Johan of African Timeout was established in the year 2000, Henry & Annekie established Catz Tours & Safaris in 1999 and both companies are registered tour operators for tourists traveling within South Africa. Our Hola partner based in Cape Town is Wayne Milne of Take 2 Tours giving the Hola Tourism Network the national spread it deserves. The businesses are owner managed, with 43 years of experience in the South African tourism industry between the three of us. Over the years the three of us have earned a good reputation for professionalism, client orientation, cost efficiency, integrity and value for money. We also specialise in small group tours, between 4 and 7 passengers, and each tour is planned around the guest’s needs and interests, and to ensure friendly, safe and personalised attention. We are proud and loyal South Africans, based in the north of Johannesburg, with extensive traveling experience in SA. We also follow principles of being life-long learners; we continue our studies of South Africa and its people, to share with our guests. Our personal involvement and attention to detail ensures the success of the tours.
Guiding principles applied on the design of the tours:
South Africa is a large country, with a big diversity of geographical areas, landscapes, people and cultures, places of interest, wildlife, cities and town, and more. So the focus always is to capture this variety on offer, at the right time of the year to maximize the guest’s enjoyment of the trip.
Tours are planned to ensure guests not only see, but also experience South Africa. This is achieved by having less traveling time, short distances per day, no traveling at night, avoiding traveling along the same route twice, many convenience and sightseeing stops, doing interesting excursions and activities, choosing the right places to stay and eat, and allowing for flexible itineraries.
Passengers will be picked up and dropped off from their homes on all tours. Departures are mostly over weekend to avoid peak hour congestion on the road. Tours are done mostly outside school holidays to avoid the crowds, and planned according to the best seasons to visit the area.
Quality, quaint and charming accommodation is chosen for guests to experience true South African hospitality, with easy access to rooms, on-suite bathrooms, very friendly hosts, excellent meals and more. Tours are conducted by registered tourist guides, with knowledge of the areas.
Transportation is in clean and serviced vehicles, fully insured, and well-maintained. The seats are all individual and comfortable with safety belts for each passenger. The trailer used for luggage is also licensed and roadworthy. We comply with the necessary legislation regarding insurance cover whist on tour with passengers. This insurance cover included passenger liability and public liability whilst on tour. Your own individual travel insurance is also recommended for any of the tours. There is a minimum of 6, and maximum of 7 passengers per trip, (in most cases only 6 per trip), which enhances the enjoyment of the trip.
Travelling in smaller groups creates more time to enjoy the sights on route, and not to rush because of time constraints caused by bigger groups. The focus of the tour is on the journey and not the destination only. On some days the distances are long, and on some roads there are road works taking place, which adds to the traveling time. During the regular stops guests are encouraged to do some exercises to prevent travel fatigue. For everyone’s safety, the maximum distance per day (and only on certain days), is 550 kilometers, and driven in daylight. On most days the distances are much less than that. Regular convenience stops are made on the route, as well as stops for coffee and lunches at scenic spots.
Departures are from the Johannesburg Metropolitan area. Alternative arrangements will be made for departures from outside the Johannesburg region, at a small additional fee. References are available from previous guests on these tours.
