PRACTICAL & PROVEN

The questions you should ask

When to go. What to pack. What flying between camps actually involves. Visa rules, malaria realities, packing weights. Useful answers, written without the marketing voice.

Read these before you book anything

HOW WE THINK ABOUT THESE

We answer the question, then the next one

Most safari planning advice online is written to rank on Google. It hedges. It never tells you what is actually true. We write the opposite. If a region is worse in March, we say so. If a lodge is overpriced for what it offers, we say so. If a transfer route is bumpy and four hours long, we put that in the first paragraph.

Some of these are short answers, the kind you read on your phone in a queue. Others are longer because the question deserves it. Cost. Season. Comparison. Logistics. Health. The pieces that turn a vague idea into a confirmed booking.

30 pieces

Browse the guides

Aerial view of the Okavango Delta channels and palm islands at sunset

Guides

What a Botswana safari actually costs (and why it's the most expensive in Africa)

Botswana costs more than any other safari country in Africa. The reason is not greed. It is policy. Here is how the pricing actually breaks down, what each tier gets you, and why we still send most of our clients here.

Vikki Jackson

Wheelchair accessible safaris in Africa

Guides

Wheelchair accessible safaris in Africa

A practical guide to wheelchair accessible safari destinations and lodges across Africa, from Kruger to the Okavango Delta.

Vikki Jackson

Tarangire: Tanzania's other great safari park

Guides

Tarangire: Tanzania's other great safari park

Huge elephant herds, ancient baobabs, and very few crowds. Here's why we include Tarangire in nearly every northern Tanzania itinerary.

Vikki Jackson

When to go to Namibia on safari

Guides

When to go to Namibia on safari

Not every season delivers the same Namibia. Here's how to match your travel dates to what you actually want from this extraordinary country.

Vikki Jackson

Sabi Sand Game Reserve: South Africa's leopard country

Guides

Sabi Sand Game Reserve: South Africa's leopard country

The Sabi Sand has the highest leopard density of any protected area in South Africa. Here's what makes it genuinely different, and how we plan trips here.

Vikki Jackson

What a luxury safari in South Africa actually costs

Guides

What a luxury safari in South Africa actually costs

What you're really paying for on a luxury safari in South Africa: nightly rates, private concessions, charter flights, and total trip budgets.

Vikki Jackson

Botswana with kids: why families keep coming back

Guides

Botswana with kids: why families keep coming back

Botswana is one of Africa's most rewarding destinations for families. Here's what makes it work, and how to plan it well.

Vikki Jackson

When to go on safari in Botswana

Guides

When to go on safari in Botswana

The Delta has two good seasons. They are completely different trips

Sian Loehrer

How to plan a luxury safari in South Africa

Guides

How to plan a luxury safari in South Africa

A working guide to building a trip you won't regret

Vikki Jackson

A hippo yawning

Guides

When to go on safari in South Africa

The bush wears a different face every month, and some are kinder than others

Vikki Jackson

Namibia or Botswana, which safari should you choose

Guides

Namibia or Botswana, which safari should you choose

Red dunes and distance, or water and density

Vikki Jackson

Botswana or Zambia, which safari should you choose

Guides

Botswana or Zambia, which safari should you choose

One country is water. The other is silence under your boots

Vikki Jackson

WHEN YOU HAVE READ ENOUGH

We will plan the rest

A good guide saves an hour. A planner saves a week. Once you have a sense of where and when, send us what you are thinking. We will pressure-test it and come back with the version that works.

Start with a conversation

Write to us

One of us will write back.

Replies come from Vikki or Sian. No obligation, just a conversation.

Prefer to write to us directly? sian@marulahill.com · WhatsApp +27 82 459 0648