Africa Safaris & Holidays

What are Africa Overlanding tours & Adventure safaris?

Here are a few notes about the character of our Africa safaris and adventure tours. They hopefully will help you to decide, whether you are the right person to enjoy the trips through Namibia, South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania or Uganda and Ethiopia that are featured on SafariScout.com. The following description does not necessarily apply to a particular tour or safari company - they should give you a general overview on what to expect on these overland trips.

It has been said that the average person lives a life of quiet desperation, but there are those who now and then, feel the need to break free of those bonds and seek adventure...Africa is the continent for those experiences. Explore and discover wild or remote places like the Kruger National Park of South Africa or the vast Namib desert of Namibia, where each dawn and sunset heralds a new experience. The only way to truly appreciate Africa is to sleep on its earth, bake in its sun, touch its grass and be doused in its water. If you want scented paper towels - stay in the city! Allow the safari companies with their tour offers to help you live the great outdoors of Africa!

Adventure Tours are for people who love life and want to embrace it with a passion, who care about African culture, people and wildlife. Adventure Tours have changed enormously over the last few years and Africa is now accessible to a far greater range of people. Almost anyone can go on an adventure tour.

Departures & participation - Almost all overland tours have scheduled departures and are participation trips. Therefore it is very important that travellers have a positive attitude and are prepared to put in their fair share towards various everyday camping or outdoor activities. Joining in is what turns a great trip into an unforgettable journey through Africa. With the right attitude you can be assured that all travellers will get the most out of their overland experience!

The concept of overlanding tours - The concept of most tours is that it’s not so much just the arrival at a destination like the Okavango Delta of Botswana or the Victoria Falls between Zambia and Zimbabwe, but the total experience of the expedition that is important. You travel together, learn from each other’s cultures and form a strong, supportive and fun team. Although the tour guides are ie. FGASA (Field Guide's Association of South Africa) registered, they are not “heroes” and won’t pamper you. They are, however, enthusiastic and ready for anything and will always get you through the tough times with a smile. They love Africa and want to show you as much as possible from their background so that you hopefully will go home thrilled about this magnificient place.

Plan A & Plan B - Be ready for the experience of a lifetime as Africa does not tick like clockwork, so be prepared to pack your sense of humour and a lot of tolerance as there are sure to be a few surprises, which is why Africa is so endearing. An overland expedition is a journey along a suggested route aimed at the more adventurous and budget conscious traveller. It is of f the beaten track, and many of the areas visited do not have the infrastructure that the package tourist may require. The route taken may also vary from time to time due to various factors like road conditions for example. The emphasis is on the journey, not the destination. Delays and unexpected events are part of the package and often add to your real Africa experience.

A typical day - For a successful Africa expedition, all we need is space under the stars and your eagerness to join in! A typical day starts veeery early - in Africa you live by nature’s timetable and use as many daylight hours as possible. Each day in Africa is new and exciting. A proportion of each day is spent travelling from one place to another. The tours can cover large distances and include plenty of highlights. Lunches are normally informal affairs on the side of the road, or a local picnic spot. If you are camping, tents are set up by nightfall, kettles are boiled, the smell of cooking fills the air and we sit around the campfire chatting about the happenings of the day and the excitement of tomorrow. A tour guide once said: "For Africans the campfire is their TV." For those on the accommodated safaris, the only difference is that you sleep on beds. Evenings are for writing diaries, playing cards or board games, or just listening to the African night. Every single trip is different!

The group - The groups average around 18 people (SafariScout.com also offers small group tours with a maximum of 12 to 14 clients), from all walks of life, and of various nationalities. Although there are often couples and groups of friends together, most travellers are single and the male-female mix generally works out about even. The nature of an adventure tour tends to attract a certain age group, and experience has shown that the adventure trips are unsuitable for the majority of travellers outside the 16 to 55 age bracket. However, some safari companies do accept people older than 55 years because age is a state of mind. Children between the ages of 8 – 15 are welcome with most of the tours, but on a request basis and must be accompanied by an adult. Teenagers between the ages of 16 – 18 are also welcome to travel but will require a letter of consent signed by a parent or guardian.

Camping and accommodated safaris - On camping tours nights are spent in 2-man dome tents and you will be provided with a foam mattress to ensure your comfort. You need to bring your own sleeping bag and towel. Accommodated tours spend the night in basic chalets, bungalows, traditional huts and occasionally youth hostels or backpackers. Accommodation is usually 2 per room (sharing) except in East Africa where it is dormitory style and 3-4 people may share a room. In East Africa you need to bring your own sleeping bag and towel. In Southern Africa these are provided.

Tour language - In general the overland tours are guided in english. Some safari companies also offer special language departures, where the english speaking tour guide is accompanied by a german or spanish translator.

The tour price - Let's face it, there is no such thing as an 'all-inclusive tour', there are always extra activities that you can do, if you are interested in them and if your budget allows you to. These are called optional activities and they could be ie. Bungee Jumping in Victoria Falls, Quad Biking in Namibia, Scuba diving in Mozambique, Kayaking in Malawi, night game drives in Kruger National Park, South Africa - you decide! You don't have to spend anything more than the cost of the tour price, the odd meal out, drinks and souvenirs. You choose the rest. Included in the tour price is generally the transport in specialised vehicles, the services of two qualified guides, meals, accommodation, activities as specified in the itineraries and most National Park fees. Not included are Visas, vaccinations, items of a personal nature, alcohol, snacks and optional activities.

Choosing a trip - On this website you will find about 100 safari offers ranging from budget camping to lodge or bungalow accommodation. They are between 1 and 56 days long and encompass most of the Southern and East African countries.

Firstly: Decide on how much time you want to spend in Africa.

Secondly: Which part of Africa do you want to travel: Southern or East Africa. Southern and East Africa are quite different. Southern Africa is generally an easier region to travel. There are better facilities, better roads, larger cities and it is closer in nature to a first world environment. Central East Africa is more challenging than the south. Facilities can be more limited (especially banking) and of a lower standard, but these trips offer more cultural interaction than those in Southern Africa.

Thirdly: Tent or bed? A lot of camping or accommodated trips follow the same route with the type of accommodation being the only difference. Needless to say: The camping overland safaris are cheaper than the accommodated tours.