Beginners Safari - Step 1: Little Okavango Camp

I'll be honest, I was a bit apprehensive about doing a safari for my honeymoon. It was never a holiday that appealed to me, until I started working at Travel Counsellors. Hearing the feedback from clients who visited and seeing their amazing photos and videos had me hooked!

So, at the beginning of Feb, we put our brave faces on and headed on an adventure of a lifetime.

Located 2 hours from Mwanza, on the edge of the western gate of the Serengeti is Little Okavango Camp. With the Serengeti on your right, you turn off the main road, down some dirt tracks into the bush. Suddenly you arrive at the small and intimate camp (just 5 rooms) and you are in a little bit of heaven. The camp is so serene and the most impressive birdlife.

First impressions of the lodge were great - a four poster king sized bed, plenty of space for luggage and a fully operational bathroom. I was immediately impressed. I thought living in the bush was going to be hard ;)

After a lovely lunch, we headed out on a ‘mtumbwe’ (a local canoe) and we were rowed down the nearby narrow water channels that lead out to Lake Victoria. The boat ride was beautiful – tall papyrus grasses, prolific birdlife and just so peaceful.

When we headed back to camp, dinner was set up by the campfire and we enjoyed a beautiful 3 course meal by candlelight. Once dinner was finished, we indulged in a bit of ‘Bush TV’ by the campfire, stargazing and enjoying the sounds of the wildlife.

It was an early morning start the next morning as we headed off to a local fishing village to learn about the local Sukuma tribe. The men go to out fish on Lake Victoria and the women sell the fish at the local market. It’s fascinating to see them barter and humbling to see how Lake Victoria is such a lifeline to the local villages – both in terms of commerce but also drinking water and sanitation.

We enjoyed a boat ride on Lake Victoria (the size of Ireland!!) and slowly made our way back to camp. We had a surprise stop at the viewing tower, where breakfast was served , with a stunning view over the Serengeti and Lake Victoria. What an experience!

In the late afternoon, once the temperature had cooled down, we headed out on bikes to explore the local villages and we even ended up at the edge of the Serengeti, where we saw wildebeest, zebras and giraffe. We were so excited to get stuck into the safari the next morning.

To be continued…

For more photos and videos, please check the highlights on my Instagram @lisakingtravelcounsellors