Safari Tips -- So you want to go on safari

Even for seasoned travelers to other parts of the world, that first safari (and even subsequent safaris) is hard to plan and even hard to narrow down a particular destination.

Before you reach out to any safari planner to help you craft an itinerary, you either need to know where you want to go or what you want to see.  The "what you want to see" sometimes informs the "where you want to go" because not all wildlife is endemic to all areas.  So take a deep breath and start to list out what you're hoping to see:  big cats (lions, leopards, cheetah), elephants, gorillas, chimps, birds, reptiles, rhino, hippos.  Think too about how much of a blend of safari vs. city vs. beach vs. mountain trekking and other landscape you're hoping for too.  Not every country offers beach or wineries or garden roads.

Now that you have a list of what you're hoping to see, reach out to a safari planner.  At this point I strongly discourage folks from walking into any old travel agent.  First, they're not specialists and second, they're likely to put you on a canned package group tour from Some Chain Travel Provider.  This isn't what you want.  Going on a canned itinerary with a group means that there's going to be a lot of compromise on your trip of a lifetime.  You want to do what you want to do.  If that means getting up and being out by dawn or sleeping in, sitting and waiting for a hunt to play out or going back to camp early for lunch and a nap.  You don't want those decisions made by the group-think of 20 other people.

For the same price, or even cheaper, you can likely get a custom bespoke safari doing exactly what you want to do, in exactly the accommodation you want for exactly  your budget.  Reputable safari planners I can speak for:  The Wild Source, Africa Travel Resource, Access2Tanzania, Treks2Rwanda, Expert Africa.  There are others, but none that I've personally worked with.  These folks deal only with Africa all day every day and their long standing relationships with camps and agencies on the ground will stand you in good stead.

A few decisions you'll have to make:

1) Your budget (excluding international flights) -- know that this is all inclusive usually, but for the tips. I take very little spending money with me as it's just tipping local staff. Sticker shock usually hits until you realize this is all meals, all entertainment, all room and board for the entire trip.

2) Days on the ground available and the time of year you can go (excluding travel time to/from Africa) -- migrations, rainy seasons, high seasons, all factor into overall costs and when it's best to go to certain areas.

3) Your interests -- Big cats? Elephants? Reptiles? Gorillas? Birds? Beach time? Mountain treks? Village visits? Some areas/countries are better than others for certain wildlife.

4) Lodging types -- do you need soaker tubs and swimming pools? Do you want to stay in tents in the bush (with beds and full bathrooms)? Do you need electricity/wifi/ solid walls? Are you comfortable with bucket showers and gravity toilets (porcelain bowls that flush into the ground)?  Do you want to be right out in the bush with the possibility of animals being in camp day and night?

5) Transport -- know that to get to some safari locations far from larger cities, it is necessary to take small (10-20 seater) bush planes.  Driving is sometimes possible, but can take days on unpaved and rough roads.  To maximize your time out watching animals, it's expeditious to fly, although that does add expense.

These are a lot of considerations, but the more information you can share with your safari planner, the better.  This is the fun part of the planning experience; once you're all booked it's all done but the waiting!