Amazing Places:

Cape Town is the southernmost city of the African continent and the second largest city in South Africa and has one of the most amazing displays of nature and culture that you'll find on the continent. It's home to the famous Cape of Good Hope where you'll get a thrilling glimpse of where the Atlantic meets the Indian Ocean; The colourful streets of Bo-Kaap are famous amongst visitors to Cape Town, offering a quick glimpse into the culture of the Muslim descendants who created the raucous and enchanting streets. These descendants of Southeast Asian slaves have brought their cultural heritage to life, offering delectable Muslim cuisine and entertainment.

The Wine Lands of Cape Town was the source of the city's fame. Endlessly stretching along hills and valleys, the vineyards produce some of the most delicious and prized wines in the world. For those who do not favour wine drinking, the landscape alone is enough to make some visitors want to stay for a lifetime. As one ventures through the Wine Lands, there's a chance to glimpse small towns like Franschhoek, Paarl, and Stellenbosch. One of the three capital cities in South Africa, this seaside city is beautiful and picturesque with a magnificent backdrop of the famous Table Mountain National Park. South Africa's top tourist destination has lots of beautiful coastlines and beaches nearby, many whale-watching tours, fantastic scenery, and it has a walkable waterfront area with tons of great restaurants and shopping and more.

Safari:

South Africa is the ideal destination for those seeking to combine a Big Five safari with the opportunity to experience cosmopolitan cities, richly diverse cultures, excellent wine and food and stunning scenery.

Numerous Game Reserves provide the safari experience for which Africa is renowned. Aside from Kruger National Park, South Africa’s most famous wildlife area, one can visit Madikwe Game Reserve, Pilanesberg and Entabeni all closer to Johannesburg, or one of the many reserves in the Eastern Cape or Kwa-Zulu Natal.

Wildlife:

The landscapes of South Africa offer the full spectrum of habitat types (from dense green forests to arid deserts, and everything in between), making them ideal for thousands of species. The Big 5 is one of the main attractions to South Africa in terms of its wildlife. This group includes the African Elephant, Cape Buffalo, Lion, Black Rhino, and Leopard. This combination of predator and mighty terrestrial mammals makes for a once-in-a-lifetime sighting of some of the world's most important species.

The Blue Train:

The famous Blue Train offers a comfortable journey between Cape Town and Pretoria and can accommodate 84 passengers. From the train, one can marvel at some extraordinary and wild African hillsides and vistas from the comfort of a plush train seat. The Blue Train is famous for being majestic, comfortable, and quite expensive. However, if money is no object, then the Blue Train is the way to travel in style.

Food & Wine:

South Africa has a great history of winemaking. Over centuries the country has developed its viticulture to compare with the best in the world. This has put South Africa at the top of world-renowned producers of top-class wine. It also offers a unique and extraordinary range of local and international cuisines readily available in hotels and restaurants. It would be a mistake to avoid restaurants altogether because the meat in South Africa is top-notch. There are opportunities to try game animals such as Kudu, Springbok, Zebra, Ostrich, and even Alligator. I sampled all, and all are fabulous. An excellent dining experience in South Africa is still cheaper than in most Western countries, so do yourself a favour and splurge at least once!

English language:

English is standard here so, a visitor won't find any trouble here for communication. However, From English-speaking South Africans to Afrikaans, Tswana, Zulu and Xhosa, the people are as diverse as the languages, and yet they all live in the same country, sometimes only a suburb apart…

Landscapes and Climate:

South Africa with its exceptional climate offers an enormous variety of activities such as hiking, mountaineering, scuba diving, white water rafting, sailing, canoeing, parachuting, ballooning, windsurfing, 4x4 safari adventure trips and many more. From hair-raising abseiling adventures off Table Mountain and nerve-shattering Great White shark diving experiences to sipping cocktails with wild lions roaring, you name it, we have got it.

Affordable

A comparatively easy on-the-pocket and open tourist hot spot.

People:

Because of its colonial past, South Africa has a large number of English speakers (the British began colonising the region in the 1800s). South Africans are friendly, polite, and accommodating to tourists.

The Beaches:

Diverse and beautiful coastlines hug both the west and east perimeters of the country. The windswept rugged west coast, past the cold, crisp Atlantic through to the warmer seas of the Indian Ocean all offer beauty and seaside attractions.

Excellent accommodation:

From top hotels to guest houses, B&Bs, game lodges, farm stays, backpackers and township overnighters you can stay anywhere and in any kind of environment you choose.

Here are some features that make a volunteering holiday in South Africa a safe, immensely enjoyable and memorable experience:

Safety

Your safety and well-being are the top priority when traveling to another country. We're drawing on our experience since the year 2000 to make this one of the safest forms of travel you can undertake:

• Everything is pre-organized for you from when you arrive until you complete the program. Journey with complete peace of mind.
• Safe, licensed drivers and registered vehicles are used for all your road transportation.
• We are always with you during trips, transfers, and project activities.
• Hygienic meals of home-like local cuisine (as included in your plan) for proper nutrition.
• We prepare you well for your travel and volunteer experiences from before you start the program until its completion.

Convenience

A volunteer program needs to be well designed and organized to ensure that even if you volunteer or visit the country for the first time, you can focus on enjoying your time there and make the maximum positive impact possible.

• Pre-arranged accommodation throughout the program with other international volunteers.
• 3 meals per day as per local cuisine (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) for the entire duration of the program (where it applies).
• Free Wi-Fi at the accommodation to stay in touch with family and friends.
• The regular presence of our trained staff to help you with your volunteer project, guiding you on how to plan and execute your volunteer work.

Volunteering experience

It's very possible that when you travel with us, you're volunteering for the first time or at least volunteering in a new country. This means that you will do better if we support you fully during your volunteering activities.

• We provide complete details of the project to which you would be contributing. You will know why the project exists, its needs, and the role you play as a volunteer to help in that project.
• A tailor-made volunteering activity plan for you to get started as quickly as possible and know who you are teaching.
• We support you every day in planning activities for your project for the next day.

Travel and Cultural Experience

We believe that a good volunteering program should be fun and leave you with memorable experiences. This means that your volunteer program can include trips, adventures, workshops, and cultural experiences that are delightful or hard to find.

• Optional weekend excursions to top highlights of the country or region ensure that you are getting the best of what tourism in the area offers.

One of the most fun elements of a country's culture is learning the basics of its language, cooking food local style, seeing how local people live, and so forth. For this reason, we include workshops in your volunteer program such as:

• Visiting local families and having a meal with them.
• Learning the local dance or arts.
• Trying your hands at local cuisine.
• Learning the local language for fun and practical use during your travels or volunteering.

Care and Support

We will speak with you daily, assist in case you need medical care, or help you change plans if something unexpected comes up.

*Lunch may be offered a packed lunch or lunch at the project depending on different factors such as distance from accommodation and others.

The scheduled time table shown above is meant as a guide only and may change due to the need of the project or any other circumstances.

Price shown is per person and includes:

• Return flights from Dublin
• 2 Week Volunteer South Africa Programme
• Airport pick-up
• Travel insurance 

Please ask us about:

• Getting a Visa for South Africa

Good to know:

• Travel expenses not included in programme itinerary are excluded
• Food & beverages not included in programme itinerary are excluded

Subject to availability. Terms & conditions apply.

For more information please call us on 021 427 7094 or 01 696 5135, email info@shandontravel.ie, request a call back using the red button, or submit an enquiry through the form below.