“Enjoy the ride in South Africa!”
4 Days Garden Route and Karoo Discovery Guided Motorcycle Tour in South Africa
The Retreat at Groenfontein, Calitzdorp, Kannaland Municipality, Eden District Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa
Amazing introduction to a South African Motorcycle Tour
Join About Africa in this four-day motorcycle tour in South Africa. You will get the opportunity to explore some of the famous places in South Africa, which are Wilderness, Knysna, Carlitzdorp, Prince Albert, and Mosselbay. Experience riding through beautiful sweeping curves and superb views, traveling over the magnificent Swartberg Pass, and many others activities you could do on this motorcycle tour. Embrace this opportunity and enjoy it till your heart content!
Key information
- Terrain: 30% dirt and 70% asphalt
- Bike: rental bike: BMW or Honda
- Mileage: 1,000 kilometers / 622 miles
- Riding gear: available to rent: top boxes and panniers
- Meals: breakfast and dinners
Meet the instructors
Brent
Read more
Read more
Highlights
- Starts in Wilderness and ends in Wilderness
- Traveling over the magnificent Swartberg Pass
- Ride through beautiful sweeping curves and superb views
- Ride towards the Cango Caves and Carlitzdorp
- Ride through the Outeniqua Mountains
- 3 nights' accommodation
Skill level
- Intermediate
- Advanced
4 days with instruction in English
The organizer also speaks: Afrikaans
Group size: 2-8 participants
Airport transfer included:
George Airport
Accommodation
During the tour, you will stay in hotels, upmarket guesthouses or lodges. Drum Africa adventure biking strives to provide three to four-star hotels or select accommodation throughout the journey where it is available. When you are in remote or rural areas, you will stay in hotels or guesthouses.
Accommodations have been personally verified to ensure the requirements of a motorcycle traveler are met after every riding day (i.e. comfortable bed, clean room, hot shower, a delicious meal, and a bar). Drum Africa strives to provide a relaxing and comfortable environment for their guests.
Please note that a tour price is based on double occupancy, which means you will be sharing a room with another client. If you would like to have single occupancy, this can be arranged at an additional cost. If you are interested in this option, please send Drum Africa an inquiry.
The Retreat at Groenfontein
The Retreat at Groenfontein is a Victorian farmhouse set in 560 hectares of the beautiful Groenfontein Valley Conservancy, bordering on the 129,000 hectares Swartberg Nature Reserve. The house, filled with yellow-wood and mellow Oregon pine, has a lounge and dining room, each with its own ceramic fireplace to keep them cozy on chilly winter evenings. It is leading onto a wide verandah, overlooking the sweeping gardens and the majestic Swartberg mountains.
Swartberg Hotel
Immerse yourself in the allure of the Karoo while indulging in the distinctive atmosphere of the historic Swartberg Hotel, offering premier accommodation in Prince Albert. This hotel seamlessly blend old-world charm with modern comforts. Despite their refurbishment and contemporary amenities, each room exudes a rich 150-year history.
Explore the diverse accommodations, each offering a unique glimpse into the cultural tapestry of Prince Albert. You will be accommodated in standard rooms with rustic elegance.
Protea Hotel Mossel Bay
The luxurious 31-roomed Protea Hotel Mossel Bay is a graceful landmark, built in 1846, overlooking Santos Bay and the harbor. It is just 20-minute drive to the airport and halfway between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. Nestling on the Mossel Bay shoreline with the majestic Outeniqua mountains as a backdrop, the Protea Hotel Mossel Bay is singled out from other establishments. The stone walls and Mediterranean-style out-buildings are the fact that the main building is one of the oldest in Mossel Bay and forms part of the Dias Museum Complex. Previously The Old Post Office Tree Manor Hotel, the Protea Hotel Mossel Bay, situated off Santos beach, could best be described as a hotel complex. It comprises of a breakfast patio with sea view and the Cafe Gannet Seafood Restaurant which is "Mossel Bay's Seafood House", overlooking the Bay and the Outeniqua Mountains.
Program
Day 1: Wilderness to Carlitzdorp
Leaving the beautiful natural area of the Wilderness in the heart of the Garden Route, you will travel north towards Oudtshoorn. You will ride over the Outeniqua Mountains. Oudtshoorn is South Africa’s ostrich farming capital. You’ll arrive for lunch and are highly recommended to have a visit to an ostrich farm. After a tour of the ostrich farm, you will ride towards the Cango Caves and Carlitzdorp which is the port capital of South Africa. Passing magnificent stone age formations and ancient, you will witness massive aloes en-route. You will make your way to your accommodation for check-in. Have a meal together.
Day 2: Carlitzdorp to Prince Albert
After breakfast, you will depart for the Karoo town of Prince Albert. Before traveling over the magnificent Swartberg pass (1,568 meters), you will make a stop at the Cango Caves. The Cango Caves are some of the finest dripstone caves, with their massive halls and towering limestone formations in a variety of colors. The Swartberg pass is a national monument and also a gravel road, you will experience the best landscape views in South Africa. Prince Albert has beautifully preserved Cape Dutch, Karoo, and Victorian buildings, many of which are National Monuments. You will have traditional South African braai this night as well as stargazing in the Greater Karoo. Prince Albert is just south of Sutherland which is considered a prime stargazing destination.
Day 3: Prince Albert to Mosselbay
Today, you will travel south through Meiringspoort pass. The Swartberg is amongst the best-exposed fold mountain chains in the world and the pass slices through magnificently scenic geological formations. You will ride past De Rust and through the Roberston Pass, dropping down to the Indian Ocean and onto Mosselbay. The Robinson Pass on the R328 route is a modern classic of the Southern Cape. It has beautiful sweeping curves and superb views around every corner. Mosselbay has a rich history with the Portuguese explorers and is considered the second most temperate place in the world to live. Mosselbay also well known for its great white sharks. You will have an opportunity to go shark cage diving. The supper is in each person's own account.
Day 4: Mosselbay to Knysna
After breakfast, you will leave Mosselbay towards George and onto Knysna. You could enjoy the beach or the estuary. It is perfect for walking or water sports. An option for this day is to go bungee jump at the highest bungee jump in the world (222 meters).
Skill level(s) required for this tour: Intermediate and advanced
Intermediate
- can ride for 3-4 hours
- average riding experience
- little assistance required
- comfortable with extreme curves and leans
- average experience with unsurfaced roads
- steep ascents and descents
Advanced
- can ride for 5-6 hours
- extensive riding experience
- assistance on demand (if required)
- experienced with riding a variety of motorcycles
- comfortable with any terrain and weather conditions
Insurance Excess for motorcycle:
You will be liable for insurance excess of the cost to repair damage to the motorcycle with a minimum of ZAR 5000 and a maximum of ZAR 35 000. Although the bikes are fully covered for insurance purposes, the rider remains responsible for the excess amount before the insurance will pay out for any claim.
In case of any accident, the client must pay the excess before departing from South Africa.
Included excursions
You will have a chance to explore the Cango Caves.
Instructors
Brent Coetzee
Brent is a registered local guide. He has lived in Cape Town as well as the West Coast of South Africa. He grew up on the Garden Route and has traveled to South Africa extensively. Brent has grown up loving surf, sail, and diving the coast of South Africa. His aim is to share a combined knowledge. He has been riding for over 19 years. He has been leading and arranging adventure motorcycle tours for over twelve years in this phenomenal country.
Location
The tour will start in Wilderness and end in Wilderness, South Africa. You will also have the chance to visit Oudtshoorn, Carlitzdorp, Prince Albert, Knysna and Mosselbay.
The Karoo is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa which is situated between majestic mountains to the south and north and borders of the Garden Route. It is an area of magnificent landscapes and towering cliffs, crystal clear streams, and the abundance of trees and indigenous flora. All of it contributes to the making of the Klein Karoo to be one of the Western Cape's most diverse regions. The ever-changing colors of the majestic mountains, scenic passes, rivers, vineyards, and orchards, as well as the multitude of attractions, will offer you an unforgettable adventure. The Klein Karoo is also one of the most diverse wine regions in South Africa. The climate is in general dry and its vineyards grows mostly in the fertile soil next to river banks. A diversity of microclimates allows winemakers to produce a variety of quality wines, including dry wines, fortified wines, and brandies. World class port and South Africa's champion white muskadel are being produced here, as well as an extensive range of dessert wines.
The highlights of the region include the Cango Caves and ostrich farms at Oudtshoorn, the Swartberg Pass, Meiringspoort Gorge at De Rust, and the wine route. The varied ecosystems of the Garden Route are embraced by ten nature reserves and unique marine reserves, home to soft coral reefs, dolphins, seals, and host of other marine life. Various sheltered lagoons and bays along the region are nurseries to the endangered Southern Right whale which visit annually to calve in the winter and spring seasons (July to December). The name comes from the verdant and ecologically diverse vegetation encountered here and the numerous lagoons and lakes dotted along the coast.
Food
The following meals are included:
- Breakfast
- Dinner
The following drinks are included:
- Water
The following dietary requirement(s) are served and/or catered for:
- Regular (typically includes meat and fish)
If you have special dietary requirements it's a good idea to communicate it to the organiser when making a reservation
Things to do (optional)
- Enjoy the sunset cruise on the Knysna Lagoon
- Game drive
- Highest commercial bungee jump in the world
- Shark cage diving
- Visit the Ostrich farm
- Zipline
What's included
- BMW F 850 GS or GS 1250 or 1250 GS Adventure
- Rental bike insurance
- Round-trip airport transfer
- 3 nights' accommodation
- Daily breakfast and dinner
- Water
What's not included
- Airfare
- Alcoholic drinks
- Fuel
- Medical and accident insurance
- Personal expenses
- Personal travels
- Visas (if needed)
- Gratuity
- Insurance Excess for Rental (An amount is held on your card for the excess in the event of an accident or damage)
How to get there
Recommended Airports
GRJ
George Airport
83 km
Transfer included
Arrival by airplane
Please book your flight to arrive at George Airport (GRJ). Transfer from and to the airport is included. Please arrive the day before the tour starts as we leave in the morning, and we prefer to get all the admin completed before the start.
Fly international either into Cape Town International Airport (CPT) or to O.R. Tambo International Airport (JNB). Get a connecting flight into George Airport (GRJ). There are plenty of flights available. About Africa Motorcycle Tours will meet you at George Airport (GRJ) for your transfer to your hotel.
Airport: George Airport
Airport transfer included: George Airport
No additional charges. You can request this in the next step.
Cancellation Policy
- A reservation requires a deposit of 50% of the total price.
- The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
- The rest of the payment should be paid 30 days before arrival.
For this organizer you can guarantee your booking through Tripaneer.com. All major credit cards supported.
46343
Similar Holidays you might like
Why choose Tripaneer.com
Largest Selection
Friendly Customer Service
Offers for every budget
Best Price