St Helena and Cape Town

As with all our trips on the Royal Mail Ship, the focal point is the island of St Helena with her fascinating history, beautiful landscapes and welcoming people. These two trips start and finish in Cape Town giving us the chance to see a little more of the wonderful country which is South Africa although not visiting Ascension Island.

Having flown to Cape Town from the UK and checked in to our hotel, we then have a full day to enjoy some of the surrounding areas - perhaps the famous Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden or Table Mountain. Embarkation to the RMS St Helena the next day as we start our five-night journey to the island during which we can indulge in quizzes and deck games and much more.

We'll have eight nights on St Helena itself. This fascinating island has much to capture the imagination including the house where Napoleon spent the last five years of his life. Its history as an important port of call along the trade routes is evident from its history and we'll enjoy all aspects of its natural history as well from the endemic Wirebird, wonderful endemic plants and a boat trip to enjoy the Pan-Tropical Spotted Dolphins which are resident just off shore (no guarantees, but we usually see them).

Upon return to Cape Town we indulge ourselves in a little luxury at the amazing Constantia Uitsig Hotel which is set in its own vineyard and internationally renowned for its restaurants. In stark contrast we visit one of the townships where the dignified and proud residents show us some of the projects which are helping them out of abject poverty. There are indeed many aspects to this fascinating country but, all too soon, it's time to fly back to the UK.

Alternative St Helena Tours

• Fully Updated 2011-2012 RMS St Helena Schedule
• About travelling to St Helena

Your Itinerary

Day 1: Our British Airways flight leaves London Heathrow's excellent Terminal 5 in the late afternoon or evening (schedules to be confirmed).

Day 2: Upon arrival in Cape Town we will be met by our local guide and taken to our city centre hotel to check in. Having had a chance to freshen up we head out to the Cape's famous Winelands where we'll have a gentle walking tour to refresh us after the flight. After lunch we'll head to one of the local wineries for a tasting before returning to Cape Town for dinner and overnight.

Day 3: Our plans today evolve around the time of the ship's arrival and the consequent embarkation time but, by the evening, we will probably be on our way to St Helena.

Days 4 - 7: Life on board the Royal Mail Ship is a real experience, especially if you get involved in the deck games, the quizzes and the other pastimes which are interspersed by regular intervals of feeding! With a maximum of 130 passengers, the ship is small and intimate and you will soon make new friends and hear interesting stories of life on St Helena.

Day 8: Our arrival time in Jamestown is a moveable feast and so we don't have anything particular planned for the day - it's likely that we'll not get there until late afternoon. When we arrive we'll find half the island will waiting to meet the ship - it's a wonderful atmosphere. Having gone through security, we pick up any bags which have been unloaded and give them to our driver, and then stroll up St Helena's main street to the Consulate Hotel which will be our base for the next week. The rest of our luggage will find us in due course!

Days 9 - 15: The order of our day by day itineraries varies according to the weather and the availability of local experts and so we don't put it down on paper. However, during our stay on the island the following activities will be included:

• A guided walk of Jamestown
• A Napoleon day
• A boat trip around the coast to look for seabirds and hopefully link up with the resident pod of Pan-Tropical Spotted Dolphins
• A day in the Three Peaks National Park with a local botanist
• A visit to the Millennium Wood
• A morning at Flagstaff to look for the endangered Wirebird and with the opportunity for a good walk for those who so wish
• Scenic drives
• A visit to the George Benjamin arboretum
• A visit to Plantation House and the cathedral

Plus lots more. There'll also be some free time to pursue your own interests - and there's an excellent open-air swimming pool in Jamestown.

Day 16 Depending on the ship's schedule, we should have plenty of time for a last look around Jamestown, perhaps a swim and then lunch. In the afternoon we rejoin the Royal Mail Ship for our journey back to Cape Town.

Days 17 - 20: Life on the Royal Mail Ship is wonderful! It's totally relaxed with plenty of time for reading or simply staring out to sea - but, if you can only do so much of that, there's always plenty of entertainment and interesting people with whom to pass the time of day.

Day 21: Today's programme is dependent upon the ship's arrival time and the efficiency (or otherwise!) of the disembarkation procedure. Once we've cleared officialdom our guide will be waiting to whisk us off to the amazing Constantia Uitsig - a country house hotel in the shadow of the Constantia mountain, set in its own vineyards and with it's own cricket oval! This is the sort of place you simply want to spend time. Dinner tonight will be in one of Constantia's top class restaurants.

Day 22: South Africa is a country of immense diversity as well as extremes, easily experienced in a single day. This morning we visit three different township projects aimed at poverty eradication. Abalimi Bezekhaya "Farmers of Home" is an urban agricultural programme assisting 3000 people in the townships of Cape Town with organic micro farming; the Volcano Arts project creates productions using dance, music, poetry, humour and drama, while Learn to Earn is a skills development and job creation non-profit organisation. We then move over to the other end of the South African experience. Vergelegen Estate is one of the flagship wineries in South Africa. A light lunch followed by a stroll through the beautiful gardens and impressive old Cape Dutch Manor House and a wine tasting completes the day. This is a day designed to provide our clients with some food for thought. This will be a day that will surely stay with you for a long time to come.

Day 23: After a relaxed start to the day, there's a choice of activity- you can either visit Table Mountain and Kirstenbosch Gardens or Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. Both parties will reconvene at the V & A Waterfront before heading out of town to check in for our flight back to the UK which arrives in the following morning.

Please note itineraries can be changed without notice and at the sole discretion of your tour leader.