Africa - early planning - budget - independent or group questions.
 

I'm beginning my research on Africa and would like to start by asking a few questions.

I've travelled independently to Europe, Asia and Central America. Is it feasible to plan independent travel to Africa if the main focus will be reserves and wildlife, or does it make more sense to use a group safari operator?

Recommended guide book for budget traveller?

I would like to keep total cost to $100-$150 day. Is this insane?

Are there any good budget safari operators out there?

You can do Kruger easily on $100 per person per day with two persons sharing a hut. The "huts" are very nice and comfortable, en suite. Check out the Kruger web site. http://www.sanparks.org/parks/kruger/ This $100 a day would also include a car/vehicle for touring the park. Kruger is an easy days drive from Johannesburg. I have spent only three nights in Kruger but in September we are going back for four nights before moving on to private camps ($$$).

regards - tom

Hi Hipvirgochick. I'm still in the planning stages myself (although getting very close to booking) and $100 to $150 per day seems on the really low end. A lot will depend on how nice you want to stay. I'm not a solo traveler so I'll let others answer that question. To get an idea, you might want to start with one of Tanzania, Kenya or East Africa guides (I'm assuming you're thinking E. Africa, but maybe not). Lonely Planet and Footprint looked good to me. There are also lots of websites with great info on them e.g. Africa Dream Safaris (high end, but lots of info) and go-safari.com and kiliwarriors.com. And reading the trip reports on this forum will also give you ideas. There are good budget safari operators out there. Lots of people on this board recommend Good Earth, Roy's and Sunny's (I hear Sunny's is more on the budget side); but there are tons of others too. Good luck!

Thanks you cary and traveler. I will begin checking your references and scouring all the threads here! There's a lot of research to do!

Hi Hip,
The current rate on the streets of Nairobi for budget group camping safaris is $90 pd . You could check with Gametrackers http://www.gametrackersafaris.com/ Nairobi Backpackers http://www.nairobibackpackers.com/ or Amicabre (I’ve seen the $90 on their calculators) http://www.amicabretravel.com/