CrookedRock...I hope you are around, I want to talk Honeymoon

[emeraldlover1]

CR...My FI and I are considering going to South Africa on our Honeymoon. Its the top location for both of us however I have a few concerns that I thought you might be able to help with. I know you''ve been there before and I think you are planning to go there for your HM as well, right? Well first is, our wedding is Sept. 19th and we''ve heard confincing opinions on the weather in Cape Town in September early October. Any thoughts? Also, we are talking about doing a 3 day safari then 3 days in Cape Town then 7 days in Mauritius. Now, I think the weather will be more pradictable in Mauritius, I''m more concerned with Cape Town. What do you think? How would this weigh on your decision.

FI is extreamly opposed to waiting a few weeks till the weather is better for Honeymoon. Mostly it has to do with his job and how much time he can probably get off. So that isn''t up for consideration unfortunatley.

I''m not super excited about any other location as I am about South Africa.

I''d love to hear your thoughts.

Thanks!!

 

[emeraldlover1]

CR...where are you???

 

[lala2332]

Not that I''ve done a honeymoon, but if you are doing South Africa I would contact a travel company/agency that specializes in African Vacations...there is so much to do see there, you don''t want to miss out. Also, you want a company that is aware of the different political (for lack of a better word) climates in Africa so that you are going to stable areas.
My parents did an amazing African trip (a month long) a couple of years ago and they would never have been able to plan it w/o an experienced travel agancy.

 

[emeraldlover1]

Date: 12/7/2008 12:07:45 PM
Author: lala2332
Not that I''ve done a honeymoon, but if you are doing South Africa I would contact a travel company/agency that specializes in African Vacations...there is so much to do see there, you don''t want to miss out. Also, you want a company that is aware of the different political (for lack of a better word) climates in Africa so that you are going to stable areas.
My parents did an amazing African trip (a month long) a couple of years ago and they would never have been able to plan it w/o an experienced travel agancy.

lala2332...we are currenlty in contact with a few travel agencys that specialize in African Vacations.

 

[emeraldlover1]

anyone else already been to South Africa???

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 12/8/2008 1:20:25 PM
Author: emeraldlover1
anyone else already been to South Africa???

You might want to start a new thread with this in the title, I bet there are others for sure that have been there.

 

[CrookedRock]

EmeraldLover... I just saw this. So sorry I really haven''t been around the boards much, but I''ve been lurking for the past couple of days, so I''m glad I caught this.

So cool that you guys have decided to do this, you''ll love it. Both times I''ve been We focused on the safari part. The thing about the weather in Africa is that it changes a lot from day to night. The nights are always cool, espicially out on the plains.
Unfortunately I don''t know much about Mauritius, but from what I looked up it seems like your weather will be in the 70''s most likely. So not too bad...

As far as planning all the details, I highly reccomend Abercrombie & Kent. That is who we have used on both occasions and who I will use on our honeymoon, bc yes we are still planning on it, just not sure when, probably not til 2010. They really are masters of high end travel, and believe me that you do not want to take your chances over there, espicially with everything going on in the world right now. We always had a driver and someone with us whenever it was needed.

The best part of the safari for me was in Botswana, but there were def some good spots in SA too. Your suitcase for this trip will be pretty interesting... You''ll probably have to take 2 bags depending on where you safari. I would highly reccomend at least 4 days if you can swing it, that way you can pick 2 nice camps to make it to, and then head out to the island. Dress is extremely casual at the camps. Khakis or Jeans, Sneakers or boots, and Tshits and a jacket. The thing is when you fly out to these camps the planes are small so weight is an issue. We left bags in storage at the airport and picked them up after the safari portion bc we couldn''t bring all the weight out to the bush.

What have you looked into so far?

 

[CrookedRock]

BUMP! Where did you go EmeraldLover???

 

[emeraldlover1]

Date: 12/9/2008 4:13:56 PM
Author: CrookedRock
EmeraldLover... I just saw this. So sorry I really haven''t been around the boards much, but I''ve been lurking for the past couple of days, so I''m glad I caught this.

So cool that you guys have decided to do this, you''ll love it. Both times I''ve been We focused on the safari part. The thing about the weather in Africa is that it changes a lot from day to night. The nights are always cool, espicially out on the plains.
Unfortunately I don''t know much about Mauritius, but from what I looked up it seems like your weather will be in the 70''s most likely. So not too bad...

As far as planning all the details, I highly reccomend Abercrombie & Kent. That is who we have used on both occasions and who I will use on our honeymoon, bc yes we are still planning on it, just not sure when, probably not til 2010. They really are masters of high end travel, and believe me that you do not want to take your chances over there, espicially with everything going on in the world right now. We always had a driver and someone with us whenever it was needed.

The best part of the safari for me was in Botswana, but there were def some good spots in SA too. Your suitcase for this trip will be pretty interesting... You''ll probably have to take 2 bags depending on where you safari. I would highly reccomend at least 4 days if you can swing it, that way you can pick 2 nice camps to make it to, and then head out to the island. Dress is extremely casual at the camps. Khakis or Jeans, Sneakers or boots, and Tshits and a jacket. The thing is when you fly out to these camps the planes are small so weight is an issue. We left bags in storage at the airport and picked them up after the safari portion bc we couldn''t bring all the weight out to the bush.

What have you looked into so far?

I just saw this! Thanks for responding. Ok, so FI is in contact with a couple travel agents. One is a friend of ours that works for Liberty Travel. We probably won''t use him if we go to South Africa just because I don''t think he plans that many safari''s. He was hesitant about us going in late September because of the weather though. He advised that because it is so much money either way that we should go in Novemember to get our money''s worth. My FI is dead set on going right after the wedding which would put us in SA on Sept. 21 or 22. We then want to do the safari for 3-4 days then go to cape town for a few days. I''m not totatlly sold on Mauritius yet only because its supposed to be one of the most expensive places to travel and if it is cold what the heck are we going to do there? So, I dont need to go to a beach so I''m thinking if we still go to SA then we can go to victoria falls and maybe the vineyards. I''m waiting to hear back from this place: http://www.mahlatini.com They have called a couple times but they are in the UK so I''m waiting for them to call back. I copied your post and sent it to FI and see what he says. He is really in charge of planning it. I think he''s just a little upset its not going to be warmer there. He suggested moving our wedding date. Thats not an option so I had to laugh it off. lol.

 

[CrookedRock]

Alrighty I went looking for some of the camps that I went to. Chobe Chilwero had some really nice ones. http://www.sanctuarylodges.com/stanleyscamp.htm
You may want to look into them. A&K uses their camps as well, which is how I have been there before.
In Vic Falls A&K put us up here... http://www.victoriafallshotel.com/
There isn''t a ton there to do, you can make a day trip of crossing the border and walking through a bunch of the falls which is neat so long as you aren''t scared of heights! We also did the bungee jump there, http://www.afrizim.com/activities/victoria_falls/Bungee.asp
But from what I was told in ''06 it''s not an area to be exploring alone. We had a driver the whole time. It really is worth it, that''s why I can''t recommend A&K enough! They really make it so that you don''t have to worry about anything. It''s really a comforting feeling bc there is no way you can arrange all that you need from this distance on your own.
Also if it''s going to be that cold, have you thought about maybe spending more days on safari? It really is a once in a liftime experience!! (Can You Tell I''m a Safari Fan?) LOL
On top of that if you do want to look into A&K one of the very high ups there in Nairobi makes a trip to the states at least once a year. He happens to be a very close family friend and usually stays with my uncle on the upper east side when in NYC. I would be happy to find out when he may be coming back. He goes out to dinner and explains the trips etc to potential clients.
Please keep me posted, I''m happy to help!

 

[emeraldlover1]

Date: 12/10/2008 4:35:04 PM
Author: CrookedRock
Alrighty I went looking for some of the camps that I went to. Chobe Chilwero had some really nice ones. http://www.sanctuarylodges.com/stanleyscamp.htm
You may want to look into them. A&K uses their camps as well, which is how I have been there before.
In Vic Falls A&K put us up here... http://www.victoriafallshotel.com/
There isn''t a ton there to do, you can make a day trip of crossing the border and walking through a bunch of the falls which is neat so long as you aren''t scared of heights! We also did the bungee jump there, http://www.afrizim.com/activities/victoria_falls/Bungee.asp
But from what I was told in ''06 it''s not an area to be exploring alone. We had a driver the whole time. It really is worth it, that''s why I can''t recommend A&K enough! They really make it so that you don''t have to worry about anything. It''s really a comforting feeling bc there is no way you can arrange all that you need from this distance on your own.
Also if it''s going to be that cold, have you thought about maybe spending more days on safari? It really is a once in a liftime experience!! (Can You Tell I''m a Safari Fan?) LOL
On top of that if you do want to look into A&K one of the very high ups there in Nairobi makes a trip to the states at least once a year. He happens to be a very close family friend and usually stays with my uncle on the upper east side when in NYC. I would be happy to find out when he may be coming back. He goes out to dinner and explains the trips etc to potential clients.
Please keep me posted, I''m happy to help!

THANK YOU! I forwarded all this stuff to my fiance and he is going to look into it. I found the A&K site and we are going to call them tomorrow. Do you think it will be warmer on the Safari? Please, let me know if your family friend has plans to come into town soon. My fiance and I would be more than happy to meet with him and discuss specifics of the trip. We got some more information from the ohter place today and everything looks fantastic so we are definatley going to go. Now we just have to decide who to book with! Thanks for the help.

 

[CrookedRock]

Hey EL... I will find out when He is planning on coming to the states. I don''t even have a guestimate, but give me a few days and I will find out. But check and see about booking with them, and if it is even something that interests you. I know they can arrange the whole thing for you if you want.
Another thing I thought of!.... Are you guys into wine at all?... bc S.A. has a great wine country. I haven''t been but we are planning on it while we are there.

 

[emeraldlover1]

Thank you, that is awesome. Yes, we are considering the wine trip. It looks like we will be in Cape Town for a few days before the safari so we are thinking that if the weather isn''t good we''ll have someone drive us to the wineries. So fun. I have to look at the places in the itinerary that the other place sent and see if you know of any of them. The hotel suggestion for cape town is called the Table Bay Hotel. For the safari they gave us three choices: Nottens Bush Camp, Kirkmans Camp, and Exeter River Lodge. Have you heard of any of these. I will see if they have websites and let you know.

 

[Bashful]

Hello EL! I just returned from my honeymoon in SA and wanted to share my experience with you since everything is so fresh in my mind. We went to Cape Town, Franschoek (wine region), Hermanus, Sabi sands (safari) and Kruger National Park (safari). We spent about two and a half weeks in SA and loved the leisurely pace at which we could explore the country. I have been to Cape Town twice before and I''ve always wanted to return. There is so much to do there; I have been there in the summer and in the winter. It could get quite hot in the summer and the winters are quite mild so I don''t think the season should be a huge concern.

I typically book all our travels myself without the help of travel agents, although i have heard great things about Abercrombie & Kent, as Crooked Rock has mentioned. There are so many beautiful wine regions near Cape Town (Stellenbosch is 45 minutes away while Constantia is a mere 20 minutes away) and we chose to stay in Franschoek, which was an hour drive from Cape Town. We stayed at a place called La Residence, which, in my opinion, is the most spectacular place in the region. The rooms are all furnished with antiques; we were in a room with a four poster bed carved out from marble. There is a little village (very Provencal!) in Franschoek and the quality of food of the restaurants in town is great.

Hermanus is a beach town an hour drive from Cape Town. We stayed at La Residence''s sister property, Birkenhead House. It is perched above a rocky beach, and from June to December, whales swim very close to the shore and the location of the hotel afforded guests the best view for land-based whale watching. While the property is intimate and nice, we found that the service and decor at La Residence were a notch higher than that at Birkenhead.

As for safari, we couldn''t recommend Singita enough. We stayed at two Singita properties (Boulders at Sabi Sands Private Reserve and Sweni at Kruger National Park) and our experience was beyond perfect. I''ve gone on safari trips in Kenya and Botswana before, but I would say that lodges at Singita are, by far, the most luxurious, and with food and service equally spectacular to match. We saw the magnificent seven (big five plus cheetah and the very endangered wild dogs) on our first two days in Sabi Sands. Game viewing in Sabi Sands is incomparable, in my opinion. We had our own plunge pool and outdoor shower in our individual villa, and our room has all glass walls that look onto a river, where we could see hippos swimming in the summer heat or elephants coming by for water. It was truly magnificent and I couldn''t recommend it enough.

I hope this wee bit of advice would be helpful to you. Please let me know if you have more questions!