Planning an African Safari: the holiday of a lifetime

If looking for a holiday that is a little different it is well worth considering a safari, it is one of the few holiday types that is popular amongst singles, couples, families and groups. You might consider somewhere apart from Africa for a safari perhaps India or Nepal, Africa though has a much greater variety of magnificent animals including a great number of large mammals and a wide range of birds and other animals as well.

Within Africa there are three main countries that are popular for safari which are Tanzania, Kenya and South Africa, these three countries have all five of the five game animals known as Africa’s big five. These are the lion, rhino, buffalo, elephant and leopard: many tourists will set out to see all five on their safari, though the leopard is often the most difficult to spot. For the best chance of seeing all five though as well as many other animals your best option may be to head to South Africa’s Kruger National Park or nearby. The Kruger national park has all five of these animals in large numbers including around 1500 lions, 1000 leopards, 12,000 elephants, as many as 12,000 white rhino and also some much rarer black rhino and nearly 30,000 buffalo. Giraffes, cheetahs, zebra, ostrich and springbok among others can also easily be found in the park if you have a good tour guide.

A good tour guide is vital to your trip and finding the animals you most want to see, they can also greatly increase your appreciation of the animals with plenty of useful information, ideal if you have children with you who you hope will learn a lot on their holiday.

As well as the Kruger national park there are many private game reserves: in some of these it is possible to get much closer to semi-tame animals and you may be able to go on safari with far fewer other tourists nearby than you will get in the dry season in the national parks. The dry season is the best time to go usually though, this is in the winter in June and July, during these times animals flock to water and it makes them far easier to find and to see in large numbers. The wet season in the summer is much cheaper and less busy but it can be difficult to find animals especially with poor visibility, it is when you are most likely to see young newly born animals mind you.

As well as being able to go on safari in the standard jeep you have other options available to you for something a bit different. One extreme is going out on foot, the other extreme is going on a helicopter safari. A helicopter safari is a great way to see animals without having to drive around for hours seeing nothing, you can see animals from a distance and then safely approach them getting a much better view than you ever could in a jeep at a safe distance. You get a much better idea by helicopter of the vastness of the South African plains as well. A bushwalk safari is something different again but you can get much further away from the beaten track and really become one with the nature for one day or a few days, camping each night in the wild.

Have a blast this vacation in South Africa with attractive tour packages. To know more about tours in South Africa, click the following link. Click the following link for helicopter adventures in South Africa.