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Cape Town seen from the air below Table Mountain

Africa · South Africa

South Africa

Fly overnight, land in the same time zone, and step into a country with a world-class city, a wine region, a coastal road and the Big Five — all in one holiday. Pound for pound it's the best-value long-haul we sell.

11h 30m direct · CPT / JNBNo visa for UK passportsOct–Apr for the CapeGuide price from £1,849pp

The short version

No jet lag, which changes everything

South Africa is one or two hours ahead of the UK depending on the season, so an overnight flight lands you ready to go instead of wrecked for three days. That single fact makes a ten-night trip genuinely workable where the same length in Asia or the Caribbean isn't. English is an official language, the roads are good, and the exchange rate means restaurants and hotels cost a fraction of what they would in Europe.

The city

Cape Town, and the mountain in the middle of it

Few cities have a 1,000m flat-topped mountain in the centre with a cable car up it. Around that: the V&A Waterfront, Bo-Kaap's painted houses, Camps Bay and Clifton beaches, and Robben Island out in the bay. Book Table Mountain for a clear morning and be flexible — the 'tablecloth' cloud closes the cable car regularly, and people who leave it to their last day often miss it entirely.

The peninsula

Penguins, capes and a day's drive

The Cape Peninsula is one of the great day drives — Chapman's Peak clinging to the cliff, Boulders Beach where African penguins nest among the boulders and swimmers, and Cape Point where the peninsula ends. Add Kirstenbosch botanical gardens on the way back. It's a full day, it needs a car or a driver, and it's the day people talk about afterwards.

An aerial view of Cape Town and the coast

Build the route

Four parts, and how they fit together

Most trips fly into Cape Town and out of Johannesburg, or the reverse. Open-jaw saves a two-hour internal backtrack and usually costs the same.

4 nights · CPT

Cape Town

The city, the mountain, the peninsula and the beaches. Four nights minimum and you'll still leave things undone.

V&A Waterfront: Safe, walkable, and the easiest base for a first visit. Restaurants and the Robben Island ferry.
Camps Bay: Beach suburb under the Twelve Apostles. Smart, scenic, and a taxi from the centre.
City Bowl & Bo-Kaap: Between the mountain and the sea. Painted houses, galleries, and the best restaurants.
Constantia: Wine estates within the city limits. Green, quiet and good for families.

2 nights · 45 min

The Winelands

Forty-five minutes from Cape Town and a completely different landscape — Cape Dutch farmhouses, mountains and some of the best-value fine dining in the world.

Stellenbosch: Oak-lined streets, a university town, and the densest concentration of estates.
Franschhoek: The prettiest, and the food capital. A wine tram links the estates so nobody drives.
Paarl: Bigger, less touristed, and home to some serious old wineries.
Constantia: The oldest wine region in the southern hemisphere, and inside Cape Town.

3–4 nights · driving

The Garden Route

A coastal road east from Cape Town through forest, lagoons and cliffs. Self-drive, and the easiest road trip in Africa.

Hermanus: Two hours out. Land-based whale watching from the cliff path, June to November.
Knysna: A lagoon town with heads either side. The midpoint of the route.
Plettenberg Bay: Beaches, and the best base for the eastern half.
Tsitsikamma: Forest, suspension bridges and the world's highest bungee. Dramatic coast.

3–4 nights · fly in

Safari

Kruger and its private reserves in the north-east, or the malaria-free Eastern Cape reserves reachable from the Garden Route.

Sabi Sand: Private reserve bordering Kruger. The best leopard sightings in Africa, and priced accordingly.
Kruger main camps: Self-drive and far cheaper. You do the finding yourself, which some people prefer.
Timbavati & Manyeleti: Other private reserves on the Kruger boundary. Excellent and slightly less expensive.
Eastern Cape: Malaria-free reserves near Port Elizabeth. The answer if you're travelling with children.

Our speciality

City, wine, coast, safari

The classic South African itinerary and the reason to fly open-jaw. In at Cape Town, out at Johannesburg, with an internal flight to the bush at the end so you're not driving 1,500km.

Cape Town4 nightsTable Mountain, the peninsula, Robben Island.
Drive · 45 min
Winelands2 nightsFranschhoek, the wine tram, and one very good dinner.
Flight · 2h 30m
Sabi Sand4 nightsBig Five, twice-daily game drives, fly home from JNB.

The bush leg is a short flight, not a drive — Kruger is 1,500km from Cape Town. We book the internal hop and the transfer into the reserve as part of the package.

When to go

Two seasons pulling in opposite directions

The Cape is Mediterranean: warm dry summers from November to March, wetter winters. Kruger is the reverse for game viewing — the dry winter from May to September concentrates animals at waterholes and thins the bush. A combined trip is always a compromise, and October and April are the best of both.

JanCape peak

FebCape peak

MarIdeal

AprIdeal

MayBush good

JunWhales

JulBest game

AugWhales

SepFlowers

OctIdeal

NovWarming

DecCape peak

April and October are our picks — the Cape is warm and dry, the bush is workable, and neither is at peak price. Whale watching at Hermanus runs June to November; the Namaqualand wildflowers are a short window in August and September.

Worth leaving the resort for

What we'd actually book

Table Mountain

Cable car or hike up Platteklip Gorge. Book a clear morning and stay flexible — cloud closes it often.

Boulders Beach

African penguins nesting among the rocks, and you can swim alongside them. Go early; it fills by ten.

Cape Point

Where the peninsula ends. Chapman's Peak drive on the way, and baboons who will genuinely take your lunch.

Bo-Kaap

Cape Malay quarter of painted houses on the slope. Do the cooking class rather than just photographing the street.

Robben Island

Mandela's cell, with former political prisoners as guides. Book weeks ahead; the ferry sells out.

Camps Bay & Clifton

Four beaches under the Twelve Apostles. Beautiful, and the Atlantic here is genuinely cold — about 14°C.

Franschhoek wine tram

Hop-on, hop-off between estates. Nobody drives, everyone tastes, and lunch is world class for the money.

Whale watching at Hermanus

June to November, from the clifftop path — no boat needed. Southern right whales, a few metres offshore.

The practical bits

Things that catch people out

Almost no jet lagOne or two hours ahead of the UK. The single biggest practical advantage over any other long-haul destination.

Two airportsCape Town (CPT) and Johannesburg (JNB). Open-jaw is usually the same price as a return and saves a backtrack.

LanguageEnglish is one of eleven official languages and is spoken everywhere you'll go.

CurrencySouth African rand. Favourable for British visitors — restaurants and wine are notably cheap.

DrivingOn the left, good roads, and the Garden Route is an easy self-drive. Avoid driving at night in rural areas.

MalariaKruger is a malaria area — antimalarials advised. The Eastern Cape reserves are malaria-free, which matters with children.

SafetyNormal city precautions in Cape Town and Johannesburg: no valuables on show, taxis or Uber after dark.

TippingExpected — around 10–15% in restaurants, and a daily amount for safari guides and trackers.

Before you book

Five things worth knowing

Fly open-jaw. Cape Town in, Johannesburg out. Same fare, and it removes a pointless 1,500km backtrack from the middle of your holiday.

Book Table Mountain flexibly. The cable car closes for cloud and wind more often than people expect. Go on the first clear morning, not on your last day.

Malaria-free safari exists. The Eastern Cape reserves are reachable from the Garden Route and need no antimalarials — the usual answer for families with young children.

The Atlantic side is cold. Camps Bay and Clifton look tropical and sit at about 14°C. False Bay, on the other side of the peninsula, is several degrees warmer.

The Cape and the bush want different months. Perfect for one is average for the other. April and October are the honest compromise, and we'd book those.

Next step

Tell us your dates and we'll build the route

Send your dates, party and rough budget and we'll come back with an open-jaw itinerary — city, wine, coast and bush — with the internal flights and the payment plan written out in full.

Your money is protected. Trip Tides is a travel agent — we book your holiday with a travel company, and that company is named on your quote and confirmation. Your contract is with them. If your holiday is a package including flights, put together by an ATOL holder, you'll get an ATOL certificate naming that company. We confirm in writing what protection applies before you pay.

South Africa packages

Flights, accommodation and transfers as one package. Every one can be reshaped — different dates, different board, a different airport, or a stopover on the way.

7 nights in South Africa

Full board · Jun–Oct

Return flights and private transfers
Full board throughout
Financial protection confirmed in writing before you pay

from £1,849per person

Get a quote

10 nights in South Africa

Full board · Jun–Oct

Return flights and private transfers
Full board throughout
The extra nights cost proportionally less — fixed costs don't change

from £2,439per person

Get a quote

14 nights in South Africa

Full board · Jun–Oct

Return flights and private transfers
Full board throughout
Best value per night, and worth it on a longer flight

from £2,999per person

Get a quote

Guide prices, per person, based on two sharing, including return flights, accommodation and transfers. They indicate what a holiday of this type has typically cost and are not an offer or a quotation. Your price depends on dates, party, board basis, departure airport and availability, and is confirmed in writing before any payment is taken.