Holidays to Namibia always conjure up the most amazing images! Namibia is a stunningly beautiful country of endless deserted landscapes and wide horizons. One can describe Namibia in colours: from the red and orange sand dunes to the white austere saltpans of Etosha or from the green forests of the Caprivi through golden grasslands to the dramatically dark blue of the Atlantic Ocean. Almost the entire country is covered in the desert sands of the Kalahari or Namib, both of which have a stark beauty and vibrancy. Visitors to this lovely country encounter a vast landscape of mirage-cloaked sand dunes and extraordinary geographical and geological beauty whilst staying at remote and isolated camps and lodges, all wrapped in breathtaking vistas and crystal clear skies.

Coming from Namibia, I have seen every facet of this awesome country and my favourite areas are the Skeleton Coast, the Namib Desert and the Caprivi Strip but there is so much more and given enough time, one can assemble a truly varied safari. Perhaps travel by road or (to cover the vast distances) air, incorporating some adventurous wild camping, guided by one of Namibia’s top guides in the Damaraland/Kaokoland region, with surprising and beautiful properties harmoniously blended into the environment. Learn all about the local culture of the Herero and Himba tribes. Search on foot for the desert dwelling rhino and elephant, who travel such huge distances in search of water, or perhaps even the desert lion – an incredibly adaptable species by itself. Spend time with the last vestige of Bushmen or San people and learn about their way of life. Namibia is not archetypal Africa, and anyone coming to see the concentrations of wildlife should look elsewhere, but for people who love space, who love deserts and seeing the ‘little things’ as well as the harsh environment that the larger creatures have to live in, who love big vistas and panoramas – who simply want their breaths to be taken away by the magical scenery as well as a truly different and unique experience – then this country is for you!

Walking with San people

Luxury Safari and South Africa are two words you would often see used in a sentence. South Africa, of all the African countries, lends itself most to those seeking a luxury safari as well as a diversity of things to do to combine with a safari, whether it be Cape Town, the winelands, Kwa Zulu Natal, Mpumalanga, beaches or the garden route. Most of the lodges in the Kruger Park are incredibly luxurious, some even opulent, with service, quality of guiding and cuisine being at the forefront, as well as the standard of accommodation. From private swimming pools, to butler service for each villa, right down to more simple but tastefully designed luxury tents.

The best parks for seeing wildlife undoubtedly tend to be the Kruger, followed by the Natal Parks, Umfolozi, Mkuze, Hluhluwe and the private reserves, so often overlooked, yet absolutely beautiful and with excellent wildlife. The Cape, too, has its wildlife parks, although the game is introduced, and of course, it also offers malaria free regions for parents with small children or perhaps women who are pregnant who cannot visit malarial regions. Other malaria free regions include Madikwe, Welgevonden and the Waterberg Mountains. And a luxury safari to South Africa doesn’t end at safaris, either! Many visitors to South Africa have commented on the unexpectedly high standard of accommodation throughout, from a lowly b and b, to a Relais et Chateaux, so if comfort is important to you, then this is the country to visit! Some of our clients like to mix a bit of luxury with a complete contrast, such as white water rafting or canoeing down the Orange River, camping en route. White water rafting we can add before your safari in the Kruger, because it occurs in the same region. Otherwise, some of the most exciting white water rafting occurs on the Tugela River, boasting clean rivers, dams and lakes. It is also fantastic on the Mkomazi River and the season is from May to November. We can arrange all sorts of truly superb white water rafting or canoeing trips for those with a spirit of adventure!

In terms of pure luxury, some countries tend to lend themselves more than others to a luxury safari What constitutes luxury? Is it a hot shower to step into at the end of the day? Is it a wonderful bath that has been poured for you, complete with candles to relax and soothe your muscles? Is it purely in terms of accommodation? Is it being able to have quality time by yourself? We have several clients who have travelled with us for twenty years, who insist on staying at ‘nothing but the very best’ and we have a long list for you too! In Namibia, you can sleep in a beautiful room in the desert, with windows in the ceilings so you can look at the night sky above your head at all times! They also happen to have the most amazing telescope and professionals to guide you through our solar system! Or, you can sleep in a gorgeous room in the desert with no windows at all, so the dunes encapsulate you! In Botswana, lay back in your Victorian roll bath with antique persian rugs surrounding you, watching elephants browse outside your tent and then ride them the following day (should you wish)! In Kenya, have your own camp set up for you wherever you wish, complete with private helicopter. In Zambia, sit in your villa close to Victoria Falls, perhaps having a champagne lunch on Livingstone Island with the Falls in the background, complete with a permanent rainbow? In South Africa, we have the most perfect luxury villas and character hotels in the Cape where you can watch the waves pounding on the Atlantic Ocean. Have the very best wine tasting sessions in the Cape winelands with the cellar masters at the most exclusive wine estates. Walk with the finest walking guides in Zambia and Zimbabwe, knowledge being paramount! Have a privately guided flying safari around Africa. Whatever your vision of luxury is, we can realise your dream for you!

The most outstanding experience in Uganda, of course, must be seeing
and “meeting” the primates – in particular the Mountain Gorilla and the chimpanzees – there is no greater experience than gorilla trekking in Uganda. One can track them in Bwindi and Magahinga. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is one of the most scenically beautiful places in Uganda, if not on this earth. I tracked a group of 23 Mountain Gorillas, including two silverbacks and two blackbacks. As with the chimps, watching these huge but gentle creatures move and interact withone another, using such human gestures, is a wonderful experience.

There are only 320 gorillas left in the park and there is a lovely little owner managed farmhouse where one can stay with the most incredible views over the nearby lakes. The gorillas are also coming back into Magahinga and there are greater areas of clearing to view them from here. This is one of life’s great must do’s – to come within a few feet of these magnificent primates and be allowed to study them for an hour at a time,is one of the most privileged and awe-inspiring experiences I have ever had in my lifetime. I urge you to do the same, Gorilla trekking in Uganda is fantastic!

Kate last week returned from Madagascar – although it was more Business Madagascar than Holiday Madagascar!

She found a little bit of paradise – called Manafiafy! Truly this is one of the best lodges she has ever been to and somewhere you can escape to for peace and quiet. Manafiafy has so many positives! It’s remote; it’s unspoilt; the setting is idyllic, the food – well every guest is given lobster from the bay! You have a private beach for only six people but the beaches on either side – some 20 miles and 30 miles plus, are deserted bar a few fishing villages spaced 10 miles apart; the staff are the most knowledgeable in the country; there’s wildlife – lemurs, chameleons etc; there’s adventure- whale watching / walking/swimming, fishing, surfing – bring your own boards; and this is for families and couples alike. Manafiafy lies 52 kilometres from Fort Dauphin and is set in a bay on the coast. Behind and between a dominating mountain range and the sea, lies a belt of mangrove and littoral forest, waterways and lagoons, open savannahs, with pitcher plants, local farmers and fishermen. There is a large set of rocks complete with rock pools – both fresh and seawater to the right of the lodge, where the local fishermen harvest mussels for your table an hour later.

The beach of white sand is literally littered with shells and there are banks of them 30 inches deep in places – this keeps all children amused ( and some adults too!) The wooden watch tower sits atop the mangroves and during the whale watching season June to October, you can spend a lazy morning counting them as they pass by close to the shore line. Perhaps take a boat to the sacred island for a picnic after asking permission for the locals.

In the nearby forests, take a nocturnal walk with a knowledgeable guide to see eastern woolly lemurs, brown lemur, grey mouse lemur and greater dwarf lemurs and lastly small toothed sportive lemurs, as well as chameleons and insects. The mangroves are home to an array of birds- Madagascar malachite kingfishers, hawks, Kestrels, purple grey and black herons, whistling ducks, fulvous ducks, hottentot teals, green sunbirds and sumanga sunbirds whilst fishermen catch crayfish and fresh water shrimp.

Finish each day with a chilled glass of your tipple on the beach with the sound of the waves and under palm trees as you view the sun setting in front of you – another day in paradise!

An update on the recently flooded elephant research station in Samburu, belonging to Dr Iain Douglas-Hamilton, world authority on the African Elephant and Elephant Watch Camp in Samburu where one can have the most wonderful elephant safaris Whilst I was in Kenya in March 2010, I witnessed the extraordinary flooding of the Samburu region. Some of the camps were affected, such as Oria Douglas-Hamilton’s gorgeous Elephant Watch Camp as well as the Research Centre. Luckily they were able to retrieve all the data. Oria is in the midst of redoing her amazing camp with her inimitable style, I recently received an e mail from her saying  “things like a new solar system is SO expensive, but I have managed to get that  and other new things to start up again.  The camp is just about ready to be dressed up  at the end of week I will go up with my friends and we will hang and drape all its fineries” And what fineries! This is one of our favourite camps in Samburu and everyone should visit it! Oria’s cuisine is spectacular, she grows everything on her farm in Lake Naivasha and the cooks are simply amazing! In fact, I had better Italian food here than at some of the best restaurants in London!

The exotic Elephant Watch Camp is perched on the sand banks of the Ewaso Nyiro River, beneath big Kigelia trees and Acacia Elatiors. This area is home to some of the largest bulls in Samburu, which can often be spotted resting under an acacia tree or picking pods beside the tents. The trees are filled with a multitude of birds and monkeys; at dawn a gentle chorus echoes overhead announcing the new day in the wild.

Elephant Watch is very eco-friendly and has been specially constructed for comfort and coolness, accommodating a maximum of ten guests with its wide and breezy desert tents. These latter are individually styled, draped with colourful cloth and unusual furniture. Bathrooms are built around trees, giving guests a novel washing experience with plenty of sun heated water and light. You can visit the Save The Elephant Research Centre and for a donation, learn more about these gentle creatures.

Everything about Elephant Watch is a feast for the senses, with bright swathes of cotton fanning in the breeze, huge cushioned sofas, woven local mats and special beds and furniture made from fallen trees.  Books, films and information on Elephants are provided for guests. At night, flame torches and lanterns light up the camp along the river. Baboons call out as leopards stalk, while lions and elephants are always nearby. It is the only camp of its kind in Samburu. Elephant Watching begins on arrival! Their film is out on Animal Planet this week in the US.

Iain recently released the following press release:  For the first time elephants have been found to produce an alarm call associated with the threat of bees, and have been shown to retreat when a recording of the call is played even when there are no bees around.

A team of scientists from Oxford University, Save the Elephants, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, made the discovery as part of an ongoing study of elephants in Kenya. They report their results in the journal PLoS One.

I was remembering the last time Nicky and I were in Lamu and I thought it would be a good idea to remind everyone that there are many reasons to look for holiday villas to rent in Lamu, but now is an excellent and perhaps unrepeatable time to be focusing on this specific place. Why? There are plans for considerable development of a new port just to the north……

Dhows Trade To Lamu Beach Where AfricanExplorations.com Have Holiday Villas To Rent

Lamu is one of the last, very ancient, so-called “Arab-Swahili” trading towns on the East African coast. The most northerly of the main trading ports of Kenya, Lamu Town is on the east side of the island of the same name which is just to the west of Kenya’s mainland. Sheltered from the open ocean – for which reason the town became a port many centuries ago – Lamu Island is almost surrounded by the others in its Archipelago: Manda, Kiwayu and Pate Islands.

Lamu Town today remains virtually unchanged and unspoiled. The waterfront, the narrow alleys, the market and the buildings are all much as they were centuries ago and it is this peaceful avoidance of time, underscored by the flotillas of dhows gently riding the swell in the creek and the fact that the population could have come straight out of the middle ages, that gives Lamu its extraordinary character.

Villa To Rent Lamu Island Shela Village - Behind Old Arab Doors - Safari by by AfricanExplorations.com

For those who want to be immersed in the life of the town African Explorations have a few select and authentic villas and houses right in the town itself however Shela village, an equally characterful little place, is just 10 minutes walk from Lamu Town and is not only quieter but is also only 400 yards from a long and pristine stretch of Lamu beach that opens out onto the southerly bay and ocean. To our minds this is the best of both worlds if one wants to be in an old town or village environment and, again, we have excellent properties available here which are also full of charm and authentic local flavour.

The alternative is to take one of the seven superb villas available on a long stretch of beach on the west side of Lamu Island. This group of villas are rented completely privately and individually so, being of varying size, they are suitable for couples or larger families or groups. Each property is fully staffed with a chef, butler and boat captain (a speedboat is included in the rate) and it is our experience that these properties offer the best of all worlds: plenty to do, superb private accommodation, great food and access to Lamu Town for those that wish.

Call us now at Nicola Shepherd’s African Explorations on 01993 822443 or mail us at info@africanexplorations.com for more details on this wonderful selection of holiday villas to rent in Lamu.

A luxury safari in Kenya will encapsulate the essence of what a safari should be all about as the country is such a broad-ranging and capable African safari destination. Kenya has a reputation for being “busy” but a properly planned trip will eschew any mass market influences and remain true to tradition, thus being a genuine adventure whilst cocooning travellers within a very high quality experience.

Lion in the Mara, Luxury Safari Kenya by AfricanExplorations.com

Luxury safari Kenya accommodation will be lovely yet, again, down to earth and genuine as we usually choose camps and lodges which are owner-run for our clients. This ensures highly personable hosting with some of the best guiding in Africa. We have many favourites amongst the plethora of places available in the bush but Richards Camp and Serian in the Mara and Sosian up on the Laikipia Plateau are very special to us.

Interior of Richards Luxury Kenya Safari Camp, from Nicola Shepherd's AfricanExplorations.com

Activities available in the bush are legion: from gameviewing, including special interest such as elephant research or lion tracking, to horse riding, mountain biking, hiking/walking, fishing, rafting, photography, flycamping, camel riding, art classes, archery, swimming in mountain streams or just relaxing…….Kenya has enough to satisfy any aficionado of the bush.

Riding On The Plains on a Luxury Kenya Safari by AfricanExplorations.com

On the coast the same applies, every conceivable watersport is there but the offshore waters, including the Pemba Channel (which is actually mostly off Tanzania), are home to some of the world’s best sportfishing. Lamu is (still) an unspoiled example of ancient Arah-Swahili architecture and trading culture with the beaches north of this ancient trading town being superlative; Kiwayu is one of our favourites up here.

Kiwayu, Luxury Beach in Kenya by AfricanExplorations.com

Finally, Kenya’s culture is a very important part of the whole; the country’s peoples and tribes, which include the nilotic Masai and Samburu as well as many other tribes and immigrants from both the Indian subcontinent and Europe, are friendly yet proud and it is their personality that gives Kenya its immense character.

Call us now to talk about an utterly individual luxury safari in Kenya on 01993 822443 or email us at info@africanexploratons.com

We talked yesterday about Botswana as a potential add-on to South African “WorldCuppery” but here’s another thought: Holidays  Malawi come with their own brand of utter individualism and, crucially, character.

Malawi has a very deserved reputation for being the “warm heart of Africa”. Travel in Malawi is fun; the inhabitants are lovely, very relaxed and friendly, so, with direct flights from Johannesburg, this relatively small and very scenic lake-and-highland-dominated republic makes either an interesting addition to a South Africa trip or a great stand-alone destination.

Travel in Malawi is Scenically Lovely - Safari in Malawi with AfricanExplorations.com

This is not a game rich country so a safari in Malawi will not only be “about animals”, actually the reverse is rather the case as the culture, birding, flora, activities on the lake (more in a moment on that), hiking/walking and riding are all just as important in the overall mix of things to do. There’s also an international pop festival each year. Lodges in Malawi are not super-luxury but, with some exceptionally comfortable places to stay both on and off the lake, they range from adequate to really good without being “over the top”.

Wildlife in Malawi - Nyika Plateau. A Holiday in Malawi by AfricanExplorations.com

But it is the lake that dominates, taking up about one fifth of the lozenge-shaped country’s area. Called the “calendar lake because of its (very) rough dimensions of 360 miles long by 50 or so wide, the crystal clear fresh waters are home to a mass of tropical fish (cyclids) so normal water activities such as waterskiing, kayaking, canoeing and sailing are complemented by superb goggling and scuba diving. The yellow sand beaches also invite one to just….relax…….

Malawi Is Incomplete Without a Visit to the Lake! Holidays To Malawi by AfricanExplorations.com

Come and try Malawi – accommodating, friendly, scenic and so very chilled; you won’t be disappointed. Zambia/Malawi or Mozambique/Malawi is also easily achievable (and suitable for a luxury honeymoon) so call us now on 01993 822443 or mail at info@africanexplorations.com to discuss a holiday in Malawi that is completely tailored to your own requirements.

Well, of course the World Cup is coming up – love it or not (and we won’t be drawn on that one!) – but there are other reasons to visit southern Africa, whether entwined around the soccer or as a stand-alone safari; in either case an Okavango Delta Safari in Botswana will surpass all expectations.

Why the Delta and why that time of year? June/July is a wonderful time of year to go: the temperatures are “just right”, the grasses have died back so the gameviewing is excellent and the Delta, fed by the slow seepage of rainwaters falling in the Angolan highlands some months before, ought to be flooding so water levels should be good. It’s an excellent time of year for a Botswana luxury safari generally, but the Delta is the jewel.

A Luxury African Safari Camp - Okavango Delta Safari by AfricanExplorations.com

The accommodation in the Delta is lovely, ranging from highly luxurious, permanent, small (some very) and amiable tented camps to genuine mobile safaris, the latter being great fun and a “must” at some stage for every safari lover. All are superbly guided but there are some highlights that we will especially mention below.

Luxury African Safari - Mekoro Ride During an Okavango Delta Safari by AfricanExplorations.com

The Okavango Delta is excellent for activities ranging from game drives, mekoro trips (this is the minimal-draught poled canoe that is ubiquitous to the Delta), wonderful walking, boating or stand-alone houseboat trips, horse riding and special interest activities such as the superb and uncontrived elephant interaction that we love introducing our clients to.  Here, in company with Doug Groves who is one of Africa’s leading cognoscenti on elephant behavior, one can really get close to and just start to understand these huge, gentle and wonderful  mammals; this is another experience that is, honestly, unmissable.

Superb Uncontrived Elephant Interaction - Okavango Delta Safari by AfricanExplorations.com

The Delta is a short flight from the Kalahari Desert (and especially the  Makgadikgadi Pans) or, i f  one wishes to go to the ocean, Mozambique is an easy journey via Johannesburg.  Otherwise Botswana is bordered by South Africa, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe so there are plenty of “add on” options to an Okavango Delta Safari! Call us now on 01993 822443 or email at info@africanexplorations.com to discuss a uniquely tailored Botswana luxury safari.