Travel: Book your dream holiday for next year

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Book your dream holiday for next year

Travel Expert Sean Wilyman from Wild and Isle travel fills us in on some of the finest ‘best of both worlds’ itineraries.

The potential packing havoc of combining the need for safari outfits with beach leisure wear and swimsuits is a small price to pay for a dream African vacation. Arguably, nowhere else in the world can you so seamlessly combine an authentic safari experience with a tropical beach holiday. Maximise your leave days next year, like this:

Tanzanian Safari & Zanzibar

Tanzania is well-known for its amazing safari areas and it is possible to combine some of the best, with a beach holiday.

Tarangire National Park with its contrasting granite ridges and deep river valleys is home to large herds of elephants and migratory wildebeest, zebra, buffalo and impala, among many others. While the famed Ngorongoro Crater (a UNESCO-listed crater) is undoubtedly one of Africa’s most iconic safari destinations. Surrounded by verdant highlands, this intact volcanic caldera (said to be the largest in the world) is a prolific game-viewing location. In addition, in my opinion, no visit to Tanzania is complete without some time spent in the Serengeti, home to the famed wildebeest migration.

After what will no doubt be a memorable safari it would be time to trade the binoculars and khaki for suntan lotion and bathing suits, and head to Dongwe on the idyllic island of Zanzibar. Dongwe is located only an hour’s drive from the iconic Stone Town and is encircled by lush tropical vegetation with an offshore coral reef teeming with tropical marine life.

The Mara North Conservancy is a pristine private wilderness which plays host to the Serengeti wildebeest migration.

Kenyan Safari & Diani Beach

Kenya is known for its wide diversity in wilderness and gameviewing locations. It features the high savanna of Laikipia, an area which lies sandwiched between Mount Kenya and the northern deserts, as well as the famed Mara North Conservancy. The Mara North Conservancy is a pristine private wilderness which borders the well-known Maasai Mara National Reserve, and, aside from playing host to the Serengeti wildebeest migration (during certain times of the year), it is home to threatened African wild dog and black rhino.

Kenya has also long been the preferred tropical beach destination for discerning travellers seeking something outside of the ‘usual’ tropical resort holiday. Known for its spectacular palm trees and white sand beaches, Diani Beach is the ideal base.

Namibia & Skeleton Coast

Namibia is all about beauty in desolation. A beach-and-bush combo holiday here is unlike any you would experience elsewhere in Africa. Featuring the Skeleton Coast – where the desert meets the cold waters of the Atlantic – it is not a place for beach towels and sun hats, but rather a place to be experienced and photographed. A place to breathe in the open air and marvel at the shipwrecks haunting the mist and be astonished by the array of wildlife (including extensive seabird colonies, Cape fur seals, jackal, hyena, zebra, gemsbok, desert-adapted elephant, lion and much more) that manages to survive in this stark environment.

Namibia is also a special safari destination with a variety of smaller and larger mammals, reptiles and birds that make the thirst lands their home. Our current itinerary includes a safari at Ongava Game Reserve, which shares the southern boundary with Etosha National Park. This prolific reserve is globally recognised for exceptional conservation, groundbreaking research and exciting safari experiences.

I’m also a big fan of Okonjima Lodge which is situated halfway between Namibia’s capital city, Windhoek and the Etosha National Park. This spectacular reserve is nestled deep in the imposing Omboroko Mountains and is one of the few places in Namibia where you have the opportunity at seeing leopard.