So you want to go to AFRICA?; I just got back Feb 1. Here are my Tips on Elegant Adventure.
Barbara tour director; EXCELLENT and a "by the Tauck" rule book yet she injected two wonderful extra stops that made this trip memorable. MY OPINION: As much as you might want to go, the Safaris can be a rough ride and steep twisting trails that might test your roller coaster riding skills. Drivers every good especially Erin but even as good as she is, Erin truck slid off the road in a rain storm and titled 30 degrees making an evacuation necessary. All were safe but there is always that danger of the unexpected. Sabi Sabi lodge; stayed at 4 nights...ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL. Service, Food, personal care outstanding. In fact, all the hotels this group (ending Feb 1, 2022) were unique and comfortable.
Now to the CAUTIONS: There were only 8 of us and then down to 6 on us with 3 days left. Covid tests very good, reliable and accurate. We had no issues with bugs, other jungle sickness but our Safari driver has issues with getting ticks on her arms. Road are VERY Rough and not paved. You hold on for dear life. Weather is very unpredictable and I suggest bringing a good sunhat and finding a waterproof light backpack and boots (yes, like duck boots). If you can find a good poncho that covers you completely, bring one even though they have them inside the safari trucks. Best to have your own for fitting purposes and one that keeps the rain out. I brought an umbrella sort of as a joke but it wasn't a joke when we hit a monsoon for 45 minutes. Trucks are NOT COVERED TOP except to/from the airport. Bring fast drying pants, socks and keep one pair of shoes in the room and ever take on Safari for this and Victoria falls. Wifi at the lodge was great and even my T-mobile worked pretty well in some places near the lodge.
Feel free to ask me questions but expect the unexpected. The day you arrive at Sabi Sabi, they give you about an hour and then Safari for 3 hours. I suggest you skip that one, relax, unpack, get comfortable and then the next morning be ready at 6am. A lot of rushing at first. The spa services are wonderful at Sabi Sabi, too. ONE FINAL VERY IMPORTANT item to consider. It appears 6 out of 8 had some stomach issue during the trip. Be sure to bring any prescriptions and OTC drugs for stomach issues including but not limited to Peptol B, Immonium D, laxative, stool softener, tums , OTC eye drops and anything else you can think of that you "might" need. When it doubt, take it long and you won't feel sorry. Includes ant-acids and if you are lactose intolerant, bring something to help that issue. Always check with your doctor before taking any of the above.
Comments
Wow. Oh, I think you picked the wrong time of year to go. We have been in Southern Africa in November I think August and September. While we once had rain in Cape Town, it’s usually pretty dry everywhere else. I don’t recall the Safari roads being too bad. In six trips to Africa I’ve rarely had to hold on for dear life. Others, don’t be put off by this review.
Skipping a Safari, I’d never skip a Safari on Elegant Safari, there are not that many.
Bob- Excellent , concise and informative review. Thank you.
We have been to Africa three times and the weather was very pleasant. However, October to April is the rainy season and this is why we haven't visited it during these months. We didn't experience really rough roads and our trips in general were exceptional.
We were on the SA Elegant Adventure tour this past November. We did not encounter any rain on our tour. Our tour first stayed at Lion Sand in Kruger National Park then on to Sabi Sabi Bush Lodge. At both lodges I felt the safari vehicles were fairly comfortable considering the circumstances. I did not think the roads were overly rough. I am comparing the safaris to our trip of a few years ago to Northern India and Nepal where the roads on the safaris were much rougher in my opinion. Out of the two lodges we stayed at I think I liked the Lion Sands a bit better than Sabi Sabi although both were very good.
Our trip consisted of 11 people and I don’t recall that anyone had any major stomach issues. We did eat some local foods such as Zebra, Ostrich, Wart Hog, Impala and few others that I don’t recall. We did drink bottled water exclusively during the trip. Again I am comparing this to our India Nepal trip where almost everyone on the tour had some stomach issues of varying degrees at some point during the trip.
We did not have any Covid issues during the trip. When we started the trip, we did not hear anything about the omicron variant. News about omicron seemed to follow us home. When we got home we started to hear stories on the news about a new covid variant that was discovered in (take a guess) South Africa.
As JohnS’ travel partner, my finding with rough safari rides was when we went off road chasing one of the “Big Five”. I also felt that the vehicles at the Lion Sands were a bit more comfortable than the Sabi Sabi vehicles as they were much newer.
This elephant was the subject of one of our off-road excursions.
Did any of you do the pre and post added days to your trip? What airlines did you use from the USA?
Debbie-
We did a pre-trip day in Cape Town. Plenty to see and do and a very good Hop on / Hop off bus to get around. Would not recommend a post trip day. Johannesburg has a high crime rate and is hard to do on your own. Several options for airlines. What is best for you will depend heavily on your starting point. Most go through Europe (London, Amsterdam, etc.). Delta has (or had, not sure of current flights) direct service to South Africa from Atlanta, but when we looked at it, there was a substantial premium over other routes. The premium may depend on your starting location. Going through Europe, you're typically looking at back-to-back red eyes (night flights). So, you may want to consider a stopover in Europe for a day or two in between. We took British Airways and spent a few days in London on the way. Coming home the scheduling is better, though it's a long trip.
We used Emirates in and out of Boston, but we went on the Botswana, Zambia, Capetown Trip. Leaving Capetown, they let you get off in Dubai for 2 nights, with no penalties, on our way back to Boston.
After going to South Africa many times and not on Tauck, any time spent on "local tours" in Johannesburg is just a waste of time and money. I have a fabulous TA based in Cape Town who has curated wonderful trips all over SA, Kenya, Tanzania, Mauritius and Zanzibar and she delivered equal service to Tauck and did ALL of the details to a T. She also can curate tours according to your budget, time and all other options. I do love Tauck but not for Africa. I receive no incentive for saying this.