Safaris come of age
Go on horseback or by balloon, boat or plane: the choice is wide
NOT so long ago, going on safari meant riding around in a jeep. You can still do that, the jeeps having evolved into purpose-built safari vehicles, but there are now more ways to go on safari than ever before.
There are luxury safari lodges, family lodges, walking safaris with armed rangers. You can drift over Kenya’s Masai Mara in a hot-air balloon, see wildlife from horseback or a dugout canoe in Botswana. Safari camps accessible only by light aircraft even offer a bonus “Out of Africa’’ viewing experience.
A typical day is bookended by “game drives” at dawn and dusk, when the animals tend to be most active, with plenty of time in between for meals, a bit ofR’ n’ R and other activities back at camp or the lodge. How long you go for will depend on your budget, but aim for at least four or five days to give yourself time to adjust to the early starts and minimise “wildlife fatigue”.
Which country should I go to?
The “big seven” safari destinations in Africa are South Africa (for Kruger National Park and Sabi Sand Game Reserve), Tanzania (for Serengeti National Park and Ngorogoro Crater), Kenya (the Masai Mara), Botswana (the Okavango Delta) and Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
Australian travellers don’t need tourist visas to visit South Africa, Botswana or Namibia; Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe issue tourist visas on arrival. Make sure you have at least two blank pages in your passport – you can be refused entry if there’s not enough space for an arrival stamp.
When to travel
June to October is regarded as “safari season” in southern and East Africa. This is also roughly when the Great Migration happens: more than a million wildebeest and 200,000 zebras and other grazers, with an entourage of lions and other predators, march en masse between the two largest wildlife reserves in Africa, from Tanzania’s Serengeti Plains to the Masai Mara in Kenya and back again. (The exact timing depends on the onset of monsoonal rains each year.)
Take caution
There’s a reason it’s called “wildlife”. The animals you’ll see on safari, even in reserves and national parks, are wild and many of them are dangerous predators. That said, safari operators take every precaution to keep you safe by giving you a few rules for game drives and providing guards who patrol camps and lodges and can even escort you back to your room after dark in case of an unexpected close encounter with a leopard or baboon. Self-drive safaris occasionally make the news, but are safe if you obey a few simple but essential guidelines such as keeping the windows up and the doors locked, never leaving your vehicle and not harassing the animals.