South Africa Trip - PLZ to CPT advice
May 17, 2011, 2:09 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: ICT
Programs: AA ExP
Posts: 1,860
South Africa Trip - PLZ to CPT advice
This will be long and rambly and hopefully organized enough that you can skip the parts irrelevant to yourself. Basically my family and I (seven people) are going on a 2 week trip to ZA. The first part in Kruger is all planned with all-inclusive lodges, but the details of our slow trek from PLZ to CPT are not planned. Also our day in JNB is not planned. Any suggestions welcome, but in those areas specifically. We are planning to do the diving with sharks and the highest commercial bungee jump. I've roamed these forums vacuuming up lots of excellent material, read a bunch of guidebooks, heard from a lot of tour operators, but now I want to go to the true experts. 
(Yes, I know I'm a procrastinator!)
Below includes a 7 pax rental van JNB-JNB + PLZ-CPT.
20 May - DL4297 ICT-MSP - 11:36a-1:18p
20 May - DL3263 MSP-JFK - 3:35p-7:46p
Overnight at Holiday Inn Express JFK (BRG)
21 May - SA204 JFK-JNB - 11:15a-8:35a+1
1 night at Blyde River Canyon Lodge
4 nights in Kruger at Hongonyi Game Lodge (1), Nkambeni Tented Camp (2), Bushwise Safari Lodge (1)
1 night in Jo-burg at Outlook Lodge
28 May - SA417 JNB-PLZ - 1:10p-2:50p
1 night at The Hub Boutique Hotel in PLZ
1 night at Stable Cottages in Addo Elephant Park
2 nights at Knysna Quays Luxury Apartments in Knysna
1 night at Hermanus (Were planning to stay at Arabella Western Cape a Luxury Collection property for 4K SPG + $60, but they left Starwood 13 May. Stupid procrastination! Prolly going with BRG + some random local place; suggestions welcome)
3 nights at Westin Cape Town with 4K SPG + $60
5 June - SA346 CPT-JNB - 3:10p-5:10p
5 June - SA203 JNB-JFK - 8:35p-6:40a+1
6 June - AA739 LGA-DFW - 11:25a-2:25p
6 June - AA670 DFW-ICT - 4:15p-5:25p
Hopefully a full trip report will be forthcoming as I've promised the tour operator (Island-Safari.com) that I would do a detailed blog review as part of the deal to get even better TA rates. Our whole family (seven of us: my parents the owners of the TA where I work and my four siblings down to my 10 yo brother) is taking the above trip. The SA JFK-JNB//CPT-JNB-JFK tix are free from SAA because of all the business we do with them through our special humanitarian/non-profit/missionary net contract that we have with them.
My two oldest siblings and I are photographers and for the safari part I've acquired:
Canon 600mm f/4L IS (borrowed)
Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS (bought insanely cheaply on eBay, will resell at a profit after trip)
Canon 1Ds mark II (focuses up to f/8 ) (borrowed)
Monopod and Wimberley head (borrowed)
Beanbag (borrowed)
In addition to our normal gear:
Canon 7D (x3) + T2i
Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS
Canon 2x teleconverter (x2)
Tamron 1.4x teleconverter
Other stuff that's not safari-specific
Any suggestions?
(Yes, I know I'm a procrastinator!)
Below includes a 7 pax rental van JNB-JNB + PLZ-CPT.
20 May - DL4297 ICT-MSP - 11:36a-1:18p
20 May - DL3263 MSP-JFK - 3:35p-7:46p
Overnight at Holiday Inn Express JFK (BRG)
21 May - SA204 JFK-JNB - 11:15a-8:35a+1
1 night at Blyde River Canyon Lodge
4 nights in Kruger at Hongonyi Game Lodge (1), Nkambeni Tented Camp (2), Bushwise Safari Lodge (1)
1 night in Jo-burg at Outlook Lodge
28 May - SA417 JNB-PLZ - 1:10p-2:50p
1 night at The Hub Boutique Hotel in PLZ
1 night at Stable Cottages in Addo Elephant Park
2 nights at Knysna Quays Luxury Apartments in Knysna
1 night at Hermanus (Were planning to stay at Arabella Western Cape a Luxury Collection property for 4K SPG + $60, but they left Starwood 13 May. Stupid procrastination! Prolly going with BRG + some random local place; suggestions welcome)
3 nights at Westin Cape Town with 4K SPG + $60
5 June - SA346 CPT-JNB - 3:10p-5:10p
5 June - SA203 JNB-JFK - 8:35p-6:40a+1
6 June - AA739 LGA-DFW - 11:25a-2:25p
6 June - AA670 DFW-ICT - 4:15p-5:25p
Hopefully a full trip report will be forthcoming as I've promised the tour operator (Island-Safari.com) that I would do a detailed blog review as part of the deal to get even better TA rates. Our whole family (seven of us: my parents the owners of the TA where I work and my four siblings down to my 10 yo brother) is taking the above trip. The SA JFK-JNB//CPT-JNB-JFK tix are free from SAA because of all the business we do with them through our special humanitarian/non-profit/missionary net contract that we have with them.
My two oldest siblings and I are photographers and for the safari part I've acquired:
Canon 600mm f/4L IS (borrowed)
Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS (bought insanely cheaply on eBay, will resell at a profit after trip)
Canon 1Ds mark II (focuses up to f/8 ) (borrowed)
Monopod and Wimberley head (borrowed)
Beanbag (borrowed)
In addition to our normal gear:
Canon 7D (x3) + T2i
Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS
Canon 2x teleconverter (x2)
Tamron 1.4x teleconverter
Other stuff that's not safari-specific
Any suggestions?
May 17, 2011, 3:25 pm
#2
Join Date: Jul 2005
Posts: 1,077
Sounds like a perfect "special humanitarian/non-profit/missionary" trip. That's a joke.
I'm no photography expert JohanRebel can help there. But, I don't think you need two nights in Knysna. Move along towards Hermanus and, more importantly, CPT and the Winelands. More to do there.
I'm no photography expert JohanRebel can help there. But, I don't think you need two nights in Knysna. Move along towards Hermanus and, more importantly, CPT and the Winelands. More to do there.