South Africa

South Africa lies at Africa’s southern tip, where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet. Cape Town spreads between Table Mountain and the Atlantic: beaches, the V&A Waterfront and the Cape Peninsula road to the Cape of Good Hope. Nearby, the Cape Winelands around Stellenbosch and Franschhoek offer wine estates and fine dining; Hermanus on Walker Bay is known for whale watching and the fynbos of the UNESCO-listed Cape Floral Region.

Then there is safari. The Greater Kruger’s private reserves, Sabi Sand among them, are famed for the Big Five and leopards; Zululand’s reserves lie between the bush and the Indian Ocean, more await in the Eastern Cape, and the Kalahari has its red dunes. Lively Johannesburg is the gateway, and Durban has warm Indian Ocean beaches.

At the table: Cape wines, the braai (open-fire barbecue), Cape Malay bobotie (spiced mince baked under an egg topping) and biltong, air-dried meat. The Cape is usually dry and warm from about November to March, with whales roughly June to November; on safari, the dry winter months, about May to September, are usually best for game viewing, while the green summer brings young animals. It suits safari, city and wine combinations, honeymooners, families (some lodges run children’s programmes), and nature and photography lovers, and pairs easily with Mauritius, the Seychelles or Victoria Falls.