FR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park by Grey World Nomads
Kgalagadi is a unique destination, a game park in a arid region. The wildlife is spectacular, albight the absence of elephants, crocodiles and hippos. Therefore there are stunning sightings of cats. The road infrastructure is fair and the camps have everything you need - from accommodation to food.
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Amboseli National Park by Vinay
Being a smaller park it does not have much of a bush vibe but offers plenty in term of wildlie, birds and scenic beauty. Kilimanjaro stands tall on clear mornings. Good place for birding enthusiasts, the marsh offers opportunity to spot storks and water birds.
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Red bushy Tsavo
Along with the eastern portion the Tsavo National Park is around 20,000 square kilometers, dwarfing the more popular Masai Mara which is 1,510 square kilometers. Although Tsavo is a large park its vegetation may make game spotting a lot more difficult, and thus the popularity of Masai Mara. But Tsavo with its red soil, blue skies and black lava flows offers a unique beauty of its own. Even the animals are coloured red because of the soil! The Mzima spring was a first for me and it was intriguing to see water just appearing from the ground, and quite a bit of it! The water was so pure that we could drink straight from the spring!
If you have some luck on your side Tsavo can be a great place. It's sheer size means there is enough wildlife in the park, but you may have to be patient and spend more time here. Unlike animals, birds are a lot easier to spot and if you are into birding you will certainly not be disappointed.
One more interesting feature of the park is the "Shetani" lava flow. It was surreal to see the landscape suddenly change to dark black. In fact you can see the border between the red soil and the black soil from past volcanic eruptions clearly in certain spots.
IN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Sudhir
Just for the flamingo's....
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good introduction, but perhaps not quite "wild" enough
I went to the southern section, from Malelane gate up to Skukuza. This is probably one of the the most popular parts of the Kruger. Access is easy, there are many lodges close by. But popular means busy; this is not the wide open savannah, its relatively dense lowveld, and visitors must stay on the roads and tracks. There are sightings on the roads, and some good ones too, but as guides usually have radios to keep in touch and report sightings, anything interesting tends to be soon surrounded by a traffic jam! I had a two guides, one okay, and one great which helped a lot, but even then we didn't see any cats at all. That's just down to bad luck. :-( Overall whilst it was a great introduction to the whole safari experience, I found it felt "managed" and somewhat canned and commercialised. I wanted and still want a "wilder" safari experience.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about South Africa by Chris Boyce
Parks are relatively small and widely separated, few really "wide open spaces"; even the Kruger feels confined due to roads.
Overwhelming game.Safari heaven for first timers
I was overwhelmed by the vast numbers of game and superb birdlife in Chobe, the last of the 4 National Parks we had visited during our 10 day wild camping safari trip.Well, it's the perennial river isn't it? The lifeline of water which sustains truly enormous herds of elephant, buffalo, zebra and provides the ideal environment for Malachite Kingfishers and Fish Eagles. And which of course brings day trippers in their thousands into this easily accessible Park. We came into Chobe via the Ngoma Gate and had previously been in Moremi and Savute, classic Parks with iconic landscapes. It was a shock to gradually find a one way road system as we approached the most popular part of the Park and to be jostling past so many other vehicles, packed with first timers , eager to tick off the star sightings. Not that anyone could be disappointed in that.If you only have a day to fit in a safari (though why why why?)then Chobe Riverfront is THE place to come.
It's not got the iconic African landscapes of the Delta or Moremi and it hasn't got that wild bush feel, but it packs such a punch in terms of animals that you can't fail to be impressed. For a first timer, it must be safari heaven. I love lion and on our first morning drive, a male and female sauntered lazily past our vehicle, almost within touching distance;a young male began calling further off then followed the pair up into the shrubbery to find shade.
And this is where, like all National Parks, it can be frustrating because the rules mean no off roading, so unlike Sabi Sand or other private concessions, you can't follow them; you can only sit and watch as they disappear out of sight, thrilled at the encounter as ever but wanting more.
We chose Mosu Safari Tours for our 10 day safari trip, an excellent operator who assigned us Custard as our guide/driver and Kilos as our cook, with LT as camp assistant.They made our trip, really first class guys. A testament to their expertise, both Custard and Kilos had been employed by the BBC while they filmed their documentary about the lion pride that had learned to take down elephant.Custard knew everything there was to know about the animals and got us some incredible sightings and Kilos' cooking is well known as the stuff of legend.
One of the most thrilling moments of the whole trip came as we left Chobe by the Kasane Gate; just 100 yards away, resting beside the main road ,we spotted a pack of wild dogs with several puppies, a superb sight.
We took the Sunset Cruise with Thebe River Camp, where we stayed for two nights and fortunately found ourselves with just two other fellow birdwatchers.
I didn't think there was much else to see to be honest after 9 days and 15 or so Game Drives but the view from the river was wonderful.And the birdlife was mesmerising, with malachite kingfishers the highlight.The river bets very busy and there are some big, crowded boats around so it may be worth checking how many fellow passengers there are,depending on what you want out of it.
Being in the boat also gets you closer to the elephants,as they seemed to me much calmer round these than the vehicles.We followed a mother and calf as they swam back to shore, the baby using his trunk like a periscope.A beautiful sight.
Thebe River Camp was first class, with a nice bar area, spotless showers and toilets and well maintained.We enjoyed our stay here very much,especially after the wild sites we'd been in the rest of the trip.No hyenas at night! The camp is well protected by electric fencing so it's very safe.
We did our trip in mid till late September and this time , for me, was just too hot.40C or 104F in the shade.Like being in an oven.Next time - Green Season!
Review about Botswana by scotlandmac
I was a bit frustrated by the National Park rules on off roading and night drives.Using private concessions would get over this but they seem phenomenally expensive.
EG
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very good
The drivers were nice and helpful. The accommodation was decent. The trip was well-organized. The tour is worth it, and of course Massai Mara is amazing.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Enthralling, fun, helpful and professional guide. Destination (Lenana, Mt Kenya)
Mt Kenya was high on the to do list for friends and I. After a research on the Web, I came across Africkenia Safaris, went to their offices in Nairobi and soon-after a refreshing conversation I had with James (kiongozi) where he gave a breakdown on what to expect. The Mt Kenya Hike was fun and educative as the team of guides had lots of knowledge about the area and other stories (ask why Mt Kenya is referred to as Mt Zion by some). We made it to the summit, safe and sound. Thanks guys. My plan is to head back, now using the Chogoria route. I would recommend Africkenia anyone trying to get their safari or hike.