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Email this page to a friend Africa Travel Newsletters > Top Africa Safari Destinations
1 Top Five Africa Safari Destinations
The top African national parks and reserves are renowned worldwide for their incredibly diverse array of wildlife. As a result, millions of people from all corners of the world tour the continent just to explore and capture the magnificent African wildlife.
Planning a safari to Africa requires you to know the right destination so as to ensure your game viewing adventures are most rewarding. To help you do so, here is our list of the best five destinations for African wildlife viewing safari.
Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya
Located in the southwest Kenya on the border with Tanzania, Masai Mara, (also spelt as Maasai Mara), is the most popular game park in Kenya. Although it is relatively smaller in size compared to other Kenyan national parks, Masai Mara is home to an amazing concentration of wildlife. The 1, 530 sq km park borders the Serengeti plains along its southern end and is nourished by the crocodile and hippo infested Mara River.
Masai Mara is renowned for its enormous population of wildlife and the influx of over 2 million wildebeest and zebras from the Serengeti every year from July to October – an occurrence referred to as the Great Wildebeest Migration. The climax of the annual event is the actual crossing of the Mara River – an amazing spectacle that draws tourists from all over the world.
The large number of crocodiles and hippos in the waters of the Mara River make the migration a really perilous undertaking. Hundreds -and at times thousands- of wildebeests and zebras are intercepted by the hungry crocodiles that turn them into a feast. Watching this dramatic happening is quite awesome, and is the main reason why Masai Mara is listed among the Seven Wonders of the World.
The best time to take a Kenyan safari to Masai Mara is between July and October, when the wildebeest and zebra herds are in their highest numbers. During this period there is plenty of food for the predators- leopards, cheetahs, wild dogs, hyenas, jackal, and lions, all of which can easily be seen returning from the hunt at dawn or dusk.
The Masai Mara is situated about 320km west of Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, and is reached by both road and air. It takes about 4 hours to get there by road. However, road trips can be challenging during the rainy season – between April and May- as some of the roads become impassable.
Several airlines offer daily scheduled 45 minutes flights from Nairobi (Wilson Airport) to the Masai Mara.
Chobe National Park in Botswana
Situated in northern Botswana, Chobe National Park is one of Africa's greatest wildlife sanctuaries. The 11,700 sq km park is best known for its large concentrations of elephant – currently estimated at around 120,000 individuals. These elephants are massive in size, and are the world's largest in body size although their tusks are relatively small.
Chobe's elephants are always on the move; crisscrossing the park in search of water. They linger in the neighbourhoods of the Chobe river waterfront during early winter and move westwards to the Linyanti waterfront as the winter becomes drier. The elephants spread all over the park during the rainy season although they are cautious not to move too far from the waterfront.
Chobe National Park is divided into 4 different ecosystems: the central pans of Nogatsaa and Tchinga; Linyanti to the far northwest; Savuti to the southwest; and Chobe Riverfront in the east.
Nogatsaa and Tchinga comprise a hot dry hinterland in the centre where the animals migrate during the summer with the arrival of the main rainy season – which usually fall between November and April. The Linyanti Swamps boasts large concentrations of elephant, lion, sable, roan, hippos, and wild dog, building to a peak in the dry winter months. It offers visitors unforgettable wildlife experiences.
On the other hand, Savuti is a prime game viewing destination. Its desert-like landscape where animals escape the heat by clumping together in the limited available shade also offers excellent wildlife viewing.
Also referred to as Serondela Reserve, Chobe riverfront is tourists' most popular part of the park. The area has a dense population of animals and it is quite accessible. Rising from the Angolan highlands and flowing across the Caprivi Strip into Botswana, the river acts as a natural boundary between Namibia and Botswana – finding its way down through Kasane town.
Located 850 km by road from Gaborone, Kasane is a border post where Botswana meets three of her neighbours: Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia. The town hosts an international airport and offers access to cross border tourism between the four countries. It also has connections to Gaborone – the capital city of Botswana, as well as Johannesburg.
Kruger National Park in South Africa
Situated in the north eastern region of South Africa, Kruger National Park is the largest game reserve in the 'rainbow country'. The park covers 18,989 sq km and stretches 350 km from the north to south and 60 km from east to west.
Kruger is said to be the most popular public-entry game reserve in the world. The park is immensely rich in terms of wildlife species that includes more than 500 species of birds, 147 species of mammals, 115 reptile species, 50 fish species, 230 species of butterfly, 33 amphibian species and 200 species of trees among other botanical treasures.
Hosting a considerable number of predatory cats that include 1,500 lions, 900 leopards, 300 cheetahs, and a substantial number of hyenas and African wild dogs, Kruger is an excellent South Africa safari destination.
Established in 1898 and named after the then president Paul Kruger, the park is a world leader in advanced environmental management techniques. Thanks to the park's conservation efforts, the rhino population that dwindled in the 1980s has increased tremendously – and it is now possible to see several of them in a day.
Unlike in 1927 when Kruger received a handful of its first visitors, more than a million people per year visit this magnificent park . In 2004 alone, for instance, over 1.3 million people toured the park.
Kruger is reached by both road and air. Three airports in the central, northern and southern sections serve the park; with daily flights from Johannesburg. Those travelling by road can hire 4WD vehicles from any of the major cities of South Africa, such as Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.
The park has an excellent infrastructure consisting of well-maintained roads, spanning more than 13,000km, with road numbers and distances on all routes; area guides for vegetation, trees, mammals and birds; places of interest, water features, and all camps.
The best time to go on a game viewing safari in Kruger is during the winter months of April to September. During this time the vegetation is less dense thus visibility is good. The summer months of October to March are excellent for birding. Wildlife viewing is difficult during this period as vegetation is dense.
South Luangwa National Park in Zambia
Situated in eastern Zambia, on 9,050 sq km of expansive grass plains, the South Luangwa National Park is renowned as one of Africa's greatest wildlife sanctuaries. The park was established as a game reserve in 1938 and was transformed into a national park in 1972. South Luangwa supports an incredibly wide array of game and birdlife that makes it one of the best safari destinations in the region.
Major highlights of South Luangwa include over 60 species of large mammals and more than 400 different kinds of birds. The park is an excellent game viewing safari destination; with over 15,000 elephants, equal number of hippo, leopards, lions, buffalo as well as Cookson’s wildebeest and Thornicroft’s giraffe that are unique to the region.
The animal population and birds in this park rely on and are drawn to the wide Luangwa River as it meanders through the valley. The river is crocodile infested and is said to have Africa's largest concentration of hippo- 50 hippos per kilometre of this mighty river!
Apart from the rainy season, which usually occurs from November to April, South Luangwa can be visited at anytime of the year. However, the most appropriate time for game viewing is August and October when the animals are very dependent on natural water resources and when the vegetation is not too dense.
South Luangwa can be reached by both road and air. By road, the park can be accessed from Chipata; Petauke, on the great East Road; Mpika, on the Great North Road; or Lundazi. Stretching a distance of 123 km from the park, the route from Chipata is most recommended as the others can be challenging due to the rough conditions of the roads. By air, the park is served by the Mfuwe International Airport - situated some 20km from the park's main entrance in the small town of Mfuwe.
Serengeti National Park in Tanzania
Just like the Masai Mara, Serengeti boasts an abundant population of wildlife - including the dreaded tree-climbing lions- and it makes for excellent game viewing safari all year round. Other animals of interest include cheetah, hippo, buffalo, leopard, hunting dogs, jackals and monkeys.
The name Serengeti comes from the Maasai word "Siringit" meaning unending plains - aptly describing the open grassy plains that make up the national park. The 12, 950 sq km national park is part of an ecosysytem that spans across the Kenya - Tanzania border into the Masai Mara game reserve. Serengeti's diverse habitat enables the park to support more than 30 species of large mammals and about 500 species of birds.
The Serengeti hosts the largest and longest overland migration in the world, dubbed the Great Wildebeest Migration. The semi-annual occurrence that is said to be the world's most spectacular wildlife show is one of the ten natural travel wonders of the world. Others include the Ngorongoro Crater and Victoria Falls.
Although the migration from Serengeti to the Mara is not specifically predictable, the event occurs between July and August . The journey back to Serengeti takes place around October. During the event, nearly 2 million herbivores travel from the northern hills toward the southern plains, crossing the Mara River in search of greener pastures.
Serengeti is reached by both road and air. The road trip from Arusha, situated some 320km from the park, takes approximately 8 hours. International visitors to Serengeti are served by the Kilimanjaro International Airport in Arusha. From there, the visitors can travel by road to the park or take either scheduled or charter flights to Serengeti airstrips like Kirawira or Seronera.
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