Checking into the Intercontinental Johannesburg, I arrived with two bags and a backpack.  Upon checkout, I would needed to be one bag lighter and make the weight (I bought a small travel scale just in case as backup) by shipping luggage ahead to Capetown.   The hotel was the perfect spot to rest and recharge before boarding my flight to Botswana the next morning but lest you think my head hit the pillow after my 17 hour flight and two days of travel which began in Philly, you would be wrong.  There was so much to do in a short span of time – I checked in a bit after 6pm and had a 10am flight to Maun, Botswana the next day so no sleep for me just yet – thankfully, the time difference, despite the distance, is only 7 hours so it was a bit like being in Europe and having to stay up for the rest of the day to acclimate.

Arrival & Preparation

I went to my room, a lovely place to decompress – the large and inviting shower was just what I needed to refresh.  Then a quick visit to the concierge desk in the lobby to inquire about checking in for the Botswana flight and shipping my luggage to Capetown.  I had been communicating with the concierge prior to my arrival – she was not given the usual query of restaurants and bakeries but this more interesting query.  The team on duty was not aware of my request but did their best given that all shippers were closed at that time.  They asked for measurements in metric and of course being the American that I am said I haven’t a clue to which they responded with a tape measure.

Before converting the measurements of my rolling carryon bag, I needed local currency, South African Rand (SAR) for this overnight stay and for my time ten days from now when I am off to safari.  The hotel surprisingly did not have an ATM on site so I was directed back to the airport across the road and went up the escalators to the food court/shopping area.  Without baggage, this was a different airport after my experience just an hour ago.  With cash in hand, I went back to the hotel to my room and to my bags.  If you read my earlier post about the duffel bag, you know that I was a bit crazy over the packing for this trip especially as I had miscalculated and was not coming back through the JNB airport.   I had ended up packing for two trips in two bags – the safari duffel bag with drab clothes and the normal rolling bag with my city clothes (i.e. – jeans and dark colors).

So after sorting out the bags and dimensions, I gave the concierge team the information and went to enjoy a tasty dinner with national dessert (who can say no to the national dessert?) and my first glass of South African Pinotage wine. The restaurant was well staffed, attentive and the food was very good on this stay.  There was no need for me to go to the food court -although an option if you wanted to save money on food.  After dinner, I decided the plush pillow top bed was now calling me and I quickly yielded to a restful sleep despite my building excitement for the adventure to begin and the slight apprehension that tomorrow night I would be sleeping in a tent with a bucket shower.

Shipping Luggage via the Post Office?

Upon checkout, I visited the concierge desk and the woman I was emailing was on duty expecting me.  While I had investigated many options which were in the $200+ range, she was suggesting that we use the national post office to ship the bag as she had done in the past.  The cost was 200 Rand – about $23 and a big difference from my quotes.  A bit hesitant. I said goodbye to my bag (forgetting to take a photo of it in case it got lost!) with fingers crossed that we would meet up in ten days in Capetown.

Over the years, I have discovered many ways to utilize shipping lugagge and/or storing it during my travels that make life easier – I’ve used the post office in New Zealand when I was limited to one bag in a similar situation, airport storage in Venice (easier to go into the city overnight with a small bag especially if there is flooding), train stations (if you are visiting for the day).  It takes a bit of research and patience (the rules, customs and finding the offices are tricky) but is well worth the cost in my opinion.

Let’s Start this Safari Adventure!

So now with the luggage on its way to Capetown, the bellman walks me to the airport pushing my duffel on the cart to find the check-in desk for Air Botswana on the first of two flights that day to get to my camp in the Okavango Delta and the infamous tent I know I will be sleeping in tonight – a long way away from my very plush bed at the hotel, a long way from my home in Philadelphia, a long way from my initial contact at the travel show with the travel agent many months ago and just this much closer to my dream safari…