Africa, by its sheer size and the convoluted nature of the countries that make up this fascinating continent, can be slightly daunting when one is thinking of planning a safari or a vacation. Of course one wants to see as much as possible on what may be the “trip of a lifetime” but balancing activities and locations with the logistics of travelling around and making sure that the lodges, camps or hotels in which one might stay are “just right” can be a real task and a huge responsibility without essential first-hand knowledge of the destination.

I Left A Footprint In Africa - Africa Custom Vacation at Chada Katavi With AfricanExplorations.com

That’s where a long-established specialist like African Explorations comes to the fore. With over 20 years of trading as a specialist tour operator based in the UK, dealing with clients worldwide, we are experts in Africa custom vacations. Put simply: we know what we are doing. Our small team of dedicated, highly knowledgeable, professionals have all lived, worked in or otherwise have vast in-depth knowledge of the countries in which they create safaris and holidays for their clients. It is this knowledge, constantly updated, that is the anvil on which we forge your loose ideas into a gorgeous-but-workable end product that offers the correct balance of value and experience to ensure a superb vacation, whether it be a couple, a family, a single traveller or a specialist group. And there’s no downside for our clients because it costs no more to use us than it would if one was able to create the same trip oneself!

Camp Overlooking The Zambezi - Africa Custom Vacation With AfricanExplorations.com

An Africa custom vacation can engage with almost any client interest, be it wildlife, culture, a specialist activity or maybe some other reason for travelling to these fabulous destinations. We are proud to create vacations that are completely tailored to our client’s requirements, down to the last small detail to the extent that it is almost unknown for us to send two different clients on exactly the same vacation. This may seem surprising but every individual on this planet is different; ergo each safari – if truly personalised – will be unique and cater for differing desires and personalities!

Samburu - Kenya - Africa Custom Vacation With AfricanExplorations.com

Africa custom vacations are, simply, our life. Our only requirement is that the vacation we create is exactly right for you, our client!

The ‘Big Five’ and the other lesser known – but just as important! – ‘Little Five’ are words synonymous with a safari to Africa. The Big Five are Buffalo, Lion, Elephant, Leopard and Rhino and can be found together in many national parks, game reserves and privately owned conservancies in Southern and Eastern Africa. In South Africa the best known park is, of course, the Kruger National Park. Nearly two million hectares in extent, the Kruger was gazetted in 1898 to protect the South African lowveld wildlife. A plethora of environmental techniques and policies makes the region an ongoing conservation success. There are also privately owned reserves contiguous with the Kruger which feature beautiful and often luxurious safari lodges and camps. Such areas include the well known Sabi Sands where seeing a huge variety of animals is almost guaranteed on an African Big Five Safari.

Elephants on the Chobe - African Big Five Safari With AfricanExplorations.com

Many of these properties accommodate children and offer specialist children’s programs, so an African Big Five Safari is not just for adults! Children’s guides keep children happy and enthralled, including trying to find the ‘Little Five’: buffalo weaver, elephant shrew, leopard tortoise, ant lion and rhino beetle as well as tracking and identifying animals, birds, and insects. Children are kept occupied for hours with short bush walks and spotting “creepy crawlies”, whilst other staff might teach them how to bake animal-themed cookies in the camp’s bush oven (for everyone’s afternoon tea!) whilst adults are busy on a game drive.

For those who like ‘lists’, how about the ‘Birding Six’? These include Ground Hornbill, Kori Bustard, Lappet-faced Vulture, Martial Eagle, Pel’s fishing Owl and Saddle-bill Stork. And then there are the “Little Six Antelope”: Grey Duiker, Sharpe’s Grysbok, Steenbok, Klipspringer, Livingstone Suni and Oribi.

The Rare Pels Fishing Owl - African Big Five Safari With AfricanExplorations.com

An African Big Five Safari is, surely, only possible on land? Not so! For those with a love of the sea and who visit South Africa’s gorgeous coastline there is also the ‘Marine Big Five’ which includes the Southern Right Whale, Cape Fur Seal, common Dolphin, Great White Shark and African Penguin. The best time for whale watching in South Africa is between July and November; several places on the Garden Route feature marine activities although the Walker Bay/Hermanus region is especially well known for easy access to marine wildlife with excellent guiding.

Cape Fur Seal - African Big Five Safari With AfricanExplorations.com

The best safaris in Kenya are undoubtedly tailor made – which means just that – it is designed entirely around you – not twenty thousand other people and shoe horning everyone’s interests and tastes into one package!

Coming from Kenya, the country is my passion and I spend months of each year traversing it, finding new places to offer our clients. It really is one of my favourite countries in Africa – not least because it offers maximum diversity – in terms of wildlife, culture, scenery and vegetation. There is something for everyone!

With tailormade safaris to Kenya, we find out about what you most enjoy in a safari or if you have never been on one before, then what you would like to see, what your hobbies and interests are and we find out as much information as possible about you in order to create the perfect safari – just for you! In over twenty years, no two safaris have ever been the same!

Tailormade Safaris Kenya with AfricanExplorations.com

Kenya offers the most wonderful wildlife regions – from the Masai Mara with its wildebeest migration that traverses this region between June and October – to Meru with its magical scenery, trees and wildlife, to Samburu – with its rich red soil and large elephant populations, to Tsavo East – known for its lions and its general wildness, and Amboseli – at the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Tailormade Safaris to Kenya with AfricanExplorations.com

You can go on a traditional safari, a horse riding safari, a walking safari assisted with camels or mules, you can hike Mount Kenya, fish in Lake Alice, go to the beach and stay in one of several gorgeous retreats or villas. The options are endless. We support a number of charities in Kenya, and you can even visit these or assist if you liked. However – you can be assured that we will offer you a safari like no other – the only limit is the realm of your imagination!

Luxury Tailormade safaris to Kenya with AfricanExplorations.com

There is nothing quite like a Private Safari in Kenya! There are two ways of achieving a completely private safari. The first is have a private tented camp set up just for your party – whether it is simply two of you or a family or group of friends. What are the advantages of a private safari in Kenya? This is easy to answer. The first is flexibility. You can determine exactly how your days are going to run, how long you spend on game drives, how long you spend on walks, when you depart on a game drive or walk – and how long you want to stay with a sighting. Secondly – if you have an interest such as photography, birdlife, or anything else – you can indulge in it without feeling guilty about the other people  in the vehicle! Thirdly – a private safari means a private guide – and this is probably the most important aspect of all. A private guide means you get the very best guide possible – who really opens up the safari to you and engages with you. You also have continuity – not having the same information told to you several times. Then the most obvious advantage is coming back to the camp that is just there for you – so you can socialise with your own guide, camp crew and family or friends – you don’t have to make conversation with everyone else! All of these amount to a much better, more successful safari all round!

Private Safari Kenya with AfricanExplorations.com

You can either have a camp set up for you in the Masai Mara or any of the national parks or in private concessions just outside the parks – and these tents are all pretty luxurious – with en suite bathrooms, hot running water and flush toilets. The food is superb, the scenery is amazing and it is just perfect!

Otherwise, if you prefer something more luxurious, you can take over a villa and stay in a private homestead with the most astonishing views, perhaps horse riding, walking, swimming and playing a bit of tennis, going on nature drives, and then fly to the parks – the Mara, Amboseli, Samburu, Meru and spend the time game viewing during the day by vehicle and on foot and having your own private villa to return to in the afternoons and evenings.

Private Safari Kenya with AfricanExplorations.com

We also arrange private horse riding safaris and private walking safaris, where you are taken by a Samburu guide and sleep in beautiful tented camps, with Moroccan cushions and rugs and hurricane lamps, learning all about the culture.

We can also arrange helicopter trips to Lake Turkana, Lake Rutundu and Lake Alice – or Lake Bogoria with its thermal springs and flamingoes.  For the ultimate, we can split your party, give you helicopters and aircraft for you to fly around the country, place the luxury mobile tented camps in any of the parks and some people can stay in the lodge whilst others go on safari.

Kenya Private Safari with AfricanExplorations.com

Whatever you wish for in a private safari, we certainly can arrange it!