South Africa & Eswatini

This is a great trip if you are interested in seeing wildlife. A large part of the trip is spent on safari, whether it be in the Kruger Park or St Lucia. We were lucky enough to get several leopard sightings, and numerous close encounters with elephants. We saw plenty of hippos, zebra, giraffe and antelope, and large variety of birds. The trip covered a lot of ground, so there were inevitably some long bus journeys, but it was worth it. There was also some stunning mountain scenery too in the Drakensberg and Eswatini. The accommodation was on the whole good, mainly staying in simple eco lodges, which I felt was in keeping with the nature of the trip. It could get cold in the evening, depending on what time of year you are travelling, and the lighting was never good when it got dark. The accommodation at the Kruger, I felt could have been better, particularly at the Phabeni Sleepover, where I thought the barbecue they provided was expensive for what they offered, and the takeaway breakfast not great. Overall, I hugely enjoyed the trip. Good company, good guide. It was tiring with a lot of early morning starts, but worth it. In some places I felt it was a bit rushed – barely 30 minutes at the Talana Museum, and 30 minutes at Rourke’s Drift, so it was difficult to assimilate anything much. I would have been quite happy for the trip to be a day or 2 longer, even though it would be more expensive, so it wouldn’t feel quite so rushed.