GREAT REASONS FOR GREEN SEASON

However, this is not the case at all, low /wet /green/baby/birding season is also an incredible time to come to the bush. The lush green foliage provides a beautiful backdrop to the ever-present wildlife! As you can see from the nicknames there are many reasons why this season continues to attract clients.

The rainy season lasts typically from December to May (we are closed Jan-April) but for anyone that has lived or visited Africa in these months you will know a shower typically doesn’t last more than a few hours, it comes down hard and fast then the sun shines through the rainbows after. The romance of watching a storm cross the horizon, the flashes of lightning from the comfort of your bed is truly quite romantic. Take a bottle of wine from the bar and enjoy the storm from the privacy of your room, cuddled up in the safety of your couch or bed with your loved one! The fresh smell of the rain, the animals who come out to sunbathe and dry off as well as the inevitable rainbows after are not to be missed. It is truly a time to indulge the senses. If you are after adventure, love birds, baby animals, sightings to yourself, cheaper safaris and the abundance of water then green season might just be for you! Read below to find out more!

PRICING

The green season is cheaper than high season, the low season prices dramatically reduce the overall cost of your trip. From the lodge to the flights, it is much cheaper to travel away from the high season, school holidays and international holidays. The demand for rooms and fights is lower so often in an attempt to attract tourists the places drop their prices. The same great service is ensured just at a more competitive price! If you are on a budget then come during the quieter months, you can even pretend you have rented a whole camp just for yourselves for an absolute bargain! 

EXCLUSIVE AND SECLUSIVE

This is the time you will get sightings all to yourself, vehicles and camp all to yourself and feel as though you are the only ones in the park! At Msandile we are lucky that we have access to both Nsefu and Mfuwe sectors of the park, the quieter Nsefu allowing exclusive sightings and the busier Mfuwe offering a chance to see any sightings we haven’t yet captured on your trip, with an abundance of lodges and guides here once the animal is found the jungle drums let us know exactly where to join the action. During green season you often have even the busier areas of the park to yourself which means you can stay at the sighting all day if you really want. Enjoy dips in your “private pool” enjoy delicious dinners from your “private chef” and walk about camp all to yourself! If you want to beat the crowds and truly feel like you are exploring nature as it should be this is the time to visit. 

BIRDS

Ok birds are not everyone's favourite but hear me out! The sign of a true bush lover is an evolving twitcher. It all starts with a love of the ‘exciting’ big game, usually the cats! Then you realize they sleep 20/24 hours a day and whilst those 4 hours can be exciting to watch you start to notice the smaller animals and the flying ones! With over 450 species there are some incredible opportunities to learn more about our feathered friends! Did you know the bush shrike hunts its prey then sticks it on the thorns of the Acacia tree like some sort of kebab buffet! The hornbills lock themselves away in tree holes shedding all their feathers in order to incubate their eggs with the male feeding them from a small hole until mum and babies emerge in spring? The snake eagles have touch scaly legs with little blood supply so that if the snake bites them the venom won't affect them? Then there are the migrants, kingfishers, birds of prey, colourful parrots, vultures, song birds, the list is endless and so are the stories and behaviours. The flashy males in breeding season with their colour variations, unusual ostentatious plumage, dances and songs all provide endless entertainment. The king fishers and pel's fishing owls dive in and out of the abundant river as they make the most of the fish, and so tell me more you say… you see birds they may not be at the top of your list but they should be on it!  

BABIES

 Is there anything cuter than animal babies, the cubby little hippos, the fluffy little lions, the hilariously clumsy elephants? Then there are the endless baby impala hopping around testing their little spindly legs as they hurry to catch up with mum. Watch as the babies suckle, play and learn how to hone in their skills as they grow up to one day be independent from mum. Most of the animals have babies at similar times; the prey, safety in numbers and the predators, an abundance of prey. It can be cute yet brutal to watch, the predators take full advantage of the weaker less knowledgeable babies picking them off as snacks, however the predators’ babies are in turn just as vulnerable. As the adults go off to hunt the babies are vulnerable to smaller predators such as hyenas and even baboons. It is a tense time where you aren’t sure who to root for! 

PHOTOGRAPHY

What could be better than the backdrop of lush green foliage, flowers blooming, water running, bright skies and dramatic lighting! The colourful backdrops add new dimensions to your pictures, the two tones of the amber lions and green grass, the peering eyes of the leopard peeking through the sausage tree, and the unsuspecting impala below! You will get the unique chance at the animals in the rain photos, the rain splashes adding texture and depth to your shots, the movement of the water creating drama. 

WEATHER

One minute the sun is shining, blue skies the next a heavy shower as the dramatic sky turns gray, black and dark blue the clouds come rolling over, the crack of thunder and flash of lightning as the dusty soils are once again nourished. But why would I want to go to the rains I’m escaping from! True but the rains come in thick and fast and then they leave, plenty of that famous African sun to bathe at your will, dip in the pool and enjoy the usual scenes we dream of when we think of African safari! The storms last usually only a few hours where you can sit back and enjoy the show, drink in hand before you continue on your journey again! After the rains the animals come back out putting on a show to dry off and re mark their territories! Sounds a bit better than cranking up the ever-expensive heating at home huddled in the dreary cold gray waiting for summer…! Sounds good doesn’t it! Don’t hesitate to book now and snap up your dream trip!