Itinéraire de notre voyage en Afrique du Sud

Hi Michel!
I’m actually thinking of spending a night in Hlane—thanks for the tips! But I’m not quite sure I understand your last sentence:
11 a.m. in Rambo, and Dullstroom is actually too far... so I’ll pass the baton to others...For now, I’ve revised two itineraries based on the discussions here:20-03-25 Flight to Cape Town
21-03-25 Night in Cape Town
22-03-25 Night in Cape Town
23-03-25 Night in Cape Town
24-03-25 Night in Cape Town
25-03-25 Simon's Town
26-03-25 Stellenbosch
27-03-25 Mossel Bay
28-03-25 Knysna
29-03-25 Knysna
30-03-25 Flight Port Elizabeth - Durban (night in Umhlanga)
31-03-25 St. Lucia
01-04-25 St. Lucia
02-04-25 St. Lucia
03-04-25 Swaziland
04-04-25 Kruger Park
05-04-25 Kruger Park
06-04-25 Kruger Park
07-04-25 Kruger Park
08-04-25 Kruger Park
09-04-25 Blyde River
10-04-25 Johannesburg
11-04-25 Departure to Brussels

Hi Nathalie,
Awesome! I’ll read the travel journal tonight at my leisure :-) Thanks!

and the 2nd option where I leave directly from Cape Town to Knysna and then make my way back slowly toward Cape Town to catch the flight to Durban since there are more and earlier options. That way, I could go straight from Durban to St Lucia and gain an extra day:20-03-25 Overnight flight to Cape Town
21-03-25 Night in Cape Town
22-03-25 Night in Cape Town
23-03-25 Night in Cape Town
24-03-25 Night in Cape Town
25-03-25 Simon's Town
26-03-25 Knysna
27-03-25 Knysna
28-03-25 Mossel Bay
29-03-25 Stellenbosch
30-03-25 Stellenbosch
31-03-25 Flight Cape Town - Durban heading to St Lucia
01-04-25 St Lucia
02-04-25 St Lucia
03-04-25 Swaziland
04-04-25 Kruger Park
05-04-25 Kruger Park
06-04-25 Kruger Park
07-04-25 Kruger Park
08-04-25 Kruger Park
09-04-25 Blyde River
10-04-25 Johannesburg (approx.)
11-04-25 Departure to Brussels
Does this make more sense?

I don’t know about you, but they’re confusing me.
And honestly, Michel kinda scares me acting like Rambo (he was talking about O.R. Tambo, which is the name of Johannesburg Airport (JNB)).Durban Airport is way north of the city and even north of Umhlanga. It doesn’t seem smart to head back south to Umhlanga just to go north again the next day. The coastal road is beautiful and has plenty of places to stay (like Westbrook Beach, for example).
I’d stick with your original plan. Your flight day to Durban will be pretty packed, and you’ll have enough time in the St. Lucia area since you’ll arrive in the morning.@MichelBut there are also local mussels in Knysna. And fries!

Not Rambo but Tambo! !

You see right through my mistakes
Rambo / Tambo

Thanks Jean-Luc! Yeah, that makes more sense now.Anyway, I worked on this itinerary based on everyone’s comments… What do you think?20-03-25 Overnight flight to Cape Town
21-03 to 25-03 in Cape Town
25-03 Simon's Town
26-03 to 27-03 Knysna to ease back toward CT since there are no more flights to Durban
28-03 Mossel Bay
29-03 to 30-03 Stellenbosch
31-03 Flight from Cape Town to Durban, then on to Santa Lucia
3 nights in Santa Lucia
03-04 Swaziland
5 nights at Kruger Park
09-04 Blyde River
10-04 heading closer to Johannesburg
11-04 Departure from BrusselsDoesn’t it look pretty solid too? The good thing is we only have one long trip from Simon’s Town to Knysna, but it’s chill with a stop here and there, and after that it’s less of a rush

That sounds like a great plan! 😊

Generally, the choice is between the country’s 3 parks:
Hlane, Mlilwane, and Mkhaya.Mkhaya requires more time than just one night and a morning.
Hlane has chalets with a charmingly rustic vibe, but you can’t really explore it without a 4x4 (outside of guided tours).
Mlilwane is the "good-living" stop—more about nature than wildlife.You’ll find a bit more info on these spots in steps 10 and 11 of this travel journal.5 nights, then.Option 1 – Main camp villages: Lower Sabie (x2), Satara (x1), then Olifants (x2).Option 2 – Bush camp immersion: Biyamiti (x2), Talamati (x2), Balule (x1—rustic), or Shimuwini.Option 3 – Kruger + private reserves: 3 nights in Kruger / 2 nights in a private reserve.All these camps are listed in my different travel journals.

Good evening
I share this point of view
Milwane is great for stretching your legs
Mkhaya is a private reserve that deserves more time
Hlane isn’t bad… personally, rhinos at 15 meters when you’re on foot is…
The chalets are nice, the overall vibe is pretty good, and
It’s right in the middle! !

Thanks Agnès!
We were thinking of doing a mix of village camps, bush camps, and private reserves. I’ll read your travel journals now to get some inspiration.
Do you have any favorites among the different categories? Which category did you enjoy the most? I’m asking to help figure out how to split the nights

Personally, I prefer the more intimate bush camps.I find the main rest camps too busy and touristy.But staying in a bush camp means preparing your own dinner, so you’ll need to buy groceries since there’s no restaurant. (The bungalows have all the necessary equipment, except at Balule, which is a very rustic camp with shared bathrooms and toilets.)For a 3-night stay in Kruger and 2 nights in a private reserve, I’d recommend 2 nights at Biyamiti or Talamati (so 2 nights in a bush camp) and one night at Olifants (a main rest camp with a stunning view). Just keep in mind you’ll need the full day to travel leisurely from Biyamiti to Olifants.

I couldn't book at the Biyamiti bush camp unfortunately because it was already full for my dates, so I booked 2 nights at Lower Sabie instead. I wanted to stay in the south to avoid too much driving coming from Hlane, which I also chose because it's closer to Kruger. I'm thinking of 1 night at Olifants and 2 nights in a private reserve at Balule...does that make sense?

Not trying to promote anything here,
In Manyeleti, just past Orpen,
There are:
Honeyguide, Ndzakha, Buffelshoek, Pungwe
It’s less luxurious than Balule, but you’re a bit more in the KNP

I’ll check out your suggestions because Balule is really expensive!😲

Lower Sabie is well located for exploring the south.
For the last night, you first need to know which private reserve it’ll be so you can choose accommodation based on the distance to cover.Mohlabetsi seems to have skyrocketed in price.
I paid 600 € for 3 nights (all-inclusive for 2) a good ten years ago...

I went to Pungwe a few years ago—I loved it. Felt like *Out of Africa* 😊

I didn’t realize private reserves would be that expensive—it’s way over our budget for us (we’re in the middle of home renovations), so we’re looking at other options… but the good news is our itinerary is finally set! Just need to figure out the last 3 nights in Kruger… but reading through sites and travel journals like yours, I can’t wait to get there I have a feeling this is going to be another amazing trip

Roughly speaking, Manyeleti
It’s between 800 and 1000 € for two nights all-inclusive for two people.
April is an expensive month

Hi Agnes, as I mentioned, I’ve booked 2 nights at Lower Sabie and we’ll head toward Olifants Rest Camp.... do you know if we leave early in the morning, can we make it in time for sunset at the game reserve? We’re planning to spend just one night there so we can spend the last 2 nights somewhere else... still figuring that out.