South Africa Small Group Trips

The Garden Route was jam packed with wonderful experiences, without being rushed. Plenty of time to relish the beautiful scenery between stops. The food and accommodation were all excellent. Above all our tour guide was superb, keeping us informed and engaged so we got the most from our experience. This was a real treasure.

This was a fantastic trip - well-organised and run by our brilliant guide Samantha. It gave us a chance to see parts of South Africa that would be difficult to reach by public transport and plenty of opportunities for wildlife spotting on game drives and walks. Highlights were Kruger National Park, where we were lucky enough to have four leopard sightings, and even see a lion kill; and St Lucia with game drives in the day and night, and the full day at Cape Vidal with a BBQ on the beach. The accommodation was all of a good standard, and staying in the beehive huts in Mlilwane was a real experience. The bus was also clean and comfortable, which was good as there’s a lot of driving on this trip. With the game drives on top be prepared for plenty of sitting, but the itinerary has opportunities for hikes and walks as well. The star of the show was our guide Samantha, who had boundless energy and enthusiasm. She even went out of her way to make sure that we were catered for being vegan. We brought some food with us as Explore recommended but always found options (in some places just one option!) thanks to Sam. This is a brilliant trip and being able to see the Big 5 and experience South Africa’s beauty was incredible.

Sam was an absolute driving force making the most out of every day. She was extremely knowledgeable and made the holiday a truly fabulous experience. We enjoyed every day of the holiday and would happily book another Explore holiday in the future.

Great trip with good mixture of activities and wildlife. The weather was perfect for an August trip - warm during day, cooler at night, and fortunately only 10 minutes of rain in 2 weeks. Well looked after by our guide Bianca. Food was very good value. Expect some flexibility in the itinerary - we couldn’t sea kayak due to choppy sea but alternative hike was great. Highlights were climbing Table Mountain (2-3h strenuous hike), surfing lesson, optional Whale Watching boat trip, Addo Elephant National Park and optional Schotia Private Game Reserve drive on the morning of departure.

This was an excellent trip very efficiently run. Two nights in every location except the last worked well. The accommodation standard was excellent and all the food was very good, including that prepared by the leaders. The trip was a very good mixture of game driving, hiking, a history day and driving days (I enjoy seeing the countryside and I listen to audio books to help pass the time). The last two and a half hiking days in the Drakensberg were a real highlight. Only one day, the hike in Eswatini, failed to impress as it was on a big track most of the time. Overall, this gives a very good introduction to the east of South Africa with not too much time spent in the truck. Oh, and the truck was very spacious and comfortable, not a minibus as I expected.

Our Cape to Victoria Falls was an amazing adventure, a tremendous way to be introduced to the hidden gems of South Africa, Namibia and Botswana. The tour was made more spectacular by our tour guides, their knowledge and ability to cater for our every wish and need, some we didn't even recognise ourselves. Great and varied accommodation, exciting, adventurous and challenging experiences. Constantly awakened senses. Why did I wait so long to visit Southern Africa? My recommendation, don't delay.