Often overlooked, there are some key ingredients to ensuring a safari – no matter if it is your first or your 50th safari – delivers everything you would like it to. When planning a safari there is a huge amount to consider; time of year, what wildlife might be seen, location, style of safari, budget, activities to be enjoyed and combinations of areas, to name but a few. Here are the six ingredients we think are vital when it comes to having a fabulous safari.
Guiding
Guiding is one of the most vital ingredients in determining the overall enjoyment of your safari. Your guide is more than an expert set of eyes – how they spot a chameleon, at night, on a small tree as you drive past is something I have never understood – they elevate your overall experience. Getting to know you and your interests, previous safaris enjoyed or first time safari goers, they adapt accordingly. Some may have a particular interest or knowledge in a certain area – for example birds, photography, trees, insects etc so it is always worth letting us know when you book so the camps can match you to the right guide.
Bringing the area to life and providing insights beyond the wildlife being seen – perhaps into the politics of the country, conservation efforts or a light hearted discussion over which car is best – Land Rover or Land Cruiser (it is a debate than will never end and everyone has an opinion!) brings another – sometimes unexpected – layer to your holiday. They will make you feel comfortable and safe whilst also putting you in the right place for the best possible experience.
Location
This might seem like an obvious ingredient, but it is also crucial and goes beyond the destination country. Different national parks, even within one country, may offer different experiences and wildlife to see. In addition the location of the camp itself within the area chosen is vital – for example some camps in the Okavango Delta may not be able to offer water-based activities during low water levels, whilst others would be able to. If a boat trip or mokoro would be on your list of activities you think you might enjoy this becomes an important factor when choosing the camp.
Location is particularly important if you are hoping to see a specific animal or enjoy a particular activity. Wildlife is of course, by its very nature, never guaranteed, but by letting us know about anything you particularly want to see or do enables us to put you in the best possible location to be able to succeed in this aim.
Patience
This might sound like a strange one, and is perhaps one of the most overlooked of all the key ingredients when it comes to an excellent safari. Patience on safari will often bring the best rewards. In my experience sitting and waiting in one location, perhaps by a waterhole, is richly rewarded as wildlife comes to you. Rushing around trying to see everything often results in sightings being missed. Slow things down and take your time, at a sighting or just as you progress through the bush – you never know what is around the next corner.
It is also in these moments – when you are just watching the world go by – that your discussions with your guide often bring the greatest rewards. You have the time to open a topic of conversation up, and friendships with your guide or others in the vehicle are made. It is not uncommon for people to come back from a safari with a plan to go on their next safari with new friends met on a previous trip.
Variety of activities
Wildlife viewing by vehicle is the most common activity and certainly offers the best opportunity to get close to the larger wildlife and see them at close quarters. You will also be able to cover far more ground as well of course. However, getting out of the vehicle and seeing wildlife from a different perspective is always a rewarding experience, and adds a different level to the overall experience.
Riders will love the opportunity to gallop across the open plains or the flood waters of the Okavango Delta, whilst walking safaris offer the opportunity to stretch your legs and see the smaller things often missed from a vehicle. Boating, canoeing, camel riding, quad biking, helicopter flights, mountain biking, fly-camping, conservation activities and hot air ballooning are just some of the myriad options on offer across the prime safari countries.
It is not uncommon, on a first safari, that people will expect to just take wildlife drives, and very often this is the primary activity. When at a camp you then discover another means of exploring Africa, opening up the possibilities and overall experience enjoyed.
Few other people
My personal bugbear is too many other vehicles and people when on a safari. In life I love interacting with others, but on a safari I would prefer not to see anyone else! This gives you the sense of being in the wilderness, discovering what nature wants to show you in an organic way and the silence it brings is wonderful.
Inevitably there will be others around – if you would like to see a river crossing of the wildebeest migration expect plenty of other vehicles – but away from these ‘wildlife events’ do not underestimate what a privilege it is to watch a cheetah and her cubs in the middle of the Masai Mara with no other vehicle in sight (and I was there in migration season when this happened).
Apart from the peace few others brings it is also, arguably, better for the actual wildlife as well. It is less stressed and has more freedom to be able to continue with its life undisturbed, which has to be better for it. This in turn does result in richer sightings for you. It is a win-win ingredient in a safari – and a vital one.
Many people assume that there are national parks in Africa where it is impossible to get off the beaten track – the Masai Mara is often the most commonly referenced parks for this – and you will always have other vehicles with you on safari. This is not the case and it comes back to location being all important – and where a knowledgeable tour operator can ensure you get the experience you hope for even in those parks which are in higher demand.
Logistics
There are two main ingredients when it comes to logisitics. Many people dream of seeing a number of different areas in Africa – for example, the Masai Mara, Victoria Falls, Cape Town, Kruger and Okavango Delta. However, combining all of these in one trip, especially if you only have a couple of weeks, will mean that you spend a lot of time in airports, on aeroplanes and with additional nights in cities due to the flight connection times. It is much better to keep within one geographical area, reduce the amount of time spent travelling between destinations and more time actually enjoying your safari.
Secondly, make sure the correct airstrip is booked! This sounds both simple and obvious but it is not unknown to hear someone who has tried to book a trip themselves only to discover they have booked their internal light aircraft flight to the incorrect airstrip. Areas such as the Masai Mara, Kruger, Okavango Delta, Serengeti and Hwange are so large that they have a number of different airstrips. Book the wrong one and your guide will not be there to meet you – and it may not be possible to easily put it right on the ground. This is just one area where using an experienced and knowledgeable tour operator is invaluable.
A safari, often seen as a ‘holiday of a lifetime’ will leave lasting memories, and in my own experience no two are ever the same, even from the same property on the same day. Each offers a memorable experience and getting the right ingredients, both in the planning and when on safari, ensures it is ‘the holiday of a lifetime’, albeit one which leaves an appetite for more!
If you would like to plan your first – or next – holiday in Africa or the Indian Ocean, please do get in touch with Lucinda, who would be delighted to help.
