Africa is, as Africans love to say, not a place for sissies. Exotic and unpredictable, this is no bland, homogenous, one-size-fits-all continent. It is a brave, ballsy world with plenty of paradoxes. We asked a panel of experts – the well-travelled, the well-versed, the well-heeled – for their 50 Wildest African Experiences...
Wildest Festivals
AfrikaBurn, SA
Not a hell of a lot survives out in the Tankwa Karoo. there’s a tyre-punishing road leading to it, and then miles and miles of beautiful desolation. Then, every April, along come the Burners – with their Bedouin tents, contraptions that swing gigantic balls of fire through the air, and everything they need to endure.
Their mission? to party like tomorrow will never come and create a community free of commerce, but high on imagination. It’s a zany vision of Utopia.
25-30 April 2012, afrikaburn.com
Lake of Stars, Malawi
This magical three-day party on the palm-fringed shore of lake Malawi features more than 70 acts from around the world.
lakeofstars.org
Oppikoppi, SA
You know you’re in for a rowdy gathering when online advice for this annual rock music event includes: 'we don’t recommend sleep or rest ... write on your wrist beforehand which band you want to see and when. people are then able to assist if required.'
9-11 August, oppikoppi.co.za
Festival au Desert, Mali
Every year in January world musicians – from Ali Farke Toure to Manu Chao – gather two hours north of Timbuktu to play in the sand, amidst nomadic tuaregs and a growing international crowd.
festival-au-desert.org
Gabao Hip Hop Festival, Gabon
Used even in presidential election campaigns, hip hop is big in Gabon – which is why the country’s two biggest cities, Libreville and Port-Gentil, are home to the largest hip hop festival on the continent. 5-8 July, thisisafrica.me
Wildest Places To Stay
Chole Mjini, Tanzania
It’s just a tiny speck in the Indian Ocean, near Mafia, the least-visited archipelago off the Tanzanian coast. Very Robinson Crusoe: you get there by dhow, sleep in open-sided treehouses, dive in some of the world’s richest coral reefs, feast on fresh fish, and fall asleep to the lullaby of the marine reserve waters trickling through mangrove roots. The lodge comprises just nine treehouses; no electricity makes for night skies as incredible as the surrounding sea.
cholemjini.com
Oddballs, Botswana
There is no budget way to see the Okavango delta, that great oasis in the harsh and beautiful Kalahari Desert, but one of the best-value camps – one that still connects you to the wild untamed heart of this strange jungle – is Oddballs' Palm Island luxury lodge. It’s a small, remote riverside habitué tucked beneath the shade of aged jackal-berry and sausage trees, away from the buzz of motorboats and jam-packed, zebra-striped safari vehicles.
oddballscamp.com
Prana Lodge, SA
The legendary Wild Coast’s only high-end hideaway combines barefoot beachcombing on a 21km pristine beach with pampering luxuries like a spa menu, butler-style service and total privacy. If the price seems too steep, there’s always Mbotyi River lodge, another Wild Coast gem, though relative to Prana, not as polished.
pranalodge.co.za; mbotyi.co.za
Little Kulala, Namibia
This is a country that has arguably the continent’s most awe-inspiring landscapes. As the sun rises, soft and exquisite sunrise palettes transform into dramatic gashes of light and shadow, then segue into mesmerising and surreal reds, pinks and oranges as the day ends. The night skies are equally magical.
Wilderness safaris’ little Kulala, set in Sossusvlei in the Namib desert, itself part of the spectacular Namib Naukluft National Park, is a gorgeous vantage point from which to watch the show.
wilderness-safaris.com
Punda Maria, SA
It’s a long, hot drive to get to Punda Maria, the most remote camp in the Kruger National Park, but it’s the ultimate destination for bird and real bush lovers. Built in the 1930s, the small thatched and whitewashed camp, surrounded by lush alluvial plains, retains a sense of what it must have been like to visit Kruger half a century ago, though it now also has seven fully equipped safari tents (worth booking) and a much-needed pool.
sanparks.co.za
Zakouma, Chad
Moving south from the thirstlands of the Sahara, the scene transforms into the bare stubble and gravel plains of the Sahel, where nomads herd goats and camels between distant wells across Chad. Ever so slowly on the two-day drive from capital city N’djamena, arid acacia savanna emerges between massive pillars of granite that look like the devil has poked fractured fingers up through the earth’s crust.
Approaching the south-east corner of the country, you finally come upon one of Africa’s greatest water wonderlands, the Zakouma National Park. Winding through the landscape in agitated coils, the Chari river spills its high banks during the rainy season, engulfing most of the 3000km2 park in a thin sheet of water.
The park is packed with game, but it is the water birds that are the superstars: herons, ibises, egrets, storks, cranes, pelicans and many others, teeming in their thousands. Best of all is the paucity of humans. There is one small rest camp in Zakouma, Tinga, with simple but adequate bungalows. In the end, though, the most amazing thing about Zakouma is simply that it is there at all.
zakouma.com
Africa is, as Africans love to say, is not a place for sissies.
Exotic and unpredictable, this is no bland, homogenous, one-size-fits-all continent. It is a brave, ballsy world with plenty of paradoxes. Highlife SA, the in-flight magazine of BA/Comair, asked a panel of experts – the well-travelled, the well-versed, the well-heeled – for some of their Wildest African Experiences...
Wildest Festivals
AfrikaBurn, SA: Not a hell of a lot survives out in the Tankwa Karoo. there’s a tyre-punishing road leading to it, and then miles and miles of beautiful desolation. Then, every April, along come the Burners – with their Bedouin tents, contraptions that swing gigantic balls of fire through the air, and everything they need to endure.
Their mission? To party like tomorrow will never come and create a community free of commerce, but high on imagination. It’s a zany vision of Utopia. 25-30 April 2012, afrikaburn.com
Lake of Stars, Malawi: This magical three-day party on the palm-fringed shore of lake Malawi features more than 70 acts from around the world. lakeofstars.org
Oppikoppi, SA: You know you’re in for a rowdy gathering when online advice for this annual rock music event includes: 'we don’t recommend sleep or rest ... write on your wrist beforehand which band you want to see and when. people are then able to assist if required.' 9-11 August, oppikoppi.co.za
Festival au Desert, Mali: Every year in January world musicians – from Ali Farke Toure to Manu Chao – gather two hours north of Timbuktu to play in the sand, amidst nomadic tuaregs and a growing international crowd. festival-au-desert.org
Gabao Hip Hop Festival, Gabon: Used even in presidential election campaigns, hip hop is big in Gabon – which is why the country’s two biggest cities, Libreville and Port-Gentil, are home to the largest hip hop festival on the continent. 5-8 July, thisisafrica.me
Wildest Places To Stay
Chole Mjini, Tanzania: It’s just a tiny speck in the Indian Ocean, near Mafia, the least-visited archipelago off the Tanzanian coast. Very Robinson Crusoe: you get there by dhow, sleep in open-sided treehouses, dive in some of the world’s richest coral reefs, feast on fresh fish, and fall asleep to the lullaby of the marine reserve waters trickling through mangrove roots. The lodge comprises just nine treehouses; no electricity makes for night skies as incredible as the surrounding sea. cholemjini.com
Oddballs, Botswana: There is no budget way to see the Okavango delta, that great oasis in the harsh and beautiful Kalahari Desert, but one of the best-value camps – one that still connects you to the wild untamed heart of this strange jungle – is Oddballs' Palm Island luxury lodge. It’s a small, remote riverside habitué tucked beneath the shade of aged jackal-berry and sausage trees, away from the buzz of motorboats and jam-packed, zebra-striped safari vehicles. oddballscamp.com
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