Wagon Trails | Southern Sail extended itinerary

Southern Sail extended itinerary

Days 1-2 Victoria Falls/Livingstone

Muli shani! Welcome to Zambia.

You can arrive at any time on day 1 as there are no activities planned until the important welcome meeting at 1pm this afternoon - please ensure you arrive in time for this meeting. Its a good idea to have lunch prior to the meeting as we head out for the afternoon after the meeting. Your leader will leave a note at reception telling you where this important meeting will take place. Please ask a member of reception for this information. Your leader will collect your local payment at this meeting.

The powerful Victoria Falls is the perfect place to begin this wilderness adventure.
Our tour begins following our group meeting with a visit to the Falls themselves...an awesome start to any trip. The falls are an enormous curtain of water, about a mile wide, falling 108 m into a narrow chasm below. In the wet season, the spray created can rise up an incredible 400 m and the falls are an impressive raging torrent. In the dry season, the view of the falls is unobstructed by spray and it's possible to see little islets in the river below.

The following day you have a whole free day participate in the optional activites on offer in the Falls area. There are various activities and excursions to choose from both on the water, on land and high above it all. Choose from white water rafting and canoeing, or go horse-riding, abseiling or gorge swinging. You could also take a ride in a micro-light, helicopter or small plane for a bird's eye view of the falls.

Day 3 Luangwa Bridge

Today is a long driving day as we make our way through rural Zambia. We drive around 680km which will take approximately 9 hours.

Tonight we camp the night at Luangwa Bridge. The campsite has hot showers and flush toilets.

Days 4-5 South Luangwa National Park

Today is another long driving day (420km, approx. 8 hours) as we head towards the Luangwa National Park. We reach our camp site in the early evening and can take a dip in the pool to cool off.

The following day we have two safaris- at dawn and again at dusk, when the animals are most active. South Luangwa is one of the most scenic parks in all of Southern Africa and is famous for it's high number of leopards. Hopefuly we will be lucky enough to spot this elusive member of the Big Five! There are also lions, hippos and plenty of elephants to be found.

Our campsite at South Luangwa is unfenced and there is often game wandering through the grounds. Hot showers, a pool and a bar on the banks of IIlongwe river complete this lovely setting.

Days 6-8 Monkey Bay/Lake Malawi

Today we head to our first taste of life lakeside (285km, approx. 6 hours drive) at Lake Malawi. We have three nights here to indulging in the many water sports on offer, or you may prefer just chilling out with a good book.

To give you a further taste of the lake, on day 7 we take a day excursion to the south (approx. 180kms, 4 hours) to spend time at Monkey Bay.

We camp right on the pure white sand of the lake's beach - unforgetable. Our campsite also features a bar and restaurant.

Day 9 Lake Chicamba

Tearing ourselves from Lake Malawi we make an early start and head for Mozambique. Today is a long driving day of around 720kms or about 10 hours, including the border crossing.

The camp ground here is quite simple but made up for with it's very pretty position overlooking Lake Chicamba and the frequency of game such as zebra and eland walking through.

Days 10-11 Vilankulo

Today is we cover 470km on our drive to Vilankulo (approx. 7 hours) in Mozambique's pleasure playground.

The following day we embark on a real trip highlight with a full day dhow excursion. This includes an opportunity to snorkel on the pristine reefs of the archipelago, and snorkelling gear is provided. There are opportunities to walk on the dunes and hike the trails on the islands visited and we will enjoy lunch on board our dhow.

Our campground has good ablutions, restaurant and bar, and a lovely pool.

Days 12-13 Inhambane

Today we begin our journey south heading to Inhambane (250kms, approx. 3 hours).

Inhambane is one of the oldest settlements on the East Coast. It was an important port for the Portugese and Arab traders. We have a free afternoon and another free day to explore this historic port town or spend some time relaxing on the beach. Inhambane has glorious beaches, splendid seafood and friendly locals. It has some of the best scuba diving and snorkelling in the country, with reefs very close to major beaches.

For these two nights we stay at a campsite on Tofo Beach.

Day 14 Maputo

Leaving the peace and tranquility of the beach behind, we continue onto the bustling capital city of Maputo where we have the afternoon to explore this city and its rich cultural history. With its attractive tree-lined avenues, it has a unique European feel about it and it has some great local restaurants. Todays driving distance is approximately 460km which will take around 6 hours.

We head out on an afternoon walk to explore this city. Maputo is a wonderful place to hear local music and tonight after dinner we hit the town, visiting one of the many clubs playing local music. What we hear will be up to group wishes and who is performing but may be anything from jazz, African pop or even reggae.

Tonight we stay in a centrally located multi-share hostel.

Day 15 Kruger National Park

We have an early start today as we head to South Africa and our visit to the famous Kruger National Park (approx. 5 hours). We game drive all the way to our campsite and head out again in the late afternoon for a further chance of spotting the "Big Five". Tonight there is the chance for an optional night drive to spot nocturnal animals.

Tonight's campsite is comfortable with hot showers and a restaurant.

Please note that the trip departing on the 30th of May and 27th of june 2009 will camp in a bordering game reserve rather than in the National Park.

Day 16 Johannesburg

We are up at dawn with the animals for our final game drive before leaving Kruger. In the afternoon we drive the 450km (approx. 5 hours) back to Johannesburg where our tour finishes on arrival in the late afternoon (approximately 6pm).

On arrival in Jo'Burg you can be dropped at the airport or at Amadwala Lodge. Please do not book any international flights until after 10pm this evening.

No accommodation is provided for tonight, but we are able to book you additional accommodation at Amadwala Lodge in Johannesburg. Please ask at time of booking.