Safari? Anyone been?
Discussion
Hello,
I hope someone here can offer some advice.
SWMBO has had a bucket list holiday (which I resisted for ages) and that's to go on Safari.
So I was hoping to get some info based on your experiences and try and organise a once in a lifetime trip.
Where did you go?
When did you go?
What was your budget?
What were your lessons learned?
Hopefully I'll be able to get the ball rolling after getting some hints and tips from you guys.
Cheers and thanks in advance!
T1b
I hope someone here can offer some advice.
SWMBO has had a bucket list holiday (which I resisted for ages) and that's to go on Safari.
So I was hoping to get some info based on your experiences and try and organise a once in a lifetime trip.
Where did you go?
When did you go?
What was your budget?
What were your lessons learned?
Hopefully I'll be able to get the ball rolling after getting some hints and tips from you guys.
Cheers and thanks in advance!
T1b
Yes, it is, for me, the most awesome experience I can have when on holiday. I have only done safaris in Africa thus far, but they are exceptional.
I've been to Kruger National Park many times in South Africa.
Hwange Elephant Park in Zimbabwe (including Victoria Falls) and also Zambia.
Masai Mara in Kenya
I've also been to smaller parks in Tanzania and around South Africa.
Depending upon budget, the luxury tent safaris are well worth doing. I would recommend Kruger if you want access to a vibrant country generally too, not just safari, but Kenya if you are just looking at the safari exclusively is a life-time experience.
If you want the Victoria Falls too, then Zambia or Zim are both great albeit possibly from Zambia side might be best.
I've been at all times of the year given I used to live in South Africa. I always liked March / April but June to November is probably best for most.
Price does vary from ultra-luxury to budget. Budget would be somewhere like Hluhluwe in Durban and a lodge but you wouldn't get the full Big 5 experience.
Little Governor's Camp in the Masai Mara is one I'd recommend. Tented accommodation, but they are like hotel rooms in terms of facilities.
Sabi Sabi / Sabi Sand is a good one too in SA for Kruger.
I've been to Kruger National Park many times in South Africa.
Hwange Elephant Park in Zimbabwe (including Victoria Falls) and also Zambia.
Masai Mara in Kenya
I've also been to smaller parks in Tanzania and around South Africa.
Depending upon budget, the luxury tent safaris are well worth doing. I would recommend Kruger if you want access to a vibrant country generally too, not just safari, but Kenya if you are just looking at the safari exclusively is a life-time experience.
If you want the Victoria Falls too, then Zambia or Zim are both great albeit possibly from Zambia side might be best.
I've been at all times of the year given I used to live in South Africa. I always liked March / April but June to November is probably best for most.
Price does vary from ultra-luxury to budget. Budget would be somewhere like Hluhluwe in Durban and a lodge but you wouldn't get the full Big 5 experience.
Little Governor's Camp in the Masai Mara is one I'd recommend. Tented accommodation, but they are like hotel rooms in terms of facilities.
Sabi Sabi / Sabi Sand is a good one too in SA for Kruger.
YorkshireStu said:
Yes, it is, for me, the most awesome experience I can have when on holiday. I have only done safaris in Africa thus far, but they are exceptional.
I've been to Kruger National Park many times in South Africa.
Sabi Sabi / Sabi Sand is a good one too in SA for Kruger.
Hey YorkshireStu,I've been to Kruger National Park many times in South Africa.
Sabi Sabi / Sabi Sand is a good one too in SA for Kruger.
Thanks for getting back to me. SWMBO would definitely be looking at the 5 star experience so I'm trying to manage her budget expectations early doors.
That's a relief to hear you've done Kruger, did you go with Sabi Sabi?
Cheers,
T1b
Did a mini 3 day safari in the Nepalese Terai many years ago - great fun though no tigers were spotted.
PS: It was at Tiger tops - good enough for Jagger so the accomodation was certainly 5 star
https://tigertops.com/
PS: It was at Tiger tops - good enough for Jagger so the accomodation was certainly 5 star
https://tigertops.com/
Would definitely recommend, we've been lucky to do a few in the past (Tanzania, Kruger, and Sun City although not sure that counts) and then Botswana in Mar '22. Absolutely loved them all.
The Botswana trip was amazing but we really pushed it in terms of budget. Did 3 nights in the Footsteps across the Delta camp, under their young explorers experience (you get the camp to yourselves) and the set-up and staff were awesome, especially with my 10 year old. Saw loads of animals although the lions wandering through the camp was a little unnerving, We then did 3 nights in Machaba Camp, again amazing, more luxurious set-up (the tent was huge) with pool etc but we got used to having the jeep / guides to ourselves at the first camp so didn't like sharing! Again saw loads. We finished with 3 nights at Victoria Falls, which worked really well in terms of amazing to see the falls but also to have a couple of chill days.
I'd definitely recommend staying under canvas, really added to the experience for us. I'd highly recommend Botswana, the landscapes were amazing and animal viewing fantastic (although can't really compare to the other options such as Kenya etc as haven't been to those). Think you have to be thoughtful on time of year though to maximise what you see. We used Mahlatini to book and they were superb at advising / giving options and then sorting it all out (including keeping it all together as we had originally planned to go in the middle of covid). The only thing I would change is maybe having a bigger contrast between the two camps in terms of terrain / animals.
Hope that helps,
The Botswana trip was amazing but we really pushed it in terms of budget. Did 3 nights in the Footsteps across the Delta camp, under their young explorers experience (you get the camp to yourselves) and the set-up and staff were awesome, especially with my 10 year old. Saw loads of animals although the lions wandering through the camp was a little unnerving, We then did 3 nights in Machaba Camp, again amazing, more luxurious set-up (the tent was huge) with pool etc but we got used to having the jeep / guides to ourselves at the first camp so didn't like sharing! Again saw loads. We finished with 3 nights at Victoria Falls, which worked really well in terms of amazing to see the falls but also to have a couple of chill days.
I'd definitely recommend staying under canvas, really added to the experience for us. I'd highly recommend Botswana, the landscapes were amazing and animal viewing fantastic (although can't really compare to the other options such as Kenya etc as haven't been to those). Think you have to be thoughtful on time of year though to maximise what you see. We used Mahlatini to book and they were superb at advising / giving options and then sorting it all out (including keeping it all together as we had originally planned to go in the middle of covid). The only thing I would change is maybe having a bigger contrast between the two camps in terms of terrain / animals.
Hope that helps,
When we've had threads about Safaris the general theme was people did them all over Africa and everyone enjoyed them, so it seems it's hard to go wrong. 
I reckon there are three categories:
It was extremely well run with fantastic food, and they do a lot of good locally too. We did a safari at dawn each day including a couple on foot, and then another each night.
You didn't even have to leave the camp though tbh, as it was chock full of wildlife. The elephants were there all the time, walking about and causing mayhem, monkeys waiting to steal your dinner if you weren't paying attention and loads of crocs and hippos in the river. The hippos would walk up into the camp at night and we'd wake up to hear them snuffling around our tent.
It was one of the best trips I've ever done. I absolutely loved it. Happy to share more if you're interested.
If you want a bit more luxury I can also recommend Mfuwe Lodge, in the same area. You may have seen the photo of an elephant walking though a hotel reception that does the rounds on the internet every now and again - that's there.
I reckon there are three categories:
- Safaris designed for tourists who just want to see the animals and maybe don't have a lot of time. These are a bit more theme-park like, where all the animals just happen to be standing near the road, one after another. This might only be a South Africa thing.
- The type where you drive out to a national park, spend a day driving round and hope you spot something.
- The more adventurous options where you go and stay in the bush, and even do walking safaris.
It was extremely well run with fantastic food, and they do a lot of good locally too. We did a safari at dawn each day including a couple on foot, and then another each night.
You didn't even have to leave the camp though tbh, as it was chock full of wildlife. The elephants were there all the time, walking about and causing mayhem, monkeys waiting to steal your dinner if you weren't paying attention and loads of crocs and hippos in the river. The hippos would walk up into the camp at night and we'd wake up to hear them snuffling around our tent.
It was one of the best trips I've ever done. I absolutely loved it. Happy to share more if you're interested.
If you want a bit more luxury I can also recommend Mfuwe Lodge, in the same area. You may have seen the photo of an elephant walking though a hotel reception that does the rounds on the internet every now and again - that's there.
We went to Ulusaba (Sabi sands) which is Branson's place.
Whole thing was brilliant. Points from me;
1. Are you taking children? Young children (say below 10) are considered prey by many inhabitants so I would not take kids. If I do take my kids they would need to be 12 or 13 plus or of decent size.
2. Early mornings are early, so book the right length. We did three days and 4 nights which I think is bang on, got to do and see a lot, didn't get bored or too tired from routine.
3. Go in our summer which is autumn in SA. Simple reason is foliage. In their summer/spring with leaves on the trees you can't see a lot, but without leaves you can see and find almost everything including smaller creatures you would never see in full bloom.
4. Branson's place is private reserve so the landrovers can go anywhere to follow the wildlife. On state owned land vehicles are strictly only allowed on the tracks so you get to see less especially if you are there in their summer/spring.
5. Try to avoid any Americans.
Whole thing was brilliant. Points from me;
1. Are you taking children? Young children (say below 10) are considered prey by many inhabitants so I would not take kids. If I do take my kids they would need to be 12 or 13 plus or of decent size.
2. Early mornings are early, so book the right length. We did three days and 4 nights which I think is bang on, got to do and see a lot, didn't get bored or too tired from routine.
3. Go in our summer which is autumn in SA. Simple reason is foliage. In their summer/spring with leaves on the trees you can't see a lot, but without leaves you can see and find almost everything including smaller creatures you would never see in full bloom.
4. Branson's place is private reserve so the landrovers can go anywhere to follow the wildlife. On state owned land vehicles are strictly only allowed on the tracks so you get to see less especially if you are there in their summer/spring.
5. Try to avoid any Americans.
Durbster's "can't really go wrong" comment is spot on in my experience. I'm fairly outdoorsy anyway ... hillwalking, occasionally skiing, etc. ... so wandering off into a very different landscape is a thing in itself for me, plus you get to tool around in dodgy off-road vehicles (e.g. a land cruiser whose roof has been casually removed with an angle grinder), and someone else is dealing with the food and booze, and then you come round a corner and find an elephant or a zebra or a giraffe or some hyaenas right in front of you. Oh yeah, and you might well go from the airport to the middle of a national park in some dodgy light aircraft that buzzes the landing strip to get some gazelles out the way before you land. The whole thing is just a big silly adventure. And frankly it isn't that expensive, particularly when you compare it to the absurd money you can spend to stay in some generic big hotel near a vaguely exotic beach. Can't remember what we were paying per night to stay in a hotel on Zanzibar, but it would have been less than London air bnb prices, and it had a bar in a baobab tree hanging over the beach from which you could watch hermit crabs and elephant shrews marching around doing their thing as the sun set over the ocean. Then we flew from there in a dodgy 6 seater to the Selous, blah, blah, blah. All great fun.
T1berious said:
Hey YorkshireStu,
Thanks for getting back to me. SWMBO would definitely be looking at the 5 star experience so I'm trying to manage her budget expectations early doors.
That's a relief to hear you've done Kruger, did you go with Sabi Sabi?
Cheers,
T1b
Not to stay no but I know folks who have and they all say it is very good. Thanks for getting back to me. SWMBO would definitely be looking at the 5 star experience so I'm trying to manage her budget expectations early doors.
That's a relief to hear you've done Kruger, did you go with Sabi Sabi?
Cheers,
T1b
My family used to own a holiday home bordering one of Kruger's gates and so we had free passes into the Park proper. Our home there was also on a Reserve in itself and we would have giraffe, various buck, ostriches, zebra etc in our garden.
There is nothing better than taking a 4x4 and spending the day in the park alone...off the tourist roads...with a camera and a picnic. Awesome!
ATG said:
Durbster's "can't really go wrong" comment is spot on in my experience. I'm fairly outdoorsy anyway ... hillwalking, occasionally skiing, etc. ....
We're pretty outdoorsy, we also Ski, are keen cyclists and both have a good level of fitness so I hope we'd be OK if it came to walking etc.After reading the posts (thank you all!) we're going to see what we can organise for 2025.
Some great advice regarding when to go so we'll look at Sept / Oct.
Thanks again!
T1b
I've been going on safari since the early 1980s, lived in Uganda for 11 years and self-drove in Zambia with my family in July/August 2023.
I'd make a list of what you would like to see/do - e.g:
Camping or Hotels - camping can be luxurious or basic. I would make sure that the accommodation has a swimming pool.
Do you also want to combine a beach holiday to relax at the end of the safari? Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa.
Safaris can be quite tiring as you have to be up before dawn - 5am for us in July - for your early morning game drive. Having a week at the beach at the end is quite relaxing.
Self Drive or escorted? Self drive can be a bit daunting if you have never driven in Africa before.
If you want a real once in a lifetime trip, and have the time to do it, take a multi-month trip from Nairobi to Cape Town (or longer) - you will probably be able to see everything above if you did this..
I'd make a list of what you would like to see/do - e.g:
- Gorillas - Uganda/Rwanda/Congo area.
- Serengeti migration - Tanzania/Kenya - you need to choose the correct time of year
- Big 5 - Tanzania, Kenya, Zimbabwe, South Africa
- Places to visit? Vic Falls, Cape Town etc.
Camping or Hotels - camping can be luxurious or basic. I would make sure that the accommodation has a swimming pool.
Do you also want to combine a beach holiday to relax at the end of the safari? Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa.
Safaris can be quite tiring as you have to be up before dawn - 5am for us in July - for your early morning game drive. Having a week at the beach at the end is quite relaxing.
Self Drive or escorted? Self drive can be a bit daunting if you have never driven in Africa before.
- Uganda - a great circuit out from Kampala with Gorillas, Chimpanzees, Queen Elizabeth & Murchison Falls - 10 days to 2 weeks
- Tanzania - Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro crater, Serengetti that I've done 3-4 times from Arusha in a week to 10 days. Further south there is a Selous. Also has Zanzibar to chill out in afterwards.
- Kenya - Masai Mara, Samburu, Lakes Naivasha & Nakuru, Tsavo 1-2 weeks, finish on the coast at Mombasa or Malindi.
- Zambia - West from Lusaka, Kafue, Liuwa Plain, Livingstone (Vic Falls), East from Lusaka, South & North Luangwa. We flew from Livingstone to South Luangwa and stayed at Croc Valley. 3 weeks
- Zimbabwe - Another circuit, Kariba/Mana Pools, across via Matusadona to Vic Falls, Down to Bulawayo via Hwange (was called w
kie when I first visited Zimbabwe), Matopas, Great Zimbabwe Ruins. 3 weeks. - South Africa - Durban, there's a great trip you can go up the coast all the way to Mozambique - Hluhluwe-iMfolozi , Ndumo, couple of private game reserves, Kosi Bay, Sodwana Bay, St Lucia
- Botswana - Okavango delta - can be combined with Zimbabwe or Zambia. Vic Falls, Chobe, Okavango, Makgadikgadi, Francistown, Bulawayo.
If you want a real once in a lifetime trip, and have the time to do it, take a multi-month trip from Nairobi to Cape Town (or longer) - you will probably be able to see everything above if you did this..
Edited by nvubu on Thursday 7th December 17:51
It will save your marriage To keep my post short I'd basically echo everything nvubu has said above.
Think what's more important to you and we can then guide re destination.
For background I was born and grew up in Kenya for most of my life, go back there twice a year and have travelled from SA up back to Kenya.
For a generous budget and more "natural" experience, my recommendations would be the Okavanga Delta in Botswana or the conservancies in the Mara (Kenya), or if feeling really flush the main reserve during Migration. You won't forget it easily and may end up wanting to do it again. Gorilla trekking in Uganda or Rwanda is also incredible but expensive and needs early planning for permits etc.
There are loads of small luxury and really personal camps dotted across the Mara that the likes of the big operators in UK for example miss out.
Tell us a little more what you want to get out of safari and will happily help.
I've also got a very good friend who organises bespoke trips to most of Africa across different budgets so happy to put you in touch. I don't get commission or anything out of it, she plans all my trips and I've never been disappointed. In fact we've become regular residents of a little known but incredible camp as a result. We're taking our 1.5 year old for his first safari in a couple of weeks. Excited but worried he will want to go pet the lions.
Think what's more important to you and we can then guide re destination.
For background I was born and grew up in Kenya for most of my life, go back there twice a year and have travelled from SA up back to Kenya.
For a generous budget and more "natural" experience, my recommendations would be the Okavanga Delta in Botswana or the conservancies in the Mara (Kenya), or if feeling really flush the main reserve during Migration. You won't forget it easily and may end up wanting to do it again. Gorilla trekking in Uganda or Rwanda is also incredible but expensive and needs early planning for permits etc.
There are loads of small luxury and really personal camps dotted across the Mara that the likes of the big operators in UK for example miss out.
Tell us a little more what you want to get out of safari and will happily help.
I've also got a very good friend who organises bespoke trips to most of Africa across different budgets so happy to put you in touch. I don't get commission or anything out of it, she plans all my trips and I've never been disappointed. In fact we've become regular residents of a little known but incredible camp as a result. We're taking our 1.5 year old for his first safari in a couple of weeks. Excited but worried he will want to go pet the lions.
Going back over 10 years now, but we did Tanzania's northern circuit (the tradiitonal one), think we had 7-8 days on safari all in all, which was about right.
MAY have changed, but we worked out that if you book the package deals, you tend to end up in a mixed-occupancy 4x4 or often-as-not one of those open-side trucks with c.20 people on board.
If you went to an organsier directly, you'd get a dedicated 4x4 (Land Cruiser with pop-up roof usually) + driver/spotter, and have an itinerary to your own specifications, including dawn* and dusk drives if you wanted. UK-based organisers exist, giving ABTA protection, but charging their mark-up. Local organisers exist, and if you take time to find a reputed one, the risk is low. We did this, meant we got a longer, personalised safari for a mass-market price.
...and whilst we've nothing to compare it to (Kruger and Zambia would both be very cool), Tanzania in September (slightly off-season as the great migration is still in the Masai Mara across the border) was still really good.
- Tarangire was a quiet lead-in, but had loads of elephants.
- Lake Manyara (sp?) was a little underwhelming unless dozens of hippos all in one spot and various monkeys are your thing. Cool, but definitely not the main event.
- Serengeti was just superb, but it's big enough to split into at least two, the main southern bit being the most travelled (but only once did we see much other traffic - 4 other 4x4s around a cheetah-with-kill (1/2 a warthog) which then got stolen by a lion, the rest of the time it was just us, maybe another 4x4 nearby), but also the most populated with animals and with the most wide-open-plains a-la TV shows. Multiple lion prides, another cheetah chasing gazelles, buffalo, zebra everywhere, etc etc. And then there's the quieter north, where we chanced upon a leopard in a tree, loitered and watched it sleep/chill for 20-30 minutes, then get leisurely up, stalk into a hidden gully and come out the other side dragging a gazelle/antelope by the neck. Oh, and the advance guard of a few thousand wildebeest starting to migrate south from the Masai Mara.
- Ngorongoro by comparison was smaller but epic in its own way - a HUGE caldera that you can just about see end-to-end, with probably the biggest variety of wildlife in there - pretty much everything from down on the plains except elephants and giraffes, plus stuff (black rhino, marabou stork) that we hadn't seen so-far.
It was dry, and dusty, and hot, and our (mainly mid-range) accommodation was hardly 4*. But it was bloody awesome...still one of our best holidays.
* This is a good plan - animals are more active when it's cooler, as a rule.
MAY have changed, but we worked out that if you book the package deals, you tend to end up in a mixed-occupancy 4x4 or often-as-not one of those open-side trucks with c.20 people on board.
If you went to an organsier directly, you'd get a dedicated 4x4 (Land Cruiser with pop-up roof usually) + driver/spotter, and have an itinerary to your own specifications, including dawn* and dusk drives if you wanted. UK-based organisers exist, giving ABTA protection, but charging their mark-up. Local organisers exist, and if you take time to find a reputed one, the risk is low. We did this, meant we got a longer, personalised safari for a mass-market price.
...and whilst we've nothing to compare it to (Kruger and Zambia would both be very cool), Tanzania in September (slightly off-season as the great migration is still in the Masai Mara across the border) was still really good.
- Tarangire was a quiet lead-in, but had loads of elephants.
- Lake Manyara (sp?) was a little underwhelming unless dozens of hippos all in one spot and various monkeys are your thing. Cool, but definitely not the main event.
- Serengeti was just superb, but it's big enough to split into at least two, the main southern bit being the most travelled (but only once did we see much other traffic - 4 other 4x4s around a cheetah-with-kill (1/2 a warthog) which then got stolen by a lion, the rest of the time it was just us, maybe another 4x4 nearby), but also the most populated with animals and with the most wide-open-plains a-la TV shows. Multiple lion prides, another cheetah chasing gazelles, buffalo, zebra everywhere, etc etc. And then there's the quieter north, where we chanced upon a leopard in a tree, loitered and watched it sleep/chill for 20-30 minutes, then get leisurely up, stalk into a hidden gully and come out the other side dragging a gazelle/antelope by the neck. Oh, and the advance guard of a few thousand wildebeest starting to migrate south from the Masai Mara.
- Ngorongoro by comparison was smaller but epic in its own way - a HUGE caldera that you can just about see end-to-end, with probably the biggest variety of wildlife in there - pretty much everything from down on the plains except elephants and giraffes, plus stuff (black rhino, marabou stork) that we hadn't seen so-far.
It was dry, and dusty, and hot, and our (mainly mid-range) accommodation was hardly 4*. But it was bloody awesome...still one of our best holidays.
* This is a good plan - animals are more active when it's cooler, as a rule.
I’ve been quite a few times mostly to South Africa but also Namibia and Botswana.
I love the Kruger. We’ve been to the same place (Rhino Post) twice this year. The second time we did the walking safari they offer, a different type of safari and as a rule you’ll see less by virtue of you covering less ground but it’s pretty special when you do encounter big animals. We got charged by a pregnant elephant who wanted to be where we were walking, that was exciting.
Budget wise I’ve nearly done it all (I’m not rich). Self driven Kruger staying outside the park, slept in a tent in the Okavango and Etosha and stayed in luxury tented camps. You really can spend anywhere between bugger all and thousands per night at the top end. Our latest ones pitched it about right for my tastes, not over the top luxury just comfortable accommodation close to Skukuza airport in the park (the best airport I’ve ever been through), I think if memory serves it was about £650 per night.
If you do Kruger and you want to do more than the usual 3-4 days consider staying in two different locations, transfers are readily available. For something slightly cool and a bit unusual you can stay on the Shalati train which sits on the bridge over the Sabie River in Skukuza. You can fly direct to Cape Town from there for a bit of civilisation and lie ins after the early starts.
I love the Kruger. We’ve been to the same place (Rhino Post) twice this year. The second time we did the walking safari they offer, a different type of safari and as a rule you’ll see less by virtue of you covering less ground but it’s pretty special when you do encounter big animals. We got charged by a pregnant elephant who wanted to be where we were walking, that was exciting.
Budget wise I’ve nearly done it all (I’m not rich). Self driven Kruger staying outside the park, slept in a tent in the Okavango and Etosha and stayed in luxury tented camps. You really can spend anywhere between bugger all and thousands per night at the top end. Our latest ones pitched it about right for my tastes, not over the top luxury just comfortable accommodation close to Skukuza airport in the park (the best airport I’ve ever been through), I think if memory serves it was about £650 per night.
If you do Kruger and you want to do more than the usual 3-4 days consider staying in two different locations, transfers are readily available. For something slightly cool and a bit unusual you can stay on the Shalati train which sits on the bridge over the Sabie River in Skukuza. You can fly direct to Cape Town from there for a bit of civilisation and lie ins after the early starts.
Went earlier this year to Kenya.
Plan was made with a few agents in Kenya and have a friend out there that does photo safaris.
I wsa taking my family and my parents so the photo safari wasn't right on this ocassion but took advice from my friend there alongside the agents.
The one place that I really wanted to stay was a place called ENTIM - unfortunately, it ws not available for the time we were there.
Stayed at 3 different places (at least 2 nights in each) with a driver who picked us up from Nairobi airport and took us around, then dropped us back to Nairobi. (We spent 6 days in Mombassa after).
We went at the end of July to see the migration and were fortunate to catch it - heard stories of some fol who were there for days and didn't see the animals crossing.
Managed to see lions, rhinos, multiple elephants, giraffes, leopards and cheetahs.
|https://thumbsnap.com/ggPyFD5Z[/url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/oYgrnCPE[/url]
Would happily go again and spend some more 6 days safari and some time in Nairobi - it seemed an interesting city.[url][url]
Plan was made with a few agents in Kenya and have a friend out there that does photo safaris.
I wsa taking my family and my parents so the photo safari wasn't right on this ocassion but took advice from my friend there alongside the agents.
The one place that I really wanted to stay was a place called ENTIM - unfortunately, it ws not available for the time we were there.
Stayed at 3 different places (at least 2 nights in each) with a driver who picked us up from Nairobi airport and took us around, then dropped us back to Nairobi. (We spent 6 days in Mombassa after).
We went at the end of July to see the migration and were fortunate to catch it - heard stories of some fol who were there for days and didn't see the animals crossing.
Managed to see lions, rhinos, multiple elephants, giraffes, leopards and cheetahs.
|https://thumbsnap.com/ggPyFD5Z[/url]|https://thumbsnap.com/oYgrnCPE[/url]Would happily go again and spend some more 6 days safari and some time in Nairobi - it seemed an interesting city.[url][url]
Some great advice so far.
If the desire is for a once in a lifetime trip I’d put Botswana at the top of the list. A lot of Botswana safaris are at private concessions meaning they have full, private, access to the whole area and means they can go off track which makes for some amazing experiences;
sitting 5 metres away from a lion pride finishing an antelope
Being next to a hyena den with the cubs chewing on the jeeps tires.
Hanging out with a leopard and cub for an hour.
Plus there is often a mix of boats, walking and jeeps and typically just your vehicle or worst case another 1-2.
While safaris at national parks often restrict vehicles to the roads and when some animal is found a horde of vehicles flock to it which removes a lot of the specialness of it and can drive off or stress the animal in some circumstances.
Botswana is an expensive option but one way to reduce cost is to go in the green season, wetter and animals slightly harder to spot but if you are staying at a camp with good guides they will find them.
I’d find a Safari specialist and go through your options with them to get an idea. A Safari is a unique experience, I’d say on most holidays you have a few special moments, on Safari it’s pretty much every time you go out, so 2-3 times a day.
If the desire is for a once in a lifetime trip I’d put Botswana at the top of the list. A lot of Botswana safaris are at private concessions meaning they have full, private, access to the whole area and means they can go off track which makes for some amazing experiences;
sitting 5 metres away from a lion pride finishing an antelope
Being next to a hyena den with the cubs chewing on the jeeps tires.
Hanging out with a leopard and cub for an hour.
Plus there is often a mix of boats, walking and jeeps and typically just your vehicle or worst case another 1-2.
While safaris at national parks often restrict vehicles to the roads and when some animal is found a horde of vehicles flock to it which removes a lot of the specialness of it and can drive off or stress the animal in some circumstances.
Botswana is an expensive option but one way to reduce cost is to go in the green season, wetter and animals slightly harder to spot but if you are staying at a camp with good guides they will find them.
I’d find a Safari specialist and go through your options with them to get an idea. A Safari is a unique experience, I’d say on most holidays you have a few special moments, on Safari it’s pretty much every time you go out, so 2-3 times a day.
We did an overland tour in a large off road converted truck thing. Very popular. My advice is don't.
Being stuck with 16 or so people for two weeks on long dusty shaky drives was testing to say the least. Make no mistake , we had a fab time (SA-Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe) but some of the other travellers were selfish and annoying. We were so glad to be free of them all once we reached Zimbabwe.
We had a giant cool box in the truck which each couple took it in turns to buy the ice for. Several never did. 5L water bottles were not allowed in the ice box due to not enough space - several repeatedly ignored this leaving no space for others. WHen I filled it with ice one day, a lady was so impatient she rammed her water bottles on my hand as I was still loading it. I actually told her off :-)
A few of the more senior travellers ganged up on one solo lady traveller, always singling her out. She abandoned the trip part way through :-(
At one evening meal we were a few mins later to sit than everyone else. ALL the meat stew was gone! They left two potatoes for us.
One couple left several hundred dollars in their room in Namibia, and were surprised to find it went missing... They spread a rumour it must have been us as we were the younger back Packers.
People can be st :-). Luckily, Africa makes up for it.
Being stuck with 16 or so people for two weeks on long dusty shaky drives was testing to say the least. Make no mistake , we had a fab time (SA-Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe) but some of the other travellers were selfish and annoying. We were so glad to be free of them all once we reached Zimbabwe.
We had a giant cool box in the truck which each couple took it in turns to buy the ice for. Several never did. 5L water bottles were not allowed in the ice box due to not enough space - several repeatedly ignored this leaving no space for others. WHen I filled it with ice one day, a lady was so impatient she rammed her water bottles on my hand as I was still loading it. I actually told her off :-)
A few of the more senior travellers ganged up on one solo lady traveller, always singling her out. She abandoned the trip part way through :-(
At one evening meal we were a few mins later to sit than everyone else. ALL the meat stew was gone! They left two potatoes for us.
One couple left several hundred dollars in their room in Namibia, and were surprised to find it went missing... They spread a rumour it must have been us as we were the younger back Packers.
People can be s
t :-). Luckily, Africa makes up for it.Gassing Station | Holidays & Travel | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff