Explore Our Experiences
TURTLE
Join marine biologist Natalie Dos Santos and her team on Honey Guide’s Sea Turtle Tagging Expedition in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Take part in hands-on research on loggerhead, green, and critically endangered hawksbill turtles, helping us reveal their lives beneath the surface and, ultimately, how best we can protect them.
TAGGING
The journey begins with Chapter One on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, focusing on research, conservation, and hands-on turtle tagging. From there, the experience opens into one of two seasonal Chapter Two journeys, each based at an exceptional, remote coastal lodge.
As you move through the expedition below, you’ll be invited to choose the chapter that best suits you — winter at GweGwe Beach Lodge on the Wild Coast, centred around the Sardine Run and its extraordinary marine life, or summer at Thonga Beach Lodge in iSimangaliso Wetland Park, timed around nesting turtles and the chance to witness hatchlings emerging on the beach.
Join the Mission
Aliwal Shoal Reef
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The base package includes 9 nights/ 10 days, following two incredible expeditions along South Africa’s east coast. Enquire about options for shorter or extended stays.
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We offer two distinct seasonal departures.
In July, Chapter Two follows one of the ocean’s great natural spectacles — the annual sardine migration along South Africa’s breathtaking Wild Coast.
In late January and early February, the journey shifts north to the tropical coastline, where we search for nesting turtles and newly emerged hatchlings making their way to the sea.
These are our recommended travel windows. Please enquire to explore how the journey could unfold outside of these seasonal dates.
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Group size: 4–8 guests.
Smaller groups can also be accommodated. Please feel free to get in touch with us to discuss a more private or tailored experience.
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FROM USD $7,500 PER PERSON
9 nights · 10 days · based on a group of 8. Pricing adjusts for smaller private groups.
LOGGERHEAD TURTLE HATCHLINGS
Caretta caretta
Newly emerged and leaving the nest for the first time, beginning their journey to the sea.
CHAPTER ONE
AT THE HEART OF
TURTLE SCIENCE…
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Arrive on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast and settle into your private villa. The afternoon is deliberately slow-paced, giving you time to unpack, take a swim, ease into your new surroundings and properly settle into the rhythm of the coast. Later, meet the Honey Guide team, Natalie Dos Santos and Andy Coetzee, before sitting down to your first dinner prepared by your private chef — with the adventure ahead beginning to feel very real.
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Your first full day of turtle research begins with an early surf launch. Join Natalie and her team at sea to locate turtles, observe the capture process and follow each animal through its biological assessment, acoustic tagging and release.
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Go behind the scenes at uShaka Marine World for a closer look at the work that happens away from the public exhibits. Spend time with the team involved in turtle rescue and rehabilitation, learn about the challenges these animals face, and see firsthand what goes into their recovery before release back into the wild.
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Return to sea for a second full day with the research team. Help search for turtles and experience another day of active fieldwork, building on what you learned during your first tagging day and contributing to Natalie’s ongoing research.
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Spend your final full day on the South Coast exploring the region beyond its marine environment. Join a local Zulu cultural experience before returning to the villa for your final evening on this stretch of the South Coast.
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The expedition now shifts with the season. Winter guests travel to GweGwe Beach Lodge for the Wild Coast and Sardine Run chapter of the trip, while summer guests continue to Thonga Beach Lodge for the nesting and hatchling season.
Join marine biologist Natalie Dos Santos and her team for two expedition days at sea, helping locate, capture and tag wild sea turtles as part of active conservation research.
Get closer to the coastline with a marine specialist, exploring intertidal ecosystems before a self-harvest seafood cook-up on the beach.
Go behind the scenes at uShaka Marine World for a private look at its turtle rehabilitation work, meet the team, and learn what goes into rescuing, recovering, and releasing injured sea turtles and stranded hatchlings.
Back at the villa, evenings are shaped around your private chef, with relaxed, personalised menus built around the group and the best local ingredients.
Optional extras can be arranged around the South Coast chapter, including baited shark dives, recreational scuba diving, and freediving courses.
Spend time at a local Zulu homestead with a guide, sharing stories and gaining a more personal understanding of everyday life, traditions and the community around you in a part of KwaZulu-Natal steeped in incredible history.
Most importantly, know that your participation directly helps Natalie continue her research, putting more tags on turtles to help answer questions we still have about their lives beneath the surface.
FOLLOW THE SEASON
CHOOSE YOUR next chapter to continue
WINTER
THE SARDINE RUN
GweGwe Beach Lodge
SUMMER
TURTLE NESTING SEASON
Thonga Beach Lodge
CHAPTER TWO · WINTER
THE SARDINE RUN
GweGwe Beach Lodge · Mkambati Nature Reserve
Leaving the South Coast behind, the journey continues into one of South Africa’s most remote and spectacular coastal wildernesses. Here, rolling grasslands fall away towards a wild, untouched shoreline, and GweGwe Beach Lodge becomes our base for the second chapter of the journey.
Winter brings with it the Sardine Run — a vast seasonal movement of sardines along the east coast that draws in dolphins, whales, sharks, game fish and huge numbers of seabirds. Over two dedicated Sardine Run expeditions, we head out in search of the moving shoals, reading the birds, following dolphins and working with the conditions to get into the heart of the action. When the right opportunity presents itself, guests can enter the water and experience the spectacle from below the surface as sharks, dolphins, game fish and seabirds converge around the bait balls.
Four nights at GweGwe give us the flexibility to experience this wild stretch of coast properly, while still leaving time to slow down and enjoy the landscape, lodge and inshore environment.
THE WILD COAST AWAITS…
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Take to the skies for a spectacular helicopter flight along the coastline, landing on the beach at Gwe Gwe’s lagoon mouth. The afternoon is yours to settle in, relax and enjoy the lodge and its exceptional food.
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Head out in search of migrating sardine shoals and the extraordinary wildlife that follows them. Dolphins, whales, sharks and seabirds converge on the action, with opportunities to enter the water when conditions allow.
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A second day dedicated to the Sardine Run, following the best activity the ocean presents. Every day is different, with our plans guided by weather, wildlife and the movement of the shoals.
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Slow things down with a guided intertidal walk, exploring the rock pools and remarkable inshore life of the Wild Coast. Conditions permitting, finish with a relaxed catch-and-cook experience.
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Enjoy a final breakfast and morning at GweGwe before beginning the journey home, bringing our nine-night coastal adventure to a close.
Your full Chapter One and Two include: 9 nights’ private villa and lodge accommodation.
All meals, beverages, premium wines, spirits and cocktails.
Private chef with personalised menus and drinks.
Two full days of sea turtle research and tagging.
Marine specialist-led intertidal walk and seafood cook-up.
Behind-the-scenes turtle rehab at Ushaka Marine World Aquarium.
A local cultural experience.
Two expert-led Sardine Run expeditions.
Helicopter transfers to and from GweGwe.
Airport transfers and all local transport.
What's Included?
CHAPTER TWO · summer
nesting Turtles
Thonga Beach Lodge · iSimangaliso Wetland Park
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Travel north through KwaZulu-Natal, stopping for lunch at a beautiful local restaurant along the way. Arrive at Thonga Beach Lodge in the afternoon, settle in, and ease into the tropical coast with sundowners on the beach and, if you feel like it, a warm swim in the Indian Ocean.
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Spend the day enjoying Thonga’s all-inclusive activities and exploring the extraordinary landscapes of iSimangaliso Wetland Park. In the evening, join turtle expert Andy Coetzee for a guided night experience in search of nesting mothers and, with some luck, newly emerging hatchlings making their first journey to the sea.
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Spend the day exploring Thonga’s coastal environment, including a guided intertidal experience along the shoreline to discover the remarkable life hidden among the rocks, pools and shallows. The evening brings another opportunity to head out with Andy in search of nesting turtles and emerging hatchlings.
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Enjoy a slower morning at Thonga before heading out in the afternoon for a local cultural experience, offering a chance to connect with the people, traditions and stories of this remarkable part of northern KwaZulu-Natal.
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Enjoy a final breakfast at Thonga Beach Lodge before beginning the transfer back to the airport, bringing the tropical chapter of the journey to a close.
Leaving the South Coast behind, the journey continues north to one of South Africa’s most remote and beautiful stretches of coastline. Set within the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Thonga Beach Lodge becomes our base for the final chapter of the journey.
Summer brings a completely different coastal spectacle as nesting leatherback and loggerhead turtles return to these warm Indian Ocean beaches, followed later in the season by the emergence of hatchlings. Guided by turtle expert Andy Coetzee, evenings are shaped around the chance to witness these remarkable events in the wild.
Between these experiences, there is time to enjoy the tropical forest, empty beaches and warm waters that make this part of the coastline feel so completely removed from the rest of South Africa.
South Africa’s hidden gem …
Your full Chapter One and Two include: 9 nights’ private villa and lodge accommodation.
All meals, beverages, premium wines, spirits and cocktails.
Two full days of sea turtle research and tagging.
Private chef with personalised menus and drinks.
Marine specialist-led intertidal walk and seafood cook-up.
Behind-the-scenes turtle rehab at Ushaka Marine World Aquarium.
Two expert-led expeditions to find turtle hatchlings leaving their nests.
A remarkable cultural experience in the heart of Zulu-Land.
Airport transfers and all local transport.
What's Included?
Exclusive Lodging
The journey pairs meaningful fieldwork with exceptional private accommodation throughout. Your first five nights are spent in a private South Coast villa, with a private chef, personalised menus and the Honey Guide team taking care of the details from start to finish.
From there, winter continues to GweGwe Beach Lodge on the Wild Coast, while summer heads north to Thonga Beach Lodge in iSimangaliso Wetland Park. Both have been carefully chosen for their remote wilderness settings, exceptional hospitality and reputation as two of Africa’s standout beach lodges.
Across all nine nights, the aim is simple: to keep you deeply connected to the places you have come to explore, without compromising on comfort, privacy or the quality of the experience.
TURTLE RESEARCH
For decades, sea turtle research has been heavily weighted towards mature females coming ashore, while males and juveniles remain at sea. Natalie’s research takes science beneath the surface, using acoustic telemetry to understand how turtles of both sexes move, which habitats they rely on, and where greater protection may be needed. Honey Guide helps fund this work to continue building this important dataset.
Leave your mark
This is not conservation created for tourism. You are joining Natalie and her team during real fieldwork, helping locate turtles and witnessing the research process from capture and biological assessment through to tagging and release.
It is rare access to science as it happens, and an opportunity to contribute directly to research whose value continues long after you return home.
WANT TO STAY A LITTLE LONGER?
Feel like ten days isn’t quite enough? If you’d like to see more of Honey Guide — or more of what South Africa has to offer — don’t hesitate to reach out. We can help build a seamless extension around your trip, from safari and wild coastline to wine country, mountains and more of the region’s extraordinary places.
Leatherback turtle
Dermochelys coriacea
our partners
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![Natalie Dos Santos]()
Natalie Dos Santos
Marine scientist and PhD researcher Natalie Dos Santos specialises in the ecology of sea turtles on South Africa’s east coast. Her work takes turtle research beneath the surface, studying animals on their foraging grounds to better understand their movements, habitat use, residency and ecological roles. Guests join Natalie during active fieldwork at Aliwal Shoal, contributing directly to the research she is leading.
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![Andy Coetzee with leather back turtle.]()
Andy Coetzee
Naturalist and turtle conservationist pioneer Andy Coetzee has spent decades working in wild places, with a particular depth of experience in marine and sea turtle conservation. He has tagged more than 1,000 turtles around the world and contributed to Natalie’s research along South Africa’s east coast. Andy joins Honey Guide guests in the field and, during the summer expedition, leads the turtle beach drives that reveal another side of the turtles’ life cycle.
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![GweGwe Beach Lodge]()
GweGwe Beach Lodge
Our winter partner on the Wild Coast, GweGwe places guests within Mkambati Nature Reserve for the second chapter of the expedition. Its remote coastal setting provides the base for two full days experiencing the Sardine Run, alongside time exploring the reserve on land.
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![Thonga Beach Lodge]()
Thonga Beach Lodge
Our summer partner within iSimangaliso Wetland Park, Thonga places guests within one of South Africa’s most important sea turtle nesting landscapes. From here, guests join guided night drives along the coast to search for nesting loggerheads and leatherbacks and, when timing allows, emerging hatchlings.
YOUR PARTICIPATION MATTERS.
Because meaningful travel doesn’t just admire the world, it helps sustain it.