Luxury safari Holidays are easily arranged in most  of Africa these days.

In Namibia, there are some idyllic lodges in the desert, where you have open sided rooms with magnificent vistas and windows in the ceilings where you can watch the stars. In Kenya, you have magnificent lodges which overlook Mount Kilimanjaro, where you can ride during the day, or simply relax and look out over these views. Perhaps you might like your own villa, set on three floors, with its very own ‘cool pool’.  Perhaps you would like your own farmhouse and private tented camp erected for you, flying in between with your own helicopter and aeroplanes at your disposal.

luxury safari Kenya from AfricanExplorations.com

In the Selous in southern Tanzania, take over your own house and spend the days walking, game viewing and boating on Lake Tagalala. In South Africa, take the children to a malaria free lodge in Madikwe, complete with its own private villa where you take the property in its entirety – purely for a couple of famillies or for those wanting space as well as their own butler and fantastic guide. Then, finish off at an exquisite villa in the Cape, overlooking the sea!

luxury safari Tanzania with AfricanExplorations.com

In the Serengeti, stay at a beautiful lodge or luxury tented camp with inspiring views of the wildebeest migration.

In Zimbabwe, there is a gorgeous lodge called Pamushana in a fantastic, game rich area. In Zambia, there are stunning lodges dotted all across the country, from the waters of the lower Zambezi, to the south Luangwa with its concentrations of wildlife, especially leopard, to Kafue and Livingstone.

luxury safaris to Botswana with AfricanExplorations.com

luxury South Africa holidays – South Africa is one of the easiest African countries in which to provide luxury holidays and safaris. Largely determined by a demanding and widely travelled market, South Africa still remains a world in one country. Few other countries in Africa can rival South Africa for its diversity in terms of experience.

luxury safari South Africa with AfricanExplorations.com

Whether it is going on safari in the Kruger National Park or in a non malarial region in the Cape or Waterberg region, or taking a family holiday which includes horse riding, rides on the back of an elephant whilst learning all about them and spending plenty of time on the beach, perhaps at the time when the leatherback and loggerhead turtles come to nest, what you will achieve, is a holiday of a lifetime.

Luxury Cape Town holidays with AfricanExplorations.com

Everyone who ever visits South Africa is astounded by the overall quality. Not only in terms of service, food and wine but also, the accommodation. From a lowly b and b to a Relais et Chateaux, that quality thread never disappears.

Luxury Cape Winelands with AfricanExplorations.com

South Africa also represents such good value for money! The country offers some of the most beautiful wine estates, complete with superb wine, fabulous restaurants, an easy, informal atmosphere and friendly, vibrant and positive people wherever you go! Whether one is looking for a romantic, remote retreat, a secluded, quiet beach, a spa, a safari, a thrilling horse riding safari, a vineyard, the garden route or visiting historical battlefields, this countryis for you – all in unabashed and indulgent comfort!

Botswana Luxury – the one word which is synonymous with Botswana is the workd luxury. I used to live in Botswana twenty years ago, in the Okavango Delta, assisting with the management of camps and working on a conservation project. Then, the tented camps, in my mind, were hugely luxurious – one had hot running water whenever one wished, a proper loo and one simply couldn’t wish for more! My oh my, how things have progressed! There are still the tented camps which are used for mobiles, or larger tented camps which are semi -permanent (they move after ten months to allow the vegetation to recover), but there has been a sea change, with the most amazing and extraordinary makeovers of what were some of the most simple camps. Typically, I am thinking about a small four tented camp, that used to be called Zibiliandja, which was bought out by Beverly and Derek Joubert who are Emmy award winning wildlife cinematographers and reincarnated to Zarafa. Zarafa is the smartest, most luxurious ‘camp’ in Botswana, situated in the glorious Linyanti region.

Zarafa Camp, luxury Botswana with AfricanExplorations.com

This breathtaking camp has four large and luxuriously appointed double or twin “marquis style” canvas tents that accommodate a maximum of eight guests. Each of the spacious tented rooms is expansive and is close on 100 square meters in size (or around 1000 square feet). Each tent has a spectacular view over the waterlily filled floodplains and savannah, while offering cool shade under acacia trees. Each tent comprises a spacious bedroom, an en-suite bathroom with copper bath, basins & shower and an outdoor shower lies at the end of a wooden walkway to the side of the tent.  The adjoining, comfortable lounge with writing desks, reference books, bar services and telescope lies in front of the private pool on the railway sleeper veranda. Each rooms has overhead fans. The beautiful handcrafted copper fireplace, is strategically placed between the bathroom and bedroom for use during the winter months. The furniture has been designed and handcrafted specifically for Zarafa Camp and is made from recycled ancient hardwoods. The Camp recently also decommissioned its generators and now runs purely on Solar Powered energy for both front of house and back of house operations. Each room is given its own Canon 4D camera to use at its disposal, too!

Zarafa Camp Botswana - Luxury Botswana with AfricanExplorations.com

Activities from camp include twice daily game drives and walks across the floodplains. In fact walking is encouraged as this is we feel one of the best ways to learn about the wildlife and one gains a totally different perspective of the environment. This area has a history of the nearby Kwando River flowing for a few years and then drying up which means that the vegetation and game movements are constantly changing too.   For the past three years the flood waters have poured back into the desert, which has transformed the land to one filled with wonderful birdlife. There are several prides of lions as wellas leopard and wilddog on the Selinda as well as lechwe, elephant and giraffe which is what the camp is named after.

Zarafa Camp Botswana - Luxury Botswana with AfricanExplorations.com

Luxury Kenya – something which is easily achievable! There are some truly beautiful lodges that have been recently built in Kenya. Top marks go to Ol Donyo Wuas, which is truly beautiful in the most wonderful location, facing Mount Kilimanjaro.

Ol Lentille with AfricanExplorations.com

The other place is Ol Lentille located between Laikipia and the Matthews range on the Ol Lentille group ranch. The lodge sits high on a rock boulder filled kopje at 6000 feet. Therefore it is always cool in the mornings and late afternoons but the swimming pool lies in full sun and always a lovely warm area. All funds support educational bursaries for local children and students. The lodges décor is chic safari with a mix of elegant masks, teak, hordes of fireplaces, rare wooden furniture, soft sofas in neutral colours, grasses and hessian matting. The unique design and architecture makes use of the light and was designed with eco-responsible elements in mind as they gather rainwater for the reservoirs. All plants are indigenous. The lodge was built with the dignified purpose of making communities work for themselves. Certainly of all the Lodge projects started in Kenya, Ol Lentille is by far the most luxurious.

Shompole with AfricanExplorations.com

Shompole is another of our favourites. With the lodge, a two bedroomed villa and a private villa/house called 360 – situated in Magadi in the Great Rift valley. The game viewing is extraordinary here and the cool, white exteriors and interiors shield one from the harsh midday sun. Each room is built on three levels, starting with a cool pool at the bottom, with views over the plains, then an enormous bathroom with great views and then on top, is your bedroom, completely open fronted, with a large verandah and day bed, where you can flop onto and read, as well as a driftwood dining area on your deck. Romance doesn’t get better than this!

A safari to Botswana is one of the most incredible ways of exploring Africa!

Botswana offers so much to the safari traveller – from private mobile safaris, with your own guide, your own vehicle, staying in a tented camp erected purely for your party – whether there is just one, two or a family of you – to staying in a wonderful, authentic tented camp on the outskirts of the Okavango Delta, perhaps opposite a heronry, so that in the right season, you can watch the birds nesting!

Jacks Camp Makgadikgadi with AfricanExplorations.com

On the opposite side of the spectrum, there are hugely luxurious camps and lodges, dotted all around the Okavango Delta, as well as in Moremi, Chobe, Savute and the Kalahari Desert. The joy is that there is such great diversity in vegetation – from the verdant green papyrus which lines the Okavango Delta to the white sands covering the Kalahari desert – from the miombo woodlands to riverine forest, a favourite haunt for leopard.

There are elephant back safaris, walking with elephants, riding safaris in the Delta and in Linyanti, canoeing safaris, walking safaris and the more traditional game viewing safaris by open vehicle. The beauty is that all or part of these elements can be combined, to assemble the most perfect safari to Botswana! It is even possible to explore the Chobe River by boat – there are now several very comfortable, small boats where one can overnight and explore the waterways of the Chobe by day!

Kalahari Desert safaris with AfricanExplorations.com

Perhaps you might like to flycamp on a private island in the Okavango Delta, being the only privileged tourists, or you might like to explore the Makgadikgadi Salt pans by quad bike in certain seasons, spending time with habituated meerkats or learning about the San people and their traditions. We can even arrange initiation hunts and experience a dignified and sensitive Bushman safari, taking in the Tsodillo Hills and the ancient rock art.

Safari holidays to Botswana with AfricanExplorations.com

The floodplains in the Delta are absolutely beautiful. A mokoro ride through the swathes of floating water lilies, roamed by Red lechwe, is a magical experience. One can also do motorboat trips and 4×4 game drives as well as walking on the islands. On one of these walks I managed to see not one,but three, Pels fishing owls – possibly one of the world’s most elusive birds. The dense palm and jackalberry filled islands of this permanent wetland are ideal for these rare, fluffy, golden caramel-coloured owls. They hunt at night, when the fish eagle has retired, using their enormous dark almond eyes to scan the shallow waters. For these and more interesting ideas, from people who come from Botswana – please contact us!

Okavango delta safaris with AfricanExplorations.com

A south luangwa safari  will delight even the most jaded safari goer! The joy about this region, situated in Zambia, is that it has two very definite seasons which offers two completey different experiences!

The first is a safari in the dry season – July/August/September/October whereby one sees the most amazing concentration of wildlife as well as some indigenous species, such as the Thornicroft giraffe.  These safaris can come in a myriad of experiences.  We have some wonderful owner managed camps and lodges, which all offer entirely different experiences and we match each camp or lodge to the personality of each client. These camps come in a variety of styles,  from rustic bush camps where one walks from camp to camp, exploring new areas and learning so much on foot, such as the spoormarks of the various creatures, the homeopathic properties of plants and trees and the folklore attached to them, to a walking safari, with just a maximum of six guests and one walks from camp to camp over a period of five days, carrying nothing but a pair of binoculars with you! You can also stay in permanent lodges with magnificent views over the Luangwa river and oxbow lagoons.

Mwamba Bushcamp with AfricanExplorations.com

In the green season, which is January  through to March,  Nsefu Camp, Robin’s lovely camp in the south Luangwa, remains open . Boating
safaris are the feature at this time of year; my absolute favourite! One still sees some fantastic wildlife, but from a boat instead of a vehicle. The vegetation is beautifully lush and green, the migrant bird species are superb, game viewing is still wonderful and antelope and elephant are giving birth to their young. This is the season of promise, and at ridiculously low prices! Photography is at its best, virtually no airborne dust and very few visitors. My suggestion is to book for early 2011; this is Africa as it is rarely seen yet at its most beautiful, seasoned travellers are starting to realise that this is the way forward! Rushing around is less prevalent, it’s fun to just spend
time between a couple of camps, game viewing by road, on foot and by boat. The whole is the perfect antidote to a stressful lifestyle!

Robin Pope walking with AfricanExplorations.com

Namibia is a stunningly beautiful country of endless deserted landscapes and wide horizons and little can touch a Namibia Safari Holiday.  One can describe Namibia in colours: from the red and orange sand dunes (especially when hot air ballooning in the silence of the early morning, across the dunes when they turn different hues), 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.

Namibia Safari Holidays from AfricanExplorations.com

My favourite areas are the Skeleton Coast, the Namib Desert and, for those with more time, the Caprivi Strip but there is so much more and we love to assemble a truly varied safari. One may travel by road or (to cover the vast distances) air, perhaps incorporating more 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. End up at a beautiful lodge on the border of Angola, where one has the contrast of the blue Kunene river against the searing white sand dunes, as well as discovering the ancient Ova Himba tribe, with their ochre faces, smeared with a mixture of plant and animal fat, to protect their skins from the sun.

Skeleton Coast safari with AfricanExplorations.com

Visit a cheetah rehabilitation centre and learn more about these graceful creatures where they can be seen in close proximity. Stay at a simple camp in Damaraland, where the owner enthusiastically imparts his knowledge of geology, explaining in detail the carbon dating of the caves and the tectonic shifting of the plates.

Safaris on the Caprivi Strip, Namibia with AfricanExplorations.com

Whatever you do, Namibia is probably one of the most scenically arresting countries in Africa, with a wealth of different things to do. If ticking off the big 5 is what you are trying to achieve, this is not the country for you! Here you will be rewarded by tracking black rhino on foot, patience a much relied upon virtue, in the hope of catching a glimpse, or seeing the desert dwelling elephant which has covered miles in search of water. Perhaps you might like to go trekking by donkey or on foot in the Fish River Canyon, amongst resplendent scenery – or take a long canter in the desert, feeling the freedom and space! Namibia is for the individual traveller, seeking an entirely different and exhilarating experience! We have all lived in Namibia and know the country extraordinarily well! We would love to advise you on your next holiday to this magnificent country!

Namibia Safari Holidays with AfricanExplorations.com

It is now possible to find a luxury safari in Tanzania Whether it is northern Tanzania or southern Tanzania one has so much choice these days! What is the meaning of the word luxury? Well, to some it is as simplistic as having hot water for  your bucket shower and somebody to bring  it to you whenever you want it, however often you wish for it!

Katavi Chada flycamp - luxury safari Tanzania with AfricanExplorations.com

Sand Rivers Selous Fly Camping with AfricanExplorations.com

For others, it is more obvious, along the lines of staying at a lodge, for instance, in the Ngorongoro Crater, where one has fresh roses sent each day which are placed next to your bath, which your butler runs for you directly after a game drive. For me, luxury  is expanse of space – having an area to oneself, devouring it, appreciating it and not seeing another vehicle in sight!  One aspect, which is a constant, is that our guides are the best in Tanzania. Occasionally, one has to pay a premium for some of the guides and we can discuss what the most appropriate route is for you. However, whatever constitutes your perception of luxury, we can surely deliver it!

Northern Tanzania has gorgeous tented camps and lodges, in the Serengeti and Tarangire as well as Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Manyara. The south has the most beautiful lodges scattered in the Selous, probably one of the most beautiful game reserves in Africa. In fact, although subjective, Tanzania really does boast having the most beautiful reserves on the continent, which includes  the beauty and  diversity of the Selous where there is a beautiful camp called Lukula – away from anything and anyone – where one can canoe, walk and game view in a pristine wilderness.  There are even private villas these days in the Selous for those wanting to take over a camp (one can do this at Lukula too). Katavi is another extraordinary and beautiful park, where one can fly camp, having the entire park to oneself, having watched the sun set, with a glass of one’s favourite tipple in hand and then sat at a table for two and dined on beautifully cooked and fresh fare,  having freshened up with a hot shower beforehand. Of course, beautiful lodges exist in Katavi too – and also in the Mahale Mountains, where the most romantic camp on the shores of Lake Tanganyika must surely be Greystokes – where one can see the greatest concentration of habituated chimpanzees.

luxury tented camp Serengeti

An Okavango Delta safari offers even  the most widely travelled safari traveller one  of the finest ways of exploring wildlife and its environs!  This jewel in the crown of Botswana  is fascinating because it consists of a  7000 square mile complex of waterways and wetlands seasonally fed by runoff from rains in the Angolan mountains,  forming one of the great ecological wonders of Africa. Apart from the Okavango Delta being an area of extreme beauty, it is incredible to visit during and after the floods. The floodplains are totally transformed: entirely under water during the floods (when mokoro or poled canoe travel comes into its own) then gradually drying out to plains.

Okavango Delta safari by Nicola Shepherd's AfricanExplorations.com

There are so many ways of exploring the Delta – on foot, by mekoro (a wooden, dug out canoe used by the river folk for centuries) – and a wonderful vessel to explore this pristine waterway with the heavy scent of waterlillies permeating the air. Watch the vibrant coloured undergrowth and nests of the carmine bee eater at eye level, or colourful reedfrogs at the end of a papyrus stalk – and all in silence! Perhaps catch a glimpse of the rare, shy and elusive Sitatunga antelope with its splayed hooves, specially adapted to walking on reeds.  In contrast, view wildlife in close proximity by vehicle, which is open and allows all the wonderful plant smells of wild sage to waft through the air. The wildlife is superb and this region includes the Moremi Game Reserve, renowned for its elephant population, cheetah, lion and – Africa’s most efficient predator – the African wild dog. Birdlife is quite superb – with approximately 450 species – which of course includes your wetland species and waders – with specials such as the white backed night heron and Pels Fishing owl and the more common African Jacana which walk on the lilly pads. Another beautiful sight is to see the otters frolicking in the water!

Okavango Delta safari by AfricanExplorations.com

In terms of where to stay, there is such a plethora of choice! From a private, camp complete with bedroll on your own private island with your private guide just for you, to lovely tented camps on a private mobile camping safari, to luxurious lodges which line the Delta. Then we can also offer walking and canoeing or mekoro safaris on the Delta itself. One of our favourite regions is the northern reaches of the Delta, more commonly known as the panhandle, where fishing for Tiger Fish is exceptional as well as having a great concentration of African Fish Eagles, with their haunting cry. One can also walk with Elephants in the Okavango Delta – one of the most wonderful and humbling experiences on earth!

Okavango Delta safaris from AfricanExplorations.com

An Okavango Delta safari takes place in one of the most beautiful places on this earth – somewhere every should visit at least once in their lifetime!

We always say that there are three ways to get the maximum enjoyment from the bush without being in a vehicle: walking, canoeing and, of course, riding a horse. It’s the latter that I’d like to talk about briefly today especially in regard to South Africa. (We’ll return to riding in east and mid-southern Africa as well as more on walking and canoeing in upcoming blogs).

Riding treks in South Africa have the great advantage of being easily combined with other activities in the same holiday and are also perhaps slightly more family-suitable than some of the “pure” riding elsewhere in Africa. Within South Africa there is a really good range of choice of not only length of safari (from an hour or two to multi-day trips) but also types of riding, abilities catered for and camps and lodges used. It is therefore no problem for us to tailor any trip to include riding – be it for someone who wants to ride every day or do a full-on riding safari or, at the other end of the scale, just to add another facet to the holiday for one member of a party who wants to ride once or twice as an experience.

Crossing a River - Riding Trek South Africa by Nicola Shepherd's AfricanExplorations.com

Certainly being on a horse introduces a fresh feel to being in Africa. One is much more “immediate” when riding and, as the game is not alarmed by horses, stunning gameviewing at fairly close quarters is possible. One’s senses are more attuned to the smells and sounds of the bush and, with a good guide (something we take as a given when organising a holiday), it is possible to add so much to one’s store of knowledge and thus get so much more out of the day.

Whilst we can arrange riding for just a day (or an hour or so) almost anywhere in South Africa, including the Cape and the Kalahari Desert – where, incidentally, the sleep-outs are amazing under the desert stars! -  the places that we really love are in the Waterberg and down in Mpumalanga.

In the Waterberg there are two operators who have excellent horses, Horizon and Ants Nest. Ants tend to cater for day and shorter rides within their two properties which include the owner’s home. Both properties are well stocked with game and last time we were there Olivia, who was then only 6, had her first mounted encounter with a rhino whilst on the leading rein (Olivia’s pony, that is!). The properties are almost adjacent to each other and daily rides can therefore cover some interesting, varied, terrain. As well as riding Ants do game drives and walks as well as visits to other local attractions in the area.

Lunch In the Bush At Ants Nest - Riding Trek South Africa by AfricanExplorations.com

Horizon offer more focused riding and, whilst Ants is suitable for non-riders as well as riders, Horizon is really for individuals or families who do all ride. They ride on a large tranche of land, also in the Waterberg which is about 2 1/2-3 hours north east of Johannesburg, and the days and activities are definitely more centred around the horses with plenty of scope to ride each day (the norm is 3 to 6 hours in the saddle), view game, participate in ranch activities and generally have fun on a horse! Horizon have an extra string to their bow and one of their safaris links with Limpopo Valley Horse Safaris in Botswana’s Tuli Block and one rides for a few days in SA then transfers to Mashatu for more “open” riding – this is an excellent, really super, combination.

In Mpumalanga we have some terrific riding for more advanced riders. Wait-A-Little run 8 and 10 day riding safaris for a maximum of 7 riders on two adjoining areas. One of these is amongst the largest private concessions in South Africa (which only has two small lodges operating on it), making a very extensive and private traversing area indeed near to the Kruger National Park. The rides mix both lovely permanent lodges and proper tented safari camps with some excellent game viewing and really good riding which can be quite challenging if one so wishes – perfect. The horses are a mix of native Boerperd with Thoroughbred, Warmblood, Frisian and Arabs; all well-schooled and turned-out.  Any good rider should have Wait-A-Little on their list.

Safari Camp Wait-A-Little Riding Safaris - Riding Treks South Africa by AfricanExplorations.com

For more information on Riding Treks South Africa – or any other safari or holiday in Africa or India – contact us on 01993 822443, info@africanexplorations.com or feel free to use the contact form!