Africa Bespoke Blog

Kapama Umkumbe Safari

Luke Powers — Thu, 30 May 2013 07:00:47 +0000

Kevin from Kentucky USA, took his mom on a safari adventure for a week. They decided to check out two different areas of the Greater Kruger Park. Here are Kevin’s notes on his Safari… When my mother made her first trip to Africa (from Kentucky, USA) to visit me in Cape Town, I asked Africa Bespoke to help me make sure she wanted to come back to Africa soon. Luke put together a truly memorable week of game viewing for the two of us, centered around Kapama Private Reserve and Umkumbe Lodge in the Sabi Sand Reserve, adjacent to Kruger Park. Getting there was a breeze: on the direct flight from Cape Town to Hoedspruit, followed by a 30 minute game drive through Kapama Reserve to our lodge, Southern Camp. Special sightings from Kapama included watching a lioness lazily chase zebra before finding an old boot to take back to her pride to play with (the familial connection to housecats suddenly became a lot clearer!), seeing a white rhino suckling her mewling baby, and pursuing a leopard on the hunt at night. The best part of the experience, though, was undoubtedly the information, stories and good vibes contributed by our ranger Jacques and tracker Light. Highlights from Umkumbe included watching a huge herd of elephants crossing the Sand River from the deck of the lodge, seeing a hyena’s odd, loping gait for the first time, and enjoying our drinks while watching spectacular sunsets over the zebra and rhino-dotted veld. Before ...

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KZN Berg Bush Beach adventure

Luke Powers — Wed, 29 May 2013 07:00:08 +0000

Here is a quick blog post from Kevin O’Neil, told mostly in photos. Kevin is out from the USA, living and working in South Africa for the year. He has managed to sneak in some great journeys during his time here. The latest one being to Kwazulu Natal. In their short time here Kevin and Elizabeth have become so local they are almost qualified tour guides in SA. Recently Kevin’s sister and brother-in-law came to visit and they went to KZN to discover some of the amazing destinations there, including Rocktail Bay on the north coast, Hluhluwe Umfolozi National Park and the Central Drakensberg. Here is Kevin’s post. KZN was awesome (of course). Royal Natal is spectacular. The highlight of the trip for me was actually just staying in Mpila camp and defending our braai from hyenas! I got to practice my “threat pose” on a particularly close hyena: arms up to look big, “fangs” bared, Elizabeth claims this was not smart, but hey, the hyena ran off. (Unfortunately there is no footage of this epic event!) The camp also had a lot of warthogs, bushpigs, impala and zebra just hanging out. We had great drives in Hluhluwe and Umfolozi and a good safari walk from Mpila Camp, I’m definitely keen to go back and do the Wilderness Trail one day. Rocktail Beach Camp was great. The tents are way cool and the beach was terrific, we mainly skipped the activities and did some serious relaxation. Emiliano’s reaction to a ...

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The Obde Sisters Africa Adventure

Luke Powers — Tue, 28 May 2013 07:00:14 +0000

The Obde Sisters from the USA (all 6 of them!), started planning their bucket list journey to Africa some two years before they finally arrived. Scattered across the States, with many different ideas on what they wanted to do, you can imagine the challenge for Africa Bespoke travel consultant Michaela Cramer. A gazillion emails later, Michaela had put together their trip of a lifetime for these lively ladies. Back home now, and reflecting on their travels, here is what Jill Obde had to say about their journey. From the moment we stepped off the plane in Cape Town we knew we were in Heaven! Our guide, Alan, greeted us and from that moment on we had no worries about what was going to happen the next two weeks. From our hotels to restaurants, activities to exchanging currency, adventures in the Winelands and more, we were taken care of at every turn. Every day was Christmas! Each hotel was amazing: The Three in Cape Town, Grootboos in the Overberg, where we were greeted with a fantastic lunch and went on to watch whales. We must have seen at least fifteen of them. There was so much to do: horseback riding, cave dwelling, hiking. Then it was inland to the Karoo and La Plume in Oudsthoorn, where we tried our first ostrich steak. Delicious! Next up was the Turbine Hotel on Knysna Lagoon. From here we were able to visit the Elephant Park to see the rescued ellies and the Garden of Eden to see a ...

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Okavango Delta fly in Safari

Luke Powers — Mon, 27 May 2013 11:32:08 +0000

Another post from our friend and regular traveler to Africa, Libby Hess, about here recent journey to Botswana. A fly-in safari to the legendary Okavango Delta.Here are Libby’s thoughts and some great photos she took. One of the highlights of any safari is the light aircraft travel between camps, and Botswana offers some of the best camp-to-camp hops. Flying out of Maun into the Okavango delta area, you quickly become aware that land has given way to water, providing a perfect reflection of the sun and clouds above. With camps located along rivers or lagoons, you are treated to a different backdrop of ambient sound than in drier areas. Instead of the constant drone of the dove, kingfishers and blacksmith plovers keep up a more staccato dialogue. Hippos grunt out territorial claims all day and redouble their efforts as daylight ends. After the sun sets, thousands of tiny frogs, each no bigger than a thumbnail, create a curtain of sound like a rain shower on a steel drum. The game viewing experience is similar to elsewhere in Southern Africa, but you may start and end each drive with a boat ride to and from your vehicle, sweeping through calm, narrow channels lined with lilies, reeds and papyrus. It’s a wonderful way to start and end the day, glimpsing timid lechwe or a rare sable antelope along the water’s edge in more protected areas in the morning, and dozens of water birds roosting in trees as night falls. Wildlife is abundant ...

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The MannaHouse

Luke Powers — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 12:00:46 +0000

We were recently invited to view this fantastic new property: the MannaHouse. Brought to life by the team who created Manna Bay Boutique Hotel, this new little gem is perfect for discerning travellers visiting Cape Town and wanting some privacy, to live like the locals and experience the City Bowl at its best. This neat and stylish 2 bedroomed Villa is tucked away on the slopes of Signal Hill, up in the quiet roads of Tamboerskloof. Neat as a pin, and superbly decorated, this pad would comfortably house 2 couples, 3 friends or a family of 4. With its superb views of Table Mountain, a plunge pool, top-of-the-range catering kitchen, coffee machine, bar fridge and more, it is a great option for those wanting stylish luxury in a home setting. It has secure off-street parking, is serviced daily and comes complete with house wine and some soft drinks on arrival (and replenished daily). Guests are met for check-in at the house at whatever time they arrive to complete a seamless experience. With opening rates of R3500 per night this is excellent value. Contact us to book. Have a look at the pics below to get a feel of the place. Rating: 0.0/10 (0 votes cast)

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