Great LL safari auction at Lion Sands!

Hello,

I've posted this on the Africa board but as many people don't seem to read the destination boards regularly I thought I'd post it here as well.

LL has listed a very nice safari package at Lion Sands, which is one of the best safari deals I've seen on LL. Lion Sands is in a superb location in the Sabi Sands private reserve and the tree house experience is very unusual in South Africa. Too many of the other packages only have 2-night stays which is really too short to experience the bush, but this one has 3 nights and is great value for money. If you're considering a safari, take a look!

Cheers,
Julian

Hi Jasher, I'm not ready for this type of travel yet, but I also thought these packages seemed too short. Just don't watch the movie "Prey" before going. ;)

A safari for 3 nights is about right in a given camp. A typical day is get up between 5 and 6 am (depending on season), a quick cup of coffee and muffin, head out for the morning game drive, return around 11 am, lunch, rest, tea, head out for the afternoon game drive around 3:30 or 4, back in camp around 7, change clothes, head to dinner, in bed by 10 or 11. Get up the next day and do it all over again. They are wonderful experiences, indeed!



Try combining with a short stay in Capetown or add on another camp to extend the stay and/or make the long travel distance worthwhile. If you change camps, the transfer arrangements vary in price.



Cheers, Anne

I haven't seen 'Prey' but I have seen 'The Ghost and the Darkness' which is even worse in terms of pre-safari viewing!

Personally, I find that three nights is a good minimum for a first stay at a camp, unless it's a place like Vumbura Plains in the Okavango where there are a lot of activities in addition to game drives and you might want a bit more time to try them all. Another one where a longer stay would be nice is Phinda in KwaZuluNatal, where there are a wide range of different environments to explore (there's a great 'Seven days for seven wonders of Phinda package which takes in all seven environments) though at Phinda I'll normally split the stay between two camps to stay in two different environments. When I'm returning to an old favourite like Londolozi, Singita, or Mombo I'm often happy to stay longer (providing I can afford it!)

There are a few camps where two nights might be enough (some of the water-only camps in Botswana come to mind -- there are only so many hours most people can spend in a mokoro) but for most three is the way to go. I hope more of the LL safari packages will start featuring longer stays so people can really enjoy their time on safari.

Cheers,
Julian