Why Visit Africa? 12 Reasons That Have Nothing to Do with a Bucket List

54 countries, 1.5 billion people (about 18% of the global population), long rivers, pristine beaches, snow-capped mountains, massive waterfalls, iconic wildlife reservations, the Big 5, leopards, gorillas, old wine farms, new wine farms, 5-star restaurants, sassy street food vendors, crazy traffic, elephant road blocks…

First-time visitors are often blown away by the sheer variety of things to see and do, and returning visitors keep coming back because 2 weeks is just not enough time to see and do it all.

Africa is home to some of the most out-of-this-world travel experiences, and once you’ve had that solo road trip through the Namib Desert, been on that adventure holiday through the Okavango Delta, or watched as a herd of wildebeest and zebra thunder across the Serengeti, you’ll understand why our list of 12 reasons to visit Africa could actually be a whole lot longer.

There are Tropical Beaches and Places Worthy of the Title “Paradise”

Places like the Seychelles are often mentioned on tropical holiday destination guides, but there are other places that are competing for those top spots.

Zanzibar, an island off the coast of Tanzania, is one of them.

The island covers a total area of between 2 462 to 2 643 square kilometres and most of it is palm trees and white sands, with the exception of Stone Town, a bustling hub where you can find some of the best restaurants, including Forodhani Gardens, where you can tuck into samosas and seafood cooked on skewers, and Silk Route, which is popular for its Indian cuisine so authentic that some travellers say that it is better than food made in India.

Aside from Zanzibar, you’ll also find several of Africa’s best beaches a little further south, in Mozambique.

Mesmerising Sunrises and Sunsets

You can watch the sun rise and set around the world, and you will never find a more beautiful display than you will see in Africa, especially in winter.

Perhaps it is the clear, mostly unpolluted skies that are common in most African holiday destinations, like the Masai Mara, or maybe it’s because when you are on holiday you actually have the time to slow down and pay attention, but the sun is just different here.

That’s perhaps also why Africa is the home of the sundowner. Because sipping a drink while toasting the setting sun, thanking it for a spectacular day, just makes sense.

Complete and Utter Privacy 

The world is huge and yet most of us live in places that feel crowded.

In Africa, you will travel through, explore, and stay in wide-open spaces.

Lodges and camps also go out of their way to give guests complete privacy, so that your trip is a personal, intimate experience rather than one interrupted by a noisy neighbour.

That sense of privacy is not limited to accommodation.

Most holiday destinations worth going to are remote and marketed as secluded. These places cater to only a few guests at a time and are set up specifically to give guests the most exclusive experience.

All of this makes Africa a great place to go if you are a honeymooning couple or anyone tired of the over hyped and overcrowded tourist-trap destinations.

Bewilderingly Beautiful Night Skies

There was once a time when no matter where you were in the world, once the sun set, the skies lit up with the millions of stars and smattering of planets that make up the Milky Way.

But with light pollution now covering much of the developed world, many people have forgotten what the night skies are supposed to look like.

In Africa, especially in places like Namibia and the Sahara, the night is so dark and so clear that our galaxy is on full display, and it is so mesmerising, so bewilderingly beautiful, that one cannot help but be entranced to the point that it is hard to look away.

The night skies are certainly one of the best reasons why you should visit Africa. Everyone should see the night like this, at least once.

Wildlife and Encounters with Exceptional People

It doesn’t matter how many generations of travellers pass through Africa; the single biggest reason travellers give for visiting the continent is the wildlife.

Africa is home to an extraordinary number of wildlife species, in extraordinary population numbers.

Down south, you’ll see lion, elephant (recently rated the second most desired wildlife sighting on the planet), cheetah, leopard, oryx, hippo, rhino, crocodile, and so many more iconic safari species, while in the central countries, you can have encounters with gorillas and dozens of varieties of quaint and unusual primates.

And further north, despite it being dry, remote and somewhat desolate, you can see wildlife like the Ethiopian wolf, the fennec fox, addax and several interesting desert-adapted mammals, not to mention a host of bird life.

Aside from the wildlife, you’ll also meet exceptionally interesting people, some who live according to the old ways and others who are modern but still in touch with their heritage.

Delicious Food

Food is a celebration in Africa.

From the preparation to the dining, meals are treated as a delicious event and in most cases, a social occasion. In South Africa, people come together on weekends to braai (cooking on an open wood fire while socialising with friends and family), and in many other parts of Africa, food is prepared and shared in similar ways.

The flavours of the food in Africa are deep and indulgent.

This continent doesn’t do bland.

Most ingredients are locally sourced, and recipes are inspired by the unique fusion of indigenous cultures with the cultures and traditions of those whose ancestors settled on the continent hundreds of years ago.

Each meal is an experience, and Africans are big on meat, so come prepared and hungry.

Proud, Unique Cultures

The history of the African continent has been a bloody one, fraught with wars, colonisation, tribal fighting and hardship.

And yet none of this has managed to dampen the passion and pride of the people who live here.

The cultures of Africa are incredibly special because you won’t find anything like it elsewhere in the world. The people are welcoming, warm and friendly, and they are more than happy to teach you about their cultural intrigues and oddities.

Many African tours put the spotlight firmly on the cultures, and if you are keen on learning more about the peoples and their histories, such tours are well worth booking.

Detox and Patience

We’re online far too much, and while phones are not a bad thing, being glued to them is.

Media and technology detox are becoming a necessary part of life, and nowhere is better than Africa if you want to disconnect for a while, not least because some places are so remote that internet access just doesn’t exist.

Aside from having a tech break, many of the finest lodges also have on-site spas where you can indulge in a massage, a facial or some other spa treatment, further adding to your detox.

And nothing beats a walk in the bush. The absolute peace you’ll have on a bush walk is more than enough to relax your senses. With nothing to distract you, except the call of a fish eagle or gentle chirp of a cricket on a hot day, a bush walk can be invigorating.

Africa is also a place that will put your patience to the test.

Have you heard the phrase Africa time? It is not a joke.

Things tend to be slower in Africa. It takes patience to see wildlife, you need patience in traffic, and sometimes you even need patience when in a shop or a restaurant.

It’s not because service is bad, but rather because here in Africa, we like to take our time.

Safaris! And Other Inimitable Experiences

If there is one thing that makes Africa worth visiting, it’s safaris.

Southern and Eastern Africa, in particular, is home to the absolute best safari experiences, which are part of tour packages ranging from standard, budget-friendly options to luxury escapes.

Safaris are the perfect holiday, and they suit all occasions too.

They will treat you to immense excitement (if you have not yet had a giraffe walk right up to your vehicle and bend down to look you in the eye, you might not fully appreciate how exciting a safari can be), relaxation, and time to just get away from it all.

While safaris are the main activity most travellers come to Africa to enjoy, they are far from the only experience.

Depending on where you are visiting in Africa, you can go hiking in the mountains, visit waterfalls, trek to see gorillas, climb aboard a hot air balloon, go deep sea diving and fishing, climb up and then scoot down sand dunes, dine on seafood or meat or veg in some of the world’s best restaurants, go wine tasting, and you can even cage dive with sharks.

Few places on earth can give you such variety.

Luxury in Every Shape and Form

Africa and luxury might have at one time not gone hand in hand, but that is not the case these days.

In recent years, some destinations in Africa, especially the private reserves, have become increasingly luxury-focused.

Lodges are decked out in the finest furniture and bedding, and with rooms that enhance privacy and give guests a quiet retreat, the whole experience is created with luxury in mind.

The World’s Best Wines

Are you an oenophile by any chance?

If so, one of the reasons why you must visit Africa, especially South Africa, is to taste some of the world’s best wines.

The Dutch arrived in South Africa in 1652, and by 1659 they had produced the first wine. Many, many years later, when the French arrived, they brought with them more winemaking knowledge, and since that time the country has built itself a solid reputation in the winemaking world.

If you visit the winelands, in South Africa’s Western Cape province, not only can you sample wine, but you can also go on vineyard and cellar tours, where you’ll learn more about the history behind each vintage.

Proof that your holiday left a mark

Many wildlife destinations use a percentage of what you pay to see the animals to fund conservation and support local communities.

Every gorilla permit in Rwanda, for instance, returns a share of its fee to the communities living alongside Volcanoes National Park. Every well-run lodge across the region employs local staff, buys from local farms, and funds anti-poaching teams that would not exist without paying guests.

None of this needs to be the reason you book a tour, but it’s worth knowing that a well-chosen African holiday, planned with people who understand the region properly, tends to leave more behind than a stamp in your passport.

That is, in the end, a fairly good reason to go.

Get in touch, and let’s start mapping out which of these reasons belongs in your story first.