Unlocking the Wild: How CroisiAfrica’s Safari Cruise Transforms Day 1 to 4 into an Unforgettable Adventure

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to traverse the beating heart of sub-Saharan Africa in just nine days? Picture this: a voyage that starts amid the bustling streets and golden hues of Johannesburg, then wends its way along the winding Chobe and Zambezi Rivers, before culminating at the thunderous spectacle of Zimbabwe’s Victoria Falls. It’s not your everyday travel itinerary, that’s for sure. With CroisiAfrica orchestrating the adventure, this journey is part plane, part boat, part bakkie, and part sheer wanderlust, painting a vivid tapestry of landscapes, cultures, and flavors that few experiences can rival. From the sizzle of impala on the BBQ to the serene glide across Lake Kariba, every moment invites you to see Africa not just as a place—but a living, breathing mosaic of memories waiting to be made. Ready to dive in? LEARN MORE

A nine-day journey, with CroisiAfrica from Johannesburg in South Africa to Zimbabwe’s Victoria Falls – via the Chobe and Zambezi Rivers, plus a cruise on Lake Kariba – reveals sub-Sahran Africa’s many faces. 

It is an epic journey by plane, boat, bakkies, buses and even foot, presenting quintessential images, aromas and tastes of Africa. Taking in game drives, impala loins on the BBQ, South African merlot and sauvignon blanc, traditional village dances, the vision required to create Lake Kariba, hooking catfish and evening sundowners – Croisi create unforgettable African memories. 

Day 1 – Johannesburg, South Africa

Guests gather at 54 on Bath, a 5* boutique hotel in Johannesburg’s affluent Rosebank district, the thriving heart of Africa’s biggest city. 

A coach tour takes guests through Johannesburg’s history. Past the worked-out quarries with their tinge of gold, over the dusty 54 railway lines that bring workers to work. “If you’ve got an 11 o’clock in Pretoria, best to leave before dawn,” our guide Papy cynically advises. Firstly, he speaks in English for six of the group and then in French for the remaining five. I’d like to write that my French improved over the nine-day journey but …

We stop outside Nelson Mandela’s final home, a palatial mansion amongst the immaculate green lawns of upmarket Houghton. “So grand and expensive that the Mandela family couldn’t afford to keep it after Nelson’s death,” confides Papy.

An afternoon at the Apartheid Museum leaves us shaken. Cold, harsh concrete architecture creates the oppressive feel of prisons. Hanging nooses recall the execution of 131 of those who opposed apartheid. Photographs and films tell the bloody story of the fight for freedom.

Driving through Soweto, the Southwest Township, past the concrete cubicles that pass for houses and the tin roof shanty towns, with electricity often stolen from the power lines, it is evident that South Africa remains economically divided. 

“This street produced two Nobel prize winners: Steve Biko and Nelson Mandela,” says Papy but the triumph is short-lived. “It was the scene of the deaths of over 600 students in the 1976 rebellion.”

Day 2 – Cascades Safari Lodge, Namibia

No need to check-in for our 100-minute flight to Kasane, Botswana. Papy takes us to the Airlink desk at OR Tambo airport and eases us through formalities. 

At Kasane, we cross the Chobe River by boat and walk up to a Namibian border control post to show our passport and visas. Then we take a boat to our accommodation for the next three nights, Cascades Safari Lodge, on a Namibian Island. Now on the Zambezi, our guide Lennon manoeuvres the boat for us to frame pictures of crocodiles basking on white sand beaches and hippos cooling themselves in the water. 

As fishermen row past in canoes hewn from jackal-berry trees, Lennon tells of two fishermen lost to crocodiles earlier in the month. As the island can only be accessed by water, crocodiles are a constant threat.

With eight detached bungalows, the lodge is exclusively used for Croisi. Everything focuses on Zambezi views: huge picture windows, the pool, the outdoor shower, the bath and shower. 

Day 3 – Chobe National Park, Botswana

Back through Namibian and Botswana’s border formalities we head into the Chobe National Park for spectacular views over the river. 

September is deep into the dry season and dozens of Botswana’s 140,000 elephants are heading towards the Chobe.  Soon Lennon finds a pride of 14 thin-looking lions stealthily tracking a herd of buffalo. From the ribs showing on the cubs, they desperately need a kill.

As we enjoy a BBQ lunch on a Chobe River boat, we watch elephants enjoying the delicacy of water lilies. Seeing yet more crocs and hippos we sail back to Cascades Safari Lodge for the night.

Day 4 – Cascades villages, Namibia

After breakfast on Cascades’ terrace we walk to the nearest village. Using a stick, Lennon draws a map of Namibia in the sand and explains where we are on the thin north-west Caprivi Strip that points like a finger at Zimbabwe. 

Every village is made up of one extended family.  In Lennon’s village, his grandmother is the village elder. He introduces us to his mother who shows us the scars of a crocodile attack when she was doing her washing in the Zambezi. “She didn’t sleep for two months,” Lennon adds as a disturbing footnote. 

Whilst Lennon goes to chat with his brother, we watch a dance performance in the shade of a Baobab tree. A tree so large that according to Lennon it would take 15 men, arms extended, to circle it. But also, so old that its existence predates the village’s collective memory. 

After seeing the school and health centre, which doesn’t have a doctor, we return to Cascades Safari Lodge for a BBQ that includes impala loin. 

Late afternoon, we set sail for sunset and sundowners on the Zambezi. Lennon runs the tender onto a sandy beach and pops open the champagne. 

“At the moment we are in Zambia. But as this beach is under water for six months of the year, they don’t bother too much with border controls.”

Sailing back to Cascades we see the lights from a temporary village. The fisherman live in homes made of reeds and papyrus for six months until rising waters force them to retreat, praying that their homes survive for the next year.

The cost

For 2027 the 9-night itinerary is expanding to an 11-night safari cruise starting from £6,561 per person excluding international flights.

Price includes the four-night cruise and the four-night lodge-stay with all meals and drinks, overnights in Johannesburg and Victoria Falls, the lunch cruise on the Zambezi, domestic flight between Johannesburg and Kasane, excursions and game drives and some gratuities.

The mid-way verdict 

CroisiAfrica takes care of all the logistics so that travellers can focus on the destination.  All meals, excursions and transfers are included. A choice of red, rose and white wines is available with three course lunches and dinners. Whilst travelling on land and river, the guides have a cool box of beers, soft drinks and water to hand.

Travel independently in Africa can be challenging but CroisiAfrica do the hard yards, enabling guests to focus on the journey of a lifetime.

Disclosure: Our stay was sponsored by CroisiAfrica.

Michael Edwards

Michael Edwards is a travel writer from Oxfordshire, UK. Although Michael had his first travel pieces published nearly four decades ago, he is still finding new luxury destinations to visit and write on.

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