When planning a safari for instance you want to go to Africa, you need to do a bit of research about the destinations that you want to visit and also follow up reviews of experienced travelers on trip adviser or lonely planet. You will find travel tips whether you are a luxury/budget traveler. This comes to your mind only when you have saved enough money that will sustain you depending on the days you are likely take while in your favorite destination.
So let’s break down the 6 essential things that will help you in planning a perfect safari to Africa.
- Decide on which country you want to visit.
Africa is a big continent which you may not tour at once hence you need to select your favorite safari country. Choosing a country to go to is also determined by the list of attractions you are interested to see or activities to do and then create their list.
For instance you might be interested in a few of the things mentioned here, whether you want to see the big five African safari mammals, track mountain gorillas of Bwindi forest in Uganda or Volcanoes National park in Rwanda, follow the great wildebeest migration, participate in white water rafting on river Nile in Uganda, climb Africa’s highest mountain ranges like Mt. Kilimanjaro and the snow capped Mt. Rwenzori or have a unique cultural encounter such as those of the Batwa pygmies (Uganda), Maasai-Mara (Kenya) or the Hadza tribes of Tanzania. This is just a glimpse of things, perhaps you have your own interests but there is a diversity of things to do.
Once you have narrowed at hand the attractions you want to see, it becomes easy to decide which part of Africa you want to visit. For instance the East African countries of Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda have a joint tourist Visa at $100 that you pay once and visit all the three countries where you will experience the big game, big apes, the sun, sea and sand.
- Look for a Local Trusted Tour Operator in that Country/ region You Want to Visit
As already noted above you may want to travel from one destination to another which require you to have a safari planner who understands very well the places and wildlife. Though you may want to self drive or plan a safari on your own, still you cannot do all the booking and ground handling. You need a local tour operator who will make a safari itinerary/ package of your interest, book and pay for your visas, attractions, permits, accommodations and transportation
But this depends a lot on your budget if you are traveling privately, a safari might get expensive and cheaper when travelling as a group. Once you create a relationship with a tour operator, ask them to quote for you the price of a safari package and wait for their offer from where you can negotiate for discount. In addition to the tour operator, a guide is also important.
- Timing of the Right Season
Another inevitable thing when planning a safari is timing of the right seasons which is connected to the activities or attractions you have already listed. The dry and wet seasons in Africa come with pros and cons for travelers hence you need to time accurately. For instance during the dry seasons when the weather is sunny, hot with short rains game viewing becomes very easy due to drying of vegetation and water pushing most animals to small water points or greener areas.
Most travelers visit southern Africa or East African safari countries during the dry season to encounter the big five mammals in south Africa, Botswana, Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya respectively. But this season is often regarded as a peak one hence there are lots of crowds which make prices of activities and accommodations go higher hence you ought to book early.
Apparently, a few highlights of the top wildlife encounter experiences in Africa such as seeing mountain gorillas in Uganda can be done between December to February and June to September though the activity is done all year round. The great wildebeest migration features such as birthing and river crossing can be witnessed between June to August and November.
On the other hand the wet season has much rainfall which can make driving off road or hiking through tropical forests difficult due to muddy trails thus you better have a 4×4 vehicle. However, vegetation gets more green and picturesque; birding and primate viewing like chimpanzee, gorillas or golden monkeys in Uganda and Rwanda becomes easier since the apes move less distances.
- Choose a Type of Safari that Suits Your Budget
Depending on your interests, the type of safari determines the cost of the overall trip hence you need to specify whether to use luxury or budget/overland safaris. For luxury safaris expect to pay much money since they are inclusive of everything such as comfort accommodations while budget/overland safaris offer affordable packages which may include camping, self driving or catering.
Another factor to consider is whether you want to use drive overland or fly in safaris. Overland safaris give travelers a chance to see attractions en route but may not save time depending on the distances between attractions whereas fly in safaris saves time but you have few options to see places while on the plane.
- Define the Time/ Length of Days for Your Safari
The lengthy of your stay in a particular destination will realistically increase the costs of your safari budget and no one wants to exceed what he/she cannot manage to pay. Therefore you will need to be flexible in case you need to extend the pre-designed itinerary and pay for extra days or nights. Determine the time and places/parks you want to visit and how much it costs.
- Prepare What to Pack
Your packing list may range from wearing gears, cameras and medications to documents. But the general rule is you should endeavor to keep your luggage as light as possible. Planning to visit Africa, you need to be aware of the unfavorable weather conditions such as hot and burning, high rainfall amounts. Hence you need good clothing to put on during and after the activities.
In addition to both favorable and unfavorable weather, some areas in equatorial tropical forests of east Africa have malaria while others are malaria free. Thus packing medication or taking vaccines such yellow fever vaccination is very important for your safety and health.
No doubt you need a passport to visit Africa which you will use to apply for a particular country’s tourist visa. Read carefully the travel advisories to avoid scams and hackers and also check if you need travel insurance in case of any emergency.
For the travelers who like to familiarize with destinations, you will have to purchase travel guide books and maps. However, it’s better to relate with your guides/ operators while in the wilderness however much you may know the areas or roads it does not save you from being attacked by wild animals when you walk alone. You know very well the hungry and fierce African predators like lions, hyenas, leopards can kill hence abide by the rules of the guides.