phone-icon 1-888-990-5552 email-icon info@rockjumper.com
user-icon
Log in / Register

South Africa - Northern Birds & Big Game (Relaxed)

© Baillon's Crake by Rob Williams
South Africa - Northern Birds & Big Game (Relaxed) 2026

31 Mar 2026 - 11 Apr 2026 (12 days)

ZAR87,950 - 4 Spaces Available

Book Now

client-img

Tour Leader: Quinton Paul Josop

Tour price (Per person): ZAR87,950 * USD4,709 * GBP3,753 * EUR4,514 * AUD7,540

Single Supplement: ZAR9,100 * USD487 * GBP388 * EUR467 * AUD780

South Africa is quite simply one of the most pleasurable countries in which to travel, offering fantastic birding, exceptional wildlife viewing, and breath-taking photographic opportunities, along with world-class infrastructure. This relaxed tour of northern South Africa takes us birding in the Highveld grasslands around Johannesburg, the open Acacia woodlands of Zaagkuildrift and cool montane forests of Magoebaskloof for a series of endemic and near endemic species.  

We’ll then head to the bird- and game-rich lowlands and the world-renowned Kruger National. Here we will enjoy several days in this spectacular reserve enjoying the classic African savanna and the many superb birds and mammals associated with this massive conservation area.

Please note: these prices are subject to foreign exchange fluctuations.

 

 

Top Birds

Johannesburg, Rust-de-Winter & Magoebaskloof: Fairy Warbler; Red-throated Wryneck; Black-faced & Violet-eared Waxbills; Chestnut-vented Warbler; Scaly-feathered Weaver; Cut-throat Finch; Green-winged Pytilia; Cape Parrot; Knysna Turaco; Orange Ground Thrush; Chorister Robin; Black-fronted Bushshrike; Kruger NP: Common Ostrich; Kori Bustard; Southern Ground Hornbill; Bateleur; Martial & Crowned; Eagles; Marabou & Saddle-billed Storks; Lappet-faced, White-backed, Hooded & White-headed Vultures; Double-banded Sandgrouse; Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl; Lilac-breasted Roller; Southern Red-billed & Southern Yellow-billed Hornbills; Brown-headed Parrot; Burchell’s Starling; Southern White-crowned Shrike; Red-headed Weaver; White-browed Robin-Chat.

Top Mammals

Johannesburg, Rust-de-Winter & Magoebaskloof: Blesbok; Black Wildebeest; Mountain Reedbuck; Yellow Mongoose; Cape Clawless Otter; Kruger: The ‘Big 5’ (Lion; Leopard; African Elephant; Black & White Rhinoceroses; African Buffalo); Cheetah, African Wild Dog; Side-striped Jackal; Greater Kudu; Southern Giraffe; Spotted Hyena; Nyala; Common & Central African Large-spotted Genets; Wild Cat; African Civet; Cape Porcupine; White-tailed Mongoose; Klipspringer; Plains Zebra; Common Warthog

Habitats Covered

highveld grassland, montane forest, acacia savanna, bushveld, terminalia woodland, riverine forest, grasslands, rivers, wetlands

Expected Climate

subtropical and dry, warm to hot. Can be cold to very cold in the early mornings and evenings

Max Group Size

6 with 1 Rockjumper leader

Tour Pace & Walking

our Relaxed series of tours are designed to focus on having an enjoyable holiday with a bird and wildlife focus. Where possible; we have reduced or removed long drives, single night stays and poor/rustic accommodation. We have also sought to reduce or remove difficult hikes, narrow/muddy trails and otherwise oppressive environmental conditions. Early starts and night birding are mostly optional, and we will not spend much time searching for difficult and/or skulking species. These tours are not suitable for hardcore birders and listers, or dedicated photographers.

Accommodation

comfortable to very comfortable

Ease of Birding

mostly easy with a few tougher species

Other Attractions

vast, pristine wilderness, huge numbers of African mega-fauna

Photographic Opportunities

good to excellent

What our clients say about us

Daniel Danckwerts
CS - South Africa 2019

I had an excellent birding adventure. Daniel Danckwerts was superb at finding and identifying the myriad of species. He interfaces with the group exceptionally well, from the beginner birder to the pros on the tour. I would love to go on another birding tour with Dan, as he was exceptionally skilled at his craft. Other environmental/birding issues would pop up for conversation and he was skilled in his answers and knowledge. His passion for birding was very apparent, as well as his thoughtfulness in making sure everyone was on the bird and helping with our travel experience.

David Hoddinott
South Africa

Thank you for a wonderful tour. We enjoyed your good company and we appreciate your expertise, effort and enthusiasm. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in South Africa and we hope to travel with you again sometime. P.S It was a cracker

Julian Parsons
MH & AH, South Africa 2022

Our group of six was very lucky to have Julian Parsons and Musa as our tour guide and driver! Excellent knowledge of birds, biomes, and local culture and politics. Also both had a great sense of humor and they were adaptable to our group's moods: the perfect match for our group! We would recommend both of them for any future tours! Bottom line, a very memorable trip with lots of great memories. Thanks to all.

André Bernon
P

André, who escorted us on four drives, is a superb tracker with great knowledge of the reserve and its denizens. He is also an expert on the birdlife of southern Africa and was able to bring the bush to life for us with knowledge of all that we saw.

Daniel Danckwerts
MW, South Africa 2021

"We all immensely enjoyed this Tailor-made tour. Dan is an excellent guide: great ears, great eyes, persistent, patient, cheerful, and knowledgeable about all nature. He really went all out for us, and he succeeded in finding very elusive and range-restricted species. We hope to travel with him in the future. Other aspects of the trip: lodging, transportation, etc. were excellent too. We appreciate the behind-the-scenes efforts by Heinz and the rest of the Rockjumper team."

  • Your details

  • This field is hidden when viewing the form

  • Contact permission

    We would love to send you Newsletters (twice yearly).via Type a message, Promotions/Discounts (weekly), Blog Articles/Image of the Month (monthly) and other content that we think you would find interesting. If you are happy with this then please select your preferences below. If you would like to unsubscribe from previous subscriptions, or leave our mailing list entirely, then please do so by visiting the Preference Centre link at the bottom of these emails.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Route Map

Tour Route Map

map-direction-img
Download Tour Itinerary
English