South Africa and Mozambique

Cape Town rises in one of the most spectacular natural settings on earth, hemmed between the ocean and the towering flat-topped wall of Table Mountain, which presides over South Africa’s most beloved city. The cableway to the summit unveils 360-degree views over the city, the peninsula and the Atlantic, while the trails of Table Mountain National Park — UNESCO-listed as part of the Cape Floral Region — wind through the world’s unique endemic fynbos vegetation. The historic heart reveals itself on foot around the Company’s Garden and the city-centre museums, while the Malay quarter of Bo-Kaap dazzles with its vividly painted houses and historic mosques, the legacy of a community with deep roots and a spice-rich cuisine to sample in its small eateries. Along the seafront, the V&A Waterfront blends a working harbour with markets, boutiques and seafood restaurants, and is the departure point for boats to Robben Island, the prison island where Nelson Mandela spent many years of captivity and which is now a place of memory. To the south the peninsula unfolds along scenic roads such as Chapman’s Peak Drive towards the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point, where the oceans seem to meet; along the way, Boulders Beach shelters a colony of African penguins. The beaches of Camps Bay and Clifton, beneath the Twelve Apostles, invite relaxation, while a short drive away the winelands of Constantia, Stellenbosch and Franschhoek offer tastings among vineyards and Cape Dutch architecture. Between grand landscapes, a complex history and a lively food scene, Cape Town is best savoured slowly, letting the sea, the mountain and the African light tell their story.

The Greater Kruger is one of the most extraordinary protected ecosystems in Southern Africa. It includes the famous Kruger National Park, covering 19,500 km² and stretching nearly 350 km from north to south, making it one of the largest and most iconic national parks on the continent, as well as a series of exclusive adjoining Private Game Reserves and Nature Reserves, including Kapama, Karongwe, Klaserie, Manyeleti, Moditlo, Sabi Sand, Timbavati and Thornybush, which share unfenced borders with the park. This allows wildlife to move freely across a vast protected area of more than two million hectares. The region is home to the legendary Big Five – lion, leopard, elephant, rhino and buffalo – together with cheetahs, giraffes, hippos, wild dogs, antelopes and over 500 bird species, set within a diverse landscape of savannahs, riverine forests and ancient granite outcrops. The Private Game Reserves offer a more exclusive safari experience compared to the national park: limited vehicle numbers, highly skilled guides and the possibility of off-road driving allow for close encounters with wildlife, always respecting the natural environment. These are complemented by early morning and sunset game drives, guided bush walks and luxury lodges immersed in the wilderness, delivering an authentic and immersive safari experience. The Greater Kruger is accessed through the official gates of Kruger National Park. The area is served by Hoedspruit (Eastgate) Airport, Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport (Nelspruit) and Skukuza Airport, with regular flights from major South African cities. The Greater Kruger is the essence of the African safari: a vast and untouched wilderness where nature still dictates the rhythm of life, and every outing delivers unforgettable moments.

Vilanculos is the main gateway to the Bazaruto Archipelago, a system of coral islands rising from the southern Indian Ocean just miles offshore. The town overlooks a sheltered bay where triangular-sailed dhows, traditional Swahili craft, glide across the shallows as they have for centuries. Local beaches offer powdery white sand and water shifting from azure to emerald green. The coral reef draws divers and snorkellers, with dugongs, manta rays and sea turtles. Vilanculos is also the departure point for boat or seaplane transfers to the lodges of Bazaruto and Benguerra islands.