|
The Garden Route is probably South Africa’s most celebrated areas, a stretch of coast heralded as one of the country’s highlights. It is a beautiful area of 200km of rugged coastline backed by lush mountain forest which form a natural garden of rich, colourful vistas, vast valleys and crystal clear lakes. The route is a paradise for bird-lovers and nature lovers alike and hence has loads of ecotourism activities on offer from nature walks to the worlds highest commercial bungee jump.
Below is an example of a typical standard Garden Route tour, but there are numerous travel options along this route. Zephyr Tours will gladly customize your tour according to your particular needs and interests
Please note that this tour can be arranged in reverse by swapping the departure and destination points.
Day 1
Oudtshoorn
We depart Cape Town and travel to Oudtshoorn (Ostrich Capital of the world) along the R62 which is the longest wine route in the world. You will also pass along numerous spectacular mountain passages all while enjoying the solitude and serenity of this unique route. After checking in at your hotel we will go on a tour at an ostrich farm.
Day 2
Cango Caves/ Knysna/ Plettenberg Bay
After breakfast we visit one of our National heritage sites – The Cango Caves where you will find the finest dripstone caverns, with their vast halls and towering geological formations. After this informative and fun-filled activity we then make our way to the popular town of Knysna. We alight in Knysna and depart on a boat trip within the Knysna lagoon, the Knysna National Lakes, exploring the Featherbed Nature Reserve with guaranteed sightings of another species on our red data list, the rare blue duiker. In Knysna we also have the option of visiting an oyster farm we then continue to Plettenberg Bay where we will spend the night
Day 3
Tsitsikamma forest fantasy
Today we explore a national park which is second only to the Kruger National Park. It consists of beautiful stretches of lush coastal forest and is known for its excellent birdlife. Not only is the forest protected, but being the first marine reserve in Africa, their boundary reach nearly 6km’s out to sea and is a strict no-take zone. Here we explore the sensitive inter-tidal zones, walk to a narrow ravine and river mouth of the Storms River. Take a short walk over the "suspension bridge" and take a boat trip up the narrow Storm's River gorge. We also do an interesting and informative forest walk for 45mins which takes us through some of the lushest coastal Afro-Montane forest- an extremely sensitive strip of indigenous forest being home to a number of spectacular creatures. For the more fit/adventurous we also walk to a spectacular waterfall along this stretch of protected coastline. This is also the first part of one of the world's most treasured hiking trails- the Otter Trail. Other optional adventure activities also include abseiling, tree-top canopy tours and bungee jumping
Day 4
Departure
After breakfast we depart for Port Elizabeth Airport, where we bid you farewell. | 
