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Introducing Africa
How do you capture the essence of Africa on paper without using up every cliché in the book? No other continent comes close to it for scale, variety and pure, raw impact. Africa offers a travel experience a thousand kilometres from the well-backpacked, air-conditioned tourist trails of Southeast Asia or the cash-cow theme parks of Australia or Europe.
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Africa’s natural history alone would make a dozen visits worthwhile – where else on earth can you fall asleep to the sound of lions roaring, or watch a million flamingos take off from the waters of a remote soda lake? Parts of Africa boast scenery so spectacular they’ll damn near blow your mind, but the essence of this incredible continent isn’t in any desert, mountain or lake. It’s the spirit of the people – pushing, shoving, sweating, dancing, singing and laughing – that infects so many visitors with a travel bug so powerful they’ll never stop coming back, sometimes against all sense or reason.
Debate with venerable merchants among the cool, narrow streets of an Arabic medina, dance to the thumping reggae beats coming from a West African market stall, or shoot the breeze with fishermen under Indian Ocean palm trees, and you’ll be struck more than anything else by the honesty, warm-heartedness and vitality of the African people.
Africa’s not always an easy place to travel in. It can be frustrating and challenging at times. Hardships and logistical disasters can happen. But don’t believe everything you see on TV: Africa’s not a hell hole full of civil war, plague, famine and violent crime. It’s a fantastic, enlightening, surprising and intriguing continent. Try it once, and we guarantee you’ll dream about coming back for the rest of your life.
Make it happen
Ready to go? These recommended tours make it easy:
South Africa:
- journey through Namibia to Cape Town
- explore South Africa’s green coast
- go from Johannesburg to Cape Town via the Kruger National Park
- take 22 Days and go from Vic Falls to Cape Town
- make a positive contribution to development by helping out at a volunteer project
Kenya:
- go on an adventure to see Kenya’s wildlife
- climb Mt Kenya
- take a Kenyan safari
- make a positive contribution working on a volunteer project
Uganda, Tanzania & Rwanda:
- catch sight of a Gorilla in Bwindi National Park
- see Mountain Gorillas and Golden Monkeys in Rwanda
- trek Uganda’s volcanoes
- climb the iconic Mt Kilimanjaro
- make a positive contribution working on a volunteer project
West Africa:
- explore the city of Timbuktu
- take in the voodoo trail of Burkina Faso
- travel through West Africa from Dakar to Douala
North Africa:
- explore Egypt
- travel the deserts, bazaars, pyramids and tombs of Egypt
- see the best of Morocco
- take in the Imperial cities of Morocco
- discover and explore Libya's historical sites
- travel through Spain, Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, and Senegal
Last updated: Oct 22, 2009
Tips & articles
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Classic Train trips
21 January 2010
Hand the porter your luggage, climb aboard and relive the golden days of railroading on these spectacular...
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Flamingo-spotting made easy
13 January 2010
The flamingo, with its sunrise plumage and dancer’s moves, is the kind of bird that travellers...
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Cities – so misunderstood (update)
12 January 2010
Wow – the original version of this article, entitled ‘Cities You Really Hate’ and published...
Africa
Our Top Picks For Africa
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1 Okavango Delta
Drift through the Okavango Delta, in a traditional mokoro (canoe), Botswana
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2 Cure Salée
Join the Wodaabé as they strut their stuff during Cure Salée, Niger
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3 Djenné’s mosque
Marvel at the largest mud-brick structure in the world, Djenné’s mosque, Mali
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4 Giza
Rustle up a stylish ride at the pyramids of Giza, Egypt
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5 Parc National des Volcans
Take some time out with the mountain gorillas of Parc National des Volcans, Rwanda
