I hear those jungle drums...
Would like to go on safari for @ 2 wks. What country would you Fodorites recommend? I am looking for luxury tent camping/medium priced lodges, a night safari and as close to nature as possible without having to squat over a hole for 2 wks.

Zimbabwe or Zambia is my choice.

The question I have for you is when?

The first 2 links are the best places all over Africa during the year
http://www.africa-adventure.com/dsp_besttime.html

http://www.bornfreesafaris.com/best_travel.htm

If you choose TZ, this has month by month recommendations.

http://www.kiliwarriors.com/


Medium priced = not Botswana unless you do mobile camping--no hole squatting required.

A night safari = If you want just one, you could do one at Lake Manyara in TZ. Then any of the typical safari countries would do because you can arrange night drives througout. My consistently best night drives have been Zambia and Zimbabwe.

As close to nature as possible = mobile camping anywhere but that can be very expensive in Tanzania, while more of a bargain in Botswana.
While on the game drives, I'd say we were equally close to animals in every country.

If you like to canoe and walk, then I'd second Matnikstym's suggestion.

luxury ad moderate rates...........something wich excludes itself ;-)

try "fly-camping". that will offer anything you are looking for!

to be on the save side - and obviously money doesn't matter - stick with cc africa, wilderness, nomad and asilia. you will be guaranteed a safari of a lifetime.

happy planning!

I would recommend Zambia. Game viewing is good in the peak season, it's not as busy as Kenya and Tanzania, there's a good range of accommodation and it's quite a bit cheaper than Botswana. I took a first timer with me last year and she loved it.

As an example, you could try Remote Africa, Norman Carr Safaris, Robin Pope Safaris and the Bushcamp company all in South Luangwa National Park and you could combine this with the Lower Zambezi National Park for a water experience.

Like Atravelynn, I would need to know when you are planning to travel before recommending where to go. Weather is a biggie!

lynneb
would agree with you regarding zambia.
but i don't agree on the rates: RPS, NORMANN CARR and would not consider mid range pricewise.
peak season well around 600US$ and pro flight to get from lower zambesi to south luangwa is not really a bargain ;-)

Pippa13
Think you've misunderstood my point. It's a bargain in comparison to Botswana...

check out CCA mobile from maun to vic falls - 10 days which is really favourable and the product is fantastic!
http://www.ccafricasafaris.com/tours...-2-BE-3-aid-2-

In March of 2008, I traveled to Tanzania for an excursion that encompassed summiting Kilimanjaro via Machame and visiting the Serengeti as well as Zanzibar. Tanzania Adventure was the guide and they facilitated an incredible trip. They provided insightful advice charting the course before the trip and ultimately delivered very well on the itinerary that was established. After extensive discussions with numerous tour companies and exhaustive research on the different alternatives, I decided to chose Tanzania Adventure for the guide as they showed strong knowledge of the area and were responsive to customizing the trip in ways that were more unique than many of the pre-packed trips that are offered by other tour companies. Tanzania Adventure was readily available to address questions prior to the trip and were able to accommodate variations on our trip as our plans developed. They showed strong interest in tailoring the trip to our liking. Tanzania Adventure was able to offer multitudes of alternatives as they benefitted from having a staff that is knowledgeable of the many nuances of the Kilimanjaro Routes, well connected within the local communities and able to deliver on variations of different plans. Tanzania Adventure was able to offer more options than many of the other tour companies and had an innovative approach to planning trip because of this knowledge and experience. The senior staff were readily available during the trip to answer questions and were able to provide insightful recommendations on places of interest while we were on the ground. They were responsive to updating the plans once we got in certain areas as we opted to stay longer in certain parts of Zanzibar (Stone Town) and shorter in others (Beach Resort). Tanzania Adventure worked in a collaborative way to facilitate a well thought out trip and demonstrated the ability to execute on the established plans during the trip.

Kilimanjaro was the centerpiece of the trip and they were able to facilitate an incredible hike and successful summit via the Machame route. Our guide was Godfrey Consider who had extensive experience spanning numerous routes of Kilimanjaro. He was able to provide the background and history of the mountain as well as the different routes. The pace of the trip was well thought out and we were provided with good advice on how to prepare for the hike beforehand. Godfrey was able to explain the historical context around many of the places of interest on the mountain. The hike went at our pace and we were able to stop at places of interest on our on schedule. The porters were reliable in providing excellent support. The campsite, which included a mess tent, was consistently set up in advance of our arrival to the campsite. The porters would often leave much earlier in the morning than us in order to get a favorable location at the next campsite. Tanzania Adventure provided a comprehensive list of the must-haves and nice to haves on the hike that was helpful in planning and packing the appropriate amount of gear.

Stayed at Moivaro Coffee Lodge before and after Kilimanjaro which was situated in a very scenic area outside Arusha. The lodge had a nice common area and the thatched huts were very nice.

Ngorogoro Crater was a great trip. One day is ample time to see the wildlife in the crater. The guides drove us around in the crater and went out their way for up to spot wildlife and get plenty of pictures. The Sopa Lodge was a great place to stay as there was an incredible view of the crater. The lodge had a great lounge area and the rooms were large and well positioned for good views of the crater.

The tented camp in the Serengeti was great as it was located in a very remote place. The camp provided a good combination of creature comforts while still keeping an adventurous element. The campsite had a common area were they had a bond fire with outdoor seating which was a great venue for watching the sunset. The campsite was well maintained and while it heavy duty tents, appeared as if it had been recently set up.

The highlight of Zanzibar was Stone Town. While the beach resorts tend to quiet and somewhat sequestered, but the snorkeling/scuba is good. Some of the beach resorts may not have A/C which is essential on Zanzibar. Stone Town proved to be adventurous as it has intriguing history and many unique places to visit. Stayed at the Tembo Hotel in Zanzibar which was centrally located, had helpful staff and good A/C. Tanzania Adventure provided a guide that showed us around Stone Town and thoroughly explained the historical significance of various places such as the former Sultan's house.

Hi Ann,

Hope you diong good. The best safari you can do is to combine zimbabwe and botswana. You can fly in to vicfalls thats the adventure capital of africa and proceed chobe national park for the best view of the big five by boat and game drive.

Then you can proceed to okavango deltor, moremi, savuti and makadikadi salt pans and you can do this trip in seven days or you can proceed to namibia for etosha and sand dunes in the desert.
Southern africa is the best for the roads, faccilities and people are very freindly. For info contact me on [email protected]

How did the Masai Mara become the seventh wonder of the world.
It is unique purely for the amount of game being pursued by even more voluminous amonts of vehicles containing noisy tourists.
I thought agents were banned from these forums?

The migration in the Masai Mara was name one of the new natural wonders of the world... believe last year.

kenya - and MM has got the biggest share! - has got 1.5 million tourist in 2007 and kenya's goal is to get 5 mio by 2011!
then at the latest you must search for animals in between the cars and minibusses

Check out Overseas Adventure Ultimate Africa: Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, South Africa. Email me for details as we took this trip Oct. '07 and LOVED it. [email protected]