22 December 2013

How to book your African safari holiday in Botswana?

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It is good to search the Internet first. Get an idea what you can see in Botswana and what appeals to you. Look up maps to get an impression of locations and distances between the parks you are interested in.

While doing that, you will come across many names of lodges and camps. When you visit their websites you will notice that many of them do not publish their rates. This is the moment to get help with your
African safari booking. One option is to contact the lodges separately and try to put your safari itinerary together yourself. That is not easy, as you need transfers and knowledge about travel times and schedules. The better way is to find a specialized tour operator to help you from there.

Now you know what you want and together you can create the safari tour you have in mind. It will save you a lot of time, nerves and money; you can spend more pleasantly in curio shops or for nice activities.

Botswana is a fantastic photographic safari destination, but offers so much for all interests and first of all beautiful nature and wildlife.

Happy photo safari travelling!


Ute Sonnenberg for Roho Ya Chui “soul of leopard”, Travel Africa



Want to see the Victoria Falls?

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You can spend days with seeing the Victoria Falls, from the Zambian side, the Zimbabwean side, from above and from below. If you plan to stay for only 2 nights at this top-rated African safari destination, use your time wisely to get to see all angles of this magnificent sight.

There are opening hours of the falls, transfer times and scheduled departures for the activities and excursions to consider. Also mind you are crossing a border when moving from Zambia to Zimbabwe and back. Don’t plan too tight and the day you fly out should not be filled with excursions until the last minute.

But it is possible to do a tour of the falls on the Zambian and Zimbabwean side, have a helicopter flight to see them from above and go on a boat tour under the spray of the falls. If you also want to get in the falls, a swim in Devil’s Pool can provide that, available depending on the water level.

Still not enough? Maybe a lunar tour makes it complete, seeing the falls shining in the light of the full moon.

Happy photography sight seeing travel!


Ute Sonnenberg for Roho Ya Chui “soul of leopard”, Travel Africa







Why Tanzania is a great African safari travel idea

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The top safari country in East Africa was traditionally Kenya, but during the last years Tanzania became the favorite African safari destination for a growing number of guests and that is not a surprise.

Tanzania’s most famous part is the north with the Serengeti, Mount Kilimanjaro, the Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara and Tarangire National Park. The active guests can climb Mt. Kilimanjaro and do a safari afterwards and otherwise the northern safari circuit is just fabulous to do even within a one-week holiday. Three different highlights from the migration in the Serengeti over the impressive Ngorongoro Crater to the small, but beautiful Lake Manyara National Park or/and Tarangire are pretty easy to combine either as drive-in or fly-in safari.

But that is not all Tanzania has to offer. The south is just as beautiful, yet very different and great for those who like to explore off the beaten track. And if this is not enough, Zanzibar and the beaches are the perfect safari extension to rest, relax, explore culture and history or continue wildlife watching, but then under water with diving or snorkelling.

Bring time, if you want to see all within one holiday and recon that Tanzania is a bit more costly than Kenya. But it’s worth it!

Happy amazing safari travelling!



Ute Sonnenberg for Roho Ya Chui “soul of leopard”, Travel Africa



Merry Christmas on African safari!

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African safari hoiliday 2014: Namibia safari?

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Namibia offers safaris of a completely different kind. This vast country is fantastic for lovers of dramatic landscapes and stargazing. The Namib Desert with its many faces from the sand dunes of Sossusvlei to the famous Skeleton Coast is fabulous for landscape and aerial photography. The desert adapted wildlife like Oryx, elephant and rhino make wonderful photographic subjects with the most spectacular backdrops of astonishing landscapes.

Namibia offers something for all budgets. The self-drive safaris are easy to do and help to experience this beautiful country even with small travel funds. Etosha is the country’s famous wildlife area with spectacular animal interactions around the waterholes.

Only be prepared for long distance drives or choose to fly, which comes with a price tag. When driving make sure you measure distances in hours and not in kilometers and keep in mind to be at your destination before night fall.

Namibia is definitely one of the top-rated
African safari holiday countries.

Happy photography adventure travel!


Ute Sonnenberg for Roho Ya Chui “soul of leopard”, Travel Africa



Want African safari in Kenya?

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Be prepared to have a lot to choose from when planning an African safari in Kenya. Kenya is a fantastic safari country where wild feels wild and a Masai Mara National Reserve has entrance gates, but no fences and the Masai people still live in their traditional villages and herd their cattle.

If you want to see lots of different national parks and wildlife areas, bring time. Only the north offers already Samburu, Shaba, Meru, Laikipia, Mount Kenya and the less frequently visited Marsabit and Lake Turkana. On the way south are Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha and Aberdare with a turn to the west to see the Masai Mara and then further to Amboseli with Mt. Kilimanjaro and to Tsavo. Yes, this is what you can choose from and the coast not even mentioned.

Have a good look at a map when planning the safari and ask for the transfer times by air and by road. Don’t get carried away and put too much in one itinerary. You will have to make choices. And if you can’t, your budget will do it for you. Visiting remote places in the wild comes with a price tag due to complex and costly logistics and your own transfers to all these places. Self-drive is not recommended when you don’t have Africa experience and in parks like the Masai Mara you will need a guide to find the animals and not to get lost.

It is already an adventure planning your
African safari tour to Kenya with this amazing choice of fantastic destinations. Enjoy it!

Happy wildlife safari travelling!


Ute Sonnenberg for Roho Ya Chui “soul of leopard”, Travel Africa




Guard against loss on African photographic safari

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Travelling with your precious and often expensive photographic equipment on African safari should be done with care. Anticipate on possible dangers to your photo gear when packing for the photographic safari.

Make sure you have one compact bag you can take with you everywhere that the camera gear is always under your watch. Never leave it unattended in a car or in a public area. Consider the weather and the terrain you are travelling. Have rain and dust protection for your gear and if waterborne photographic activities are included make sure you have a waterproof box or bag to carry your camera in in case it makes a plunge. Make sure when you use your camera on a boat or on great heights that it is fixed somehow to you in case you let go and the camera falls. In water it will be gone and from heights it will be shattered.

Pack the way that even if you get a fright or distracted and you loose attention for your camera it will be “on” you and not forgotten behind or fallen or removed. Make also sure you backup your pictures. Don’t only have them on the memory card in your camera. Upload them to a laptop or other external backup drive to not loose also your pics when loosing the camera.

Planning all that carefully before you go on
African photographic safari helps to have a worry free fantastic experience.

Happy wildlife photo safari travelling!



Ute Sonnenberg for Roho Ya Chui “soul of leopard”, Travel Africa