Who We Are
Our Mission
There seem to be lots of car clubs around – mostly aimed at owners of fast or exotic cars, specific brands or 4×4 clubs for owners of off-road vehicles. The idea which eventually evolved into AWD Tours SA originated from the idea that there might also be like-minded owners of all-wheel-drive SUV’s who would like to get together and enjoy their vehicles in off-road conditions without the risk of damage. The idea was and still is not to carry a spade in your car, winch your vehicle out of trouble or test your driving skill, but to enjoy nature in places which cannot easily be reached by a normal road car.
The first trip we’ve arranged was a self-drive tour to Gamkaskloof (Die Hel) and the annual Simola Hillclimb in Knysna. AWD Tours SA was formally established in 2017 and from our base in Cape Town, regular self-drive trips to places like Agulhas, the Garden Route, Tankwa Karoo, Cederberg, Baviaanskloof and Addo followed, using as many scenic backroads and interesting mountain passes as possible. Participants often ask us to arrange trips to their own bucket-list destinations, safer when experienced as a group due to remote locations or lack of cell phone signal.
We generally try to limit our trips to a maximum of 10 vehicles, each issued with a two-way radio to enable us sharing the history and some interesting facts about the areas and places we visit or travel through. Trips sometimes take place just over a weekend, or they could last a week or more, depending on the places visited and routes followed. Accommodation varies from hotels to guest houses to self-catering cottages.
Some of our participants expressed a need for all-wheel-drive-specific off-road training and in 2019 we started offering these on weekends between trips.
We always use the quieter, prettier backroads and passes rather than roads like the N1, N2 and N7.
We are passionate about nature and the preservation thereof, so we encourage our participants on any trip to leave the areas we visit as they found it, if not cleaner. We’ve been known to stop the convoy in order to pick up a discarded bottle in a place like Baviaanskloof.
Who qualifies to join trips?
- Anyone in the Western Cape who owns a fully roadworthy all-wheel-drive or 4×4 vehicle
- that are interested in experiencing back-road travel whilst driving their own vehicles
- who loves nature… with a touch of the home-comforts they’re used to
- prefers overnight accommodation with a proper bed, running hot and cold water and toilets that flush
- and prefer to experience far-flung places, but with the safety of travelling in a group
Meals on trips
We normally try to include at least a daily breakfast as part of the package, but depending on the accommodation, sometimes also supper.
Lunches normally are for each participant’s own account, however we do occasionally supply a packed/picnic lunch when we travel in remote areas without facilities.
We encourage participants to take additional drinks and light snacks with on trips, as we sometimes travel through remote areas where restaurants and shops are few and far between. The invite for each trip will explain which meals are include and excluded.
We do try very hard to accommodate specific dietary requirements, but need participants to advise us when confirming their booking of any such requirements.
Leisure time on trips
We plan our away-trips so that participants have some leisure time to themselves most afternoons and sometimes even the evenings. Of course that depends on the group we’re with, number and length of the stops needed for photographs, meals etc.
That means that we try to reach our destination for the day in the early to mid-afternoon, the leave you with the choice to rest and enjoy the time in your preferred way or join some of us on a sightseeing excursion if we do one.