AFRICAN JEWELS SAFARI NEWSLETTER : September 10 , 2011 ISSUE # 54

What’s New ; Commentary ; Did You Know ? ; Wit and Humour : Swahili Term Of The Week ; Feedback and Contributions; Upcoming Events

 WHAT’S NEW

Request For Quote Form

We now have a Request A Quote form on our website for folks to fill out when they are contemplating a tour of sub-Sahara Africa.

 COMMENTARY

Couples On Tour

Couples on tour

As you likely know, Lion Dog African Safaris typically provides private tours, many of whom are adventurous couples traveling alone. Traveling as a couple alone is not much more expensive than travelling with more people however I do come across some couples who express that they might like to travel with others simply for the interaction. Be careful of what you wish for.

Oftentimes touring in Africa means traveling together in cramped quarters for extended periods of time without respite. The brother-in-law you asked to join you may want to move along after watching a lion after 10 seconds while you would prefer to experience the lion for a much longer time. Or there is the stranger in your tour group that constantly talks too much. Traveling as a couple alone would have been far more enjoyable than under circumstances such as these .

There will be many opportunities to strike up conversations with the guides and other travellers at the camps, lodges, etc. However, the biggest surprise might be that the husband and wife actually enjoy speaking to each other . Africa is a great place to have a second honey moon.

If you remain unconvinced and still wish to travel with others, let us know and we will see if we can match you up with other like minded parties however it is difficult to find others with the same preferences, time lines and budget .

Comparing Tours

When clients return back from their African tour, we try to interview as many as we can on how their tour went so we may learn how to improve the tours for future clients . Some returning clients have raised the issue about some disparities they noticed between our tours; to what other tours provided. A few examples are as follows.

For Treks on Mount Kilimanjaro, we generally steer our clients to a standard trek where the guides are qualified Tanzanians. The water drinking source is the mountain streams which the clients purify themselves with no health problems to report thus far. More upscale treks on the other hand, may be guided by Caucasian guides; and provide bottled drinking water, oxygen bottles, hyperbaric gamow bags, and portable toilet screens , all which are hauled up the mountain for the clients’ added privacy ,convenience , and perceived safety. The cost difference between a standard and upscale trek can be quite substantial without any reported difference in enjoyment or success rate in summiting the mountain. However for those willing to pay extra for any additional goods or services, we can also accommodate those requests. For instance, some returning clients have indicated that they would have paid the extra $200 to have a toilet screen hauled up the mountain for them . Not a problem however let me point out though that the screen is not always in the immediate vicinity when the need arises, and the screens are not hauled up the mountain for the final ascent to the summit . Alternatively, there is ample brush and rocks to duck behind, and there are out-houses situated at the camp sites.

When comparing waterfront resorts, some clients have pointed out that the resort next door sharing the very same waterfront was nicer, and/or provided more amenities, than theirs. That may be very true however the price discrepancy between some water front venues can be several hundred’s of dollars per person per night. Some of our clients’ budgets allow us to place them in the luxury resorts, while others allow only a budget or a mid-range resort. In either scenario, we are always attempting to provide the best value for your resort experience. This philosophy also holds true for the lodges and hotels we select for our clients.

The disparities on game safari are numerous. We provide private specially outfitted 4WD vehicles with pop up roofs driven by professional English speaking guides stopping and starting upon the client’s command. Accommodation on safari can comprise of budget tent camping in public camp grounds ; or a mixture of permanent tent camps, mobile tent camps, and lodges in the mid-range and luxury price levels. We also endeavour to overnight our clients as close as possible to where the bulk of the herds are located based on the season. We provide only the best for our clients in whichever price category they choose for their game safari component. On the other hand, other companies’ clients may be transported around in a normal van or bus, with strangers, on a very tight schedule, staying at venues that their tour company may have a year round contract with despite not being close to the animal herds for most of the year.

Other items that we provide , that other companies may not provide , is a fully dovetailed custom designed itinerary, a 24/7 help hotline , a satisfaction guarantee, travel visas ( recent development) , and comprehensive guidebooks. Our clients also have the choice to mix their tours between the budget, mid-range, and luxury price levels. We call all these choice offerings ; “ experiencing Africa on your own terms”.

The differences between tours may not be readily visible at first glance however its clear that our tours stack up exceedingly well when all the factors are considered.

DID YOU KNOW ?

In some South African tribes, the parents of both the bride and the groom will carry fire from their own homes to light the first fire in the new couples’ house. This symbolizes the fire of a new union and a new family.

 WIT AND HUMOUR

LionLionessCartoon

SWAHILI TERM OF THE WEEK

Husband and wife “ Mume na mke”

FEEDBACK AND CONTRIBUTIONS

 Hey, that’s not fair

I was with a young couple the last time I was out on safari . We were parked watching for some time, several lionesses sneak up on an unsuspecting gazelle. Finally one one the lionesses darted out of the high grass taking down the prey. No sooner had that occured than a male lion swated the lioness off the fresh kill devouring the kill for himself. “ Hey, that’s not fair “ , the young lady in our vehicle yelled out at the male lion.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Register at our Website for the following FREE presentations

Edmonton/ Leduc , “How To Best Safari Africa” Presentation

7:00 pm September 24,2011 (Changed from September 18 )

Days Inn and Conference Centre

Leduc Room

5705-50 St. Leduc, Alberta, Canada

Calgary/Cochrane, “How To Best Safari Africa” Presentation

7:00 pm September 25, 2011 ( Changed from September 11, 2011)

Cochrane Ranche House ( Map at this link)

Victoria , “How To Best Safari Africa” Presentation

7:00 pm October 11,2011

Comfort Inn and Conference Centre

Quadra Room

3020-Blanshard St. , Victoria , B.C., Canada

Vancouver , “How To Best Safari Africa” Presentation

6:30 pm October 12, 2011

West Vancouver Memorial Library

Elizabeth Musto Room

1950 Marine Drive West, West Vancouver, B.C., Canada

Kelowna , “How To Best Safari Africa” Presentation

7:30 pm October 13, 2011

Kelowna Rotary Centre For The Arts

421 Cawston Ave, Kelowna B.C., Canada

Contact us today for your African tour. GO BIG, GO AFRICA !

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About the author

Passionate about Africa.