After a flight to Johannesburg via Paris, we started our round trip with the first overnight stay at The Peech Hotel in Melrose, Johannesburg. Wonderfully relaxed, well-arranged complex with a pretty garden and pool in the feel-good Melrose district. Since we were pretty exhausted after the overnight flight, our 17-year-old daughter, my husband and I took it easy for now and “chilled out” the day in the garden. In the evening, have a quick meal, sleep and enjoy the first day of discovery. From Johannesburg, we drove to the Mpumalange Highlands by rental car, and spent the night in the simple but cozy Misty Mountain Lodge — with a fireplace in the bedroom and a great view. It was pretty cold but the fireplace and electric blankets in bed were great. The next day we drove the Panorama Route. Absolute highlight “Blyde River Canyon” and also very pretty the Bourke's Luck Potholes.
The itinerary included another night at Misty MountainLodge. It is more advisable to take the Panorama Route and then head for the next destination, for us the Umlani Bush Camp in the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve. Umlani Bush Camp — expensive but worth every cent. The overnight cottages are basic, the bed is cozy and the bathroom is rudimentary. Electricity for light is available — you can charge your mobile phone in the small shop. And everything is just right! The surrounding area is beautiful, with nature, animals and perception in the foreground. The food was delicious and we especially enjoyed the conversations with the lodge staff over dinner together. After that, all guests sat comfortably around a fire (Bush TV), told or dreamt about the day, the game drives or whatever was happening behind their foreheads. The Game Drives were great — all Big Five — no jeep traffic jams, very quiet and relaxed, short hikes to the giraffes with the guide and a fantastic starry sky. We finally know what Southern Cross looks like! 2 nights in Umlani are a must. If you can treat yourself to 3 nights, you should.
After 2 days, we continued through the Orpen Gate through the Kruger National Park with many animal sightings further south. The Kruger was not entirely ours. After several African holidays in Namibia, Tanzania and Kenya with large herds of animals, we found the Kruger experience ok. The landscape is beautiful, but somehow we lacked atmosphere — everything is so perfect. Definitely set aside plenty of time. It took us about 7 hours from Orpen Gate to Malalane Gate — on a leisurely journey, but you can't drive faster than 50 km/h.
We spent the night at Mhlati Guest Cottage and drove on to Swaziland the next day. Border control is a real experience for us Europeans enjoying open borders. Park, get off, passport control in one bungalow, then show the car documents in another. Attention, here too, minors need an English-language birth certificate. All this with soooooo much peace and quiet. Wonderful! That too was done at some point and the journey continued at Mkhaya Game Reserve Stone Camp. It takes time for that! The road conditions are sometimes unbelievable, one pothole is lined up next and more than 40 kilometers per hour are not possible over long distances or an axle fracture is imminent. So I'd rather not. But as Africans always say: “You have the clock, we have the time.” At 16:00 we were picked up punctually at the meeting point by the ranger and brought to Stone Camp via Game Drive. It's really an experience. You stay in open huts — don't be afraid of the cold: the blankets are very warm and hot water bottles are also available. And don't be afraid of wild animals either: there are no big predators there and the monkeys only romp around the hut when you're not there. Monkeys love tea and sweets...
In the evening, there was super delicious food by the fire, followed by a dance performance by the staff — too bad they didn't save themselves that — nice but superfluous. The next morning at dawn, another game drive and then it was back to the car at 09:00 o'clock. The accommodation is really nice but the stay is very short. You simply have to know that and then decide whether the price-performance ratio is right for you.
So back to the car, leaving Swaziland — same procedure, but at Mananga Border Point, the whole thing really had former Eastern Bloc charm. The border between South Africa and Swaziland appears particularly worthy of protection.
St. Lucia on the Beach was next on the agenda — our daughter was happy. Relax and sunbathe at last. And finally the weather was better too. Sometimes we really froze the first week — we had onion clothes with us, so it was all good. According to reports, it was an exceptional week in South Africa. After that, we really enjoyed the warmth and sun. St. Lucia is a very pleasant little holiday resort, lots of restaurants, wonderful beaches and the highlight on the way to the most beautiful beach on Cape Vidal is a game drive with the opportunity to see buffaloes, rhinos, zebras... The place is simply good in between: relaxed civilization in beautiful surroundings. We stayed at Avalone Guest House. The garden is awesome, the rooms ok, the breakfast great.
Then it was off via Durban — not worth mentioning and easy to leave — to the Drakensberg Mountains. Our absolute highlight — my goodness, that's nice. We spent 2 nights in the comfortably furnished Montusi Mountain Lodge with a direct view of the “Amphitheatre”. And finally exercise: 2 hikes in spectacular nature, on very good and signposted hiking trails. For hiking enthusiasts, there are a variety of options here and anyone who wants will find their challenge. And if you like to eat well, the Montusi Mountain Lodge is also in great hands. Tasty! If you're planning the Drakensberg Mountains, then definitely go to Montusi Mountain Lodge. We would have liked to forego Durban so we could spend another day in the Drakensberg Mountains.
From the Drakensberg Mountains, we went back to Johannesburg airport. We were able to refuel our rental car directly at a somewhat hidden gas station, felt like in the middle of the airport. And briefly about the rental car: We didn't need a four-wheel drive for the route and during the season. That was Holger Asche's recommendation — we saved the money in the right place. If you are also planning to cross the border in Swaziland, remember to get an appropriate authorization from the car rental company — preferably in duplicate.
In short, an extremely positive customer experience at the end. Almost every evening, the agency got in touch with us, asked how we were doing and whether we needed or would like to have any tips. Yes, we wanted to, and so we got very helpful advice and even though we didn't like Durban, the restaurant recommendation was a hit. What steaks! :-)
South Africa — definitely again. Next time from Paternoster to Addo National Park.
