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African Overnight Safari Tours
It was to be quite an interesting African overnight safari tour! Right from the outset my clients which were arriving on a cruise ship were forced into being late due to bad weather off the coast and this could have been a big problem had we had other clients on the same tour. Fortunately it was just this couple and we could be very flexible enabling what turned out to be a great African overnight safari tour.
We departed Durban a little later and decided to skip visiting the Cat rehabilitation center to give us more time in the game reserve of Hluhluwe Imfolozi.
The Zulu kingdom, the Zulu nation
This brief write up is my understanding of the forming of the Zulu nation into a great kingdom over the years. We have to always keep in mind that almost all that is written on the Zulu nation is from word of mouth of Oral history and this could mean that it has been twisted over the years.
The Zulu nation like any other in its early days was illiterate and it took the missionaries which came to South Africa in the 1840’s to begin with educating the Zulu people about God and Jesus as well as the other western ways.
Tala game reserve
I was collecting my clients of the Ocean Princess cruise ship which was docking in Durban for the Tala game reserve and Zulu culture tour.
As we were expecting some bad weather the ships was more than 2 hours late which meant we would need to adjust the tour slightly to maximize the time for the clients in Tala game reserve and on the Zulu culture tour.
We left Durban harbor at 11:30 and made our way straight to Tala game reserve, it was here we began our Safari part of the tour and tried in 2.5 hours to find as many of the animals as we could.
Tala game reserve being very small has a very high density of animals which made things easier for me to find all the animals the clients wishes to see.
We found Rhino, Giraffe, Zebra, Hippo, Wildebeest, Ostrich, Impala, Nyala, Warthog, Blessbok and much more…
African safari tours
African safari tours are always amazing but this African safari tour would be extra special as we would see so many amazing animals in Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve.
I had met my client in Umhlanga near Durban for their Durban day safari and we began what turned out to be a very short 2.5 hours drive to Hluhluwe game reserve. It would be the boarder between the two sections that we would enter and first head briefly into the Hluhluwe game reserve section.
It was in this section we located a massive male Warthog very early on in our African safari tour.
South African holidays – Kruger park vs Hluhluwe game reserve
South Africa has a wide range of wilderness safaris to choose from and it always boils down to what South African holiday or South African safari tours are best advertised!
I hope that this post will be able to clear up some of the many questions potential travelers to South Africa have when looking at wilderness safaris or African tours.
If you join us on your South African holiday you can expect an amazing experience from culture, culture to historical.
Hluhluwe Big 5 game reserve
Our Hluhluwe “Big 5” game reserve safari from Durban began in the city where I collected my clients. It was to be a Hluhluwe game reserve safari to remember!
Our day began at 06:30 and we made our way to the world famous Hluhluwe game reserve and the Umfolozi game reserve in the south. After covering the major history of Durban, KwaZulu Natal and South Africa we arrived at Hluhluwe game reserve and it was only 09:30. As it was a cool day I was really hoping we would find cats but as nature has it, you have to be at the right place at the right time.
Hluhluwe game reserve safari
After having a few days off from being on the road I began another Hluhluwe game reserve safari for a couple from America who were out in South Africa for a holiday.
An African safari is always the best way to see the best that Africa has to offer and Hluhluwe game reserve which is a Big 5 reserve is the best place to visit if you are in the Durban, KwaZulu Natal area.
Hluhluwe game reserve is the oldest protected reserve in Africa and home to the Big 5, the 5 most dangerous animals to hunt on foot. The Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, Elephant and Rhino. We are very fortunate to have the Hluhluwe game reserve on the door step of Durban.
Durban Safari Tour
I was blessed with a repeat client who brought a friend out from Australia to experience a Durban 3 day safari tour. We departed from Umhlanga and we were able to cover the history and new things that I hadn’t said the last time. It wasn’t long before we stopped and got some coffee and the continued on to the Cat rehabilitation center which was a real experience.
My clients loved it and after interacting with the Cheetah hands on the day was set up to be legendary!
Durban tour
Our Durban tour to Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve began in Durban where I met my clients and we made our way to the Cat rehabilitation to interact with Cheetah hands on.
Once we had experienced this amazing place we headed into Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve only 20 minutes away.
It was a hot day and the mercury crept up to 35 degrees, this of course meant game viewing was a little quiet at the start until the afternoon.
We stopped at a view point however overlooking the Hluhluwe river and spotted three different species the Buffalo, Nyala and Baboons.
Durban day safaris
Our Durban day safari began in Durban city where I met my clients and we headed off to Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve.
It was going to be a hot day and not only with the weather but with the game viewing as well. It was a bit of a Ferrari safari as I had some racing to do to get around Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve to maximize our safari time.
On route I covered some of the history of the area and the country of South Africa before we arrived at the gate just before 10 am.
Durban safari
We began our Durban safari in the city of Durban where I collected my four clients for what was to be a very successful 2 days of safari in Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve.
On route we chatted about the interesting history of the area as well as the crops and population groups. Before you knew it we were at the Cat rehabilitation centre for the 10:30 tour for interaction with Cheetah. We would also see Caracal, Serval and African wild cat.
The Cheetah was great fun and the one male was stalking Wildebeest up the fence line. Sadly for the Cheetah the Wildebeest was safe on the other side of the fence.
Durban mini Safari
We began our mini safari from Durban where I collected my 4 clients who where here for business and pleasure respectively. After covering the basic history of Durban and KwaZulu Natal we arrived at the world famous Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve by 09:30 and began with our Safari of the reserve.
We entered in the North east and tried our best to look for Elephant in the cool weather. I knew it would be difficult but had high hopes after getting them a couple days before.
Durban day tour
We began our Durban day tour to Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve in Durban city where I collected my clients. It would be a day to remember with great sightings.
I covered the usual history of Durban and KwaZulu Natal on route to the Hluhluwe Imfolozi big 5 game reserve and answered any questions my clients had.
We arrived before 10 am and had immediate luck as we spotted Zebra and Giraffe together!
Hluhluwe Safari 2015
I met my clients in Durban for our 3 day safari to the Big 5 Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve and we began our safari. I covered some of the major history of South Africa, KwaZulu Natal and Durban before we stopped for coffee and to stretch our legs.
Once we were done we made our way to the Cat rehabilitation center where we interacted with Cheetah and three other species of endangered or threatened cats.
Durban Day Safari Tour
I met my polish clients in Durban who were here for the World forestry conference and we began our two day Durban safari tour to Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve.
After covering the usual history of Durban, KwaZulu Natal and how all the population groups came to be here we stopped for some coffee. We then continued on to the Cat rehabilitation center where we would be interacting with Cheetah hands on as well as looking at Serval, Caracal and African wild cat, species that are listed as either endangered or threatened.
Drakensberg Midlands Tour
I collected my solo client for his Drakensberg midlands tour and we ventured into the amazing central Drakensberg up the sani pass and into Lesotho.
The Drakensberg is very special to me, I always feel at peace when I am in the mountains. Its had been a place of much violence but it seems the rivers that cut can shape the Drakensberg have also washed away the memories of the violence leaving the amazing San-Bushmen rock art for us to enjoy.
Shakaland Tour
We began our Shakaland tour in Durban where I collected my clients and we covered more of the in depth history of the Zulus and the area we would be travelling into Eshowe.
Once we arrived at Shakaland for the tour we enjoyed the shop and the amazing African crafts as well as music before the tour of the Umuzi(homestead) began!
We learned the structure of the Zulu Umuzi and then watched a 15 minuted video clip on the movie Shaka Zulu all of this helps when you do a cultural tour from Durban of this nature.
Drakensberg tour
It would be north of Durban where our Drakensberg and Midlands of KwaZulu Natal tour would begin. After meeting my clients at 6am we departed for Sani Pass and a tour over into Lesotho over the majestic Drakensberg mountain range.
This day would be a very long day as it always is but this time I would have to stay at the bottom of the pass as the vehicle was full with the specialist Sani pass guide leading the adventure into Lesotho.
Durban day safari
This Durban day safari was one of my best and not because I felt good about my performance but because nature also performed for us!
We began in Durban as we usually do and I collected a Swedish couple who were very excited about the Durban day safari after reading reviews on TripAdvisor. This always makes me feel a little pensive as with nature it is out of our control. All I know is the best places to look for the animals and their behaviour.
Hluhluwe Imfolozi Safari
I met my clients for their Hluhluwe Imfolozi safari 2 days safari in Umhlanga(Durban) and we made our way to the world famous Hluhluwe Imfolozi game reserve. On route we would stop at the cat rehabilitation centre to interact with Cheetah hands on as well as a couple of other endangered wild cats.
We had a great start as we chatted about the history of the area and then stopped for some coffee and a rest before we would arrive at our first destination for this 2 day Durban safari.
The cat rehabilitation centre was amazing and my clients really enjoyed the interaction with the big and small cats.