Tour
9
PRECIOUS GEM TOUR
There is more than one reason why we can recommend you the following
alternative National Parks in the Northern Cape!!!
- Jewel landscapes not so well
known amongst
tourists and therefore
less over crowed.
- Shorter travelling distances.
- Compared to the Kgalagadi Park where it is strictly
forbidden to leave your vehicle, clients here
have the opportunity to walk freely in these parks
any time and anywhere they wish because there
are no threats of running into any dangerous
cat species.
- Availability of accommodation: Unfortunately
the popularity of the Kgalagadi National
Park throughout the year has led to accommodation
becoming less available as many of the camps
are fully booked for months in advance.
- The demands created by the large number of clients
seeking to visit the unique Kalahari with very
short notice, makes it nearly impossible for us to
find accommodation.
- Although these alternatives are more cost effective,
it still provides excellent and comfortable
accommodation and a unique experience.
- Savings on expensive park entrance fees payable at
the Kgalagadi National Park influences your budget
because entrance fees of the alternative parks
like Augrabies is moderate and even no park
entrance fee is payable at Witsand Nature
Reserve and Dronfield Nature Reserve.
- The size of Kgalagadi National Park (approximately
that of Belgium) and the time visitors have
at hand to spend there is not always compatible.
Many people underestimate the size and distances
in the Park and only spend two or three
nights, that is definitely too short to experience
the best the Kalahari has to offer! The Kgalagadi
National Park also does not have the great
number of animals like Kruger National Park.
Patience, time and finally a bit of luck are needed
to see one of the world famous Kalahari lions
which are why most visitors visit the region.
We have to be honest and tell you that lions
cannot be met by appointment; nature goes
its own way! The opportunity of running
into any lion, leopard or cheetah is therefore a very
special encounter!
- We can in this way let you experience something close
to that which you would have had by visiting
the Kgalagadi, excluding the cats, but giving
you the opportunity to meet other species not
to be found in the Kgalagadi. The scenic landscapes
in the alternative parks are very much compatible
to that of the Kgalagadi!
All the proposed alternative parks are also MALARIA
FREE!!!
This program can be booked as a Camping or Chalet
tour.
TOUR
PROGRAM
DAY
1: We pick you up fully equipped in Upington.
En route to Augrabies Falls we visit Tierberg Nature Reserve in
Keimoes, from where one has a beautiful view over the lush green
Orange River Valley. A visit is paid to the Persian Water Wheels
and the old water tunnels at Kakamas from where we set off to the
Augrabies Falls, which is the sixth largest waterfall in the world
when South Africa’s largest river, the Orange River, is in flood.
Sight seeing and a game drive to awesome viewpoints like Ararat
and Oranjekom on the Orange River Gorge, adds to the adventure.
Giraffe, springbok, eland and klipspringer can be seen, while fish
eagles and black eagles are common residents. En route we do some
wine tasting at the second largest co-operative wine cellar in the
world, the Orange River Wine Cellar.
Overnight stay:
Augrabies Falls National Park
Meals:
NO Meals included / Restaurant available in the Camp
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DAY
2: Our trip back takes
us on the scenic gravel road passing through a large quiver tree
forest, south of the Orange River between Kakamas and Keimoes. Our
next stop is at the largest inhabited inland island in South Africa,
Kanoneiland. We stop in Upington for lunch before we drive via Groblershoop
to Witsand Nature Reserve. Few eco-destinations in the Northern
Cape are as scenic as Witsand Nature Reserve. It offers you sensual,
flowing white dunes – twenty to sixty metres high –surrounded by
copper-red Kalahari sand, Acacia woodland and the Langberg Mountain
Range. It is home to the famous roaring sand of the Kalahari. Under
the right conditions, these dunes utter an eerie rumbling sound
when disturbed. Witsand Nature Reserve is highly recommended to
all people who would love to experience their surroundings on foot.
After climbing the dunes a splash in a crystal clear pool would
fresh you up.
Overnight stay: Witsand
Nature Reserve
Meals: Full
board
DAY 3:
After breakfast we drive to our province’s
capital, Kimberley. OPTIONAL: participate on a
sight-seeing trip to the world famous Big Hole. You will be able
to view genuine artefact creatively displayed in the original Pulsator
building and learn more about the big efforts made by people just
to find “a girl’s best friend!” This is no ordinary Visitor’s Centre,
but a brush with the destiny of those who toiled, prospered, or
perished in search of the diamonds that could make their dreams
come true. You will also be intrigued by the many interesting discoveries
from history you’ll make about Kimberley, one of the most authentic
historical destinations in South Africa.
Chalet accommodation tour:
Beautiful fully equipped chalet at Dronfield Nature Reserve situated
just outside Kimberley. On our way we’ll make a short stop at Kamfer’s
Dam where the biggest population of flamingos in South Africa can
be viewed.
Camping accommodation option:
We drive from Kimberley another hour to Mokala National park where
we set up our camp for the next 2 nights.
Overnight
stay: Dronfield Nature Reserve OR Mokala National
Park
Meals: Full
board
Day
4: At both places Dronfield Nature Reserve
or Mokala National Park during our game drives we can run into
game that cannot be found in the Kalahari, eg. white rhino, Cape
buffalo, tsesebe, roan and sable antelope as well as zebra, impala,
giraffe, red hartebeest and oryx. The reserve is also representative
of a large colony of white-backed vultures that nest there. OPTIONAL:
One safari drive in an open 4x4 vehicle of the reserve.
Overnight stay: Dronfield
Nature Reserve OR Mokala National Park
Meals: Full board
Day
5: After breakfast transport to Kimberley
airport from where more than one connection flight to Johannesburg
or Cape Town is available.
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