Notes on an Insead Trip to South Africa

Having given this some thought, I think the easiest way to potentially cover varying interests would be to have a ‘main’ get together in Cape Town (consistently voted one of the top 10 cities in the world, usually top 5.)

Then people could go off and do a variety of different things? Either staying as an Insead group doing a pre and/or post-tour. Or bringing out your family, or continuing as a couple. Whatever floats your boat.

So, if people are interested, we could have a couple of add-on trips that you can sign up for:

• For example, safari for a few nights
• Or continuing a tour of the Cape
• Victoria Falls

What I would recommend depends on when the majority of people want to travel…

Alternatively, if you want to do something different, with your family or a group of friends, you can do your own thing. Or ask my team to put something together for you.

Some brief notes on South Africa (to help you with the survey)

South Africa was nicknamed the World in One Country and that’s quite apt for geography, climate, interests.

So there is no one obvious time to visit as that depends on your interests. A safari is usually high on most people’s wish-list but South Africa is also a great destination for scenic touring, outdoor adventure, hiking, beaches, food and wine and exploring different cultures.

Typically, people do a trip for 10-13 nights as the flight is not cheap. But there is no reason why someone from Europe with direct flights, and little to no time difference, couldn’t opt for only 4 to 7 nights.

Accommodation is not particularly cheap – think southern European prices – but eating out and wine is inexpensive, compared to Europe.

Nights on safari ARE expensive (all inclusive) and can increase dramatically in price. (As part of the cost goes to wildlife conservation support.)

Climate

The Cape – hot dry Mediterranean summers, cool and sometimes wet but fairly short winters (June to Aug). Think Spain or Italy, but perhaps without the current heat-wave. 

Most of the rest of the country has sub-tropical summer rains (mainly Jan-Feb) and dry, sunny winters.

Safari peak time is June to October (dry)

Article on Best time to Travel to South Africa

Miscellaneous

• Most safari lodges are relatively small eg 10 to 12 rooms.
• I’ll arrange the base Cape Town trip at wholesaler cost plus a 10% admin fee. So it will be considerably less than a normal trip.