we are spending 3 nights in colmar + 5 nights in paris (leaving in the evening so it's 6 whole days).
for early april, should we spend 2 nights in reims or strasbourg? no car and travelling by public transport. we are not huge drinkers and prefer more scenic places.
also open to other suggestions that's logistically viable. thanks.
recently spent 11 days doing a self-drive trip in Namibia, and quite a few locals said that you can see the same thing in caprivi strip as botswana, but for drastically lower price. after doing some initial checks, that actually seems pretty accurate, because holy hell, Botswana is pricey.
I’m currently looking to head back down for late August / first week of September. I’m completely willing to spend for a great experience, but I am also value/cost-conscious — meaning I refuse to drop $3,000 USD a night just for a private plunge pool when its winter if a $2,000 camp is good enough.
Would love to hear from anyone who has actual experience in the Caprivi Strip, Hwange, or Mana Pools, especially if you’ve balanced that against a Botswana trip. Thanks.
Will the early morning be less crowded, or the special evening opening hours (like thursday evening for d'orsay)? I'm gonna be jetlagged so I'll probably be up at 5am paris time and be sleepy by 8pm. Thanks!
recently spent 11 days in Namibia, and quite a few locals said that you can see the same thing in caprivi strip as botswana, but for drastically lower price. after doing some initial checks, that actually seems pretty accurate, because holy hell, Botswana is pricey.
I’m currently looking to head back down for late August / first week of September (2027). I’m completely willing to spend for a great experience, but I am also value/cost-conscious — meaning I refuse to drop $3,000 a night just for a plunge pool when its winter if a $2,000 camp is good enough.
Would love to hear from anyone who has actual experience in the Caprivi Strip, Zimbabwe (Hwange/Mana Pools), especially if you’ve balanced that against a Botswana trip. Thanks.
recently spent 11 days doing a self-drive trip in Namibia, and quite a few locals said that you can see the same thing in caprivi strip as botswana, but for drastically lower price. after doing some initial checks, that actually seems pretty accurate, because holy hell, Botswana is pricey.
I’m currently looking to head back down for late August / first week of September. I’m completely willing to spend for a great experience, but I am also value/cost-conscious — meaning I refuse to drop $3,000 USD a night just for a private plunge pool when its winter if a $2,000 camp is good enough.
Would love to hear from anyone who has actual experience in the Caprivi Strip, Hwange, or Mana Pools, especially if you’ve balanced that against a Botswana trip. Thanks.
Disclaimer: Not a huge animal lover, likes activity and variety in my trips. Travel companion is into photography and likes being taken care of and happily proclaimed that this is far more comfortable than travelling in Europe or Asia. I would prefer a bit more autonomy but hey this was indeed very relaxing.
TLDR: Please visit Namibia if you love landscapes or love taking photos. Namibia is also very peaceful and calm. Would recommend to everyone who likes nature and it's (beautiful) Africa for beginners. Cape Town is very comfortable if you look past the racial politics (I'm not entirely sure if African Americans will enjoy Cape Town to be very honest; mods dont censor me for this) and the stark in your face issues surrounding the Cape Flats as you drive the N2 down to hit Somerset West.
Some Tips on Routing in Namibia:
Several agents like to send their well heeled clients on the standard 9-day "fly-over safari" in Namibia (Dunes → Rhino Camp → Andersons → Skeleton Coast). I don't know, man... if you are not hardcore on desert-adapted wildlife, it's a lot of sand. We saw an American couple in their 60s at both the start and end of their 9-day circuit, and by day 9 they just looked completely exhausted.
We added Swakopmund in the middle of our trip to enjoy some downtime and do a boat cruise, and I really liked it. Plus, mixing in a coastal town helps lower the average daily cost, so why not?
Anyway, our Namibia Itinerary:
Voigtland (1 night): Quick overnight near Windhoek to reset before heading out.
Wilderness Little Kulala (2 nights): Base for the dunes (Liked it). Hiked Big Daddy early (liked it). For some reason, Deadlevi was smaller than I had in my mind. There's now big tour busses at the more accessible dunes sigh.
Mowani Mountain Camp (2 nights): Damaraland was seriously amazing. No bus tourists like Dune 45 (sigh). Mad landscapes, and you can go hiking around the huge boulders to recover from the sedentary game drives. The desert adapted elephants are really lovely to sight too.
Swakopmund (2 nights): Great mid-trip decompression to visit the Sandwich Harbour 4x4 (take a motion sickness pill beforehand) and do a boat cruise to see the seals with a braai lunch on the beach.
Ongava Lodge (2 nights): A ton of rhinos. We saw 8 black rhinos with 4 mums and their pups at the watering hole in a single evening, followed by 4 white rhinos the next day, 2 lionesses during a sundowner drive, plus a herd of elephants passing through the concession.
Etosha National Park (Day visit from Ongava): Visited Etosha, but honestly there wasn't that much animal activity — Etosha is having massive roadworks this year and some watering holes only had antelopes even though it was July which should be prime season for animal sighting. We did see 2 lions, but it triggered a massive traffic congestion of large tour busses and self-drivers and was just not fun.
Winelands:
Mont Rochelle: Service and rooms were just ok. If I revisit, I’ll stay at Leeu Estates instead.
Babylonstoren: Pretty, and the farm-to-table concept is nice, but it’s flooded with tons of day tourists. Why pay that much money to sleep there when there’s no privacy? Just pay the 260 Rand day pass to visit during the day and stay somewhere else.
Delaire Graff: Only drove past this one — heads up that some of their "Valley Rooms" literally face the main road traffic. If you do stay there, make sure you book the Garden Rooms instead.
Rust en Vrede: Excellent red wine estate. Highly recommend their Winemaker Lunch.
Vergelegen: Owned by Anglo American. Wine was decent, but the historic estate grounds are a sight to behold.
La Petite Colombe: Service was lovely, but the food was fine.
Leeu Tasting Room: Mullineux Olerasay No 5 is the best desert wine I have tasted. We bought 4 bottles to ship back and now I am regretting that we didn't just get 2 boxes... The cheaper Straw Wine was completely sold out.
Cape Town:
Cape Grace: Very, very nice stay, highly recommended as a base on the waterfront.
Coy: Right at the waterfront. The weather wasn't so good so we didn't hike, but Coy was lovely—I actually preferred this over La Petite Colombe for half the price.
Disclaimer: Not a huge animal lover, likes activity and variety in my trips. Travel companion is into photography and likes being taken care of and happily proclaimed that this is far more comfortable than travelling in Europe or Asia. I would prefer a bit more autonomy but hey this was indeed very relaxing.
TLDR: Please visit Namibia if you love landscapes or love taking photos. Namibia is also very peaceful and calm. Would recommend to everyone who likes nature and it's (beautiful) Africa for beginners. Cape Town is very comfortable if you look past the racial politics (I'm not entirely sure if African Americans will enjoy Cape Town to be very honest; mods dont censor me for this) and the stark in your face issues surrounding the Cape Flats as you drive the N2 down to hit Somerset West.
Some Personal Tips on Routing in Namibia:
Several agents like to send clients on the standard 9-day "fly-over safari" in Namibia (Dunes → Rhino Camp → Andersons → Skeleton Coast). I don't know, man... if you are not hardcore on desert-adapted wildlife, it's a lot of sand. We saw an American couple in their 60s at both the start and end of their 9-day circuit, and by day 9 they just looked completely exhausted.
We added Swakopmund in the middle of our trip to enjoy some downtime and do a boat cruise, and I really liked it. Plus, mixing in a coastal town helps lower the average daily cost, so why not?
Take the fly-over Cessna safari if you can swing the budget and tolerate some mild turbulence. We flew everywhere in Namibia (5 legs total, each flight between 1h to 1.5h). Definitely fly from Etosha back to Windhoek because that 5-hour drive has not much scenery. The best scenic flight by far is from the dunes over to the coast — so pretty.
FYI, Namibia Itinerary:
Voigtland (1 night): Quick overnight near Windhoek to reset before heading out.
Wilderness Little Kulala (2 nights): Base for the dunes (Liked it). Hiked Big Daddy early (liked it). For some reason, Deadlevi was smaller than I had in my mind.
Mowani Mountain Camp - Mountain Suite (2 nights): Damaraland was seriously amazing. No bus tourists like Dune 45 (sigh). Mad landscapes, and you can actually go hiking around the huge boulders to recover from the sedentary game drives. The desert adapted elephants are really lovely to sight too.
Swakopmund (2 nights): Great mid-trip decompression to visit the Sandwich Harbour 4x4 (take a motion sickness pill beforehand) and do a boat cruise to see the seals with a braai lunch on the beach.
Ongava Lodge (2 nights): A ton of rhinos. We saw 8 black rhinos with 4 mums and their pups at the watering hole in a single evening, followed by 4 white rhinos the next day, 2 lionesses during a sundowner drive, plus a herd of elephants passing through the concession.
Etosha National Park (Day visit): Visited Etosha, but honestly there wasn't that much animal activity — they had roadworks and some watering holes only had antelopes even though it was July. We did see 2 lions, but it triggered a massive traffic congestion of large tour busses and self-drivers and was just not fun. Stick to private concessions like Ongava.
Winelands:
Mont Rochelle: Service and rooms were just ok. If I revisit, I’ll stay at Leeu Estates instead.
Babylonstoren: Pretty, and the farm-to-table concept is nice, but it’s flooded with tons of day tourists. Why pay that much money to sleep there when there’s no privacy? Just pay the 260 Rand day pass to visit during the day and stay somewhere else.
Delaire Graff: Only drove past this one — heads up that some of their "Valley Rooms" literally face the main road traffic. If you do stay there, make sure you book the Garden Rooms instead.
Rust en Vrede: Excellent red wine estate. Highly recommend their Winemaker Lunch.
Vergelegen: Owned by Anglo American. Wine was decent, but the historic estate grounds are a sight to behold.
La Petite Colombe: Service was lovely, but the food was fine.
Leeu Tasting Room: Mullineux Olerasay No 5 is the best desert wine I have tasted. We bought 4 bottles to ship back and now I am regretting that we didn't just get 2 boxes... The cheaper Straw Wine was completely sold out.
Cape Town:
Cape Grace: Very, very nice stay, highly recommended as a base on the waterfront.
Coy: Right at the waterfront. The weather wasn't so good so we didn't hike, but Coy was lovely—I actually preferred this over La Petite Colombe for half the price.
-----
We paid our local Namibia agent $20k USD for the two of us (note that this is peak season in Namibia). If anyone is interested for the agent, DM me. After accounting for our spending in Cape Town and some perhaps excessive wine purchases, the total trip came out to $30k USD.
Would 100% do it again.
Hi everyone
I’m planning a 11-day trip to France for 3 people in April. We will not have a car.
Our current outline is:
* **Days 1-2 (Sat-Sun):** Unknown! Trying to decide where to spend these first two nights.
* **Days 3-6 (Mon-Thu):** Colmar. Staying at Maison des Têtes (would love feedback on this hotel, or alternative recommendations). Plans include Riquewihr - Hunawihr - Ribeauvillé hike and visiting Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg.
* **Days 7-11 (Fri-Tue):** Paris (full days).
We want to avoid adding those 2 days to Paris because 7 days might feel like a bit much for my travel companions, and Paris is quite expensive. We are tossing up between reims and lyon. Also open to any other hidden gems on the train route that we are overlooking.
Thanks in advance for your help!
Bringing 58 year old relatively fit mum for her first time in France (11-12 nights), flying in and out from CDG. So Paris is certainly in order for maybe around 5-6 days. Thinking of stacking the rest of the trip with something that is more scenic and countryside. We wouldn't be driving. Tentatively looking at staying at Alsace for 3 nights and doing some hiking between the villages. So now we still have 3-4 more nights and I've got no clue how to fill them. Was looking at the French Alps but not sure if mid April will be a good time and then the traveling seems like a hastle.