Golden-hour view of Cape Town's Atlantic seaboard: Table Mountain and the Twelve Apostles rising above the Camps Bay coastline, with the ocean and city lights below.

A Curated 12-Day Hosted Journey

Modern South Africa. Curated from the Inside.

Hosted by Johannesburg-based American expats with three decades of deep local roots, this is an immersive passage through the country’s art, culinary culture, history, and urban energy. Designed for travelers who value depth, understated luxury, and rare access over typical tourist circuits.

Book your trip Read the Safety Ledger

12 days2 cities40 guestsFrom $7,000 land only · $8,500 with flights

Duration

12 days

Group size

Limited to 40 guests

Cities

Johannesburg · Cape Town

Departs

5 departures, November 2027 – October 2028

The journey

South Africa, as the people who live here know it.

§ 01

One journey, twelve days, a capped group of up to 40 guests. Hosted end to end by two Americans who have called Johannesburg home for more than three decades.

§ 02

Galleries and artists' studios. A hosted dinner in each city. Evenings out with people who know the city after dark. And the history that shaped all of it, told by people who lived alongside it.

§ 03

Every detail is handled quietly in the background, from the departure gate to the flight home, so all that's left for you is the experience.

Aerial view of Constitution Hill in Johannesburg, the historic fort and prison buildings with the city skyline behind — Constitution Hill, Johannesburg

Traditional dancers performing in South Africa

Not a tour. A hosted journey.

A typical tour

Sold from a brochure by a call center
A different guide at the coach each morning
The famous sights, photographed and left
Safety covered in the small print
A schedule packed for photo count

The Ubuntu Immersion

Planned and led by the two hosts you'll travel with
A private luxury coach reserved for the group, and both hosts with you throughout
Galleries, hosted dinners and evenings out most visitors never find
Safety set out step by step in a published ledger
Time to slow down, sit with the history and enjoy the city

Vilakazi Street in Soweto with restaurants, vendors and people walking in the late afternoon — Vilakazi Street, Soweto

Modern South Africa, in five parts.

Art

Maboneng's studios, the galleries of Keyes Art Mile, and Zeitz MOCAA, the continent's leading museum of contemporary art.

The table

A hosted dinner in each city, long lunches in Soweto and the Winelands, and the flavours of a country that cooks with every culture it holds.

Sandton rooftop pool overlooking the city

After dark

A hosted night out in each city: live jazz or a rooftop in Johannesburg, a sunset on the Atlantic seaboard in Cape Town.

History

Constitution Hill, Soweto, the Apartheid Museum and Robben Island, given the time they deserve.

The stay

Four-star hotels in Johannesburg's most coveted neighbourhoods and on Cape Town's V&A Waterfront.

Peace of mind, by design

Everything handled. Nothing left to chance.

Travelling well in South Africa comes down to knowing the place. Our Safety Ledger sets out, step by step, who is with you and what happens, from the departure gate in Atlanta to the departures gate in Cape Town. We publish it because we stand behind it.

Read the Safety Ledger

Hout Bay, Cape Town, viewed from the heights with mountains and sea — Hout Bay, Cape Town

The Safety Ledger

Version 1.1

Last reviewed · 10 October 2026

Safety Ledger — phases from wheels-down to wheels-up, the party responsible for each phase, and what happens.
№	Phase	Responsible	What happens
01	Departure, US gatewayResponsibleOne CSTA travelling hostWhat happensOne of the two CSTA hosts meets the group at Atlanta and flies with you to South Africa. You are not travelling alone from the first gate. The second host is waiting in Johannesburg.	One CSTA travelling host	One of the two CSTA hosts meets the group at Atlanta and flies with you to South Africa. You are not travelling alone from the first gate. The second host is waiting in Johannesburg.
02	Arrival, OR Tambo InternationalResponsibleThe travelling host + the Johannesburg hostWhat happensThe host who flew with you stays with the group off the aircraft. The second host meets the group inside the terminal. From here both hosts are with you for the rest of the trip.	The travelling host + the Johannesburg host	The host who flew with you stays with the group off the aircraft. The second host meets the group inside the terminal. From here both hosts are with you for the rest of the trip.
03	Immigration and baggageResponsibleThe travelling host + the Johannesburg hostWhat happensBoth hosts walk the group through immigration and baggage claim. No independent taxi rank. No shuttle desks.	The travelling host + the Johannesburg host	Both hosts walk the group through immigration and baggage claim. No independent taxi rank. No shuttle desks.
04	Airport-to-hotel transfers and full ground logisticsResponsibleBoth CSTA hosts + ground logisticsWhat happensPrivate vehicle, pre-cleared driver, direct route. Vehicle and route logged with CSTA operations before you land.	Both CSTA hosts + ground logistics	Private vehicle, pre-cleared driver, direct route. Vehicle and route logged with CSTA operations before you land.

Full page

Mandela House museum at 8115 Vilakazi Street, Orlando West, Soweto, with visitors outside — Mandela House, Orlando West, Soweto

The journey

Twelve days. Two cities. One unhurried route.

Atlanta

Departure

Meet your travelling host at Atlanta for the Delta nonstop overnight to Johannesburg. Land-only guests join the group at OR Tambo on day 2.

Johannesburg

Arrival in eGoli

The host who flew with you is with the group off the aircraft; the second host meets everyone inside the terminal. A private transfer brings you to a four-star hotel in Sandton, Rosebank or Melrose Arch. A welcome evening with your hosts.

Johannesburg

The city of gold and Constitution Hill

How gold built Johannesburg, then the prison that held Gandhi and Mandela and the Constitutional Court that replaced it.

Soweto

Soweto, hosted

Vilakazi Street, the Hector Pieterson Memorial and lunch with a local host. Evening: a hosted night out — live jazz or a rooftop lounge (drinks at your own cost).

Johannesburg

Apartheid Museum

A private guided visit, then a quiet evening. This day is meant to sit with you.

Johannesburg

Art day

A Maboneng gallery event and artist meet, then the galleries of Keyes Art Mile in Rosebank. Farewell dinner to Johannesburg at a premium venue.

Cape Town

The Mother City

Flight south and private transfer to a four-star hotel on the V&A Waterfront. Sunset on the Waterfront.

Cape Town

Table Mountain and the City Bowl

Cableway (weather permitting), the City Bowl and the Company’s Garden. Evening: hosted dinner in Cape Town.

Cape Peninsula

Chapman’s Peak, the Cape of Good Hope and Boulders Beach

Chapman’s Peak, the Cape of Good Hope and Boulders Beach, with a hosted lunch.

Cape Winelands

Stellenbosch and Franschhoek

Tasting and a long hosted lunch in Stellenbosch and Franschhoek.

Cape Town

History and contemporary art

Robben Island (ferry permitting) or District Six, then Zeitz MOCAA at the Waterfront. Evening: a hosted night out on the Atlantic seaboard — sunset lounge, then dinner (drinks at your own cost).

Cape Town

Departure

A final Cape morning; your host escorts the group through check-in for the flight home via Johannesburg, arriving in Atlanta the following morning.

Table Mountain across Table Bay, Cape Town

See the full journey

Your hosts

Your hosts, on the ground with you throughout.

Chris and Sydney don't hand you to a guide. They travel with the group from first day to last, with their friends, their favourite tables and three decades of local knowledge.

Founder & Partner

Chris Isaacs

In South Africa since 1990 — family, roots, and return.

Native of Washington, DC
Howard University alumnus
Family roots in South Africa since 1990.

Founder & Partner

Sydney Hall

32 years connected to South Africa · 15 living there.

Native of Hartford, Connecticut
Howard University alumnus
Member, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. (ΑΦΑ) — Rho Phi Lambda Chapter, South Africa

Meet the hosts

The numbers

What it costs and what it covers.

Fly with the group

$8,500 USD

Round-trip Delta flights from Atlanta, in-flight service and baggage included.

Book your trip

Book your own flights

$7,000 USD

You book your own international flights. You are met at OR Tambo. Prefer to use your own miles or routing? Book land-only and meet us in Johannesburg.

Book your trip

Pay your way at checkout — card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, US bank transfer, or pay over time with Affirm or Klarna (subject to approval).

Price, per person, double occupancy: $8,500 USD
Packages: Two ways to travel: fly with the group with flights included at $8,500, or book your own international flights and meet the group in Johannesburg at $7,000.
Departures: November 6–17, 2027 — book this departureConfirmed
February 13–24, 2028 — book this departureProvisional
April 4–15, 2028 — book this departureProvisional
August 8–19, 2028 — book this departureProvisional
October 10–21, 2028 — book this departureProvisional
November 6–17, 2027 is confirmed. All 2028 dates are provisional and may be adjusted. If a provisional date changes, we notify you at least 60 days out and you take a full refund or move to another date.
Every departure needs at least 10 guests. If a departure does not reach 10, or we change or cancel the date, we notify you at least 60 days before departure and you take a full refund or move to another available departure.
Gateways: Depart from Atlanta (Delta). One CSTA host flies with the group from the US; both hosts are with you throughout South Africa.
Deposit to hold a seat: $1,500 USD
How payment works: Paid in three parts: the $1,500 deposit holds your seat, half the remaining balance is due 120 days before departure, and the final half 75 days before departure.
Included: Round-trip Delta flights from Atlanta, in-flight service and baggage · 10 nights in four-star hotels: 5 in Johannesburg (Sandton, Rosebank or Melrose Arch) and 5 on Cape Town's V&A Waterfront, double occupancy (single supplement on request) · Two hosted dinners: a farewell dinner in Johannesburg and a dinner in Cape Town · Two art experiences: a Maboneng gallery event and artist meet, and Zeitz MOCAA, plus the Keyes Art Mile galleries · Two hosted nights out, with transport (drinks at your own cost) · Hosted lunches in Soweto, on the Cape Peninsula and in the Winelands, including the wine tasting · All guided visits and museum entries listed, and the Table Mountain cableway (weather permitting) · Travel and flight insurance (policy details sent after booking) · All internal flights in South Africa; a private luxury coach reserved for the group, and private vetted vehicles for transfers · Airport meet-and-greet both directions; a host from the US departure gate · Both hosts with the group throughout South Africa, and 24-hour host contact
Excluded: Drinks on nights out and outside included meals · Personal spending · Optional extras · Any additional insurance cover you choose to add
Travel insurance: Travel and flight insurance is included; policy details are sent after booking. Guests may add extra cover. Any insurance claim is subject to the policy terms; CSTA’s refund and cancellation policy still applies.

Cape of Good Hope, rocky cliffs and lighthouse above the Atlantic — Cape of Good Hope

Groups

Bringing a chapter or circle?

We host a small number of private groups each year: HBCU alumni chapters, Divine Nine chapters, church leadership, professional circles and culture seekers. Same hosts, same standard, with rooming, arrivals and payments arranged directly with your organizer.

NameEmailCity

Greek / organization affiliation

We don't sell or share your details. A host will reply personally, usually within two business days.

The V&A Waterfront harbour in Cape Town with boats and Table Mountain behind it — V&A Waterfront, Cape Town

Reservations

Reservations are open.

Limited to 40 guests. Choose your package and departure, read the policy, and hold your place with the $1,500 deposit.

Departure

How payment works

Payment	Amount	When
Deposit	$1,500	Due today — holds your seat.
Second	$3,500	Due Jul 9, 2027.
Final	$3,500	Due Aug 23, 2027.

Paid in three parts: the $1,500 deposit holds your seat, half the remaining balance is due 120 days before departure, and the final half 75 days before departure. Both due dates are set by your departure and shown as calendar dates on your reservation. We invoice each payment — you are never charged without notice.

Vineyards and mountains in the Cape Winelands near Stellenbosch

Book your trip Read the refund policy

From the Journal

All stories →

Christopher Isaacs, Founder & Partner of CS Travel Africa

3 min read

I'm a DC native. Here's why I keep coming back to South Africa

Washington raised me. South Africa keeps calling me back. Here's why, and why I want you to see it the way I do.

3 min read

Will I be welcomed? What Black American travelers experience in South Africa

It's the question people ask me quietly, after the safety question. Here's my honest answer.

2 min read

Johannesburg vs. Cape Town: two cities, two personalities

One city built modern South Africa. The other might be the most beautiful place you'll ever stand. You need both.

Questions we are asked

The direct answers.

Why South Africa, and why now?Open +

Cape Town is regularly named one of the world's great cities, and Johannesburg is one of the most dynamic creative capitals on the continent. Art, food, design and nightlife are all flourishing. With hosts who live here, you see the country as it is today, not as it was in the headlines.

Is South Africa safe right now?Open +

South Africa is a country of 60 million people with real crime statistics and real safe travel every day. We do not tell you it is safe. We publish the Safety Ledger and let you decide whether our operating procedure meets your standard.

Will I be the only Black American on the trip?Open +

No. Most of our guests are Black American travelers, and the journey is designed with them in mind. Everyone who shares the spirit of the trip is welcome.

Is South Africa a place Americans actually go?Open +

Yes. Americans live and work in South Africa — most in Cape Town and in the Johannesburg suburbs this trip uses: Sandton, Rosebank, Parkhurst. Johannesburg draws Americans in business, education, and development work, and the United States was South Africa's top overseas tourism market in 2024. You would not be a pioneer here. You would be a visitor to cities that already host thousands of your countrymen.

Can I pay over time?Open +

Yes. The deposit and each scheduled payment can be paid by card, by US bank transfer, or through the pay-over-time providers Affirm or Klarna, subject to their approval and limits. If you choose a provider, it pays CS Travel Africa in full and you repay the provider on its own terms. Our refund and cancellation terms still apply to your booking.