The Sabi Sand, Gorongosa and Benguerra
Leopards on the Sand River, a park brought back to life, and five nights on an island.
- 12 nights
- Four stays
- South Africa, Mozambique
- Safari, island, light aircraft
The bush and the sea, with a night in Johannesburg between: three nights in the Sabi Sand, three in Mozambique's Gorongosa, and five on Benguerra Island in the Bazaruto Archipelago.
- Length
- 12 nights
- Pace
- Four stays
- Style
- Safari, island, light aircraft
- Route
- The Sabi Sand to Johannesburg to Gorongosa to Benguerra Island
- The Sabi SandThree nights
- JohannesburgOne night
- GorongosaThree nights
- Benguerra IslandFive nights
01
Days 1 to 4 · three nights
The Sabi Sand
A light aircraft from Johannesburg straight into the reserve. Drives off-road after big game, walks, sunsets in the bush and the Healing House.
Where you stay
Londolozi
Londolozi has been in the Varty family since 1926, on a bend of the Sand River in the Sabi Sand, and its name comes from a Zulu word for the protector of all living things. You stay in the Private Granite Suites.
02
Days 4 to 5 · one night
Johannesburg
A flight back to the city for a night between the bush and the coast, for dinner and the spa.
Where you stay
Saxon Hotel, Villas & Spa
In Sandhurst, a tree-lined suburb of Johannesburg, the Saxon sits in 10 acres of indigenous gardens, with suites in the main hotel, more private villa suites and the Nelson Mandela Platinum Suite. Dinner is at Qunu, and the spa is built around water features, a fireplace, copper and Himalayan salts.
03
Days 5 to 8 · three nights
Gorongosa
A flight to Gorongosa National Park. Guided wildlife viewing, elephants and hippos and, with luck, a pangolin, and the story of the park's recovery.
Where you stay
Muzimu Lodge
Muzimu Lodge stands inside Gorongosa National Park on the banks of the Mussicadzi River, with six canvas chalets, each with its own deck.
04
Days 8 to 13 · five nights
Benguerra Island
A flight to the coast and the island. Humpback whales in season, the coral gardens by snorkel or dive, Mini Mokes along the sand tracks and food from the sanctuary's own gardens.
Where you stay
Kisawa Sanctuary
Kisawa is a 300-hectare sanctuary of forest, beach and dunes on the southern tip of Benguerra Island, 14 kilometres off the Mozambique coast in the Bazaruto Archipelago. Guests stay in residences of one to three bedrooms with their own day areas, built by island artisans alongside 3D printing to tread lightly.
Ways to make it yours
This is a sample. The hotels, the pace and the order are where we start, not where we finish: every journey is designed around the people taking it.
Made around you
Most travel is bought. This is designed.
Before anything is booked, we talk: who is travelling, how you like to spend a morning, and the hotel preferences below the obvious, from the kind of bath you like to the time you wake and how much daylight you need in a room. You see options where options matter and clean recommendations where they don't.
The same person remains your point of contact from the first reply to the trip after next. No handovers. No team.
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