Out of Africa: Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Kenya & Tanzania (2012)

Out of Africa was out of this world - so wonderful from beginning to end. We were a group of only 7 which meant that we had amazing viewing in two safari vehicles wherever we went. And was there ever lots to see! Our guides, Ndaba in the south, and Augustine in East Africa were excellent teachers as well as spotters and taught us a great deal about animal behavior and the interaction of life in all the places we visited. You couldn't ask for more wonderful, kind a d caring guides!
I was worried about January being rainy season, but we only had one day with rain on our drives, the very first. After the first downpour we saw the most amazing show when a pack of 23 wild dogs caught and feasted upon an impala, and after the second shower, a standoff between a pride of lions and 17 giraffes. We promptly put our supplied ponchos away and forgot about the rain! And after that the rain thoughtfully occurred during our "toes up" time in the afternoon or at night. The bush was lush and green and so lovely!
The accommodations were great - all different and each special in its own way. We stayed in rustic tents (complete with all the amenities like toilets and showers) and also elegant resorts with gardens and lovely views. The food was always nice, and we loved getting to know the staff at each place.
The two parts of the trip were quite different. In the south we were the only ones at each camp and never saw other vehicles while out on safari drives. We went from camp to camp in small planes and were able to go off the road in search of elusive animals. In East Africa, the travel from camp to camp was by bus or van, the parks were full of other vehicles sharing each sighting and the tse tse flies were annoying, but that was offset by the amazing masses of animals, the visit to the Maasai village and school, and the variety of interesting places we stayed. It was all good! We witnessed the end of the great migration and saw thousands and thousands of wildebeast and zebras. I expect everyone thinks what they saw was the best, but I know no matter what you see, it is once in a lifetime. What Ndaba always called "A real WOW!"
People ask how we ever packed for 5 weeks with a 23 lb limit for the duffle bag and 10 for the backpack. I have made my own list of what I will take next time (and there will most certainly be a next time!) and offer it up for anyone worried about what to take. Just remember, everyone wears tan and beige ALL THE TIME! and you will have no trouble!
2 pairs of long tan safari pants
1 pair of tan shorts
4 short sleeved tee shirts in neutral colors
2 long sleeved safari shirts (tan or green)
1 Jacket
Bathing suit (some great pools!)
3 or maybe 4 other shirts to give you some color variety, but not necessary at all)
4 sets of sox and underwear
1 pair PJs
walking shoes
sandals
Hat
1 scarf in case of chilly morning
Most important of all is is good binoculars!
Camera
Your laundry is done for you in one day on the first part of the trip free of charge and very easy to take care of at reasonable rates on the second half.
We have traveled a lot and never had a more exciting and fulfilling trip. I could go on and on, but urge you to just go and see for yourself. If you have the time to do this 5 week trip, DO IT! I don't know how OAT always manages to provide the most incredible guides, but this is, above all, the most important and appreciated aspect of a trip. Hats off to Ndaba and Augustine for sharing their Africa with us. We loved it!!!

Traveler: Nancy Harwood from East Lyme, CT traveled on January 17, 2012

Absolute best experience because of how Oat sets it up. It was the perfect combination of "rough" and "comfort". I wasn't looking for the 5star RitzCarleton, I wanted a real African Experience, but being 69, some creature comforts are appreciated and Oat created the perfect balance.

Our guides were outstanding, great personalitiy, lots of knowledge, ability to work with all kinds of people and willing to accomodate us. Soweto was quite interesting, no one else joined me on the side trip, so I had the guide all to me. Saw the new World Cup Soccer Stadium, and tons of amazing sights.

Victoria Falls was just wonderful, but I loved the open market behind our Ilala Hotel. So many Americans seems uncomfortable with bargaining and if that's you, use the stores, but if you enjoy the "game of negotiating", by all means go to the huge open market.

The National parks were fantastic. I went in Jan-Feb which for those who want dry , barren land with great views of animals, don't go then. I wanted the beautiful, lush, green trees, flowers, bushes etc. Africa is not just animals....the zoo has them too, but Africa is sooo much more and the beauty of the parks, the magnificent songs of the birds, and the animals are just the icing on the cake.

Loved the false charge of the elephant in Chobe Nat. Park. My photo of her ear and tail is a perfect image of my complete terror when she charged..

My favorite experience was the Elephant Orphanage at the Sheldrick Elephant Trust outside of Nairobi. The baby orphan elephants were wonderful and the keepers are extraordinary people. We watched them being bottle fed, we touched them and played with them.

Loved being in a tent in the Serengeti, loved finally seeing the Leakey museum and site of their discoveries, loved the Masai, the school visits, Ngorongoro crater, everyday was a trip all by itself.

If you want the best in an African Safari, at a most reasonable cost , you must take the OAT trip Out of Africa. I loved it!

Traveler: Rochelle Rosen from Philadelphia, PA traveled on January 16, 2010

Overall the trip to Africa was outstanding. There are some things that I think can be done better or changed that I will discuss later.

The group leaders were excellent. Both were organized, good task masters and handled all situations well. Their knowledge was thorough and both communicated well with the group. They kept everyone on schedule and clearly communicated the daily plans. We were fortunate to have only 10 people in our group, five in each vehicle. One group was more interested in birding and one more interested in seeing everything. Both groups were accommodated well and all of the driver guides went out of there way to do what the groups wanted. I was in the van that wanted to see as much as possible and the reason I went was for photography. Along this line it was fantastic. Not only did I leave with many great pictures but the driver guides really understood lighting and position which enhanced my ability to shoot a great picture.

The OAT camps in Botswana and Namibia were excellent. Although rustic, they had all that was needed and hospitality was second to none. Since they were OAT camps we were the only ones in the camp so the 10 of us were treated really well. The food was excellent in quality, presentation and variety. As long as you kept in mind that you were out in the bush the accommodations exceeded your expectations. Some showers were a little cool but at least you had one! Special diet requests at the OAT camps was not a problem. Once we got to Kenya and Tanzania the accommodations were good but we shared with other visitors so the hospitality was not quite as personalized but still very good. The food became a little more institutionalized but certainly very good.

We saw a lot of animals but did not see a Black Rhino or the Wild Dogs. Obviously one reason to go is the animals and the group leaders and drive guides excelled in getting us to the animals. We saw more than 50 lions, 4 leopards, several cheetahs, and all of the other animals you would expect to see. Nothing can be more spectacular than seeing a pride of lions romping in the morning or another group of 10 lions or so relaxing after a full meal of Zebra or Cape Buffalo. We also visited a lake with hundreds of thousands flamingo’s, very spectacular.

Too many good memories to mention them all but in addition to the animals there was the local culture that we were exposed to. No subject was discouraged. A great learning experience. Soweto was very interesting, Johannesburg very busy, Victoria Falls spectacular and then there was Nairobi. This city could have been left out if it was up to me. We could not leave the hotel alone at any time and when we did with the guide there were restrictions on what you could take pictures of. Even in the hotel there was a guard on every floor. Not a real memorable experience.

A very positive and worthwhile experience has to do with the Grand Circle Foundation. The school visits are very interesting and really points out the importance of the foundation. The GCF does great work, is well managed and has really helped a lot of youngsters.

Another nice experience is the learning and discovery activities that we had. Not only did we see a lot of Africa but we learned about the country and its people. No questions were off limits and all of the sessions were very informative.

Keep in mind that there are some expenses that need clarifying. For example: visa costs, over $700; shots and malaria pill costs that can run a couple over $1,000; lastly the cost of tipping. If you follow the guidelines it will cost about $30 per day per couple and maybe more as it seems there is always someone to tip. It is also not easy to get money once you are there so take what you think you need and then probably double it. You also need to take small bills, one’s, five’s and twenties as no one seems to have change. This can be quite a large bundle of cash but despite what they say ATM’s are few and do not always work and the use of credit cards is really limited. I have no problem with these expenses and they would not have kept me from going but it would have made it a little easier logistically to be better prepared.

At Victoria Falls we arrived at the park at 4PM and did not get to the falls until 4:30. The sun was going down and park closed at 6 PM. This led to a situation where the lighting was not good for photography and not enough time to really see the falls. With the options for the next day you have to choose to go back or do the other activities. We did the helicopter ride, which was well worth the money. There should be some way to work out the schedule a little differently.

In conclusion the trip was excellent and OAT did a great job. We have already scheduled another trip with them this fall. We really like the organization, the quality people and the small groups.

Traveler: Thomas from Green Valley, AZ traveled on June 10, 2009

What a great trip. If you can do the time, it is worth it. If you can't then I would do Kenya and Tanziana and not the Utimate trip. You will see more animals of each variety. Here are some additional things to think about other than what is in the literature they send you which you need to read and go by.I felt we more than likely would not return, too much else to see and do, so we did the longer trip and glad we did.
We were very fortunate, we saw 4 leopards, 54 lions, 3 rhinos, 2 cheetah's, all the difficult animals to see. Most people do not get to see all of these. If it is important to see all these animals, then this trip is your best bet. Thousands of zebra and wildebeests hundreds of thousands of flamingos. Saw just about any animal you can think of and more,(no gorillas, they live elsewhere). It is so great to see not only where they live but how they live. We saw lions, cheetah's and hyena's stalking animals and all of them on fresh kills. We say 287 birds. The visits to the schools OAT supports were great and it was nice to see what they are doing. Brings pens for the schools, they don't weigh much and they need them. VIsits to the villages were great as well. The trip leaders were both terrific, could not has asked for more, they were always looking for ways to make this the best trip ever. When on a trip, let them know of any problems, they want to take care of it, especially with any hotel room problems. The accomadations were top notch, better than I expected.
I was told by the trip leaders the best time to go was SeptOctober. It's the end of the dry season and you can more easily see the animals at the watering holes. The rainy season can be touch and go. Cars get stuck in the mud, it may rain too much to go and it's green everywhere so the animals have farther to roam to get food. They dry season is the best time to go, it's also cooler. The 26lb limit for luggage was not enforced on our trip, once it was weighed as a group, the other times it was not, but it was checked by hand by the luggage loader. I would not go over if I were you because you will buy suveniors, wood carvings, baskets, jewlery and gifts. Leave home wash cloth, shampoo etc as it is provided at all lodges, just tooth paste. You will need to hand wash your underwear (smallies) but they supply the soap. Also eye drops, it is dusty there. Snacks can be important becasue it can be a long time between breakfast and lunch. The back pack from OAT cuts into your back. If you want to buy t-shirts, bring one you can give away that has something about your home town. Buy a t- shirt and give one away so you don't have to worry about weight. Baseball caps with something from your home area were big hits.
Bring enough tip money for the trip leader, driver guides and staff, even though the book only says to tip the trip leader. They all like the American dollar so don't convert your money, though at times you got a better deal if paid in local money, atms are available. Bring a dollar converter for each country from the internet so you know what you are paying for.
If you are into photography, bring a 300mm lens, you'll be glad to have some type of camera support, make it small and flexible as you will be shooting from on top of a car. Be prepared to take a lot of pictures, one guy took over 6000, my wife took some 4000, I took 17 hours of video. It will be near impossible to get more cards or tapes unless you are in one of the bigger cities. If you video bring a bean bag to put your camcorder on, I recommend the Kinesis safari sack which you can fill with corn from a local store there and give it to a needy family when done. Always have your camera or camcorder with you, many things happen at all various times. Good Binocolors are important, not all animals are close by. I brought 10x36 by Nikon and the guides were borrowing them, keep them light weight if you can.
When you get to an animal, spend some time with them so you can see how they live, don't just take a picture and move on, you can do that at the zoo. You will be in cars that have the roof go up for sun and rain protection. Sometimes the leg room can be small. You may want to rotate people in the cars or stay with the same people all the time. We were lucky as everyone had great attitudes and were flexible and road along with the show. Have an attititude that lets you be flexible enough to bend but not break.
The people there were great, everyone one of them, almost everyone speaks British. I did not think the balloon ride was worth it, you don't see many animals. $850 for the two of us for 45 minutes in the air. If you have not done a hot air balloon ride, get your experience someother place, it will be cheaper. I don't think you will need to go on the pre trip to S. Africa, it makes the trip very long and you will get to see all the animals on this trip. All the other optional trips were worth it.
This trip is one you will never forget and cannot duplicate any where else, nothing compares. I have been over most the world and this trip is one of the top if you like animals. You don't do much walking but you do have to naviagate getting in and out of the cars and most of the roads will be dusty and bumpy, they call it the African massage.

Go any enjoy.

Traveler: Dennis from Cascade, ID traveled on June 10, 2009

We learned so much, we saw so much, we loved the people and the animals. The food and accommodations were great. We are reliving our trip by showing pictures to many people. OAT took great care of all of us. The connections worked well. The only complaint would be the land trip from Sweetwaters to Amboseli. It was too long, the road was horrible. We should have flown from Nairobi to Amboseli.

Traveler: Carol Haselden traveled on March 03, 2009