kewilliam

So we are in the midst of planning our safari for next year (2007). Need some help from the local experts please.

Unfortunately, our dates are set in stone and are April 15 thru May 3. I know this is the rainy season in many places which we don't necessarily mind too much. Any ideas on where the best game viewing will be during this time? We'd like to avoid the crowds and enjoy the low season pricing.

We did SA (Phinda) in late 2003 and absolutely loved it. For this reason, we'd like to exclude SA on this trip.

We are considering Tanzania understanding that the migration will be in the SE Serengeti during this time. Not sure about Zim or Zam during this time? Or maybe Bots or Kenya?

Would like to do a side trip too like maybe Uganda (gorillas) or Madagascar.

Any thoughts?

Kevin

Kavey

Kevin
I'm sure Rocco will be along to tell you about Zambia and Zimbabwe soon!
In the meantime can you give any indication of budget or preferred travel style?
Do you prefer lodges or tented camps, lots of fellow guests or as few as possible, open or closed safari vehicles? Are there particular animals or birds you'd like to see above others? Is luxurious accommodtion/ fine dining important to you? Would you prefer to drive between camps or fly?
Answers to these will likely help folks tailor their answers more helpfully to your requirements!

matnikstym

Kevin, I went to South Luangwa, Zambia in mid march this year, "emerald season" and except for not as many elephants, we saw more of everything else (including lions and leopard) than we did in October. It only rained 1 time. April/May should be even better as more of the roads will have dried out, yet the river will still be full. I think at most we saw 5 other vehicles each day on drives. I'd recommend South Luangwa at this time of year.
Dennis

kewilliam

Ok here are some answers to your questions Kavey...

We will probably be flying between camps in the interest of saving time. We'd like to see lots of the big five..not too interested in birds. We want nice places to stay and keep the cost to around $600 per night total for both of us. Fine dining is not too important to us and lodges or tented camps are fine with us.

Thanks for the Zambia tip Dennis...Is that time period low season in South Luangwa?

Thanks for all your help on this.

Leely

Eben, aka climbhighsleeplow, has mentioned that April is Tanzania's best-kept secret. And it wouldn't be difficult to arrange a gorilla trek or two in Uganda from there. Take a look at his web site, go-safari.com. It has migration maps as well as a map of lion prides in the Seronera valley.

Of course it will/should be muddy, rainy and green, with high grasses making game-viewing more of a challenge, so that's a trade-off.

I'm quite curious to see what the experts on this board recommend for best Big 5 that time of year.

matnikstym

Kevin, yes it is low season pricing and no rhino there so you can't tick that off your big 5 list, but I highly recommend it!

Kavey

Do the internal flights need to come out of that $600 per night or is that for the accommodation alone and you're happy to add internal flights/ transfers on top where necessary?

As for options, you have so many.

I can't comment on Zambia or Zimbabwe as I've not yet visited - Rocco has been a number of times and has built up a good knowledge of the region and can help you on potential itineraries/ rough prices for that.

Botswana is a fantastic safari destination and your budget should allow you to select some great camps.

Both my visits have been in June which is winter - we really like to visit at this time as it's cooler. I haven't experience of visiting in April but I believe the Okavango Delta is pretty popular year round.

Operators to look at include Wilderness Safaris (who I have used for both trips so far) and Kwando (who I have heard great things about and would like to book some camps with on my next visit, whenever that may be) and there are a number of privately owned camps too.

kewilliam

The $600 per night is for lodging only. We will pay extra for any internal flight we may take.

Yes Rocco has been in touch with me regarding Tanzania and Zambia but I just haven't been able to pin down my itinerary yet..too many options.

Just wanted to get some idea on where I can have great game viewing with low season prices.