The Ultimate South Africa Honeymoon Guide

When it comes to deciding where to honeymoon, chances are you’re looking for a once-in-a-lifetime trip. Something not all your friends have done, and something that you and your fiance will remember forever. And if laying on the beach of an all-inclusive resort drinking tropical drinks doesn’t sound as much your vibe as much as an unparalleled adventure across the world, there is no honeymoon destination like South Africa.

South Africa has it ALL. It is wild, rugged, and gorgeous. But it’s also romantic, beachy and beautiful. It’s halfway around the world, and is unlike anywhere you’ve ever been, yet, it feels like home.

With South Africa’s one-of-a-kind combination of colorful African culture and beautiful, old-world colonial glamour, its rich history, gorgeous landscapes, incredible wildlife (hello penguins on the beach, baboons in the streets, and safaris!!!). Did I mention the wine country, white sand beaches, incredible restaurants and cocktail bars, and the absolutely to-die-for views of the Cape of Good Hope?!

South Africa is a honeymoon dream come true, AND even though it’s a big trip to get over there, it is 10000% worth it. 

Updated September 2026 with the five-star hotels of the Cape Winelands, the Singita lodges, which Cape Town restaurants are still open, and everything that has changed about getting from Cape Town to safari.

Must-dos for a honeymoon in South Africa:

Cape Town!

Cape Town is one of my favorite places in the world – and definitely my favorite city. This gorgeous gem on the tip of Africa has EVERYTHING!!! And you’ll definitely want to spend some time here on your honeymoon.

As far as how long to spend in CT, I’d recommend at LEAST 3 nights, but ideally 4-5. You definitely won’t get bored here. Check out my recommendations on where to stay in Cape Town below!

Wine country

Only about 40 minutes outside of Cape Town are the South Africa Winelands – two wine countries Stellenbosch and Franschhoek –  and both are a wine lover’s dream.

Stellenbosch is South Africa’s second oldest town, and arguably the most beautiful with its Cape Dutch architecture. Franschhoek is smaller and more boutiquey than Stellenbosch. There are lovely street cafes and bistros where you can sit out and relax in the sunshine. To me it feels a lot like France!

Don’t leave South Africa without trying the pinotage, a blend of pinot noir and Cinsaut that’s native to South Africa, and one of my personal favorites.

 

Photo source: 2foodtrippers.com

A few of the best wineries to visit in Stellenbosch:

Waterford Estate– four words: Wine and chocolate tasting. Here, you’ll sit at a gorgeous courtyard table and be greeted with fine Belgian chocolates specially crafted onsite to match each wine you’ll taste from the estate. Talk about a perfect afternoon!
Warwick – Family-owned with many award winning wines and views you wish you could get back home!
Morgenhof – This beautiful white estate situated among the Stellenbosch mountains has many fine wines, some of which are sold worldwide.

Biking to the Cape of Good Hope

The point where the Atlantic meets the Indian Ocean, the Cape of Good Hope is one of the most stunning places I’ve ever been – it will take your breath away, and is a must do in South Africa. 

Boulders beach & seeing the penguins!

Just around the corner from Cape Town in Simon’s Town lies Boulders Beach, a gorgeous tucked away cove of soft white sand, massive granite boulders (hence its name) and water that’s a little warmer than the icy temperatures of Cape Town‘s Atlantic Ocean beaches, since it’s on the Indian Ocean side of the Cape. It’s a MUST on any trip to South Africa. 

You can definitely see Boulders Beach in the same day as visiting the Cape of Good Hope – since it’s on the way!

 

A Safari in South Africa

Duh! (see below for recs on which safari lodges in South Africa are best for a honeymoon!)

Photo from Natural Habitat adventures

Hiking Table Mountain in Cape Town

Table Mountain, designated in 2011 as one of the world’s new Seven Wonders, is a must-do on any trip to Cape Town, South Africa. After a grueling hike up to the top, you’ll be rewarded by some of the most breathtaking views ever. It’s well known as one of the best hikes in the world, and when you get there, it’s easy to see why.

Victoria & Alfred Waterfront

Bustling with tourists and locals alike at all hours of the day and night, the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront is the heart of Cape Town. Sprinkled with shops, restaurants, pubs, and outdoor entertainment, head here for a romantic dinner, some fish n’ chips and a beer (that will only cost you about $2!) or just to walk around!

Camp’s Bay

Head to Camp’s Bay (or stay in Camp’s Bay) for some South Beach Miami vibes and some super chic restaurants and bars. I LOVE watching the sunset here, and saw some of the very best sunsets of my entire life right on this beach.

Clifton

My favorite beaches in Cape Town!!! Clifton is an affluent suburb of Cape Town, and home to 4 beaches (appropriately named Clifton 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th).

The water is chilly, but the beaches and homes in Clifton are drop dead gorgeous. Fourth Beach (to the South), is the most popular and attracts families and lots of crowds. Yachts anchor off Fourth beach, especially on summer weekends. Third beach is the smallest beach and Second beach is populated by students playing beach volleyball and beach games. First beach, to the north, is usually a mix of locals and surfers.

Where to Eat in Cape Town:

La Colombe

If you’re looking for an incredible meal in Cape Town, this is your spot. Contemporary French-meets-Asian fine dining.

FYN Restaurant 

African-inspired and japanese infused. This place is amazing.

Belly of the Beast – great dinner spot with a delish contemporary menu.

More Cape Town restaurants worth building your days around

Cape Town’s food scene has changed enormously since I first wrote this guide, and so has the way you have to book it. Most of these rooms are tiny, 24 to 30 seats at some of the very best ones, and nearly all of them now take a deposit to hold your table, usually with a 48-hour cancellation window. This is no longer a city where you figure out dinner when you land. Book your restaurants when you book your flights. And plan your Sunday around a hotel dinner, because almost everything good is closed.

One more thing, because South Africa gets left off a lot of food lists. Michelin does not rate restaurants in South Africa at all. The awards that matter here are the Eat Out Woolworths Restaurant Awards, and their star system is the local benchmark. When I say three stars below, that is what I mean.

Salsify at the Roundhouse

If you only do one big dinner in Cape Town, make it this one. It sits in a restored hunting lodge on the slope between Lion’s Head and the Atlantic with the Twelve Apostles behind you, and the view out of those windows at golden hour is the best restaurant view in the city. Chef Ryan Cole holds three stars, and he took the 2026 Chefs’ Chef award, which is the one voted on by other chefs. Ten courses, proper sommelier service, and a fermentation room built into the experience. Closed Sundays, and Mondays are dinner only.

Pier

Three Eat Out stars, right in the V&A Waterfront, from the La Colombe group. Of the three-star restaurants this is the easiest to slot into a Waterfront hotel stay, which counts for a lot on the night you land and cannot face a 40-minute drive after dinner. The kitchen leans hard on the ocean and the technique matches anything the group does up the mountain. Ask for a table on the water side and go at sunset.

The Waterside

Same group, same Waterfront, much more relaxed. Two stars, an outdoor deck that sits practically on the water, and the right answer for a honeymoon lunch where neither of you wants to dress up. This is the one I would send you to on day two.

Ouzeri

Greek and Cypriot, on Wale Street at the edge of the Bo-Kaap, and my favorite kind of restaurant: two Eat Out stars in a room that could not care less about being fancy. White walls, arches, marble. Chef Nic Charalambous went back through northern Greece and the islands rebuilding his Cypriot grandparents’ recipes, and you can taste that it is personal. Get the eliopita.

Galjoen

Twenty-four seats, no menu, no choices. You show up and they feed you whatever came out of the water that week. It is the sister restaurant to Belly of the Beast, a few doors down on Harrington Street. After a year of making decisions about a wedding, handing every last one of them to somebody else for three hours is its own kind of romance.

The Pot Luck Club

Two stars, top floor of the silo at the Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock, with the whole city laid out through the windows and an open kitchen most tables can watch. The plates are small and meant to be fought over. After a week of tasting menus this is the dinner where you talk over the noise and stay for a second drink.

Chefs Warehouse at Tintswalo Atlantic

Tables sitting directly over the Atlantic on Chapman’s Peak, and four courses of seafood-leaning small plates. You do not have to be staying at Tintswalo to eat here. Two warnings: parking is limited, so take an Uber, and Chapman’s Peak is a toll road that closes in high wind or after rockfall, so build in a buffer and check the road before you drive out.

Beyond at Buitenverwachting

Two stars, on a historic Constantia wine farm, from Peter Tempelhoff, the chef behind FYN. Constantia is 20 minutes from the city, so this is your wine estate lunch on a trip that never makes it out to Stellenbosch or Franschhoek.

Publik Wine Bar

A pre-dinner stop, and a great one. They pour minimal-intervention South African wine and put out charcuterie and cheese. No reservations, so walk in. Perfect for the hour before a late booking when you want to sit and talk to each other.

One note on La Colombe, FYN, Pier and The Waterside: no children under 8, no bringing your own wine, and a deposit is required at all four.

Jetset tip: if you can handle a cooler honeymoon, come in June, July or August. Cape Town’s best restaurants run winter specials and they are not small. Galjoen drops lunch from R750 to R450, Belly of the Beast from R850 to R650, and Salsify has run a five-course winter lunch at R1,090. That is three-star cooking at roughly half the summer number. Those are winter 2026 figures, so confirm them when you book.

And the question I get asked most about South Africa right now: is load shedding going to ruin our dinners? No. As of this update in late 2026, national load shedding has been suspended since May 2025, and the serious kitchens in this city all put in backup power years ago. Every restaurant I send clients to has it. Do not plan your honeymoon around it.

The best hotels for a honeymoon in South Africa:

Cape Town:

Tintswalo Atlantic

With some of the most gorgeous views in all of South Africa, perched on a pebbled beach at the foot of Table Mountain, Tintswalo Atlantic is a perfect choice for Cape Town honeymoons. It’s super picturesque and the service is world-class.

Twelve Apostles Hotel & Spa in Camp’s Bay

Often ranked the Best Hotel in Cape Town, this five star boutique hotel in Camp’s Bay is your place if you want to be near the beautiful beaches, tucked away on the road to Camp’s Bay. The hotel also has an award-winning spa, tucked below the hotel, which is super popular. There are two swimming pools, and a cute 16-seat movie theater (with drinks, popcorn and candy, of course). There’s also a complimentary all-day shuttle to the V&A Waterfront, which is about a 20-minute drive away!

Ellerman House Cape Town

Looking onto Lion’s Head and the Atlantic Ocean, this beautiful mansion looks like more like a private villa. It’s extremely secluded, private and super safe. The bar, restaurant, and spa are exclusive to hotel guests. Did I mention your rate includes breakfast, drinks, wine tasting, a minibar, and a private chef?! There are the 7,500 bottles of rare and vintage South African wines in the cellar and 1.5 acres of beautiful gardens. This is a great hotel for a honeymoon in Cape Town.

Check rates for your dates here

Tintswalo at Boulders Beach

If a lowkey boutique hotel is more your vibe than a big resort, this villa in a suburb of Cape Town offers unobstructed views over Boulders Beach with its internationally famous colony of endangered African penguins! 

The Silo Hotel

Super chic 5-star hotel in a great location in Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. This hotel is an architectural marvel, and a must stay for design lovers.

Mount Nelson, A Belmond Hotel

The pink palace at the foot of Table Mountain, open since 1899, with nine acres of gardens around it, more green space than any other hotel in the city. Everyone calls it the Nellie. Afternoon tea in the Lounge is a proper Cape Town institution and not a marketing line. You are in Gardens, so you can walk to Kloof Street for dinner, which is where the city eats. There are no sea views and there is a kids’ club, so the romance here comes from the history and the grounds.

One&Only Cape Town

It sits on its own marina at the Waterfront, with a private island holding the spa. The entry-level Marina Room runs 63 square metres and the Island Superior 73, which makes these the largest hotel rooms in the city by a wide margin. Nobu is downstairs, and the marina-facing side has full Table Mountain views. Ask for marina-side if you want the mountain and island-side if you want quiet, because you cannot have both. It is a big resort and there are families everywhere, so book it for the rooms and the spa.

Cape Grace, A Fairmont Managed Hotel

Cape Grace closed for a nine-month renovation and reopened in May 2024, redesigned by 1508 London and now the first Fairmont in South Africa. They kept the Cape Grace name, which I love. It sits on its own quay between the marina and the yacht basin, and Bascule Bar pours more than 500 whiskies from something like 170 distilleries. 112 rooms is a lot of hotel. What the size buys you is the one Waterfront address that still feels residential instead of like a lobby.

Camissa House

Eight rooms, high up on Bridle Road in Oranjezicht with Table Mountain right behind you. The rate covers breakfast, daily high tea or canapes, all house drinks, 24-hour butler service, and transfers to dinner within 10km. For a couple who would sooner put the money into experiences than into a big hotel room rate, this is the smartest booking in Cape Town.

Where to stay in the Cape Winelands

My honest opinion: do not day-trip the Winelands. Stellenbosch and Franschhoek are 30 to 60 minutes from Cape Town, which makes a day trip technically possible and practically a waste. You will spend the whole day being careful about how much you drink and watching the clock. Give it three nights. Two full tasting days and a half day for the spa is exactly right, and four nights is better if you want to split between two hotels.

The sequencing tip nobody tells you: do the Winelands after your safari. Fly into Johannesburg or straight into Kruger, do the safari while you still have adrenaline, then come down to the Cape and let the Winelands be your soft landing before Cape Town. Arriving jet-lagged into a tasting schedule is a rookie move.

And on driving: hire a private driver for your two tasting days and skip it the rest of the time. South Africa’s blood alcohol limit is low and enforcement is real, the Helshoogte and Franschhoek passes are winding and unlit at night, and the whole point of being here is drinking wine. La Residence, Leeu Estates and Delaire Graff all run complimentary shuttles into the village, so let the hotel handle your dinners and pay for a driver only on the days you are tasting.

Delaire Graff Estate, Stellenbosch

The trophy stay, and the one I would book for a honeymoon if budget is not the deciding factor. It sits at the top of the Helshoogte Pass between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, and cresting that ridge to have the Simonsberg open up in front of you is one of the great hotel arrivals anywhere. Seventeen lodges and villas, every one with a private heated pool and butler service, plus a 22-metre heated infinity pool cut into the hillside. Laurence Graff’s personal art collection runs to more than 400 works through the lodges and gardens, and there is a Graff boutique and a Dior boutique on the estate, which tells you exactly who stays here.

The dining is serious. Hoseki, the contemporary Japanese farm-to-table restaurant, holds two Eat Out stars. Indochine no longer exists, so if you have read an older guide, that is why you cannot find it. Lorenzo’s does wood-fired pizza and handmade pasta under a pergola for the night you want something easier.

Best for: couples who want the biggest view, total lodge privacy and real art on the walls. The honest downside: you are on a mountain pass. There is no walking to dinner in a village here. You drive, or you stay put.

La Residence, Franschhoek

The most romantic hotel in South Africa. It is a 30-acre private estate in the Franschhoek valley with peacocks on the lawn, chandeliers, silk, antiques and a black and white chequerboard Great Hall, and it photographs better than any hotel in the country. The hotel suites take adults and children 10 and up only, which tells you exactly who it was built for. The Vineyard Suites are the family-friendly side of the estate and welcome all ages, so if you want the adults-only version, book into the main house.

Best for: honeymooners who want the pictures. Two honest things: the spa is a single double treatment room, so if you are dreaming of a proper spa day, book it at Babylonstoren or Leeu and go in knowing that. And there is no public restaurant, so you are eating in The Great Hall or shuttling into the village. If your taste runs to Aman-style minimalism, look hard at the pictures before you commit. This is the opposite of that.

Leeu Estates, Franschhoek

The connoisseur’s pick. La Petite Colombe is on the property and holds three Eat Out stars, which alone justifies a night. Add the Mullineux and Leeu wines in the Wine Studio, a 15-metre heated infinity pool, a spa with proper couples suites, and a purpose-built Everard Read gallery with monumental sculpture set among the fynbos and the vines. The art here is museum-grade.

Best for: couples who care about wine, and anyone who would take the best dinner over the biggest view. What might bother you: it is deliberately understated, all neutrals and natural fabrics, and it does not hit you over the head on arrival the way Delaire and La Residence do. Some honeymooners want the wow.

Leeu House is the sister property. Twelve rooms, adults only, right on Franschhoek’s main street. Completely different proposition: Leeu Estates is a vineyard estate you settle into, and Leeu House is a village base you go out from. If you want to walk home from dinner, book the house.

Mont Rochelle, Franschhoek

This one is Richard Branson’s, and the only African property in the Virgin Limited Edition portfolio. Book a Cap Classique Vineyard Pool Suite and you get a private plunge pool and a valley view for meaningfully less than Delaire or La Residence. It is the least stuffy of the Franschhoek five-stars, and the village is five minutes away. Two things to know: the spa is only two treatment rooms, and The Country Kitchen has been closed for renovation since 1 September 2026, and as of this update there is no published reopening date, so half the on-site dining is out for now. There is also a kids’ programme, so ask for a Cap Classique suite away from the family rooms.

Babylonstoren, Simondium

The famous one, and it deserves the fame. An eight-acre formal garden with more than 300 plant varieties, modelled on Cape Town’s Company’s Garden, a swimming pool built into a restored farm reservoir, and the best spa in the Winelands by a long way: hammam, rasul mud chamber, salt room, sauna and vitality pools, all set in a bamboo forest.

The thing to know before you book it as your honeymoon hotel: Babylonstoren is a major day-visitor attraction as well as a hotel. The gardens and the farm shop are full of the public during the day and it only really empties out after hours. Babel, the signature restaurant, is notoriously hard to book, sometimes two months out, and hotel guests get priority, which is one of the best reasons to stay. If your honeymoon fantasy is total seclusion at 11am, look elsewhere. If you love gardens and design more than you love being alone, it is wonderful.

A quick word on the two you will see on every other Winelands list. Boschendal is a beautiful working farm dating to 1685 with self-catering cottages and shared cluster pools, which makes it a great family base and a mediocre honeymoon hotel. Lanzerac has 53 rooms plus a wedding business and a conference business, and while it is good value five minutes from Stellenbosch town, it does not feel exclusive. Both are lovely. Neither is the honeymoon.

Hiring a travel advisor to plan your South Africa honeymoon

Of everywhere I book, South Africa is the trip where having an advisor earns its keep most. You need someone to take care of all the. moving pieces. From  stitching together long-haul flights, at least one domestic flight, light aircraft with luggage limits that catch people out, private transfers on both ends, lodges that sell out a year ahead, and restaurant tables that need booking the same week you book your airfare. Any one of those is manageable on your own. All of them at once, while you are also planning a wedding, is where couples start making mistakes, or just over-loading themselves in stress! I’m here to check this one off your list, and it’s my JOB to make it an absolute dream come true to you.

What it costs to use me

Booking your hotels and lodges through me is always complimentary. You get the same rate you would find on your own, frequently better, with the preferred partner perks above layered on top.

Custom Itinerary Planning comes with a design fee, but if you’d like help beyond the hotel booking — things like the activities, restaurant recommendations, transportation, vetted tours and activities, and building out a full trip plan — it’s worth its weight in gold.

This includes:

• Complete destination guidance
• White-glove transportation coordination and booking for you
• Activity and experience recommendations and bookings vetted and curated by both me and often a local team of experts I work with depending on destination
• Restaurantsthat make sense with your itinerary and tastes
• A detailed day-by-day itinerary, with a flow that works 

How the planning process works

You send me your dates, a rough budget and what you want out of the trip. We talk it through, I come back with a proposal of hotels and lodges with live availability and real pricing for your dates, we edit it together until it is right, and then I book it with my contacts on property and in Africa and am your go-to point person for everything that follows.

When to start planning a South Africa honeymoon

Earlier than you think. The best suites at the lodges in this guide go nine to twelve months ahead, and the honeymoon rooms go first, especially for the dry season between May and September. If your wedding is next autumn and you want September in the bush, now is the time.

Let me plan your South Africa honeymoon

Tell me your dates and what you want out of the trip, and I will build it around you.

Fill out this inquiry form here and I’ll help you plan your trip, or you can go directly to my travel portal and see my exclusive travel advisor rates and book yourself with all of my perks included! The password is always JETSETTERS (save this page to your bookmarks for future trips!)

Where to go on a safari in South Africa

The Best Romantic Safari lodges in South Africa for a Honeymoon:

Singita

If you asked me to name the best safari company in Africa, I would be tempted to say Singita. They have been doing this since 1993, and nobody else puts design, guiding, food and serious conservation work together at this level. In South Africa they run five lodges plus two exclusive-use villas, split across two very different areas: the Sabi Sand, and their own private concession inside Kruger National Park. Rates are all-inclusive: twice-daily game drives, walking safaris, laundry and your airstrip transfers, and the drinks list runs all the way up through premium wines and spirits.

Singita Boulders Lodge, Sabi Sand

My honeymoon pick of the Singita lodges. Twelve glass-walled suites shaped to echo the boulders on the banks of the Sand River, each with a private heated pool and a deck contoured to follow the curve of the water. It is 10 and up, which keeps the atmosphere properly adult, and it photographs like nothing else in the reserve.

Singita Ebony Lodge, Sabi Sand

The original, opened in 1993, and the more nostalgic of the two. Twelve suites with draped four-poster beds, campaign furniture, polished wood and African art, connected by suspended walkways over the river. All ages are welcome here, so if you want guaranteed quiet, Boulders is your one.

Singita Lebombo Lodge, Kruger National Park

The most architecturally daring lodge Singita owns, and the one to book if your taste is contemporary. Loft-style suites hang off a cliff above the N’wanetsi River behind walls of glass, and the decks carry daybeds built for sleeping outside. This is a private concession inside the national park, so you get a fraction of the vehicle traffic you would see on a shared-traverse reserve. Nobody thinks about that until they are sitting in a queue of Land Cruisers watching a leopard.

Singita Sweni Lodge, Kruger National Park

Seven suites tucked under a tree canopy right on the Sweni River, and the most intimate thing Singita does in South Africa. If your priority is feeling like you are the only two people for miles, Sweni beats Lebombo. The Pool Suite includes its own private guide and private game drives in the rate, and it is one of the single best honeymoon room bookings in the country.

Singita Castleton, Sabi Sand

Not for two people, so file this one away for later: a six-cottage house booked on exclusive use only, sleeping up to 12, with a tennis court, yoga pavilion, wine cellar and massage rooms. The land came to Singita’s founder Luke Bailes from his grandfather, and Castleton was the family house on it. Bring the whole wedding party, or come back with the kids in ten years.

Royal Malewane

For a six-star safari lodge experience that is delectably luxe, look no further than Royal Malewane, where YES, you can actually watch elephants from your very own pool, look no further than Royal Malewane. Royal Malewane is easily accessible by air and road and is located in the Thornybush Private Game Reserve on the Western Border of The Greater Kruger National Park. The closest airport is Hoedspruit and there is a private landing strip at Royal Malewane, as well.

This is an ultra-luxurious private safari lodge, and an ideal honeymoon safari lodge in South Africa.

Lion Sands

Another popular safari lodge for honeymooning in South Africa is Lion Sands – an award-winning lodge with stunning views of the Sabie River in Kruger National Park. The rooms are huge and uber private with fire places, viewing decks, and private pools.

Check rates for your dates here

Tintswalo Private Safari Lodge

A few more South African lodges I would send you to

Londolozi, Sabi Sand

Family-run, five camps, and the most storied name in the Sabi Sand. Book Tree Camp: six suites, 16 and up, and a Relais & Chateaux member. Private Granite Suites is the second pick with only three suites, one of which has an outdoor bath over the river.

Cheetah Plains, Sabi Sand

This is the one I send the design people to. Architecture by Stefan Antoni of SAOTA with interiors by ARRCC: off-shutter concrete, rough stone, cantilevered roofs floating over the bush, rust and ochre and copper, and dining tables cut from naturally fallen veld timber. Three villas, each on exclusive use with its own pool, wine gallery and dedicated vehicle. The game drives run in fully electric, silent vehicles, and the difference in what you can hear out there is startling. Wellness treatments are included, which almost no lodge does. One thing to ask about up front: the villas sleep eight, so as a couple you will want the single-couple rate before you commit.

Lion Sands Narina Lodge, Kruger concession

Lion Sands has been in this guide for years, so here is the update. Narina is the honeymoon lodge of the four, and it is not the most expensive one. Nine suites on stilts among 100-year-old trees above the Sabie River, floor-to-ceiling glass, private pools, and 16 and up by design, with no kids’ club and no family suites. It sits on the Kruger concession with exclusive traversing rights, so there are fewer vehicles at sightings. Worth knowing too: Ivory Lodge had a fire in December 2024 and reopened in September 2025 after a full rebuild of the bar, dining room and kitchen, with a new wine room, open-air bathrooms and an artist residency programme. It is one of the newest ultra-luxury products in the Sabi Sand right now.

Tswalu Kalahari, Northern Cape

Book Tswalu if you would sooner not take antimalarials, or if this is your second safari and you have already spent a week ticking off the Big Five. It is the largest private reserve in South Africa at 1,200 square kilometres on the edge of the southern Kalahari, it is confirmed malaria-free, and every single booking includes a private vehicle with your own guide and tracker as standard. Tswalu is about pangolin, aardvark and meerkat more than the Big Five, and the red dune and grassland landscape looks nothing like the Kruger lowveld, which gives you a completely different set of photos. Ninety minutes by charter from Johannesburg, about two hours from Cape Town.

Kwandwe, Eastern Cape

Also malaria-free, also Big Five, 22,000 hectares in the Eastern Cape. The reason to book it is routing. If you are doing Cape Town and the Garden Route instead of flying north to Kruger, this is the natural safari add-on and a far easier trip to piece together. Great Fish River Lodge has nine thatched suites with private plunge pools, and it is 12 and up.

Royal Malewane, Thornybush

Still on this list, and here is what has changed since I first wrote about it. Royal Malewane is now an estate of four lodges (Malewane Lodge, Waterside, The Farmstead and Masiya’s Camp) plus three exclusive-use villas. For a honeymoon, Waterside is the design-led choice and Masiya’s Camp is the romantic one: six canvas-draped tented suites designed by owner Liz Biden herself, heated plunge pools, 12 guests total, 10 and up. The reason serious safari people come here is the guiding. Royal Malewane has built its whole reputation on the qualifications of its guides and trackers, and if you want the best hours in the vehicle rather than the prettiest room, that is the argument.

Why book your South Africa safari with me

A safari has the most moving parts of any trip I plan as a luxury travel advisor, and the gap between a good lodge and the right lodge for you is enormous in terms of your experience! Let me and my team handle everything, start to finish, and make it easy for you.

When you book your lodges and hotels through me, you get VIP service and preferred partner perks at no extra cost to you:

• Complimentary daily breakfast for up to two guests per bedroom, in the restaurant and via in-room dining
• A $100 USD gift or property credit per adult couple (children receive an appropriate gift or activity set)
• Complimentary room upgrade on arrival when available
• Early check-in and late check-out when available
• A personalized welcome note from me and VIP recognition on property
• Complimentary wifi, and a complimentary in-room minibar at select properties

Same rate you would find on your own, frequently better, with all of that layered on top.

the credit, the upgrade on arrival, and the extras certain lodges add for my clients, like the complimentary massage and the private bush picnic at Tswalu.

Singita, Tswalu and Lion Sands all run offers exclusive to travel agents, such as free nights, so reach out and I’ll let you know the best possible rates for your dates.

Beyond the lodges I handle the flights, the transfers, the reservations and the sequencing of the whole trip. More on exactly how that works below.

FAQ about honeymooning in South Africa

Can you do Cape Town and a safari in one trip?

Absolutely!!! I’d recommend 3-5 nights in Cape Town, and at least 3 nights on safari. 

Is Cape Town safe?

Yes, if you are smart and keep your wits about you. I did not feel unsafe in Cape Town, however, it is Africa and you need to exercise caution as a traveler. Check out my tips on how to stay safe abroad. I recommend you take Ubers or book private transport from the airport to your hotel or airbnb. Avoid visiting townships, unless it’s with a reliable tour operator, and always lock your car, put things in a safe in your hotel room, and leave your flashy jewelry at home.

Is Johannesburg safe?

No. Johannesburg has extremely high rates of crime. Though many safaris will fly through Johannesburg, you are going to want to spend the bulk of your time in Cape Town over Johannesburg. And avoid flying through Jo-burg if you can. If you do have a layover there, be extremely vigilant should you be flying through Johannesburg. and I do not recommend staying overnight here.

What time of year is best to visit South Africa?

This is a hard question because South Africa is a huge country, with a ton of different climates that vary region to region. Generally, South Africa’s summer is from December to March and winter is June to August. Cape Town and the Western Cape experience winter rainfall and a largely dry, hot summer. Most of the rest of the country, including the Kruger National Park area, have summer thundershowers and a dry winter. 

If you’re looking to combine a safari with a Cape Town beach vacation and don’t want it TOO cold, but still want to see great game in the safari parks, I’d look into September or October (possibly November) for your honeymoon. If you care most about Cape Town and less about South African safari, go November through March. The best time to visit the Cape for whale watching is between July and November.

Photo via Adventures by Disney

What time of year is best for safaris in South Africa?

The best time to visit South Africa’s safari parks is from May to September. This is the dryest season and animals tend to congregate around waterholes and rivers, making it easier to spot them! As this is winter in South Africa, though, mornings and nights are cold. May and September/October are great because they are shouldering with the warmer season, so it’s less cold. 

What is the weather like in South Africa?

South Africa is very temperate year-round, but the water is very cold (since you’re very far down South!) The Cape has beautiful, hot, dry weather in its summer months (between November and February). In the summer, temperatures are in the 80s. But it doesn’t get too cold in the winter, averaging in the 60’s.

Can you really dive with great white sharks in South Africa?

YEP. If you and your fiance are thrill-seekers, you’re going to love great white shark cave diving in Cape Town.

 

How do you get from Cape Town to safari?

This is the part people get wrong. Airlink flies Cape Town to Skukuza non-stop, daily, and Skukuza sits inside Kruger National Park, making it the closest airport to the Sabi Sand. Almost everyone assumes they have to connect through Johannesburg. You do not. You can land at Skukuza in the early afternoon and be on a game drive that same day. Check the schedule for your dates, because frequency moves around by season.

The other two airports are Hoedspruit, which serves Thornybush, Timbavati and Manyeleti, so it is your airport for Royal Malewane and Tintswalo, flown by Airlink, CemAir and FlySafair. And Kruger Mpumalanga International at Nelspruit, which takes bigger aircraft and usually cheaper fares but means a longer road transfer. Singita has its own airstrip in the Sabi Sand, ten minutes from the lodges.

How many nights should you spend on safari?

Three minimum, four ideal. Game drives run twice a day, so three nights gives you around six drives, which is roughly where the Big Five goes from lucky to likely, and it absorbs one rainy or quiet day without wrecking the trip. Remember that your arrival and departure days are both half days once you account for flights. For a South Africa honeymoon combining Cape Town and the bush, seven to ten nights total is the standard shape.

What should you pack for a South African safari?

A soft bag, above everything else. The light aircraft that serve the lodge airstrips cap you at roughly 15 to 20kg, and it has to be soft and pliable with no rigid frame and no wheels. Singita’s own limit for the flights to Satara is 15kg checked plus 5kg hand luggage, tighter than the airline’s general allowance, and the lodge’s number is the one that governs. Leave your hard suitcase full of Cape Town clothes in free storage at Johannesburg or Nelspruit. Laundry is included at essentially every lodge in this guide, so five days of clothes is enough.

Do you need malaria pills for a South African safari?

Honestly, probably. The Sabi Sand, the Kruger concessions, Thornybush, Manyeleti and Timbavati all sit in a malaria-endemic area. The risk is low, but it is not zero and I am not going to tell you it is. South Africa’s health department recommends prophylaxis from September through May, while the CDC recommends it year-round, and the CDC is the one your American doctor will follow. Go see a travel clinic. If you would rather skip the pills entirely, Tswalu in the Northern Cape, Madikwe in the North West and Kwandwe in the Eastern Cape are the genuinely malaria-free luxury options.

What is included in a South African safari lodge rate?

More than you think, which makes that nightly rate less alarming than it first looks. You are getting all meals, all game drives, walking safaris, laundry, wifi and your airstrip transfers. Drinks are where lodges differ: Singita and Cheetah Plains include premium wines and spirits, others include house beverages only. What is never included is the flights to the reserve itself, the conservation levy (charged per person per night, and it adds up), spa treatments at most lodges, and tips. One thing that surprises every first-timer: you tip your guide and your tracker separately from the general lodge staff.

When is the best time to go on safari in South Africa?

May through September is the dry season and the best game viewing, because the bush thins out and the animals concentrate around whatever water is left. September is the standout month, with peak game viewing and the warmest weather of the dry season. Here is the part nobody expects: those best-viewing months are also the lower-priced, less-crowded ones, because peak tourist season in the Sabi Sand is the green, wet stretch when the grass is high and everything is harder to find, and it happens to line up with northern hemisphere school holidays.

Check out these other blog posts:

The best airbnbs in Cape Town

All of my best travel hacks & tricks

The ultimate beach vacation packing guide

The best travel reward credit cards

The best bridesmaid pj sets

More honeymoon guides you will love: my Santorini honeymoon guide, our 10-day Italy honeymoon itinerary, and the Bora Bora honeymoon guide.