down africa way - 33 days

Expedition Information
Starts in: Nairobi, Kenya (or Jo'burg)
Ends in: Jo’burg, South Africa (or Nairobi)
Prices and Departures: Click Here
Current local payment: Yes $650
Length: 33 days
Expedition Crew: 3 (Leader, Driver, Cook)
Meals: As indicated
Rating: Camping & Truck expedition

This is the southbound itinerary, for details of the northbound itinerary please refer to the Down Africa Way - Northbound Go Guide.

Days 1 - 9: Tanzania Highlights Saturday. Welcome to Nairobi! We’ll be there to collect you at Nairobi Airport. Your first night will be spent at our pre-expedition hotel in the centre of town. Journeying south via Namanga, we cross the border and head into neighbouring Tanzania. Home to some of Africa’s finest game reserves, we camp at the attractive safari frontier town of Arusha. The town is perfectly placed for optional activities such as a visit to two of Tanzania’s best game reserves - the Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area. If you opt for the 3 day excursion with guides, the savannah plains of the Serengeti and the stunning Ngorongoro Crater National Park are explored in small all-terrain vehicles in the search for game.

Free Masai Mara and Hwange NP safari! Masai Mara safari  and Hwange NP trip   FREE when you book this trip. PLEASE NOTE: Local payment is not included in the FREE offer

The Serengeti is home to the famous migration of the wildebeest and zebra; here you can spot the predatory lion, hyena and cheetah in their wake. The Serengeti also supports populations of elephant and giraffe. Thanks to the permanent water and pasture source in the crater, Ngorongoro is a photographer’s delight. See antelope, hoofed animals, black rhino, predators such as black-maned lion, cheetah, jackal and hyena and thousands of pink flamingo wallowing in Lake Magadi, set in the crater floor. From Arusha, we travel in the shadow of Mt Kilimanjaro via Pangani to Dar es Salaam. A ferry from Dar takes us to the spice island of Zanzibar, where we’ll spend three nights on this exotic, tropical paradise. Head for the beach or explore the labyrinth of narrow, winding streets in Old Stone Town on Zanzibar. Please note that acccommodation and meals are not included on the island of Zanzibar. For those preferring not to visit Zanzibar, you can spend the next 2 days relaxing at our beach campsite in Dar Es Salaam.

Days 10 - 17: Lake Malawi
Leaving Zanzibar, we travel via Dar es Salaam and Mikumi National Park, where it’s possible to view an array of wildlife impervious to humans and traffic, from the road, to Iringa where we camp at the Old Farmhouse, a beautiful and rustic campsite. We leave Tanzania and head into Malawi. Dominated by its huge lake occupying nearly 20% of it’s landmass, Malawi offers us pleasant respite from the heat. We cross the border post at Songwe and head to Chitimba Beach on the shores of the lake. Camping at Chitimba and/or Chintheche, we can enjoy lake side pleasures such as swimming and relaxing and optional aquatic activities such as snorkelling, canoeing and SCUBA diving. The local fishermen can be observed tending their daily catch and there are local schools and villages where you can visit the friendly Malawians. Don’t forget to buy a Malawi chair, hewn from a single sheet of rich African timber. A classic!

Days 18 - 23: Vic Falls
Crossing into land-locked Zambia, we stay at a pleasant campsite near the border, then drive via the capital, Lusaka, where we spend the night. Continuing to Victoria Falls, we enjoy time to make the most of the adrenaline playground of Africa. There are optional activities aplenty here including Zambezi white water rafting, bungy jumping from 111m and flights over the Falls in a variety of airborne machines! More sedate pursuits such as golf, day trips to the local croc farm and horse riding safaris are also available.

Day 24: Chobe National Park
Travelling east, we drive to neighbouring Botswana via Kasane. Bostwana has three of the world’s richest diamond mines and is one of the most stable countries in Africa. Interestingly, Kasane sits at the meeting point of four countries - Botswana, Zambia, Namibia and Zimbabwe! It’s also the gateway to the 11,000 sq. km Chobe National Park. Chobe supports a vast, protected elephant population and is home to a rich variety of species such as lion, cheetah, hippo, zebra and antelope. We enjoy a boat cruise and can opt to embark upon a morning game drive.

Days 25 - 28: Okavango Delta
We head to Maun, our base camp for the optional 3-day/2- night Okavango Delta excursion. Travelling in mokoros (dugout canoes)with local polers, witness the flora and fauna-rich wetlands by day and stay at island camps by night. Interspersing the idyllic canoe trip are game walks in the wilderness of the Delta - the world’s largest inland delta. An optional flight over the Delta is also available.

Days 29 - 30: Francistown
Francistown was originally a gold mining town, here we restock the truck. Crossing high and lowveld, we drive through the Northern Province of South Africa and overnight at a campsite, before nearing Kruger NP tomorrow.

Days 31 - 32: Kruger National Park
We continue our journey to Kruger NP. Stretching virtually all the way along the border with Mozambique, it’s said that Kruger, established in 1898 has the greatest variety of wildlife in Africa. Lion, elephant, leopard, cheetah, giraffe are present as are a profusion of herbivores. Our camp, located a stone’s throw from Kruger offers good facilities. You may have heard of the term ‘The Big Five’ being bandied about on nature programs. Today, they are the five animals which people most want to see whilst on safari. One hundred years ago in darkest Africa, amid the fabulously wealthy and smartly dressed pith helmet and khaki set, the fiercest and most dangerous animals; the animals that would hunt the hunter became known as the Big Five. These were the animals the rich set liked to bring back to camp from the killing fields. Slaughtering a lion was a good ‘gin & tonic’ story to regale to the chaps, The Big Five were and still are - the lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino and elephant. Today, of course, the hunting is done with camera lenses.

Day 33: Johannesburg
Saturday. Packing up camp, we continue by road to Johannesburg. Our late afternoon arrival in the city marks the end of our expedition.

PLEASE NOTE: Starting in Jo’burg, ending in Nairobi: This route offers the highlights of Zimbabwe instead of Botswana and the Delta: Leaving Johannesburg, we continue to Kruger NP. Spot the Big Five - lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino and elephant. We head up north towards Zimbabwe, stopping in Messina, our last night in South Africa. We make our way to the town of Masvingo, which lies on the outskirts of the Great Zimbabwe Ruins, the greatest medieval city in sub-Sahara which provides evidence that an ancient African society reached a very high level of civilization. Once we have finished exploring this historic area we continue our journey to Gweru, stopping over at the Antelope Park. Here you’ll have the opportunity to partake in an incredible and unique experience - ‘walking with lions’. From here, we visit Matobo National Park. Set amongst fascinating rock formations in an area known as the Matobo Hills (UNESCO-listed), the park is one of the last strongholds of both black and white rhino. Heading north we make our way to the mighty UNESCO listed Victoria Falls and continue with the reverse itinerary of the southbound trip from Nairobi to Vic Falls

Get a 3 day Masai Mara Safari and a  3 day Hwange Safari & Community Visit free!

If you’ve chosen an expedition that offers these trips FREE, congratulate yourself on an excellent choice! In order to qualify, be sure to secure your place one or both of these trips at the same time as placing your expedition booking. You are welcome to take advantage of this free offer on the specified start day featured below, either before or after your expedition. The trips are not redeemable in any other form or at any other time, than for the periods detailed below, and is non-transferable. In event of cancellation by you, no monetary value is applicable to trips for purpose of refund. Local payment is payable by all participants in US Dollars cash on day one of the trips. If unable to commence trips on start days provided below, an alternate start day can be nominated, but participant would be required to pay usual retail price. Applicable Start day: Pre camping expedition (both) - Start Thursday - End Saturday Post expedition (Hwange trip)- Start Monday - End Wednesday Post expedition (Masai Mara) - Start Sunday - End Tuesday  Masai Mara mini Safari 3 days  Hwange mini Safari 3 days