Trip Highlight
This itinerary packs a punch, hitting the highlights of South Africa’s Garden Route and Addo Elephant National Park in just one week. It’s designed for those who like to keep moving, maximizing their time and experiencing a diverse range of landscapes and wildlife encounters. Get ready for game drives, hikes, stunning coastal views, and unforgettable moments!
- South Africa National Parks
- Bontebok National Park
- Garden Route National Park
- Wilderness National Park
- Tsitsikamma National Park (storms river mouth & Nature’s Valley)
- Knysna section
- Robberg Natural Reserve
- Addo Elephant National Park
- Private Game Reserve
- Botlierskop private game reserve
- Kragga Kamma game reserve
Useful Information
Data Plan
Nowadays eSIM is our preferred travel data solution. We compared eSIM providers for South Africa including arlo, Momad, Saily, Maya and based on the duration and data need we went with Saily this time. 10G (plus an additional 5G free) available for 30 days for $22.99.
Money
We took out some local ZAR at the airport ATM. Credit Card is accepted almost everywhere. However, since we are renting a car and driving from Cape town to Port Elizabeth, we were told by friends that there is toll on N2 before entering Port Elizabeth and cash may be required, so always good to have some local currency on hand.
South Africa National Park Wild Card
Since we planned to visit many of the South Africa National parks on this trip we decided to purchase the SANP Wild Card – for international travelers. the International family Wild Card is R7,770 (about USD 400) and is valid for 1 year, you get access to all the SANP parks and reserves.
Itinerary
We had some travel interruption with our original flight (please see below for details) and had to adjust the originally planned 11 day itinerary to 8 days – here the updated shorten itinerary
Day0 – flight from EDW to Cape Town
Day1 – Bontebok National Park
| 2:30pm | Arrive CPT airport |
| 2:30pm – 3:30pm | Custom, ATM, pick up rental Car |
| 3:30pm – 6:00pm | 2.5 hour drive to Bontebok National Park |
| 6:00pm-6:30pm | check in to chalet (must check in before 7pm) |
Day2 – Bontebok National Park & Botlierskop Game Reserve
| morning – 10:00am | Enjoy chalet |
| 10:00am | check out |
| 10:00am – 11:00pm | Drive self driving route in Bontebok National Park |
| 11:00pm-11:30pm | Stop by Grocery store/lunch |
| 11:30pm-2:30pm | 2.5 hour drive to Botlierskop Game Reserve with quick stop at Mossel bay |
| 3:00pm – 6:00pm | 3 hour sunset game drive |
| 6:00pm – 7:00pm | 40 mins drive to Geroge |
| 7:00pm – | check in hotel/dinner |
Day3 – Wilderness National Park
| 8:00am- 8:30am | Breakfast and grocery stop |
| 8:30am – 9:00am | 20 min drive to Map of Africa and stop at view point |
| 9:00am – 9:30am | 20 min drive to Half Collared Kingfisher Trai head |
| 9:30am – 12:30am | 7km hike Half Collared Kingfisher Trai to waterfall and back |
| 12:30 – 1:30pm | 1 hour drive to SANP Garden of Eden |
| 1:30pm – 2:30pm | visit Garden of Eden and Harkerville Kranshoek Viewpoint |
| 2:30pm – 3:00pm | 20 min drive to Robberg Nature Reserve |
| 3:00pm – 6:00pm | Hike Robberg Nature Reserve the Witsand loop (5.5km) |
| 6:00pm – | check in hotel, grocery, dinner |
Day4 – Tsitsikamma National Park
| 9:00am – 10:00am | Knysna Zipline tour |
| 10:00am – 11:00am | 30 min drive to Bloukrans Bridge, Watch people bungy jump |
| 11:00am – 12:00pm | Drive to Tsitsikamma National Park (Storms River Mouth) |
| 12:00pm – 2:00pm | Hike to Storms River Suspension Bridge |
| 2:00pm – 2:30pm | Drive to Storms River/Tsitsikamma Canopy Tour |
| 3:00pm – 4:30pm | Tsitsikamma tree top zip line tour |
| 5:00pm | check in to hotel, dinner |
Day5 -Day6 – Addo Elephant National Park
| Day5 | |
| 9:00am – 10:30am | 1.5 hour drive to Sunridge Village shopping center |
| 10:30am – 11:00am | shopping/lunch at Sunridge Village |
| 11:00am – 11:30am | 30 min drive to Addo Elephant National Park |
| Afternoon | Drive Addo Elephant National park from south gate to main camp |
| 5:00pm | check in to chalet |
| 7:00pm – 9:30pm | Night Game Drive |
| Day6 | |
| Morning – 2:00pm | Drive Addo national park from north to south |
| 2:00pm – 3:00pm | Drive to Sunridge Village/Lunch |
| 3:00pm – 3:30pm | Drive to Kragga Kamma game lodge |
| 3:30pm – | check in to chalet |
Day7 – Kragga Kamma Game lodge
| morning – 10am | enjoy chalet |
| 10am – 11:30am | self drive Kragga Kamma game loop |
| 11:30 – 12:00pm | Drive to port Elizabeth |
| 12:00pm – 2:00pm | Boardwalk Mall & Shark Rock Pier, Lunch |
| 2:00pm – 3:00pm | Port Elizabeth airport, car return, check in for flight |
| 6:00pm – 7:40pm | flight to Johannesburg |
Day8 – Fly back from Johannesburg to EWR
Where we stayed
| 1 night | Bontebok National Park (chalet in the park) |
| 1 night | George – Premier Express Inn George |
| 1 night | Plettenberg – Nothando Backpackers Lodge |
| 1 night | Stormsriver – Andelomi Nature’s Rest |
| 1 night | Addo Elephant National Park (Chalet in the main camp) |
| 1 night | Kragge Kamma private reserve |
| 1 night | Johannesburg – Metcourt Hotel at Emperors Palace |
Travel interruption – a mobile boarding pass failure story
Our much-anticipated trip to Cape Town has gotten off to the worst possible start, thanks to a baffling experience with Ethiopian Airlines. This was a first for us, and frankly, a complete shock.
Two days before our flight, we diligently checked in online through the Ethiopian Airlines website. We scanned our passport documents, everything processed smoothly, and we received our mobile boarding passes. Feeling prepared, we arrived at our gate at EWR a full two hours before departure.
Then, the chaos began. As we attempted to board, the gate agent informed us we needed to exchange our mobile boarding passes for paper ones at the counter. No problem, we thought. But at the counter, we were met with a devastating blow: we were told it was past the passport verification cut-off time (one hour before departure) and we were no longer allowed to board the flight.
We were stunned. We’d been waiting at the gate, hearing other names called for verification, but ours was never announced. Why? Because we didn’t check any luggage. Apparently, this meant our names were automatically pulled from the verification list. To add insult to injury, there was no announcement about mobile boarding pass holders needing to exchange them for paper copies.
Now, our dream trip hangs in the balance. The airline is scrambling to find us seats on a later flight, but the possibility of having to cancel our Cape Town adventure for the second time (two years ago, we faced weather-related delays) looms large.
Update 1: The Waiting Game
The airline is trying to get us on the 9 PM flight from JFK on the same day, but it’s currently full. If that falls through, our next option is a Monday morning flight from EWR. The uncertainty is excruciating.
Even the airline manager was surprised by our situation, admitting he’d never seen this happen before. He highlighted a few key points:
- No Checked Luggage: This automatically removed us from their standard verification process.
- Mobile Boarding Pass Confusion: He suggested the TSA agent should have stopped us due to the international mobile boarding pass (though we’ve used them successfully before).
- Lack of Communication: There was no gate announcement instructing mobile boarding pass holders to see an agent.
- Misdirected Announcements: The announcements made were specifically for passengers transiting from other airlines, not for those originating from EWR. A general announcement for all mobile boarding pass holders would have solved this.
- The Big Question: Why Issue Mobile Boarding Passes if They Aren’t Fully Supported? This is the most frustrating part.
Update 2: A Delayed Departure and a Reworked Itinerary
A couple hours later, the airline manager confirmed that we’ve been confirmed on the Monday morning flight from EWR. While we’re relieved to finally have a flight, we’ve lost three precious days of our 11-day trip. We’ve had to drastically alter our itinerary to salvage what we can.
Here’s a comparison of our original and revised plans:
Original Itinerary (11 Days):
- Day 1: Arrive Cape Town, Table Mountain
- Day 2: Cape of Good Hope, Boulders Beach (penguins)
- Day 3: Betty’s Bay (penguins), whale watching, Bontebok National Park
- Day 4: Oudtshoorn, Cango Caves, ostrich farm
- Day 5-11: Continued itinerary
New Itinerary (8 Days):
- Day 1: Arrive Cape Town, drive directly to Bontebok National Park (cutting original Days 1, 2, and 4)
- Day 2: Botlierskop Private Game Drive (connecting to original Day 5)
- Day 3: Wilderness National Park, Robberg Nature Reserve (original Day 6)
- Day 4: Tsitsikamma National Park (original Day 7)
- Day 5: Addo Elephant National Park (original Day 8)
- Day 6: Addo, Kragga Kamma Game Lodge (original Day 9)
- Day 7: Port Elizabeth, fly to Johannesburg (original Day 10)
- Day 8: Fly home (original Day 11)
While we’re incredibly disappointed to lose three days and miss out on some key experiences, we’re determined to make the most of our remaining time in South Africa. This whole ordeal has highlighted serious issues with the airline’s mobile boarding pass system and communication procedures. We hope that by sharing our experience, we can help prevent others from facing the same frustrating situation. And since we had to skip Cape Town this time, we will be back!
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