Multigenerational Family Journeys · 12 nights
The Zambezi & the Wild South
Matetsi's River House is a private house on the Zambezi. The family has its own deck over the water, and the Falls are forty minutes away by road.
At a glance
- Nights
- 12
- Party
- 4–6 guests
- Countries
- South Africa · Zimbabwe
- From
- Price on application
- Best season
- April–October
Two very different Africas on one trip. Gondwana, in the fynbos between the Outeniqua Mountains and the Klein Karoo, gives you the Big Five without malaria and on gentle, open ground. Then we fly north to Matetsi on the Zambezi, a 55,000-hectare reserve with 15 km of river frontage upstream of Victoria Falls, where the elephants cross from the Zambian bank most evenings.
It is a good first safari for families of four to six, up to three generations, because the first bush stop is malaria-free and an easy hour from the airport. Matetsi is in a malaria area, so the family takes advice from its doctor before the Zambezi leg. Cape Town at the start and the Franschhoek valley at the end give everyone time to land and time to unwind.
Highlights
- Cape Point, Kalk Bay and Boulders Beach from Twelve Apostles on the Atlantic side of the mountain
- A malaria-free Big Five safari at Gondwana, with a fynbos walk for the children
- Matetsi's River House on the Zambezi for four nights
- A Victoria Falls helicopter flight, and the rainforest walk for those who prefer the ground
- A canoe on the upper Zambezi and a private boat at sunset
- Two quiet nights in Franschhoek to finish
The places
Where this journey takes you
South Africa
Cape Town
Table Mountain over the city, the Atlantic on one side and Cape Point at the tip of the peninsula.
Cape Town · Gondwana · Matetsi · Franschhoek
The route
- Day 1–3
Cape Town · Twelve Apostles
Family suites at Twelve Apostles, between Table Mountain and the Atlantic near Camps Bay. Day one: the Two Oceans Aquarium. Day two: Kalk Bay and lunch at Harbour House above the fishing harbour. Day three: Cape Point by private vehicle, the baboons on the headland and the old lighthouse, with Boulders Beach on the way back.
- Day 4
Cape Town → Gondwana
Pilatus PC-12 class turboprop to Mossel Bay, then road to Gondwana Private Game Reserve.
- Day 4–6
Gondwana · 3 nights
Family suites in a Big Five reserve set in fynbos, with proteas, heaths and restios along every track. Drives at the family's pace, the fynbos walk with a specialist guide, and elephants at the lodge waterhole in the afternoons. Malaria-free.
- Day 7
Gondwana → Victoria Falls
Road to George, then a light jet north to Victoria Falls, clearing customs on the way. Road to Matetsi's River House on the Zambezi. Malaria area from here until you leave.
- Day 7–10
Matetsi River House · 4 nights
The River House is let to one party only: four bedrooms for up to eight guests, with its own chef, vehicle, guide and team. Children under five join the activities in the house's private vehicle, which is included. Morning drives in the reserve for elephant, sable and buffalo; afternoons on your own boat as elephants cross the shallows from the Zambian bank. One day: the helicopter over the Falls, and the rainforest walk on the Zimbabwe side for anyone who would rather keep their feet on the ground. One morning: a guided canoe on the upper Zambezi with hippos in the channels.
- Day 11
Victoria Falls → Franschhoek
Light jet back to Cape Town and road out to the Franschhoek valley.
- Day 11–12
La Residence · 2 nights
Adjacent suites on a wine estate. Tastings for the adults, the gardens and pool for the children, and a last dinner together.
- Day 13
Home
Road to Cape Town International for your onward flights.
Flown by turboprop, light and super-light jet and helicopter. How we choose the aircraft
How each generation spends the days
Grandparents
Watching the waterhole from the lodge deck at Gondwana; a short morning drive; the Falls rainforest walk by vehicle and on foot; wine estates in Franschhoek.
Parents
Big Five drives, the Falls helicopter, an early canoe on the Zambezi, long lunches in the Winelands.
Children
The fynbos walk with a botanist, finding edible and scented plants; the Aquarium in Cape Town; the river boat; the swimming pool.
The boat sits midstream on the Zambezi with the engine off, the Zambian bank opposite, the sun maybe forty minutes off the horizon. A matriarch steps out of the treeline, then the rest of the herd behind her. They wade in one after another, trunks up, the water to their bellies. Two young bulls start to shove each other in the shallows and the youngest on board laughs out loud. Nobody suggests moving the boat until the last of them has climbed out on the far side.
Where you stay
The lodges
Included
- Private air: turboprop Cape Town–Mossel Bay; light jet George–Victoria Falls–Cape Town
- Family suites in Cape Town and at Gondwana; Matetsi's River House for your family alone, with its private vehicle; adjacent suites at La Residence
- Private vehicle and guide at each stop, with a second vehicle on request
- All meals and drinks at Gondwana and Matetsi
- Big Five drives, the fynbos walk, the Falls helicopter, the Zambezi canoe and sunset boat
- Medical evacuation cover for the whole party
- Pre-departure pack and a coffee-table book of the journey afterwards
Price on application. Every family is different, so we price each journey on the number of guests and the ages of the children. Excludes international flights.
Treat this journey as a starting point. Your Journey Architect will change the pace, swap a lodge, add a round or take one out.
Download this itinerary (PDF)Day by day, the lodges, the courses and the aircraft, to share or forward.
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