Tag

My 2016 and 2017 safaris are filling up fast!  But it’s not too late to grab a last minute place if you get in quick.

ZIMBABWE 2016 – ONLY ONE ROOM LEFT!

I have one room left for my northern Zimbabwe journey from 23-30 September this year.  That means two people sharing, so grab a friend and come along!  This is the last room left for my safaris this year!  I absolutely love this part of Zimbabwe and the people.  We’ll be visiting Mana Pools, Hwange National Park and the legendary Victoria Falls, staying in private exclusive concessions to ensure the experience is second to none.  I’ll be arranging local experts to talk to us about research and conservation work being done in these areas, and you’ll come home with a unique insight into this magnificent country.  Zim to me is all about being among friendly people, big rivers and lots and lots of wildlife.  Read more about the safari here.  Contact me for the full itinerary.  Maximum of 9 people on this trip.  If you’ve been deliberating don’t wait any longer to sign up!

RWANDA & TANZANIA 2017 – ONE ROOM LEFT!

I have only 2 spots left for both my gorilla trekking adventure in Rwanda and the following safari into the magnificent Serengeti in Tanzania left for two very lucky people!  I am doing these two safaris back to back from 7 August 2017, first 5 nights in Rwanda, then 6 nights in Tanzania.  Read more here.  We are staying at the best camps in the best private areas, showcasing the wildebeest migration at the best time of year!  I’ve hand picked all my camps as always to ensure we have an outstanding experience but also to make the maximum contribution back to local communities and conservation.  My Rwanda safari will have a maximum of 8 people, and Tanzania up to 9.  If you’ve ever dreamed of trekking with gorillas or experiencing the Serengeti, here’s your chance to do it with a small group of wildlife-loving people and your own personal zoologist!

Incredible vista from The Highlands over Ngorogoro Crater (photo: Asilia)

Where do YOU want to go on safari next?   Leave a comment here with your dream destinations in Africa and let’s see if we can make a group trip happen!

Mountain Gorilla, Rwanda (photo: Sabinyo Mountain Lodge)

It’s that time of year again, and it seems to have crept up so quickly (or maybe I’m just getting old!).  Now at the end of our second year in business at Matson & Ridley Safaris, Andy and I wanted to thank you for your support and to wish you a wonderful Christmas and new year.  I’ve put together this short video (scroll down to see it), which I hope you’ll enjoy, sharing a few special memories of my adventures with you in the last couple of years in Botswana, Kenya and Namibia.  Thanks to all who shared their photos for this, but in particular a big thanks to all the people who made these journeys so wonderful in Africa’s most incredible wild destinations!

Stormy sundowners in Kenya’s Maasai Mara, July 2015

For me, it’s a real joy to be able to reflect back and know that our fledgling safari business is helping support so many worthwhile on-ground conservation initiatives, from the Save The Rhino anti poaching efforts in Namibia, to the Giraffe Conservation Foundation, David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and the Mara Naibosho Lion Project.  Those who come on my safaris often get to meet some of the dedicated people behind these operations.

And of course, just by supporting Matson & Ridley Safaris, you’ve helped me continue to keep spreading the word in the Let Elephants Be Elephants campaign, around Singapore, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Australia and even in my new base in the Netherlands.  The LEBE campaign has raised approximately SGD$40,000 (almost US$30k) for awareness raising on ivory trade in Asia since its inception, and Nadya and I have spoken at dozens of schools, events, conferences and government departments across the region.  A new study by Save The Elephants just revealed that growing public awareness through campaigns like the one by WildAid in China have played an important role in the halving of the price of ivory in the past year, a truly outstanding result that will help reduce elephant poaching.  Our LEBE campaign continues in Southeast Asia in 2016 – more news to come on that soon.

The LEBE team at one of our awareness and fund raising events in Hong Kong, with the team from the Hong Kong Elephant Society, Jane Goodall and Richard Bonham of the Big Life Foundation (photo: Hong Kong Elephant Society)

But I think our biggest contribution through Matson & Ridley Safaris is the benefits your safari bookings provide in terms of local employment in Africa.  Wilderness Safaris recently released a breakdown of how your safari dollars are spent, and most enlightening for me was that about two-thirds goes to local employment.  This is so important!  In Africa, conservation of wildlife is directly related to the economic benefits people get from wildlife, and so this really is a win-win scenario for both people and wildlife.  In rural areas where these camps are, there are few other economic opportunities for people, so ecotourism done right can be a real lifeline.  Asilia Africa, who we work with to plan your East African safaris, focus on education and conservation, as well as community partnerships to deliver long term sustainability that benefits local people.  You can read more about their positive impact and approach to sustainable business development here.  When you go on one of our safaris, either independently or with me, don’t forget to ask about all the incredible work these ecotourism companies are doing to ensure that you not only have an amazing experience but that the local people and wildlife directly benefit from the monies you spend.

Providing local employment in rural areas in Africa is one of the most important contributions made by ethical safaris (photo: Wilderness Safaris)

Very soon we’ll be launching the new Matson & Ridley Safaris website, but in the meantime you can find us on the Matson & Ridley Safaris Facebook page – like us here to see the latest updates on all our safari offers and opportunities, and you can share your photos there too.  We have big dreams for our conservation work – please help us get there by spreading the word about our ethical safaris!

Don’t forget it’s not too late to sign up to join me in northern Zimbabwe in September next year, and I still have one spot left for a single woman sharing in North West Namibia in May (last minute discount available for the latter).  There are great deals available for family and group safaris in 2016 all over Africa’s safari regions, especially if you go in the green season.  May 2016 be a year of adventure, excitement and inspiration for you all and I hope to see you by the campfire under a starry African sky soon!

As part of my travel agency, Matson & Ridley Safaris, I will be leading two safaris to two of my favourite parts of Africa in 2016.  Based on my past safaris, the very limited spaces (maximum 12 people) book out very fast, so if you’d like to join please drop me a line now!  These camps have to be booked now because they are so popular they book out a year in advance or more.  And as with all my safaris, the camps are selected by me to ensure your tourism dollars make a difference on the ground.  Trust me, these safaris will change your life! (more…)

It’s not often that you hear good news from Zimbabwe, and even rarer that you hear good news in conservation.  So this blog might come as a surprise to some because for once it’s not bad news!  If you came along to the fundraiser I did with the SAVE Foundation in Sydney in August last year, linked to the launch of my latest book “Planet Elephant“, you helped raise funds for the intensive anti-poaching efforts being led by specialists Bryce and Lara Clemence of Aggressive Tracking Specialists (ATS) in the Save Valley Conservancy, Zimbabwe.   (more…)

Africa’s a big place.  Actually, really big.  You can fit all of China, India and much of Europe into it’s vast landscape.  So when you’re planning to go on safari, where do you start?  And once you’ve been once, and you’ve got the Africa bug, where do you go next?

Africa is a big place!

So what’s your favourite safari destination?  It’s a tough question, because they all have their merits.  In this blog I’m going to have a crack at sharing my current top 5 safari destinations and let you make up your mind where’s best for you to live out your dream.

1. Okavango Delta, Botswana

It’s not just that the Okavango is literally teeming with wildlife in the most beautiful palm tree lined wetlands you can imagine, it’s that Botswana itself is such a wonderful conservation success story.  With strong and stable political leadership, a healthy economy and 45% of the population being employed in tourism, it’s no wonder this land-locked country at the centre of southern Africa is doing so well at conserving its wildlife.

Vumburra area, Okavango Delta, Botswana (Photo: Wilderness Safaris)

The human population is only about 2 million and most of the country is classified as desert, so you don’t get the human pressures that you get in other more highly populated African nations (violent crime being one of them).   You’ll see all sorts of interesting critters in Botswana, including all the big cats, African wild dogs, the sitatunga, a wetland dwelling antelope I have yet to feast my eyes on, and the largest elephant population in the world.  Besides that, who wouldn’t want to explore nature in a mokoro?

Suggested Camps:  Chitabe (for predators galore), Xigera (for wetlands, mokoros & sitatungas), Vumburra Plains (for pure luxury in my kind of heaven).

Xigera Camp, Botswana (photo: Wilderness Safaris)

2. Zimbabwe

This choice might surprise you.  Zimbabwe is where I started my African journey back in 1993 on a safari with my Dad at the age of 15 in the Save Valley Conservancy, and it’s still a special place to me.  The Save Valley Conservancy remains one of the best places in Africa to see rare African wild dogs.  If you go during June, July, August, you’ve got a very good chance of seeing pups at dens, and that is just the cutest thing ever.  If you arrange to visit through me, you can also meet the team running the rhino anti-poaching operation, Bryce and Lara, and the Turgwe Hippo Trust‘s Karen Paolillo, who has been studying the area’s hippos for decades.

African wild dog pups, Save Valley Conservancy, Zimbabwe (Photo: Tammie Matson)

I also love Hwange National Park.  It feels like old Africa to me, and the wildlife there, especially in the dry season (June-Oct), is spectacular.  I’ve had lions walk right beside the open vehicle in Hwange, and elephants in their hundreds lining up at waterholes.  The thing about Zimbabwe is that many people aren’t traveling there because of the political instability brought about by the current regime.  But I’ve been traveling there with my family in the last five years without any troubles, and the people are as friendly and welcoming as ever.  And of course, on the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia is the famous Victoria Falls, which you have to see at least once in your life to have your breath literally taken out of you.

Suggested Camps: Sango (Save Valley Conservancy), Little Makololo (Hwange National Park), the River Club (at Victoria Falls, on the Zambian side near Livingstone)

Little Makololo Camp, Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe

3. Kenya

I only recently ventured into East Africa, having spent the last couple of decades exploring what southern Africa has to offer, and man, was I blown away by Kenya!  They’ve been doing safaris in style there for a long time, and it shows in the quality of the experiences they can offer.  One very good reason to go to Kenya is that it has the famous great wildebeest migration in the Masai Mara.  You have to time this carefully to make sure you’re in the right place at the right time.  I am taking a group of up to 12 to Kenya in July next year (safari details here) and there are still spots available for now, but please don’t wait to register your interest as my other two trips to Namibia and Botswana sold out in record time!).

Masai Mara, Kenya (photo: Asilia)

When I got off the plane at Ol Donyo in the Chyulu Hills, nestled between Amboseli and Tsavo National Parks, I looked across the vast grass plains and up to the gobsmacking sight of Mount Kilimanjaro, and I was speechless.  The key with traveling in Kenya is to avoid the crowds of minibuses and go with a good operator that offers you exclusivity with the wildlife.  And as always, I suggest staying at lodges that operate in partnerships with local communities and conservation organisations, so you know your tourism dollars are helping make a difference on the ground.  Kenya is also the home of Daphne Sheldrick’s famous elephant orphanage, a truly special experience that has brought many tears to the eyes of those who visit.

The author overlooking the plains of Chyulu Hills, Kenya (Photo: Nadya Hutagalung)

Suggested lodges: Naibosho (Masai Mara – a luxury, community partnership lodge), Ol Donyo (near Amboseli National Park, operating in partnership with the Big Life Foundation and local Masai community)

4. Namibia

Having lived in Namibia for six years, studying black-faced impalas and later working on human-elephant conflict, I’ve still got a soft spot for this vast desert land.  You won’t get a sense of space like this anywhere else in the world.  The silence in the Namib desert can be overwhelming when you live in a noisy city, and can actually take a bit of adjusting to!  Spotting unique desert creatures like oryxes, springboks and ostriches on the desert plains is one of the best things about being in Namibia, as is seeing the vast congregations of animals at waterholes during the dry season (July-October).

Desert Rhino Camp, Namibia (photo: Wilderness Safaris)

Etosha National Park is famous for its white elephants (coated in white dust from the Etosha salt pan) and is one of the best places in Africa to see black rhinos.  I also love the north west of Namibia, the Skeleton Coast and Damaraland, where you get desert adapted lions and elephants eking out an existence alongside traditional ethnic groups like the ovaHimbas.    My absolute favourite camp in Namibia?  Serra Cafema, for sure.  Up on the border with Angola, right at the top of Namibia, on the Kunene River, it’s the most remote camp in Africa and going there is like going to the moon (in a very good way!).

Suggested camps: Ongava (for Etosha & rhinos), Serra Cafema (for having your mind blown by desert solitude), Desert Rhino Camp (Damaraland, for tracking desert rhinos & supporting Save The Rhino Trust)

Serra Cafema, my favourite camp in Namibia (photo: Wilderness Safaris)

5. Okay so now I’m up to number five, and of course, this is not easy, as there are lots of other great options for safaris that I’d like to include here, like South Luangwa National Park in Zambia (real wild Africa with tonnes of elephants) and even some I haven’t been to that I really want to see, like Ethiopia, Tanzania and Mozambique, but I think the final choice for this blog, based on what I’ve seen to date, has to be Kruger National Park, South Africa.

There’s really no other national park like Kruger for an awesome ‘big five’ experience.  But it’s the private reserves on the edge of the park that you want to stay in.  South Africa offers so many luxurious and mid range options for families, couples or groups, that it’s hard to know where to start.  You’ll get a lot for less price in South Africa because there’s a lot of competition and very high standards of accommodation.  It’s a great starting point for a first safari, especially for families as they specialise in this.  At Tinstwalo last year with then 3 year old Solo, we saw the entire big five, including an incredible leopard sighting and mating lions, in 36 hours!

Leopard at Tintswalo, South Africa (photo: Tintswalo)

There are excellent malaria-free reserves in South Africa too, guides that specialise in giving kids an amazing learning experience, and you can always add on a few days exploring Capetown and the magnificent mountains and wineries of the region.

Suggested camps:  Tintswalo (for luxury, incredible wildlife & families), Grootbos (2 hours from Capetown, for families & marine life)

Solo (then aged 3) got to pretend to drive the Land Cruiser while on safari at Tintswalo, South Africa, which was definitely a highlight of the trip for him.

Just a few days ago I was in the Save Valley Conservancy, Zimbabwe, sitting by an African wild dog den where a dozen or so puppies (the cutest baby animal you’re ever likely to see) huddled up together for warmth.  It was an extra special experience because it’s so uncommon, as the dogs only den for a few months a year during the winter months, and also because they are so endangered (only about 5000 left in the wild).  Sightings like this are rare, and the Save Valley Conservancy is one of the best places to experience it – check out this footage I took of an adult regurgitating meat for the super cute bundle of puppies! (more…)