Ericka

When Mr. Ericka and I went as a couple, we did South Africa (Singita Ebony) and Botswana (Jao & King's Pool, both Wilderness Safaris). While the Botswana Wilderness Safaris properties were both truly magical and we recommend them to nearly everyone, they were more remote and required more transfers, tiny planes, etc.

I know from a previous thread that you and your husband are dealing with some mobility issues and some dimentia. So I'm guessing you're going to be more interested in ease of transfer and safety than on which animals you see.

Most safari lodges have elevated walkways so a few steps are to be expected. But we're not talking Amanpuri-type steps, just a few here and there. And there can be a bit of climbing to get into the safari vehicles but the major safari operations like Singita cater to seniors so I'm sure they know how to handle that. They also have 24 hour armed guards around the properties to keep the lions from getting too familiar. Those same guards could be asked to keep an eye on your tent/lodge and your husband in particular.

Of the luxury ones that I am most familiar with....

* Singita South Africa - Easy transfer from Johannesburg. Very good all around game viewing. Solid, well established product that would be set up to cater to disabilities and older age groups. Plus two main areas that you could easily transfer between for game diversity.

* Four Seasons, Tanzania Serengetti - Ease of transfer, (I'm guessing here based on the brand name) catering to older age groups and disabilities. I've never been myself, but the reviews make it sound great.

I'm hardly the safari expert on the forum , but these are probably the "mainstream" luxury options. And I would think of them as being safer and not too remote.

lb8001

I heartily agree with ericka's comments about Singita, KatW - I think you'd both be comfortable and safe and also get to see some wonderful creatures.

DrGiggles

100% agree that you'd find singita more of what you're looking for. i would STRESS that you want a room closer to the main lodge. At the singita resorts i've stayed at the room layout is basically linear and some of the farther rooms (particularly at lebombo) are probably a 10min walk at a brisk pace.

sugarbird

My wife and I have done Mala Mala Rattrays and Mombo in Botswana. Rattrays was very luxurious--the game viewing was very good--big 5 every day!!
But----Mombo blows your mind--the game viewing is impossible to beat--the camp is not as lux--but the game viewing is "wow".
It would seem that you need to choose between ultra luxury with very good game viewing --or very good accommodations with outstanding game viewing.

wripro

Which is why it's smart to combine one to lodges in each, SA and Botswana.

MacMyDay

I'm pleased to see the discussions going on here, as it's reconfirmed what I've been told by some TAs. For Sep '17, I was looking at Ellerman House, Singita Boulders, Singita Lebombo and then Little Mombo or Abu Camp, depending on availability.

KatW

Thanks for all this super helpful info. I'm currently thinking of splitting the trip between Singita Boulders and Singita Sweni, working with RhinoAfrica to manage the details. Will build in two days at the start of the trip to recover from jet lag. Assume we'll be flying into and out of Johannesburg. Advice as to easiest way to do that from SFO?

lb8001

If you want to fly first, I know you have assorted options - Lufthansa thru FRA, Emirates thru Abu Dhabi, Air France thru CDG, BA thru LHR. Probably some others too - maybe Cathay thru HKG.

KI-NRT

I've travelled to JNB numerous times from SFO, which is also our home airport. Assuming you're a United/Star Alliance person like me, and you're looking to book award flights, some of your 1-stop options would include:

SFO->FRA->JNB. UA or LH to FRA, then LH or SA to JNB.
SJC->FRA->JNB. Both on LH
SFO->MUC->JNB. LH to MUC, then SA to JNB
SFO->ZRH->JNB. Both on LX
SFO->IST->JNB. Both on TK
SFO->LHR->JNB. UA to LHR, then SA to JNB.
SFO->IAD->JNB. UA, then SA. This I wouldn't recommend, as the flight to Dulles is a Domestic First (i.e. recliner) seat. And, the flight to JNB has a fuel stop in Dakar halfway through the flight (I won't go into detail here, but it's a pain in the rear.)
SFO->IAD/FRA/VIE/LHR/EWR->ADD->JNB. All flights to ADD would be on ET, then ADD->JNB would be on either ET or SA. This isn't recommended, as it's a 2-stop itinerary, and many of ET's 787/777 planes have angle-flat biz seats. I'm only mentioning it here because ET generally seems to have the most premium award seat availability.

The other routing that is often available is via GRU (Sao Paulo.) SFO->IAH/ORD/EWR/IAD->GRU->JNB. This is highly undesirable because lounges are often still closed at GRU upon arrival from the states, and it's a ~7 or 14 hour layover (depending on the SA flight you get.) Still, it's better than flying in the back of the bus!

KatW

Excellent info. I have some 447,000 FF miles on Virgin so will juggle dates to make them turn into two round trip upper class fares SFO/LHR/JNB.

Speaking of dates, the February-April time frame suggests itself. Opinions about weather/ game viewing at that time in Boulders and Sweni?

KatW

Further research offers these options and I would be grateful for any firsthand experiences of same, or informed knowledge:
-- Micato for arranging/managing travel with SA
-- Tswalu in the Kalahari

Itinerary of Singita Boulders and Tswalu, four nights each; extra two days on the front end in Johannesburg to tamp down jet lag, possibly at the Saxon.

wripro

Be aware that there is construction going on in front of Ellerman House which will affect some views so be sure to check on that before booking.

wripro

Definitely do the Saxon.

Ericka

I believe that's Emerald Season, which is a nice way of saying rain. The foliage is lush and green and game viewing is more difficult. I'm sure it's beautiful, but we chose to go in early September to better our game viewing.

Altocumulus

We went to Tswalu in fall 2014 and loved it. The landscape is quite different to most other SA locations, out on the edge of the Talahari. And you really feel the remoteness as it is a huge private reserve and only this one (12-suite?) lodge is on it. It has some unusual game I haven't seen elsewhere (eg there are pangolins; you can walk around in a meerkat colony; we drove along with a wild dog chase (yes I know they have wild dogs elsewhere in SA but it's still pretty special). Our guide was exceptional (had won several high profile ranger awards and was also a professional wildlife photographer, which really helped our photography from that trip!). We had him and our own tracker in a private vehicle for the duration of our stay. He actually met us in JNB and flew out to Tswalu with us.

Staff were great and made a big effort. We had our almost-3-year-old with us and they made sure he had a great time. Our guide and tracker did fun stuff for him out on our game drives, like making plaster casts of lion footprints etc. And when our son wanted to sit a couple drives out, (when we planned to drive long distances after particular game) an excellent and delightful babysitter was there (the same one each time) with very little notice. Our son still talks about her

We had a family suite which had loads of space, with an additional separate bedroom for our son. To be honest I don't remember much about the food (which probably means it was fine but not stellar). I do remember a beautiful barbeque out on the crest of a sand dune one night.

Let me know if you have any specific Tswalu questions.

And yes, do the Saxon in Joburg