SOUTH AFRICA: Two SA Safari Destinations Listed In CNN’s Top Ten

A six-hour drive from Johannesburg to the edge of the renowned Kruger National Park, Leopard Hills offers safaris through 10,000 hectares of big beast countryside.

The main lodge is sited on a rocky outcrop in the western sector of the Sabi Sand Game Reserve overlooking an active waterhole and magnificent plains where the Big Five reside.

Rates include two drives per day and optional walking safaris with the chance of close-quarter glimpses of rhino, lion, leopard, buffalo and elephant.

Rangers are established photographers and can advise on taking quality safari snaps.

Leopard Hills (South Africa)

2015 Safari Awards, the Oscars of the Safari industry, are a useful guide to the best available tours. CNN examined the honors roll and gathered 10 of their favorite finalists. These are the adventures that excel in location, animal encounters, social and environmental responsibility and offer something different.

Pumba Private Game Reserve & Spa (South Africa)
Hippo, hyena, wildebeest, kudu, eland and antelope are among the attractions at the family-friendly Pumba Private Game Reserve & Spa.

The big draw, however, is the majestic and endangered white lion.

Pumba, a malaria-free haven dedicated to conservation and boosting the local community, operates a white lion-breeding program and is one of just two homes to the beast in the whole of southern Africa.

Accommodation includes the Water Lodge, overlooking Lake Cariega, or Msenge Bush Lodge, looking out over a waterhole and mountain views.

The other eight destinations chosen by CNN were Fundu Lagoon (Tanzania); Karisia Walking Safaris (Kenya); Nyungwe Forest Lodge (Rwanda); Samode Safari Lodge (India); Tongole Wilderness Lodge (Malawi); African Horseback Safaris (Botswana); Goliath Safaris Luxury Tented Camp(Zimbabwe); Norman Carr Walking Safari (Zambia).

How the 2015 Safari Awards are run

The Safari Awards was founded in 2008. The competition has gone from strength to strength and is regarded by many as the Oscars of the Safari industry.

Over 4,000 vetted tour operators, travel agents and travel journalists are invited to vote for the best safari camps, lodges, house, mobile and riding operators, and wildlife organisations. A panel of 14 highly-respected, knowledgeable and independent judges vote to create the ‘Judges Shortlist’ of about 200 safari camps, people and operators. Further voting takes places to produce the top five per category which are then visited and further voted on to produce the winners.

TANZANIA: Mount Kilimanjaro National Park

Kilimanjaro. The name itself is a mystery wreathed in clouds. It might mean Mountain of Light, Mountain of Greatness or Mountain of Caravans. Or it might not. The local people, the Wachagga, don't even have a name for the whole massif, only Kipoo (now known as Kibo) for the familiar snowy peak that stands imperious, overseer of the continent, the summit of Africa.

Kilimanjaro, by any name, is a metaphor for the compelling beauty of East Africa. When you see it, you understand why. Not only is this the highest peak on the African continent; it is also the tallest free-standing mountain in the world, rising in breathtaking isolation from the surrounding coastal scrubland – elevation around 900 metres – to an imperious 5,895 metres (19,336 feet).

Kilimanjaro is one of the world's most accessible high summits, a beacon for visitors from around the world. Most climbers reach the crater rim with little more than a walking stick, proper clothing and determination. And those who reach Uhuru Point, the actual summit, or Gillman's Point on the lip of the crater, will have earned their climbing certificates.
And their memories.

But there is so much more to Kili than her summit. The ascent of the slopes is a virtual climatic world tour, from the tropics to the Arctic.
Even before you cross the national park boundary (at the 2,700m contour), the cultivated footslopes give way to lush montane forest, inhabited by elusive elephant, leopard, buffalo, the endangered Abbot’s duiker, and other small antelope and primates. Higher still lies the moorland zone, where a cover of giant heather is studded with otherworldly giant lobelias.

Above 4,000m, a surreal alpine desert supports little life other than a few hardy mosses and lichen. Then, finally, the last vestigial vegetation gives way to a winter wonderland of ice and snow – and the magnificent beauty of the roof of the continent.

About Kilimanjaro National Park
Size: 1668 sq km 641 sq miles).
Location: Northern Tanzania, near the town of Moshi.

Getting there
128 km (80 miles) from Arusha.
About one hour’s drive from Kilimanjaro airport.

What to do
Six usual trekking routes to the summit and other more-demanding mountaineering routes.
Day or overnight hikes on the Shira plateau. Nature trails on the lower reaches.
Trout fishing.
Visit the beautiful Chala crater lake on the mountain’s southeastern slopes.

When to go
Clearest and warmest conditions from December to February, but also dry (and colder) from July-September.

Accommodation
Huts and campsites on the mountain.
Several hotels and campsites outside the park in the village of Marangu and town of Moshi.

More info on accomodation

NOTE:
Climb slowly to increase your acclimatisation time and maximise your chances of reaching the summit.
To avoid altitude sickness, allow a minimum of five nights, preferably even more for the climb. Take your time and enjoy the beauty of the mountain.

NOTE 2:
NEW RATES FOR PORTERS AND GUIDES
(JUNE '08)

Porters
USD 10 per day
Cooks
USD 15 per day
Guides
USD 20 per day