“An adventure is never an adventure when it’s happening. Challenging experiences need time to ferment, and an adventure is simply physical and emotional discomfort recollected in tranquility”. ~ Tim Cahill ~
From a young age David Attenborough has been an inspirational figure bringing joy to my life with his amazing BBC wildlife documentaries. Only August last year Vaughan and I were lucky enough to see the 87 year old Sir David live on stage with his Australia tour “A Life on Earth” it was a dream come true to finally meet this remarkable man and listen to him share his stories ,extraordinary experiences and passion for nature. As a youngster the notion of going on a safari was just a dream that was only within reach of the rich but now I’m older the world seems smaller and plane rides are cheaper so that dream can now be a reality.
Africa can still be expensive especially safari’s in places like Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa but we want to do more than just base ourselves in one country and go on expensive 5* safari’s we want to see as much as possible of this amazing continent as we believe each country offers something different . But how do we do this with a budget we can afford? The answer is simple – Overlanding
So what is Overlanding? Well Overlanding can be best described as affordable, sociable and adventurous travel that involves getting from A to B in a purpose built truck and for most part tented accommodation. Overland Adventures range from 10 days to many months and are very popular with the adventurous budget conscious traveller both young and old although the majority are on the younger side. The trip will include for most part your accommodation, food and some activities with other activities being optional extras. The cheaper the itinerary the less that is included which for some this suits as it helps more with managing their budget. Overlanding suits us, as we are both adventurous at heart and we love camping and we don’t mind roughing it a little. It meets our requirements of being able to travel through East and Southern Africa cheaply and without the hassle of trying to organise everything yourself. Africa is not an easy continent to travel so the Overland experience offers the ideal package for an affordable price.
The greatest challenge is choosing the right Overland Company, there are many overland companies out there most of them International owned but all offer a different level of service. I spent months researching different Overland companies from your cheaper Africa Trails which seem to attract the 18 to 25 brigade, to your more expensive Dragoman which attracts the older traveller with more money to spend and want a step up in comfort and service. Simply put the more expensive the overland company the better the service you will receive and the more mixed in ages your travel companions are likely to be.
So what were we looking for? Well we certainly didn’t want to go for the cheapest as we would no doubt be stuck on a bus with the 18 to 25 crowd and these Overlanders have a reputation for being party buses (Africa Contiki). We don’t object to the odd night of fun but at the end of the day I paid good money to see Africa not the inside of my tent for the whole day while I sleep off a hangover and we don’t want to be kept awake by revellers night after night either. Also with the cheaper companies you wouldn’t get a cook and for most part the guide and driver are one of the same. So with no cook you would be split into groups and your group would cook when it was their turn. Not that this is a bad idea but you just hope that your fellow companions can cook or you might be wishing there was a MacDonald’s close by!
What we were looking for was a company that:
- Is reputable based on other travellers reviews
- Attracts a good mixed age group
- Have at least a Cook, Driver and Guide, preferably locals
- Has a comfortable safe well maintained truck and good camping equipment
- The main activities included in the price as no matter what you’re going to do them anyway and we want to reduce the amount of cash we carry around.
- Has a good balance of price versus quality
- Took us to where we wanted to go
- The dates they leave fit in with our schedule
On the opposite end of the scale we don’t want to be stuck on a bus for two months with a bunch of old fogies either! We want to be on a truck with people who have the attitude that we are here to appreciate Africa but we can have fun too.
After much research I narrowed it down to three:
Nomads which is a South African Based Company
Intrepid Adventures which is a an Australian Company
G Adventures having done China with them we get good discounts!
We haven’t made a final decision yet but it will most likely be G Adventures as they are the cheapest with discounts and have no kitty system. We are worried about how we would get large amounts of US dollars whilst in Germany so we prefer to go with an operator that doesn’t have a kitty.
Overlanding isn’t for everyone. You can be stuck on a truck for weeks with the same people and you hope you get along! It’s a lot of early rises and long tiring days spent in a truck getting from A to B and even though for the majority of the time you’re staying in very nice equipped camp grounds with bar and pool your still sleeping in a tent! And you are responsible for putting up and pulling down that tent on a regular basis. You’re also expected to pitch in and help with the cooking, washing up, guarding the truck and keeping it clean. The cheaper the Overland trip the more you have to pitch in and the less time you have to relax and enjoy your trip so it pays to fork out a little extra for the experience you want.
Author: Jayne Edmondson