I spent two weeks exploring Makgadikgadi Pans, Okavango Delta and Chobe National Park. I went on safaris and saw plenty of wildlife such as elephants, cheetahs, lions and hyenas.. just to name a few. I enjoyed the beautiful scenery around me and took in every second I could. I also experienced the culture around me by staying in multiple lodges and talking to the lodge staff.
Beautiful Botswanan sunset (Kassi Magruder)Safari schedule is something I hadn't ever experienced before. It is very much organized around two factors:
1) Wildlife is most active in the early morning and in the late afternoon - evening
2) For part of the year, it's hot as hell in the middle of the day
That means that most days are organized as follows:
Up between 5-5:30 AM every day for quick breakfast
First morning game drive at 5:30-6:00 with coffee/snack break in the middle, then back at the lodge around 11:30 AM for lunch
Siesta until around 3:30, then High Tea
Afternoon game drive/activity starting at 4:30 - Sundowners at around 6:30 pm - Arriving back to lodge around 7:30 pm
Dinner at the lodge, then SLEEP!
Siesta is an important component of safaris. That time is taken to cool down in the pool, read a book, take a nap and then another cool dip in the pool or perhaps a shower. It's also used to fly between lodges if you are moving accommodations. The schedule all runs like clockwork.
Our agent Jessica was very helpful with the whole process and always responded in a timely way to all of our questions.
K Van
2 days ago
Chern was very patient snd helpful.
CaBaba
3 days ago
Cruse ship was great. Fantastic food and service. Cruise itinary got changed so not what we expected, but not an major issue. Japan portion was great. Drivers/guides arranged by 80 Days were great. Hotels were mostly ok. Did not know that most hotels outside of major cities do not allow shoes to be worn in the hotel. again a minor inconvenience. Overall a great trip. Adventure Life communications were timely and much appreciated as far as changes/requests.
Peter Goff
4 days ago
We were a group of three that initiated our research by independently searching for the best agency to help us in the somewhat complex experience of traveling to the Galapagos. We chose adventure life because they were the most responsive in the website provided the most comprehensive overview of the trip. Their reviews were also very good.
Adventure, life splits up its booking process in two parts. First Jeff, the booking agent helped us decide which experience best suited are interests. We chose a small 14 to 16 group sized yacht. Once the booking was made with Jeff, we were handed off to Coleene, who oversaw the complex process of assembling all of the necessary documents and making sure we had everything we needed to make the trip go smoothly. The adventure, life website, then becomes your personal place of reference for all things related to your trip from door to door. It’s a lot of information to assemble, especially for three travelers, but the website makes it easy and Colleen‘s gentle reminders kept us on track. In all, from the beginning, we had four months from the time we started our research till the time we departed. We felt that was, a good amount of preparation time and don’t think it would be wise to do it in less than four months. Mostly because I think you have more options with that amount of time. There were others on our trip that took six months and more from the time they started planning.
The trip itself was outstanding. We ended up on an excellent yacht (Galapagos Angel II) with a great group of guests that we were able to connect with and put together a really nice google photos album to share.
Jed
1 week ago
Mary was very helpful. Quick to reply with helpful information and closure on arrangements.