Leopards, Lions, Penguins and Pinotage – a South African Safari.

“There is something about Safari life that makes you forget all your sorrows”  Isak Dinesen

South Africa as a Safari destination is sometimes overlooked and only used as an entry and exit terminus while traveling on to other ‘more striking’ African destinations.

As much as I like to promote all of Africa, South Africa should not be ignored for its Safari value as it rivals (and sometime succeeds) other great African wildlife destinations with its magnificent Kruger National Park (and many others).  This park is over 19,000 square kilometres (7,500 sq mi), has an abundance of fauna and flora and is deeply rich in history and culture.

As a guide who has worked all over the African bush, some of my most favourable wildlife happenings have been in the Kruger National Park - my personal highlights on a recent safari to the Kruger was over 40 different rhino sightings, a leopard hunt and an up-close elephant bath encounter that lasted over an hour. 

South Africa has a lot more to add to the typical African Safari and no journey to South Africa would be complete without a stop in Cape Town – the Mother City.  Cape Town not only offers Safari goers a chance to recover after the dusty game viewing bush experience but also gives Safari goers a different African Safari experience.  A Cape Town Safari can offer diving with great white sharks, boat trips to seal colonies to view seal and shark interactions, whale and dolphin watching, swimming with penguins (a personal favourite), riding an ostrich, climbing or taking the cable-car to the iconic Table Mountain and numerous city, sightseeing and cultural tours.  All this can be done alongside your rejuvenation at the local restaurants and cafes, where you can eat freshly-caught seafood, Cape Malay and Afro-cuisine, while sipping on top-class wines grown locally in the area – the red wine Pinotage is uniquely South African (another personal preference).

In conclusion, South Africa is vast and varied with mountains for hiking and climbing, two oceans for swimming, surfing, diving or simply sunbathing and great wildlife areas to explore in-between.  South Africa offers fantastic food and beverage and has a friendly, personal and professional service industry to cater to every specific guest need.  South African is a country to be explored by the young and old, and any African Footprint Safari to South Africa can be personally created to cater for any need or want with levels to supply each and every budget.

A responsible African Footprint Safari.

“When you leave Africa, as the plane lifts, you feel that more than leaving a continent you’re leaving a state of mind. Whatever awaits you at the other end of your journey will be of a different order of existence.” Francesca Marciano.

Tourism to Africa provides jobs and improves the overall wealth of the area being traveled to and for this reason many African countries are keen to develop tourism in order to become wealthier and hopefully improve the quality of life for their people.  Tourism to African however needs to be responsible, sustainable and carefully managed in order to provide these encouraging outcomes. As a conservation aware company, African Footprint Safaris are proud to support responsible travel to Africa.

In our effort to be a responsible travel outfit, African Footprint Safaris endorses the Wilderness Safaris philosophy of the 4 ‘c’ principle when designing our unique itineraries to Africa in order to contribute meaningfully to the wildlife and the people of Africa. These principles are commerce, conservation, community and culture.

Commerce deals with the ecotourism offering itself, and is by far one of the most important elements in this modern world – we can truly only make a difference in Africa if we, and the companies that we support, are financially viable.

Conservation involves the management and protection of the wildlife and ecosystems that we build our itineraries around.  African Footprint Safaris only utilise responsible operators that actually achieve this as well as support camps that are built in the eco-friendliest manner - so to not impact harshly on the environments in which they are built.

Community is all about the people at the heart of the business, the staff themselves that work hard to give you that ‘once in a lifetime’ African experience.  African Footprint Safaris again only create itineraries to properties in Africa that respect, cherish and nurture the African staff that will go 'above and beyond' to give you your personal African experience. Our itineraries need to also have a positive impact on the external community - the rural communities that own the actual land or live adjacent to these areas that you will be traveling to.

Culture is broadly everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts of a particular group of people. An African Footprint Safaris itinerary respects and embraces the culture of all the staff involved throughout our guest’s safari, as well as the remote rural communities surrounding the conservation areas traveled through. The camps used in our Safaris reflect a healthy social environment, area-appropriate camp design, décor, entertainment and meals.  We respect the traditional rights within the camps and the surrounding conservation areas while educating and communicating the area's traditional culture to our guests too.

We also believe that our African Footprint Safaris guests to Africa are not simply on an African vacation but on an African expedition that engages you with Africa, its wildlife, its people, its cultures and custom.  An African Footprint Safari is created to allow you to have an impact on the wildlife and people that you visit but also designed to change how you view the wild places of Africa and the world, on your return.

Safari – what is Safari?

“If there were one more thing I could do, it would be to go on safari once again.” Karen Blixen

Traditionally in the past a ‘Safari’ was almost always associated with a big game hunt, typically in Africa, as depicted in film and literature over the years - this is however no longer the case.  The East African people use the word ‘Safari’ in their local language, Swahili, to explain ‘a journey’, and the modern day ‘Safari’ is now exactly that – an overland African journey to observe and photograph amazing wildlife along with incredible scenery, and engage with Africa, its people, its cultures and customs.

The modern-day safari is modeled around the early African explorations that were purely designed to observe and record wildlife and landscapes by the expedition's members. These explorations generally started with a ‘not too strenuous’ rising at first light, an energetic day walk in the surrounding bush, a late afternoon rest and concluding the day with a formal dinner and storytelling in the evening over drinks.

African Footprint Safaris fully supports the modern-day Safari and our guests to Africa will feel exactly like early explorers - but with a little more luxury.  The typical African Footprint Safari day starts early in the morning with a continental breakfast and coffee, before heading out to explore the African surrounds on a game viewing activity (walk, boat or drive) with a personal Safari guide. After pioneering Africa, our guests head back to the lodge for a brunch in the hot afternoon followed by some rest and relaxation at the pool, spa, in the lodge rooms or on the private viewing decks.  In the late afternoon after high-tea, the explorations continue again as your personal Safari guide takes you traveling back through the African savannah.  The afternoon safari ends with an African sundowner cocktail somewhere scenic, to toast the hot sun goodbye and welcome in the moon.  The evening Safari drive begins by spotlight under the African stars on return to the lodge, while viewing Africa’s nocturnal action.  At the lodge after a three-course dinner, storytelling is encouraged around the campfire - where all guests gather and boast about the day’s wildlife encounters with drinks in hand.