Your Typical Itinerary
Here is an outline of your exciting itinerary. This will differ depending on whether you have booked the 4-week or 6-week option. Please note that your itineraries may differ slightly from this, depending on project needs at the time.
Day 1-2
Once you have arrived at Manzini International Airport in Swaziland, there will be an orientation and detailed briefing of the itinerary by your expedition leader. Your accommodation will be at a backpacker lodge in the beautiful Ezulwini Valley.
Day 3-7 Conservation tour, Kruger National Park, South Africa
Kruger National Park is one of the most famous conservation areas in Africa. Kruger has a vast range of habitats and wildlife, offering some of the greatest opportunities in the world to view Africa’s incredible big game.
You will be taking a five-day tour right into the very heart of Kruger National Park. This will include four nights camping out in the park along with many game drives, giving you the chance to explore the area with an expert guide and learn more about the park. You will also have the opportunity to go on a guided walk through the bush to search for big game as well as taking a night drive in search of nocturnal wildlife. Previous groups have been lucky enough to catch sight of lions, rhinos, elephant, buffalo, leopard, and wild dogs, and hopefully you will too!
On Day seven you will leave the Kruger Park and travel south into the Kingdom of Swaziland where you will enter the stunning Ezulwini valley, in preparation for your community development projects experience.
Day 8-20 Community Orphan Care Project, Ezulwini, Swaziland
Your next stop will be to volunteer for two weeks with either one or a number of our small orphan day care centres in the Ezulwini valley. These care centres assist orphans and vulnerable children by providing them with the care, education and basic food that they desperately need. The AIDS pandemic has had a devastating effect on Swaziland, destroying many families and leaving children alone and in need of support.
The work you take on during your two weeks will differ depending on whether you have booked the four or six week programme.
4-week Option
Working at the care centres you will get involved with a number of different projects that aim to inspire and uplift the lives of these children. The activities you might be involved in will include any of the following practical projects:
- Organising creative games and craft classes to stimulate minds
- Organising sports days for exercise and fun
- Planting fruit trees or vegetables to improve the children’s diet
- Giving attention to the children and offering the care and support they need
- Painting educational murals on the classroom walls
6-week Option
If you are interested in helping with the teaching and day-to-day care of the children you should choose to book the longer option. The age range of the children is from three to 13 but the average is around four years old. Working and playing with the children is a rewarding experience and you will get so much out of getting to know and care for them. Activities you might be involved include:
- Basic teaching of English and Maths
- Organising the children at meal times
- Organising the children in the mornings before classes begin
- Organising creative games and craft classes to stimulate minds
- Organising sports days for excercise and fun
During your time in Ezulwini you will visit the Mantenga Cultural Village were you will have chance to experience Swazi culture, life style and traditional dancing.
Day 21-27 Marine conservation tour, Tofo Beach, Mozambique
Journey onto Mozambique, a destination that is world famous for its idyllic tropical beaches on the Indian Ocean. The first night is spent on route to Tofo in a Mozambican bush lodge. The following morning you will drive north to the stunning Inhambane peninsular. You will be staying at Tofo, Inhambane in southern Mozambique, which is a beautiful laid-back beach village, offering some of the most incredible opportunities in the world to swim with wild whale sharks. Tofo really is a marine paradise with its diverse coral reefs, whales and nesting turtles, but it also benefits from being nearby to the vibrant historic trading port of Inhambane.
You will spend five days in Tofo so you can experience the laid-back beach lifestyle of Mozambique for yourself. For the next four nights you will be staying in reed style dorms set among coconut palms on the stunning beach. Your guide will be there to introduce you to beach life and the marine life. While in Tofo you will be taken on an ocean safari to experience snorkelling up close with whale sharks in warm Indian Ocean waters. You will also have the unique opportunity to partake in an ocean kayak expedition which crosses calm blue waters and explores the beautiful islands of the Inhambane Bay.
If you have a dive certificate there will also be the opportunity for you to explore the coral reefs with one of the local dive operators. There will also be plenty of time for you to relax and chill out on the beach and even have one or two beach parties!
Day 28
4-week participants will spend their final full day at a backpacker lodge in the Ezulwini Valley, with time to relax and catch your breath after an amazing month. Then it will be time to pack your belongings and say your farewells to your new friends. On day 29 you will be transferred to Manzini for your flight out of Swaziland.
6-week option participants will return to their volunteer placement as in days 7-20. On Day 41 you will return to the Lodge and spend a full weekend relaxing, or you might opt to do some last-minute hiking or exploring before preparing to depart on Monday (Day 43).
For both 4-week and 6-week participants, the transfer to the airport is included in the cost of your programme.
Please note: Itineraries and activities are subject to change.
