Things to do in Africa
-
FEATURED
Cape Town To Kenya
45 days (Cape Town)
by Intrepid
Hear the roar of the mighty Victoria Falls, Glide down the Okavango Delta in a canoe, Delight your senses in spice-filled Zanzibar, Keep up with the pace of…Not LP reviewed
from USD$5,730 - All things to do
-
Liliesleaf Farm
Liliesleaf Farm, the secret headquarters of the African National Congress (ANC) during the 1960s, reopened as a museum in June 2008. It tells the story of South Africa’s liberation struggle through a series of high-tech, interactive exhibits.
reviewed
-
A
Uganda Arts & Crafts Village
Hidden away behind the National Theatre, this 'village' has a number of stalls selling handicrafts, such as caneware, woodcarvings and small trinkets from around the country, all at quite reasonable prices if you bargain.
reviewed
-
B
Anatoli
You can always rely on this atmospheric Turkish joint that’s a little piece of Istanbul in Cape Town. Make a meal out of their delicious meze (R12 to R30 a dish) both hot and cold.
reviewed
-
Maasai Wanderings
A small company offering northern Tanzania safaris and treks, including safaris for families and seniors, plus Zanzibar packages; profits are channelled into various community projects.
reviewed
-
C
Chellah
Abandoned, crumbling and overgrown, the Merenid necropolis of Chellah is one of Rabat’s most evocative sights.
reviewed
-
Duma Explorer
Northern Tanzania safaris, Kilimanjaro and Meru treks, northern Tanzania cultural tours and safari-coast combinations.
reviewed
-
D
Oasis Café
Set in a renovated 1930s building right in the centre of town, the Oasis is a good place to recover from the bustle of Luxor town, from the heat or from sightseeing. The dining rooms are cool with fans, high ceilings and old tiled floors, painted in soft colours with local artwork on the walls, and furnished with traditional-style furniture. With jazz softly playing, smoking and nonsmoking rooms, the New Yorker to read and friendly staff, this is the perfect place for lunch, to linger over a good morning latte or to spend the afternoon reading. The place is very Western, but in a nice way like your favourite cafe back home. The food is good too, with an extensive brunch…
reviewed
-
E
Abou El Sid
Cairo’s first hipster Egyptian restaurant, Abou El Sid is as popular with tourists as it is with upper-class natives looking for a taste of their roots – Omar Sharif has been known to savour the chicken with molokhiyya (stewed leaf soup), but you can also enjoy a sugar-cane-and-tequila cocktail at the big bar, or a postprandial sheesha. It’s all served amid hanging lamps, kitschy gilt ‘Louis Farouk’ furniture and fat pillows. The entrance is on the west side of the Baehler’s Mansions complex; look for the tall wooden doors. There’s another branch in Mohandiseen, on Midan Amman ( [tel] 3749 7326). Reservations are a must.
reviewed
-
Hiking
The western Usambaras around Lushoto offer some wonderful walking. Routes follow well-worn footpaths that weave among villages, cornfields and banana plantations, and range from a few hours to several days.
It's easy to hike on your own, though you'll need to master a few basic Swahili phrases and should also try to get a topographical map of the area from the Surveys & Mapping Division sales office in Dar es Salaam or carefully study the ones posted on the walls of the two tourist information centres.
Carrying a compass or GPS is a good idea. You should also either carry a tent or plan your route to go via the handful of villages where local guesthouses are available.
…
reviewed
-
F
Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens
Covering over 500 hectares of Table Mountain, overlooking False Bay and the Cape Flats, these beautiful landscaped gardens merge almost imperceptibly with the surrounding natural fynbos (fine bush) vegetation. The gardens were established by Jan van Riebeeck, who appointed a forester in 1657.
A group of shipwrecked French refugees on their way to Madagascar was employed during 1660 to plant the famous wild almond hedge as the boundary of the Dutch outpost (it’s still here). Van Riebeeck called his private farm Boschheuwel, and most likely it wasn’t until the 1700s, when the gardens were managed by JF Kirsten, that they got the name Kirstenbosch. Apart from the almond…
reviewed
Advertisement
-
Dhow Trip
Taking a Dhow Trip is almost obligatory and drifting through the mangroves is a wonderful way to experience the islands. You'll be approached by touts and would-be captains almost as soon as you arrive, but it's worth shopping around to find a captain you like and a price you're happy with. Prices vary depending on where you want to go and how long you go for. Groups of more than five aren't recommended as the boats aren't very big.
Solo travellers joining an existing group to make up numbers will often be offered a great price, on the condition that they don't tell their fellow passengers how much they paid. As this generally means the others paid the extortionate asking…
reviewed
-
Karnak
More than a temple, Karnak is an extraordinary complex of sanctuaries, kiosks, pylons and obelisks dedicated to the Theban gods and the greater glory of pharaohs. Everything is on a gigantic scale: the site covers over 2 sq km, large enough to contain about 10 cathedrals, while its main structure, the Temple of Amun, is the largest religious building ever built. This was where the god lived on earth, surrounded by the houses of his wife Mut, and their son Khonsu, two other huge temple complexes on this site. Built, added to, dismantled, restored, enlarged and decorated over nearly 1500 years, Karnak was the most important place of worship in Egypt during the New Kingdom.…
reviewed
-
G
Signal Hill & Noon Gun
Separating Sea Point from the City Bowl, Signal Hill provides magnificent views from its 350m-high summit, especially at night. Once also known as Lion's Rump, as it is attached to Lion's Head by a 'spine' of hills, it is officially part of Table Mountain National Park. To reach the summit head up Kloof Nek Rd from the city and take the first turn-off to the right at the top of the hill.
Signal Hill was the early settlement's lookout point, and it was from here that flags were hoisted when a ship was spotted, giving the citizens below time to prepare their goods for sale and dust off their tankards.
At noon, Monday to Saturday, a cannon known as the Noon Gun is fired from…
reviewed
-
Etosha National Park
The 20,000 sq km (7722 sq mi) Etosha National Park is one of the world's greatest wildlife-viewing spots. For a few days each year, this immense, flat, saline desert is converted by the rains into a shallow lagoon teeming with flamingos and white pelicans. However, it's the surrounding bush and grasslands that provide habitat for Etosha's diverse wildlife.
It may look barren, but the landscape surrounding the pan is home to 114 mammal species as well as 340 bird species, 16 reptiles and amphibians, one fish species and countless insects.
The best way to see Etosha's animals is to hire a vehicle, park near a waterhole and wait for the lions, elephants and springboks to…
reviewed
-
Simien Mountains National Park
The Simien Mountains National Park is easily accessible and excellent for trekking, with stirring views and a large variety of wildlife. The mountains are home to three of Ethiopia's larger endemic mammals: the walia ibex, the gelada baboon and the elusive Ethiopian wolf. Other mammals sometimes seen are rock hyraxes, jackals, bushbucks and klipspringers.
Endemic bird species include the commonly seen thick-billed raven, and the less common black-headed siskin, white-collared pigeon, white-billed starling, wattled ibis, spot-breasted plover, white-backed black tit and Ankober seedeater or serin. Although common, one of the most memorable sights (and sounds!) is the huge…
reviewed
-
Lalibela
The Middle-East has Petra, Ethiopia has Lalibela. Its rock-hewn churches are arguably Ethiopia's top attraction, and they elicit an instinctive awe, whether you're a religious architecture buff or not.
Perched at an altitude of 2630m (8629ft), Lalibela also remains a very isolated place, and a centre of pilgrimage. More than anywhere else in the world, you'll get the impression you've landed in a kingdom at least seven centuries behind your own.
Lalibela's 11 churches are cut straight from the bedrock, so their roofs are at ground level. All 11 churches were built within one century; some, according to legend, with the help of angels. The churches have been kept alive by…
reviewed
-
H
Valley of the Kings
Once called the Great Necropolis of Millions of Years of Pharaoh, or the Place of Truth, the Valley of the Kings has 63 magnificent royal tombs from the New Kingdom period (1550–1069 BC), all very different from each other. The West Bank had been the site of royal burials from the First Intermediate Period (2160–2025 BC) onwards. At least three 11th-dynasty rulers built their tombs near the modern village of Taref, northeast of the Valley of the Kings. The 18th-dynasty pharaohs, however, chose the isolated valley dominated by the pyramid-shaped mountain peak of Al-Qurn (The Horn). The secluded site enclosed by steep cliffs was easy to guard and, when seen from the Theban…
reviewed
-
I
Sofra
Sofra remains our favourite restaurant in Luxor. Located in a 1930s house, away from all the tourist tat, it is as Egyptian as can be, in menu and decor, and even in price. The ground floor has three private dining rooms and a salon, giving the feeling of being in someone’s home. There is also a wonderful rooftop terrace, which is also a cafe, where you can come for a drink. The house is filled with antique oriental furniture, chandeliers and traditional decorations, all simple but cosy and very tasteful. The menu is large, featuring all the traditional Egyptian dishes, such as stuffed pigeon and excellent duck, as well as a large selection of salads, dips (E£4) and…
reviewed
-
Isimila
In Isimila in the late 1950s, archaeologists unearthed one of the most significant Stone Age finds ever identified. The tools found at the site are estimated to be between 60,000 and 100,000 years old. Although the display itself is not particularly exciting, the surrounding area is intriguing, with small canyons and eroded sandstone pillars. The main pillar area is accessed via a walk down into a steep valley (about one hour round-trip), for which you’ll need a guide (small tip expected). Visits are best in the morning or late afternoon, before the sun gets too high. A small museum in which all the Stone Age finds are to be gathered is being built (entry is included in…
reviewed
-
J
Chapman’s Peak Drive
Whether you choose to drive, pedal or walk along this 5km toll road linking Hout Bay with Noordhoek, take your time as it’s one of the most spectacular stretches of coastal road in the world. Unfortunately the road is plagued by dangerous rock slides, so it often gets closed during bad weather. There are a few places to stop to admire the view and it’s certainly worth taking the road at least one way en route to Cape Point. Perched on a rock near the Hout Bay end of the drive is a bronze leopard statue. It has been sitting there since 1963 and is a reminder of the wildlife that once roamed the area’s forests (which has also largely vanished).
reviewed
Advertisement
-
Ace
ACE was opened in 2000 by a British-run charity to give free treatment for the working animals of Egyptians, particularly donkeys and horses, and it is today a great veterinary hospital and animal welfare centre seeing up to 200 animals a day. For those distressed by the state of the horses in Luxor streets, you may like to see what is done here. The centre also runs an education program receiving 80 local children a day, aiming to impart a love and care for animals. This is a great place to visit, and foreign children can spend the day at the centre to help care for the animals. Volunteers and donations are very welcome.
reviewed
-
K
Djemaa El-Fna
Grab a front-row or balcony seat at a café alongside the Djemaa, and watch the drama unfold. As the sun travels across the sky, orange-juice vendors make way for healers and henna tattoo artists, who scoot over for snake charmers, astrologers and acrobats. Around dusk, the storytellers begin their epic tales, and cooks cart in the makings of 100 restaurants specializing in barbecued everything, tasty cooked salads and steaming snails.
For the ultimate dinner theatre, look no further than the Gnaoua drummers, male belly dancers and Berber musicians surrounding the Djemaa dining action.
reviewed
-
L
Fang Fang
Chinese restaurants are surprisingly prolific in Kampala, but some are better than others. The consensus in the city is that this is the best Chinese restaurant and the sheer numbers that pack the place each night attest to the quality of the food. Located in an anonymous office block, the interior is typical of a Chinese restaurant anywhere, but there is a large outdoor terrace for breezy nights.
There's a full selection of Chinese classics, and specialities include fried crispy prawns with ginger and garlic.
reviewed
-
M
Nobi’s Arabian Horse Stables
Excellent horses can be found at Nobi’s Arabian Horse Stables, which also provides riding hats, English saddles and insurance. Nobi also has 25 camels and as many donkeys at the same price, and organises longer horse riding and camping trips into the desert or a week from Luxor to Kom Ombo along the West Bank. Call ahead to book, and he can arrange a hassle-free transfer to make sure you arrive at the right place, as often taxi drivers will try and take you to a friend’s stable instead.
reviewed
-
N
Habiba
Run by an Australian woman who loves to travel in Egypt and who wants to promote the best of Egyptian crafts, this tiny shop goes from strength to strength. It sells an ever-expanding selection of Bedouin embroidery, jewellery, leather work, wonderful Siwan scarves, cotton embroidered scarves from Sohag, the best Egyptian cotton towels (usually only for export), mirrors and brass lights – and all at fair-trade fixed prices. A world away from what is available in the nearby souq.
reviewed