4 Day Guided Garden Route Tour from Cape Town
DAY 01. Cape Town – Hermanus – Swellendam – Mossel Bay (Cape Garden Route)
Your 4-Day Garden Route Tour From Cape Town Departs at around 09h00. We continue eastwards towards the Garden Route. The road takes us via a beautiful coastal route between Gordon’s Bay and the beautiful seaside town of Hermanus. (Hermanus is also arguably the best place in the World to spot Whales from land – July to Dec). After lunch, you continue to Mossel Bay and visit famous Cape Town tourist attractions such as the oldest post office in Africa. A huge hollow tree was used to hide the post at the site of the first landfall, made by the Portuguese explorer Bartholomew Dias in 1488. Overnight at Bar -T-Nique Guesthouse in Mosselbay.
DAY 02. Mossel Bay – Oudtshoorn – Cango Caves – Ostrich Farm.
Travel over the scenic Outeniqua Mountains to the Little Karoo. We visit an Ostrich Show Farm for some unique experiences. Here we learn about these amazing flightless birds and may see some ostrich racing. A ride on the back of an ostrich is not for the fainthearted. You visit the Cango caves, regarded as one of South Africa’s foremost natural wonders. The calcite caves comprise an underground wonderland of stalactites and stalagmites. Afterwards, you visit Oudtshoorn, also called the “Feather capital” of the world, because we find over ninety per cent of the world’s ostrich farms here. Overnight at La Plume Lodge outside Oudtshoorn.
DAY 03. Oudtshoorn – Cango Wildlife Ranch – Garden Route – Knysna
After breakfast, you visit the Cango Wildlife Ranch and Valley of Ancients, an endangered species breeding facility. Then depart for George and Wilderness National Park. You skirt around the lakes with stops at scenic viewpoints en route to Knysna. The town is situated on the edge of the Knysna Lagoon, with its entrance to the sea guarded by two hills known as the “Heads”. The area also falls within a National Park proclaimed to conserve the natural beauty of the Lakelands and adjacent indigenous forests. Knysna also offers shopping opportunities for locally made art and craft, etc. You could join an optional sundowner cruise on the Knysna lagoon to enjoy the beautiful surroundings of Knysna. You overnight at Augusta Bay Lodge in Knysna.
DAY 04. Knysna – Plettenberg Bay – Tsitsikamma National Park
You explore Knysna and travel further via Plettenberg Bay to visit the Birds of Eden. This unique two-hectare dome (the worlds largest) spans over a gorge of indigenous forest. It is currently home to over 3,500 birds from over 220 species, focusing on African birds. Then visit Monkeyland, the world’s first free-roaming multi-species primate sanctuary. You can expect to see various primates, ranging from the Gibbons of Asia to the Lemurs of Madagascar. More than 700 primates live here in the sanctuary. Travel to The Bloukrans Bridge, 216 meters (709 feet) above the Bloukrans River. The Bloukrans Bungee is the world’s highest commercial bungee bridge and the highest commercial natural bungee jump in the world (optional).
You visit the Tsitsikamma National Park (Khoisan for ‘The place of much water’), stretching over 100 kilometres of wild and rocky coastline. It’s characterized by massive cliffs, narrow, isolated beaches and shady indigenous forests along the river valleys. Here do a relatively easy walk via a scenic path to the suspension bridge stretching over the mouth of the Storms River. The final part of our journey takes us past a few coastal holiday villages to Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth), where the tour ends.
The following tours may interest you:
4-day Garden Route Tour from and returning to Cape Town – Code: SCCH
3-Day Garden Route Tour from Cape Town – Code; SCCA
NOTES:
Many extreme sports activities and weather dependent excursion options exist along with the routing of this tour. We have included the nature highlights in the tour – however, please discuss any of these options with your guide. (Some are only available on private and personalized tours)
