South Africa doesn’t do halfway. Neither should your South Africa safari and cycling itinerary. The travellers who get the most from this country are the ones who combine two things: the stillness of a safari, and the freedom of moving through the landscape on foot or on a bike.

Feel the pull of the open road – pedalling hard over mountain passes, pushing through ancient forests, earning every view and rewarding yourself with an ice-cold beer or glass of sparkling wine as the dust settles at sunset.

Start With the Safari

There are three parks we recommend most often, each with its own character.

Kruger National Park is South Africa’s iconic wilderness – vast, remote, and one of the world’s great game-viewing destinations. The Big Five, extraordinary bird life, and the kind of silence that recalibrates you completely. Best explored from a private lodge on the western boundary where guides are outstanding and game is consistently close.

Addo Elephant National Park in the Eastern Cape is a more compact, less overwhelming introduction to safari – ideal for first-timers or families, and spectacular in its own right. Addo has one of the highest elephant densities in the world, and unlike Kruger, it’s malaria-free.

Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in the Northern Cape is for the traveller who wants something genuinely remote. The red dunes, the dry riverbeds, the predator sightings – it’s an unfiltered, wilder experience. Not for everyone. Exactly right for the right person.

We coordinate the full safari experience – accommodation, transfers, and logistics – working with trusted partners in each park. You make one call to us; we handle the rest.

Then, Get Moving in Cape Town and the Garden Route

After days of stillness, of watching and waiting, of sitting in a vehicle while the landscape unfolds – it’s extraordinary, and then it ends. Most travellers arrive in Cape Town with energy that needs somewhere to go.

Cape Town and the Garden Route are built for active travel. And our ground operator partner AWOL Tours – a specialist cycling and hiking company that has been running these routes for over 20 years – is who we trust to deliver the active leg.

The Garden Route Cycling Tour

AWOL Tours runs a fully supported gravel cycling tour from Cape Town through to Addo Elephant National Park, with a choice of 6 or 12-day itineraries combining the best of the Cape coast and Karoo.

The 6-day Cape Town to Addo route traces the dramatic Atlantic coastline, winds through the lush Knysna forests, and explores the wild Tsitsikamma coast before culminating in a safari at Addo Elephant National Park. For travellers who started their trip in Kruger or Kgalagadi, this is a particularly elegant way to close the loop – finishing the active leg with another wildlife encounter, this time on the ground and earned by the journey.

For those who want the full experience, the 12-day itinerary extends into the rugged Little Karoo, conquering the legendary Swartberg Pass, exploring the Cango Caves, and ending with a celebratory wine tasting before returning to Cape Town.

Small-group departures, electric bike options, and fully supported riding – you cycle as much or as little as you like while the team handles the details.

Before You Leave Cape Town

If your itinerary allows a few days in Cape Town before or after the Garden Route, use them well.

The Cape Point cycle tour covers one of the most dramatic coastal routes on the continent. The Winelands cycling tours take you through Stellenbosch and Franschhoek on quiet back roads, stopping at estates that have been making wine here for three centuries.

And then there are the experiences that go beyond the physical. In Masiphumelele township on the Cape Peninsula, we partner with the Songezo Jim Cycling Academy. Songezo Jim is the first black South African rider to compete in the Giro d’Italia, who grew up in this community and built a cycling academy there for the next generation. Riding with the team, meeting the young athletes who are training on these same roads – it’s a different kind of encounter than anything you’ll find in a game reserve, and equally unforgettable.

In the Bo-Kaap, we end some tours with a Cape Malay cooking experience. You cook in a local family kitchen – rolling rotis, frying chilli bites, making curry and samoosas alongside your host chef – before sitting down to eat together. The Bo-Kaap’s cultural roots span southeast Asia, northwest Africa, and Europe, and the food carries all of it. You leave understanding Cape Town in a way that no viewpoint or museum achieves.

Why Book Through AWOL Travel

We are a specialist booking agent for Southern Africa, focused entirely on bespoke itineraries for international travellers. We coordinate both legs of your trip – the safari and the active touring – so the logistics connect seamlessly and nothing falls through the gap between operators.

On the ground in Cape Town, our partner is AWOL Tours: a small, specialist team with over two decades of experience, consistently recognised with TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards. They know these routes, these communities, and this landscape in a way that takes years to build.

You plan once. We handle both sides.

A safari followed by a cycling adventure through the Garden Route is one of the most complete ways to experience South Africa. Wild and active. Remote and human. Contemplative and physical.

Tell us where you want to go, and we’ll build the rest. Email sally@awol.travel