Recommend March 2012 - (Page 16)

from ZaMbia tO ZiMbabWE zimbabwe Travelers have two air gateways into Zimbabwe from Johannesburg: to Harare and to Victoria Falls. Zimbabwe is home to some of Southern Africa’s best wildlife parks: • Zambezi National Park protects 56,000 acres along the shores of the Zambezi. Wildlife abounds, including hippo, crocodile, lion, elephant, giraffe and sable. • Hwange National Park, the largest park in Zimbabwe and bordering Botswana, is a noted elephant sanctuary, and the huge mammals are sometimes spotted at waterholes in herds of up to 100. • Mana Pools National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, protects the regions where the Zambezi River slows its ﬂow, creating small ponds that create perfect watering holes for elephant and buffalo, kudu and zebra; both big game drives and walking safaris are in style here. African Travel offers a 4-day Wildlife of Hwange package from Victoria Falls, traveling to the national park by light aircraft. Travelers spend three nights at Somalisa Camp, an authentic 6-tent bush camp—with king-size beds and en-suite bath—blending Old Africa charm and elegance with an exclusive safari experience. Here, guests have a choice of game drives or guided walks. The cost for each of two persons sharing starts at $1,275. According to Jim Holden, president of African Travel, Hwange is close to the Victoria Falls, “…offering a glimpse of authentic Africa with its varied wildlife and varied terrain. At Hwange,” he adds, there’s “… an opportunity to see the rare roan antelope, a beautiful antelope with long curving horns. It all makes for a great experience for the timechallenged, with a 2-day visit to Victoria Falls followed by the 4-day extension to Hwange.” Also departing from Victoria Falls, African Travel offers a chance to experience all aspects of the African wilderness when traversing the Zambezi Valley on a 4-day Mana Canoe Trail Adventure. Clients ﬂoat past hippos and elephants, encounter wildlife on foot, and bed down at night in a mobile camp on the banks of the river. This adventure, offered between May 8 and Nov. 15, is priced from $1,316 pp dbl. “For the canoe trip, the highlight is wildlife viewing from the river rather than the land. The canoes are paddled down the Zambezi River separating Zambia from Zimbabwe, hugging the bank on the Zimbabwe side,” Holden explains. “This is a very different and unusual experience paddling quietly up to elephants and other wildlife and going with the current means very little exertion required for paddling. At night, you can experience the bush up-close and personal in a tented camp erected just for the party in the canoe trip—your very own piece of Africa if you like.” n continued from page 14 “The national parks of Zambia and Zimbabwe shelter huge concentrations of big game animals, as well as more than 700 species of birds,” he explains, “and they are tops for special experiences such as boating safaris in the Lower Zambezi National Park or walking safaris in Zambia’s South Luangwa National Park.” McIntyre adds that while Zambia has a broader parks infrastructure and more upscale camps, Zimbabwe has fabulous, experienced guides. “The government test for the guide who looks after the client is very stringent; the test for the armed escort who watches the animals is even stricter.” zambia Lusaka is the air gateway to landlocked Zambia, which has three large lakes and is sustained by three great rivers. As one of the most sparsely populated nations, Zambia retains a sense of remoteness that gives visitors an experience of what is often called the “real” Africa. Zambia’s top safari areas are: • South Luangwa National Park, where big game concentrates in large numbers around lagoons and sandbars, favorite habitats for hippo and crocodiles; and birdlife abounds. • Kafue National Park contains diverse landscapes and varied wildlife, and is one of Africa’s largest game parks. Most major species are here, including the big cats. • Lower Zambezi National Park is wildlife-rich in lions, leopards, vast herds of elephant and buffalo, and swarms of hippos. Lion World Tours takes clients for a 6-night Walk on the Wild Side, starting in Johannesburg for a night and a second night in Livingstone at the Zambezi Sun resort. Guests then fly to the air strip at Kafue National Park, one of the largest in Africa, to spend two nights at the Musanza Tented Camp located on the permanent pools of the Lufupa River in an area well-known for leopard sightings. They continue on day six by a combination light aircraft and helicopter to the Busanga Bush Camp for three days in an area of expansive grassy ﬂoodplains and some of the best lion-viewing in Africa. Activities here include game drives, walking safaris and night drives. Departures are available June through October, and the tour price, from $5,899 pp dbl, includes roundtrip international air from Washington, D.C. or New York to Johannesburg, regional and air charter ﬂights, and all land arrangements. Bushtracks explores other corners of Zambia, starting with Lower Zambezi National Park, which lies across the Zambezi River from Zimbabwe’s Mana Pools National Park. With 100 miles of river frontage, it’s the river itself and its numerous islands, lagoons and ﬂoodplains that attract most of the wildlife, including approximately 50 mammal species and 400 bird species. Bushtracks offers an 8-day Wildlife Safari on the Archived related articles (available on recommend.com): Zambezi River. Savoring the Zulu Kingdom (February 2012) Safari highlights include guided river safaris to spot hippos, buffalo, elephants and proliﬁc birdlife from water level perspective and night drives to see nocturnal creatures such as lions and leopards on the contact information move. Guests spend their ﬁrst four nights at the luxury Chiawa Camp, African Travel: (800) 421-8907; africantravelinc.com Bushtracks: (800) 995-8689; bushtracks.com where safari activities include day and night game drives, bush walks, Expert Africa: (800) 242-2434; expertafrica.com / wildaboutafrica.com canoeing, game viewing by boat and ﬁshing. On day ﬁve, guests go by Ilala Lodge: ilalalodge.com motor boat 45 minutes downstream to the Old Mondoro Camp, also Lion World Tours: (800) 387-2706; lionworldtours.com located on the banks of the Zambezi River and offering the same activiRoyal Livingstone Hotel: royal-livingstone-hotel.com ties—however this camp has a more rustic wilderness feel. The safari The Victoria Falls Hotel: (800) 745-8883; lhw.com Zambezi Sun: suninternational.com operates May-October, Lusaka to Lusaka, and the all-inclusive price starts at $5,900 pp dbl. 16 march 2012 recommend.com http://www.recommend.com http://www.africantravelinc.com http://www.bushtracks.com http://www.expertafrica.com http://www.wildaboutafrica.com http://www.ilalalodge.com http://www.lionworldtours.com http://www.royal-livingstone-hotel.com http://www.lhw.com http://www.suninternational.com http://www.recommend.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recommend March 2012

Editor's Notes/Agent Speak
Hotel Desk: Vikram Chatwal Hotels
Tour Talk: SITA World Tours
From Zambia to Zimbabwe
Small Ship Cruising in the U.S.
All-Inclusive Resort Guide: The Caribbean & Mexico
Alaska: New Action in an Old World
Sandpearl Resort, Clearwater, Florida
European River Cruising 2012
Pantanal: The Brazilian Serengeti

Recommend March 2012