Safari Planning
Plan Your African Safari
Planning a safari should begin with the traveller, not the lodge.
Where you go, when you travel, how long you stay and where you spend your budget all depend on what you want Africa to feel like.
Use these guides to understand the decisions that matter before we start designing the journey around you.
The cornerstone guide
Start here
How to Plan an African Safari: The Complete First-Timer's Guide
Start with the fundamentals: where to go, when to travel, how many safari nights you need, how to choose a lodge and which decisions actually change your experience.
Read the complete guideA decision worth understanding
Choose your destination
Where Should You Go on Your First African Safari? 8 Destinations Compared
Compare South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Mozambique and Rwanda according to the kind of safari they do best.
Compare safari destinationsA decision worth understanding
Compare the four main contenders
South Africa vs Botswana vs Tanzania vs Zambia: Which Safari Destination Is Right for You?
For travellers who have narrowed the choice down, compare versatility, wilderness, spectacle and immersion. South Africa is versatility. Botswana is wilderness. Tanzania is spectacle. Zambia is immersion.
Compare the fourA decision worth understanding
Understand the cost
How Much Does an African Safari Cost? A Realistic Guide to Planning Your Budget
Understand what safari rates actually include, why prices differ so dramatically and where spending more genuinely improves the journey.
Understand safari pricingA decision worth understanding
LGBTQ+ travel in Africa
Is Africa Safe for LGBTQ+ Travellers? What You Actually Need to Know Before You Go
Understand the difference between law, social attitudes, tourism environments and actual traveller experience across African destinations.
Read the LGBTQ+ Africa guideExplore Africa
South Africa
The continent in extraordinary concentration.
Botswana
Wild Africa, with room to disappear.
Zambia
Safari stripped back to what matters.
Mozambique
Africa’s wild edge meets the Indian Ocean.
Zimbabwe
One of Africa’s great safari countries.
Namibia
Where space becomes part of the experience.
Tanzania
Africa at its most cinematic.
Rwanda
Small in scale. Immense in impact.
These guides are written by Zannon James, African Luxury Travel Expert and founder of Mason & Wild. Explore our African journeys to see how the choices fit together.