Africa is a beautiful land with diverse landscapes and a variety of flora and fauna. Africa is the number one continent for adventurous experiences offering the best safari destinations on Earth. These safari destinations vary from savannah safaris to the highland mountains for trekking adventures. However, the savannah safaris have a lot to offer from the wildlife such as antelopes, hyenas, giraffes, topis, zebras, hippos, crocodiles, and the African Big Five.
Africa Big Five safaris involve scanning the savannah grassland plains for an opportunity to spot the Big Five animals and other savannah animals but with emphasis on the Big Five. African big five animals include lions, leopards, buffaloes, elephants, and rhinos. These animals earned the name Big Five because they were very difficult to kill by trophy hunters. Trophy hunting was a form of sport where participants would head to the savannah plains a hunt game for the most kills. The big five animals presented a great challenge to be killed thus earning them the name. Africa’s big five safaris will take you on an exploration adventure where you will come up close to the big five out in the savannah in their natural habitats.
Where to do Africa’s big five safaris?
The African big five are very hard to spot all at once and if so that would be a lucky call. This is because some of the big five animals like lions and leopards are usually active at different times of the day and they hide a lot, unlike the rest. However, among the big five animals, the rhino is considered endangered because it is found in a few places in the whole world. There are several places and countries in Africa to have big five safaris. These include some of the following.
Ngorongoro Conservation Area
The Ngorongoro crater is located in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania. This conservation area was established in 1959 to cater to both the semi-nomadic Masai pastoralists and wildlife. The Ngorongoro crater is the only place on earth where wildlife co-exists with humans in harmony. This conservation area is approximately 8,292 square kilometers in land mass. It harbors about 25,000 animals with unique features like the Olduvai Gorge where the skull of the first humans to inhabit earth was found. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area borders Serengeti National Park and also Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve. A game drive in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area will expose you to the big five and other savannah animals like zebras, wildebeests, waterbucks, antelopes, hyenas, and topis among others.
Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is located in South Africa and the park is famous for its large population of leopards and white rhinos. The park is vast accommodating a variety of wildlife from the big five to other game animals including antelopes, hippos, crocodiles, zebras, and hyenas to mention but a few. With over 19,000 square kilometers of total land mass, Kruger National Park has different ecosystems such as open savannah plains to valleys of lakes and rivers that harbor a variety of flora and fauna species. Kruger National Park is one of the best destinations in the world for Africa’s big five safaris.
Okavango Delta
The Okavango Delta is located in Botswana and is a perfect place for Africa’s Big Five safaris hosting a variety of wildlife including the Big Five. The delta is named after the Okavango River which is the main source of water in the delta. The delta is featured with lush vegetation which is a grazing ground for the many wildlife animals in the delta. The Okavango River is a seasonal water body that is harshly evaporated by the merciless scorching hot sun of the dry season. The Okavango Delta boasts of having many wildlife species including the big five, hippo, lechwe, topi, giraffe, crocodiles, cheetah, hyena, kudu, antelope, zebra, warthog, baboon, and the African wild dog. The delta also harbors over 500 bird species. The Okavango Delta is among the best destinations for Africa’s big five safaris.
Masai Mara National Reserve
The Masai Mara National Reserve is located in Kenya in East Africa. It stretches for over 1,510 square kilometers with open vast savannah plains. It was established in 1961 to protect the natural habitat of the variety of animals that had made the reserve their natural haven. The Masai Mara National Reserve is one of the very few places to do Africa’s big five safaris. The reserve hosts a variety of intriguing wildlife such as lions, leopards, buffaloes, elephants, rhinos the big five, and also zebras, hippos, crocodiles, wildebeests, antelopes, and hyenas among others. These can be spotted on a game on the open lush savannah grasslands of the reserve.
Chobe National Park
Chobe National Park is located in the Chobe region of Botswana in the northeastern corner. The park has an area mass of about 11,700 square kilometers of open grassland savannah and woodland. The national park is known for harboring a massive population of lions and elephants. The animals are evenly distributed across the park making it easy for adventure enthusiasts to spot them while on a game drive. The Chobe National Park offers the best of the African Big Five safaris by taking the visitors up close on a game-viewing adventure in the comfort of their vehicle. Other than the big five, tourists will also spot other animals including hyenas, cheetahs, zebras, antelopes, and giraffes among others.
What is the best time for the African Big Five safaris?
Africa is an open continent for everyone to visit for Africa’s big safaris. However, the best time to visit Africa for a Big Five safari adventure is during the dry season. This is during June to September and December to February. During these months, there is little or no rainfall thus making navigation across the trails in the parks very easy. The wildlife species in the parks during this dry season are easy to predict where they could be as they tend to concentrate on waterbodies.
