What To Consider While Planning An African Safari

By Dorothy Stone


Africa is home to many wild animals, beautiful vegetation and scenery. For many centuries, visitors have come to the continent for a number of reasons. Early visitors, in the thirteenth century, came on hunting expeditions and took home trophies of their kills. Today, visitors come to marvel at the beauty of nature and end up taking home videos and photos of their visits. African safari is a truly memorable adventure where one can see all of the big five members in their natural habitats.

However, planning a trip to Africa is nothing like the typical trip to the zoo. The chance to see animals within their natural habitats is an experience like no other. Safaris are physically strenuous and taxing. As most of the popular destinations are in developing African states, a few precautionary measures need to be taken like health and safety precautions. So while preparing for the trip, find good guidebooks, read many reviews on travel websites and blogs, talk to friends who have been to the continent and get a reliable travel guide.

There are different types of safaris each with different costs. This is why it is important to do some research and find which package you can afford. Some factors that affect the cost of your trip include length of stay and luxury accommodations. Most packages are priced according to double occupancy so if one is travelling alone, it is important to pay for a single supplement. Luxury packages are quite expensive and allow for comfort accommodations in the wild. Mobile safaris are the cheapest, participatory packages where a group of tourists travel together and share costs and other experiences. Adventurous people may opt to drive themselves personally throughout the tour.

It is important to have a clue on where exactly you want to go. This decision is based on what game you want to see. Different countries have different animals. Popular destinations on the continent are East African countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda and Southern African countries like South Africa, Botswana and Namibia. Kenya and Tanzania are famous for the Wildebeests migrations while Uganda is famous for its primates. The south is known for its impressive elephant population.

Make the timing of your trip perfect to enjoy the show. It is advisable to come during the dry season so that one can get to see animals in the open. If one is aiming to see the wildebeest migration, they should time it by checking for the migration patterns of animals.

Due to the large number of diseases on the continent, it is highly advised to get vaccination before leaving home, this will protect against contacting dangerous diseases like Hepatitis A or B, typhoid and yellow fever. Malaria is preventable by giving of a treatment and using mosquito repellents and nets.

Be very careful when booking and paying for a safari because there are many fraudsters and scams out there. Always verify the legitimacy of a travel agent before paying them. Check ratings on TripAdvisor and other relevant sites and read their reviews.

Remember to stay safe during the tour. Always look at the State Department advisories while planning the trip. This is because of insecurity issues, politics and crime. Do not forget to get travel insurance and medical cover.




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