SOUTH AFRICA: A WORLD IN ONE COUNTRY

Itinerary

Day 1 Monday: Johannesburg

Arrive at OR Thambo International Airport (ORTIA) in Johannesburg. We will be met on arrival and transferred to a nearby hotel for an overnight stay.

Day 2 Tuesday: Johannesburg – Victoria Falls

This morning we’ll transfer back to ORTIA for a flight to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. We’ll be met on arrival and transferred to your hotel for a 2-night stay. This afternoon we will have a guided walking tour of the Falls, one of the 7 natural wonders of the world - a truly awesome sight. First stop is the Big Tree – a massive baobab many hundreds of years old with a girth of some 22 metres. The tour continues on to the Falls themselves, starting at Livingstone’s statue and Devil’s Cataract and proceeding through the rainforest to Danger Point. The total walk is 3kms with many spectacular view points along the way.

Day 3 Wednesday: Victoria Falls

This morning we’ll depart the hotel for Chobe National Park in Botswana. Transfer across the Botswana border, completing immigration and customs formalities before continuing to the Chobe National Park. Cruise on the Chobe River with a chance of spotting elephant, crocodiles, pods of hippos and other game species coming to drink and bathe in the river, as well as many bird species. The afternoon activity is a game drive in open vehicles into the Chobe National Park, with a chance of spotting lion and buffalo as well as numerous plains game species. Transfer back across the Zimbabwean border in the late afternoon.

Day 4 Thursday: Victoria Falls – Johannesburg – Cape Town

Early morning – optional activities such as an elephant back safari, a walk with lions, or even a helicopter flip over the Falls. (These will be for your own account) Late morning: We will be collected at our hotel and transferred back to Victoria Falls Airport for a flight to Johannesburg and a connecting flight to Cape Town. We will be met on arrival and transferred to our hotel for a 4 –night stay. Cape Town is fast becoming one of the world’s most popular destinations. Perched between the sea and the famous Table Mountain, this cosmopolitan city offers everything from spectacular scenery and drives to inland wine farms, sandy white beaches, cultural diversity, historical landmarks, arts and crafts and museums.

Day 5 Friday: Cape Town

South Africa is the world's seventh largest wine producer, and its vineyards are as spectacular as those of France, Italy and California. Leaving Cape Town, proceed through the spectacular mountain scenery and lush fertile valleys of the Cape to Stellenbosch, South Africa's second oldest city. This oak lined university town has a museum showing different styles of architecture in the Cape from the 16th century. Proceed to Franschhoek, nestled in the valley where the French Huguenots first settled. We’ll pass the Victor Verster Prison from where former President Nelson Mandela was released in 1994. The day can be spent combining a mixture of fascinating history with spectacular scenery and wine tastings at two kosher wineries.

Day 6 Saturday: Cape Town

Day at leisure. Attend services at a synagogue located near your hotel or walk along the magnificent seafront.

Day 7 Sunday: Cape Town

Today we will enjoy a full day sightseeing tour to Cape Point. This 25-mile drive to Cape Point includes a stop at Hout Bay, a beautiful fishing village from where a boat trip is made to Duiker Island, to see the mass of seals (weather permitting). To arrive at Cape Point, one passes through the 7750 hectare plant-rich expanse of the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve. This reserve is home to a variety of indigenous wildlife species including the Cape Mountain zebra, red lynx, caracal and a variety of antelope. In addition about five troops of chacma baboons frequent the area. There are also over 250 species of marine birds. Viewers may be lucky enough to spot seals, whales and dolphins. Leaving the reserve we drive along the False Bay coastline to Boulders Beach, home of the largest Jackass Penguin colony in South Africa. A stop can then be made at Simonstown a naval base or Kalk Bay, one of the Cape’s new arts and crafts centres. Then it’s back to the city via Boyes Drive.

Day 8 Monday: Cape Town – Johannesburg - Game Lodge

This morning we’ll transfer back to Cape Town Airport for a return flight to Johannesburg and a flight to our private game lodge situated in a reserve adjacent to the world famous Kruger National Park. Check in for a 3-night stay. The activities at the lodge include late afternoon game drives, early morning game drives and an optional bush walk after breakfast. The game drives are all conducted in open Land Rover game drives accompanied by experienced rangers and trackers, ensuring an informative and stimulating safari experience. These drives are undertaken at times best suited for game viewing at the particular time of the year. The rangers advise of an early morning wake up call followed by a game drive, returning for breakfast. The afternoon game drive departs at approximately 4 pm and returns at approximately 7 pm. Afternoon drives extend into the evening with the aid of spotlights to view seldom seen nocturnal species.

Day 9 Tuesday: Game Lodge

It's an early start for the morning game drive. As the early morning sun rises over the horizon, rangers and trackers head out with guests into the African bushveld. One can sense the excitement… who knows what to expect? A herd of ever-cautious impala huddled together, a leopard in the branches of a knobthorn tree with a kill from the last hours of darkness, a herd of elephant feeding in the lush vegetation or a pride of lion in the shade of an acacia. Tea/coffee is served prior to departing the lodge, and again there will be refreshments about mid-way through the drive. Return to the lodge for breakfast. Afterwards we'll have the option of a bush walk, accompanied by an armed ranger. A wonderful way to learn about the flora and fauna of the area. Afternoon/evening program as per previous day.

Day 10 Wednesday: Game Lodge

Another day on safari to enjoy the tranquillity of the bush and the thrill of finding game on game drives or bush walks.

Day 11 Thursday: Game Lodge – Johannesburg.

Early morning game drive followed by breakfast. Then it’s time to pack up for our flight back to Johannesburg. Check in for return flight to our home gateway.

Price Includes

• International and Domestic Flights
• Domestic and regional flights as per itinerary
• Accommodation in first class tourist properties throughout.
• All meals from dinner on day of arrival to lunch on day of departure. Breakfasts will be cold items from hotel/lodge buffets, supplemented with kosher bakery goods, yoghurt and juice. Lunches will be light items except for Shabbat which is 3 courses. Dinners are 3 courses everywhere. All food offered on the tour comes from suppliers who fall under the supervision of the Beth Din, the sole authority for Kashrut in South Africa.
• Comfortable air conditioned touring coach & Entrance fees as per the itinerary
• Professional experienced English-speaking guide
• Local English-speaking Guide as required
• Porterage at airports and hotels
• Transport in luxury air conditioned vehicles
• 14% VAT in SA
• 1% Tourism Levy in SA

Price Excludes

• International flights
• Travel & Health Insurance. We strongly recommend that all travellers take out comprehensive insurance to cover medical, personal baggage, cancellation and curtailment.
• Personal expenses and evening entertainment not included in the itinerary
• Tips for local service providers (local guides, drivers, rangers and trackers - $110 per person to be collected in cash abroad)
• Shows and evening entertainment not included in the itinerary
• Tip for our Tour Guide (Recommended: $3 per person per day)
• Miscellaneous expenses such as departure fees, visas, security surcharges etc. where applicable.

Important To Know
The price of the tour has been calculated at the known rate of exchange on December 21, 2010 and will be subject to currency fluctuation until full payment has been received. There may be changes to the order of places visited. We will make every effort to visit every place mentioned in the itinerary. The tour organizers have no control over airline services such as seating, special meal requests, changes in departure times or delays. These remain the sole responsibility of the airline company.

Kashrut on Tours
Kosher food is provided to our travelers on all our tours. We work with the local Rabbinate to provide Hashgacha for all local ingredients and fresh meat and poultry. In some cases, we fly in kosher food from Israel and other sources, depending on the destination of the tour. We do not guarantee Pat Israel and Chalav Israel for all destinations.

In many destinations we have our own crockery and cutlery. Where we don't, we provide disposables at the meals. When we cook in Hotel kitchens, we ensure proper Kashering and we use our own kitchenware on kashered and covered surfaces. All this is done under the strict supervision of our trained staff/guides who function as our Mashgichim.

Our travelers enjoy gourmet meals prepared by our team including fresh local fish, fruit, and vegetables. This is an integral part of Jewish travel. We make great efforts to assure that our travelers will experience local foods first-hand, while maintaining stringent observance of Kashrut laws on all occasions.

Rabbi Menahem Fogel
A native of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Menahem Fogel served as a pulpit rabbi in South Africa and Canada before returning to Israel in 1984 to take up the position of spokesman of Yad Vashem, in Jerusalem, a position he held for six years.

Since that time he has held senior positions in both the public and private sectors developing interactive computer systems for museums around the world. He also lived and worked in the USA, Netherlands, Austria, UK and India. A lifelong yearning for travel led to his becoming a Tour Manager in 2000 and developed expertise tourism to Japan & China, Alaska, Canadian Rockies and Africa. Recently he took on the added role of Rav Hamachshir for The Kosher Travel Club to ensure the highest standards of Kashrut are implemented on all our Kosher Tours.

Insurance
We urge all passengers to purchase travel and cancellation insurance immediately upon registration for the tour. This ensures a refund of expenses in case of cancellation due to illness or death of a close relative.

Terms

A $500 USD Deposit per person must be received at the time of booking in order to confirm your reservation. Payment in full is due 90 days before departure. A minimum number of participants are required to operate tour dates. If a minimum number has not been reached prior to tour departure and the tour is cancelled you will receive a FULL refund.

• 90 days before departure bookings are refundable less a $100 administration fee
• 60-90 days prior to departure: $500 + $100 per passenger
• 30-60 days prior to departure: $1,000 + $100 per passenger
• Less than 30 working days prior to departure: 100% of total - no refund
• We strongly recommend purchasing Travel Insurance.