Self drive safari

Our fellow follower, Trin is planning a self-drive safari in South Africa for some time in the future, Legion of Fans (LOF) and she has emailed me a couple of questions.

Fortunately, she also suggested that I might make some tips for self drive holidays the subject of a new blog post. I say fortunately, because I couldn't think what to post next.

I'm often asked for travel tips - almost as often as I'm asked where I get the inspiration for the sex scenes in my books. "No comment" is the answer to the second line of questioning, so here goes with some responses to the first:

Trin: Is it safe for two females, (ages deleted), to be travelling in a car on the roads (in South Africa) on their own?

Mr Blog: Trin, this depends very much on what you're drinking in the car, and how much of it you've had prior to lunch. Far be it for me to be a scare mongerer, but Johannesburg has a justifiable reputation for high levels of violent crime and car jackings.

Unless you have a pressing need to drive around downtown Joburg with an upside down travel atlas perched on your lap while looking for Nelson Mandela's house, I'd suggest spending as little time there as possible. Crime aside, I find it quite a daunting city to drive around because of the amount of traffic (especially the minibus taxis whose interpretation of the rules of the road is at best 'creative') and the speed at which it travels.

As a general pointer about road safety one thing that astounded me as an Australian on my first visit was how fast people travel in SA. The roads are, generally speaking, very good, and 120kph is a common speed limit (or, if you're a local, a recommended minimum speed).

If you're heading to the Kruger National Park (as I strongly suggest you do) then the good news is that Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport is on the eastern side of the city (the same side as Kruger), so it's quite easy to pick up a rental car and exit from the car park virtually straight onto the main road network. You can tour South Africa by road and not even see Joburg. (What do you think, Jozi-ites? Should Trin venture downtown?).

One thing I would add here is that if you have to (for whatever reason) venture into Johannesburg itself that you rent a GPS. It's not the sort of city in which you want to be pulling over and asking strangers for directions - unless you're armed.

Trin: Are the parks safe as far as animals of the human variety go?

Mr Blog: Very much so, Trin. Kruger, in particular, remains a very safe destination and in the event that something did go wrong there is even a police station at Skukuza.

Trin: If we were not part of a tour group, are there opportunities to join one, say, for the day, when they go out viewing? If not, how would we go about this – do the parks provide guided day trips or the like?

Mr Blog: The attraction of a self-drive Safari in Kruger or one of South Africa's other national parks is viewing game on your own. It's incredibly exciting going out and not having any idea where you're going or what you're going to see. Trust me - I'm addicted to this sort of thing.

I doubt you'd be able to get onto a private tour that's already in the park (unless you flirt outrageously with the tour guide). Seriously - probably not.

In Kruger, the national parks staff run guided morning and night drives, and morning walks, if you decide you want to go out with someone else.

Honestly, I wouldn't bother with a morning drive (you can do that yourself any day), but a night drive can be fun. Self-drive tourists aren't allowed out of the camps on the park roads after sunset, so a guided national parks night drive is the best way to see nocturnal animals.

Morning walks are also lots of fun. A group of up to eight tourists goes out with two armed guides walking for about three-four hours. Pretoriuskop Camp in the south of Kruger is my favourite place to do a walk as you're virtually guaranteed to see rhino during the walk (as exciting, but not as dangerous as it sounds).

Trin: Are people who camp in the parks friendly ie. would we feel welcome to but in on their evening’s festivities?

Mr Blog: I have found South African locals to be some of the friendliest people in the world. If I may be so bold as to indulge in a bit of racial/cultural stereotyping I would add here that Afrikaans speaking people can sometimes seem a little reserved and formal at first, but once you break the ice with them they are the most generous bunch of party animals you'll come across.

Trin: Would two weeks be enough without feeling like we’d rushed it, or would more time be better? We are both early risers and like to pack as much into the day as possible, but also have time to chill out.

Mr Blog: I could live in the bush, and I spend six months of the year mostly camping in national parks. It's not unusual for Mrs B and I spend three months in Kruger alone.

Having said that, I understand not everyone can skive off like me (I mean, work very hard writing books). I'd recommmend you allow at least a week for Kruger.

The gates of the rest camps where you'll be staying open around dawn (the time varies on the time of the year). Mrs B and I like to go out for a three hour-ish drive, then come back and veg out (I mean work) for the rest of the day. There a swimming pools in many of the camps and lots of shady trees to chill out under. Even if you want to spend the whole day out driving there are picnic sites where you can stop for a break and a light meal.

If you're thinking of seeing a bit more of South Africa apart from Kruger that will very much depend on the total time you have. Internal airfares in South South Africa are pretty good value (especially if you book online) so you could maybe drive out to Kruger and then back to Joburg Airport, then fly down to Cape Town, pick up another hire car, and spend a few days poodling around there.

What do you think, LOF? If you're an Aussie who's been to SA why not share your tips, or if you're a lekker local, tell us how you'd spend a couple of weeks in the Rainbow Nation...