District 9, in theaters now, is a sci-fi extravaganza that has thrilled critics and geeks alike. The movie centers around a group of refugee aliens that arrive in Johannesburg, South Africa, and are segregated into an area called District 9.

The film's title is a direct reference to District 6, the area where thousands of South Africans were relocated during the years of apartheid. Unlike most Sci-Fi fare today, the film addresses issues like segregation head on and actually creates a real social commentary. That's not to say it doesn't have cool special effects; it still has plenty of "how'd they do that?" moments too.

Here's a look at how to get into the spirit of District 9 while visiting South Africa. ]]> cmb 2009-08-14T16:19:34-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/8/10/1514/91979

Are you forlorn because Shark Week is over? Do you need to get your Great White fix? Do you have between $150 and $3,700?

If so, UnrealDive has an extreme summer vacation for you. The South African expeditions company offers a series of one day outings and extended shark diving expeditions for adrenaline junkies and ecotourists alike. Great Whites are surface feeders so simple boat watching is always an option, but UnrealDive puts customers inside cages for eye-to-eye viewing.

The company boasts a 12 year track record without a single incident; no small achievement given that South Africa has some of the densest shark waters on the planet.]]> Omri 2009-08-10T15:14:32-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/8/6/144042/6663

This isn't strictly a travel campaign, but it's certainly that too. It's no secret that South Africa has been having some branding problems. Being the "world's rape capital" doesn't exactly look good on the brochures (what font face do you use for that?). The drownings last year certainly didn't help their image. Now that they've begun the pushback against drownings, maybe they can try to address that other thing.

The point being made by South Africa's new campaign for their National Sea Rescue Institute is that their volunteers, dedicated men and women that they are, will drop whatever they're doing to rescue stranded ocean goers. They might be at their wedding, but they'll jump into the water dress and all. Or they might be a sports event, but they'll rush to rescue you without even pausing to dump their foam hand. Or they might be a guy dressed as a chicken. ]]> Omri 2009-08-07T14:29:30-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/6/15/213525/159

Eat cookies, win trip. That's a no-brainer if we ever heard one, so the marketers at the Khaya Cookie Company might be on to something. They've started up the Quest for Cape Town competition and the winner gets a 10-day trip around the Cape Town area in South Africa, choosing from food and wine, eco-tourism or sun and surf themes.

Khaya Cookies include various shortbreads and granolas that are made with organic materials sourced from the winelands area near Cape Town, and the "cranberry rooibos shortbread" sounds like the most delicious one to us. If you buy a pack, you get an automatic entry into the competition to win the trip, or runner-up prizes like a Kindle, or extra boxes of cookies.

You can even check fellow cookie-addicts at the contest's stats page - when we checked, the leading entrant had scoffed down 22 packets of cookies so far. Entries close on July 15, after which time buying extra packets of cookies will become a slightly more "guilty conscience" action – although at least these cookies say you're helping create local jobs in South Africa. Eat up!

Do you love travel contests? Enter the Jaunted-Competitours Contest here!

Related Stories:
· Quest For Cape Town [Official Site]
· Cape Town Travel Guide [Jaunted]]]> amandak 2009-06-16T15:57:12-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/23/6310/47787

If you’re one of the expected 300,000 to 500,000 football fans flocking to South Africa for the FIFA World Cup 2010, don’t think you can just hop on a plane and go. Football fans are notoriously crazy about attending football matches (cue The White Stripes "Seven Nation Army" which has become the de facto football cheer.) You really need to start planning now.

Tickets
Tickets for the FIFA World Cup 2010 finals will go on sale on the FIFA website, starting February 20. One million out of the three million total tournament tickets available will go to international visitors – the other two million go to sponsors, teams and South African fans. Tickets are expected to cost about $136USD a piece but can vary from anything from $80 to $900, depending on which of the 64 matches tickles your fancy and how close you want to be to the action.

If you’re reading this is May 2010 and the tickets are all sold out, you can still hop on a last-minute plane over there – giant screens in public areas will be set up, and pubs, restaurants and bars are shelling out big-time on mega-size TVs ready to keep the neighbours up all night.]]> femmefatale 2009-02-05T14:05:35-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/23/6264/64857

When the South Africans found out they’d be hosting the FIFA World Cup 2010, their reaction was probably like that of the Brits when they won the 2012 Olympics bid. Unbridled joy, heavy drinking and crazed celebrations until the helium balloons in everyone’s heads went flat and someone said, "Uh...what do we do now?"

Damn, South Africa badly needs this crazy football competition. They’re expecting upwards of 500,000 fans to flock into the country, waving their dollars and euros and tacking on a safari or two while they’re there. The Grant Thornton consulting firm have told the government they can expect a 55.7 billion rand ($5.42 billion) boost on their GDP for 2010 and the authorities are already sticking out their tongues to lap it up.

But damn, damn, damn, we just hope South Africa can pull the rabbit out of the hat next June. Here's what might harm their chances of making magic happen. ]]> femmefatale 2009-02-04T13:07:00-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/23/63451/7351

Monica Guy is joining us again this week to tell us what more there is to do in South Africa. Enjoy.

Yesterday we told you about the South African Brandy tastings that you must experience when you make the trip to South Africa. But we can't forget about wine tours, can we? At the top of our list of Things To Do Around Cape Town still remains a tour of the wine farms in Stellenbosch and Constantia.

Did we say wine farms? We meant tourist farms. The two dozen or so farms who are fully kitted out for international visitors with industrial tasting rooms, restaurants that could feed the whole of Africa, international shipping options and marked up wine prices.

Okay, we take it back. Some of these places are pretty gorgeous – colonial-style white houses overflowing with summer roses and surrounded by fields of vines. Here's a few that you should stop by and see. ]]> femmefatale 2009-02-03T14:13:32-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/