Things to Do in Africa | Activities to do in Africa
There are many things to do in Africa, including game drives, cultural encounters, adrenaline activities, guided nature walks, hiking, and birding, to mention but a few. Africa is the most activity-rich continent on earth, and the range of safari experiences available to travelers here from the most adrenaline-charged outdoor adventures to the most quietly profound wildlife encounters to the most deeply moving cultural exchanges is genuinely without parallel anywhere in the world.
The challenge is never finding something extraordinary to do in Africa. The challenge is choosing from an abundance so extraordinary that every itinerary requires difficult and delicious decisions about what to prioritize. Here is your complete guide to the finest activities and experiences the continent has to offer.
Wildlife Safari;
A game drive safari in one of Africa’s great national parks or private conservancies is the experience that most travelers come to the continent specifically for, and it consistently delivers beyond every expectation.
Whether you are watching the Great Migration river crossings in Kenya’s Masai Mara and Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park, encountering the red elephants of Tsavo, tracking lion prides across the Serengeti plains, sitting beside a Botswana waterhole watching Africa’s full cast of wild animals arrive in the golden afternoon light, or viewing the incredible Big Five in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
A wildlife safari across Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe offers Africa’s most raw and diverse game experiences in one trip; Botswana’s Okavango Delta and Chobe Riverfront overflow with elephants, wild dogs and water-based sightings by mokoro or boat; Zambia’s South Luangwa pioneered walking safaris, offering intimate leopard, lion and hippo encounters with far fewer crowds; and Zimbabwe’s Hwange and Mana Pools National Parks combine huge elephant herds, painted wolf packs, and dramatic Zambezi River scenery where you can canoe past elephants or track big game on foot, all rounded out by the thunder of Victoria Falls straddling the Zambia and Zimbabwe border.
The wildlife safari is the experience that anchors every Africa itinerary and the one that most powerfully demonstrates what makes this continent like nowhere else on earth. Game drives, walking safaris, night drives, and boat cruises all offer different and complementary perspectives on the same extraordinary ecosystem.
Gorilla Trekking: Africa’s Most Profound Wildlife Encounter.
Spending one hour with a habituated family of wild mountain gorillas in the ancient rainforests of Uganda, Rwanda or the Democratic Republic of Congo is widely described by those who have done it as the single most moving wildlife experience available anywhere on the planet.
The combination of a physical trek through an extraordinary forest, the moment of finding the gorilla family, and the quality of the one-hour encounter with these intelligent and deeply compelling animals creates an experience that changes people in ways that are difficult to articulate and impossible to forget. Gorilla trekking permits cost $800 per person in Uganda and $1,500 in Rwanda and must be booked well in advance with African Vacation Safaris.
White Water Rafting: The Nile at Jinja (Uganda) and at Victoria Falls (Zambia and Zimbabwe).
The stretch of the Nile River below Jinja, Uganda, where the river flows out of Lake Victoria, produces some of the finest and most accessible white-water rafting in the world. Grade five rapids with vivid names and genuinely challenging characteristics attract adventure travelers from across the globe, and the full-day rafting experience here is suitable for enthusiastic beginners with no previous white-water experience when guided by the professional operators based in Jinja.
The combination of adrenaline, extraordinary river scenery, and the knowledge that you are rafting the world’s longest river makes this one of the most memorable outdoor activities available anywhere in Africa.
Victoria Falls serves up some of the wildest white water on earth. Just below the falls, Zambezi River drops into a narrow gorge and unleashes Grade 4-5 rapids with names like The Overland Truck Eater and Commercial Suicide a 1 ay or multi-day ride through towering basalt cliffs, churning hydraulics, and massive waves that will soak you head to toe between calmer pools.
The rafting season depends on water levels; high water runs February to July, skipping the biggest rapids for safety, while the low water season, August to January, opens the full gauntlet of 20+ named rapids for maximum adrenaline. Trips launch from the Zimbabwe or Zambia side, with guides moving you through warm water, epic scenery, and the occasional wildlife sighting on the shore.
Climbing Kilimanjaro;
Mount Kilimanjaro in northern Tanzania is Africa’s highest peak at 5,895 meters and the world’s highest free-standing mountain, and reaching its summit on a multi-day trekking route is one of the most significant personal challenges available to non-technical mountaineers anywhere on earth.
The Lemosho, Machame, and Rongai routes take between six and nine days and pass through extraordinary vegetation zones from tropical rainforest to alpine desert to the glacial summit zone. No technical climbing skills are required, but strong fitness, acclimatization awareness, and proper gear are absolutely essential.
Chimpanzee Tracking: Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania.
Chimpanzee tracking in Uganda’s Kibale Forest National Park, Rwanda’s Nyungwe National Park or Tanzania’s Mahale Mountains National Park offers a wildlife encounter of extraordinary intimacy and intelligence.
Habituated chimpanzee communities in both destinations allow visitors to spend time observing these remarkable primates, our closest living relatives, sharing approximately 98 percent of our DNA, moving through ancient forests, foraging, socializing, and interacting with each other in complex and deeply fascinating ways.
The experience is wilder and more unpredictable than gorilla trekking and carries its own compelling quality that many travelers find equally moving.
Hot Air Balloon
A dawn hot air balloon flight over the Masai Mara National Reserve or the Serengeti National Park during migration season is one of those African experiences that combines breathtaking beauty with complete impracticality in the best possible way.
Watching the wildebeest herds move across the plains from 300 meters above them, with the landscape spreading to the horizon in every direction and the morning light turning everything gold, produces views that no game drive vehicle can replicate. Most balloon flights conclude with a champagne bush breakfast that transforms an extraordinary morning into a complete and unforgettable experience.
Cultural Encounters;
No Africa activity guide is complete without acknowledging the extraordinary richness of the continent’s cultural experiences. Visiting a Maasai community in Kenya, spending time with the Karamojong in Uganda, exploring Stone Town in Zanzibar, attending a traditional ceremony in Rwanda, or sharing a meal with a farming family on the slopes of Mount Elgon all deliver a depth of human connection that wildlife encounters alone cannot provide.
These encounters are best arranged through community-connected local operators who ensure that the experience is genuine, mutually respectful, and directly beneficial to the communities involved.
Across Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia and South Africa, cultural tours swap the safari vehicle for village life and living heritage. In Zambia and Zimbabwe, you can visit the local communities near Victoria Falls and learn about Tonga and Ndebele traditions, drumming and craft markets, while Botswana’s tours spotlight San Bushmen tracking skills, storytelling, and desert survival in the Kalahari.
Namibia offers Himba village visits, where you will see ochre body paint, intricate hairstyles, and pastoral customs in Kaokoland; in South Africa, the options range from Zulu homesteads and Xhosa township tours to Cape Malay cooking in Bo-Kaap and contemporary art in Johannesburg. Together they give you a look at Southern Africa that that is less about wildlife and more about the people, languages, food and daily rhythms that shape the region
Beach and Ocean Activities on East Africa’s Indian Ocean Coast.
The Indian Ocean coastline stretching from Kenya through Tanzania to Mozambique offers some of the finest beach and ocean activities available anywhere in the world. Snorkeling and diving on the coral reefs of Watamu, Zanzibar, and the Quirimbas Archipelago; dhow sailing along the Swahili Coast; whale shark swimming at Tofo Beach in Mozambique; and simply sitting on the white sand watching the turquoise water shift through its extraordinary color spectrum are all activities that reward the Africa traveler who extends their journey beyond the bush.
Africa’s activities are as vast and as varied as the continent itself; for your exceptional African safaris, contact us at African Vacation Safaris. You will not get disappointed.
