Anybody been on an African safari?

[RM_guy]

I was going to post this in the general forum but I didn’t feel like dealing with opinions of 12 year olds and trouble makers.

I’ve done some checking on the internet into various packages but there are a ton of them out there. I’m looking for a 2 week all inclusive deal (airfare, food, lodging, etc) for my wife and I for a non-hunting trip. Neither of us like to see animals in captivity, like zoos, and seeing them in their natural habitat is something we have been talking about for a while now. Tanzania sounds like the best place (less political upheaval, national parks, etc) but maybe other countries are good too. I’ve never been to Africa so I really don’t know.

I know Albee has a dirtbike tour of Africa (saw it in DirtRider mag) that sounds great, but I could never talk my wife into that :eek: Hmmm…maybe I could get our trip paid for by DRN if I was to write up a real nice trip report and post it here. ;) I could probably talk here into that :)

We don’t plan on going for a few years (it’s very expensive $5K + per person) but I want to gather as much information as I can. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Dave

 

[oldguy]

Look at some of the Photography Mags they always seem to have ads and articlaes on them. I'll see if I have any laying around that I can find websites for

 

[Patman]

Had a buddy who's wife is a travel agent. They have done Tanzania and brought back some kick butt photos of lions, elephants, zebras, water buffalo, and some kind of twisted horn deer. Said South Africa (Albee's base) is more modern but has some nice areas too. Be sure and be current on you shots they got some bad stuff on the dark continent. I think Ebola is making the rounds right now pretty heavily.:ugg:

 

[gospeedracer]

I'll ask my Aunt Mary about it. She's gone on several safari type trips to Africa. She travels the world quite extensively and some how knows how to find the good deals.

 

[JPIVEY]

Try This has good info

http://www.african-safari.com/

 

[VintageDirt]

I went to the Rain Forest Cafe at some mall near Plano. This damn monkey kept drinking my beer.

 

[dhoward]

That was no monkey, that was taraker....;)

 

[gospeedracer]

RMGuy, I just got this e-mail back from my Aunt. Not a lot of help but certainly interesting.

"Hi, Aimee!

Our safari trip was very much out-of-the-ordinary.
We went in the fall of 1988 and we were gone 44 days.
There were ten of us, counting the cook, the "house
boy," and the safari leader. We camped just about
the entire time on this trip. Our conveyance was a
refurbished Merceds Benz dump truck which could go
over any kind of terrain. By camp out, I mean, dig your
own latrines each night or at each camp spot, cook our
own food, put up our own tents, do food shopping on a
rotating basis in villages, etc. Ron and I took a trip on our
own by night train to Mombasa and then flew from
Mombasa to (and back) the island of Lamu for three days
before the safari began - a wonderful adventure with a magnificent
three-story rented house (about $20 a day and with house boy)
and sailing opportunities. We traversed Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi,
Zambia, Botswana (camped out in the Okavanga Delta for three days)
and Zimbabwe. We sailed to Zanzibar on a filthy dhow for a
to spend a couple of days in the most picturesque old hotel (a magical
place back in 1988) and then back to Dar es Salaam.
We white water rafted for two days on the Great Zambezi River,
starting at the base of Victoria Falls. We did stay in unique hotels
or a motel now and then just to not forget civilization!
It cost $2245. You will NEVER see that price again!!!
And the company we used out of Santa Monica is no longer
doing this.

Today, the camps are all set up with immaculate, roomy tents
so travelers just move from one to another, arriving to find
dinner on the table and everything taken care of....there is
I understand, a kind of a well-used circuit through Kenya and
Tanzania used for these "tented" safaris. Spiffy vans carry
one out to the animal viewing areas each day - no Mercedes Benz
converted dump trucks! Hot air ballooning available.

The first consideration is price. How much do you plan to spend?
That will sort out all kinds of trips automatically. You can go the
posh, cost-is-no-object route with Abercrombie Fitch, or settle for more
reasonable prices with other companies.

How much time do you have? This element will dictate another
whittling down of possibilities.

How many comforts do you need? Again, another shaking out
of possibilities.

What do you want to see? Each country has its own animal
viewing opportunities and unique landscapes.

Not having investigated Africa trips since 1988, I think today I would
start with the internet and go from there. Perhaps there still are
"real" safaris still available.

Would not trade our crazy, down-to-earth trip for anything!

Tell your friend to get there fast....the animals have been
disappearing for years.

Mary"

 

[RM_guy]

Thanks everybody for the comments. GSR, you aunt’s comments are good. At today’s prices I couldn’t afford a 44 day trip but that sounded like a great adventure. I’m a bit disappointed with the commercialization of everything over there but it’s still better than walking through a zoo.

Keep ‘em coming. :)

Thanks

 

[RM_guy]

Re: Try This has good info

Originally posted by JPIVEY
http://www.african-safari.com/

You're right, there is lots of info there. Thanks

 

[gospeedracer]

Originally posted by RM_guy
GSR, you aunt’s comments are good. At today’s prices I couldn’t afford a 44 day trip but that sounded like a great adventure. I’m a bit disappointed with the commercialization of everything over there but it’s still better than walking through a zoo.

I hear ya, zoos make me kind of sad. :(
I've always wanted to go to Africa too, but it is the only place in the world I want to go and not be a "tourist". When I go, I want to be apart of some kind of volunteer "effort" or something. It may sound corney but I simply adore elephants. I've always read all about them, watched any program about them and I collect hand carved elephants from Africa. I would love to be apart of some sort of elephant rescue/preserve group over there.

 

[RM_guy]

Originally posted by gospeedracer
I hear ya, zoos make me kind of sad. :(
I've always wanted to go to Africa too, but it is the only place in the world I want to go and not be a "tourist". When I go, I want to be apart of some kind of volunteer "effort" or something. It may sound corney but I simply adore elephants. I've always read all about them, watched any program about them and I collect hand carved elephants from Africa. I would love to be apart of some sort of elephant rescue/preserve group over there.

I refuse to go to zoos. If I want to see some depressed, pathetic animal I’ll look in the mirror. I guess I don’t mind if it is touristy so long as we can see the animals in their natural habitat.

I hope you can make it over there for some kind of rescue/preserve effort. Some friends of mine did some work with sea turtles in Florida and it was very fulfilling for them. They patrolled the coast, looking for new egg nest and then built guards around them the keep the raccoons out.

 

[lawman]

i went on a safari at the end of '98 & i'll tell you, it is a life-changing experience! my dad, my brother & i went to tanzania & kenya. we tried to avoid tourist stuff to the extent we reasonably could, including riding buses with the locals cross-country, wandering around the streets of nairobi by ourselves, staying in little local hotels some, & eating at some local restaurants.

we went to arusha, tanzania 1st. from there we went to kilimanjaro nat'l park & hiked up the mountain--at 19,340' asl, that is a story all by itself. took 4 days going up, 2 days coming down. from there, we went to the lake manyara game preserve (i think that was it), then to ngorongoro crater, oldupai gorge (where the leakeys keep finding our ancestors), then the masai mara game preserve, then nairobi, then back to amsterdam & then the us.

each leg of the trip would justify its own post, but i don't want to bore everyone with stories of my vacation. it suffices to say that you can go to all the zoos you want, including natural-terrain 1s like san diego, but there is just no comparison. we had elephants so close we could hear their stomachs rumble; a lioness fresh off a kill came so close i thought about scratching the bugs off her back; we watched a cheetah chase a zebra right past us; & on & on. the african people were very friendly, but dignified. i'd go back in a heartbeat; i think everyone should go, while it is still there.

the cost wasn't all that bad; my dad set up almost all of it over the internet, & we did it so far in advance, it wasn't that bad (esp. if you take out what it cost to go up the mountain).

i'll give you more specifics on any aspect you want, as i could go on in general for pages. bottom line: it's worth it!

 

[gospeedracer]

Originally posted by lawman
then the masai mara game preserve

Ooooh, the Masai Mara game preserve!!! Oh, how I would LOVE to go there! Did you meet any Masai? Their tribe fascinates me. I have a huge beautiful book all about the Masai.

RM_Guy, take me with you, pleeeeease!! :)

 

[lawman]

hey speedy, we met plenty of masai. they are an interesting story. they've been there only a couple hundred years, after they invaded from the north. they are not particularly well-liked by some of the other tribes, b/c their invasion is still resented & they are so arrogant & some of them are determined to maintain the old ways, & westernized africans resent them as being lazy. we saw alot of them in the red robes with the spears & pangas, or the teenaged boys in black robes & white face make-up for the manhood ceremony. they are a beautiful tribe to look at it, but we could see where they would be a little hard for the other locals to get along with. they keep cattle as symbols of wealth & to drain the blood to mix with milk for the drink that is the staple of their diet (no, i did not try it!). they still herd their cattle in the game parks during the day, but they have to get them out at night. they carry spears as protection against the lions, which are everywhere. the dance they do where the young men jump straight up is partly a way to pick up chicks--the guy who can jump the highest gets 1st choice!

 

[RM_guy]

Originally posted by gospeedracer
...RM_Guy, take me with you, pleeeeease!! :)

Yeah, I’ll check with my wife…Honey? Is it OK if GSR can…

Sorry, no can do.

I wish we could go this year! That’s one of the problems with not being independently wealthy :(

Lawman, Thanks. I may be getting in touch with you later.

 

[lawman]

rmg, i'll be glad to help you any way i can.