Our Top Destinations for 2021 and 2022

If you’ve had Africa’s most exclusive safari destination on your radar for a while, let now be the time to start planning. Botswana has long been one of our favourite places in Africa for private safaris. The Okavango Delta — an area larger than Wales — has just 1,000 beds, all spread across a handful of intimate properties. As bottled-up travel demand builds, so too will the desire for an escape to this great wilderness expanse.

Keeping in time with the country’s border reopening is brand new Xigera Safari Lodge, on the western edge of the wildlife-rich Moremi Game Reserve. In a unique partnership by top safari veterans Great Plains and the prestigious Red Carnation Hotel Group, Xigera promises cutting edge renewable energy tech, sustainable conservation, and the finest hospitality. Not to mention the surroundings; palm-dappled floodplains, teeming with giraffe, hippo, elephant and cats right on your doorstep.

Botswana Documentary Watch List:

• Into the Okavango, Disney+


• The Flood, Disney+

All the signs are showing that Kenya will be the most sought after African travel destination in 2021. Paving the way in Africa’s Covid response, it was one of the first countries to welcome back international visitors in August. Our partners have had ample time to set up and test their safety protocols, making your stay covid-secure and stress free. More appealing now than ever are the country’s vast, private reserves. All that to say, there’s been a surge in Kenyan travel demand, so now is definitely the time to start planning to ensure your space!

We invite you to step back in time with a curated itinerary combining a selection of the best family-run exclusive use camps and private safari houses. This is an excellent way to bring the whole family together on a Golden Age odyssey of the country’s most pristine safari areas. All eyes are on brand new Angama Safari Camp, tucked away in a wildlife-rich corner of the secluded Mara Triangle. Further north, Laikipia is home to a number of sole-use lodges, such as Lengishu and Arijiju, both of which feature superb design and outstanding safari guides. Let us entice you with a last minute Christmas surprise getaway — we have some excellent value offers at both Angama and Lengishu — get in touch right away for savings up to $740 per person, per night!

Kenya Documentary Watch List:

• Elsa the Lioness, BBC iPlayer


• Dynasties: Episode 3, BBC iPlayer


• Seven Worlds, One Planet: Episode 7, Africa, BBC iPlayer

With its low population density, Namibia has always been a private travel destination. Over the course of the pandemic, this feature has made it all the more alluring. And its desert climate is unfavourable for viruses. Not convinced? It gets better — Namibia has recently been added to the UK Travel Corridor, so you won’t have to quarantine on return home. This is a place where you can get off the grid, leaving all the concerns of 2020 behind.

Why else should you choose Namibia? Well, if you’ve completed the East African safari circuit or are looking for somewhere otherworldly, Namibia offers an Africa you probably wouldn’t expect. The ever-changing desert landscapes boggle the mind in their scale and upon closer inspection, are home to a huge variety of desert-adapted flora and fauna. There are all manner of rare and quirky wildlife wonders, including shaggy, scavenging brown hyena, secret nightly rhino meetups and congregations of mismatched species. You certainly won’t want to turn in early here either, as the starscapes are equally unmissable.

Namibia Documentary Watch List:

• Africa: Episode 1, Kalahari, BBC iPlayer


• Big Cats: Episode 1, BBC iPlayer


• Planet Earth II: Episode 4, Deserts, BBC iPlayer


• Seven Worlds, One Planet: Episode 7, Africa, BBC iPlayer

Ready for a secret? We’ve got an alternative to Bali, Tulum and other tropical hotpots. Some 300 miles off Africa’s East coast lie the Seychelles, an idyllic archipelago that includes a handful of some of the world’s most exclusive private islands. Isolation doesn’t sound so bad when it’s on glittering, palm-fringed beaches. It’s a perfect destination on its own for a beach escape, or as a relaxing end cap to a safari.

Denis Island, about a 30 minute flight north of Mahé, is an excellent example of sustainable luxury. The accommodation on the private island resort is exquisite, the scenery beautiful and the entire ethos is to live harmoniously with nature. This is a self-sustaining refuge and home to a number of endemic bird species and rare sea creatures such as green and hawksbill turtles. Here you can stay in total paradise with the lightest possible footprint.

Seychelles Documentary Watch List:

• Madagascar to the Seychelles with Simon Reeve, BBC iPlayer


• Blue Planet II: Episode 1, BBC iPlayer

While for the time being Madagascar’s main island remains closed, the small island of Nosy Be off the north coast is ready to welcome you. A white-sand wonder, this is a tropical paradise off the beaten path. If you don’t mind an extra helicopter hop though, we’d recommend Miavana on nearby Nosy Ankao. Short for ‘Madagascan Nirvana’, the name is especially apt, which you’ll come to discover as soon as you land on this intimate islet.

A chain of four islands is exclusive to the residents of the resort’s 14 villas and offers a lavish taste of tropical seclusion. You’ll wake to sea views and an array ways to fill your time including fly fishing, kayaking, snorkelling and lemur treks. Or perhaps indulge in sumptuous spa treatments. Stay seven days and enjoy exclusive savings of $5,400 per person or combine with Chinzombo in Zambia for an exhilarating 10 day safari + beach combo. Don’t leave the kids at home — they stay free!

Madagascar Documentary Watch List:

• Earth’s Tropical Islands: Episode 1, BBC iPlayer


• Zoo Quest to Madagascar, BBC iPlayer

Why pick between city and safari for your next trip when you can do both? South Africa is a great destination for groups because there really is something for everyone — they call it a world in one country for a reason. The Cape is the culinary capital, with local lunches readily available in trendy street markets, and countless fine dining options for dinner. This European flair carries on into the winelands, where you can sample some of the world’s best vintages in scenically stunning surroundings.

You also have excellent beaches, nature reserves, whale spotting and premier golf courses — all before you even consider a safari! We can charter planes to take you into huge private reserves with exclusive-use lodges, like Tswalu Kalahari or Phinda, which has seven distinct ecosystems. There’s horseback safaris in Limpopo and the wild adventure playground of Leobo. You can even join conservationists in Kwandwe to help monitor endangered wildlife. Diversity really is the spice of life!

South Africa Documentary Watch List:

• BBC Africa series, Episode 4, Cape, BBC iPlayer


• Somebody Feed Phil: Cape Town, Netflix


• My Octopus Teacher, Netflix


• Big Cats: Episodes 1 & 2, BBC iPlaye

We are always in favour of staying in private reserves around the Serengeti National Park. They offer exclusive access to nature’s biggest wildlife spectacle, the Great Migration. Grumeti, a 350,000 acre conservation area northwest of the Serengeti, is one of our favourites. The unparalleled Singita manage the five camps and lodges here, each set apart from each other and offering some of Africa’s finest guiding, hospitality and cuisine.

Recently reimagined with an impeccable sense of style, Sabora Tented Camp offers the renowned Singita service under canvas. There’s nothing quite like the romantic nostalgia of a tented safari suite, harking back to explorers of old, with the splendour of six-star amenities. Meditation decks and secluded outdoor salas give you private front row seats to the wildlife that sometimes wanders through camp. Talk to us about being one of the first to visit.

Tanzania Documentary Watch List:

• Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown Tanzania episode, Netflix


• JANE, Disney+


• Big Cats: Episode 3, BBC iPlayer


• Seven Worlds, One Planet: Episode 7, Africa, BBC iPlayer

If there’s one thing we’ve learned this year, it’s not to take our planet for granted. For many savvy travellers, the sustainability of where they go is an important factor. Rwanda has long had this at the forefront of their travel industry. For the past 15 years, the country has welcomed communities bordering national parks into conservation roles. Investment from government and wildlife tourism has led to increased opportunities for people to earn livings as rangers.

To make this possible, Rwanda welcomes visitors with a high value, low volume tourism model. Being one of very few visitors makes a trip here that much more alluring. There are just a handful of top-end lodges, like Bisate Lodge or the brand new Singita Kwitonda. Built with nature in mind, Kwitonda actively pursues reforesting and conservation initiatives. The highlight of any trip here is a trek to see mountain gorillas and the experience is now even more exclusive. Trekking groups are limited to just six visitors per gorilla family in order to protect these beautiful creatures.

Rwanda Documentary Watch List:

• Seven Worlds, One Planet: Episode 7, Africa, BBC iPlayer

If you’re anything like us, you’re probably ready to walk off this year’s time spent at home! In our mind, there’s no better place than Zambia, birthplace of the walking safari. This is a destination of off-grid luxury. There’s more than one place where you may well even have an entire national park to yourself. It’s also one of Africa’s best places to see elephant, with huge herds congregating on the banks of the mighty Zambezi. The Lower Zambezi also holds the record for being the world’s first Climate Neutral national park.

For groups, there are fabulous private safari houses, such as Chongwe River House and Luangwa House. Or we could talk to our partners about reserving an entire camp for you to ensure total privacy. In the remote Kafue National Park, you could stay at intimate Musekese Camp, before joining their guides in Liuwa Plains on an exciting mobile safari. Liuwa is home to some of the largest wildebeest and zebra herds outside of the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem, and with only one other permanent camp (the luxurious King Lewanika), you’re not likely to see any other people.

Zambia Documentary Watch List:

• Life: Episode 3 Mammals, BBC iPlayer


• Life Story: Episode 3, Home, BBC iPlayer


• Fish or Die: Episode 2 Eye of the Tigerfish, Discovery Channel


• Predators Up Close with Joel Lambert: Episodes 1 & 2, Discovery Channel