Botswana and Tanzania

[niccig]

Next summer we plan to do a trip to Africa for a safari and to the gorilla. We’re looking at Uganda/Botswana/Tanzania/Kenya. Anyone have any recommendations for tour company? DH did this years ago before we met and so much has changed. Thanks


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[essnce629]

My in-laws just did an African safari trip last summer and were extremely happy with their experience. I can ask them what company they used.

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[smilequeen]

We did South Africa, so I don’t have specific info on the other countries, but we had an amazing time and this is the company we were with and they are all over Africa.

https://www.andbeyond.com/

[niccig]

My in-laws just did an African safari trip last summer and were extremely happy with their experience. I can ask them what company they used.

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Yes please!


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[niccig]

We did South Africa, so I don’t have specific info on the other countries, but we had an amazing time and this is the company we were with and they are all over Africa.

https://www.andbeyond.com/

Thanks! We’re looking at South Africa too as a possibility


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[essnce629]

From my MIL (i'll post my FIL's response separately)

"First about the gorilla permits. They are $1200 per person in Rwanda and since they only allow 12 people per day they are sold out years in advance. Ours were purchased 3 years ago and we were very lucky that they decided to still honor them.

Uganda is way too dangerous. Check the State Dept. as they give very good guidance. We adore Botswana, which we have been to twice. This will be our first trip to Rwanda. Your friend will also need to check the time of year as to be there in rainy season would be miserable.

We use a private travel agency and I must confess that it is unbelievably expensive. I've had friends go with National Geographic and other tours and they had great trips."

[essnce629]

From my FIL:

"Let me add a few more thoughts.
* Africa being in the southern hemisphere has seasons that are the inverse of ours. If you picture North America it is like freezing in Alaska and baking in Mexico. So our January in South Africa, Botswana & a large part of Tanzania can be painfully hot & dry... which makes animals harder to find. Conversely, during our June-July-August it is cold in southern Africa and can even be damn cold... but there is plenty of water and it is mating season so you see many, many animals and birds. The Okavango delta floods then and is at its most magical.
* Central Africa is very similar for us to being in Panama. It rains almost 10 months a year and has violent thunderstorms. Rwanda, Burundi, Kivu province of the DRC and western Uganda are where the mountain gorillas live. The mountains and hills are quite high and the vegetation is tropical. Virunga National Park has the world's largest and highest volcano.
* Of those countries, sadly, only Rwanda is safe for visitors. The gorilla families are in Volcano National Park and the optimal time to visit is in June & July.
* Gorilla visit permits are rationed in order to keep the gorillas safe from humans. There is typically only one visit per day per gorilla family (the families are independent from others and a distance from each other). The passes are expensive at $1,200 a person for a daily group of some 16 humans (last I saw there were 4 accessible gorilla families but it changes). You hike up into the mountains for an hour or two and get up to 30 minutes with "the family". Thus there is a waiting list for passes.
* Flights: from the East Coast the most reasonable and best connections are Brussels Airlines. Others... Qatar, KLM, Emirates... cost way more and have poor connection times which makes for hours transiting at a midpoint airport. Rwanda is difficult as a place to combine with African destinations other than Kenya. Likewise, to get to Botswana you almost always have to go through Johannesburg and then take a 90 minute connecting flight ---- after an overnight stay there unless you feel great after 22 hours of flying We crash 5 hours at an airport hotel.
* There are a multitude of tour operators, from bare bones to oligarch treatment. In both Botswana and Tanzania you take "bush planes" between camps. These can be over 100 miles from each other (no roads). The more hops you make the pricier it gets. Rwanda is a small country and various camps can be reached by road... but there is only one Volcano National Park.
If your friend wants to see gorillas it may be wise to think of June-July 2023. You can visit at other times of the year but those have endless rain & mud."

[niccig]

Essence 629, thank you so much for getting the information from your ILs. Thank them for me please! Passing all this on to DH


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[essnce629]

You're welcome! Happy to help. They are heading to Rwanda next.

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[urquie]

We were backpacking in Zimbabwe 23 years ago, picked up a last minute overland camping trip to Botswana (from Vic Falls) through Nomad Tours. It was great! The tour was great and very well done.

I would definitely look into them and suggest an accommodated tour rather than camping. :-). After a brief Google search, it looks like they are still getting good reviews. :-)

https://nomadtours.co.za/tourfinder/accommodated/