This journey really “has game”: Play golf on some of the finest courses in South Africa and go on safari for big game on one tour! Tee up for play on the championship course of Steenberg. Travel to the Winelands and taste the sweet yield of the region’s orchards and vineyards. Visit the unique fynbos of the Western Cape and observe African penguins as they dive in and out of the surf at Boulders Beach. Experience the verdant undulating park style landscapes of the Boschenmeer and Fancourt courses. Observe the ‘Big Five’ in the Gondwana Game Reserve. Cap off your tour with the challenge of championship play at the masterpiece of a course known as Pinnacle Point. We truly have game for you, in South Africa!
Degree of Difficulty –
Your journey begins as you board your overnight flight to Cape Town, arriving the next day. Your home for the next four nights has over 200 years of history within its walls and is situated in six acres of attractive landscaped parkland on the banks of the Liesbeeck River. Next day, start your golf tour of South Africa at the Milnerton Golf Club. This 18 hole, par 72 course is defined by water, bordered by the Diep River, the Atlantic Ocean, and dotted by seven water hazards. The 19th Hole is where you can take in mid-game refreshments and a post-game meal. You will be collected by your guide at the 19th Hole and taken to the iconic Table Mountain, a World Heritage Site, adorned with 1,470 plant species. Ascend in a cable car to the summit and share magnificent views with scampering hyraxes and chattering birds. Tonight, enjoy a welcome dinner at one of Cape Town’s excellent restaurants. VINEYARD HOTEL & SPA.
(Breakfast, Dinner)
The manmade landscape of the golf course gives way to one shaped by the elements. Drive first to the small fishing village of Hout Bay where you may take a cruise to view Cape fur seals or explore the village’s various shops and markets. Move on to Cape of Good Hope National Park. The top of the Cape Point Lighthouse offers spectacular ocean views of the south westernmost point of the Cape. Watch African penguins frolic about at Boulders Beach then make your way to Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, a living display of South African flora featuring 9,000 of the estimated 20,000 species of indigenous South African flora. VINEYARD HOTEL & SPA.
(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner)
Venture to Steenberg Golf Course, just south of Cape Town proper. Back dropped by mountains, forests and venerable vineyards, this 18 hole championship course was designed by Peter Matkovich, and his course designs always keep strategy and variation in mind. This exclusive course is no exception and its bent grass greens and lush fairways are always in excellent condition. VINEYARD HOTEL & SPA.
(Breakfast, Dinner)
A tapestry of vineyards interwoven with the historic towns of Stellenbosch, Paarl and Franschhoek, await you on today’s excursion to the Winelands, the center of South Africa’s fruit and wine industry. All the wine estates you will be visiting in the region offer tastings and cellar tours and you will enjoy lunch in one of them. Visit Stellenbosch, the oldest town in South Africa after Cape Town, the historic Boschendal estate and its brilliantly preserved Cape Dutch buildings, Paarl – the birthplace of the Afrikaans language, and Franschhoek with its lovely antique shops and gardens. Check into your lovely accommodations in Paarl which boasts one of the best restaurants in the Cape region and is surrounded by vineyards and mountains. The unique individually named suites are spread over landscaped gardens in the midst of a working wine farm. GRANDE ROCHE HOTEL.
(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner)
Drive to the Paarl Golf Club founded in 1908 and located on the Beschenmeer Golf Estate. The 18 hole course was established in 1955 with an additional nine holes added in 1997. This parkland style course offers fantastic views of the Paarl Mountains and the iconic Paarl Rock. The Berg River borders the course on its western flank and this proximity to a steady water source may contribute to the difficulty of the par 4 11th and the par 5 18th, which both feature water hazards on the right and left side. GRANDE ROCHE HOTEL.
(Breakfast, Dinner)
Today you drive eastward toward Mossel Bay and the privately owned Gondwana Game Reserve. The reserve occupies 26, 000 acres within the fynbos biome, a shrubland of diverse endemic flora unique to the Western Cape. Here, ‘Big Five’ game (elephant, lion, leopard, rhino, and Cape buffalo) roam free. Views of the Langeberg and Outeniqua Mountains and rolling hills cloaked in the many colored fynbos, are exceptional. There are two game activities a day, one in the morning and another in the late afternoon. GONDWANA GAME RESERVE.
(Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner)
Your drive takes you to George and the Fancourt Golf Club which boasts courses designed by Gary Player. The parkland style courses of Outeniqua and Montagu came to be in the 1990s and they have aged wonderfully, ranking them in the top 20 of this course type in the country. Outeniqua provides a “laid back golfing experience” while Montagu is more a challenge. GONDWANA GAME RESERVE.
(B,D)
The last course you play on your tour is the most challenging as you head for Pinnacle Point, another Peter Matkovich designed course. This 18 hole par 72 course follows the contour of undulating knolls situated atop steep sea cliffs. There are seven cliff side holes overlooking the Indian Ocean, four of which must be played over ravine and crashing surf. GONDWANA GAME RESERVE.
(Breakfast, Dinner)
Arise this morning and take in the expansive views of the Gondwana Reserve before leaving for the George airport and your first step toward home. During your short drive, relive the most memorable hole and the sweet crescendo of the ball hitting the bottom of the cup.
Prices vary by season and package. Please inquire by phone at (800) 627-1244 or email info@classicescapes.com for more information and a pricing estimate.
No matter when South Africa is visited, it is a stunning country and one is sure to delight in its offerings. South Africa is affected by the waters surrounding the country on three sides, and thus there’s variation in the weather pattern depending on what part of the country visited. In Cape Town, the winter months (June-August) are mild and changeable; this is also the time when most of the rainfall occurs in the Cape. Summer months (January-March) around Cape Town are generally dry. On the high veld, in the center of South Africa around Johannesburg, there are sharp differences of temperature between day and night and it can be quite cold during the winter months. During the summer months at Kruger (December-March,) there can be sporadic rainfall in the form of quick thunder showers, but wildlife viewing is superb no matter when visited. April through August represent the winter months in Southern Africa which in turn means very little rain in most of the country, except for the Cape. South Africa is incredible to visit, particularly the Cape, during the Spring, when the wildflowers are in bloom – generally midAugust through September. Marine enthusiasts should consider visiting between June and November when the Southern Right Whales congregate in the waters.
