hi everyone, as much as I have browsed this forum before posting, I totally missed this guest book section, so I wanted to officially say hi in the proper place. I joined here, becuase I have always been fancinated by Africa, and am hopefully having a hoiliday in South Africa sometime in 2008 so I wanted to find a place that I could get information on things to do, where to stay, etc.. I will be staying in Cape Town, and hopefully would like to see some of the wine region in the Western Cape, and take a few days to see some wildlife. Everything I have read it seems like you all have an excellent roadway system, so I'm assuming getting around we be pretty easy. I love traveling, and meeting new and intresting people.
I live in the southeast with my American hubby and multinational son. We will be traveling to Cape Town in May 2008. Cape Town is my home town so you are welcome to ask me anything and I will help you as best I can. It is a great town, the wine region is just exploding right now and lots of fun, not to mention absolutely gorgeous.
The roads are good, but nothing like interstates once you are out of the big cities. The main road between Cape Town and Johannesburg is just one lane in each direction most of the way with no median! We drive on the left, and most cars are manual transmissions, so do prepare yourself.
You will have to venture outside of Cape Town if you want to see wildlife. A weekend trip to the Kruger National Park or maybe Chobe in Botswana will fulfill all your wildlife dreams. There are plenty of game parks springing up all over the place, but the real "bushveld" is in the north east.
thanks for the relpy and welcome. Actually May or June is more than likely when I will be going. I was reading about the Kruger National Park, and thats sort of what I was counting on about a 2 day safari, just something I always wanted to do. Are there any guided tours out of Cape Town that will take me through the Wine country? Like in the USA in California, you can take the Napa Valley wine tour, I did that back in the early 90's and it was really fun. Is it safe for me to drive by myself? I was in Southeast Asia last year and they drive on the left as well, but it was highly advised to not drive there because of the traffic and the local driving habits.
thanks for the relpy and welcome. Actually May or June is more than likely when I will be going. I was reading about the Kruger National Park, and thats sort of what I was counting on about a 2 day safari, just something I always wanted to do. Are there any guided tours out of Cape Town that will take me through the Wine country? Like in the USA in California, you can take the Napa Valley wine tour, I did that back in the early 90's and it was really fun. Is it safe for me to drive by myself? I was in Southeast Asia last year and they drive on the left as well, but it was highly advised to not drive there because of the traffic and the local driving habits.
May and June are not the best months to be in Cape Town, but they are great months for game viewing. It is the rainy season in Cape Town (think Seattle in the rainy season... rain and rain and more rain and then some more rain...), but the dry season in the rest of the country, so water holes are at their lowest and the animals have to come out of "hiding" to drink. The winter nights can be chilly in the Kruger National Park (going into the low 30s/high 20s) but the days will warm up (into the 60s). The worst months for Cape Town are July and August, so don't feel you have to reschedule your trip, but if you're only there for a week, understand that it could rain every day and won't be beach weather - well maybe for a walk, but not for tanning! Cape Town goes down to the 30s at night and warms up to the 50s and 60s during the day in winter.
There are plenty of guided wine farm tours that you can take, but it's also safe to drive yourself. Go on a tour if you plan to swallow while you're tasting. If you stick to the main routes and are more cautious at night (there are some areas to avoid 24/7 and some areas to avoid at night) you should be fine driving. I don't think that the drivers in Cape Town are any worse than the drivers in the US, except maybe the minibus taxi drivers, who tend to flip on their hazard lights and stop just about anywhere. The minibus taxis stick to set routes, though. My friend owns a 24-hour cab company and I can give you her email to discuss rates to see if that's something you'd rather do than rent a car. It really depends on where you'd be staying and how long you'd be there for. If you're going to go on organized tours every day with the occasional shopping trip/nightlife trip (especially if you'll be drinking at night) then it could be cheaper than renting a car.
My mom works in travel (in Cape Town) and I can give you an email address of someone who can give you more information about specific local tours. I highly recommend that you make time for a township tour and a Robben Island tour. That way you will learn some of our rich history of colonialism, slavery, wage slavery, apartheid human rights violations, struggle and liberation, not to mention see the 60 sq ft cell Nelson Mandela called home for over a decade and the limestone pit where he toiled. There is great irony in the beauty and brutality of apartheid-era Robben Island. These tours are things that you can do regardless of the weather. Table Mountain on the other hand, requires a clear day, which is hard to schedule in May/June.
Are you looking to do a budget/"backpacking" holiday, staying in youth hostels (great for independent travelers who are on their own) or are you going to be staying in hotels and doing a more luxury trip? Look at CoastToCoast - Home
ches, gosh thank you so much for all the great information. yea I was reading tha may and june could be really raining, which is really kinda of okay with me. I love the ocean, but I'm not really a beach person per-se i enjoy the water, but I'm really fair skinned, so I have to be careful in the sun. Big brimmed hats and sunblock. Im pretty adventourus so I might be able to pull off driving a car. I'm usually a midrange gal when I travel as far as hotels. I don't really require the lap of luxry, but usually go for something a little above a backpacker type hostel, although I'm pretty adaptble. My main priorty is expereince, I like to do some touristy things but I also like to see as much of the local scene as I can, I like to meet locals and see the enviorment the way they do.
The email addressess would be great, and I would really appreciate that.
I'll get an email address from my mom - she'll pick the best consultant to talk to you and give me her address - and I'll PM you the email addresses when my mom gets back to me. It isn't nice to put other peoples' email addresses out on the open interweb for the spambots to pick up.
Some of the Koh Samui villas are set on peaceful hills adjoining sea. So, when a sea wave hits the big boulders below, you are actually able to experience some butterflies in your stomachs. Such is the experience of the exotic locales where these Samui villas are located. The villas are located in peaceful places, but not much far from action. You can anytime visit the flee market to buy exotic sea shells, or belts made from fish’s skin for you dear and near ones.
We will be traveling to Cape Town in May 2008. Cape Town is my home town so you are welcome to ask me anything and I will help you as best I can. It is a great town, the wine region is just exploding right now and lots of fun, not to mention absolutely gorgeous. 
Welcome To The Land Of"tajmahal'.
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