October 8th 2021 |
Wildlife Safaris, Countries, Experiences, Zimbabwe | by
Francis Naumann
Short break
Access to Victoria Falls is terrific nowadays, and carriers such as Ethiopian and Kenya Airways make it easy to get there well within 24 hours of leaving home. With the Falls themselves and fabulous wildlife viewing on offer within easy reach of the international airport, it’s a great destination for a short break or a longer holiday. If you don’t have long, spend three or four nights at Victoria Falls in Edwardian luxury at the Victoria Falls Hotel, and enjoy the beautiful grounds and buildings, incredible scenery and the Falls themselves, maybe a game of golf, or a river cruise. Nearby, for anyone in search of some wildlife as well as comfort, Victoria Falls River Lodge or Matetsi Victoria Falls offer peace and quiet, excellent accommodation and food, and a variety of activities including boat cruises, fishing, and wildlife drives on open vehicles.
Enjoying the lovely river-front setting at Victoria Falls River Lodge
One week
Combine the spectacle of Victoria Falls with first class wildlife viewing in the massive Hwange National Park; combine three nights at Victoria Falls Safari Lodge and four nights at the luxurious and beautifully located Somalisa Camp for a fantastic holiday with quick and easy travel between each.
Excellent wildlife viewing at Somalisa Camp
Two weeks or longer
Zimbabwe is blessed with breath-taking wilderness and scenery, and superb wildlife too. As well as Victoria Falls being a great place to start or finish a holiday, visit Camp Hwange for superb wildlife viewing and guiding, Bumi Hills in Matusadona for the scenery and varied activities, and Goliath Camp in Mana Pools for its beautiful setting, wonderful wildlife and activities such as walking safaris and canoeing. It’s the perfect mix of adventure, scenery and wildlife for an unforgettable safari holiday.
Magical scenery close to Bumi Hills
What next?
We would be delighted to help you plan a dream safari in Zimbabwe. Our team of experts has travelled widely throughout Africa and the Indian Ocean and can offer expert advice on every type of safari from family and beach holidays to riding and primate safaris. Do get in touch – chatting to people by phone or email is what we do best. We listen, we explain, we answer all sorts of questions even those you didn’t know to ask, and finally we make suggestions. If this is your first time to Africa or your twenty first, we have a team standing by to help make the planning easy and the journey the best ever. Please get in touch whatever stage you’re at.
Francis grew up outdoors, spending far more time on his parents’ farm than he ever did at school. As well as being engrossed in the books of Wilbur Smith from an early age, a growing obsession with Africa was given a boost on a family holiday in Kenya when he was just 10.
Francis grew up outdoors, spending far more time on his parents’ farm than he did at school. As well as being engrossed in the books of Wilbur Smith from an early age, a growing obsession with Africa was given a major boost on a family holiday in Kenya when he was just 10.
Having attended agricultural college, he spent 18 months exploring outback Australia, mostly working on massive cattle stations many miles from a town of any size, and learned to love being barefoot in the bush. Having successfully dodged wild cattle and numerous snakes, he returned to the UK to farm in Wiltshire, which he did until 1995 when the call of the wild overtook him once more and he headed for Africa.
For nearly six years Francis travelled the length and breadth of the continent, guiding groups of up to 20 clients on overland safaris, in 22 countries from Morocco to Cameroon, and Kenya to Namibia. He became an expert guide in wildlife, culture, geography and general African knowledge during this time, and since he had a vehicle under his command he was able to explore new and unknown places on most trips.
He then went home again, got married, and made the mistake of running a post office and shop for seven years, before joining Aardvark Safaris in 2008.
Away from work, Francis loves his daughter, and is a keen tennis and cricket player as well as enjoying cycling. He also likes food, wine and beer, and occasionally mows the lawn. Happiest when barefoot in the bush, Francis is passionate about wildlife, conservation and sustainable travel, is fascinated by other cultures, and the benefits that well planned travel can deliver for less fortunate communities in developing countries. He has superb wildlife knowledge and is also a good person to talk to if you are interested in the cultural side of Africa.
Favourite African experience
It’s really hard to name just one, but these are among many; meeting Slot (an elephant) in Zimbabwe’s Mana Pools National Park; seeing and hearing Dogon dancers on the Bandiagara escarpment in Mali; being seriously close to chimps in Mahale Mountains National Park in Tanzania; canoeing the length of the lower Zambezi, camping on islands in the river; the sight of 250 salt laden camels with their Tuareg herders crossing the Sahara to Timbuctoo in Mali; Samburu people watering their stock at Sarara’s Singing Wells.
Favourite animal
The elephant, for its majestic size, complex family and social structures, and its intelligence and longevity. I have spent hours sitting watching them.
My favourite four camps
Goliath Safaris in Mana Pools for the most intimate wildlife encounters.
Sarara Camp in remote northern Kenya for its stunning setting and the Singing Wells.
Chada Katavi in western Tanzania for its remoteness, beauty, and the feeling of being truly wild.
[caption id="attachment_40572" align="alignnone" width="600"] Jack's Camp in the stunning, other-worldy landscape of the Makgadikgadi Pans in Botswana.[/caption]
In Zimbabwe I’ve ridden with Hwange Horse Safaris at Bomani, and at Victoria Falls, Kwekwe and Chimanimani (Eastern Highlands). I’ve also stayed with African Horseback Safaris in Botswana.
One of the best experiences was riding from Macatoo (African Horse Safaris’ camp) to the airstrip on the morning we left instead of driving there. It was a fast 3 hour ride and we saw lions on the way.
On arranging holidays
I like to take time to get to know about my clients, to learn what really matters to them, and to provide holidays which suit them perfectly. I work extensively with families, and enjoy coming up with exciting and varied holidays which mix adventure and wilderness with great wildlife and masses of fun in the bush. I enjoy any opportunity to produce an unusual, mixed itinerary, perhaps taking people out of their usual comfort zones and into remote, uncharted territory, even if just for a few days, and also offering the chance to spend time with some of the continent’s fabulous people.
I relish any chance to talk about my favourite places and to enthuse my audience with my passion, hopefully without inducing a yawn.
Part of the joy of the work is the feedback we receive (we contact every client for it on their return), and the satisfaction and excitement engendered in our clients by the holidays we arrange. Our testimonials page makes for great reading.
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