Expedition into the Heart of the Indian Ocean: Whales, Sharks, Fur Seals, and Boobies Along the Great Sardine Run
SOUTH AFRICA
July 4–11, 2027 and July 12–19, 2027
South Africa
July 4–11, 2027 and July 12–19, 2027
South Africa
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New Year tour South Africa the Kingdom of Lesotho Swaziland Blind River Canyon Limpopo Province the Big Five South Africa Tabana Ntlenyana Lesotho тур в ЮАР
Have you ever seen millions of silver bodies turn the ocean into something alive and breathing? Imagine the water before you crackling with electricity as the sardine shoal moves like a vast vortex of mirrors, reflecting sky and sun. Each fish is a tiny, flawless mechanism, and together they create one of nature’s greatest collective choreographies—an awe-inspiring phenomenon that continues to captivate researchers and marine biologists around the world.
Now add to this spectacle dolphins, sharks, fur seals, and humpback whales—like enchanted conductors who occasionally step into the oceanic symphony, shifting its rhythm and triggering bursts of unpredictable drama. At times, it feels as if you’re diving into a three-dimensional chess match where every move by every living player is instantaneous, precise, and utterly unique.
You’ll find yourself in a small village on South Africa’s southeast coast. Each morning begins with a quiet thrill: where is the shoal today, who is following it, what wonders will unfold beneath the surface? Your days flow through dives among millions of fish, with whales passing close by—and every moment feels as if you’ve become part of the most vibrant living canvas on the planet.
Now add to this spectacle dolphins, sharks, fur seals, and humpback whales—like enchanted conductors who occasionally step into the oceanic symphony, shifting its rhythm and triggering bursts of unpredictable drama. At times, it feels as if you’re diving into a three-dimensional chess match where every move by every living player is instantaneous, precise, and utterly unique.
You’ll find yourself in a small village on South Africa’s southeast coast. Each morning begins with a quiet thrill: where is the shoal today, who is following it, what wonders will unfold beneath the surface? Your days flow through dives among millions of fish, with whales passing close by—and every moment feels as if you’ve become part of the most vibrant living canvas on the planet.
Explore the beautiful city of Cape Town, washed by the waters and winds of the Atlantic Ocean?
Go on a jeep safari in the Kruger National Park, home to the African Big Five and the largest concentration of wildlife?
See one of the deepest and most beautiful canyons in the world, the Blyde River Canyon?
Visit the southernmost point of the African continent - Cape Agulhas and the famous Cape of Good Hope?
Taste high quality South African wine in the finest Stellenbosch vineyards?
Or maybe even dive into a cage with white sharks?
The program also includes an ascent to the legendary Table Mountain, an adrenaline rush in the extreme amusement park Tsitsikama and much more!
Go on a jeep safari in the Kruger National Park, home to the African Big Five and the largest concentration of wildlife?
See one of the deepest and most beautiful canyons in the world, the Blyde River Canyon?
Visit the southernmost point of the African continent - Cape Agulhas and the famous Cape of Good Hope?
Taste high quality South African wine in the finest Stellenbosch vineyards?
Or maybe even dive into a cage with white sharks?
The program also includes an ascent to the legendary Table Mountain, an adrenaline rush in the extreme amusement park Tsitsikama and much more!
SCHEDULE & COST:
Dates: July 4–11, 2027 and July 12–19, 2027
Duration: 8 days / 7 nights
Number of participants: 4 - 8
Price per person:
*I AM MZUNGU TRAVEL CLUB discounts do not apply to this expedition.
Everything is included except:
– international flights to East London and back
– medical insurance
– South African visa (not required for Russian citizens)
Approximate flight costs:
– Johannesburg – East London – Johannesburg: USD 250,
Flights are usually purchased independently; we provide consultation and assistance.
Single occupancy: available upon request, subject to availability
TRIP PROGRAM: SOUTH AFRICA
Day 1. July 4, 2027/ July 12, 2027. ARRIVAL IN EAST LONDON
We arrive in East London — a quiet coastal city in southeastern South Africa, where white-sand beaches and old piers stretch into the ocean at the mouth of the Buffalo River. Once a port where British ships would dock, today it serves as the gateway to the Wild Coast and the beginning of our route.
At the airport, a group transfer will take us to Mdumbi. The five-hour drive will fly by: every hour, the landscape outside the window seems to turn another page — hills, fields, villages, ocean. We’ll stop at a supermarket to stock up on food for the next five days and our favourite snacks for the road. Bring whatever you can’t imagine travelling without: water, fruit, coffee in a thermos, chocolate.
By evening, we arrive in Mdumbi — a village at the edge of the continent. We’ll meet the local team, check in, have dinner and attend our first evening lecture on marine biology and what awaits us ahead.
Meals included: dinner
Accommodation: traditional huts
Day 2. July 5, 2027/ July 13, 2027. HEADING OUT INTO THE OCEAN
We wake up before sunrise — the ocean doesn’t wait. Breakfast, getting ready, adjusting our equipment. Today we put on our wetsuits for the first time — and see them dry for the first time too :)
We head out into the ocean at around 7:30 and return to shore at approximately 15:00 — everything depends on the weather and the will of the ocean.
This is our first day of whale encounters. We head out to sea with the local team — a skipper and a marine biologist who know this stretch of ocean like the back of their hands. With every wave, you’ll understand that you’re in safe hands.
After returning, we rest. You can go for yoga or a massage, or take a short hike, go kayaking, or explore Mdumbi on foot (optional activities are available at an additional cost). Dinner in the evening.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation included: traditional huts
Days 3–7. July 6-10, 2027/ July 13-17, 2027. DAYS IN THE OCEAN. THE SARDINE RUN
We get up before sunrise, have a quick breakfast, grab our gear — and soon we’re gliding across the first light of day. It may seem like every day is the same? Not at all — the ocean always finds a way to surprise us.
As the migration season begins, millions of sardines move along the coast of South Africa in the famous “Sardine Run” — one of the largest natural phenomena on the planet. These silver shoals attract dolphins, sharks and seabirds. Humpback whales also join the spectacle, following the fish and creating a true underwater symphony of movement. This is a unique opportunity to dive into a “silver tunnel” of sardines, observe their synchronized movements and witness their interaction with predators in the wild.
Today, dolphins race us for speed, while a sea turtle lazily drifts along the horizon. Tomorrow, a snake suddenly surfaces, and around the next corner the waves bring a bait ball to the surface — the marine world lives according to its own unpredictable rhythm. And always, always nearby are humpback whales: majestic, curious, sometimes playful, as if they know exactly why we came.
In the quiet moments between these encounters, we learn to listen to the ocean, observe the reefs and try freediving — feeling the water become part of our bodies, our breathing synchronizing with the tides. Every day is a small expedition of its own, filled with discoveries and unexpected encounters. And every evening we return to shore with the feeling that we have seen something that only the vast ocean remembers.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation included: traditional huts
Day 8. July 11, 2027/ July 18, 2027. RETURN HOME
After breakfast, transfer to East London Airport. We can choose an evening flight or stay overnight in a hotel and fly out the following day.
Meals included: breakfast
Accommodation included: no
* The expedition is planned around favourable weather conditions. The number of days spent at sea, as well as the order and schedule of activities, may change. If part of the program cannot be carried out due to circumstances beyond our control, it will be replaced with an alternative activity.
Duration: 8 days / 7 nights
Number of participants: 4 - 8
Price per person:
- €3,900 with 8 participants, or
- €4,300 with 6–7 participants, or
- €4,650 with 4–5 participants
*I AM MZUNGU TRAVEL CLUB discounts do not apply to this expedition.
Everything is included except:
– international flights to East London and back
– medical insurance
– South African visa (not required for Russian citizens)
Approximate flight costs:
– Johannesburg – East London – Johannesburg: USD 250,
Flights are usually purchased independently; we provide consultation and assistance.
Single occupancy: available upon request, subject to availability
TRIP PROGRAM: SOUTH AFRICA
Day 1. July 4, 2027/ July 12, 2027. ARRIVAL IN EAST LONDON
We arrive in East London — a quiet coastal city in southeastern South Africa, where white-sand beaches and old piers stretch into the ocean at the mouth of the Buffalo River. Once a port where British ships would dock, today it serves as the gateway to the Wild Coast and the beginning of our route.
At the airport, a group transfer will take us to Mdumbi. The five-hour drive will fly by: every hour, the landscape outside the window seems to turn another page — hills, fields, villages, ocean. We’ll stop at a supermarket to stock up on food for the next five days and our favourite snacks for the road. Bring whatever you can’t imagine travelling without: water, fruit, coffee in a thermos, chocolate.
By evening, we arrive in Mdumbi — a village at the edge of the continent. We’ll meet the local team, check in, have dinner and attend our first evening lecture on marine biology and what awaits us ahead.
Meals included: dinner
Accommodation: traditional huts
Day 2. July 5, 2027/ July 13, 2027. HEADING OUT INTO THE OCEAN
We wake up before sunrise — the ocean doesn’t wait. Breakfast, getting ready, adjusting our equipment. Today we put on our wetsuits for the first time — and see them dry for the first time too :)
We head out into the ocean at around 7:30 and return to shore at approximately 15:00 — everything depends on the weather and the will of the ocean.
This is our first day of whale encounters. We head out to sea with the local team — a skipper and a marine biologist who know this stretch of ocean like the back of their hands. With every wave, you’ll understand that you’re in safe hands.
After returning, we rest. You can go for yoga or a massage, or take a short hike, go kayaking, or explore Mdumbi on foot (optional activities are available at an additional cost). Dinner in the evening.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation included: traditional huts
Days 3–7. July 6-10, 2027/ July 13-17, 2027. DAYS IN THE OCEAN. THE SARDINE RUN
We get up before sunrise, have a quick breakfast, grab our gear — and soon we’re gliding across the first light of day. It may seem like every day is the same? Not at all — the ocean always finds a way to surprise us.
As the migration season begins, millions of sardines move along the coast of South Africa in the famous “Sardine Run” — one of the largest natural phenomena on the planet. These silver shoals attract dolphins, sharks and seabirds. Humpback whales also join the spectacle, following the fish and creating a true underwater symphony of movement. This is a unique opportunity to dive into a “silver tunnel” of sardines, observe their synchronized movements and witness their interaction with predators in the wild.
Today, dolphins race us for speed, while a sea turtle lazily drifts along the horizon. Tomorrow, a snake suddenly surfaces, and around the next corner the waves bring a bait ball to the surface — the marine world lives according to its own unpredictable rhythm. And always, always nearby are humpback whales: majestic, curious, sometimes playful, as if they know exactly why we came.
In the quiet moments between these encounters, we learn to listen to the ocean, observe the reefs and try freediving — feeling the water become part of our bodies, our breathing synchronizing with the tides. Every day is a small expedition of its own, filled with discoveries and unexpected encounters. And every evening we return to shore with the feeling that we have seen something that only the vast ocean remembers.
Meals included: breakfast, lunch, dinner
Accommodation included: traditional huts
Day 8. July 11, 2027/ July 18, 2027. RETURN HOME
After breakfast, transfer to East London Airport. We can choose an evening flight or stay overnight in a hotel and fly out the following day.
Meals included: breakfast
Accommodation included: no
* The expedition is planned around favourable weather conditions. The number of days spent at sea, as well as the order and schedule of activities, may change. If part of the program cannot be carried out due to circumstances beyond our control, it will be replaced with an alternative activity.
Cost includes:
- Accommodation and meals in Mdumbi in private traditional huts (7 nights) based on double occupancy
- Up to 6 ocean outings, 6–7 hours each (exact duration depends on weather)
- All transfers along the route
- Accompaniment by an experienced Russian-speaking guide on land, in the water, and underwater
- Accompaniment by experienced local South African guides (skipper, guide, assistant guide)
- Russian- and English-speaking guide and team leader throughout the entire trip
Cost excludes (to be additionally paid):
- Travel medical insurance
- Flights to East London (round trip)
- Meals not specified in the program
- Snorkeling equipment
- Tips and personal expenses
To take with:
- Clothing suitable for the weather: light clothes (shorts, T-shirts), warm layers (sweater, fleece, pants, windproof jacket, long-sleeve shirts, thermal underwear)
- Headwear for different conditions: baseball cap / sun hat, warm hat
- Swimwear / trunks
- Raincoat
- Personal hygiene items
- Personal medications: painkillers, antiseptics, antibiotics, any required prescriptions, antiviral drugs, multivitamins, oral rehydration salts, bandages
- Sun and wind protection: sunscreen, sunglasses
- Insect repellents: sprays, creams
- Photo and video equipment with spare batteries
- Fins, mask, snorkel, 5mm wetsuit with hood, gloves, boots
- Waterproof bag for personal items on the boat
- Seasickness tablets
- Towel
Why with MZUNGU EXPEDITIONS?
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We find the most astonishing places on Earth and speed up to reach them. Our motto is to go ahead of road roller, touch the unique and unknown, before it disappears. - ADVENTURISM
Wherever we go, we look for challenging activities and adventures, filling the journey with absolutely different spirit and emotions. That is why people join us over and over again. - SAFETY
In our trips we pay special attention to safety. All our travels are based on personal experience, equipped with the best gear, involving proved providers and experienced local guides who perfectly know local features. - EXPERIENCE
We have a unique experience of the most offbeat expeditions and ascents, deep knowledge of countries and peoples, and are ready to share it with you. All the expeditions and climbings are tested by Mzungu himself, guaranteeing exciting traveling and your comfort. - REASONABLE PRICE
All our trips are reach in adventures, with high quality accommodation, transportation and meals included. We do not save on it. Thanks to solid contacts with reliable providers we offer really good prices and high quality.
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