Botswana
Small camps, private concessions and a flood that arrives in the dry season: the Okavango is safari at its quietest.
Safari country from the Okavango to the Masai Mara, with desert, souks and Indian Ocean coast at either end
Africa travel: Africa
How to think about Africa
Most Africa trips start with one question: what do you most want to see? Wildebeest crossing the Mara River points you to Kenya or Tanzania. Leopards and a mokoro through papyrus channels point you to Botswana. Mountain gorillas mean Rwanda. Get that answer first and the rest of the plan follows.
The countries differ more than the word "safari" suggests. East Africa is big open plains and huge numbers of animals. Southern Africa is quieter, with private concessions, walking safaris in Zambia and canoeing on the Zambezi in Zimbabwe. Namibia swaps density of game for space: red dunes at Sossusvlei and desert-adapted elephants. In the north, Morocco and Egypt are culture trips built around medinas, temples and the Nile.
The classic pairing is safari first, then a beach to finish: the Serengeti with Zanzibar, or the Kruger area with Mozambique. Light aircraft make two or three camps in one trip easy, so a week can cover very different country. We usually suggest no more than three stops in ten nights, so your time goes on game drives rather than airstrips.
Destinations in Africa
Egypt
The pyramids and the Grand Egyptian Museum, then the Nile between Luxor and Aswan by dahabiya, five hours from London.
Kenya
The Masai Mara's private conservancies, rhino country in Laikipia and a Swahili coast, a single overnight flight from London.
Morocco
Riads in the Marrakech medina, High Atlas villages and an Atlantic coast, all under four hours from London.
Mozambique
Dhows, dugongs and empty sandbars in the Bazaruto Archipelago: the Indian Ocean beach that pairs with a Kruger safari.
Namibia
Red dunes at Sossusvlei, desert elephants in Damaraland and Etosha's waterholes: a classic self-drive, or flown in by light aircraft.
Rwanda
An hour with mountain gorillas in the Virungas, then chimpanzees, rainforest and a big five savannah, all within a day's drive.
South Africa
Cape Town, the Winelands and a private Kruger reserve in one trip, with direct flights and barely any jet lag.
Tanzania
The Serengeti migration in every season, the Ngorongoro Crater and Kilimanjaro, then an easy hop to the beaches of Zanzibar.
Zambia
Walking safaris in South Luangwa, canoes on the Lower Zambezi and Victoria Falls: bush country at walking pace.
Zanzibar
Swahili Stone Town, spice farms and white-sand beaches on the Indian Ocean: the natural finish to an East African safari.
Zimbabwe
Most of the Victoria Falls viewpoints, Hwange's elephant herds and walking in Mana Pools with rigorously trained guides.
Journeys in Africa
Sample routes to start from. Every one can be changed.
Cape Town, Franschhoek and the Sabi Sand in ten nights
Three nights above the Atlantic in Cape Town, three among the vineyards of Franschhoek, then four in the Sabi Sand for leopard. Little jet lag from the UK and a good first safari for couples.
Mara and Zanzibar: eleven nights of plains and coral
Five nights in a private conservancy on the edge of the Maasai Mara, then a short hop to the Indian Ocean for five nights on Zanzibar's quieter north-east coast. A night in Nairobi on arrival breaks the long flight.
Northern Kenya on foot: Laikipia and Samburu in eight nights
A safari for people who would rather walk than sit in a vehicle. Three nights on a camel-supported walking safari in Laikipia, three in Samburu country for the northern species, and two on the Laikipia Plateau to finish.
From the Journal
Kenya or Tanzania for the Great Migration: an honest comparison
The herds do not recognise the border, so the real question is not which country but which month. Here is where the migration usually is through the year, what the river crossings are really like, and how to avoid the crowds.
Plan your Africa trip
No forms to get through first. Tell us roughly what you have in mind and a specialist will take it from there.