African safaris are changing. As surely as the camera has replaced the hunting rifle, the growing popularity of guided walking safaris has revolutionised traditional game viewing activities. Away from the confines of a vehicle, travellers are now venturing into big game country on foot for anything from an hour’s stroll to several days, spending starlit nights at remote lodges or tented camps.
An African walking safari is one of life’s most unforgettable adventures. Imagine birdsong-filled days spent following animal tracks, shadowing a foraging baboon troop or settling down in the shade to watch buffalo gather at a waterhole. Armed rangers and professional guides ensure your safety and comfort, and you sit down to a fire-cooked meals and slip into bed between crisp sheets every night.
Prepare yourself for a different kind of safari experience. Set in some of the best game reserves in Rwanda and Uganda, there are always plenty of animals to see on a walking safari but the emphasis is on the environment’s smaller details – a dew-dazzled spider web, shy flowers and bumbling beetles. Cultural elements come into play as well, whether greeting local herdsmen or sharing stories with your guide. Formal barriers melt away after a day or two, fireside conversations carry on deep into the night and you are left with a better insight into this alluring continent.
Find out where to go before delving into our selection of recommended walking safari tours. We have chosen the best walking experiences in the best reserves across East and Southern Africa. Adding on a few days at a safari lodge or tropical beach resort is as simple as it is rewarding – simply ask one of our Safari Experts for the best combinations.
Walking safaris augment Africa’s other great on-foot experience – trekking holidays. A more mountain-based experience, trekking through lush rainforest for gorillas and chimps has become a must-do activity in Uganda, Rwanda and the Congo, while a multi-day Mount Rwenzori trek belongs at the top any adventurer’s bucket list.
[mtabs] [mtitle]WHERE TO GO ON A WALKING SAFARI[/mtitle]East Africa Walking Safaris
With much accommodation set in the heart of National Parks, reserves and conservation areas, most lodges in East Africa offer short guided walks around camp in the company of professional guides and in-house naturalists. These include Tanzania’s Serengeti and Tarangire as well as Kenya’s Masai Mara. Many of these bush walks in Kenya and Tanzania are led by local Maasai warriors who will teach you how to make fire, find food and stay out of trouble on the East African savannah.
Longer, multi-day walking safaris in Tanzania and Kenya are also available in some of the East Africa’s wildest destinations such as Tanzania’s Selous Game Reserve and Ruaha National Park and Kenya’s Samburu National Reserve. These are not for the faint-hearted but for those who want a genuine adventure. The terrain is rugged but the reward lies in seeing what few travellers ever see: an East Africa that is still as wild as it was a century ago.
And if you want a walking safari with a difference, head for Tanzania’s Mahale Mountains or Uganda’s Kibale Forest for chimpanzee tracking safaris in magisterial rainforests, a great ape experience rivalled only by the famous gorilla treks of Uganda and Rwanda.
View all East Africa walking safaris.
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