sometimes, i close my eyes, and it takes me back to the terrace of our tented camp, where a soft crackling sound of the warm campfire peeks through the sea of frogs quacking. it has rained in the bush. and what evelyne describes as golden and dry is a lush, green and lively summer where everything breathes and flows. i start singing caamp with evelyne on the ukulele until we got interrupted - our dinner is ready!

Our Itinerary

excited and curious? no more beating around the bush, here’s our itinerary!

• 1 day johannesburg

• 3 days game reserve

• 1 day panorama route

• at least 2 days kruger national park

• 2 days isimangaliso wetland park + eswatini

• 1 east coast beach day

• 1 day addo elephant park

• 1-2 days tsitsikamma national park

• 1 day robberg nature reserve

• 1 day garden route towns

• 1 day oudtshoorn & swartberg pass

• 2 days stellenbosch

• 1 day cape of good hope & boulders beach

• 2 days cape town

How we Traveled

when evelyne left switzerland to become a field guide in the bush of south africa, I was most excited about the opportunity for a south african road trip. a little while ago, i started drafting an itinerary for two separate road trips: a one for the bush in mpumalanga and limpopo, and one for the garden route. we connected the dots and added a few more exciting spots along the way - here’s the result, an interactive map for you to play around!

of course, we’ve created the map after our road trip, so you don’t have to go to places we thought were lame and can look at the exciting part!

getting around in south africa

it was our first time visiting south africa. arguably, it is the best place to find accommodations that connect you to nature. all of our nights on the road were spent in airbnbs and hotels along the way.

we rented a car with bluu as this is the easiest and most convenient way to get around. since we transited through eswatini, it was super important to ask for a paper, which allows the car to be transferred in and out of eswatini.

gas prices, are expensive for south africa. be prepared that while pumping gas, your car will be cleaned, so have enough cash with you so you can tip. finally, for your own safety, avoid driving at night, and research your route thoroughly before you go.

some practical information

how is the weather? we visited south africa in february, which is summer. in the bush, summer is rainy - in the western cape it is dry. in winter, it is the other way around. although rainy, the temperatures were always comfortable in the 20s centigrade during our travels.

while most of the places accept credit cards, have cash with you for highway toll stations, smaller payments and tipping.

accommodation, restaurants and groceries are affordable if you are accustomed to prices in Switzerland - expect to pay around half to an eighth of what you'd shell out back home. national parks and scenic attractions typically require a conservation or entrance fee. we purchased a wild card which paid off our kruger national park camping trip >>

we got an MTN sim card at johannesburg airport right when we got off the airplane. honestly, we’re pretty phone addicted - but at the end, we didn’t even come close to the 50 GB prepaid data we’ve purchased.

Places we Visited

A Safari in the Bush

we started our adventures in johannesburg, where we picked up our rental car and headed out of town to a lodge near polokwane to get settled.

from there, we picked up evelyne in a mall parking lot, who joined us from high up north in kruger national park. together, we visited a wildlife rehab and sanctuary called moholoholo. given the rarity of some animals in the wild - such as leopards and wild dogs - this is a fantastic opportunity to catch sight of them for the first time.

we spent three days within manyeleti private game reserve, accompanied by our own guide and lodged in an unfenced, off-grid camp called buffelshoek tented camp.

wonder how a day in a game reserve looks like? it begins before sunrise with warm rooibos tea and rusks, preparing us for the morning drive in a 4x4 game viewing vehicle. this is prime time for wildlife activity, with temperatures still comfortable. at the most scenic spot, we pause for snacks and a stroll around the car.

back at the lodge, breakfast awaits. typically, it's an english breakfast featuring sausages, baked beans, tomato, and mushrooms, which have a magical flavor in south africa.

noon is siesta time, not just for the people but also for the animals! we explored camp, found our little spot up on the balcony of the main lounge to do some yoga, shower and slow down a little.

after lunch, the afternoon game drive awaits. your guide will do their best to spot all the animals you always wanted to see. thanks to the tireless dedication of our tour guide we were lucky to see the big five except for the leopard. even more exciting for frank were the giant leopard tortoises, adorable squirrels and the legend about marula trees and how elephants love them!

at sunset, another chance awaits for a coffee, rusks, and a break to capture the ‘sundowner’. Upon returning, as night falls, you're guaranteed to experience the vibrant life of the bush. you’ll see it and hear the sounds that fill the air.

evening in the bush is magical. you get together in a campfire braai - the way to grill in south africa, and listen to the sea of frogs, hyenas howling, you know you’re surrounded by hippos, and you hear the lions in the distance. after a wine, savanna or appletiser, you’ll fall asleep like a child, ready to start the day early for another day in the bush.

Waterfalls and Canyons on the Panorama Route

february is an unpredictable month. we were fortunate that as we wound down the roads of the panorama route, the sky cleared up for us, revealing breathtaking views around every bend of blyde canyon.

our luck took a turn in the afternoon where the rain came down, soaking us until we reached our beautiful little countryside house in graskop with floor to ceiling windows and fireplaces. we still made it to berlin falls, but it was neither time nor the conditions to check out other impressive waterfalls worth visiting, such as:

• mac mac falls

• lisbon falls

nevertheless, for those luckier than us, it's an outdoor paradise with plenty of hiking opportunities around!

a glimpse of kruger national park

things got much worse when we continued onto kruger national park. our initial hope to enter through phabeni gate, self-drive safari all the way down to malelane got shattered when they announced that the flood and rain was so dramatic they had to close the bridge. we were told to turn around.

nevertheless in the few hours, we were incredibly lucky to witness a pride of lions eating a zebra very close to the road.

we had much more luck in our camping road trip through kruger national park. there we went from malelane gate all the way to punda maria rest camp in makuleke:

through a little detour we made it to the other side of crocodile bridge, where we could sleep next to hippos and hear hyenas howling at night.

the good night rest so close to kruger prepared us to travel to kwazulu-natal through eswatini the next day, where we faced similar issues. we had to turn around and detour as bridges were flooded.

Hippos in iSimangaliso Wetland Park

from St. Lucia, at the edge of the village, there's an entrance to isimangaliso national park. once inside, you can observe many native wild animals such as kudus, hippos, buffalo, and even crocodiles when the time’s right. there are plenty of opportunities for a good time on a beach too.

if you are into hippos like us, in the town of st.lucia, hop onto a boat tour for the evening. it took us out into the wetlands and we saw plenty of hippos (and they were really active). at the same time we learned lots about the ecosystem around, the yellow weavers who craft their nests in the reeds where hippos and crocodiles hide.

we traveled along the coast until mtunzini, where we stayed in a tucked away tree house in walking distance to the beach, and traveled durban on the next day, where we took a domestic flight to gqeberha to jump start the garden route.

Hiking the Garden Route

on garden route, you will pass by famous storms river bridge and big tree. right next to it is tsitsikamma national park, which we highly recommend as a nature getaway. strolling from the parking lot to the suspension bridge, we spotted many adorable rock dassies while getting used to the taste of buchu tea, a healthy but pungent fynbos tea special to south africa.

however, the real highlight was hiking in the opposite direction towards the tsitsikamma waterfall. along the way, we encountered diverse fynbos vegetation, and at the waterfall's end, we refreshed ourselves in the water. it’s part of the otter trail, where you can spend days hiking along the wild sea.

we stayed near keurboomstrand, where we celebrated evelyne’s birthday in the national park and at ristorante enrico, a lively and heartfelt italian restaurant with live music.

don’t miss out on robberg nature reserve. it’s a peninsula, where already from afar you can observe seals swimming in the ocean almost like they are dancing. the entire island is hikeable; although we only did half of it. we hiked down to the beach, took a dip in the ice cold water, and hiked back to the parking lot, where a specialty coffee truck had the perfect iced coffee waiting for us.

time moves wonderfully slow along scenic garden route. on the way we stumbled upon a small timberlake Village. it’s great place to shop for arts and crafts, drink incredible third-wave specialty coffee, a have lunch at a bakery with fresh and healthy ingredients, and a store that sells irresistible homemade sweet treats.

it doesn’t matter in which quaint coastal town you stop along the way whether it is plettenberg bay, knysna or wilderness. it will be beautiful.

Ostriches in Klein Karoo & Swartberg Pass

from the lush green maritime fynbos vegetation along the sea, here’s where you travel in-land to the ‘worldwide capital of ostrich’ - oudtshoorn.

franks absolute favorite part is driving swartberg pass, where on the other side the landscape gets dry and colorado-red, and the sky dark blue.

on the other side, a small town prince albert awaits. on the main road you’ll find a café - the lazy lizard, which embodies the relaxing spirit of the town. there isn’t anything more relaxing than to stop for a tasty coffee, bread and shop for delightful locally made treats.

the best wine in stellenbosch

the region surrounding stellenbosch is world famous for its legendary wine. a south african road trip isn’t complete without a vineyard tour, wine tasting - or for us, an elevated picnic experience.

stellenbosch is full of impressive wineries. we visited hazendal wine estate and its gardens, and sat down for a wine and vegan picnic lunch under a tree.

we stayed in stellenbosch for two days. in the peaceful and dry summer, waking up with a view to the mountains, it feels so much like vacationing. jump into the pool when it’s hot, and have a braai and some ukulele music by the fire.

cape town - sightseeing, penguins on the beach and hiking lions head

in cape town, we stayed in muizenberg, a surfer town known for its colorful beach huts. that meant a 40 minute travel time into cape town, but still being close enough to the cape of good hope.

not too far away from muizenberg lies boulders beach. it’s not only the place to meet a colony of adorable african penguins - rock dassies also make a reappearance!

drive all the way down to cape point national park to catch a glimpse of the cape of good hope (which is the most southwestern tip of africa!). if you start heading back to cape town, don’t miss out whole earth café and driving the iconic rugged coastal highway chapman’s peak drive. If you have a drone, fly it with caution - frank sadly crashed his drone into the sea.

we explored the city of cape town on the red double-decker hop-on hop-off buses. it takes you from the city center with its incredibly diverse food scene and colorful markets through modern waterfront - which remind you more of the copenhagen waterfront until you see table mountain in the background - to camps bay. time for the white sandy beach and a good smoothie!

inside kirstenbosch botanical garden, frank went for some delicious traditional, all vegan south african pap, morogo, butternut and chakalaka. look out for the colorful nectarivore sunbirds on the most gorgeous flowers and take a walk on the tree canopy trail.

our grand finale was to hike to the top of lion’s head to catch the sunset over cape town. it’s a 2 hour, 5 km hike winding up, but if you don’t feel like hiking, you can also take the cable car up to table mountain instead.

alright then, this pretty much concludes our south african road trip. in cape town, we returned our rental car, and evelyne went on to continue her adventures in kwazulu-natal.

with 🐘 by frank.