Cape Town, South Africa (4 nights). Evening arrival, met at the airport by the tour guide and transferred to the hotel.

Cape Town and Robben Island. Morning city tour: Parliament, Government Avenue along the old Company's Garden, and the Castle of Good Hope. Weather permitting, an excursion to Robben Island, a UNESCO site, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned during apartheid. In the afternoon, the cable car to the top of Table Mountain, 1,000 metres above the bay. (B/D)

Cape Peninsula. A stop at Boulders and its penguin colony, then across the Cape of Good Hope reserve, home to free-roaming Cape mountain zebras, eland, springbok and ostriches. Cape Point, at the tip of the peninsula, where the Atlantic and Indian Ocean currents meet. Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden, founded in 1913, the first in the world devoted to conserving indigenous species. Folk dinner show in the evening. (B/L/D)

The wine route. Cape Dutch manor houses, Paarl and its Taal monument honouring the Afrikaans language, and the Nederburg estate for a wine and chocolate tasting. Franschhoek, the French corner since the first Huguenots arrived in 1688, where lunch is served at a wine estate. Then Stellenbosch, the country's second-oldest town after Cape Town. (B/L)

Cape Agulhas and Arniston. The coastal road along the cliffs, facing the ocean. A stop at Cape Agulhas, the southernmost point of the African continent, then on to Arniston, a small fishing village that has become a seaside resort. (B/D)

Little Karoo and Oudtshoorn. Across the Little Karoo, a desert of red earth at the foot of the Swartberg range. Oudtshoorn is home to the world's largest ostrich population: a guided visit to a farm followed by a tasting. (B/L/D)

Cango Caves and Knysna (2 nights). In the morning, the Cango limestone caves, discovered in 1780 by a local farmer named Van Zyl. A scenic coastal road through the ancient forests of the Outeniqua range and the fynbos valleys. In the afternoon, a visit to an elephant sanctuary. Arrival in Knysna, perched on its lagoon and known for its oysters and its estuary. (B)

Knysna. The ferry from the harbour to the Featherbed nature reserve, then a small train up to the top of the Heads, where the view runs a long way. The rest of the day is free. (B/L)

Port Elizabeth and Durban. On to Port Elizabeth with a stop at the Big Tree, between Knysna and Plettenberg Bay: a yellowwood over a thousand years old, some forty metres tall and more than seven metres around. Flight to Durban, a panoramic tour of the city and transfer to the hotel. (B/D)

Saint Lucia and Hluhluwe. Lake Saint Lucia and its wetland park, a UNESCO World Heritage site where five ecosystems meet and one of the country's largest populations of crocodiles and hippos lives. A boat ride, then on to Hluhluwe and a late-afternoon safari. In the evening, dinner at the Boma restaurant and a tribal dance show. (B/L/D)

Eswatini. A 4x4 safari early in the morning, then on to the Kingdom of Eswatini, a small independent state enclosed within South African territory, whose path to independence was peaceful. Mantenga village, the Ezulwini Valley craft market, a Swazi candle workshop, a stop in a village for traditional songs, then Mbabane, the capital. (B/L/D)

Karongwe private reserve (2 nights). Early in the morning, back into South Africa and check-in at the lodge. In the late afternoon, a photo safari by coach in the private Karongwe reserve, west of Kruger National Park, between savannah and riverine forest. (B/L/D)

Karongwe. Open 4x4 safaris early in the morning and in the afternoon, in search of the Big Five: lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino. Each outing goes out with a ranger who knows the reserve's wildlife and plants. (B/L/D)

Blyde River Canyon and Sabie. A 4x4 safari very early in the morning, then on to the Blyde River Canyon, around 700 metres deep and the third largest in the world. Stops at God's Window, Bourke's Luck Potholes and Mac Mac Falls. Graskop, then Sabie. (B/D)

Pretoria and Johannesburg (2 nights). On to Pretoria, the country's administrative capital. City tour including Paul Kruger's house and the Voortrekker Monument. (B/L/D)

Soweto. Out to Soweto, on the edge of Johannesburg: the Hector Pieterson memorial and Nelson Mandela's house. Back to the hotel in the late afternoon, followed by dinner. (B/L/D)

Johannesburg and the return flight. In the morning, the Apartheid Museum, then Constitution Hill, a former fort turned prison during apartheid, which retraces the main stages of that period. Free afternoon. In the late afternoon, transfer to the airport for the return flight with connections. (B)

Arrival in Quebec.