Highlights include

Maputo city tour, Gorongosa National Park, Ibo Island historical tour

Suitability

All age groups / Eco-travellers / Adventurous campers

Activities

Game viewing, sailing, diving, snorkelling, kayaking, trails

Start / End

Start in Maputo, end in Pemba (included: road/island transfers, not included: all other airfares)

11 day Maputo, Gorongosa National Park and Quirimbas Archipelago Package

You start your Mozambique holiday by spending 2 nights in busy, culturally rich Maputo. Your air-conditioned hotel overlooks the bay and is centrally located. Enjoy city tours in the day and relaxing sundowners on the Hotel Cardoso terrace in the evenings.

From Maputo you transfer by road to Gorongosa National Park where you are welcomed at your base camp in the wild for 4 nights. Game viewing activities and seasonal adventures that make the most of this exceptional reserve will be arranged during your safari.

The last leg of your Mozambique holiday begins with an air transfer to historic Ibo Island. You spend 4 nights at elegant Ibo Island Lodge enjoying an island tour, water sports, river adventures and castaway picnics on stunning Indian Ocean sand banks.

Day 1: Maputo

You can fly from Johannesburg OR Tambo International Airport to Maputo Airport with Air Mozambique, who travel this route on a daily basis. On arrival at Maputo airport there will be a representative waiting for you. There is a short escorted road transfer from the airport to the hotel. Hotel Cardoso features a sparkling blue pool, a gym and tranquil gardens that face the bay.

Hotel Cardoso Accommodation: Your 2 night stay includes return airport transfers; accommodation in a sea facing room; breakfast daily.

Discover Hotel Cardoso

Day 2: Maputo City Highlights

Enjoy morning and afternoon city tours with stops that include the Fortress, the Central Market, Museum of Natural History, the Railway Station and the curios market (open Saturdays and Sundays). En route you also pass the city hall and Steel House.

Your English and Portuguese speaking guide will arrange for you to do some curio shopping in the capital of Mozambique on the way before returning you to Hotel Cardoso.

Maputo to Beira and road transfer to Gorongosa National Park

You can fly from Maputo Airport to Beira Airport with Air Mozambique, who provide daily flight connections on this route. There will be a meet & greet service in Beira and a road transfer into Gorongosa National Park which takes about 3 hours.

Explore Gorongosa offer a custom-designed tented camp in the heart of the bush which is your home for the next 4 nights. The Gorongosa National Park is located northwest of Beira near the border of Zimbabwe. It comprises of 1.2 million hectares of open plains, bush, waterways and swamps between the Pungwe and Urema rivers.

Greater Gorongosa is ecologically unique and situated at the very southern end of the Great Rift Valley. This area has high species diversity and environmental features that are not found anywhere else on the sub-continent.

Explore Gorongosa Accommodation: Your stay includes return airport transfers; accommodation in custom-designed mobile safari tents; all meals; all available beverages; all game activities, Mozambique taxes; National Park fees.

Days 3 - 7: Gorongosa National Park

Every day is different in Gorongosa National Park and there are many areas of this huge region. Enjoy walking safaris and game drives in this pristine wilderness in Mozambique.

Part of the experience of visiting the park is hearing about the visionary restoration project that is currently taking place. The rehabilitation of Gorongosa National Park represents one of the great conservation projects in the world today.

Beira to Pemba and air transfer to Ibo Island

On day 7, there is a 3 hour road transfer from Gorongosa National Park to Beira Airport. For your onward flight to Pemba, Air Mozambique flies this route twice weekly with late morning flights out of Beira Airport to Pemba Airport on Tuesdays and Sundays.

On arrival at Pemba, there will be a representative to meet & greet you before your air transfer from Pemba Airport to Ibo Island. This scenic air hop takes 30 minutes. You fly over the southern islands of the Quirimbas Archipelago and National Park.

Ibo Island Lodge is your base for the next 4 nights and offers truly relaxing surroundings. Enjoy spectacular views over the waterfront from the roof top restaurant, tropical gardens and elegant accommodation in fully restored colonial mansions.

Ibo Island Lodge Accommodation: Your stay includes return air transfers, accommodation in a sea facing king suite, all meals, a guided historic tour, daily transfer to a private sandbank beach, medical evacuation.

Discover Ibo Island Lodge

Days 8 - 10: Ibo Island, Quirimbas Archipelago

The Quirimbas Archipelago in Cabo Delgado Province, Northern Mozambique is part of a chain of 32 islands in the Indian Ocean. Once a mighty trading centre, Ibo Island has been all but forgotten by the outside world for almost a century.

Ibo has been nominated for World Heritage status and offers you an opportunity to wander around mysterious ruins, forts and ancient trade buildings and uncover the past. Activities on this unique island include relaxing massages, beach excursions, diving, snorkelling and sea kayaking through mangrove forests.

Day 11: Return from Ibo Island to Pemba

On day 11, your magical Mozambique holiday comes to an end. Today, you take the air transfer from Ibo Island to Pemba Airport for your onward connection.

Air Mozambique flies from Pemba Airport to Johannesburg OR Tambo International Airport three times a week on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, and SA Airlink flies on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Please Note:

If you would like to explore more of the Quirimbas Archipelago in Mozambique you can extend your holiday from Ibo Island and fly for the same transfer rate to other beautiful beach destinations such as Guludo Beach Lodge, Matemo Island, Medjumbe Private Island and Vamizi Island.

• Explore Gorongosa is open from April to December but closes during the rainy season
• The above itinerary / quote does not include flights. Details on all flight schedules, flight quotes and any other assistance can be arranged through a Siyabona Consultant

Low Season:
1 April 2011 – 31 July 2011, 1 September 2011 – 15 December 2011

High Season:
1 – 31 August 2011

Included:

• Meet and greet in Beira
• Road transfer to Explore Gorongosa including game drive
• 5 nights at Explore Gorongosa in custom mobile safari tents
• All meals
• All available beverages
• All activities
• Mozambique VAT/IVA
• Park fees
• Road transfer from Explore Gorongosa to Beira Airport
• Fly with LAM from Beira Airport to Pemba Airport
• Meet & greet service in Pemba
• Air transfer from Pemba Airport to Ibo Island
• 5 nights at Ibo Island Lodge in a King Suite
• All meals
• Guided Historical & Cultural Tours
• Daily Transfer to private sandbank beach
• Medical evacuation

Not Included:

• Visas
• Flights (schedule and rates on request)
• Additional activities, meals, drinks
• Items of a personal nature and gratuities