Four Days and Nights at Addo Elephant Park Port Elizabeth then Transfer to Guest house in Port Elizabeth.

We commented that our first morning drives had been a little disappointing but the balance of our stay, regular game drives and stay in Addo Elephant Park can only be described as inspiring.

This is a large park covering some 60,000 hectares and has the largest elephant population in the southern Cape area.

We experienced elephants, Giraffe, several varieties of warthogs, Kadu and the obnoxious monkeys around the Camp.

Our accommodation was comfortable and offered all we needed. The guide Andrew was excellent and went out of his way to look after us and show us the animals.

The visit to Schotia Game Reserve provided a unique experience as we saw the Lionesses early evening and watched as they passed directly in front of us. We had earlier seen the male lion.

Back in Addo we did see the lions and a variety of other animals. The photos are a good summary of the adventure, the magic of the animals. The Weather was excellent and they had had rainfall of over 20 mill last week and some 15 village two weeks before that. Given our previous visits to Reserves as well as our trip along the Garden Route, we were very surprised to see the lush vegetation. Everywhere we visited was green with lush growth, the waterholes were also topped up , and provided a perfect environment for the animals.

Each morning following the decision not to do the very early game drive, we had breakfast then we made our way out. There were many regular animal sightings over both the morning and late afternoon drives. Our vehicle was enclosed, unlike what we expect at the camps over the coming weeks.

The elephants are the highlight of our visit with several herds of 30-40 elephants regularly seen They are amazing animals. We drive around through various areas and wait to see the animals. There are many different vehicles and traffic is hectic in some places, such as around water holes.

All of the guides stop and pass on hints. It is a busy game park and being so close to the major city of Port Elizabeth explains the heavy activity.

We experience some terrific game viewing on the second and third days. We have seen 3 of the big 5 animals only missing the leopards and rhinos, which we will see on the subsequent camps.

The Giraffes are a constant favourites and they have slightly different colours. There are families of 10-15 in several locations.

All in all we have had a great experience in Addo and the following photos reflect the varied game drives, the quality of the Park and the enjoyable accommodation. We thank Andrew for his diligent guiding.

We transfer to Port Elizabeth and to a guesthouse for our last night in Port Elizabeth. Andrew provides a visit and drives us through the city and its impressive housing areas, then along the boardwalk. The First Avenue guesthouse is very comfortable and we dine at Ginger a highly regarded restaurant where we have a superb dinner.

We are allowed to stay in the room for most of the next day, which is very generous.

Ken shops at the Shopping Centre, buys adaptors and some other items. The weather turns and there is a very strong owing along the foreshore. We do walk along the beach area.

Andrew picks us up at 5.00pm for the transfer to Port Elizabeth International airport for our flight to Cape Town.

We have enjoyed all of the time here at Addo and then in Port Elizabeth. The flight with Safair from Port Elizabeth to Cape Town is very good and with an Easterly wind behind us we arrive some 10 minutes early.

Following collection of our luggage we exit and are met by our driver and we enjoy the transfer to the Cape Grace Hotel, one of the leading hotels in Cape Town.

This has been a rewarding and enjoyable stay in Addo Elephant Park and then Port Elizabeth. We look forward to returning to and enjoying beautiful Cape Town.

Our Hotel is within the V and A (Victoria and Albert) waterfront complex and we are assured that when we awake tomorrow we will have an outstanding view of Table Top Mountain.