We (John, Diane and Susan) talked about a trip to Africa for a safari. We contacted various travel groups to get some ideas of what to see and the cost. Not long after we started the search, we heard about a nude tour operator in South Africa from our nude travel provider, Castaways Travel, The Woodlands, TX.
John contacted them, and we started planning. Our trip was for 22 days. The tour company customized the tour to fit our desires. Our trip included six game drives, two animal sanctuaries, four nudist/naturist resorts, and more. It was full board, and we were responsible for beverages.
We flew into Johannesburg and were met at the airport by Lofty and Amanda, the owners of the South African tour company affiliated with Castaways Travel. After a 90-minute drive from Johannesburg, we arrived at Sun Eden Naturist Park. We stayed in the Pixie Palace, an amazing thatched-roof, two-bedroom, two-bath house. This was basically our home base for the next three weeks. We would stay there between travels to other areas. Lofty and/or Amanda accompanied us to all the places we visited.
At breakfast the first morning, we met our fellow travelers, couples from Australia, England, and Sweden. Our group of 9 would be together for the first two weeks of our adventure. We were instructed to pack a small bag with enough clothes for 3 days. After breakfast we drove to Lauma Aurora a naturist camping area. While driving, we saw giraffes along the road and couldn’t figure out why they didn’t slow down enough for us to photograph them. Lauma Aurora was rustic and very welcoming. We had individual cabins. There were 12 cabins, so they could accommodate up to 24 people. There was a small pool with a lounging area and a wonderful fire pit where we met in the evenings. The owners did all the cooking for us. You ate what was prepared. The challenge for the owners is the power load sharing of electricity. There is a period every day when the government of South Africa turns off the electricity for hours at a time. Breakfast and dinner times were scheduled around this schedule. We were all given flashlights when darkness fell.
On the second day we lounged around the campground and had a braii (barbecue) for dinner. The owners were a wonderful, friendly couple and the food was great.
After breakfast, we were up and traveling again. On our way to Kiepersolkloof Sun Village, we stopped at an elephant sanctuary and ate lunch at an old railroad depot restaurant. Kiepersolkloof is a beautiful park operated as a co-op. We had a cabin with two bedrooms. There are cabins, but most of the visitors arrive in caravans (campers). The members cooked meals for us. Again, it was local food. Susan went for a hike on the property, Di sunbathed at the pool, and John rested.
We returned to Sun Eden for the weekend. It has a nice restaurant where we ate our meals, a lovely swimming pool, and beautiful grounds with wild animals roaming. On Saturday night, there was a special Valentine’s Dinner and a dance. They generally have a dance twice a month.
Off and traveling again.
This time we are off to Bird of Paradise Naturist Resort. Again, the owners cooked for us. We had local food, including milva for dessert. While there, we took a riverboat ride for lunch. The owners arranged it so you could be nude on the boat. They supplied sarongs for the trip to the river. This place had beautiful landscaping, a small pool, excellent food, and comfortable rooms. They are building more rooms and have a caravan area. We spent two nights here and then returned to Sun Eden, stopping at a cultural center and an African market.
Now, we start the game drive part of the trip.
We went to Dinokeng Game Reserve. The vehicles were modified pickup trucks with three rows of seating. They had a roof but no windows. We saw so many giraffes that we realized why we didn’t slow down earlier. We also saw warthogs, impalas (many of these), and more. The second game drive left at 4:15 AM. We viewed black rhinos, lions, giraffes, zebras, elephants, and jackals. Being a tourist in South Africa is hard work!
We flew into Johannesburg and were met at the airport by Lofty and Amanda, the owners of the South African tour company affiliated with Castaways Travel. After a 90-minute drive from Johannesburg, we arrived at Sun Eden Naturist Park. We stayed in the Pixie Palace, an amazing thatched-roof, two-bedroom, two-bath house. This was basically our home base for the next three weeks. We would stay there between travels to other areas. Lofty and/or Amanda accompanied us to all the places we visited.
At breakfast the first morning, we met our fellow travelers, couples from Australia, England, and Sweden. Our group of 9 would be together for the first two weeks of our adventure. We were instructed to pack a small bag with enough clothes for 3 days. After breakfast we drove to Lauma Aurora a naturist camping area. While driving, we saw giraffes along the road and couldn’t figure out why they didn’t slow down enough for us to photograph them. Lauma Aurora was rustic and very welcoming. We had individual cabins. There were 12 cabins, so they could accommodate up to 24 people. There was a small pool with a lounging area and a wonderful fire pit where we met in the evenings. The owners did all the cooking for us. You ate what was prepared. The challenge for the owners is the power load sharing of electricity. There is a period every day when the government of South Africa turns off the electricity for hours at a time. Breakfast and dinner times were scheduled around this schedule. We were all given flashlights when darkness fell.
On the second day we lounged around the campground and had a braii (barbecue) for dinner. The owners were a wonderful, friendly couple and the food was great.
After breakfast, we were up and traveling again. On our way to Kiepersolkloof Sun Village, we stopped at an elephant sanctuary and ate lunch at an old railroad depot restaurant. Kiepersolkloof is a beautiful park operated as a co-op. We had a cabin with two bedrooms. There are cabins, but most of the visitors arrive in caravans (campers). The members cooked meals for us. Again, it was local food. Susan went for a hike on the property, Di sunbathed at the pool, and John rested.
We returned to Sun Eden for the weekend. It has a nice restaurant where we ate our meals, a lovely swimming pool, and beautiful grounds with wild animals roaming. On Saturday night, there was a special Valentine’s Dinner and a dance. They generally have a dance twice a month.
Off and traveling again.
This time we are off to Bird of Paradise Naturist Resort. Again, the owners cooked for us. We had local food, including milva for dessert. While there, we took a riverboat ride for lunch. The owners arranged it so you could be nude on the boat. They supplied sarongs for the trip to the river. This place had beautiful landscaping, a small pool, excellent food, and comfortable rooms. They are building more rooms and have a caravan area. We spent two nights here and then returned to Sun Eden, stopping at a cultural center and an African market.
Now, we start the game drive part of the trip.
We went to Dinokeng Game Reserve. The vehicles were modified pickup trucks with three rows of seating. They had a roof but no windows. We saw so many giraffes that we realized why we didn’t slow down earlier. We also saw warthogs, impalas (many of these), and more. The second game drive left at 4:15 AM. We viewed black rhinos, lions, giraffes, zebras, elephants, and jackals. Being a tourist in South Africa is hard work!
We said our goodbyes to 6 of our fellow travelers over the weekend, and now it is just Diane, John, and Susan with Lofty and Amanda.
The next location for game drives was in Pilanesberg. We stayed at the Valley View Hotel (the only textile location during our entire trip ). The owner was a retired executive chef and our host. As you can imagine, the food was excellent. At 6 AM we started our game drive. We saw a crash (large group) of black rhinos, a single white rhino, wildebeest, more animals and a journey (large group) of giraffes. On our afternoon game drive, we saw lots of zebras and elephants, plus many animals we had already seen.
Back to Sun Eden.
We spent the afternoon at a lion and cheetah sanctuary. The animals have been rescued from various locations and are well cared for by professionals. The white lions were especially beautiful.
Now, the highlight of our game drives. We had a very scenic drive to Kruger National Park and stayed in a 3-bedroom, 3-bath house in Merloth Park. It was isolated, so we could be nude. Amanda brought food pellets to put in the yard, so we had impalas, warthogs, and more about 20 feet from us.
The next location for game drives was in Pilanesberg. We stayed at the Valley View Hotel (the only textile location during our entire trip ). The owner was a retired executive chef and our host. As you can imagine, the food was excellent. At 6 AM we started our game drive. We saw a crash (large group) of black rhinos, a single white rhino, wildebeest, more animals and a journey (large group) of giraffes. On our afternoon game drive, we saw lots of zebras and elephants, plus many animals we had already seen.
Back to Sun Eden.
We spent the afternoon at a lion and cheetah sanctuary. The animals have been rescued from various locations and are well cared for by professionals. The white lions were especially beautiful.
Now, the highlight of our game drives. We had a very scenic drive to Kruger National Park and stayed in a 3-bedroom, 3-bath house in Merloth Park. It was isolated, so we could be nude. Amanda brought food pellets to put in the yard, so we had impalas, warthogs, and more about 20 feet from us.
4:30 AM started our first game drive. IT WAS COLD. We were wearing sweatshirts and jackets and wrapped in blankets. We saw a dazzle (large group) of zebras and more animals than we can list. We did get between a mother elephant and her baby. She started running toward our game drive vehicle. On our second 4:30 AM safari we saw a leopard up close and a herd of Cape Buffalo. We were able to see and photograph all the Big Five.
We returned to Sun Eden to relax before flying home. The combination of nude resorts and game drives made this a trip of a lifetime. Thank you, Castaways Travel, for referring us to our tour operator for three weeks.
(Note: Castaways Travel specializes in adult, nude, and clothing-optional travel, tours, and cruises to worldwide destinations. Castaways and the South African nude tour company are both members of a European-based trade association of companies that specialize in nude travel and cruises.
Castaways’ owners have visited Africa several times and stayed at Sun Eden Resort near Johannesburg, South Africa and toured similar resorts and safaris similar to the locations above. They have also visited Cape Town, Sun City, and Johannesburg in S. Africa, Kenya, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Egypt 3 times, and Morocco plus the Sahara Desert).
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