Namibia sometimes scares me.
This southern African country is a desolate beauty of stark desert, glittering sand dunes, intriguing canyons and sheer escarpments. It’s absolutely stunning – yet utterly indifferent to the fate of travellers who come to admire it.
If your journeys are as much a part of the adventure as the destination, dramatic, mind-boggling Namibia is a must. There’s something about its dusty, deserted and utterly straight roads disappearing into the horizon to …
Browsing: Safari
It’s about 2am when I scare myself by remembering that hippos are the most dangerous animals in Africa.
I’ve been taking photos all day of at least 30 hippos in the river right in front of my lodge, especially when they lumbered their enormous frames out of the water and onto an island in the middle. They’re huge, solid things with massive mouths and a lot of attitude. Now these nocturnal feeders are hungry for …
It seems unlikely that anything could be thrilling enough to waylay me when I’m walking to Victoria Falls, already armed with a rain coat and a silly grin.
But when the hotel gardener I’m breezing past says: “Hello, do you want to see the giraffes?” it stops me in my tracks.
I’ve never had an offer like that before, so I instantly say yes and follow him into the scrubby bushes.
I’d already seen zebra …
If you’re a solo traveller, you’ll have noticed how the world tends to revolve around couples.
You’ll probably be hit by single room supplements unless you’re happy to stay in a hostel dormitory, and may feel rather lonely having dinner for one in restaurants full of happy friends and lovers.
And then when you see a brilliant sight, there’s no one to share it with except distant acquaintances on social media.
That’s why I haven’t …
In Rajasthan, it’s the colors that strike you first.
It’s the vibrant, striking colors worn by the residents of this ancient – and very proud – region, called “Land of Kings” because of a royal history like no other part of India. The land in which they live is a dry, often-monochromatic desert. But the history of Rajasthan is anything but monochromatic. It pulses with the ebbs and tides of a tumultuous history. And even …
With the first snow fall of winter approaching, who can resist that fresh blanket of snow for a frosty adventure? But far beyond traditional snowman building, skiing or snowboarding is the ultimate snow adventure – staying in a snow palace crafted from slabs of ice, packed with igloo guest rooms and illuminated ice sculptures. Most of the best snow hotels are located in Europe and offer a tranquil arctic experience that you will never …
The sweet, raw-onion and acrid wood-smoke smell of Africa rushed to greet me as I stepped off my plane in Livingstone. I was here to experience the famous Victoria Falls which was first discovered by explorer David Livingstone, a Scottish medical missionary, in 1855. But first, I had a date with an elephant.
On arrival at the Elephant Camp for our elephant-back safari, the head guide provides insight into the lives of these gentle giants …
The Victoria Falls Safari Club is the ultimate in lodge accommodations. Each of their sixteen club rooms and four spectacular suites have private patios and uninterrupted views across the bushveld. It’s all a potent mix of African wilderness and history seamlessly blended with exotic luxury, complete with a private check-in and butler service.
From the lodge’s lobby you walk into a quarry-tiled hallway showcasing an African-styled chandelier made from fine honey-coloured strips of hide. It’s …
Heading northwest, towards the Mozambique border, we left Wonderboom Airport (near Pretoria) via a chartered Cessna. Ninety minutes later we arrived at Cheetah Plains, a privately owned game reserve located within the 65,000 hectare Sabi Sands reserve, which itself shares a 50km border the Kruger National Park. Sabi Sands is world renowned for Super Seven* viewing, with Cheetah Plains the hot spot for Big Cats. There are no dividing fences, which sees game moving freely …
At least 100 elephant are slowly shuffling past our vehicle. They come pouring into the dry riverbed towards us, first appearing over the left bank, then over the right. An elephant traffic jam forms as they filter together, greeting each other, gathering in small social clusters, kicking up dust, then trudging in unison up the dry river. We sit open-mouthed, awed by the immensity of the herd passing within meters of us.
Then one young …
Soon after missionary and doctor David Livingstone described the sight of the Victoria Falls to the outside world they became a tourist destination. Thus, following the routes he described in his journals, hunters, explorers and missionaries descended upon them. By 1898 a small settlement of white pioneers had sprung up on the banks of the Zambezi River and in 1904, when the railway arrived, the development of the two towns either side of the Victoria …
As part of a larger seven-month trip around the world, my boyfriend and I knew we wanted to complete an African safari somewhere along the way. But where? How? I wondered where to start and how to budget for something like this.
Like many travelers, I started at a travel agent, collecting glossy brochures of U.S. based tour companies specializing in safaris. Mesmerized by the photos of zebras and lions, we started making a list …
There’s an exciting moment whenever you set off on a game drive and the ranger asks what you’d like to see.
It always makes me laugh, as if this khaki-clad Dr Doolittle can conjure up spectacular animal sightings on command.
But if you do yearn for a specific view of wildlife – a leopard in a tree or a wild dog hunt, perhaps – you can increase your chances enormously by picking a destination slap …
Botswana, with a population of just over 2 million people, is one of the most sparsely populated countries on the planet. If it were a person, standing next to South Africa, boasting nearly 25 times that figure, it might feel inadequate. But the fact that it is so sparsely populated, more than anything, is an undeniable charm. There are few places in the world you can be comfortable with space – a sleepy city or …