Flower tour to South Africa
Namaqualand flowers and Richtersveld succulents

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A FLOWER TRIP TO SOUTH AFRICA?

This tour in South Africa aims to explore the Western Cape Province along the west coast of South Africa, through the region of Namaqualand, up to the Richtersveld desert far to the north. The trip took place during the flowering period of many annual and perennial herbaceous plants endemic to the region, some of which are rare. An authentic botanical tour in South Africa, with the discovery of a phenomenon unique to the world: the desert in bloom, when a dusty and hot land, becomes for a few weeks a vast expanse of flowers full of life and colors. This trip to South Africa includes an expedition throughout the Richtersveld desert, looking for rare succulent plants, real jewels of nature and masterpieces of evolution, as they have developed amazing survival strategies to cope with severe and prolonged drought. Unfortunately many of these succulent plants are vulnerable, if not virtually extinct in the wild, due to the restricted area of ​​distribution and because of human interference.

WHAT IS THE BEST TIME FOR A BOTANICAL TRIP IN SOUTH AFRICA?

The intensity of the miracle represented by the blooming desert in Namaqualand varies from year to year depending on weather conditions that have characterized several previous months and coincides approximately with the end of the austral winter, when the short rainy season is about to end. August or September would be the best time for a botanical tour in South Africa, with the first days of September representing the peak of blooming season, although this is only theoretical and impossible to be guaranteed. The flowers can be best admired during a beautiful clear day, when they are fully open and turned into the sun between 11am and 3pm (with cloudy weather, most flowers do not open at all). During the same weeks, most succulents of the Richtersveld desert are at their full glory, though not all in bloom, as they have renewed their water reservoirs thanks to the few rain typical of this time of the year. During the austral summer, most of Namaqualand is transformed back into a barren wasteland, completely unrecognizable, while many Richtersveld's small succulents are in a sort of lethargy, strongly shrinked and apparently dead. During the months of August and September, the weather in Namaqualand is variable and it can rain for a few days. Windy days are common and, depending on the altitude and the distance from the sea, the temperature can vary from a few degrees below zero to +25 degrees (in a few words, you must be prepared to cope with any climatic situation: please don't go there if not properly equipped thinking that you are going to "Africa").

HOW TO ORGANIZE A FLOWER TOUR IN SOUTH AFRICA?

The peak flowering period is also the tourist peak season (in fact, during the other months of the year, tourism is almost completely absent in Namaqualand) so you may find many guest houses with no-vacancy even if you try to book far in advance. This should be taken into account if you decide to travel by yourself. Personally, for the tour in Namaqualand, I've decided to join a group organized by Travel in Africa, offering a fully inclusive worry-free tour package. Instead, for the succulent tour to the Richtersveld desert, I had to hire a car with driver, since there were no group departures. This has made the trip much more expensive, but also much more flexible (all the reservation process was still handled through Travel in Africa, although the tour was actually operated by Virosatours and Piet, a fantastic guide knowing everything of the desert and not only).