South Africa

South Africa is a year-round destination, with the sun-drenched summer season spanning November to February, and the cooler, cosy months of autumn, winter, and spring embracing a country brimming with seasonal festivals, inviting firesides, abundant wildlife and vibrant blooms.

While Wilderness doesn't own camps within South Africa's safari areas, we've cultivated strategic partnerships with like-minded operators to provide our guests with a seamless blend of thrilling bush adventures and vibrant city experiences.

On a tour with Wilderness, guests are offered a private guide and a private vehicle, which allows for a tailor-made experience. Your guide can create a bespoke itinerary based on your personal choices and interests, making your experience in South Africa unique and unforgettable.

Unlike the rest of South Africa, Cape Town experiences a Mediterranean climate, which means rain falls in winter. Cape Town is geared for cool, wet weather, and a visit to the area in winter means an escape from the northern hemisphere summer heat and peak tourist season. There are plenty of things to do when the weather turns; your guide will know all the best places to go wine-tasting, which museums and galleries to explore, or which restaurants to eat at based on your preferences.

Local guides who know the region like the backs of their hands are invaluable. A guide from the area who knows the off-the-beaten track routes , the locals, and other important insider information will ensure you avoid overly touristy spots, and enrich your experiences with personal insight.

Our travel designers can put any kind of itinerary together for you, whether you want to spend a day or a week in the Winelands, hike the mountains of the Cape, take surfing lessons, kayak amongst marine life or cruise along the coast in a classic car. Each trip is bespoke and can be designed for any duration. Wilderness partners with many of the hotels and resorts in the area and can book your entire stay including a South African safari.

South Africa shares the same time zone as the rest of Southern Africa, which is two hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time – (GMT) + 2 hours, in the Central Africa Time Zone (CAT).

The Greater Kruger, bordering the Kruger National Park is South Africa’s best safari destination. The Greater Kruger is made up of a number of private reserves, including the Sabi Sands and the Timbavati. These reserves offer expertly guided safaris (as opposed to self-drive safaris in the Kruger Park,) staying in luxury lodges with fewer people and fewer vehicles.

South Africa has 11 official languages. English is widely spoken, along with Sepedi (also known as Sesotho sa Leboa), Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, isiNdebele, isiXhosa and isiZulu.

The world-renowned Kruger National Park is South Africa's largest wildlife sanctuary, with nearly 2 million hectares of unrivalled wilderness to explore and encounter.

It’s best to pack casual, comfortable clothing for both hot and cold conditions when going on a South African safari. Remember that when on safari it is important to blend into your surroundings. Pack muted colours, such as khaki, greens, beige and natural colours. Avoid anything bright. Game drives are often in the early morning and evening, so bring a jacket or pashmina to keep you warm on the open vehicles. Comfortable walking shoes are a must, as well as binoculars, sunshade, sun block and your sense of adventure.

South Africa currently offers visa-free travel to all countries for stays up to 90 days. Your passport must be valid for at least six months beyond the date you expect to leave South Africa, and have at least three blank pages.

We address all concerns surrounding COVID in line with the latest recommendations from the World Health Organization and other leading authorities. Please speak to your Travel Designer for the latest travel advisory updates, to ensure that you are prepared for all COVID travel requirements in South Africa before your departure.

If you are travelling to South Africa from areas infected with yellow fever, you must have a valid yellow fever vaccination certificate. We advise our guests to also have an updated TPD (tetanus, polio, diphtheria) vaccine and a hepatitis A vaccine.

Malaria is prevalent in some areas of South Africa, such as north-eastern KwaZulu-Natal, parts of Mpumalanga and Limpopo. Cape Town and the Eastern Cape are malaria free. Please chat to your Travel Designer to find out if you need to start a course of medication, as some malaria prophylaxes need to be taken several days before your holiday, as well as during and after. Talk to your doctor about which you should take.