Eastern Cape

Eastern Cape Safari Trips & Tours

Eastern Cape

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Johnny - Travel Consultant
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4.9/5 (911 reviews)

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Voted No.1 in 2024 and No.2 in 2025 by Travel+Leisure
Explore the Wild Coast, Eastern Cape

Eastern Cape Safari Trips & Tours

A tip top safari destination with a cultural heart within reach of Cape Town and the Garden Route.
The Eastern Cape encapsulates South Africa in one province. Expect incredible Big Five safaris at famed game reserves (our favourite is Addo Elephant Park, just 40 kilometres from Port Elizabeth and home to mega concentrations of elephant and white rhino), stunning hiking and mountain scenery, and deep-rooted African culture in the Transkei, the once-independent homeland of the Xhosa people. Then there’s the Wild Coast, with its endless Indian Ocean beaches and rolling rural pastures, where you feel a million miles from anyone. You could spend weeks exploring the Eastern Cape without ever feeling the need to move on.
Trips

Eastern Cape Safari Trips & Tours

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The Garden Route and a spot of safari in South Africa
South Africa

The Garden Route and a spot of safari in South Africa

11 nights from $6.2K per person

Alternative Garden Route
South Africa

Alternative Garden Route

12 nights from $4.1K per person

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Our Experts

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Get advice and suggestions to make this your perfect trip.

or call us on: +1 (646) 542 0667

Jonty

Jonty Medcalf

Africa and Antarctica Travel Specialist

Joanna

Joanna Rigby-Jones

Africa & South America Travel Specialist

Jenna

Jenna Coiley

Africa Travel Specialist

Things to do

What to do in Eastern Cape

South Africa’s Eastern Cape is wild and wonderful, from its undiscovered beaches to the collection of fantastic reserves. Depending on the lodge, you could aim to see members of the Big Five on game drives (Kwandwe’s impressive numbers of elephant and black rhino make it a firm favourite), visit a rhino or big cat sanctuary, or explore the terrain on a walking or horseback safari. Along the way, you could spot giraffe, zebra and antelope and, should the reserve offer night drives, porcupine, aardwolf and aardvark. Just before Eastern Cape reaches KwaZulu-Natal, find yourself hiking epic mountain trails and searching for dolphins surfing the waves. For something completely different, hop over to the town of Graaff-Reinet. Nestled in the heart of the Karoo, the fantastic local food and breweries are sure to entice you.

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Tribes of Africa

Explore the Wild Coast, Eastern Cape

Safari

Track wildlife on a game drive in the Eastern Cape

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Go on a guided walking safari in the Eastern Cape

Why you'll love it

Why you'll love it

Overlooked for years, the Eastern Cape is a now a recognised safari destination and makes the perfect "bush" add-on to a Cape Town or Garden Route holiday.
Off the beaten track

Off the beaten track

Culture vultures will adore the town of Graaff-Reinet, the fourth oldest in the country after Cape Town, Stellenbosch and Swellendam (in the Western Cape), with its original architecture and glorious collection of museums and galleries.
Something to think about

Something to think about

The game reserves in the Eastern Cape are outstanding in terms of service, accommodation, animals – you name it! But what you won’t get is the feeling of absolute wilderness.
Best time to visit

When to go on a Eastern Cape Trip

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Reviews

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Based on 333 Feefo Reviews for South Africa

Guest
June 2026
14 nights in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Botswana
see previous description
Awesome safari and South African trip.
Guest
Awesome safari and South African trip.
June 2026
25 nights in South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe
Our trip went without a hitch! Couldn't be happier with the organization of the whole thing. Of course, Meg was fantastic. She gave us so much information up front and spent the time with us to help us figure out what would be best for us and what we really would want to do since it was our first time. I can't say enough about how much we appreciated that as well as how accessible and responsive she was for questions. I think having someone who has been to all the places and really knows how it will be is so helpful to people who have not done a safari before. I definitely would recommend to friends and family to use Timbuktu.
The perfect South African/Botswana African safari
DAVID ZEBROWSKI
The perfect South African/Botswana African safari
June 2026
15 nights in South Africa, Botswana and Mauritius
I really enjoyed working with Jenna and Nadine on planning our perfect African safari. Jenna chose the two most perfect camps for our stay. Both are super detail oriented and nothing fell through the cracks. It was great having them, knowing I can rely on both of them to ensure the trip went smoothly and we had the best experience possible. I will absolutely use Timbuktu when planning my next safari vacation.
S. Africa / Tanzania vacation
Boris P
S. Africa / Tanzania vacation
May 2026
18 nights in South Africa and Tanzania
Thanks a lot to Jonty for his professionalism, patience, and assistance in helping us to build a wonderful itinerary for our upcoming South Africa and Tanzania vacation. We truly appreciate all the time and effort that has gone into planning this special trip and are very excited for the adventure ahead.
Have planned four trips though Timbuktu and each one was wonderful!
Guest
Have planned four trips though Timbuktu and each one was wonderful!
May 2026
7 nights in South Africa and Mozambique
They have planned my last four trips with them to perfection. They always listen to what you want to see and do on each trip and how much you want to spend. They are simply the best!
South Africa/Zambia/Seychelles
Guest
South Africa/Zambia/Seychelles
April 2026
12 nights in South Africa, Zambia and Seychelles
We planned a multi country vacation with several flights, lots of different hotels and many activities. Timbuktu took a lot of the stress off of me by helping me Figure out exactly what I wanted to do on this trip and helping me get it all scheduled. At every stop we were well taken care of and we had exactly what we needed. We felt safe and taken care of the entire trip.

Why travel with Timbuktu?

We design tailor-made journeys for travellers who want more than a holiday, from first-time safaris, gorilla treks and multi-generational family adventures to once-in-a-lifetime honeymoons - and everything in between. And here's why so many choose us to plan them.

Tailor-Made Since 2014

Tailor-Made Since 2014

We've been crafting one-of-a-kind journeys since 2014 — over 2,500 trips across 40+ countries, each one built from scratch around your interests and dreams.

Specialists Who've Been There

Specialists Who've Been There

Our team only recommends places they've slept in, eaten in, and happily keep going back to. Condé Nast Traveler named 11 of them Top Travel Specialists in 2026, and Travel+Leisure made three A-List Advisors.

The World's No 1 Tour Operator

The World's No 1 Tour Operator

Travel+Leisure's readers voted us the World's No.1 Tour Operator in 2024 and No.2 in 2025 — the travel industry's biggest readers' award, judged by people who actually travel.

Every Trip Makes A Difference

Every Trip Makes A Difference

$50 from every booking goes to female empowerment, tech education, and conservation projects across the countries we love. We have donated $78,000 so far – and it's going up!

Collaboration Is Key

Collaboration Is Key

Your travel specialist is with you the whole way, dreaming up the trip, building the itinerary, checking you in, and answering the 2am question from the other side of the world..

Loved By Our Guests

Loved By Our Guests

We are rated 4.9 out of 5 from 911 verified Feefo reviews. And these are the words of people who actually went, not us talking about ourselves.

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11 Condé Nast Traveler Top Travel Specialists 2026

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No. 1 & No. 2 Tour Operator in Travel + Leisure's Best Awards 2024 & 2025

Travel + Leisure

Best Booking Platform in Women's Health Travel Awards 2025

Women's Health magazine

Travel Specialist voted as Latin America A-List Travel Advisor 2025

Condé Nast Traveler A-List Awards

"Timbuktu can take relatively complex and slightly amorphous travel plans and transform them into a well-organized, perfectly tailored trip."

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