My husband and I are torn between a safari trip to South Africa/Botswana (Singita/Jao) and the Aman-i-Khas Ranthambhore Park safari experience.

The India trip is far more cost-effective, and we do love the Aman resorts. But, does anyone have any personal experience with the parks involved?

May I ask? what sort of animals would you expect to see at Singita and what sort at Ranthambhore?

I have been to Ranthambore three times, and love it, but in all honesty I would expect that you would see a much great variety of wildlife on an African safari (which I have not done but is on my list. . ) Here is just a short list of what you would not see at Ranthambore: lions, elephants, giraffes, hippopotamus, rhinoceros, zebras, gorillas, flamingos, panthers, jaguars. Ranthambore has abundant bird life, elk, deer, alligators/crocodiles, monkeys, civet cats and related species and if you are very lucky, tiger. Also, Ranthambore is hilly scrubland, not the open savannah which I believe constitutes much of African wildlife safaris, so you will not see great herds of animals or see them in the open running.

Unless you are interested in India as a destination, I would not go there strictly for a safari or for the Aman. India is a wonderful country with a fantastic history and culture, but if you are primarily interested in wildlife, there are other better destinations, of which Africa of course tops the list. There are many luxury hotels in Africa which I believe would meet your expectations (again, much as I love Aman, they ain't the only great luxury chain out there).

Time of year is a final consideration, as Ranthambore is best November to March before it gets too hot.

Cicerone, as usual, thank you for the very thorough reply. Most helpful!

Alice, I guess at this point we don't have specific expectations for wildlife viewing, but it helps us to know the differences that Cicerone pointed out above. I would certainly hope to see a tiger, but I guess this is not as guaranteed as a lion might be in Africa. (there are only 40 tigers after all)

We have done both (and are now fully hooked on the African safari experience). In my view there is no comparison - when it comes to wildlife viewing it has to be Africa.

However we love India, having visited 5 times already, and we loved our short (3 day) visit to Ranthambore. We were lucky enough to see a tiger, as well as deer, a blue bull and countless birds. However I would only recommend Ranthambore as part of a wider trip to India - I wouldn't recommend building a holiday around it if you are interested in wildlife.

And be warned, once you make that first trip to Africa - you will be hooked.