Congratulations! You have planned and booked your bucket-list trip to South Africa to enjoy a Safari. Here’s some basic information to get you prepared.
What to pack: Your time at Morukuru Family Madikwe will be casual so you can keep your luggage light and uncomplicated. Early morning and evening drives will be cooler and you will need a decent jacket, a couple of warm layers, beanie, and gloves in the winter months and a lighter layer for the summer ones. Our team will supply blankets and hot water bottles to turn up the heat during the cold. Once the sun is up over the horizon you will want to lose the layers and have your essentials like sunscreen, wide brim hat and sunglasses on hand.
Know Your Fives - Big Five, Small Five and Ugly Five: Back in the day when trophy-hunting was an acceptable practice, hunters coined the term “Big Five”. This described the five most dangerous animals to hunt on foot namely lion, leopard, elephant, buffalo and rhino. Nowadays the Big Five refers to the five most revered animals wildlife enthusiasts hope to see while on safari.
The “Little Five” highlights five miniature creatures that bear the same namesakes as their mighty counterparts: the ant lion, leopard tortoise, elephant shrew, buffalo weaver and rhino beetle. There is also a group of animals known as the “Ugly Five”.The members of this exclusive club are the hyena, wildebeest, vulture, warthog and marabou stork. It’s good to remember that your time in the bush will include sightings of a wide range of animals - including birds and reptiles too.
Gamedrives - what to expect: You can look forward to two gamedrives each day. One early in the morning and one late in the afternoon. These times are the optimum game-viewing opportunities as animals are most active just before sunrise and after sunset. Plus you can experience the magic of an early morning African sunrise and a spectacular African sunset with glorious, flaming colours. But, at Morukuru Family Madikwe you set the pace and we will adapt the timings of the activities to your personal preferences. Before setting out at dawn, you will be served steaming hot tea and coffee as well as a nibble like home baked,traditional South African rusks. This will keep you going until you stop for a coffee-stop when you can refuel. Before heading out in the late afternoon you can enjoy afternoon tea with some freshly baked treats like our legendary Honey Cake. Evening drives include a sundowner pause when you can witness the true beauty of the sunset with your favourite ice-cold beverage in hand and some bush-style canapes.
What to do at your private safari house:: When you are not exploring the bush in a game drive vehicle you can enjoy other activities such as a guided bush walk with one of our experienced ranger and tracker teams. Or you can simply relax by the pool, enjoy a good book or catch up on some sleep. Your trip is a holiday after all and now’s the time to just do nothing except listen to the sounds of the bush and reconnect with your loved ones.
