Enjoy the scenic pass as it winds up to the Huguenot Tunnel. You will pass over an awe-inspiringly beautiful, high-altitude viaduct bridge (the first of its kind to be built in South Africa!) It soars high above the patch worked Miaspoort Valley below.
This is the third-oldest city and European settlement in the Republic of South Africa. It is known for its scenic environment ,viticulture and fruit-growing heritage. We'll stop for a quick leg stretch and a cup of coffee before continuing our journey.
You’ll be greeted with a complimentary drink upon arrival at Aquila Game Reserve. You will head out on a guided game drive and should definitely make sure you have your camera ready. Aquila is host to the Big 5 and you can expect to see elephants and Zebra roaming. After your drive you will be treated to a light lunch which you can enjoy poolside or in the cigar lounge. This tour will allow you to experience the wild of Africa in a beautiful setting.
We was picked up very early from our hotel to safari trip and we managed to see the all big 5 safari. Our Driver Guide Alphan very acknowledgeable and friendly and helpful and we booked for Cape Point tomorrow, I highly recommend this experience
We had a Great experience at the Game reserve afternoon Safari Aquila, our Driver Prince was extremely friendly and knowledgeable about Cape Town city and we stopped to the vineyard for a break. And we was lucky to see the Big5 lion, elephant, leopard, rhino , buffalo & the SUV was super clean with a lot of room
This was our first time visiting Cape Town and we knew we wanted to go on a safari. This was recommended by a few friends who also did this on their trips. We chose the Traditional All Day Safari with transport pickup from our Airbnb to the reserve. They picked us up at 6:30am and it was a 2 hour drive with a stop over at a wine farm for coffee and bathroom break. We arrived to a welcome drink + breakfast buffet before embarking on our 2.5 hour safari. Our guide Percy was very knowledgeable and his dry sense of humor made the trip great. We saw zebras, rhinos, ostriches, lions, elephants. (However we didn't see the leopard which is one of the BIG 5). We arrived back to the reserve and were treated with a lunch buffet and leisure time which we spent hanging out by the pool before we made our trip back to Cape Town. Overall, this is a must see for anyone visiting South Africa and Cape Town. It is worth the trip. Everything was included in the price of the ticket except for additional drinks and a spa which we didn't take advantage of.
We had a wonderful day at Aquila. Everything was super nice, the lunch was really pleasant and safari game drive was stunning and I was able to see the big five. Our driver from cape town was extremely knowledgeable and friendly and vehicle was super clean. Thank you Allan
We got picked up on time and had a great experience that was educational and really fun and entertaining. We saw so many animals including a couple in the big five. Prince was so fun to interact with, the entire car ride was so amusing I’d definitely want to redo the whole experience again!
Booked a transfer & requested a baby seat, stating age and weight of child. It was confirmed by e-mail they could provide this. Sent a message the day before and this was confirmed once again… we were collected from Cape Town with a suitable baby seat but for the return journey, we were informed there was no seat available as they’d sent it back to Cape Town?!? No apologies or solutions offered. Were told we were causing delays for others on the transfer with us and we then had to travel the 2+ hours back holding a 10 month old on our knee with no seatbelt. This overshadowed the whole experience for us and would absolutely NOT recommend based in the customer service and lack of organisation.
This was an exciting trip. They have so many animals zebra , lion , elephants , giraffes etc it was so much fun and safe too. The car was very very clean from cape town to the Safari!
The scenery to and from the park was awesome. Saidi, our driver to and from the park, was a delight. The safari was great. We took lots of pictures and saw nearly all of the animals.
The trip was well organized and very family friendly. I would recommend our driver Prince was very respectful and informative. anyone who would be interested in going for a day visit safari and seeing wildlife. Also provided a buffet breakfast which was unexpected! 10/10! Highly recommended
Did not get anywhere near a full day safari. Did not get the promised lunch. Hugely disappointing. Expressed my dissatisfaction to Chalula Private Tours and they didn’t even bother to respond to me. Truly awful customer service and a very disappointing experience.
Chalula Private Tours are a disgrace. We booked and paid for a FULL DAY safari with lunch. We didn't get anywhere near that. We were picked up from our hotel in Cape Town at 05:30. We arrived at Aquila at just after 07:30 and had a glass of water while we waited for the safari to start. We were loaded into a vehicle at 08:00 and 2 hours and 25 minutes later we were all done. We asked wat next and were told that the safari was over. There was no mention of lunch and no further explanation. We got back to our hotel in Cape Town just before 13:00. No way on earth is that a full day safari. I tried phoning to speak with someone and I couldn't get through. I left messages and after a 3 hour wait I was told that I was not patient and didn't want to wait for lunch. This is totally untrue. I feel totally mislead. I would strongly advise that you do not do business with Chalula Private Travel. I did not get what I paid for and the customer service is truly awful.
We had a lovely Safari where we saw a bunch of beautiful animals. And we really enjoyed the ride with the amazing tour guide!
I wasn’t impressed with the transportation they send to pick us up,we ended up driving on our own. With amount of money we paid and the vehicle they expected us to drive in I wasn’t happy at all
The safari was great and guide was fun and knowledgeable concerning the park and landscape animals while driving in safari 4×4. and our Driver guide Alain was was informative and polite and helpful thank you.
Buffet is good, this is a reserve only. Big 5 only able to see Big 4, no leopard. Other than that, everything is fine. If you just want to see African animal, they have few of each, do not expect to see it like it is the real world of Safari, not to mention seeing animal eating other animals.
We do not recommend using CHALULA PRIVATE TOURS!!! You have been warned. They operate as the classic bate and switch scheme. They advertise one thing but try to give another once after booking. We attached the photos of such booking that way when this tour company wants to respond one can judge for themselves. We booked the entire tour as private and paid extra for it. We made sure that after booking the tour to Correspond with the tour company. To verify that the extra amount paid the complete tour was going to be private as you see in the emails also, you will see the booking description as well as being either a group tour or private. The description also states a breakfast, lunch, and welcome drink will be provided. We were picked up by our driver who we have no issues with on time. Once we drove from downtown Cape Town to the Aquila reserve which is almost 2 1/2 hours for check in. We were told the tour company had not booked us for a private tour and we would be joining a group of 14. We showed them our emails and bookings. They said we would have to take it up with CHALULA Private Tours, but because of the off season and no one around they could provide a private tour for another $2900 rand. I told the driver to take us back to Cape Town if your company isn’t going to honor what we paid for we would dispute the charges with Viator for a refund. He advised since it was a long ways to drive to just pay the extra for the private tour. We refused. He called the supervisor of CHALULA Private Tours and had him on speaker phone with us. The supervisor told us we did not pay for a private tour. I then showed the driver the emails and booking which was read to the supervisor over the phone. he still refused us our private tour. I told him the driver can drive us back to Cape Town and we will dispute it with Viator per your booking advertisement and our paid contract. He then over the speaker phone in front of the driver, my wife, and myself called me a loser. I told the driver I’m done with this idiot take us back to Cape Town. We opened the door to the car and got inside. This is when management from Aquila came up and knocked on the window to talk to us. He told us at this point obviously knowing I’m not willing to pay the extra $2900 rand he would give us our private tour complementary on him. We took him up on his offer. This is the difference between a good business owner and a bad supervisor. Because we had to wait an hour for the tour to begin. So we went to the gift shop and bought matching his and hers jackets along with socks, cap, gloves. Which cost way more than the $2900 rand. The game drive with Aquila was good and is as advertised. No issues with them. Back to the tour operator CHALULA Private Tours. We DID NOT receive any breakfast as it states in the booking but we did get the lunch. We DID NOT receive the welcome drink as per booking. Please see the attached emails to and from CHALULA PRIVATE TOURS verify the complete tour is going to be private per Naomi also look at booking overview of tour.
Mixed emotions on this one. The private reserves in South Africa are actually zoos. Few on the animals would naturally live in this location. If you are expecting the jungles of Africa this is more desert. If you want to say you saw the big five in Africa then this tour is for you.
Our driver guide alfano was terrific. The reserve had good food and the trail guide was good but disappointed in the amount of animals there.
Loved the Aquila animal reserve. It was lovely to be picked up from hotel. Would recommend this tour.
It is a private reserve, so you have a great likelihood of seeing the animals. The guide was very good. Convenient to Cape Town.
We were so grateful to find Chalula Private Tours! Our hotel booked a transfer with Alain from Cape Town to Stellenbosh and we were able to book trips with him for the rest of the week which made the trip so much easier! I booked a transfer to Aquila with my young son and Alain looked after us all day, picking us up from our hotel, taking us to the reserve, waiting and taking us on to our wedding party. We then booked again to travel around Ceres and onto the airport. Alain was so organised, on time, flexible and sweet with our son. The cars were well kept, super practical and he was extremely patient with our changing plans etc. It made me feel very safe travelling solo and with friends and really made a very last minute trip much easier. THANK YOU!
We had fantastic Safari and our driver Saudi/guide was super good and nice Car SUV and he was very informative about South Africa and all the places we pass, nice view on the mountains baboons playing on road and we sow Big 5 and the ranger was very good and funny we and on the way back we stop at lovely place to the Winery in Stellenbosch we enjoy a lot and Amezing view thank you Saudi
Alain and Ricky were great and being able to have a private tour. They were knowledgeable and friendly. We made some timing changes due to having our 13 yr old with us and they were super accommodating!
The ride and driver was great the safari was nice but it was only 2 hours and there was no lunch which was cover in the fee. The tour started 8am ended 10am it was no way a full day. That was misleading advertisement and we were cheated because we finished 10am 2 hours before lunch.
We had a wonderful experience doing this safari. We had a great tour guide. The weather was great and we saw all of the Big 5. Couldn't ask for anything better. Thank you so much for this wonderful experience.
A great day at the Aquila game reserve. We really appreciated our driver Abedi and were so glad we took a private tour rather than a cruise ship shore excursion. We beat the tour bus crowds and could travel at our own pace. And the animals were awesome!
The Game Park was a great trip for a one day stay! And our guide also took to an excellent winery for a wine and cheese pairing and tasting!
We had an amazing day at Aquila Private Game Reserve. Our tour with Frank was fantastic! He was waiting for us when we got off he ship and gave us a lot of history on our 2 hour drive from Cape Town cruise port to the safari. The drive went by quickly! And once we got there, there was no wait. We got right on the jeep for our 2-1/2 safari followed by a buffet lunch. We saw so many animals and got some amazing photos. The safari was actually sold out through our ship and to book directly but Chalula Private tours came through for us. They were fantastic to deal with and I would highly recommend them. Thanks for an amazing experience!
The guide was kind, accommodating, and knowledgeable. The tour itself was phenomenal I saw lots of wildlife.
Our Driver Abedi was Very professional and friendly and Mountain was amazing view ,the safari welcome drink and breakfast was great we saw our beautiful Big5 and on our way back we the stop In Paarl Wine region at Fairview wine Farm Wine tasting and Cheese was super nice and thank you
My husband and I took this excursion with Alain. We had an incredible time. The safari was wonderful. We saw many animals including lions, elephants, rhinos and even hippos. Alain was professional, polite and went out of his way to make this experience wonderful. We even went to Marianne winery which was incredible and the scenery during the drive to the safari and winery was breathtaking.
The tour guide Allen was very professional and friendly. On the way to our trip he told us about South Africa’s history and about the history of different places we visited. Visiting the animals in their natural habitat was an experience and Aquila Safari super breakfast and swimming pool was great highly recommended allen thank you
Everything perfect, Warner a great guide; good wine tasting and nice safari in the structure of L'Aquila. The latter looks like a luxury resort with swimming pool, spa, good restaurant, solarium and adjoining Safari park
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