If you’ve always wanted to go on an African safari, May to September, which is winter in the Southern Hemisphere, is the best time to visit. The cooler winter months bring superb conditions for viewing big game – namely, lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant and African buffalo.
South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Kenya are the most popular destinations for spotting the “Big Five,” the term coined in the 19th century by big game hunters for the most prized animals to shoot. (Happily, most safari travelers today shoot only with their cameras, although poaching is still a massive problem all over the continent.) More adventurous travelers might look farther afield, to countries like Namibia, Malawi, Mozambique, Madagascar and the Democratic Republic of Congo, all of which have distinct safari-type experiences to offer while actively working at improving their tourist infrastructures.
In the more developed countries, accommodations vary from high-end lodges and five-star tented luxury – brands like Four Seasons, where you’ll sleep in linen sheets and dine on fine porcelain under the stars, with top-of-the-line chefs catering to your every culinary whim – to intimate, off-the-grid, owner-run, camp-style safaris. Wherever you choose to stay, get the clothes right – yards and yards of diaphanous linen, plus the de rigueur Panama on your head – and you’ll fit in just fine.
Aside from the Big Five, July to October is also considered peak time to join the Great Wildebeest Migration, the largest overland migration in the world, when up to two million wildebeest, zebras and other animals move across Tanzania’s Serengeti and Kenya’s Masai Mara in search of good grazing.
Located in the Wogakuria Hills of the Northern Serengeti in Tanzania, and new on my radar, the wonderful-sounding Lemala Kuria Hills offers an ideal setting to experience the famed Great Migration along with other incomparable wildlife encounters.
Each of the lodge’s 15 spacious, tented suites is glass-fronted and discreetly nestled among the region’s iconic granite boulders and kopjes (small hills), offering maximum privacy and breathtaking views from private decks while allowing for wildlife sightings at all hours of the day, something that adds to the excitement. Designed to complement the natural beauty all around, each suite features elegant wooden African décor alongside en-suite bathrooms with free-standing bathtubs and private outdoor plunge pools, all of which makes Lemala Kuria Hills the perfect spot to unwind following an exhilarating day of game drives.
You can be whisked away on unforgettable safari excursions, far from the crowds to witness the Serengeti’s abundant wildlife up close with a Lemala Camps & Lodges expert guide. Or, you might to choose to relax by the lodge’s infinity pool and enjoy indulgent afternoon teas and “sundowner experiences” – which is basically just a fancy term for cocktails – overlooking the Isuria Escarpment. And while you may not be able to go full-throttle in a biplane – like Meryl Streep and Robert Redford as author Karen Blixen and big-game hunter Denys Finch Hatton in the movie “Out of Africa” – you can take a hot-air balloon safari to witness herd crossings from a bird’s-eye-view, which is a truly thrilling experience.
In Kenya, The Safari Collection is a highly-respected company founded and owned by fourth-generation Kenyans, Tanya and Mikey Carr-Hartley. They operate four atmospheric boutique luxury lodges and one mobile camp in Kenya’s finest locations and specialize in bespoke East African itineraries. From the homestead-style comforts at the Giraffe Manor in Nairobi, to the rugged rhino-dotted landscape at the luxurious Solio Lodge – 19,000 acres of conservancy surrounded by a 45,000-acre ranch, with its breathtaking views across the Samburu drylands; to the extraordinary array of wildlife and game at Siruai, overlooking Mount Kenya; to the Masai culture and dense wildlife at Sala’s Camp in the Masai Mara, each lodge has its own unique environment and distinct features.
For a different vibe and pace, consider the breathtaking country of Zambia and the Chongwe region. Amid the confluence of the Chongwe and the Zambezi rivers, with the Great Isuria Escarpment in the background and the Lower Zambezi National Park as a neighbor, Chongwe wildlife is prolific, from herds of giant-tusked elephants and black-maned lions to packs of wild dogs and big pods of hippopotamuses.
Time + Tide Africa – another newbie on my radar, although it has been doing business for more than 10 years as Time + Tide and another 10 or so before that as Chongwe Safaris – offers three distinct Chongwe experiences. Chongwe House, Africa aficionados tell me, is one of Africa’s most glamorous and exclusive-use safari houses, with a private raised deck and large pool and four open-sided, en-suite double bedrooms. With its sinuous, Gaudí-esque architecture, steep, thatched roof and idiosyncratic stick-fringed terraces, the uniquely designed double-story house is a dreamy spot for a bush safari with family or a group of friends.
Chongwe Suites, by contrast, are a luxurious pair of one and two-bedroomed canvas-walled safari suites, each with a private dip pool, open lamplit dining area and romantic, open-walled outdoor bathroom.
Last but not least, Chongwe Camp is an authentic safari tented bush camp, with canvas tents slightly incongruously set amid manicured gardens and panoramic views of the Chongwe and Zambezi rivers. It’s renowned for its prolific game and spectacular sunsets. My kind of camp, it has to be said.
Watch this space for more Africa adventures next month, including a brilliant, educational tour of five East African countries – by ship. I’ll also be telling you where you can learn “on-site” from experts about the unfathomable horrors of the West African slave trade, something we all should know about, and, in a less troubling, lighter mood, where to watch mesmerizing Kikuyu dance near the Equator in Nairobi.
For more, visit lemalacamps.com; thesafaricollection.com; and timeandtideafrica.com.
Jeremy Wayne is an accredited travel adviser with Superior Travel of New York. Contact him at jeremy@superiortravel.com.
