Travel to West Africa. Traveling in West Africa
I confess, I have always thought that African safari is for the rich. Or for those who save all year from paycheck to paycheck, and then lower every last penny on a trip. Both options were not about me. I am not rich, and I do not know how to save all year. After all, in a year you want to go abroad not once, but several. What to do if you are not Abramovich, but want to see African nature in all its glory for little money? What if you don't have $250 for an overnight stay at a lodge in the Masai Mara, or an extra $1,200 for a 3-day safari in the Serengeti? How to show a fat fiddle to those who are much richer than you, and see even more than they, while paying many times less than them? I decided to prove all this to myself first of all, traveling around Africa.
Planning
...And Dyrkin seductively stuck out his chubby cheeks from behind the desk. Understanding nothing, Korotkov smiled obliquely and shyly, took the candelabra by the leg and with a crunch hit Dyrkin on the head with the candles. Blood dripped from his nose on the cloth, and he, shouting "guard", ran away through the inner door.
- Ku-ku! - the forest cuckoo shouted joyfully and jumped out of the Nuremberg painted house on the wall.
- Ku Klux Klan! she screamed and turned into a bald head. - Let's write down how you beat the workers!
Fury seized Korotkov. He waved the candelabra and struck it at the clock. They responded with thunder and sprays of golden arrows. The pants jumped out of the clock, turned into a white cockerel with the inscription "outgoing" and darted through the door. Immediately behind the inner doors came the cry of Dyrkin: "Catch him, the robber!", and the heavy footsteps of people flew from all sides. Korotkov turned and started to run...
Well, let's say we won't hit the travel agent. Is that a little bit, on the ass, and then, if the ass allows it. But you should not cooperate with mass tourism if you want cheap and cheerful to Africa. A nice girl can be and sincerely wants to help you. But, firstly, the level of professionalism of travel agents is often below the baseboard (fortunately, there are exceptions, but rarely), and secondly, it works for a percentage of sales. Why should she look for you cheaply, because this is her bread. And the third point. Travel agents are convinced that if you are going to Africa - you are a millionaire, and you definitely need to "ride" to the fullest, emptying your pocket as much as possible. This is not a tour to Hurghada for $199, where bargaining is appropriate. From their point of view, nouveaux riches and new Russians are going to Africa. The last point - travel agents are not flexible. They are often not friendly with geography, and only resell someone's vouchers, without going into the heart of the matter. The choice is very limited. What, you want to go to Masai Mara and then fly to Cameroon? Horror, we do not sell Cameroon (if the girl even heard about the existence of such a country). But we have Zanzibar. What, have you been there before? Hmmm, then maybe you should go to Pattaya? More or less like this.
So we are done with travel agents, and we move on -
Flights
The question of tickets to Africa is not at all banal. You can fly to Johannesburg or Nairobi for $500-700 or even $1500. It all depends on two things: seasonality and airline promotions. And also your ability to bypass all sorts of intermediaries. I have three favorite airlines in Africa whose websites I regularly study from time to time: Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways and Egypt Air. All of them often issue promotions when you can fly from Moscow to South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya for very little money.
Boarding an Ethiopian Airlines plane in Cairo. I'm standing on the left with a big blue backpack
The first two (Ethiopians and Kenyans) do not fly from Russia, but fly from Cairo, where you need to go. I found tickets from Cairo to Dar Es Salaam on the Ethiopian website for $376 (South Africa cost $480, which is also cheap) round trip via Addis Ababa. It remains to fly to Cairo, and there are many options. The same Egypt Air with Aeroflot will take you to Cairo for $320-380 in both directions. In total, we go to the amount of 700-750 dollars from Moscow (we will add 150-250 dollars if we fly from other cities) to South Africa.
My itinerary in Africa in December 2009
The second question is more difficult. This is a safari organization for little money. And here you need theoretical knowledge and days spent on the Internet. First of all, forget about hyped tourist places like Arusha in Tanzania. Yes, the beautiful parks of the Serengeti and the Masai Mara are wonderful, then there you will be ripped off like a stick. We ask ourselves the question - what do we expect from Africa? Nature and local color, right? Then choose to visit those national parks where:
1. It is not required to travel far in rough terrain, and there are acceptable roads,
2. There are no crowds of tourists,
3. You can rent a car on your own and see the parks on it, saving on the so-called game drives (jeep safari),
4. Spend the night cheap and cheerful
A poor country is not a cheap one
In addition, it is very important to understand an important thing. A poor country is not a cheap one. As my friend jokingly says, who spent a year in Africa working in a hospital in the Congo and traveled to 28 countries of the continent: “Africa is fantastically cheap for those who are ready to ride a donkey for days and sleep in a hut. If you have 2-4 weeks of time and you want to explore and move around, keep your pocket wide." Aptly said. Take the beautiful country of Zambia, with its unique Luangwa reserve. What do you think, how much to travel by bus from the capital of the country, Lusaka, to Luangwa, which is 500 km to the north? Did someone say all day? You are wrong. About 50 hours on an absolutely dead dirt road through the jungle. You will go crazy from this trip, and then you will come to your senses for a day or two. It costs money to recover, because it is a payment for extra days in the lodge, which are not cheap. Any step you take to the side entails serious costs. Air ticket costs a lot more expensive than a bus, $180 (bus - $40), but you save time. And time is money. We arrived early in the morning in Luangwa, threw our things into the lodge, and immediately started on a safari. For a general knowledge of the park, 3-4 days are enough, these are 3 nights in the lodge. On average, a lodge will cost $150-200 for two, or average up to $100 per person. For 3 nights you will give away $300 + $180 airfare = $480.
Now let's compare a trip on a cheap but exhausting bus. After 2 nights without proper sleep in a crowded lorry (a hybrid of a bus and truck, a type of shift), you will arrive at your destination squeezed like a lemon. Your bus will look something like this (pictured is a Lusaka-Mwufe regular bus):
Without strength, you stomp to the lodge and fall into bed. Bang! The first night, and minus $100 from your vacation budget, and most likely 2 nights, because such buses arrive at an extremely inconvenient time. Already lost $200. We add the initial $300 for 3 nights in the park, and come out to $500. And with the plane $480. Pretty much the same. The question is asked - why pay more and travel with discomfort, if you can pay the same amount and fly like a king?
Country selection
Do you want cheap and interesting? You in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia. Do not believe anyone who tells you that these are the most expensive countries in Africa. Nonsense. These are the most civilized countries in Africa with excellent developed infrastructure and service. And first-class nature. And prices are not only not higher than in Kenya-Tanzania-Uganda-Ethiopia and others, but, as a rule, lower. You need a good road network where you can drive your rental car and motels where you can stay cheaply. All this is. Compare with other countries, poorer. Take the already mentioned Zambia. The roads are terrible and you need a 4x4 car which will cost you from $200 per day. In South Africa, the same car will cost $50-60 per day, and a simpler type, such as a Toyota Corolla, will cost $35-40. Remember I said about the quality of the roads? So, even in a simple city car, you can visit the chic national parks of Etosha and Bwawata in Namibia, Kruger in South Africa, or Chobe in Botswana.
Accommodations
Now overnight. In these three countries, there is a chic network of motels and inexpensive lodges at a price of $ 50-70 for two places with in-room amenities, air conditioning and TV. In the same Tanzania, you have a different choice: either $120-150 for an option similar to South Africa, or $15-30 for a terrible cesspool with mosquitoes.
Actually my experience in traveling in Africa in December 2009
First of all, I decided that I would look at nature in Botswana and Namibia. In the course of the play, fate brought to Zimbabwe, where he also watched a wonderful national park Hwange, but I'll talk about that another time. So, Botswana as a starting point for the national parks of southern Africa. I book a car on the website Avis.co.za, where the Toyota Corolla 1.6 sedan costs $53 per day without any color limit. Next, I study sites dedicated to Chobe National Park, which starts right from the town of Kasan, where I plan to stay:
In terms of tourism, Caprivi is interesting at once with three rivers that cross it in different places: Zambezi, Chobe and Okavango. Everywhere is full of animals and almost no tourists. And what's even more pleasant - excellent roads, cheap tickets to the parks ($4 won't bother you much, right?) and inexpensive lodging for the night in nature. Note that in neighboring Botswana, on these same three rivers, a whole tourism infrastructure, and there are just those traveling in hats with a "Livingston" brim and show-offs for a million dollars, and then photographs in the style of "I am in front of an elephant. Me after returning to Moscow in front of my dacha. I am in front of black women with boobs. I got drunk on vodka and I'm lying in bed. "Don't you have thousands of dollars to spare, are you bothered by a $400 per night accommodation? Then forget about the Okavango in Botswana territory. You have a direct route to Caprivi.
After crossing the border, we had a 3-hour run west to the Okavango River and Popa Falls (yes, that's right - Popa). And there is Bwawata National Park. IN the only city isthmus, Katima Mulilo, you have to pay the Namibia toll of about $24. When leaving the country, you will be checked for a toll receipt. The town is absolutely unremarkable, except that here you need to refuel and buy food. And then there is the border with Zambia, and in addition, the gate to the upper part of the Zambezi basin and the Ngonye Waterfalls, which can be reached, but only by jeep, breaking 140 km of eroded primer on Zambian territory. And no public transport. Given the fact that it will be almost impossible for you to find a rental company that is ready to allow the export of their car to Zambia, visiting the Ngonie waterfalls turns into an exciting quest.
Roads, hotels and animals
The trails in Namibia are good. The limit is 120 km/h and there are almost no cars, which gives you the opportunity to cover long distances in a minimum of time. I confess, I exceeded the speed limit and drove 150-160 km/h.
But after some time, we witnessed a serious accident with the victim, after which I did not exceed the speed limit until the very end of the trip -
The refrigerator was carrying frozen meat, as much as 8 tons. In the African heat, after a couple of hours of a non-working freezer, there was a terrible smell of rotten meat. However, I do not want to discuss this episode. I will only say one thing - the driver of the truck was rushing under 150, and fell asleep at the wheel. Science for all sorts of Schumachers.
National parks and lodges
This is where I end the story about Caprivi, and we move the border to Botswana, which will be a separate story -
Other reports about Africa:
Africa is the second most populated continent, more than 1.1 billion people live here: a huge number of peoples, languages and cultures. Among the conflict and poor countries, there are also quite peaceful, safe and interesting for tourists. Many travelers are familiar with countries such as South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt. And about where you can have a good time south of the Sahara, we will tell in this article.
1.
Perhaps the most unexpected state on this list is Sierra Leone, which not so long ago was torn apart for ten years by Civil War. However, since 2002, Sierra Leone has undergone major changes and today it is already among the peace-loving countries according to the Global Security Index (GPI). Sierra Leone is considered one of the most religiously tolerant countries in the world, and the life expectancy of the local population is 57 years, which is not bad by African standards.
Sierra Leone has many beautiful nature reserves such as the Gala rainforest or the Outamba-Kilimi National Park, clean beaches on the coast of the Atlantic, and its capital Freetown - oldest city in West Africa.
2.
Leader in security on the African continent. Whether this is due to the fact that peace and tranquility is one of the main features of both the Tswana people and the Bushmen, or the fact that the Botswana understand the economic contribution of tourists, but anyway there is a very low crime rate.
True, no one promises that baboons will not attack you, so during the safari it is recommended not to feed these warlike monkeys and not even smile at them. In general, there are a lot of animals in Botswana; for example, the largest population of elephants in the world lives here.
One of the popular tourist attractions, along with a safari to the Kalahari Desert and visiting national parks, since the 30s of the last century, is the search for ancient treasures hidden from the colonialists in the caves of Gchvikhaba. No one has found the treasure yet, but the caves themselves with amazing stalactites up to 10 meters long are worth going to the north of the country for them.
3.
In 2008, Ghana was ranked by the Global Security Index as the most safe country Africa and has since held the top lines in this ranking. The country rarely has internal conflicts and has peaceful relations with its neighbors. Tourists are treated very friendly here and speak English with them - this is the official language of Ghana.
Here you can visit numerous nature reserves with elephants, antelopes, monkeys and other exotic animals, visit the ruins of castles and fortresses of Cape Post and Elmina, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and spend time on clean, sparsely populated beaches.
4.
This country in Southwest Africa is an oasis of stability and security on a troubled black continent. It was discovered quite late (in 1878) by Europeans, quickly withdrew from all internal and external conflicts and is now one of the richest African countries.
Here is the oldest desert on earth - the Namib, the legendary Skeleton Coast, many national parks, the site of the fall of the largest Hob meteorite, the second largest after the Colorado Canyon and much more.
Do not miss:
Good in Namibia highways, and The Desert Express tourist train runs between the capital Windhoek and resort town Swakopmund, making stops along the way at particularly noteworthy places.
5.
Uganda is considered safe for foreigners by both the GPI and public tourism opinion. Perhaps this is due to the fact that it is not accepted here that merchants and barkers pester people, perhaps due to the fact that the proportion of the urban population in the country is only 13%, and the main attractions are not in the villages.
Tourists in Uganda need to have time to see a lot: one of the oldest in Africa, the Queen Elizabeth National Park, Botanical Garden Entebbe, where the first Tarzan film was filmed, the Rwenzori mountain range - most likely, it was their ancient Egyptians who called the Moon Mountains. Here they practice sailing on Lake Victoria and rafting on the Nile, which originates in Uganda.
If locals here they do not cause much concern to tourists, then you need to be careful with animals, especially if you see an elephant with a baby elephant. By the way, Uganda is located on the main migration route of northern birds: eagles, cuckoos, swallows, kites and many birds familiar to us winter here.
6.
Cape Verde or Islands Green Cape is an archipelago off the west coast of Africa. Tranquility, tranquility, relative cleanliness and an acceptable level of service (European companies invest in local tourism) await tourists here, in the homeland of the famous singer Cesaria Evora.
There are enough picturesque landscapes on the islands: extinct volcanoes, mountain ranges where you can go trekking, flowering meadows where you just need to take a walk. But the main feature of Cape Verde is, of course, the ocean - it is used to its full capacity: from beaches with black volcanic sand, continuing to dive to shipwrecks and ending with windsurfing, whose schools are on every island, but the island of Sal is especially famous for them.
7.
8.
The inhabitants of Tanzania are friendly and smiling, but, as elsewhere, travelers should not lose their vigilance - there are enough robbers here. But there are still many tourists in Tanzania who come here without fear. Here, in the homeland of Freddie Mercury, there is something to see.
Firstly, Mount Kilimanjaro, to the top of which numerous hiking trails lead. Secondly, the island of Zanzibar - resort place, where the most beautiful city, founded by the Arabs in the 9th century, is located stone city. From here they go on tours for spices, during which you can chop cinnamon and try unfamiliar spices. Thirdly, the famous Serengeti National Park, which occupies a huge area and is home to more than three million large wild animals.
Fourthly, the Ngorongoro Biosphere Reserve, located in a colossal (21 km in diameter) crater extinct volcano. It is home to about 25,000 different animals and has the highest concentration of predators in all of Africa.
9.
Madagascar is a separate continent in miniature: it is so unlike Africa or any other place on earth. Here are amazing landscapes, and 80% of the living animals and plants are found nowhere else.
The island has many natural parks and protected areas. The largest reserve of Tsingy de Bemaraha, which, like many others, is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The country is rich beautiful beaches; Traditionally it is believed that swimming on west coast safer - there are fewer sharks.
Take a look at this:
10.
Zimbabwe is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Africa: it is here, on the border with Zambia, that the famous Victoria Falls is located. In Zambia, by the way, there are fewer tourists, so those who prefer a more secluded environment are advised to admire the miracle of nature there.
It's definitely worth seeing:
In Zimbabwe, the conservation structure works very well and there are unusually many animals here even for Africa, so hunting is allowed in some places (it is already prohibited almost everywhere on the continent).
In addition to countless national parks, there is also a unique historical site - the stone ruins of Great Zimbabwe: a pagan temple complex built over a thousand years ago.
Tourists who are going on a trip to Africa must definitely do all the vaccinations, their list is usually on the website of the embassies. Even in those countries for which vaccination is not required, it is necessary to take antimalarial pills, and start taking them even before the trip. It is strictly forbidden to use raw water even for brushing your teeth.
Are you going on a trip? Don't forget about
The group arrives in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (or Livingston, Zambia). Check-in at a great hotel. The first day of our Great trip. Relax after your flight. Walk along the waterfall and get wet from its spray!
We will see the waterfalls from both Zimbabwe and Zambia.
Waterfall day and motorboat safari.
We start the morning with a walk through the Victoria Falls. Then, those who wish can bungee jump from the bridge that connects Zambia and Zimbabwe, lie down in the devil's pool right on the edge of the falls (availability depends on the season) or fly over the falls in a helicopter!
After lunch, we cross the border and find ourselves in Botswana, an open-air zoo country.
We are waiting for a safari on a motor boat along the Chobe River, where you can swim up to the animals and take pictures very close. We will watch hippos, elephants, crocodiles, antelopes and other animals.
The main elephant of the planet and the Baobab forest.
Morning in Africa starts well with a safari on nat. Chobe Park, the largest population of elephants on the planet is found here, and even the largest elephants.
This country is amazing - if in Russia we usually see cows along the roadside, here elephants and giraffes are often commonplace! After the morning safari, we travel around the country and go to the baobab forest. We stop in the houses right in the middle of the baobabs! Delicious dinners, photos with giant trees.
Breakfast with meerkats, salt marsh.
We'll have to get up early, because today we're getting on safari jeeps and going to have breakfast with meerkats - funny animals that look like little people. In parallel with the meerkats, we admire the giant salt marsh, similar to Uyuni in Bolivia. At 360 degrees we will see the expanses of white salt! In some months, the salt marsh is covered with a thin layer of water and then the sky merges with a thin surface of water.
In the afternoon - transfer to the capital of the Okavango Delta. Ability to stage flight over the delta (optional)
Okavango Delta.
This is the largest inland delta of the planet, which has no outlet to the ocean. The river splits into 5 branches and dissolves into the Kalahari Desert. She is home to huge amount animals. Here you can see all the big five. It's like a National Geographic show, only live!
Now you have a choice:
1. Go on a safari deep into the delta for a day and spend the night right among the animals! You will not have a fence, and you cannot move more than 100 meters from the camp. Safari in an open jeep.
2. Go on a boat safari - dugout Mokoro. Authentic, swampy, meditative. Walking safaris with local guides.
3. Just relax in the town in comfort - relevant if you need to save money.
Return from the Wild and communication with the Bushmen.
The Bushmen are the indigenous peoples of southern Africa. They retained the most ancient language on earth, consisting of "claps", and they are also of a different race - more like Mongoloids than Negroids.
And although civilization takes its toll, we will still visit them, talk, learn their way of life and herbal medicine.
Hello Namibia!
After spending the night with the Bushmen, we set off to meet the new state - Namibia! We will cross the Kalahari Desert and end up in the capital, Windhoek. Here we will comfortably stop for one night, so that the next day we will go to meet the pearl - the Namib Desert, with the most high dunes on the ground.
Road to the Namib Desert.
Moving to the Namib Desert. Walk through a small canyon, typical for these areas. Meeting the sunset with a view of the red dunes, lilac rocks.
We drive deep into the desert, a walk through the dead forest.
We set off to meet the dawn on the red and yellow dunes. They are among the highest in the world! Those who wish will be able to rise above the desert on hot-air balloon or by plane (optional).
Then we get into jeeps and go to the dead forest on full drive - business card Namibia!
After lunch we head south to the grandiose Aus Valley with alien Martian views.
Atlantic and surreal day.
Namibia is washed by the cold Atlantic current. Penguins and fur seals live here. The wind is cold and salty. You can’t even say that Africa is here. Today we will just get to the small and picturesque town of Lüderitz on the coast. We can eat fresh oysters and wash them down with champagne. If the weather favors, it is possible to go on a catamaran to the penguin colonies (optional).
On the same day we will visit a ghost town half covered with sand. Once upon a time, German prospectors lived here - diamond miners, but the deposit dried up and the city was forgotten. Now there are abandoned schools, hospitals and residential buildings, half covered with sand.
African Grand Canyon and Orange River.
Today we will see another miracle of our Planet - the second largest canyon in the World and the first canyon in Africa. Here you want to stay for a long time, and the views are fantastic and alien.
After the Canyon, a relaxed evening on the banks of the Orange River. Here you can swim or go canoeing.
Author's journey of Ulita Lipskova
West Africa is about people. different. About kings and backgrounds, colorful Ashanti ceremonies and elegant initiation rites. About weddings - streets and funerals - quarters.
Here you can sit in Accra or Abidjan or Bobo-Dioulasso and drink mango juice by the road. Just. And watch life like a movie. Here you can observe how Muslims and animists, voodoo and mganga coexist peacefully.
Akwaaba - welcome
Day
1.
Arrival
Arrival at Vnukovo airport at 03:30. Flight. Arrival at 19:25. Transfer to the hotel.Night in hotel.
The Cassena people and their traditional way of life
Day 2 Accra Ghetto And Coffin Factory . Ghana is famous for its hospitality and originality.visit Embassies of Burkina Faso. visit Nima ghetto - an area inhabited by immigrants from Ghana, Niger and Chad. Visit to a workshop in the areaTeshi, where coffins of various shapes are made, from submarines to large scorpions. City Tour. Dinner. Overnight at the hotel.
Night in the ghetto
In the workshop of an undertaker from Ghana
Fort at Elmina
Day 3. VOODOO RITUAL. In the morning, meeting with one of the most powerful voodoo sorcerers of Accra and participating in a voodoo ritual with a goat sacrifice lasting 4 hours. Traditional lunch. Meeting with the traditional leader of the Kumasi region. Free time. Overnight at the hotel.
Kente fabric is made up of colorful stripes that are woven into intricate patterns and have a symbolic meaning.
Day 4 . SLAVE TRANSFER FORT . visit National Parka Kakum, famous his cable car expensive, sprawling on the height from 20 before 41 m above level land. visit most major in past fort on transfer slaves from Western Africa in America. Fort Elmina (in Arabic mina-el - the fortress was founded inXVcentury, and today is included in world heritage UNESCO).Night in bungalowon the ocean.
In the Kakum forest
Day 5. AQUASIDAE FESTIVAL . We leave early in the morning in Kumasi - the capital kingdoms Ashanti And king asantehene, once revered most influential leader in empire Songhai, later - in Ghana. Pvisiting colorful festival aquasidae. Sutb festival: ablution golden chair - symbol faith And power, on the which once seated King Ashanti. Asantehene Osei Tutu II himself will appear in all his glory and with royal regalia. In the past, kings wore up to 50 kg of gold.Festivalheld on Sundays every 42 days.He is interesting yet And because on the him going big number people, men And women in traditional dashiki, kufi And clothes ashanti. The people are having fun and dancing. The action takes place in the Mankhia Palace.An opportunity to greet the king in person. Traditional dinner.Night in hotel in Kumasi.
IN fishing village fancy
Day 6. VISIT A VOODOO WIZARD. In the morning aboutdeparture to Tamale.In the evening, visit the voodoo sorcerer - the leader of the village Vovagu - Tuu Nana. This sorcerer talks to animals for slaughter and lulls them with his spells, and they go to another world. Overnight at the hotel in Tamale.
At the sorcerer
Day 7. VILLAGE OF WITCHES. Moving to Endy.
In the village of witches
In the village of witches
villages witches - this West African « chip». Usually « sentence» rendered topics, whose relativesor acquaintanceson which- then reason suddenly died. The average African simply does not accept natural death. Hence the belief in the other world, fetishes associated with Thanatos and other magical things. Speaking of Africa, especially Western, one must really distinguish between a sorcerer and one who is calledInyangaor Mganga - a herbalist, he is also a healer.We will visit a non-tourist village of witches. Usually this elderly, but not always, women. There are few men here.They are will tell US about his everyday life And about volume, how found themselves here. After lunch - moving in Bolgatangu. Visit to the local handicraft market, where there are a lot of leather handicrafts. Dinner andoh in hotel in Bolgatanga.
Zotentaari - No. 1 sorcerer in Northern Ghana
Zotentaari's domain south of the palace
Continued here:
