Safari Holidays

trying_2_b_good

Hi All,

I've done a search and am surprised there aren't more threads on this topic...

I'm recently married and really wanted to go on safari for our honeymoon - but when I was quoted £6k I gave up on that idea and had a wonderful 2weeks in Thailand instead! So now we plan to save up for a safari in 2012 and am looking for some advice...

We want to go for 2 weeks. 1 week safari, 1 week beach. We hear that Kenya is good for a first safari and is one of the cheaper options (a friend says Tanzania is amazing for the beach week - but that this is super expensive?). When I was looking for this year, I contacted Kuoni and Trailfinders - is there someone better?

We're really reluctant to buy flights etc separately as want ease and to not be worrying about transfers, quality of local safari etc. Understand that the package will make it more expensive!

Flexible on dates (Sept - Dec 2012). Is there a cheapest time in this bracket? Is it best to book ASAP or last min? Like I said, looking at Kenya - but open to suggestions (cheaper but just as good/better?)

Thanks for all and any advice!!!

rs65

I’ve only been to Kenya on safari and would recommend it. The company we went with is no longer in business so no point in mentioning it.

Our hotel was quite near Mombasa so easy transfer from the airport. Probably best to stay away from the Somalian border. The hotel company also had safari lodges/camps and small planes to get you there. I would recommend flying to the game reserves if possible as it can be a long drive otherwise.

We had 14 days in total and 3 of those days were on safari, the rest at the hotel on the beach. We went on 3 game drives a day from memory so if you are going to safari for 7 days, make sure the camp/lodge is quite comfortable. Seeing a zebra in the wild can get rather dull surprisingly quickly. We were taken on normal drives and also on foot to see hippos and crocs. There was also orphaned lion cubs in semi-captivity awaiting release.

You could choose to skip drives of course, hence why I say make sure it’s a comfortable camp. Ours had a pool etc but things like electricity can be limited. In fact there were power cuts at the beach hotel so a couple of candlelight dinners.

At the hotel, we got special offers put under the room door each day so you could book another safari if you wanted. I think they were 1 night up to 5 nights and maybe half the price of booking from the UK.

We booked our holiday direct but a lot of people had used a Sunday paper offer. They had paid about £700 each and we booked last minute and paid about £500 – full board and including flights from Manchester in June – safari was about £180 extra. September may catch the end of the wildebeest migration.

Virgin do various countries for safari. If I was doing it again I would have a few days at the beach, then safari then beach then safari then beach. Book one safari in advance and see what is available when I get there. Do some research on the reserves/parks you want to visit before you go. It was quite cool in the mornings on safari (higher altitude) but a nice cool, clear morning waking up to views of Kilimanjaro is simply stunning.

bcl999

I would love to see the migration.

I haveto agree with the previous poster about how dull zebras etc quickly become. I did a Kruger Park safari years ago and initially we were all agog at the zebras (who always seems to turn their backs on you and thus all you see is their ar*es) and the springboks. Plenty ellies in the Kruger but very quickly you begin longing for lions! Up at Oliphants (36degrees in the shade) we saw crocs lunching on a water buffalo. Poor bu**er didn't stand a chance. Finally, after three days searching, we found two lionesses with three cubs.

trying_2_b_good

Thanks fot that. That's why I want to do a week - more chance of seeing lions!! rs65 - how long ago was that? £500 sounds incredible!! I'm not keen on the idea of paying for a hotel and then abandoning the hotel for a tent - effectively paying for 2 rooms when can only stay in one??? Or does that work out cheaper in most cases?