South Luangwa is famed for walking safaris with two notable companies (Norman Carr and Robin Pope) offering multi-day walks or shorter walks between permanent camps. I wasn’t spending enough time in the park to take advantage of either of these options, but Tena Tena, the camp I was staying at, offered walks in place of the standard game drive. Unlike walks I have done in other countries, a walking safari in South Luangwa National Park feels more wild and remote.
Johannesburg can feel inaccessible and unlike Cape Town, which people fall in love with handily because of its natural beauty and laid back lifestyle, Jozi is a hardscrabble city that is always churning. If Cape Town is a watercolor, than Johannesburg is a high contrast photograph that requires an interpretive guide. Past Experiences founder, Jo Buitendach, is just such a guide and her Braamfontein Art Tour provides an interesting perspective of the city.
The Test Kitchen is the most difficult reservation to secure in South Africa and deservedly so since this restaurant is consistently named the best restaurant in South Africa and recently named amongst the 50 best restaurants in the world. If you want to eat here on a weekend, advance planning is required. I selected a weekend five months in advance, bought a plane ticket, and made plans to travel to Cape Town for a solo lunch date at the best restaurant in South Africa.
Londolozi is famed for its leopards, but Londolozi is also a top photographic destination. The Sabi Sands is one of the best places in South Africa for wildlife sightings because of the concentration of game and because the animals are extremley relaxed around vehicles. Photography at Londolozi is unparalleled, not only because of the wildlife viewing but because of the other photographic services offered at the camp.
La Colombe consistently appears amongst the Top 10 Best Restaurants in South Africa. Despite its proximity to Cape Town and my goal to eat my way through the best restaurants in South Africa, I had yet to dine there. Cape Town in July is ordinarily rainy and cold, so I had planned a quiet weekend in Constantia (a suburb of Cape Town) comprised of indoor activities – wine farm visits, reading, a massage, roaming Kirstenbosch gardens, and a long leisurely lunch at La Colombe.
The drive through the macadamia, litchi, and granadilla (passion fruit) orchards on the road leading to Summerfields Rose Retreat and Spa convinced me that my weekend stay on this working farm-cum-spa was going to be the an idyllic weekend retreat. But when the receptionist inquired, “what kind of champagne would you like to drink with your romantic bath?” I knew I had found a destination suited to my persona to a tee.