Absolute Africa

#TGIF big smiles for the weekend ahead and we hope you have a great one. Enjoy.

Today is The United Nations’ (UN) International Day of the World's Indigenous People to promote and protect the rights of the world’s indigenous population. So a big shout out to all the wonderful Indigenous People throughout Africa today (and every day) with whom we are so lucky to work with and help raise awareness of their way of life and culture. Below are just some of these many people.....The Himber Tribe of Namibia and the Masai People of central and southern Kenya and northern Tanzania....

Feel like being whisked away to lands afar and wildlife aplenty this afternoon? Check out our tour leader, Emily's, #ViewfromtheRoad with her latest blog of her #overlanding travels through #Kenya and #Tanzania. https://bit.ly/2M6oCaz

To all our staff, friends and family in Tanzania, enjoy the Nane Nane Day celebrations today. The name “Nane Nane” means “eight eight” in Swahili and refers to the holiday’s occurrence on the eighth day of the eighth month of the year. Sometimes also called “Farmers’ Day”, it's a time when the contribution of farmers and all involved in agriculture of all kinds throughout Tanzania are appreciated. Enjoy the fairs, food and fabrics.

ON SALE NOW! Experience the best of both worlds, and all that lies in between, as you travel through #Tanzania, #Rwanda and #Uganda. After months of hard work or study, start your 17-day African journey with a stay on the pristine white beaches of #Zanzibar Island. Simply kick back and relax or create a splash with the various water sports available. Or if you want to start your wildlife spotting straight away, visit the red colobus monkeys at Jozani Forest before heading off... into the wilds of the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater for some of the best safari drives on the planet. Then it’s over to #Rwanda for some time of reflection at the Genocide Memorial in #Kigali. And what better way to finish your ultimate African adventure than trekking to see the mountain gorillas in #Uganda which also includes a hike to see the golden monkeys.
Book before 31st August 2018 and receive a 7% discount. Which means you pay £1758 instead of £1890. It’s not often that a discount is available on a trip which includes your gorilla permit, so don’t delay.
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#WOW of the week

#TGIF woohooo.....hope you have a cool weekend ahead!

ON SALE NOW!! Start packing for an amazing adventure of game drives in the world famous wildlife regions of the #MasaiMara, #Serengeti and #NgorongoroCrater. This is your perfect chance to see The Big 5! Plus remember to pack some spare clothes as you’re likely to get covered in mud from baby elephants splashing about during your visit to Sheldrick's Elephant Sanctuary. And something you can cycle in for your optional cycling safari in #HellsGate and a hippo cruise on #LakeNa...ivasha. Don’t forget your swimmers as you can choose to then relax on the palm-fringed white beaches of #ZanzibarIsland or alternately pack your boots and conquer the Roof of Africa, #Kilimanjaro, both these options are at an additional cost but easy to do following your initial 12-day trip. It’s the perfect African adventure. Book now before 31st July and receive a 5% discount! Which means you pay £1496 instead of £1575! Hurry as there’s limited seats remaining on some departures.
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#WOW the Week!!

#TGIF!! Try to keep cool this weekend!!

Are you up for creating countless special travel memories across three incredible African countries: Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya? This is your chance to trek with gorillas, witness the migration in the Masai Mara, take on the adventure capital of East Africa and have the chance to make some life long friends. Turn your African dream into a reality this year and check out our latest blog. There's a discount code waiting for you to use... https://www.absoluteafrica.com/…/always -dreamed-of-a-last-…/

#WOW the Week!!

#TGIF Hooray for the weekend!

Today, on Mandela Day, we commemorate the centenary of the birth of Nelson Mandela...
"If people can be taught to hate, they can learn to love" Nelson Mandela 1918 - 2018

ON SALE NOW!! Set off on an adventure tour that packs in game drives on the plains of the world famous #Serengeti and Kenya's #MasaiMara, journeys in 4 X 4's into the #NgorongoroCrater and #Nakuru National Park, Staying by the #WhiteNile - white water raft, kayak, bungee, quad biking and more. Volunteer in a local preschool, with time to cycle through #HellsGate and for a hippo cruise on #LakeNaivasha, and of course the highlight of the tour a guided trek to see the mountain ...gorillas.
#absoluteafrica
Book by 31st July 2018 for a 7% discount on departures from 3 Aug 18 - 10 Nov 18 inclusive...
https://www.absoluteafrica.com/East-Afric a-Encounter/EA
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#WOW the Week!!

#TGIF! Watch where you go swimming this weekend..

Planning a trip to Kenya or even dreaming of one? Why you should visit the elephants at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust…
https://www.absoluteafrica.com/…/why-vi sit-the-david-sheld…/

ON SALE NOW!! Join this short tour from #Johannesburg to #VictoriaFalls, including a cruise on the #Chobe River in this Botswanan National Park famous for its large elephant herds, and time for an additional game drive in #Chobe, staying by #VictoriaFalls with all its exciting adventure sports, and time in #Hwange National Park for game drives and a stop over at the Wild Dog Conservation Centre.
#absoluteafrica
Book by 31st July 2018 for a 5% discount off all published depart...ures...
https://www.absoluteafrica.com/Wild-Dogs- And-Victoria-F…/WDV
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Went on the Nairobi to Kigali trip over Christmas and had the most amazing time. Our Tour leader, Joe was fantastic, he was friendly, chatty and always happy to help when needed. He was great at what he did and did an amazing job of always ensuring breakfast was ready to go in the mornings. Our driver Mogu was just as fantastic, he had amazing driving skills and was also always happy to sit and chat and help out when needed. The actual tour was more than I could have wished for. I would recommend it to anyone. Thanks again to Absolute!!!

The entire trip was unbelievable! Did the 7-day trek up Kilimanjaro followed by the 73-day Absolute Safari. My expectations were blown away. I want to go back and experience everything again so bad!



I could talk for hours (like I have) about my trip and experiences, but to keep this short. I want to commend my guide and driver, Nash & Steve, for their excellent work. Because of these two hard workers our trip was a phenomenal success. They mean the world to us. I definitely want it known how lucky Absolute is to have those two. Thank you for everything!

Only did a short trip to Rwanda and Uganda to see the mountain gorillas but had the best time ever thanks to Emily! She made sure we had the greatest time and went out of her way to make sure we saw everything we wanted to see - thank you! ��

Myself and my husband recently finished the 18 day Kenya/ Tanzania Safari and had a blast!! We seen the big 5 on multiple occasions and got so close we could almost touch the animals (not literally but it felt that way). Shout out to our tour leader Emily who was full of energy 100% of the time (even when we were not). She made sure all our needs were catered too and cooked some pretty amazing meals for us. Second shout out to our driver Rob whom was an amazing driver and also socialite in the night. We definitely look to return in the future to finish off the southern end through Vic Falls and South Africa.

Kenya and Tanzani 18 days, 5 safariparcs, 1 truck and a few landcruisers.temperatures between 20 and 25 degrees (perfect) , the big 5 from very close looking right in my camera. And a lot more.

Really for me and my best friend Dirk it was an adventure we will never forget. We have had the best driver Roberto. I have seen ridiculous driving skills of local people but when Roberto was driving I never feel myself unsafe! The best cook was John, I have never eaten a pineapple � with the centre. And I have never eat meat like that. I had so must respect for John and sometimes I helped him with breakfast at 5:00 or 5:30 o'clock.

And then! Emily! our Em! how Dirk and I called her.

Emily our guide and woman I will never forget. Every single day soo full off energy, power, enthusiasm but most important, someone who really love her job and talk about her adventures with a smile and passion.

For my next trip to Africa I will contact her with travels she will make I will book the same � .



Thank You Rob, John and Emily!! We Love You!

It may sound reductive and cliched, but it's absolutely true: All of my expectations were blown away. Our tour director (Chris) and driver (Rob) were absolutely wonderful: Super helpful, informative, friendly, and just plain awesome. The tour itself (Wildlife Encounter - Reverse) was dynamic, fun, and always entertaining. We got to see everything we hoped to see and more, and learned a tremendous amount along the way. I run student international trips at my school and I'm already plotting ways to hire Chris, Rob, and the rest of the Absolute Africa team to coordinate an upcoming trip. Such an overall phenomenal experience!

I traveled with Absolute Africa in 1993 from Mombassa, Kenya to Harare, Zimbabwe. I can tell you this was one of the most fantastic and memorable experiences of my life. We had a wonderful group of people from all around the world, and all ages. The bonding with a group of like minded travelers, living like this for such a long period of time and visiting places one normally wouldn't access was incredible. We met so many welcoming and lovely people and saw so much of Africa that one might miss doing it on their own. I would highly recommend traveling with Absolute Africa.

I just returned home from the 11-day Maasai & Migration tour through Tanzania and I was so, so impressed by the quality of the tour! The pre-trip communication was informative and replies were prompt. Everything on the tour was taken care of and our tour leader, Emily ensured that my post-tour plans were arranged to ensure I got where I needed to be without a hassle. I could say so many great things about the company and tour in general but I'd rather say how awesome our tour guide, Emily was!

She was full of positive energy the ENTIRE trip, no matter how many early mornings we had. She ensured everyone's needs were met, and kept everyone's spirits high no matter the situation (long drives, early mornings, falling ill, long border crossings). She also had a knack to socialize with everyone she met...she was such a pleasure to be around!

I would recommend Absolute Africa as a tour company and definitely recommend Emily as a tour leader.

I just completed the Simba Sounds tour which started on the 20th June.



This was my second trip to Africa, first time travelling with Absolute Africa. I travelled two years ago with Acacia, but chose to go with absolute this time due to the itinerary. I am so glad I chose to travel with Absolute. I had a great time.



Nash and Steve were great at their jobs, both extremely professional.

Steve drove extremely safe, stayed on the marked roads when in game parks, was always on time and seemed to keep the truck well maintained.



Nash was amazing!! I have been on multiple tours in the past and Nash was the best tour leader I have had by far. He was extremely organised, clear when explaining the days activities, helpful and all round great at his job.



I also wanted to say how good the office was at providing clear and prompt communication prior to the tour.



Thanks for making our Africa experience so memorable and enjoyable.

I had a trip of a lifetime with Absolute Africa during the 73 day safari from Nairobi of Cape Town (Jan-Mar 2016). My girlfriend joined about a month in from Zanzibar, which made it all even sweeter.



What I loved:

# Every day you’ll do something amazing, which you could not do anywhere else but Africa. The schedule is jam-packed with highlights and even though the trip seems long, you’ll sprint from highlight to highlight, with just enough downtime.

# The itinerary has been put together carefully, with pleasant variation and using quality service providers. Along the route, you’ll stop in the best place to see hippos, the best place to walk with lions, the best place for rafting, etc.

# You’ll get to know the people on the truck, making great or even lifetime friends. Besides going through the amazing experiences together, you’ll have drinks in the evenings, play games and have conversations on the truck, and make food together. If you're going on a longer trip, you'll see some people leaving and new ones joining, bringing in fresh perspectives.

# The group leader and the driver are likely very awesome people who are fun to hang out with, keep the group spirit high, add extra commentary to the journey, and take care of any question or issues you might have.



What you should consider before signing up (especially for >30 day trips):

# It is going to be a fair bit of driving! Make sure you are comfortable with 2-4 and occasional 6-8 hour driving days, by having enough to listen, read, or watch, and of course interacting with fellow truckies! Hint on the road quality: it gets better as you travel further south.

# Make sure you come with some extra pocket money, my recommendation for the 73-day trip would be at least 3000-4000 USD cash. It would be sad if you are already in a place like Namibia, but cannot do an activity like skydiving above dunes because of the lack of funds. Also extra money gives you the option to upgrade from (a very nice) tent to a room, should you sometimes feel the need to.

# If you’re past 35, consider that you might have people in the group who still have some partying to do, and who occasionally may be drinking and be rowdier than you’d like. Make sure you are okay with that, or with joining in.

# The locations you visit, experiences you have and people you meet are amazing, but due to the busy schedule, sometimes there is a feeling of being “inside a bubble” and not getting to interact with locals enough in an unscripted way. If this is your thing, be careful as this is Africa, but grab an opportunity to go outside for a drink, or for a run, or for a stroll to explore the area (first checking that it’s safe, of course).



Overall, if nothing above scares you, you should totally go!!! You’ll have an amazing journey and an experience of a lifetime!

I did the wildlife and spice island tour. I hade a wonderful experience with the group and our awesome guide Nash. We saw the Big Five within the first 2 weeks and my time with the gorillornas was amazing!!!

I hade such a great time I wish I could have stayed longer and continued down with everyone else.

I definitely recommend people going on this tour.



We had a very diverse group group consistent of 9 different nationalities from 16-69 years of age. And everyone had a great time. There were optionals that suited everyone depending on what you like.



The food the we cooked with some help from Nash was amazing. We ate so much and sometimes when there were left overs we used that for lunch.



I plan to come back and continuing down with absolute in a few years! 😊

I did the Namibia Nomad your in June 2018 and had the most amazing time! Great staff, great people and memories to last a lifetime. Highly recommend!!

I did the 'Simba Sounds' tour last month and I can honestly say it was the most incredible trip. It was so well organised yet relaxed and so much fun. Huge thanks to our guide, Joe and driver, Dave who worked so tirelessly to ensure all went well. They were professional but friendly and so knowledgeable about the locations and wildlife. Thank you so much Joe and Dave! And such a brilliant group of people. Excellent value for money too. I would definitely use Absolute Africa again.

I did the 'African Sky' package, which basically loops from Nairobi through Tanzania (via the Maasai Mara), up from the Serengeti and Nngorongoro crater to Rwanda and Uganda for the finally with the gorillas.

When I joined up with them at Nairobi, I thought I was going to be with a totally new group... but they had already been together for a few days, and I learned that the group dynamic is fluid, as people have different packages and join from different Absolute buses.

Being new to the group I was welcomed and introduced but the wonderfully effervesant Emily (tour leader)... she blended me into the group straight away with verve and gusto. It was immediately obvious that she knew perfectly how to use her fun nature and exceptional organisation skills to knit together a very mixed group, into a well oiled and enjoyable social dynamic.

The trips and safaris we embarked on were obviously the result of years of fine tuning... I thought looking at my itinerary that it might feel rushed... but that wasn't the case. Sure, sometimes the early morning calls can be a little hard, especially after campfire beers... but, with extra padding sleep can be caught up on the bus.

I was also concerned about the food situation before I went... but the campfire food cooked by first Emily and later Peter (I swapped buses in Tanzania... as my original group headed South and I North West). Both Emily and Peter knocked the food out the park with gastronomic home runs... it was actually amongst the best (and most) food I ate during my 8 weeks total in Africa.

Peter (like Emily) was a blooming legend, he provided excellent local knowledge everywhere we went. We did have some challenging members of our group that liked to ask the same questions repeatedly, which to any normal human would be draining... but their relentless patience and humour ensured that even the most draining of group members were not draining for the rest of the group.



I can't recommend this tour enough... I had the above concerns originally about the group etc. You also have to accept the way African infrastructure is, and keep an open mind... but this tour does their up-most to ensure you have a wonderful and safe experience in all aspects. There is no way I would have been able to do all the things I did for anything like the total price I paid anywhere else. Most important tip... like everyone says; YOU HAVE TO DO THE GORILLAS, it was a breathtaking once in a lifetime opportunity that I'll never forget.



Book it.

Have just finished the 73 day Absolute Safari and cannot recommend Absolute Africa enough.

Joe was an exceptional tour guide with great local knowledge, an incredible patience, plus terrible jokes. We couldn't have asked for better.

The same can be said for our drivers Dave and Judah both transported the group throughout Africa without a hiccup.

I wouldn't hesitate to suggest this trip to any of my friends. The things we have been lucky enough to experience

truly are once in a lifetime.

Thanks Absolute.

Had a blast on the Tuskar Trails tour.

Had Joe for our tour leader who was an absolute ledgend! Always had a laugh with us and full of info of new places we were visiting.

Juda and Mugo both for our drivers kept to speed limits and drove extremely well in a range of conditions!



Our first truck "shaggy" was at full capacity for a week or so which was fine but a lot nicer after a couple of people jumped off.

Our 2nd truck "Wiley" was great it had lockable windows which were individual. Both bus's has lockers under your seats just bring a lock. There's also a safe for all belongings wanted to keep extra safe. However this was not needed we all felt safe.



We flew to Zanzibar to avoid a long drive and we were helped out by joe and Isaac when arriving in Zanzibar. This help was extremely helpful



This trip is not for the faint hearted. You may be with a loud/old group that you may not like but that's the nature of the journey. If your not into getting your hands dirty with helping cook or clean pick a different company. Those who didn't help stood out from the crowd.



We had a few vegans, veggos and gluten intolerant people and managed to eat extremely well every night catering for all of the above. Joe was extremely helpful when getting proportion sizes right for the dinners and throughout all the shopping experiences.



We travelled through December and Jan and it's been hot the whole trip. Only used my sleeping bag once or twice which was just a 0 degree bag. Otherwise slept in a liner.



Good luck to anybody looking to do the trip.

Myself and my friends Had an unforgettable time thanks to Joe and the rest of the Absolute Africa team!

Wauw… That’s the first thing I can think off the trip i have been true for the last three weeks.

It was beautifull in Kenia, tanzania and Zanzibar.



In Kenia we have been in different kind of parks like Lake Nakuru, Lake Navashia, Masaai Mara Park and off course the Masaai Mara Village (in our first FIVE days we allready saw the BIG FIVE unbelieveble..!!).

In Tanzania we have been to the Serengeti and the Ngorogorokrater.



All these parks are amazing and what a wonderfull places and of course beautifull animals, I always thought I only will see that view in a movie or from a picture from the internet.



But thanks to Emily Wicks and her crew she showed her office too us, the journey she gave us was wonderful, the view of nature was amazing. It was really into the wild!!



And last but not least we ended it up at Zanzibar with the beautiful beaches the blue oceans.

Happiness I got my divers licence a few weeks a go, so hell yeah!!! I did my first dives at zanzibar!!!



Make your first dives at one of the most beautifull places on earth is just B-E-A-utifull, unfortunallity maybe it will be gone in a copple of years.

But still see a glimp of nature's beauty is magnificent!!



Maybe I gonna help with the international project Aware, I definitly like diving and if I can help saving planet earth, I will do that!



During my safari I kept my blog up-to-date for friends and family (https://afrika-2018.blogspot .com).



Again many thanks to the organise this trip!!



Thank you Absolute Africa!



PS: There is one thing I dislike during my safari trips, in a few parks but mostly in the Masai Mara National Reserve I saw a lot of drivers getting off the road, making their own. So that their customers get their best picture of the animal. I get why they do it, just to get some extra tip, because at the end of the day it will be there salary.



One example was a lion lying on the ground in the grass. Within 5 minutes there were 20 cars around the lion with a distance within 10 meters, the lion was surrounded. That's not nature and that's not the way we wanna see the animals.

I only had a short time in Africa after I finished a program with my university, and found that the Kenyan and Tanzanian components that Absolute Africa offered were perfect for what I was looking for.

I was lucky enough to be with a small group (of 8 in total) in Kenya, andwith only small groups later in 4x4s in Tanzanian! I loved the itinerary, as much as I wished I could’ve spent much longer in every place. I especially appreciated that we stayed two nights in most places in Kenya – it gave us enough time to properly appreciate the days’ activities, and to feel more settled. There were no problems with understanding the system (tent setup, dinners, dish washing, bus safety, etc), and the processes encouraged everyone on the tour to interact, which was great. This was particularly helpful when three buses met up in Arusha, and it was difficult to meet everyone, especially as some groups had been together for weeks, and other people had only just flown in.

We had the most incredible game drives throughout my trip (5 leopards, 3 cheetahs, multiple lion cubs… the list goes on), and while a lot of what one sees on safari is based on luck, I’d like to give a big thank you to those who organised our drivers/vehicles, as they were lovely and very understanding in terms of our group wanting to stop, go, take more photos, etc.

I found all members of the Absolute Africa team to be incredibly kind and helpful; from those who answered my number of emails, to Em, my main tour guide who was extremely thorough and made me feel extremely conformable as a young woman travelling solo and with a friend at one point, to Mugo, our amazing driver, and John, our lovely chef who cooked delicious meals just for me, the annoying vegetarian.

The crew were always there to lend us a hand with setting up/packing away our tents, pointing out attractions along the long journeys, or offering advice about further travels or safety in Africa. I never once felt unsafe, even when baboons tried to take out soft drinks at Hell’s Gate National Park, or when we’d share a couple of beers at the end of a well spent day.

Thank you so so much to everyone who made my trip incredible <3

Completed the 73 day Nairobi to Cape Town tour from Jan 10-Mar 27. For me it was an incredible trip, amazing group of people, great safari experiences and wonderful landscapes throughout east and southern Africa. Firstly a mention to the guides and drivers, for me I had a great rapport with all 4 that we met. Martin and Patrick started the trip - Patrick has to be one of the most lovable characters I've ever met. Of the 40+ people who were on or joined our tour at different points, I doubt one single person could have a bad word against him. Always the friendly joker, we loved him. I also built a really good friendship with Martin on our tour, when I injured my leg in Uganda and had to go to hospital for x-rays and stitches he really looked out for me and after that we got along great! I really appreciated all his help and assistance with morning breakfasts and dinner, as well as his discussions round the campfire. After Vic Falls we departed Pad and Mart and moved onto Judah and Jo, again 2 great fellas - Judah was really enjoyable to talk to and Jo was always up for some banter. Loved the safaris, gorilla trekking, Vic falls, zanzibar, the Delta, skydive and quadbiking in Namibia - there was a ton of memorable highlights. To be honest I don't really have any complaints of my trip, but I think it's good to offer some suggestions. Firstly for some people the time in Jinja was maybe a day too long, particularly for those on tighter budgets or who weren't water enthusiasts. Similarly, the time in Antelope park was for most a day or 2 too long - again due to budgets, but also for most of us the feel was somewhat less authentic and a bit more like going to Longleat. As a result a number of us - I think maybe 8, did our own research and arranged our own trip to Great Zimbabwe Ruins for the day. It was incredible! Such a shame it isn't on the Absolute Safari itinerary, because it's not far from Gweru and that sort of excursion is missing from the trip.



All in all, absolutely loved the trip. Who knows, maybe again some time