Author: TheNomad
Source: articledashboard.com

When you buy a travel package, tour or service your price may include a number of levels of commission added to the original, amtrak promotion code, pure cost of the product direct from the supplier.

To give an example of such:
Let’s take a tour operated in Australia at a cost direct from the operator of say $1,000:
1. This tour may be listed with an Inbound Tour Operator.
2. The ITO buys for $1,000, marks up 10%, sells to Wholesaler- tour price now $1,100.

3. The Wholesaler buys for $1,100, marks up !0%, sells to Retailer- tour price now $1,210.
4. The Retailer buys for $1210, marks up 10%, sells to Traveller- tour price now $1,331. (prices change if percentages are higher, or less if the ITO is not in this equation) (without the ITO, retail price would be $1,210 at 10% or $1322 at 15%).

The commission element, without the ITO at 10% mark-up is $210 per tour per person (21%).
The commission element, without the ITO at 15% mark-up is $322 per tour per person (32%).

So the Traveller pays variable levels of middleman commissions, amtrak promotion code, .. When you have 2 or 3 or a family of travellers, this is a considerable amount of cash and if you have a tour costing in excess of $1,000, just do the math.

Similarly, brochure prices have commissions built in to them for the retailers of 10 – 25%.

If a consumer goes to an Outlet Store they expect outlet prices, if they go directly to the Manufacturer they expect ‘go-direct’ prices, so why not handle travel arrangements in a similar way?

Because, it is only fair that each level of the product sales cycle earns revenue for the business involved and these businesses are necessary and needed to ensure that products are marketed, promoted, brochured and sold to consumers around the world, amtrak promotion code, who may not be comfortable with handling their own bookings and need the assistance of an expert professional travel consultant.

. However, with the growth of the internet and the ability to now find the source of travel products, travellers who handle their own arrangements should get a fairer deal on the pricing as a middleman is not needed in the purchasing process.

It does not make sense for most travel operators to show different prices on their websites, Retail, Wholesale or Internet Direct etc as this could undermine, amtrak promotion code, their supply chain by deterring the efficient middlemen, amtrak promotion code, from representing their products, so we have to find a way for all of the
‘do-it-yourself’ bookers to get a fairer, amtrak promotion code, price.

There is a way. A new service has been introduced that enables travel operators to encourage and reward travellers who are comfortable with direct bookings and for them to get a fair price break for the commission no longer required to be paid out. The new service, operated by TopTravelSites.com, offers TopTravelVouchers, amtrak promotion code, for sale that have values equivalent to, or more than the commission elements on the operator’s travel products. These may be purchased by travellers at very deep discounts to their redemption values, getting closer to the direct cost price of the travel product for the consumer.

.. think outlet pricing or go-direct deals.

The Travel Operator still incurs the commission cost by issuing a toptravelvoucher but the beneficiary of the price break is the traveller, not the middleman. By encouraging and rewarding travellers, the operators should get more traffic to their websites.

TopTravelSites can be compared to a retail travel company but it does not sell travel. It only introduces travellers to operators involved with the program and invites them to go directly to the travel websites of its clients.

If travellers want to do business directly with the travel providers on the site they can get a price break by purchasing toptravelvouchers online at prices of $30, $50 or $100usd (or equivalent foreign currency). The vouchers have a 100%, amtrak promotion code, money-back guarantee and if, after the travel has been completed, the traveller is unhappy with the product, the cost of the voucher is reimbursed and redress is sought from the operator.

Hundreds of vouchers are currently available and new vouchers are being added each month but when you see a voucher valued at 1,500 euros for sale for $100usd it may not be long before you will see thousands of choices.

Many other vouchers are available and can be purchased by single travellers, groups or families, leading to very healthy savings for all, amtrak promotion code, ‘do-it-yourself’ bookers.

Many travel operators will continue to sell through a supply chain but there are thousands of travel businesses around the world that want to improve their representation and for their services to be seen by a wider audience of travellers. Most travel operators would always be willing to pay a commission on sales, amtrak promotion code, and so this site might offer great appeal to them.

It will surely attract travellers booking their own arrangements and being rewarded by rebated commission and as long as the site operator keeps to low overheads (no bricks and mortar stores or expensive brochures) it will also appeal to many more travellers and travel providers. .

You can visit toptravelsites where you can also link to some last minute deals, a travel ezine and some destination specific sites for the South Pacific..

Grown lions are usually over 200kg in terms of weight and 4 feet tall in terms of height.
Female lions, though not as huge and tall as male ones, are in the same way fierce, and are in most cases tawny or sandy in terms of colour. Orange-yellow to dark brown, is the range or colours in which the male lions lie. The manes usually black in colour, are the unique identifiers of the male lions.  This is true especially when you take on a Botswana safari

Habitat:  Forests including scrub jungle or open grasslands, are the most favourite places for the African lions. In most cases, lions are seen on the ground or where they can easily survey their territory, say on rocky outcrops, though they sometimes climb trees but to a small extent.

Diet: Since lions are carnivores, they usually hunt for their prey and among what they feed on is the antelope, zebra or wildebeest. As if that’s not enough, they are sometimes observed to attack and fight the young hippos or elephants till they get them.  To experience this, a Botswana wildlife safari is recommended.

The lions only go hunting for prey when they are hungry. It is important to note that  a few of the hunts are successful. It, many a time, goes without eating for a day, after having killed and eaten it’s full, until it hunts again.

Behaviour: Sociable animals, lions are, and live in groups known as prides, which usually are comprised of 15 members, including female lions, their cubs and males. Other Big cats are solitary (live in isolation), but lions are not.

Hunting for prey is done by the female lions, while defence of the pride’s territory is done or provided by the male ones.
Roaring and scent marking are the techniques employed by the lions, to establish their territory boundaries. Female lions bite the necks of their prey as a tactic of killing them, but first, they stalk (follow) their prey up to a time when they manage to approach nearby and then attack.
The moment the young male lions approach 3 years of age, they get expelled from the pride. However, the young lionesses have a liberty to either stay in the same pride or join another one. The stubbornness and solitariness of the male lions make them not to join any other pride and so they form their own.

Status: Approximately, there are 10,000 to 15,000 African lions in the wild, and are known to be dangerous species. Threats to the African lion are on an increasing scale, some of which include; Diseases, encroachment of grazing lands, genetic inbreeding and human population pressure.
Botswana hotels

We had the incorrect information – please find correct below

VISA REQUIREMENTS:

International travellers require a visa for Mozambique which is purchased on arrival in Mozambique and paid for in US$ cash – currently US$35 and could be subject to change. An additional US$2.50 stamp duty applies for entrance and exit, so we advise clients should be in possession of US$40 cash in small denominations.

South African passport holders do not require a visa to enter Mozambique.

For entrance back into South Africa, two empty pages are needed in passports (front and back pages both blank).

*Clients traveling to Inhambane will purchase their visas in ZAR – currently R250 per person.

Considering Mozambique as your next African Safari or vacation destination? Mozambique Safaris are an excellent choice for a Luxury African Safari vacations. All of our tours to Mozambique are tailor-made to each guests’ specifications – so your Mozambique Safari Tour will be uniquely suited to your special interests. We do all of the research and planning. We cover every detail. All you need to do is pack your bag and enjoy the special wonders of a Mozambique safari.

Being the globe’s most highly respected emergency-medical NGO, opportunity to work with MSF for a while sounded perfect to learn and prepare myself for the future outreach SOLO Africa would hope to achieve on the Dark Continent.

Returning to Zimbabwe from teaching first aid courses in East Africa in April 2009 I was contacted by MSF-Belgium with whom I had served during the recent Cholera epidemic to fill a junior management position under the expatriate Co-ordinator of Technical and Logistics, with the promise of training in Logistical management of the whole operation for a two year permanent contract. The trade-off however, was later explained that I could not be doing any other type of work even on my own time during this period because it was against MSF policy, as staff should be on permanent standby in case of emergencies. Even arranged and approved vacation leave could be cancelled with any immediate effect. Thus, instructing courses, taking mission trips, or any other excursions would be difficult to arrange with certainty.

The work began well with some good learning of systems, technical requirements, equipment and management. As MSF’s Zimbabwe mission grew rapidly however, I found myself operating more as a property maintenance manager: expatriate staff homes, construction, warehouses and communication systems, all from an office behind a desk. My health began taking strain after a month in that environment… I soon resigned to the fact that I was not designed to sit at a desk!

Soon I was visiting the physiotherapist and chiropractor for attention to my back a few times a week. It turned out that my desk job was accentuating the irregularities in my back – imbalanced muscular development along the right side of my spine – a result perhaps of the motor vehicle accident I experienced in my Land Rover on return to overland Missions in June 2007. Increasing pain and discomfort forced me to seek help. A special weight training program began to rebalance the structure and strengthen musculature on the opposite side of my curving spine. As if perfectly timed, I took a pre-arranged week off and travelled into Mozambique to accompany the Woodward family on safari. (See Mozambique Safari ’09, coming soon).

I was concerned about my back for this safari with the additional day pack on my back and rifle on my shoulder. Surprisingly, all the bending and creeping, stalking and long miles of walking in search of crop-raiding elephants, my back strengthened, suppled up and I found myself pain free again… and I was happy. I just seem to function better in the wilderness…?

Back in Harare at MSF a big and important decision had to be made on my return… should I sign my life over to MSF for the next two years? MSF then made it clear that the training they had promised in Zimbabwe may not be honoured by Belgium who made the final decisions. Staying would also cause me to lose anything else I had worked toward these past few years. I reasoned that my main motive to stay with the NGO was for the “security” of a small though regular monthly retainer and possible training. But at the expense of my soul! With that realisation I felt absolute conviction to walk away, to take a chance, trust my heart and pursue its deeper convictions. I resigned with immediate effect in accordance with my probation, accepting MSF’s request to be on call for any emergency reaction that they may choose to attend to, believing that another Cholera outbreak was likely soon. We went our separate ways in peace, both richer for it.

Only one month prior to my probation end I had also received a phone call from a Hungarian man who had hunted buffalo with me last year. Istvan had been on safari in Tanzania recently but it had gone bad! He and his collegue wanted to come back to Zimbabwe… could I arrange something?

Within two weeks I had a safari arranged, with my father and a cousin to do the guiding. However with the change of staus at MSF I could now do the safari myself. My cousin returned to his family fishing trip and I was off to join my father in the Zambezi Valley for two weeks of adventure.  (Watch for the next instalment for the feedback on this Zambezi adventure!)

I had a great time learning from MSF. Through my time with them I gained confidence, skills, more order and self dicipline. The time in the City of Harare also enabled me to be more a part of the local church, involving myself in the men’s groups, home cell, and even a cycling team, some guys with whom I competed recently in South Africa in the Highveld 94.7 Cycle Challenge with 26000 other cyclists!

Travelling through South Africa, Swaziland and the beaches Mozambique this tour gives you a mix of the old and the new and great photographic opportunities.

Discover the diverse culture and rich wildlife of South Africa and Mozambique with a maximum of 16 person in our custom built full size expedition truck. With over a meter of legroom at each seat sit back, relax and experience the wonders of Southern Africa.

We have purpose-built our expedition vehicle, a Mercedes 1820 truck to be one of the best in the business, with exceptional reliability and speed. The truck is designed with our clients in mind: as a result, comfort and space are high on our list of priorities. The truck seats only 16 passengers. A smaller group size means that our tours have less impact on local communities and on the environment. We do not “rack-em, stack-em and pack-em”, as some companies do. Reclining coach-style seats, with over 1.3 metres of leg room, give you the space you need on long days of travelling. Our unique drop-down windows afford exceptional viewing. Above each set of seats is a roof hatch to provide an additional all-round viewing option.

There are two storage lockers per set of two seats. One locker is located inside at your feet for your hand luggage/camera gear and contains a box-safe for travel documents, money and other valuables. The other is an outside baggage locker. The truck itself is fully lockable. The linked cab and passenger compartments allow for optimal communication between passengers and the crew, and includes an intercom system for travel information.

We provide the services of an expert photographer and digital download facility on all our overland tours, a unique feature making us stand out from the others! One of our crew (normally the Tour Leader) is a full-qualified, semi-professional, photographer who will be available to give advice on photographic (and video) techniques; and will organise “workshops/tutorials” on photographic subjects and techniques (eg landscape, wildlife and bird photography, night shots, close-ups and portraits) to assist our guests to improve their photographic technique. We also provide a laptop computer with multi-card reader for those clients with digital cameras to enable you to download your memory cards and burn those special memories to CD or DVD while on tour.

Source: Nature & Kind Travel Collection

A family safari is such a great way to spend time together and is excellent therapy for everyone!

An area of history and legend, offers some of the most excitinggame viewing in Africa. It is a place of exceptional beauty where one can explore therugged, unspoilt African landscapes either in the comfort of open 4-wheel drive vehicles,on a walking safari, on mountain bicycles, or horse back, guided by expert rangers and experienced trackers. In addition to the game experience, Mashatu offers a view ofAfrica, unchanged since the days of early visitors such as Kipling, Selous and artist/explorer Sir Thomas Baines. Historic and archaeological sites abound; notable are the Motloutse Ruins and the Pitsani Koppie sites.

The excitement of Mashatu has not changed over time. It is still home to large herds of elephant, prides of lion and cheetah. Along the river courses, huge Mashatu trees provide shade for eland, impala, wildebeest, giraffe and zebra, whilst at night, the bateared fox, African Wildcat and the magnificent leopard search for prey. Some 366 species of birds may be seen. Mashatu Game Reserve proudly provides a refuge for the largest, single population of elephant on privately owned land in Africa. Known as the relic herds of Shashe, these elephants are the last living testament to the great herds that once populated the meandering Limpopo valley. Today, the population on Mashatu Game Reserve alone, is estimated to number in excess of 500.

Source: Nature & Kind Travel Collection

Loisaba is a setting little changed since the Great Rift Valley split Africa in two. This private game ranch is set on 60,000 acres of wilderness.

Loisaba is made for adventure: guests enjoy complete freedom to choose how they spend their time … the only barrier is your own imagination. Trek through the bush with camels, mountain bike down the escarpment, raft the Ewaso Nyiro, horseback ride or drive through the wild canyons of the two great rivers that span this vast area.

The ranch also owns a micro-light and aeroplane so there are no limits to what you choose to do: heli-camp, then surf the remote sand dunes of the Northern Frontier District, rock-climb the soaring pinnacles thrusting up from the valley floor or just play a little tennis and lie by the pool.

A place of deep serenity, Loisaba attracts big game just as it attracts guests: both know they will be safe and well looked after, free to roam unconfined and undisturbed.

The Star Beds – four-poster- on raised platforms provide blissful sleep under the vast African sky with only the stars and sky for a ceiling. Even the spa – where pampering is unrivalled – is sensitively constructed and set apart from the other buildings, so that the eternal drama of the bush unfolds before your eyes.

Source: Nature & Kind Travel Collection

Walking wild in Laikipiak Maasai-land is a walking safari holiday through on of Kenya’s best wildlife viewing habitats: the Lewa Conservancy.

Combined with the two Maasai Community Conservation areas of Il Ngwesi and Lekurruki, these three areas provide some of the most stunning landscapes in Africa. This area is home to a wide variety of game including the Big Five and over 420 species of bird. This safari is supported by camels, that can be ridden if the terrain allows.

Source: Nature & Kind Travel Collection

king size double beds and singles,

accommodation suites are designed to match with the surrounding

Last Satarday was an unforgetable day for the residents of Masai Mara Oloolaimutia region in Narok south District,As well as the Enchoro Wildlife Camp Management, the Camp Management organised for a ceremony to officiate the offical opening of the Camp to the Kenya and foreign visitors drawn from all over the world.
The day started with a beehive of activities at the camp, as visitors and invited guests started arriving in style.

The staff and the Masai Worriors performed their traditional dances to welcome the crowd as they gathered and eagerly awaiting to witness the Opening of the Enchoro Wildlife Camp.

The Camp Warden Ms Banice Otiato broke the silence when she stood up and was applauded by the crowd as she took to the podium to give her welcome speech,She welcomed the gathering by saluting them ‘Sopa’a masai word Hello.

Then followed with speeches from other invited guests the first to adress the gathering was the representative of the Kenya Wildlife Service ,The Warden Mr Parkisua Philip.
He started by conglatulating the management of enchoro for having taken the initiative to invest in Masai Mara thereby giving the area a boost to tourism and job creation,more so he advised that the facility should be well kept,Marketed and live up to the standards that will assist the Camp to attract confidence from Overseas and local visitors, visiting masai mara he recalled that Enchoro is the first Accommodation provider to have won confidence from visiting tourists as well as the local residents as the accommodation offered really matched the expectations and the costing which he said was reasonable beyond any reasonable doubt,more importantly it’s unique structural set up.
One of the Directors Mr Alber Ouko was asked to say a word and he thanked all who took their time to be present for the witness in opening the facility Enchoro Wildlife Camp.
He recounted the challenges that the management encountered while puting up the camp but said he firmly belived in hard work and persistence,commitment as well as being focused and not to give up.
He said that Enchoro Camp started from nothing but the focus is to grow and serve the needs for safe and quality accommodation to visitors to the world reknown Game Reserve Masai Mara lately refered to as the New Wonders of the World with its slogan ‘The Place to Stay’which is the reality he closed by asking all to spread the good news of Camping in Mara,and especially through camp Enchoro the real wilderness camping solution for Masai Mara.
Then the climax of the whole idea for the day was the moment to honour God for his faithfullness in humananity and the Chief Guest Rev.Samuel Muntet of the Deliverance Church of Kenya.Took the moment to graced the occassion he started with a prayer for the Camp Management and to all who were present he read the Book of Eccletians 10 vs 19 , 1st Timothy 6 vs 10 and the Book of Psalm 127.
Thereafter he lead the gathering with a word of prayer and had the honour to cat the cake to symbolise the Official Opening of the Enchoro Wildlife Camp,after cutting the cake the three directors with their spouses were given the cakes who intern distributed to everyone present and that marked the opening of the Tented Camp in Masai Mara.
The ceremony did not end untill one of the directors Mr James Muraguri Gichohi asked the invited guests and the gathering to least plant each a tree in remebrance of the occassion and to help green the Mara and its environment ,James urged all present to ensure more trees are planted to help improve the environment not just in Masai Mara Camps but in respective areas of kenya and that we should all be sensitive to the environment by helping to improve it and not to destroy it for the sake of our future Generation.
The tree planting exercise was a symbol for the love of our environment and the testimony to our young generations to practically take the challenge to improve it for the sake of our future generations to find a better place and have a future that is promising,this did not just end the children as young as 3 years were also doing their part Ivy Kirigo daughter to James one of the directors and the pastors daughter planted their trees and were really shered then were the youth Marvin Ouko son to Albert did the youth campaingn in tree planting he led several youth in this exercise.
Enchoro Camp is established in an envir0nment full of trees all tents are build in the open spaces between trees in its original natural setup nature is not interfered with and that is why the eco-tourism of mara can start from the enchoro camp example.
After the tree planting exercise Mrs Jackline Ouko took time with the guests and all who were availabe to a tour of our Tented Camp and its facilities,she also introduced those who had never before known what eco- lodges,youth hostels,tented camps,wildlife camps and generally what camping in mara means.
She enlightened all that the tourism industry is changing with the times and has had many challenges which need to be looked into,pionting out at the need to offer clean,safe,comfortable,welcoming budget or luxury accommodations that meet the required set international standards like the hostelling international has set,so that tourists can trust what they see experience or sumpple in their travels.
The ceremony ended by some of our invited foreign guests going in to the Masai Mara free game drive accommpanied by directors and their families to  watch the game inside Masai Mara National Game Reserve which according to the visitors was wonderful Mr Edward Soi one of the Drivers and Tour Guide with sistor company African Home Adventure Safaris did the who tours and explaining to the guests the various tree species and all the different kinds of wildlife and especially the big five,Africa Home Adventure does all adventure camping,luxury camping tours,excursions,mountain climbing,tanzania safaris,kenya safaris to mention but a few.
Enchoro Wildlife Camp is an affiliate of the Youth Hostels Network in Kenya
and it is located on the slopes of the Oloolaimutia Hills in the Maasai Mara.
Our Camp is surrounded by a natural environment, waking up to bird twitter
and sometimes roaring of lions, hyena?占퐏 monkeys drama in the bush around.
All of our eleven accommodation suites are designed to match with the
surrounding environment, Accommodations of our luxury large spacious tents
with a changing room and lockers for guests valuables, a writing desk with
foldable safari chairs and magazines to keep you entertained.

Enchoro Wildlife Camp will facilitate travelers of all walks of life in choosing the best tourist programs around the Mara region,help to promote tourism,to provide people with quality adventure holidays.

“Go direct to enchoro, Save Money and give more back” This philosophy guide’s enchoro wildlife camp with its product and service development.
Enchoro offers a lot of direct booked adventure tours and holidays accompanied with a comprehensive route plan, Trip information, clearly marked tour durations,

Enchoro is strictly committed to its policy regarding responsible tourism and thus, it chooses to work with those local Masai organized groups of Men, Women and Youth that offer and represent the local communities with great long term benefits that maintain the welfare of the preservation of their environment, culture, believes and traditions. This however develops relationships across with the goal to promoting better understanding between foreign tourists and the Masai communities while freely interacting, sharing of cultural social practices and their traditions.
Thank you in anticipation.
Yours Faithfully
James M Gichohi

Enchoro Wildlife Camp Ltd
Nairobi International Youth Hostel
Ralph Bunche Road, Upper Hill
+254 20 2726011/ +2723012/ +254 20 2738046 -
Fax: +254 20 2726011
Mobile: +254 722760661/+254 737596879
Email: info@enchorowildlifecamp.com
http://www.enchorowildlifecamp.com

What to do in family safari holidays in Africa?

The ideal place to spend the family vacations is Africa and a Wildlife Safari can make the trip to the place an unforgettable experience. People are increasingly opting for luxury family safaris as these give them the bang for their bucks. The safaris are ideal for entertaining the kids and the adults alike.

Teenagers can enjoy active pursuits such as canoeing, horseback safaris, mountain biking and quad biking. There are many activities for younger children and some of the camps offer programmes for children who do not wish to go on game drives with the adults. Activities such as trekking courses, fishing, and archaeology excursions, visiting the local communities and interacting with the children or learning about the medicinal uses of plants with an experienced bushman guide are popular choices.

Every family is unique and there are so many factors to take into consideration when organising a family safari that it is recommended you use an established tour operator who can tailor make an itinerary to suit every family member. You will be pleasantly surprised to see that the cost of using a tour operator is roughly the same as it would be if you organised the trip yourself. All you will need to do is relax and enjoy your family holiday, safe in the knowledge that every detail has been taken care of.

The type of safari and the destination will depend on the children’s age and interests and whether you would prefer to avoid malaria areas (paediatric anti-malarial tablets are now available on prescription through a GP). Many people have the impression that safaris are not suitable for younger children. This may be true of some camps but there are many who actively encourage and welcome children as young as six and the majority of lodges and camps accept children over the age of twelve. It is important to do your research and ensure you choose a camp that will cater for the whole family.

Chitabe Camp in Botswana is a luxury tented camp and is in an excellent position for cat viewing. Sabuk Lodge’s Eagle Cottage in Kenya has a family built suite with a private pool and is perfectly situated for game viewing. Another popular choice is Nomads mobile camp in Tanzania. The camp follows the great migration along the Serengeti, a truly unforgettable African safari experience.

A symphony of sites and sounds await you on a luxury family safari holiday in Africa. The trumpeting elephants, roaring lions and bellowing buffaloes are guaranteed to capture even the wildest of childhood imaginations and your children will have the opportunity to unleash their creative spirits using nature as their inspiration.

Kilimanjaro Safari – as estradas da Reserva Selvagem de Harambe, levam você a um safari de aventuras com animais de verdade – gostei, mas podia ser melhor.

Pangani Forest Exploration Trail / Maharajah Jungle Trek – passeio a pé, pela floresta africana, com vista de pássaros, gorilas, e até o dragão de komodo… (veja o vídeo abaixo)

Kenya Wildlife Safari – 5 Days / 4 nights; Overland minibus safari

Safari Highlights;

• The impressive landscape of the Great Rift Valley

• Lake Naivasha, famous for hippo colonies and bird life

• Savannah with the myriad wildlife of Masai Mara

This enthralling safari takes you around Kenya’s most stunning wildlife reserves. Masai Mara’s undulating plains offers one of Kenya’s best-known game viewing. This is lion, cheetah, leopard and elephant country.

Day 1: Nairobi – Tsavo national park safaris

Meet and greet at the airport, then drive to Tsavo for lunch. Tsavo is the largest national Park in Kenya. Kenya National Parks It has been split into Tsavo West national Park and Tsavo east National Park. Selous Game Reserve The landscape in both parks is dusty and parched during the dry season. You will take an afternoon game drive. Overnight at Kilaguni lodge

Day 2: Tsavo - Amboseli national park

Early morning have Game viewing enroute to Amboseli National Park and visit to Mzima Springs. The famous Mzima Springs, the source of most Mombasa’s fresh water, where you can walk to a large pool that is a favorite haunt of hippos and crocodiles. Flights to Mombasa Enjoy lunch in Amboseli and you will have an afternoon game drive. Overnight at Sopa lodge

Day 3: Masai Mara safari

Masai Mara is more than just the most popular wildlife park in the country. Queen Elizabeth National Park One look enough explains its appeal: This is classic African savannah, and the sheer density of wildlife is amazing. Serengeti National Park It is also traditionally the land of the Masai, but they have largely been displaced in favor of the animals. Kenya Safari Have lunch and an afternoon game drive. Overnight at Mara Sopa Lodge

Day 4: Visit Lake Naivasha

In the morning, you will have a game drive; departure to Nairobi with lunch scheduled either in Nairobi or on arrival in Lake Naivasha. Lake Naivasha offers a tranquil setting with the beauty of the lake and the possibility of taking a boat ride to look for hippos. Overnight at your Lodge in Naviasha

Day 5: Masai Mara national park – Nairobi

Up relatively early for an early morning Game drive, the return to the lodge for breakfast and relaxation as you wait for lunch. You will go for a late afternoon game drive after which you will return to Mara Sopa Lodge for your dinner and overnight stay. Safari South Africa Depart for Nairobi, arriving in the city centre around mid-day. Transfer to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for your departure

The continent of Africa is one of the most well endowed continents as far as the natural beauty, natural resources and wild life is concerned. People who have been on the Africa wildlife safari can tell you from their experience that it’s nothing short of a cathartic experience in their lives. Every land is known for some of the most unique features that are available there. The ancient land of Africa is perhaps the last existing doorway to nature in its most splendid and the most pristine forms. All that you are required to do to experience nature in its raw form is to make up your mind about going on an African Safaris holiday.

These days it is very much possible to experience those moments of lifetime in the easiest of manners. The presence of internet in our everyday lives has virtually shrunk the globe into a very small place. You just need to visit the site of a competent tour operator who can help you with your African safaris. Tanzania as well as Kenya are two countries that boast of some of the most amazing natural parks in the whole world. Anybody who is interested in the Tanzania safaris or Kenya safaris can easily get in touch with the most efficient tour operators that operate in these two countries. An Africa Safari can be that watershed event in your life that can completely alter the way in which you approach life. The Africa safari can reveal to you some of the most unknown experiences as well as make you a better and an enlightened person.

Just make up your mind and you would be introduced to a whole new way of living and surviving.

Day 1: Arrive into Arusha

The safari guide welcomes and picks you on your arrival at Arusha Airport and transferred to a Lodge of your choice. Overnight at SG Resort Lodge

Day 2: Arusha – Tarangire National Park

Mgahinga, After the morning breakfast, drive to Tarangire National Park. On reaching the Park, you will go for a Game Drive. Tanzania’s third largest national park is known for its majestic baobab trees hat dot the landscape, dwarfing the animals that feed beneath them. Herds of up to 300 elephants scratch the dry river bed for underground streams, while migratory wildebeest, zebra, buffalo, impala, gazelle, hartebeest and eland crowd the shrinking lagoons.

You will have ‘picnic-style’ lunch, and then continue with the wildlife observation, since the swamps, tinged green year round, are the focus for 550 bird varieties, the most breeding species in one habitat anywhere in the world.Birding Safaris in Kenya Overnight at Tarangire Sopa Lodge

Day 3: Tarangire- Ngorongoro Highlands

After a leisurely breakfast and en route game drive at Tarangire National Park, you’ll have lunch and an unforgettable visit to Mto wa Mbu – Masai Village. Here you’ll meet with the real Masai people, will observe their culture and as well enjoy a short dancing / singing performance.

After this memorable Cultural experience, you proceed to the Great Rift Valley, to Ngorongoro conservation Area Co. Overnight at Ngorongoro Wildlife Lodge

Day 4: Ngorongoro Crater.

This morning your driver takes you to the “eighth wonder of the world”, the Ngorongoro Crater, which is the largest unbroken caldera on earth. Tour Uganda The Crater is a home to the rare Black Rhino with its own Soda Lake. You are likely to see the lions, elephants, Zebras, hippos, flamingoes, jackals, rhinos, antelopes, many birds and other species. This is because of their high concentration in the crater. Overnight at Bouganvila Safari Lodge

Day 5: Ngorongoro / Serengeti National Park

After breakfast you will depart for Serengeti National Park with a stop en route at Olduvai Gorge. Oldvai is the famous archeological site where the Leakey’s discovered remains of Australopithecus, Homo habilis and Homo erectus, bringing crucial understanding of the study of the evolution of the human species. From Olduvai, you are off to the great Serengeti, the most famous wildlife sanctuary in the world. Overnight at Lobo Wildlife Lodge

Day 6: Serengeti National Park

This day will be for exploring the famous Serengeti National Park. Serengeti National Park is undoubtedly the best-known wildlife sanctuary in the world, unequalled for its natural beauty and scientific value. With more than two million wildebeest, half a million Thomson’s gazelle, and a quarter of a million zebra, it has the record concentration of plains game in AfricaKenya National Parks. Overnight at Seronera Wildlife Lodge

Day 7: Serengeti National Park

You will have breakfast at the lodge before you embark on an early morning game drive in the park. In the open grass plains during the rainy months, from November to May, thousands of wildebeest and Burchell’s zebra assemble. The area is the starting point for one of the grand wonders of the world: the Serengeti annual migration. Towards the end of May when the grass becomes dry and exhausted, the wildebeest start to mass in enormous armies. Tanzania wildlife

Eventually, after several dummy runs, the animals begin their trek in a column several miles long to the permanent waters in the north of the Park. National Park & Reserves in Tanzania After moving westwards, the migration divides by some uncanny instinct, one group turning northeast and the other due north. Cheap Flights Tanzania Once started, little stops the stampede: hundreds often drown at a time in the broad Mara River in the north. You will return to your lodge for lunch for the afternoon game drive. Overnight at Seronera Wildlife Lodge

Day 8: Serengeti / Lake Manyara National Park.

From Serengeti National Park you drive this morning to another National Park, to Lake Manyara. As we drive, we cannot avoid the ‘en-route game drive’ and the picnic lunch. On arrival we you will check-in to your hotel.Safari Lodges and Hotels in Kenya Overnight at Lake Manyara Tented Camp

Day 9: Lake Manyara / Arusha

After breakfast, we drive back to Arusha marking the end of your cultural journey. Cheap Flights Tanzania Our guide will take you to the airport in time to reach the flight back home.

Here’s the report back from our super-fast, super-stealth 3 day reconnaissance mission to St. Thomas:

We landed on Wednesday night at 9:45 after 13 hours of travel and lots of airline frustrations. Immediately after deplaning everyone was given shots of rum. Our hotel was right by the airport (but that doesn’t necessarily indicate unpleasantness – it actually had one of the nicest beaches attached to it). The hotel had no bottled water left, and the guy at the front desk told us to run tap water through the coffee maker to sterilize it and then drink it with ice, like they do when they have hurricanes. We didn’t. We were starving, and he told us there was only one restaurant still open on the island and that after his shift he would drive us there. But Anne was really tired and had to get up early to go meet her potential work people, so we decided against it. He was visibly disappointed. We ate fritos and diet coke from the vending machine for dinner.

The next day we had a really bad and absurdly expensive breakfast (we were later to find that this is the norm for the island) and Anne went to the clinic to meet everyone and get interviewed and oriented. There was a torrential downpour while we were eating, but it ended quickly and the sun came out. While Anne was doing job reconnaissance, it was my mission to do life reconnaissance. I decided to go to “town” (Charlotte Amalie, which is the capital and I guess the densest cluster of stores). Because I didn’t have a million dollars for a taxi, I decided to go the way the locals do, which is by going to the main road and flagging down a truck thing with benches called a “safari” (see below) and then stomping on the floor when you want to get off (some have buttons you can push but some don’t) and then paying one or two dollars. Since I had no idea where I was going or how to do anything, there were deifnitely some comedic antics of the bemused-and-irritated-locals-help-awkward-and-ignorantly-adventurous-white-girl-with-local-customs nature.

This is a safari. But usually it's moving and full of people.

I wandered around the town for a little while. It looked like central America and felt like Africa, and everything was named with Danish or Dutch words. A cruise ship had just excreted its contents all over the downtown, so the millions of jewelry stores were open and busy. I went off in search of St. Thomas synagogue, which is the oldest synagogue in continuous use in the Western hemisphere. Who knew? It was founded by Sephardic Jews who escaped from Spain. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to go to shul during this visit, so we didn’t really get a sense of the Jewish population but there definitely is one.

 

The rabbi in the video for the tourists said that the Sephardic Jews put sand on the floor to remember when the conversos had to do that in their basements to muffle the sound of them saying the shma.

A random street in town

The beach by the hotel (Lindbergh Beach) late afternoon

by Julian Harrison

Swahili for “journey,” the word “safari” originated when Arab slave and ivory traders ventured through wild country where the tribes were least sophisticated and most dangerous — and where the elephants and other trophy animals dwelled. Today, Africa’s most popular photo safari areas are its south and southeast, mainly due to wide-open ecosystems home to countless fauna and flora.

Most itineraries are organized around luxury lodges — some stone and thatch, others large tents akin to canvas suites, with several days at several lodges. For more remote destinations with few or no roads, like northern Botswana and southern Tanzania, fly-in safaris are more common, with small bush planes shuttling guests between lodges.

Many lodges offer walking as an option, but walking safaris have you on foot with an armed guard most or all of the time, sometimes walking each day from one pre-erected camp to another. Canoe trails  are conducted down some of Africa’s great rivers, such as the Zambezi between Zimbabwe and Zambia with small groups of up to eight paddling in two-person canoes from one pre erected camp to another (not recommended for first-timers). Finally, mobile safaris put you in Land Rovers or Toyota Land Cruisers fitted with extra seats, long-range fuel tanks, high canopies, and large windows. Most are self-sufficient camping affairs using a mix of public and private campsites, and sometimes booking into luxury lodges along the way.

Top destinations

Botswana is rainy from late November through February, while June-October is prime game-spotting season.  Mostly small, spread-out tented camps allow for low-density viewing; they’re either luxury tented camps or low-end, with visitors expected to put up their own tents and assist with chores.

One of Africa’s greatest remaining nature sanctuaries, accessed by light aircraft and four-wheel-drive vehicles, its Okavango Delta covers more than 6,000 square miles (almost 16,000  square km) of waterways, palm-filled islands, and lagoons and harbors the most animal and plant species in the southern hemisphere. Activities include game drives in open vehicles, guided island walks, and poling through shallow, reed-lined channels in makoros (dugout canoes).

In East Africa,  Kenya’s and Tanzania’s numerous national parks are known for their vast array of species and especially for their annual wildebeest migration. Following the Serengeti’s April/May rains, wildebeest move into its western corridor toward the Mara River, generally staying in Kenya’s Maasai Mara late July to early November before returning to the Serengeti. Rainy seasons are April through early June and November/early December.

National parks and reserves cover over eight percent of Kenya. The “Big Five” (elephant, lion, rhino, buffalo, leopard) can be seen in Masai Mara and Amboseli national parks, amongst others; remote Samburu holds unique species like Beisa oryx, reticulated giraffe, Somali ostrich, gerenuk, and Grevy’s zebra; viewing’s best July through September and January through March. Masai Mara’s undulating hills and rolling grasslands support huge animal populations, including elephants, cheetahs, leopards, Cape buffalos, giraffe, gazelles, Topi antelope, and Africa’s largest lion population; in the Mara River there are also hundreds of hippos and crocodiles.

Top among Tanzania’s extraordinary wildlife and grand landscapes are the year-round snow-capped peaks of majestic Mount Kilimanjaro; mighty, mystical Ngorongoro Crater; and the Serengeti National Park, with more than three million large animals spread across vast.

Semi-desert and one of Africa’s least populated countries, Namibia is all about unspoiled nature, rich wildlife, abundant sunshine, and striking beauty, with a short rainy season in November and the main rains in February and March.

Etosha National Park is mainly saline desert, savannah, and woodlands;  its main feature is the Etosha Pan, a shallow depression stretching some 6,133 square kilometers (about 2,400 square miles). This white “place of dry water” is very different from Africa’s other reserves; some days it’s a shimmering sheet of mirages on which the animals appear to be floating on air. Its more than 110 mammal species include rare endangered species such as black rhino and black-faced impala, the latter unique to northwestern Namibia and southwestern Angola.

In South Africa’s top wildlife destination, Kruger National Park, annual rains fall late November through February; the rest of the year’s mostly dry. Game-spotting’s good almost year round, but July and August are considered low season, so fewer tourists come to the lodges and you can score some great deals. In actual fact, it’s still a superb time for game viewing.

Many luxury lodges line Kruger’s western boundary in three main areas: Sabi Sands, Timbivati, and Manyaleti. Sabi Sands is best for year-round game; a two- or three-night stay should yield “Big Five” sightings at the very least.

Uganda is where the East African savannah meets the West African jungle, and the only place in Africa where you can watch lions prowling the open plains in the morning, track wild chimpanzees through the rainforest in the afternoon, then the next day navigate tropical channels teeming with hippo and crocodiles before setting off into misty mountains to spend time with Uganda’s stars: its highly endangered mountain gorillas. Seeing these gentle giants up close is as humbling as it is thrilling, particularly when one realizes that there are a mere 700 or so left in the wild, found only in Bwindi National Park and the Virunga Mountains. Heavy rains come March through May, then lighter rains in October/November.

Bigger than Texas, Zambia has big, unspoiled national parks with tremendous game viewing, especially on walking safaris.  It’s rainy, though, so the season’s fairly short;  the best time is June through October, but April/May and November/December also offer decent wildlife spotting.

The 3,500-square-mile (9,000-square-kilometer) Luangwa Valley is one of Africa’s last unspoiled wilderness areas and one of its finest wildlife sanctuaries. The Luangwa River meanders through, and oxbow lagoons, woodlands, and plains harbor huge animal populations, including elephants, buffalos, lions, giraffes, and hippos; Luangwa’s especially well known for leopards.

Finally, Zimbabwe may be a disaster politically and economically, but it’s still top-notch and safe for game viewing, with unspoiled wilderness and outstanding variety of wildlife,  including endangered species which once roamed all Africa.  Dry except during for late November through February; game spotting is good for most of the year, and peak season runs June through October.

Hwange National Park includes vast open palm-fringed plains, acacia woodlands, and mopane forests with elephants, buffalos, sables, roans, giraffe, wildebeests, impalas, and sometimes oryx. It’s also tops for predators — lions, leopards, wild dog, and cheetah, along with the smaller African wildcats, serval, honey badger, civits, and hyenas.

More info: Tripatini’s Africa Safaris group.

Widely regarded as the �Eighth Wonder of the World�, the Ngorongoro Crater is a truly spectacular sight and an Ngorongoro safari is imperative for any first-time safari-goer to Tanzania.

A Unesco World Heritage Site, this collapsed volcanic caldera covers an area of 8300 square kilometers and encompasses several different ecosystems, including volcanoes, grasslands, waterfalls and mountain forest and forming its own unique ecosystem. What makes a Ngorogoro safari special is its concentration of animals, at an estimated 30 000 animals inhabit an area of 260 square kilometers.

If your available time is limited but your budget not, the 4-day Ngorongoro Crater Lodge fly-in safari is your optimum choice (the location spectacular, the d�cor sublime and the service in line with & Beyond�s legendary reputation). Should you be looking for a longer Ngorongoro and Serengeti safari still within the & Beyong group of lodges, we suggest our Best of the Crater and Serengeti luxury safari. Should you be on a looking for a longer duration scheduled safari on a set budget, then Tanzania scheduled safari is for you. Should neither of these two spectrums be what you are looking for, the browse our East Africa tours or Ngorongoro Crater lodges or contact us for a tailor-made proposal.

A handful of renowned lodges in the Ngorongoro Crater are dotted around the crater rim, surely among the most breathtaking and serene locations in Africa. For the less well healed, other accommodation exists within an easy drive of the crater and day trips are possible to the crater floor. Although an Ngorongoro Crater safari holds spectacular vistas and excellent gameviewing, this safari �hot-spot� does get crowded with over two-hundred safari vehicles on the crater floor daily. We highly recommend his destination and a Ngorongoro crater tour, although caution our clientele that remote safari experiences are better experienced elsewhere in East Africa. An Ngorongoro safari combines excellently with an Serengeti safari, and Safari365 can easily combine a these two destinations as well as others.

Ngorongoro safari is literally �Wildlife Central�. Geologists believe that the Ngorongoro volcano (which ultimately formed the Ngorongoro Crater) was originally 1000m higher than Mount Kilimanjaro. The Ngorongoro volcano�s eruptions regularly deposited ash to the west of Ngorongoro up until the volcano collapsed around 2-million years ago, cultivating the Serengeti plains (the only habitat that can sustain the birth of half a million wildebeest calves in two months on an annual basis)

The Greater Ngorongoro Conservation Area is also home to one of the most iconic tribes in Africa, the Masai. These nomadic people have maintained their traditional lifestyle whist co-existing with the influx of tourism and welcoming visitors into their homes to subsidize their income. The conservation area has also made for the ideal preservation of fossil remains in the area, and led to the archeological discoveries of early human remains made by Dr Louis Leaky and his wife, Mary, at Olduvai Gorge just to the west of the Ngorongoro highlands.

Read Further: Ngorongoro Safari

Eagle Island Camp

Es el más representativo del área por su ubicación(una isla frecuentada tanto pora ves como por personalidades)y por la pulcritud de sus tiendas climatizadas sobre pilares. Camas King Size tipo malvaviscos , servicio de mayordomo   y terrazas para una romantica cena bajo el manto celeste son algunas de sus peculiaridades , así como la terraza central con alberca y bar para refrescarse luego de un recorrido en mokoro o un safari a pie.

Savute Elephant Camp

Ubicado en le parque Nacional Chobe , este campamento posee tiendas de techo de palma y plataforma de roca. Los huéspedes arriban en helicóptero, y luego de una bebida de bienvenida se les muestra su tienda de terraza, hamaca , sala tipo lounge y baño con regadera de lluvia . Sus safaris privados permiten observar impalas, leones , jirafas , leopardos y grandes manadas de elefantes. Tambien organizan safaris a bordo de barcazas tradicionales. El resort cuenta con servicio de mayordomo privado, así como guias e investigadores que ofrecen conferencias cada tarde para preparar en lo individual  las experiencias durante la estancia. Si bien tomarse la tarde para disfrutar en cuerpo y alma el contexto salvaje y prístino desde sus terrazas es suficiente, vale la pena desprenderse de sus encantos de vez en cuando.

The reburbished lounge

Relaxing on the deck hammock

Experience the Elephant Capital of the world

Delta del Okavango

Con su forma de palma bien abierta, se debe recorrer el noreste de botswana. Sus lagunas y canales llevan aguas de champagne, mezcladas con las arenas del desierto Kalahari y el azhar de los pueblos de los pescadores asentados en sus bancos.La fértil región atrae a los grandes mamiferos del sur de áfrica y es famosa por los paseos en canoas tradicionales llamadas mokoro.

Desde el aire

Muchos Imaginan que un safari implica unicamente largas  caminatas  y trayectos en camioneta; sin embargo , el vuelo en ultraligeros y la navegación son opciones muy recomendables, que añaden una nueva dimensión a la experiencia natural.

Khwai River Lodge

Está dentro de un bosque de higueras , frente a las planicies inundadas de Moremi. El albergue distribuye tiendas con techos de palma, regaderas de lluvia al exterior y pisos de madera finas. Cuenta con un sugestivo restaurante al aire libre y una sala donde se imparten conferencias sobre las expediciones diurnas y nocturnas.

Outdoor bathroom in suite

Suite plunge pool

A Luxury room

Más Información

www.orient-express-safaris.com

她，很专心地在秘密阿姨的手，画。

迪拜。
摄于2009年1月27日，傍晚。

其他照片：热情沙漠。