SA and Botswana in Feb for Safari
 

My fiance and I are getting married in February and want to travel to South Africa for our honeymoon, with a couple of safaris, as well. We are a bit behind the curve on this, so are just looking into the weather. My fiance has heard the weather in Botswana will be no good for safari. Can anyone confirm/deny/supply some perspective on this? Also, how about the weather for safaris in South Africa in February?

Much obliged,
Mike

Hi Mike,

My first safari opportunity for this year was in February. Although I am a veteran of numerous Southern African safaris, I opted for a high season safari in Tanzania in February, rather than a low season Botswana/South Africa safari.

It was my first visit to Tanzania and I had an excellent safari and saw the best wildlife I have yet encountered.

I spent time in Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater, the Serengeti and Zanzibar.

However, it would be entirely possible to enjoy a safari in Tanzania and mix it with time in Cape Town, as well, if that is what you are looking to do on your honeymoon. This would make an excellent combination.

I experienced CCAfrica's luxury lodges in Ngorongoro Crater and Lake Manyara and Nomad Tanzania's semi-mobile camps in the Serengeti and I thought this was the perfect combination. However, since my visit, CCAfrica is now operating a luxury semi-mobile option in the Serengeti that they term "Tanzania Under Canvas." This is a more luxurious option and may be a better fit for a honeymoon, although I really enjoyed my time with Nomad in the Serengeti.

Have a look at my photo album and my trip report:

http://www.kodakgallery.com/rocco/main/tanzania

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34775997

The only thing I would do differently is replace The Palms in Zanzibar with Mnemba Island, a CCAfrica property. I found The Palms a bit of a disappointment for the price and it is built right up against Breezes, a major resort that probably boasts about 300 rooms.

Here are links to some important websites to consider:

TANZANIA UNDER CANVAS
http://www.ccafrica.com/reserve_camp-1-id-2-22

LAKE MANYARA TREE LODGE
http://www.ccafrica.com/reserve-1-id-2-4

NGORONGORO CRATER LODGE
http://www.ccafrica.com/reserve-1-id-2-12

MNEMBA ISLAND
http://www.ccafrica.com/reserve-1-id-2-15

NOMAD TANZANIA
http://www.nomad-tanzania.com
(Take a look at their Serengeti camps and semi mobile safaris)

ARUSHA COFFEE LODGE
http://www.elewana.com/acl.html

Just because there is so much to see in Tanzania and it will be high season, I suggest that you consider saving Southern Africa for a more appropriate time (June - November).

If I could suggest a drop dead gorgeous honeymoon itinerary, it would be as follows:

Arusha Coffee Lodge (1 night)(chances are you will arrive too late to move onward that day on your arrival)

Lake Manyara Tree Lodge (2 nights) (this is a very romantic and luxurious lodge in a very exclusive part of the park)

Ngorongoro Crater Lodge (2 nights) (perfect honeymoon destination)

Tanzania Under Canvas or Nomad Serengeti (4 nights) (you should opt to spend all 4 nights in the Ndutu part of the Serengeti...I had the best gameviewing ever there, especially of lions)

Mnemba Island (3 or 4 nights)

If you have ample time, you could add a couple nights in Tarangire. I stayed at the very beautiful and romantic Tarangire Treetops:

http://www.elewana.com/ttt.html

The downside, however, is that it is about a 75 minute drive from the national park and there is not much resident wildlife in the area in February. However, I think it would be a wonderful way to start the honeymoon. I stayed in Room #20 and it had a fabulous shower for two, amazing views and my wife and I enjoyed a candlelight dinner on our balcony each night. The food was fantastic and we were not disappointed with the gameviewing as we knew the best was yet to come at the other locations.

Alternately, if you really want to see Cape Town, you could drop Zanzibar, although Mnemba Island possibly is the perfect way to end your honeymoon.

Now, at the end of it all, if you decide to still go to Southern Africa, at least you will enjoy low season pricing. However, I think the CCAfrica properties in high season Tanzania would be hard to top for an ideal honeymoon.

Congratulations!

Rocco, thank you very much for your detailed reply. We will have to look into Tanzania. If South Africa and Botswana do not work, that seems like a good option (and the places you mention look great).

Anyone else have thoughts on safari in South Africa and Botswana in late February/early March?

SA, would be high-season but, the Sabi Sands is very productive for game viewing year round. The lodge options, you can find plenty by just doing a search on these boards.

Botswana, will be green season. The game viewing wont be as prolific as during the winter months. But, you still will hv a fantastic time and the rates are really good at that time of the year.

Plenty of Botswana companies:

Kwando safaris, Linyanti explorations, Wilderness safaris. There are ofcourse, several other companies that i did not list....

Hari

Thank you, Hari.

By the way, Rocco, awesome photos.

llano: I took a trip that covered about the first 2 weeks of March to S.A. and Botswana. As Hari says it is not the prime viewing season for Botswana but it is considerably cheaper than the prime season and I we had lots of great sightings. This was a historic year for rain so we had some impact from that but nothing too bad. Below is my trip report (long) and photos that should be fairly representative for the time you are looking to travel.

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34780788

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slidesho...852bo&Ux=1

I've been to both Tanzania and Southern Africa in February. I've done MOST of my trip report for the Southern Africa trip...still working on the Sabi Sands and Cape Town part. We were in Botswana, Vic Falls, Sabi Sands, & Cape Town. It was their wettest rainy season in 20 years. We had good sightings, but not as good as the dry season when I went in 2000. The prices are about 2/3 of high season, however, which could run $8000 - $9000, land only. The grass was green, which made for nice photos, but it was so high that you sometimes had problems spotting animals. Also, they often were deep in the bush, as they didn't need to come to the rivers or waterholes to drink.

In Tanzania, February is usually dry as it's between the short and long rains. They were having a heat wave in Feb 2005...about 100 degrees in the afternoons, but it finally broke when a series of thunderstorms came through. I think you would enjoy Tanzania more in February than Southern Africa. Certainly, you'd see more wildlife. I think that East Africa is perfect for first-time visitors to Africa. Unlike Botswana, your game viewing is, for the most part, in national parks instead of private concessions like Botswana. Therefore, you have more options for lodging that will fit your budget.

Finally, you could finish off your Tanzania trip on the beaches of Zanzibar, a quick flight from Arusha. There are lots of properties that have honeymoon accommodations.

Hello llano,

One thing you may want to consider is delaying your honeymoon if you would really prefer Southern Africa -- there's no rule which says you have to go on your honeymoon right after you get married, and choosing a different time of year would enable you to go to Botswana and see the country at its best. Botswana is wonderful -- the private concessions are huge and the camps are small, so you'll never feel crowded, and the Delta is pure magic.

If budget is an issue, waiting until July or August to go to South Africa would save you some money as well, as this is low season (as well as the best time to see game) which means there will be some great deals on accommodation. The lodges in SA are very luxurious, and with the weak rand offer very good value for money.

Cheers,
Julian

Hi Mike

I have returned recently from a trip to Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa through CCA. It was the peak season supposedly for gameviewing in Botswana, and where I was, it was really disappointing. The weather during the day was quite warm and that was July. I have been to Stanley's and Chief's Camps in September 2001 and that was really hot, in fact, being in the tent at Stanley's during the day was not an option as it was like an oven.

I am currently planning a trip to the Sabi Sands for March 2007, and while I know it shall be warm during the day I also know I will get exceptional gameviewing as I hope to be at MalaMala, my favourite gameviewing destination.

Kind regards,

Kaye

Hi Kaye,

How did you like Chief's?

Hari