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We’ve had a busy year – a new website launched and a new brochure about to roll off the press. The phones and
email have been red-hot and we’ve enjoyed putting together many wonderful safari holidays. The sales team has
welcomed Roxy Cox, who, having started her African travels at the tender age of six, has a wealth of experience;
and the Scottish office has been joined by Tina Koster who’ll be assisting on the admin side of things.
Thank you to everyone who has suggested us to friends and family; word of mouth recommendation is hugely
important to us and we’re constantly striving to ensure incredible holidays with all the little extra touches that
make an Aardvark Safaris’ trip special.
It’s been fun to meet so many of you, either over the summer show season or with Saba Douglas-Hamilton whose
UK speaking tour we supported in the spring. We’ve several autumn events planned, keep an eye on the blog
pages of our website for more details. Among our own recent travels, I have done a whistle-stop tour of Botswana,
South Africa and Zimbabwe, Alice hosted a very successful South African riding safari, and Francis sampled the
delights of the Seychelles. Lucinda sets off for South Africa and Mozambique shortly and Jo will be exploring
western Tanzania later this month.
Inside this issue we look at the incredible range of safari types on offer, and highlight some of the fabulous ‘sleep
out’ options springing up. Brian Jackman, journalist and occasional contributor to Drumbeat, sums up his visit to
one of our favourite Kenyan camps and Alice reveals how she’s planned her own family safari.
As ever, we look forward to talking to you about all things safari however early you may be in the planning stage.
Welcome to Aardvark Safaris’
Autumn 2016 Newsletter
www
. aardvarksafaris.co.ukl
P1
Richard Smith
On safari in the
land of the
sleeping warrior
P7-8
Been there and
done that? Try this
P5-6
Highlights:
How to plan a
family safari
P9-10
RICHARD SMITH
I saw the construction work at
Matetsi
which is being rebuilt
many years after it was last open. It’s in a fabulous position on
the edge of the Zambezi, upstream from Victoria Falls. It’ll be
run by an old mate of mine, Peter Dunning, who is a fantastic
camp manager, so I have no doubt it will be brilliant.
Tuli Lodge
is a beautiful addition to the Tuli Reserve in the
far eastern corner of Botswana. With views over the river,
from a hide and up high on some rocks, I can see many people
simply parking themselves on one of the viewing spots on the
edge of the property and just watching the wildlife. A lovely
relaxed way to game view.
Marataba
in South Africa’s Limpopo region, was last but
definitely not least. The area is really very beautiful and the
service here is among the best I’ve ever experienced on safari.
It’s somewhere I’m very excited about, particularly the lovely
Trails Camp, close by, which specialises in walking safaris.
Richard
goes fact
finding
Having visited Africa over 30 times, Richard is a
prime example of someone bitten by the Africa bug.
He’s seen most of the camps we sell but, well-
travelled as he is, each trip reveals new gems and
unexpected surprises. Here are the highlights from
this visit.
Zambezi Expeditions
is an excellent semi-
permanent tented camp set up on the floodplains of
the Zambezi River in Mana Pools National Park. It’s
simpler than many permanent camps, but with all the
facilities you’d need, and is in a superb wildlife area.
When you set out for a walk from
Camp Hwange
it’s generally with a particular purpose in mind. In
our case it was to stalk a lion. We got to within about
15 metres of him before he heard us, jumped up and
ran – in the other direction fortunately!
Marataba Safari Lodge
We try and cover a lot of
ground on our exploratory trips
and Richard’s latest trip is no
exception – a whistle-stop,
eight day, 16-camp tour
through Botswana, Zimbabwe
and South Africa.