First African Safari confusion

I haven’t been to Tanzania, but I loved the safari I took in Botswana. (back in 2003). We spent 4 nights in Cape Town before flying on to Botswana. In Botswana, we stayed in 3 safari camps (Okavango Delta, Chobe, and Mashatu). I loved both the Okavango Delta and Mashatu. Chobe National Park was not as interesting as the other two locations. Since it was a national park, our jeep had to stay on the road so we did no see as many animals as we saw in the two private reserves. We arranged our trip through Fish Eagle Safaris. They specialize in Africa and have a number of articles on their website about safaris in Africa. I thought they did a great job arranging our trip.

Everyone I’ve talked to who has been on a safari has loved it, so I doubt you can go wrong whether you choose southern Africa or eastern Africa. You might read through some of the blog posts on the Fish Eagle website and see if one region appeals to you more than another. Bert Duplessis arranged our trip and he has a post on his five top Africa trips. Calfing season in Tanzania is one of his top 5 and so is the Okavango Delta. Good luck with your decision.
https://fisheaglesafaris.com/berts-top-5-africa-trips/

I've never done a safari holiday, but was talking about it the other day with someone who is planning one.
Apparently, the South African game drives take place in reserves, still big places, but the chances of seeing animals are greater than in the other places.

We just did our amazing safari trip last year and used Yellow Zebra Safaris - yellowzebrasafaris.com. It was incredibly well planned.
We also talked with Fish Eagle Safaris, Tara Beckett at [email protected] and Nicky Mears at [email protected].

You tell them what you want and they will tailor a trip and offer advice.
Here is what we learned:
1. We did not want a packaged safari like on Gate 1 Travel.
2. We chose Kicheche in the Naboisho Conservancy in Kenya. They were simply incredible. And if you are in a Conservancy, the jeeps go off road and place you within feet of the animals. And you may have 4 people in your jeep. This was a huge learn.
3. We also wanted to go to Ambocelli and this was another wonderful visit. But you are in a National Park so you stay on the road and had dozens of jeeps vying for the perfect photo op stop.....
4. We told them we wanted to see the gorillas and they planned a visit to Bwindi National Park - The hike up hill was not as hard as I thought, and I just stood there and cried as we watched the gorillas.
5. All four of them had different price points. Ask a lot of questions. Some camps came with unlimited drinks - we like wine, but we don't need 5 gin and tonics every day.

Decisions, decisions! Tanzania and Kenya are the "classic" safari destinations, where you can see the big herds. You can also do a side trip to Rwanda or Uganda to see mountain gorillas (a trip I'm currently researching). Did you know that there are options for people with limited mobility, such as being carried in a sedan chair? A friend of mine had to do this, as he sprained his ankle in Germany on his way to his gorilla trek in Africa. Once the gorillas were located, he did have to do the last little bit under his own steam (crawling, in his case), as you leave most of your gear in an area away from the gorillas. https://www.silverbackgorillatours.com/gorilla/gorilla-trekking-for-the-elderly-old-and-disabled If being carried is overkill for you, keep in mind that you can request an easier trek, stating your reasons, and the organizers will do their best to accommodate you. (Of course, gorillas don't sit in one spot and wait for you, so this isn't absolutely guaranteed.) You can (and should) also hire porters who will help carry your gear and give you a hand on any tricky bits. I say should, because this helps with employment and supporting the local economy. It's not terribly expensive, either (about $20-$30 per porter plus tip).

On our first (and, so far, only) safari, we ended up choosing Namibia. Our reasons included stable government and relatively decent roads. Also, my brother had been there, and we were inspired by his accounts and photos.

Now, Namibia is fairly dry. It has a lot of desert (both the Kalahari and the Namib deserts). So, it doesn't have the big herds, as the landscape doesn't support it. But during the dry season (roughly May to October), animals congregate around waterholes, so you can see quite a variety fairly easily. There are even places where you can stay that overlook waterholes. That said, long drives are common, although we didn't mind that, because the landscape is stunning.

It is also quite easy to combine a trip to Namibia and Botswana, as they are adjacent to one another. (Note that Botswana safaris tend to be more expensive than those in other African countries.)

We ended up doing a private safari in Namibia, and we absolutely loved it. You can read my trip report here, in case you might find it helpful: https://www.safaritalk.net/topic/17676-namibia-a-midsummer-tourists-dream/#comment-229098 And, not to detract from the Rick Steves forums, which are awesome, but you might also want to have a look at the SafariTalk forums where my trip report is, because it is a good resource for safaris and for Africa travel.

Having been on safaris in several countries, I would handsdown choose Kenya or Botswana.

You are absolutely incorrect when you say that the game watching in South Africa is not as good as in Kenya/Tanz.
Both SA and Botswana have given me the best animal viewing of my life; I prefer those countries, as well as Zimbabwe, for safari time.

Ask just about any well-informed safari go-er and they would probably tell you that the Okavango Delta offers the best game watching experience in the world. Bar none. But Botswana is relatively expensive, as their model is low density tourism at prices on the high side. But none of the great game regions are at all cheap, although there are ways to soften the blow to the wallet.

For a combination of a fantastic city with superb game watching, I'd recommend spending a few days in Capetown followed by safari in the Kruger/Sabi Sands private concessions. In the latter, for a first timer, I don't there's anyplace better than Londolozi or one of the Singita options.

@escrunchy, while I loved South Africa and had some great sightings, the drawback for me is the 3 hour time limit. At least that was the case when I was there. I don't want a time limit when I'm out getting photos of the animals.

Wow! I really appreciate your replies! Thank you!

I was on safaris in both Tanzania and Botswana in September 2024. I was with two other "mature" women, so a private tour. You won't likely see the animals you hope to see without spending hours in a vehicle, unfortunately. This was my first trip to Africa, but the other two women had previously been to Botswana and loved it so much they wanted to go back, especially to the Okavango Delta. However, last year was a drought year, everything was very dry, and they were extremely disappointed at the conditions there.

I'm going to recommend Serengeti/Ngorongoro to you, and suggest that you find a company that will fly you into the area. We spent many (MANY) hours on dusty, rough roads getting from Arusha to Ngorongoro and then on to the Serengeti.

Feel free to PM me if you'd like more details.

I travel to Africa regularly though I have only been on a proper safari once- in Masai Mara. It was one of the most amazing and memorable experiences of my life. I can't compare it to other safaris, but I thought it was excellent value- I did it over a weekend from Nairobi for only $500 USD, which covered roundtrip flights from Nairobi (on a tiny plane- both fun and a little scary), one night in a luxury tent, meals, and two game drives. The morning game drive was just the driver and myself- at sunrise we got to watch a group of tiny lion cubs playing in front of their pride. Not many experiences in my life could compare to that. We also saw four of the big five (no leopards this time).

Masai Mara and the Serengeti are basically the same landmass, but one is on the Kenya side of the border and the other is on the Tanzania side, so I imagine what you see in Serengeti would be quite similar.

Botswana has been on my list for a while but I haven't made it yet. I will just say if you do visit Chobe I highly recommend a visit to Victoria Falls, which is very close by- another magical spot. The views are best from the Zimbabwe side but if you visit the Zambia side at the right time of year you can actually sit at the very top of the falls in the water.

Regarding gorillas- I've looked into this during trips to Uganda and to Rwanda and concluded both times it was too expensive for me. But Rwanda is much more expensive so if you are concerned about price look at Uganda. Tho I do think a lot of walking is required. You can see gorillas in Virunga in DRC as well altho I'm not sure how safe it is to visit at the moment.

My wife and I as well as my son and his partner did a great safari in Kenya and Tanzania three years ago.
We did it in early August, which is during THE GREAT MIGRATION of the wildebeests from Tanzania to northern Kenya.

I highly recommend going this time of the year, we got to see this and it was fantastic.
Our tour company was a Tanzania company called Good Earth Tours.
We had a driver/guide for each country and 2/3 of the safari was in Tanzania. We also had a half day city tour of Nairobi before the safari.
We visited the Maasai Mara in Kenya first (it is across the border from the Serengeti in Tanzania). We also did the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and then a couple of days more going east toward the airport at the City of Arusha.

The 11 day tour and safari cost us about $4400 per person, that included top level lodging, meals, transportation and our guide.
I researched for other tours and it was hard to find a better safari for that price. We do Gate 1 Travel and their safari in Kenya didn't visit all the sites that we saw, especially in Tanzania.

I recommend considering Good Earth, they were excellent.

My Son had done a safari in South Africa and Zimbabue couple of years earlier and he said that our Good Earth safari was the best.

We traveled in the wild in a large off road vehicle for all five of us with luggage. It had a pop up roof, so we could stand up and take great photos.

KB: I've been quite a few times to SA for game viewing and have never heard of a "three hour Limit!!"

Where were you?

In SA, my stays were all either at different lodges inside Sabi Sands or at Tswalu.

We encountered very few other vehicles inside the concessions.
Never heard of that in Botswana, or Zimbabwe, either.
I've only been once to the Vic Falls area and that was mostly hippos on the river trips..

@ekscrunchy, I was at Lion Sands and it was three hours in the early morning and three hours in the late afternoon. No opportunity to extend.

That's very odd, because I was sat Lion Sands Ivory about 15 years ago and we could stay out as long as others in the vehicle wanted to stay on the game drives. (But no night drives in Sabi Sands unless you are following a hunt)

There is certainly no rule that I am aware of that limits the length of game drives in the Sabi Sands. In my experience, that depends on the others who are sharing your vehicle. One (very expensive) way around that is to book a private vehicle.

Who was it at LS who told you it was time to come back to the lodge? Was it the guide? Or fellow visitors? I would have been very annoyed if there was good viewing and we had to turn back, but that's never happened to me on any of my safari trips to any of those countries.

At Tswalu, which is not in the Kruger/SS area but in the southern Kalahari, you are assigned a private guide and your own vehicle for the duration of your stay. So it's up to you and your companions how long to stay in the bush... There were even a few people who were there during our stay and who were interested in night drives to see pangolin and some of the other animals who inhabit the Tswalu concession (I believe it's the largest in the country). Those people slept during the day and set out on their drive just before sunset and were out all night!!!! Tswalu also included our flights to and from their strip.

One important issue to find out before booking is the amount of passengers who will be in the vehicle with you--assuming you do not book a private one. Also, to my mind, the open vehicles used in SA and Botswana are superior to those pop-up vans common in Kenya and Tanzania..

The only issue with Botswana is that you ought to be ok with flying from camp to camp in small planes. Same for parts of Zimbabwe.

I will admit that I can't compare Tanzania to anything, but I went 3 times as I loved it so much. First tim3 an OAT (overseas adventure travel) small group tour, second a private safari after a volunteer there stint and third an extended safari and birding private trip from Arusha, around Lake Victoria I to Uganda for primates and gorillas.
I chose Tanzania by reading Fodors Safari Guide which describes safaris for each African country covered. I chose Tanzania as the Serengeti holds the most numbers of key safari animals so figured sightings would be best there.
Last visit was in February, but the rains hadn't started and herds were very dispersed. Go a little later in the month and hope it has rained. The moms need the new grass for nutrients while nursing and wildebeest are capable of holding a pregnancy for up to a further 4 weeks in order to delay birth until good feeding for Mom.
With 2 or more people, your budget does tend to go further on a private safari. Then you can ask for more breaks to stretch your legs or a short walk. I loved the parks between Arusha and Serengeti and wouldn't fly in for my first visit.
In Uganda, I unfortunately had stomach issues before my trek, but my guide was able to ask that I be put I to the group following the closest family that day. It was about 40 minutes to walk. Earlier in the day they had been in the gardens on my hotel and next day one was chomping on tea leaves down the block.
I had a travel partner in Uganda and her second day was closer to a 2 hour hike to the gorilla.
At that time we were late 50s/early 60s.

Just commenting as a reminder to follow this thread. We're trying to decide when and where as well.

Do NOT miss doing The Great Migration in Kenya and/or Tanzania in early August, it is amazing.

I went to Zimbabwe, Botswana and South Africa on an Imprint tour in March 2018. I chose this tour because it had a lot to offer besides safaris (Victoria Falls, Capetown, the penguin colony and winery tours). I want sure how much I would like safaris. As it turned out, I absolutely loved seeing the animals on safari. Unfoy, it was not long after an unusually heavy rainy season so the animals did not have to go out searching for water. Thus, we didn’t see zillions of animals, and the only cats we saw were two lions pretty far away. We did see a lot of different animals, just not hoards of them. As for the non-safari part of the tour, variety of experiences was wonderful.

After this trip, which I fully expected would be my only trip to Africa, I found myself longing to go back to see more cats as well as the wildebeest migration. So in July 2024, we took an Odyssey’s tour of Kenya and Tanzania (Classic Safari: Kenya and Tanzania). It was fantastic! I had found this tour online and was seriously considering it. Then on a trip in 2023, I met three people who had taken this very tour. They raved about it. Now my husband and I are raving about it! We saw tons of cats close up - lions, cheetahs and leopards - and thousand upon thousands of wildebeests. Many other animals too. It was just amazing. We found Odyssey to be a class act all the way around.

I hope this helps. I think you will have a wonderful time wherever you decide to go. We loved both trips. Africa is someplace special; it just grabs your heart.

I'll add one more point, for anyone debating about where to go on safari:

I've been on one private safari in Kenya/Tanz and five privates in Southern Africa. One of the big differences between the two was that in the Mara/Serengeti, etc, there are often several other vehicles parked near your own, watching the same animals and vying for a good photo.

In the private concessions of the Sabi Sands and Tswalu, and in the camps we stayed at in Zimbabwe and in Botswana, most of the time you are the only vehicle on the site at that time. At most, there will be one or two other vehicles near yours. Entrance to these concessions is very limited, often limited to only the guests staying at your lodge, and the lodges are small...some with no more than ten guests at a time.

If someone told me that they could only visit one safari camp in Africa and asked which one, my answer would always be Londolozi, in the Sabi Sands of South Africa. Just to hear that name makes my heart beat faster! Their reserve has five small camps; prices for each camp vary depending on quality of accommodations and food. We were often the only ones in our vehicle, along with the guide and tracker during our stays there.

ekscrunchy,
My Son did South Africa and Zimbabue then our safari in Kenya/Tanzania. They said BY FAR the KenyaTanzania one was the best. WAY more animals. We saw thousands of wildebeest on the Great Migration.

My Son said that in South Africa the place they saw the animals was more like a large zoo than a huge nature preserve.
We learned from our guides in Kenya/Tanzania that when one vehicle finds animals like a pride of lions or wildebeests crossing the river that they use their radios to inform others in the area. This is one reason that we saw so many in the wild.

Al of that depends on where your son stayed. It does not sound as if he was in Sabi Sands when he was in SA. You really cannot judge an entire country's game viewing based on one person's experience in a camp that likely was not among the best. IF he had gone to the prime areas, he would not have felt as if he were in a zoo..that does sound terrible, and disappointing. The same goes for his time in Zimbabwe..where was he? Didi he go in high season, or in wet season when the animals disperse?
There are hundreds of game areas in these countries--some are great and some are not.

I'm not doubting that seeing the migration is fabulous. I like to view animals without other vehicles crowding in..that's what happens when there are multiple lodges using the same reserve traversing area.... I don't get that in the places I've visited.

BUT..the prices, especially now, for the top lodges in SA and Botswana are through the roof. Camps like the legendary Mombo charge up to $4,000-$5,000 per person, per night, in what t5hey call "premium season." A single pays the price for two. (I'm thrilled that I visited when it was less expensive; and we did not go in high season!)

As I wrote, I've been on multiple African safaris and always return to the countries in the south;;Zimbabwe, SA, and Botswana.

Hi! Anyone that I have met who has gone on an African safari has been very happy with their experience, regardless if it’s in East Africa or South Africa. My husband and I have gone to Tanzania three times and I remember what a big decision it was for us initially. Ultimately we decided on Tanzania because it was less expensive than Botswana and had the iconic wildlife areas we were familiar with (ie Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater). We were not disappointed and fell in love with Tanzania. Our first trip was in the north which has a very good tourist infrastructure and also attracts the most visitors. We went in late February and were able to see the calving of the wildebeest (all alone for this). It was hot and there were flies so be prepared. You will see all of the wildlife you might be envisioning. In the most popular areas of the Serengeti and, most of all, the Ngorongoro Crater there will likely be many others sharing your wildlife sightings for the predators in particular. The sightings are still spectacular but you probably won’t be alone for long. There is also opportunities for cultural interactions in the north. I think the key is to arrange for your own private guide which gives you the option of leaving/staying and going when and where you want with their guidance. On our second two trips, we went to Southern Tanzania. The wildlife is not as prolific but the ambiance is very “authentic African safari” to us, particularly Ruaha. If I were to do it again, I would still go to the north on my first visit and then to the south on subsequent visits. Be careful, you might fall in love with Tanzania as we did. Highly recommend Expert Africa for arrangements.

Thanks for that, Cindy! If I can tear myself away from the South, I do want to re-visit Tanzania in the near-ish future.

For anyone contemplating safari travel to Africa, I find this website helpful:

https://atrsafari.com/explore