14 Day Tour: October 16-29, 2023
Pricing
- Base Pricing is always calculated for double occupancy.
- $1300 supplemental for Solo Travelers.
Tour Highlights
2
UNESCO
Sites
5
Places to see
before you die
5
Safari Parks
- Bulawayo
- Hwange National Park
- Victoria Falls
- South Luangwa National Park
- Kensake National Park
- Lusaka
- Big Twelve: Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Zebra, White Rhino,
- Black Rhino, Giraffe, Buffalo, Wild Dog, Elephant, Hyena & Hippo
Tour Includes
- Round trip airfare from Chicago
- First Class Hotel Accommodations
- All Breakfasts, All Lunches & All Dinners
- Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation
- Admissions to all listed Attractions
- Round trip airport transfers in the Chicago land area
- Guided by Bill Ball
- Baggage Handling
- All Gratuities
Tour Itinerary
Day One One & Two We fly to the ultimate safari adventure we have yet to do—Zimbabwe and Zambia. Here you have a real chance to see all the Big 12—lion, leopard, cheetah, wild dog, hyena, hippo, white rhino, black rhino, zebra, giraffe, African buffalo and of course elephant.
Day Three We arrive in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. We will start with a city tour including their natural history museum where we will get a feel for the geologic, man-made and the wildlife the next day will unveil to us.
Day Four Today we spend the day in one of Bill’s favorite parks in the world—Matopo. There is much to see here from unusual rock formations that defy gravity, war memorials, ancient cave paintings (these are mind blowing) and the grave of one of Africa’s legends—Cecil Rhodes of the Rhodes Scholar fame. That, though, is just the beginning—the wildlife will blow you away. Here are large numbers of both white and black rhinos, zebra, giraffes, leopard, hyena, hippo, crocodiles, warthog and more.
Day Five We head to Hwange National Park which is full of big game from rhinos to elephants to kudu to the most beautiful of antelope and the national animal—the Sable. This is one of the great wildlife parks with all the big predators—lions, cheetah, leopards, and hyenas. There are over 50,000 elephants here so elephant lovers will have a field day. To top that off it has one of the largest populations of wild dogs in Africa. We could complete the Big 12 already! Bird lovers don’t despair —there are 500 species recorded here.
Day Six We have another morning drive in the park before we head to one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the World—Victoria Falls. The Falls are a mile long and are so powerful at times of the year that it feels like it is raining due to the bounce back of the water. We see the Zimbabwe side today and then cross over to Zambia.
Day Seven After seeing Zambia’s side of the Falls, you will have experienced something most people never get—both sides of the wonder. Not only do you get to experience both sides of the falls, but the area has abundant wildlife—some wondering right into our hotel grounds. Late afternoon, we will take a boat cruise on the Zambia River to see elephants, hippos and other wildlife including crocs, water monitors and dozens of species of waterbirds.
Day Eight We fly today to one of the top five wildlife parks in Africa—South Luango National Park. This park has elephants, lions, leopards, buffalo, hyena, wild dog, hippo, zebra, giraffe, impala, puku, eland and wildebeest to name a few. In fact, it is one of the best places to see leopards. For the bird lover, there are over 400 species to search for.
Day Nine & Ten Two full days in this incredible park to add species to the list and to watch behaviors like hunting, mating and raising their young. This is the Africa you dream of.
Day Eleven We fly to our final national park today—Karsake National Park. This is another park with great wildlife sightings including sable, hippo, sitatunga, puku, blue monkeys, reedbuck, waterbuck and 330 species of birds including the giant Pel’s fishing owl, pygmy geese, and the rare Shoebill Stork. The reason this park is so fabulous this time of year is it is the location of the biggest mammal migration in the world—the migration of the large fruit bat. Literally millions of these flying animals roost in the park. At sundown, they take to the air in one of the most spectacular flights you will ever see.
Day Twelve Another full day in the park to get that last life list animal or bird. The scenery in this park is also a great draw situated on Lake Baugweulu and being laced with many rivers and channels. Few parks in Africa are as scenic as this one.
Day Thirteen We fly to the capital city of Zambia—Lusaka. We tour this city including the famous markets, governmental buildings, and the Lilayi Elephant Orphanage where orphaned elephants are raised to be released back into the wild.
Day Fourteen We fly home today with memories and photos of the Big 12, dozens of antelope species and abundant bird life. We have experienced Victoria Falls—one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the World, ancient cave paintings and local culture along the way.
