All of Africa and the Indian Ocean

We realize when it comes to booking and planning an African safari, there are many options and details to consider. Our Africa experts suggest that you review the following frequently asked questions to help you decide when, where and for how long. This should help you get started. We look forward to helping you plan an amazing safari experience! Give us a call toll-free 877-412-8527.
Also, see Nadia's Africa Safaris Q&A and her Safari Coffee Talk videos.

1. East or Southern Africa?
One of the first decisions you need to make is whether you would like to visit East or Southern Africa.

East Africa includes Kenya and Tanzania, and for the more adventurous Uganda and Rwanda. Tanzania and Kenya have some of Africa’s best and well-established national parks on the continent. We suggest you visit Ngorongoro, Serengeti in Tanzania and time permitting the Maasai Mara in Kenya, all of which offer exceptional game viewing.

Southern Africa is made up primarily of Botswana, South Africa, Zambia, and Namibia. Southern Africa offers more than top-notch game viewing; it also offers outdoor, historical and cultural activities. A great combination would be to start a trip in Cape Town, South Africa, then head on to a safari in the area of the world-renowned Kruger National Park or Botswana, which offers mostly fly-in safaris and what we believe to be Africa’s best game viewing experience. You can round off your safari and tour at the mighty Victoria Falls in Zambia, with the opportunity to go whitewater rafting, take a helicopter flight over the Falls, or take an elephant back safari, for example.

The major differences between the safari experience in each region:

Accommodations: Typical East Africa safari lodges are hotel-style as opposed to those in Southern Africa that are generally more exclusive chalets and permanent tents on raised platforms. There are certainly exclusive camps in East Africa, like the Meru style tents in Kenya and Tanzania; however, the hotel style lodges are more common. In recent years, we have found there are a number of new luxury lodges popping up, especially in Tanzania, offering a more private experience than the larger properties.

Number of Visitors: East Africa (Kenya and Tanzania) has some of the world’s best game viewing in the famous national parks of Serengeti, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and Maasai Mara. However, these are heavily visited, being national parks, and not private concessions which are more common in Southern Africa. In Southern Africa there are game-rich private land concessions owned or leased by lodge/camp operators often bordering national parks. With the camp sizes being relatively small on these private concessions, you will only see a few vehicles on your morning and afternoon game drives. High Season in South Africa is during the Summer between approximately Sept and April. Peak Season in Cape Town and the Western Cape is mid-Dec to mid-Jan. This is also the busiest month each year in East Africa as it coincides with vacation times.

Safari Vehicles: In East Africa, the common safari vehicle is a land Rover style vehicle with a pop-up roof allowing guests to stand up to take photographs. With Southern Africa’s luxury safari camps and large wilderness areas, the safari vehicles used here are modified, mostly open on the sides Land Rovers (no windows) enhancing your private safari experience.

2. How much time do I have available for my safari?
You should allow a minimum of about two weeks. Also, take into consideration (especially if you are traveling from the West Coast) that you need to allow two travel days to get to Africa and at least one day for the return.

For the game viewing part of your safari (excluding travel time to the safari regions), we suggest a minimum of 4-6 nights in preferably two different wildlife regions. For example, if you choose Botswana, we suggest you include at least one camp in the Okavango Delta (preferably two to allow you to experience the Moremi Game Reserve) and as time permits, a camp/lodge in Chobe National Park, a great contrast and an excellent stepping stone for Victoria Falls. For an East African safari, like Tanzania, either a driving or fly-in safari is suggested. And, for this, you should allow a minimum of 8 nights. If you would like to combine the Maasai Mara in Kenya, another 4 nights is the minimum we recommend.

On average, most of our group departures are between 12-14 days or 16-18 days, which is a perfect amount of time for an African safari.

3. When should I go?
Many people want to know the “best time to visit Africa.” This largely depends on whether your main focus is game viewing and, if so, high season is generally June through October. High season is also the dry season in both East and Southern Africa. In Southern Africa, December-March is commonly referred to as the “Green Season,” which is also the rainy season in the game viewing regions; however, this period offers benefits such as herbivores have their babies and lush green landscapes and dramatic skies make for superb photography.

In general, temperatures are similar between the East and Southern African regions with May-August being the cooler winter months.

East Africa has a long rainy season (April-May) and a short rainy season (November). Again, the holiday season (mid-December – mid-January) is “Peak Season” in East Africa as well as in Cape Town, South Africa, being the dry summer season.

East Africa is renowned for its wide open plains and huge herds, especially during the migration of wildebeest and zebra, commonly referred to at the Wildebeest or Annual Migration between the Maasai Mara in the north and the Serengeti in the south. It is a spectacle not to be missed. It is difficult to predict the migration but in general you have a good chance to witness it between the months June-August.

Following is a chart outlining these details.

Month	East Africa	Southern Africa
January	Holiday/Peak Season (mid Dec - mid Jan)	Green Season - rain, herbivore babies, dramatic skies - great photo ops; Holiday/Peak Season (mid Dec - mid Jan)
February	High Season – game viewing; dry	Green Season - rain, herbivore babies, dramatic skies - great photo ops
March	High Season Tanzania – game viewing; dry	Green Season - rain, herbivore babies, dramatic skies - great photo ops
April	'Long' rainy season	Pleasant temperatures, some rain
May	'Long' rainy season; Cooler winter month	Cooler winter month
June	High season Tanzaia - game viewing; dry; Cooler winter month; Annual Migration (possible)	High season - game viewing; dry; Cooler winter month
July	High season - game viewing; dry; Cooler winter month; Annual Migration (possible)	High season - game viewing; dry; Cooler winter month
August	High season - game viewing; dry; Cooler winter month; Annual Migration (possible)	High season - game viewing; dry; Cooler winter month
September	High season Kenya - game viewing; dry	High season - game viewing; dry
October	High season Kenya- game viewing; dry	High season - game viewing; dry
November	Short rainy season	Shoulder season – game viewing; Hot
December	Holiday/Peak Season (mid Dec - mid Jan)	Green Season - rain, herbivore babies, dramatic skies - great photo ops; Holiday/Peak Season (mid Dec - mid Jan)

4. Am I planning a safari with family and/or friends or as a solo traveler?
A safari is a special experience to be shared with family members or with a group of friends. Our group safari departures range in participant size from a minimum of 2 up to 24. Or, we can arrange a tailor-made safari for your special group or occasion (family reunion, birthday, honeymoons, anniversary celebrations, etc). If you are traveling solo, you may choose to join a scheduled group safari or even a previously privately arranged tailor-made journey, which translates to shared game drives and meals at safari lodges and camps.

5. Should I select a Group Safari or a Tailor-made Safari?
Group Safaris: These are set up in advance by the operator. Touring arrangements and lodges/camps are already selected and number of days at each property as well as set departure tour dates. Some group tours have an escort and some are locally hosted. For group safaris in particular, we suggest you plan your safari well in advance. Since safari properties are relatively small, space is limited and therefore fills quickly. When travelers book less than 90 days prior to traveling, group space has often either filled or has been released.

Note: If you find a group safari itinerary that suits you and it turns out to be full during your time frame, then we can build a comparable tailor-made safari for you to suit your travel dates and interests while accommodating you at excellent lodges. (see Tailor-made safari below).

Tailor-made Safaris: These are our independent signature adventures, safaris which have been designed by the experienced Africa Department of ExpeditionTrips. Unlike group departures, Tailor-made Safaris operate upon request, depending on the schedule of the traveler, and may be customized according to your interests. Tailor-made safaris make use of knowledgeable local guides and safari rangers to enhance your experience in each region you visit. Examples of these can be found on our Website. Again, we can create a program for you from scratch and this would not necessarily cost more than a group departure!

Then, within both of these categories are several different ‘styles’ of safari:

Luxury Safaris: These adventures highlight the best wildlife viewing areas in the predator rich regions visited in specially designed 4 x 4 game viewing vehicles. These small group departures are joined by excellent rangers.
Sights & Safaris: These signature itineraries combine the excitement wildlife safaris with the best sights and experiences in the region; from amazing cities to wine tasting, from awe-inspiring scenery to train journeys.
Fly-in Safaris: Experience the beautiful expanse of the African savannahs with these exciting fly-in journeys. Utilizing flights between safari camps to maximize game viewing time.
Family Safaris: Designed specifically with families in mind, these itineraries capture a safari experience that will appeal to children, parents, and grandparents alike.
Mobile Tented Safaris: Luxurious tented, seasonal camps move around bringing guests within range of impressive wildlife.
Walking Safaris: Experience the excitement of a small group safari on-foot in the company of experienced trackers and guides who are trained to ensure memorable wildlife encounters as well as safety.

6. Do I have any special interests, such as photography or adventure?
Our Africa experts will help you select a safari to match your special interests, be it photography, birding, open-vehicle game drives, mokoro (canoe) and boating trips, or adventure activities such as Great White shark cage diving off the coast of South Africa, bungee jumping at Victoria Falls, or a hike up the world-renowned Table Mountain.

7. What is a typical day on safari like?

• Early morning wake-up call (approx 5:30 or 6:00 am)
• Coffee/tea and biscuits with your safari ranger before sunrise
• Around sun-up, depart on early morning game drive
• Return for breakfast or brunch
• Relax or take a guided walk over the warmer middle part of the day
• Meet for afternoon tea & cakes (approx 3:30 or 4:00 pm)
• Depart on the late afternoon game drive
• Return to the lodge/camp after sunset
• Pre-dinner cocktails and dinner before calling it a night

Note: Some properties serve breakfast as well as lunch, while others only serve one large brunch. Dinner is a social affair sometimes accompanied by your rangers or lodge staff.

You will be assigned a safari ranger/guide during your stay at each safari property.