMARALAND [Chalets BLD]
guided walk included Namibia is a land of great contrasts and Damaraland demonstrates this with stark plains, petrified forests and ancient valleys leading to rocky outcrops and the soaring peaks of the Brandberg Massive Mountains. We’ll also visit the rock engravings at Twyfelfontein.
Includes: Entrance fees to Cape Cross Seal colony, San Rock Art & Twyfelfontein rock engravings
Overnight: Chalets – twin chalets with en-suite bathroom, swimming pool, restaurant & bar.
Distance/time: 350kms ± 6 hours excluding stops for sightseeing & lunch
Full day of touring in the Damaraland Area

Day 11 - 12 ETOSHA NP [Guest lodge or Tented Camp BLD]
Once a vast lake fed by the Kunene River, the pan that is Etosha NP dried up thousands of years ago when the river waters chose a new course. Etosha is big game country. We take game drives around the huge pan to find the elephants, herds of antelope and lions around the waterholes. We stay at a lodge on the outskirts of the national park.
Includes: Entrance fees to Etosha National Park, morning & afternoon game drives
Overnight: Guest Lodge or tented camp – twin rooms with en-suite facilities, swimming pool, restaurant
& bar
Distance/time: 400kms, ± 5½ hours excluding stops for sightseeing + 2 x 3 hours game drives per day

Day 13 WINDHOEK [Guest House BL]
This pretty town, beautifully situated in a valley, combines the architecture of a modern city with numerous buildings in the style of the German colonial era. The charm of the City of Windhoek lies in its harmonious blend of African and European cultures and the friendliness of its people. We visit the cosmopolitan capital and enjoy a restaurant meal (own expense).
Includes: N/A
Overnight: Guesthouse – twin rooms with en-suite facilities, swimming pool, restaurant & bar
Distance/time: 500kms, ± 7 hours excluding stops for sightseeing & lunch

Day 14 KALAHARI [San bushmen Huts BLD]
guided walk includedCrossing into Botswana we overnight in rustic, grass huts in the heart of the Kalahari. The sand masses were created by the erosion of soft stone formations. The wind shaped the sand ridges, which are so typical of the landscape in the Kalahari. We take a walk with the local Bushmen to learn fascinating bush skills.
Includes: Nature walk with local San bushman
Overnight: Grass huts – very simple twin huts, with shared ablutions, swimming in old quarry
Distance/time: 550kms, ± 7½ hours excluding border formalities & stops for sightseeing & lunch

Day 15 - 17 OKAVANGO DELTA [Tented camp x2 BLD] [Tented lodge x1 BL]
guided walk includedThe Okavango Delta is the only inland delta in the world. Instead of flowing into the sea, the annual flood of fresh water, spreads over 15000sq km of the Kalahari sand in a maze of lagoons and channels. We journey deep into the Okavango Delta on Makoro (dugouts). We have 2 nights at our tented camp and enjoy game walks, swimming, the birdlife and game in this pristine wilderness area. We return to Maun late in the afternoon on day 17. We also enjoy Mokoro trail includedgame walks, swimming, the birdlife and game in this pristine wilderness area.
For the two nights spent in the Okavango Delta you stay in a pre-erected tented camp. The facilities are very basic but you will be provided with a simple bucket shower and a toilet (of the “sand and bury” variety). All water, equipment and provisions need to be taken with us and all rubbish taken out again. All camping equipment is supplied including a sleeping bag and pillow. The tents used are dome tents with built-in insect nets. Mattresses are supplied and are about 5cm think.
Please note: Our local guides are wildlife experts and it is important to pay close attention to their requests in terms of safety. The delta is an exciting place to explore, but it needs to be understood and respected, and following their advice is paramount.
Includes: Entrance to Okavango Delta, morning and afternoon game walks with local guides
Overnight: Maun: twin permanent tents with shared facilities, swimming pool, restaurant & bar
2 nights Okavango Delta: Tented Camp – basic facilities, with bucket showers
Distance/time: 300km, ± 4½ hours (Kalahari – Maun) Okavango transfer ± 3 hours each way
Optional Activities: Scenic flight over the Okavango Delta (+/-USD95-105) pp depending on number of people in
each aircraft)

Day 18 MAKGADIKGADI PANS [Tented Lodge or Chalets BL]
The shimmering saltpans of Makgadikgadi are the size of Switzerland and most of the time appears as a glaring, white, endless plain. When the rain comes a dramatic change takes place as the pans come to life with frantically feeding water birds and great herds of zebra, wildebeest and springbok.
Includes: Entrance fees to Makgadikgadi Pans
Overnight: Tented Lodge – twin rooms with en-suite facilities, swimming pool, restaurant & bar
Distance/time: 320km, ± 4 hours, excluding stops for sightseeing + 2 hour 4WD transfer out of delta

Day 19 - 21 ZAMBIA / VICTORIA FALLS [Tented camp Bx3]
guided walk includedMagnificent Victoria Falls is one of the seven natural wonders of the world. David Livingstone ‘discovered’ the falls in 1885 and named them after his Queen. The scene he encountered was a mile-wide (1.6 km) sheer basalt fault line over which the mighty Zambezi tumbled to a depth of 100m, creating a cloud of spray. The falls are also the centre of a wide range of activities, including white water rafting on the mighty Zambezi, elephant back rides, scenic flights or a111m bungi jump (own expense). Tour ends.
Includes: Entrance fees to Vic Falls
Overnight: Tented Camp – twin permanent tents with shared facilities, swimming pool, restaurant & bar
Distance/time: 400km, ± 5 hours, excluding border formalities & stops for sightseeing
Optional Activities: White water rafting, sunset cruises, elephant back safaris, scenic flights & many more

Please note:
The distance and travel times quoted above are an estimate only, and subject to local road conditions and photo stops!

PRE & POST TOUR ACCOMMODATION:
Due to the early departure time of this safari we recommend that you stay in Cape Town the night before safari. We can assist you with airport transfers and hotel reservations in Cape Town, please let us know how many nights you require in Cape Town when booking your safari.