MY BOTSWANA

Karibu

Recently I attended a number of African travel shows and conferences. They’re stimulating events, bringing together people from across tourism and conservation

Storytellers

Our writers share tales from their travels

WINDOW INTO ANOTHER WORLD

There are few religious buildings in the world with

NATURE’S WINDOW

A leopard lounges on the sturdy limb of a sausage tree

INDABA

A place to share your experiences

Flight times plus calendar of events

People often underestimate the distances between places

A safari home with the earth, people, conservation and wildlife @heart

A safari home with the earth, people, conservation

Readers’ reading

Recommendations by Hamish Howe, long-time subscriber

In search of nothing

Step away from the well-signposted tourist path, and there are plenty of treasures to be found.

MASTERS OF DARKNESS

Mike Unwin reveals his fascination with Africa’s owls, the consummate predators

A savvy traveller’s guide to the parks of Uganda

A perennial challenge for safari-goers is deciding which parks and reserves to include in their itinerary and which to forego. In Uganda the dilemma is pronounced because the country is compact but packed with a divergence of options. To help you out which may be best for you, depending on your interests, your budget and how much time you can afford, we sought the advice of longtime Ugandan traveller and guidebook writer Philip Briggs

PLAINS, GAME & AUTOMOBILES

While northern Tanzania boasts some of the continent’s most popular attractions, there is plenty of opportunity to explore lesserknown — but by no means inferior — attractions and get a real sense of what the country is all about. Phil Clisby travels from Arusha to Dar in a car, rediscovering his backpacking spirit of adventure

60 REASONS TO LINGER LONGER IN NAIROBI

Most visitors to Kenya pass through Nairobi. This is a city we have come to know pretty well over the years, and have grown to really enjoy. It has an energy that re_lects a modern, vibrant Africa. We reckon it’s worth spending a few days here, and to help you get a taste of Nairobi beyond the tourist trail, we’ve enlisted the help of a man about town:

FRESH START

While established tourist destinations around the world struggle to cope with too much tourism, some countries emerging from strife are looking to tourism to help kickstart their economies. Sierra Leone is one. So, what does this nascent country have to offer visitors, and what needs to be done to build appropriate infrastructure? It’s an exciting proposition

SCHOOL FOR LIFE

Most tourism enterprises across Africa are now actively engaged in community development and conservation work, as efforts are made to protect our natural heritage and support growing rural populations. One of the best examples of this is in north-west South Africa, where a longstanding project is now developing tourism to help fund its education and environmental work. The impact is impressive, on all fronts.

GET ON YOUR FEET

Recognising the growing desire from travellers to connect with nature and to be more active, more and more lodges are offering guided walking options, ranging from a short few hours to longer expeditions. But what is it really like to participate in a multiple-day walking safari? To ind out, we visited the South Luangwa National Park in Zambia, one of the world’s great wildlife reserves

SLOW SAFARI

All too often we’re impatient to head straight out on safari, eager not to miss any action. But rather than going looking for wildlife, perhaps we should sit tight and let it come to us? Spending time at a waterhole may reveal many more of nature’s secrets than we’ll see from a vehicle, and we might tune in to our natural environment much quicker. Doing this early in your visit will relax you into your holiday and enrich the days that follow. On a recent visit to Mana Pools National Park, Mana Meadows forewent a game drive to sit at Kanga Pan for the morning. Here’s what she saw.

IN SEARCH OF REMOTENESS

In an evermore connected and busy world, the opportunity to escape, mentally and physically, is increasingly enticing. There are few places as isolated as Kaokoland, in northwest Namibia. How does it feel to visit, and is it as empty as one might imagine?

CONSERVATION

Following a joint campaign by WILDOCEANS, WWFSA and

WHY ELEPHANTS MATTER

Across the globe, considerable resources are being invested to protect elephants and halt the ivory trade. Don Pinnock explains why this work is so important

REVIVING A CRITICAL WILDLIFE CORRIDOR

In Tanzania, community partnerships and livestock support have transformed a stronghold for wildlife.

THE L WORD

APERSONAL TALE OF ANIMAL OBSESSION

NOTHING VENTURED NOTHING GAINED

Would you journey to one of the most remote places on Earth without really knowing what to expect when you got there? Perhaps this sense of discovery is why we love to travel. It certainly explains the appeal of St Helena.

SAFARI

Ideas and advice to help you plan your trip

SAFARI UPDATE

ACCOMMODATION NEWS

The next generation

Chris Mears looks to the future leaders in tourism and conservation

FORE!

Golfing pilgrims to the spectacular St Francis Links

KATJA QUASDORF

CEO, Jenman Safaris and Hideaways

FULL IMMERSION

Botswana’s vast horizons allow the imagination space to roam. And nowhere feels more spacious than Nxai Pan, on the eastern fringe of the Kalahari. During the parched dry season, when dust devils chase across desolate salt flats, nowhere feels emptier. But with the rains come new life. The skies boil and darken, the land turns green and the empty stage is braced for the thunder of hooves. The great herds are on their way.

WHY BOTSWANA?

We all have our favourite safari destinations, but what makes this southern Africa country so special? We asked a man whose spent his life _ilming, photographing, and now _ighting to protect the country’s wildlife: Dereck Joubert

SHAPED BY WATER

Botswana’s enduring appeal is rooted in the striking landscapes that provide its endless horizons and nourish expansive wildlife populations – the unique features of the Okavango and Makgadikgadi in particular. This land has endured a simple but fascinating geological history over many million years, which has delivered to us the amazing country that we have today.

SAFARI PLANNER

Botswana’s two big drawcards are its wildlife and its space. It has a wealth of attractions, each of which pack a hefty punch, which makes it dif_icult to know which to include if you are tight on time. Here’s our guide to the country’s main attractions to help you on your way.

WILDLIFEWATCHING HIGHLIGHTS

There are many reasons wildlife-lovers will want to visit Botswana… here’s just three of them.

BEING A BUSHMAN

An insight to San culture

THE PRACTICALITIES

With so much on offer over such a vast area, it can be dif_icult to know where to begin. So we asked experienced tour operator Greg Fox to give us a basic outline of the logistical options available