If you liked what you saw on the February 28th episode of the ABC TV series "The Bachelor," where bachelor Brad Womack and the three remaining bachelorettes traveled to South Africa for a romantic safari, recreate it with a South African Tourism (www.southafrica.net) package that combines a game-viewing and Cape Town experience.
Brad, along with Chantal, Emily, and Ashley, explored the breathtaking landscape and abundant wildlife – lion, zebra, elephant, hippopotamus, giraffe – at the Lion Sands Private Game Reserve (www.lionsands.com), a reserve in the world-famous Sabi Sand Game Reserve that has been family-owned since 1933. The reserve features three lodges, The 1933 Lodge, where Brad stayed, and the Ivory Lodge and River Lodge (shown above at left), where the “fantasy suites” were located.
Brad’s first date with Chantal had them on a traditional safari in a Land Rover as they spied on a pride of lions, a lone giraffe, and dozens of other creatures before enjoying an overnight stay in the reserve’s Chalkley Treehouse (shown at right). Set high on stilts, this open-air, lantern-lit bedroom beneath the stars features a romantic netted canopy bed (and yes, there is a toilet downstairs).
For his date with Emily, Brad enlisted the help of Elephant Whispers (www.elephantwhispers.co.za), located nearby on the Sabie River, to give them a ride to remember atop an enormous African elephant. Afterward, as they interacted with other trained elephants, including babies, at a watering hole, Emily said, “This feels like The Lion King only better.”
Brad and Ashley got a bird’s eye view of the dramatic South African landscape as they were whisked via helicopter (an excursion available at Lion Sands) on an aerial tour of the Drakensburg mountains with a view of a panoramic spot called God’s Window and a picnic stop next to the Pinnacle. But after flying high by day, even a candlelit dinner of South Africa cuisine couldn’t stop their romance from hitting an awkward low.
Before the Rose Ceremony, Brad pulled Ashley aside and told her he was sending her home. That leaves just Chantal and Emily to travel with Brad to Cape Town to meet his family and hope to receive the final rose (in the episode airing on March 14th).
The “Bachelor Ultimate South African Getaway,” a 10-day, seven-night package offered by South African Tourism (www.southafrica.net/deals) and South African Airways Vacations (www.flysaavacations.com/south-africa-travel/south-africa-tours) recreates the experiences from both episodes filmed in South Africa. It includes: round-trip international flights from New York’s JFK Airport or Washington, D.C.’s Dulles Airport; internal South Africa flights; four nights with breakfast at the luxurious One&Only Cape Town; a Bento Box for two with a sake tasting or Romantic Picnic for two with a bottle of wine; a couples massage in the One&Only Spa; full-day and half-day tours to Cape Point and the Winelands; full-day Great White Shark cage diving trip; three nights at the Lion Sands River Lodge (shown above at right), including cocktails and a night in the Chalkley Treehouse; three meals daily at Lion Sands, with two safari game drives daily; and Elephant Whispers interaction and elephant ride. Package rates start at $6,875 per person and are valid through January 15, 2012.
Visit our South Africa Travel Guide and Cape Town Travel Guide for more trip-planning information, then use our Travel Search price comparison tool to find the lowest prices on flights, hotels, packages, and more travel deals to South Africa.
