Countries Visited: South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Swaziland
During this tour, you travel through the diverse landscapes of South Africa, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. We first make our way from Pretoria to one of the smallest but fascinating game reserves, Pilanesberg National Park, situated in an ecologically rich zone. Then continue our trip up north, crossing savanna, the world’s largest saltpans, swamps, and the Kalahari Desert. We will paddle through the majestic Okavango Delta in a local canoe, a ‘mokoro’. We will be welcomed into the villages of native Bushmen, make game drives through several National Parks in search for wildlife, follow the course of the mighty Zambezi river to visit the moist area surrounding the Victoria Falls, see the rock art at Motopos, and end the tour with a beautiful hike to the waterfalls in Morning Sun Reserve.(if you choose the extention your tour will spend an extra 2 days in the famous Kruger National park and then the tour continues to Swaziland for 2 days of hiking, biking and horse riding at Mlilwane Game Reserve)
Tour Code: SABOZI
Tour Price: € 2195,-
Overnight Quad bike Meerkat Tour: € 205,-
Kruger Extention Price: € 500,-
Tour price includes: (depending on Covid 19 regulations)
Tour price excludes: Visas, flight ticket, 1 dinner in Victoria Falls, additional spending money, Optional Activities, sleeping bag & pillow & Entry for Victoria Falls.
Per person price is based on a minimum of 6 students!
Please make sure that you are at Twana Lodge 1 day before departure date!
Looking for an adventure coming year?
Would you like to do something completely different?
And have you always wanted to explore the exciting nature and wildlife of Southern Africa?
Utrecht
Last year the Safari course has become a new ‘Biologie in het Werkveld’ course (2.5 ECTS): (http://biologieinhetwerkveld.
Wageningen
The trips for Wageningen and other students remain a Capita Selecta Course (3 ECTS).
You can also look for more info contact us via studentsafaris@gmail.com, and/or add me as a friend on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/africastudenttours/.
Hope to see you soon :)!
Depart: Pretoria
End: Pretoria
Day 1: Pilanesberg National Park
Day 2: K’ang (Botswana)
Day 3: Ghanzi (Bushman Walk)
Day 4: Maun
Day 5: Okavango Delta (Mokoro Overnight Trip)
Day 6: Maun
Day 7: Planet Baobab (optional Overnight Quadbike Meerkat Tour)
Day 8: Elephant Sands
Day 9: Kasane
Day 10: Kasane (Game drive & Boat cruise)
Day 11: Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe)
Day 12: Victoria Falls
Day 13: Hwange National Park
Day 14: Hwange National Park (Full day game drive)
Day 15: Motopos National Park
Day 16: Motopos National Park (Rhino trekking and Stone age rock art)
Day 17: Tshipise Forever Resort (South Africa)
Day 18: Tshipise Forever Resort
Day 19: Kruger National Park (Twana Lodge if extention is not booked)
Day 20: Kruger National Park (Full day game drive)
Day 21: Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary (Swaziland)
Day 22: Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary (Roan Antilope breeding project)
Day 23: Pretoria (South Africa)
| Day 1: |
Pilanesberg Today we leave to one of the smaller game parks in South Africa for some game viewing |
| Day 2: | K’ang After crossing the border and Limpopo river between South Africa and Botswana we stay our first night in the Kalahari Desert. The Kalahari Desert is a large semi-arid sandy savanna in Southern Africa extending for 900,000 square kilometres, covering much of Botswana, parts of Namibia and regions of South Africa. |
| Day 3: | Ghanzi Here we go swimming in the quarry and take a walk with the Bushman who will teach you about trekking and the wildlife of the Kalahari Desert. |
| Day 4: | Maun Afternoon shopping and chilling by the pool |
| Day 5: | Okavango Delta Mokorro trip into the Okovango Delta - we spend the afternoon exploring the Island’s beauty and wildlife on a guided afternoon walk. The mokoro, is a traditional canoe-like vessel commonly used in the Okavango Delta as a popular mode of transport, and now utilised for game viewing safaris. The makoro has become the iconic symbol of the Delta and is a popular way for visitors to explore the Okavango while on safari.
|
| Day 6: | Maun After the Mokorro trip back from the primitiveness of the Delta, you can do a scenic flight over the Delta to see its beauty from above. (see activity page for optional activities and rates) |
| Day 7: |
Salt Pans We head east to Planet Baobab camp, where you can swim, relax or take photos of one of the biggest Baobab trees in Botswana. For those who have chosen to do the Ntwetwe Pan Overnight Quadbike Meerkat Safari – we depart from Planet Baobab into the Salt pans with Quadbikes stopping to spend some time with a Meerkat family to observe a day in their lives. Afterwards we head further into the salt pans where we spend the night sleeping under the stars in "bedrolls". (see activity page for optional activities and rates) |
| Day 8: | Elephant Sands Watch the Elephants up close while enjoying a cold beverage from the swimming pool. |
| Day 9: | Kasane The gateway to Chobe National Park – we spend the afternoon chilling by the pool |
| Day 10: | Kasane Morning game drive in the Chobe National Park and afternoon boat cruise on the Chobe River |
| Day 11: | Victoria Falls After crossing the border between Botswana and Zimbabwe, we spend the afternoon relaxing in Victoria Falls |
| Day 12: | Victoria Falls Free day to enjoy the Falls or various activities like, white water rafting, bungi jumping, canoeing, croc farm tour, gorge swing & high wire, Helicopter scenic flights, Horse riding, Ultralight Flights, Zambezi River Tour (see activity page for optional activities and rates) |
| Day 13: | Hwange National Park We stop off at the Painted Dog conservation centre where you can learn more about these rare and special dogs - this activity is free, but you are welcome to leave a donation that goes towards the conservation of these endangered species! |
| Day 14: | Hwange national Park Full day game drive in the park |
| Day 15: | Motopos National Park After a quick stop in Buluwayo for shopping, we spend the afternoon enjoying the beauty of the Motopos balancing rocks and various rock paintings around the camp. In Matobo Hills you can see the Rock Hyrax, hyraxes are preyed on by leopards which is why the area of Motopos has one of the highest concentrations of leopard in Africa. |
| Day 16: | Motopos national Park You get a transfer to Motopos National Park from our accommodation and do a morning Rhino trekking walk where you can see the rhino's up close on foot! The park has significant populations of black eagles and both black and white rhinos. |
| Day 17: | Tshipise After crossing the border back into South Africa, we head to the camp where we send the next 2 nights exploring the area and swiming in the hot pools. |
| Day 18: | Tshipise Tshipise, A Forever Resort, is a lush Bushveld resort blessed with a year-round sunny climate and hot Mineral springs, ideal for Travellers en-route to and from Zimbabwe to South Africa. |
| Day 19: | Kruger National Park We head off to Kruger National Park for the next 2 nights, where we sleep in the park in tents, listening to the sounds of the wild animals! |
| Day 20: | Kruger National Park Spend the day game driving looking for animals, such as Elephant, Lion, Buffalo, Rhinos and Leopard. Don't just focus on the Big 5, but also see the beauty in the small things. |
| Day 21: | Swaziland We cross the border into Swaziland to Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary |
| Day 22: | Swaziland We spend the day hiking, horse riding, mountain biking or relaxing at the pool. |
| Day 23: |
Twana Lodge We head back home to Twana Lodge for our last evening together. |
| Day 24: |
Flight Home Your airport transfer will take you back to the airport for your flight home. |
This tour is an accredited Field Course (2.5ECTS - Biology in the field - Utrecht) for university students that provides field experience with conservation issues, ecology, wildlife and plants in Southern Africa, while focusing on the importance of wildlife conservation and understanding actual conflicts concerning protection of wildlife species and their habitats.
The course will provide a deeper understanding of the structure and functioning of animal communities, population control, translocations, wildlife diseases and animal behaviour. From experts in the field, students will learn more about wildlife conservation, doing ecological research, and the management of national parks during visits of protected areas, research institutes and other field excursions. To facilitate an understanding of conservation on Southern Africa, students will prepare presentations that will be giving on site.
These presentation will mainly focus on biodiversity, conservation, human-wildlife conflicts and ecology in certain areas and habitats. Students will gain knowledge about wildlife, habitats, flora and the applicability of all of these to ecological studies. The course will provide a unique opportunity for students to learn new skills and concepts. This course enables students to orient themselves on a potential internship, thesis or research project and will trigger them to evaluate their ambitions and further steps in their academic career.
Learning goals:
- Student presentations
- Final discussion on assignment: GPS sightings/monitoring rare species/body condition scores
- Certificate for overall participation and motivation
- Final report per group
Qualification of guides General guides:
The guides that accompany the students during the complete trip have nearly 20 years of experience with overland travels in Southern Africa. Therefore, they have a varied general knowledge on the nature, culture and the geological background and history of all the locations. The guides also stimulates the students in reflecting on their career aspirations, give them some life experiences and flexibility when working in developing countries. Local guides Qualified, certified local guides and game rangers are arranged at all specific sites. They offer essential knowledge of the park, nature and animals present.
Learning outcomes:
After successful completion of this course students are expected to be able to:
- Critically discuss and evaluate the conservation and management of wildlife/ problems in wildlife management
- Understand species distribution and adaptation to specific climate circumstances and resource availability
- Understand the major physiological and behavioural adaptations of animals in different habitatsa and ecological systems
- Describe different strategies aimed at prioritizing areas for conservation and effective management - Discuss human-wildlife issues on an academic level
- Student can set up a small experiment and analyse and discuss collected data
- Explain some of the techniques relevant for the management of wildlife populations
- Present the results in an understandably way for both managers and policy makers.
Activities:
The course consists of one week preparation and three weeks in the field in which students from different disciplines will be exposed to a large diversity of mammals, birds, invertebrates, fish, reptiles and amphibians.
- Preparing for field trip and oral presentation
- Presentation of results in an oral presentation (field practical)
- Plenary discussions;
- Writing a final report based on the acquired knowledge
All activities are mandatory.
Examination:
- Oral presentation
- Final group report
- Overall motivation and participation
Optional activities for the Sabozi tour: Prices are subject to change at any time without notice. We do our best to keep prices current and provide accurate information.
Maun optional activities:
Flight over the Okavango Delta -
Planet Baobab optional activities:
Ntwetwe Overnight Quadbike Meerkat Tour - €205,- (minimum of 4 people)
Victoria Falls activities:
White Water Rafting - $
Bungi Jumping - $,-
Canoeing - $,- plus $,- park fee
Croc Sanctuary Tour - $ ,-
Zipline, Flying Fox & Gorge Swing Combo - $ ,-
Helicopter Flights - $ ,- plus $,- park fee
Horse Riding - $,- plus $,- park fee
Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner Zambezi River Cruise - $ ,- plus $,- park fee
Victoria Falls visit - $,-
Kruger National Park optional activities:
Night Drive - R,-