Zimbabwe
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Michael and Alexandra from Michigan travelled to South Africa and Zimbabwe
Hello Rob, from start to finish, this was a trip of a lifetime! As soon as we arrived we felt like family and were warmly welcomed by everyone. The staff at both Dulini Lodge and Singita Ebony Lodge were amazing. The attention to detail was incredible. Any request we had was accommodated. The animal sightings were simply astounding. In Victoria Falls, the sunrise walking tour was breath-taking and Clive was an absolute thrill to have as our guide. I know we questioned the sunset dinner cruise, but this greatly exceeded our expectations. Arriving in Cape Town, Tobie from Vineyard Ventures was an excellent addition even with the minimal time we spent with him. He was very knowledgeable of the area and delightful to talk to as we made our way from place to place. The Cape Grace hotel was fantastic. We took advantage of the complimentary wine tasting they offered in house daily starting at 6pm. This was a fun perk to experience while there! Both the food and service at Cape Grace was top notch. For our all-day tour of the Cape, we could not have asked for a better guide than Glen from Vineyard Ventures. She is absolutely delightful, and I cannot say enough good things about her. The first thing that caught my eye upon arrival at The Marine Hotel in Hermanus was the beautiful panoramic views of the ocean out of our room. Our whale watching excursion was very fun. Once again, the staff at Dyer Island Cruises were very knowledgeable and helpful. For our final day, we were happily gathered by Glen to take us through the South African winelands. She hit the nail on the head with our tour! We got to experience a little of everything from sauvignon blanc to cabernet sauvignon to the pride of South Africa, pinotage. At Mont Rochelle, the views of Franschhoek out of our room were gorgeous. Overall, this trip was simply amazing. We highly recommend both doing a trip to Africa as well as working with Safari Consultants for the planning. We cannot thank Rob and his team enough for the thought that went into planning a trip like this and for the memories we now have that will last us a lifetime
Zimbabwe
Introduction
Introduction to the wonderful country of Zimbabwe
For the latter part of the 20th century, Zimbabwe was the ‘place to go’ on safari in Africa. Wonderful and varied scenery, fantastic hospitality, great game-viewing, varied safari activities and a reputation for having the best safari guides in Africa, all added up to make Zimbabwe pretty irresistible to the safari connoisseur. Unfortunately, the political situation from 2000 onwards had a deep impact on the country as a holiday destination. Since around 2011/2012 the country has been getting seriously ‘back in business’ and we now feel Zimbabwe is nearly back to its best.
The best big game areas are Hwange National Park (which is perhaps one of the very best places in Africa to view elephants and sable antelope) and Mana Pools National Park (which is especially good for leopards and wild dogs). Matusadona National Park on the shores of Lake Kariba has suffered in the past 15 years in terms of big game (sadly there are few black rhino remaining) but it is still a magical destination with fantastic scenery, excellent birding and reasonable general game including lions and plenty of elephant.
However while general game-viewing is excellent in a number of parks, the country is especially known for offering fantastic walking safaris, led by the continents best professional guides who will take you in search of big game, as well as teaching you about the smaller details of the bush. In addition, Mana Pools, The Upper Zambezi and Matusadona offer some of the best water-based game-viewing and fishing available in Africa.
Victoria Falls, the world’s widest waterfall, is a major attraction and to see the falls from the air during full flood is one of Africa’s great sights.
In addition to Hwange, Matusadona, Mana Pools and Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe’s other highlights include the Eastern Highlands, a mountainous area of stunning beauty, the Great Zimbabwe Ruins near Masvingo, the Matobo Hills near Bulawayo, the wilderness of Gonarezhou in the south-east, including nearby private reserve Pamushana, Kazuma Pan bordering Hwange and the Upper Zambezi (Zambezi National Park and Matetsi safari region) to the west of Victoria Falls.
Zimbabwe is back as a major safari destination but is still slightly better suited to more adventurous travellers who are keen to explore on foot, and/or more experienced safari goers who understand that in genuine wilderness regions game-viewing cannot always be guaranteed.
For further information and advice on Zimbabwe safari options please call us on 01787 888590 or contact us to speak to one of our experienced safari specialists.
