Stargazing on safari

Flying far into the watery wilderness of Botswana's Okavango Delta you reach Baines' Camp. It’s one of the very best bases to explore this land where elephant, giraffe and countless birds thrive in a maze of waterways and fertile islands.

Early morning and your open vehicle creeps along in search of a leopard or a playful troop of baboons. Afternoon and your small boat or mokoro glides along shallow reed lined waterways under the nonchalant gaze of a pair of fish eagles.

After a delicious dinner you retire to your luxurious suite — one of only six, elevated on a raised deck. On that deck is a bath with bubbles and your bed, moved into the open so that you can drift off to sleep beneath a canopy of countless stars.

Namibia is one of the best places in the world for stargazing. The virtual absence of humidity and near zero light pollution reveals the true glory of the star-filled skies. Damaraland, inland from the Skeleton Coast is a place of endless fascination with desert-adapted elephant, bushman’s rock art and spectacular mountain scenery.

Tiny Huab Under Canvas is only booked exclusively, for one party at a time. It’s the ideal base for exploring Damaraland. Usually you stay in a simple, comfortable tent. But you can also have your beds moved outside into a dry river bed where the stargazing is phenomenal.

Your guide will arrange a delicious bush dinner on an open fire followed by a night sky tutorial. You will see the Milky Way as you’ve never seen it before, shooting stars, satellites and planets as they creep across the heavens. You may have accepted that there are billions of stars out there — now you know it’s true!

At the very opposite end of the accommodation spectrum is Leobo Private Villa, set on a 20,000 acre estate in South Africa’s Waterberg Mountains. The only similarity with Huab is that the villa is booked exclusively.

By day the reserve is yours to explore by quad-bike, helicopter, kayak — you can even go sky diving! The expert guides, staff and the entire resources of this amazingly equipped lodge are yours to enjoy in any way imaginable.

The villa is a masterpiece of luxurious design with elegant furnishings, heated infinity pool, even a jacuzzi on the roof. And it has its own observatory with an automated revolving dome and a 20-inch state of the art telescope.

An expert astronomer lives nearby and can lead you through the nebulae, planets and constellations, take astro-photos and guide you into the starry infinity of the Milky Way.

Laikipia is a vast network of private wildlife reserves between the foothills of the Aberdares and Mount Kenya. It is a place where for decades tribal communities have worked with safari lodges to conserve wildlife and natural resources on their communal land. Pioneering conservation work protects rhinoceros and endangered species.

Loisaba in the heart of Laikipia is a magical place for a family safari. Friendly guides take you on safari among the great herds amid glorious scenery by open vehicle, walking with camels, or even by quad-bike.

A real highlight is to spend a night at the Starbeds – raised platforms perched on a rocky kopje with views across a valley and a waterhole. Each has a bathroom, sitting area, bed and a thatched shelter. After your bush dinner, spend the evening stargazing to the sound of crickets and the calls of wildlife.

Then, awaking in the glimmer of dawn, gaze in awe as the natural world below you is unveiled, bathed in the light of another day bringing its own safari adventures.