South Africa is one of the most geographically varied countries of the African continent and one of the most popular holiday destinations. On one hand, one can escape to wild, remote areas and experience exceptional game viewing and true wilderness.

Then, just an hour's flight away, there are modern cities and hotels that compete with the best in the world. With 11 official languages and a diverse range of cultures and ways of life, it is no wonder that Mandela named South African "the rainbow nation". South Africa is set between the warm Indian Ocean and the turbulent waters of the Atlantic.

This incredible country has three major geographical regions: the coastal strip running from Cape Town along the Garden Route and up to Kwazulu Natal in the northeast, the majestic and beautiful Drakensberg Mountains that run unbroken for over a thousand kilometres, and the central plateau which is covered by rolling grasslands known as "highveld". South Africa has an incredible three hundred game reserves and national parks, the largest and best known of which is Kruger National Park which sprawls for over 300km along the Mozambique border is almost 5 million acres. It has a savannah landscape and is home to the "big five" as well as 142 other mammal species, over 500 bird species, 114 reptiles, 34 amphibians, 49 fish species and 336 tree species.