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Q: WHEN
IS THE BEST TIME TO VISIT AFRICA?
Q: HOW DO I PREPARE FOR MY ADVENTURE?
Q: WHAT IS A 'TYPICAL' DAY LIKE DURING MY AFRICAN SAFARI
EXPERIENCE?
Q: WHAT IS INCLUDED/EXCLUDED IN THE COST OF MY JOURNEY?
Q: WHERE IN AFRICA CAN I TRAVEL TO WITH JOURNEYS UNFORGETTABLE?
Q: HOW LONG SHOULD I TRAVEL TO AFRICA FOR?
Q: WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE CUSTOM SAFARIS
AND THE UNFORGETTABLE PHOTO ADVENTURES?
Q: WHAT IS MY TRAVEL STYLE...RUSTIC ELEGANT OR LUXURIOUS?
Q: IS IT SAFE TO TRAVEL TO THE WILDS of AFRICA?
Q: WHAT IS THE FOOD LIKE IN AFRICA?
Q: IS THERE POWER AND ELECTRICITY IN SAFARI CAMPS?
Q: WHAT HAPPENS TO MY DIRTY CLOTHES?
Q: WHAT ARE THE PASSPORT AND VISA REQUIREMENTS?
Q:
WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO VISIT AFRICA?
A: The correct answer is
is ALL YEAR ROUND. We just need to plan that the specific areas
that you will be traveling to are suited for unforgettable experiences
and superceed all expectations. Considering the climatic conditions
of the different seasons, animal habitats, and the varying geographical
environments, all becoming extremely important, as they will all
impact the planning process. As you can imagine, no two trips are
ever the same. Repeat travelers have joined us at different times
of the year specifically to enjoy the variations mentioned above.
Q:
HOW DO I PREPARE FOR MY ADVENTURE?
A: We will provide travelers
with a customized packing list for each particular season of travel
and type of adventure. You will be given a detailed itinerary with
a Journeys Unforgettable Travel Wallet that will include your travel
vouchers and detailed e-tickets for all pre- paid flights, tours,
and accommodations, as well as contact and emergency information
for friends and family at home.
*A special photographic gear/equipment list will be provided for
those traveling on a Unforgettable Photo Adventure
Q:
WHAT IS A 'TYPICAL' DAY LIKE DURING MY AFRICAN SAFARI EXPERIENCE?
A: Although most safaris
in Africa will generally offer similar daily activities and all
follow a general pattern, the specific daily agenda will depend
on the variations in the planned and customized traveler's itinerary.
We wish to describe a typical day in the life of your safari experience
when traveling with us:
Your day will begin when you are awakened before sunrise with a
morning "knock knock" or African drum beat and morning
activities begin with tea or coffee and a light snack which could
include cereal, toast, muffins, yogurt and fruit. You will then
depart for your early morning drive or activity. The early mornings
offer the best opportunities to experience good wildlife and the
interactions of the animals, as it is still cool enough and the
nocturnal animals are still active. You will have the opportunity
to get out and stretch your legs and enjoy another coffee and snack
in the cool morning perhaps under a beautiful baobab tree.
An early morning activity may include a game drive in a land rover,
or a water activity such as canoeing, motor boating or a peaceful
and relaxing mokoro ride. It could also include a game walk, when
appropriate.
You will generally return from your morning activity in the late
morning and will enjoy a full brunch in the dining area.
The middle part of the day is yours to enjoy as you wish. As most
of the animals are also taking their siesta in the shady areas during
this hottest time of the day, you too can relax with a book, take
a plunge in the lodge pool, or nap in a hammock in the shade.
After this relaxing siesta time, guests will return to the main
lodge area for afternoon tea, which includes drinks, savory snacks
and sometimes a customary sweet treat! For groups we often arrange
a special 'bush' lecture during tea time. The afternoon activity
will begin approximately at four o'clock and you will go out on
another game drive or activity. This will continue on until sunset
when guests enjoy a 'sundowner' while at the same time admiring
a magnificent African sunset!
After guests return to camp, they will be given a chance to freshen
up and then return to the bar for a drink and then enjoy a full
candle lit safari dinner. On colder winter nights, guests may want
to sit around the campfire while enjoying an after-dinner drink,
and marveling of the stars of the African sky. After a full day's
activities, you will most likely be tired from all the excitement
and be ready for bed by ten o'clock to get well rested for yet another
glorious day in Africa.
Q:
WHAT IS INCLUDED/EXCLUDED IN THE COST OF MY JOURNEY?
A: Included:
• All Land Costs and Internal Non Scheduled Flights/Ground
Transportation
• All camp activities
• Accommodation on a shared basis
• All meals and drinks in all the camps
Excluded/Extras:
• Gratuities
• Meals in Larger Towns/Cities whilst not on safari
• Special Airport/Visa Taxes
• Cancellation/Baggage/Medical/Evacuation Insurance
• International Flights To/From South Africa
• Internal Scheduled Flights
• Solo Guests Pay a Single Supplement (unless part of a group
and willing to share)
You just need to pack your bags and gear and we will take
care of the rest!
Q:
WHERE IN AFRICA CAN I TRAVEL TO WITH JOURNEYS UNFORGETTABLE?
A: Our past travelers and
trips have visited the following countries: South Africa, Botswana,
Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, and the Seychelle Islands
(including North Island).
Q:
HOW LONG SHOULD I TRAVEL TO AFRICA FOR?
A: Your travel budget will
have a significant impact on the answer to this question. With most
camps and lodges, we recommend staying at least three nights per
camp. This will afford you a good opportunity to see what characterizes
the area and partake in all the activities offered at an enjoyable
pace.
Africa is a distant and remote destination for most travelers--this
might be one of few, if not the journey of a lifetime so we encourage
you to spend as much time as you can afford in this amazing part
of the world.
Q:
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE CUSTOM SAFARIS AND THE UNFORGETTABLE
PHOTO ADVENTURES?
A: Although both safaris
follow Journey Unforgettable's philosophy, there are differences
between the two.
The custom made safaris can be arranged for individuals
or groups of any size and are planned a la carte to suit your specific
interests and time of travel. These trips can be arranged at any
time of the year allowing for various experiences and travel opportunities.
The speciality of the photo adventures is that
they are led by photographic professionals and the accommodations
on the photo workshops are specifically chosen in areas to maximize
your photographic experience while enhancing the safari itself.
Our photographic workshop safaris are uniquely designed to accommodate
the special requirements of digital photographers, including extra
baggage allowance for camera gear and special arrangements for electronic
power in each camp, extras which participants would not find or
would need to pay extra for on a traditional safari. We have also
arranged for special flights between camps to facilitate this.
We restrict the photographic workshop trips to include a maximum
of 12 guests which allows us to arrange the vehicles to have a ratio
of 3 or 4 guests plus a specialist guide and professional photographer
per vehicle for each game ride or activity. This allows for a wonderful
safari experience at the same time allowing for customized learning
and adequate space on the vehicle for all of your photographic gear.
The 'typical' day on a Photo Adventure Safari will include sunrise
and sunset photographic opportunities to maximize those 'golden
hours'. Midday educational workshops which take place after the
morning game drive and before the afternoon drive or activity, will
allow for both group and one-on-one tutoring sessions. Depending
on specific requests that group participants have, we can make any
accommodation. At this time and also during the evening depending
on the day's events, we will organize slide shows which will help
those learn from the day's activities. Sometimes we will have more
formal lectures, in which one of the photographic professionals
will discuss a specific topic such as composition or editing techniques.
We will also have the guests volunteering to submit photos taken
during the trip for peer review and critique, which will provide
for a greater learning experience of yourself and everyone.
We will have a projector and screen with us and will be providing
instruction on a daily basis detailing many photographic and editing
techniques. We suggest that in order to get the most of out of this
workshop, travelers are encouraged to bring any necessary photographic
accessories to optimize your learning and experience. Once you register
for an Unforgettable Photo Adventure, we will send out a complete
list of suggestions regarding equipment to bring along.
*Non-photographic spouses, companions, and/or guests of those joining
us are therefore most welcome as they will still benefit from all
the expertise and bush knowledge to enjoy a most unforgettable safari
experience.
Q:
WHAT IS MY TRAVEL STYLE...RUSTIC ELEGANT OR LUXURIOUS?
A: The level of accommodation
that you are expecting on safari is important to consider when planning
your journey. Do you want lush fixtures and amenities or do you
prefer a more hands-on interactive experience?
While this is very much a function of personal style and preference,
as well as budget, we prefer to design an itinerary with consistent
levels of service. It is possible, and our personal recommendation
to combine different levels of accommodation on different parts
of your trip, ensuring that you have the right expectations for
each place you travel to. You want to 'feel' Africa when on safari...
Q:
IS IT SAFE TO TRAVEL TO THE WILDS of AFRICA?
A: Part of the attraction
of visiting these remote areas of Africa's wilderness, is to be
able to enjoy the wild animals in their natural habitat. All the
camps and lodges are built within the confines of this natural environment,
and are not surrounded by fences. Hence the animals are free to
wonder and roam freely in their natural surroundings.
The animals do roam through the camps during the day and night.
However, as long as you remain aware of your surroundings, and adhere
strictly to your guides' and camp managers' instructions, you will
be safe.
The guides and managers will always escort you back to your rooms
or tents at night and they are trained professionally to handle
any situations that arise.
All game drives are conducted in open air land rovers or vehicles
which provides you, the guest, the privilege of viewing and photographing
the animals up close in their natural habitat. The animals after
time do become habituated to the vehicles and become keenly aware
of the human presence. Here again, as long as you adhere strictly
to your guides' instructions, you will always be safe and will be
able to view and enjoy the animals exhibiting their natural behavior
for hours at a time.
On our Kenya and Tanzania safaris other types of vehicles may be
utilized.
We should always remember that we are the privileged ones to be
invited into this awe-inspiring wilderness--home of these astonishing
animals and habitats.
Q:
WHAT IS THE FOOD LIKE IN AFRICA?
A: The cuisine of southern
Africa and neighboring countries is sometimes called 'rainbow cuisine'
and rightly so as the foods of South Africa and countries around
have largely been influenced by the indigenous Black people as well
as several waves of immigrants which included Indians, Malaysians,
and Europeans. Thus the food here is a blend of many cultures.
The Malay influence has brought spicy curries, chutneys, pickled
fish and curry marinated beef and lamb kebabs. The Indians have
introduced a different line of culinary practices, including a variety
of sweets and savories. The Afrikaners have their succulent stews
of maize with tomato and onion sauce, with or without rice. There
are many contributions like Dutch fried koeksister (type of donut)
and milk pies. During the pioneering days of the 19th century new
foods such as biltong (dried meat) and droe wors (dried sausage)
and rusks evolved locally out of necessity.
Basic ingredients include seafood, meat products (including wild
game), poultry, as well as grains, fresh fruit and vegetables. Last
but not least, there are also several types of traditional and modern
alcoholic beverages including many European-style wine and beers
(Please ask us if you are interested in visiting the famous Stellenbosch
and Paarl Winelands near Cape Town).
Most foreign visitors are very impressed with the quality and variety
of food served in the different establishments and especially on
the safari itself. Some of the premier camps provide food, service,
and presentation that would rival that of any top class hotel or
restaurant anywhere in the world.
When on safari, most of the camps are able to cater for all food
types with special dietary requirements, as long as they are notified
of these at the time of booking, as all necessary supplies have
to be flown in.
The most common complaint coming from guests after having been on
one of our safaris is that they ate too much food!
Q:
IS THERE POWER AND ELECTRICITY IN SAFARI CAMPS?
A: The beauty and thrill
of visiting these remote areas is to get away from it all--to become
one and part of the African wilderness. You will leave the TV's,
cell phones, pagers, and e-mails behind.
The camps and lodges are often situated in the most remote areas,
where there is no access to conventional electrical power. Most
of the camps, however, do have generators on-site with 220v electricity
(don't forget to pack your adapters). Alternatively they make use
of solar panels, which supplies most of the energy for the camps
running water heaters, which is always hot when needed.
The electricity derived from the generators is used to operate the
refrigerators, ice machine and freezers that keep all the perishables
fresh, and drinks cool at all times. The generators also charge
the batteries that provide power in the form lights and overhead
fans in the guests' rooms. There is ample power to recharge batteries
for cameras and laptops, however there will not be enough power
to operate devices such as hairdryers.
Some of the more rustic and mobile tented camps do not run on generators.
Lighting is by paraffin lamps and campfires, and the efficient camp
staff will provide the traditional 'hot bucket' showers.
While there is no communication with the outside world while on
safari, the camps operate via radio communication with the town
offices and also the head office in Johannesburg, South Africa,
so contact can be made immediately when necessary in the case of
an emergency.
Q:
WHAT HAPPENS TO MY DIRTY CLOTHES?
A: All laundry is done on
a daily basis, except in some remote camps in Namibia (home of the
world's oldest desert) where water is in great shortage. Some camp
staff will not wash undergarments, due to local customs and traditions,
but washing powder is always provided in the guests' rooms for that
purpose. Laundry that is left in the basket before you leave for
your early morning game drive or activity, is usually back in the
guests' room that same evening, neatly pressed and folded.
Q: WHAT ARE THE
PASSPORT AND VISA REQUIREMENTS?
A: All travelers visiting
Africa require a current passport that is valid for six months beyond
the intended length of stay. At the present time, all holders of
United State passports do not require any visa for South Africa,
Botswana and Namibia. They do require visas for Zimbabwe and Zambia,
but these can be purchased at the point of entry for a current fee
of $135 per person, which is subject to change. For Kenya and Tanzania
the current fee for entry is roughly $100 per person.
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