Southern Africa safaris?

boxo · 02-28-2008, 01:34 PM

I'm considering flying to SA later this year and have been looking at different sites' tour packages. There are some extremely reasonably priced safaris (go2africa) that are of the camping variety. For example, 11 days for under $500 incl single supp. On the "accommodated" side, there's a 7 day for $850 incl ss.

Have any of you done camping vs. hotel/lodges? How was it? Rough? or not-so-bad? I haven't slept in a tent since the mid-80's and am not so sure it's right for me today.

I've checked out a handful of sites whose names escape me at the moment. If anyone has tour companies to recommend, I'd love to know. Thanks.

MiamiBeach · 02-28-2008, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boxo

I'm considering flying to SA later this year and have been looking at different sites' tour packages. There are some extremely reasonably priced safaris (go2africa) that are of the camping variety. For example, 11 days for under $500 incl single supp. On the "accommodated" side, there's a 7 day for $850 incl ss.

Have any of you done camping vs. hotel/lodges? How was it? Rough? or not-so-bad? I haven't slept in a tent since the mid-80's and am not so sure it's right for me today.

I've checked out a handful of sites whose names escape me at the moment. If anyone has tour companies to recommend, I'd love to know. Thanks.

We (8 of us) stayed 5 nights at the Munywaneni Bush Lodge in the Hluhluwe-Infolozi game reserve for New Years 2006-2007 and it was just incredible. Private lodge, 4 cabins with 2 beds each, each with private bathroom with hot water (until the gas gets shut off around 11pm), private balcony with sliding glass doors, everything was much better than I expected. Separate cabin with kitchen, dining area and living area with terrace overlooking the river. It included a private cook and a private guide, but no food and you need your own car(s).

Basically you buy all the food and alcohol you need for the entire trip (huge gas powered fridge/freezer), and the cook makes 3 (delicious) meals a day. There are 2 scheduled drives/walks with your private guide (who carries a rifle) each day. You are also free to go on drives from sunrise to sunset on your own, but you can't walk on your own as it's too dangerous.

On our walks we got incredibly close to rhinos, lions, buffalo, elephants... sometimes too close for comfort. At one point our car was surrounded by elephants, and we had our sideview mirror broken by a HUGE not-so-friendly male!

We each paid about $85/night at the time, and with the current exchange rate it looks like it's even cheaper now. It was a pain in the ass to book, with multiple emails and calls and waitlists, and it helped to have local family for payment, but it was worth the hassle, especially at that price.

Most other people at the reserve were either doing day trips or staying at the hotel and it's just not the same experience, going in your own car with an experienced private guide, vs. an open "safari vehicle" with a driver/guide.

boxo · 02-28-2008, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MiamiBeach

... It was a pain in the ass to book, with multiple emails and calls and waitlists, and it helped to have local family for payment, but it was worth the hassle, especially at that price.

That's a deal breaker right there!

The less hassle the better - I can get overwhelmed easily. And since I'm a solo woman traveler, I want to book a package which includes all transpo, sleeping arrangements, (most) meals and a zero-to very low single supplement.

Seriously, thanks for the reply. I'll click the link.

Georgehf · 02-28-2008, 08:26 PM

This past January, my wife and I took a short (2.5 day) safari in the Madikwe Game Reserve in Northern South Africa. It was absolutely amazing but it was by no means a budget trip. Everything was top notch... food, lodging, game viewing, security, staff, etc. Although our lodge may be out of your budget, I highly recommend the game reserve in general. In the short amount of time that we were there, we saw all of the animals we could have wished for and more. 4 of the big 5 and many other animals and birds. The animals were also in very good shape and looked healthy. It really was incredible.

I booked that portion of our trip via a travel agent in Cape Town who is actually the mother of one of my clients. She and her company were fantastic to work with and everything they set up was perfect. We met a representative at JNB both ways who helped with connections. We had to overnight in JNB after the safari, but the agency set us up at a hotel near the airport that we felt totally safe in. Although this is a lot more hand holding that I normally like, if I was a single woman traveling alone in JNB I wouldn't mind at all.

PM me if you're interested in the contact information for my agent. I'm sure that she could put something together in your budget.

Edited to add: JonNYC posted a review / info on a great hotel to stay at in JNB a few weeks ago. You may want to check that out too.

boxo · 03-01-2008, 12:25 AM

Hand holding is exactly what I want/need for a first trip to Africa. No doubt about that. Thanks for pointing me to JonNYC's Melrose Arch hotel recommendation. Budget and safety are key here. And thanks for the safari info. I'll be sure to PM you if I decide to go that route.

What I really, really want to know about is the camping.

jassikahilton · 03-24-2008, 10:44 AM

Hi, do not know if I am posting this in the right section but needed to know about this badly. My dad and his group of friends who are mostly retired people and well over their prime ages are planning a Safari tour later this summer. Now I have never read about traveling experiences of veterans who have been in this kind of tour. So tell me is it a good idea or should they be explained to change their travel plans to other places?

party_boy · 03-25-2008, 02:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jassikahilton

Hi, do not know if I am posting this in the right section but needed to know about this badly. My dad and his group of friends who are mostly retired people and well over their prime ages are planning a Safari tour later this summer. Now I have never read about traveling experiences of veterans who have been in this kind of tour. So tell me is it a good idea or should they be explained to change their travel plans to other places?

A bit more detail would help. Are they mobile? What kind of safari are they looking for? A camping trip or a lodge trip?

FlyerBeek · 03-29-2008, 09:29 AM

I apologize for joining this discussion so late, but I just wanted to mention that I had a great - and very affordable - experience at the Bongani Mountain Lodge, run by CC Africa.

It's a all-inclusive (game drives, bush walks, meals, most drinks, etc.) type lodge located just on the edge of Kruger. IIRC, rates were about $100/person/night a couple years ago - which I found to be a great value for what's provided (it's not ultra-luxury like most of CCAfrica's other properties, but it's also not much more expensive than going the do-it-yourself route).

-FlyerBeek