Elephantine saving - up to £1,000 - on Zambia

Expert Africa has learnt that any bookings made to Zambia after 1st January 2014 may suffer a significant price hike. The latest Zambian budget, which is due to be approved shortly, is almost certain to introduce 16% VAT on all tourism-related services. This will come into effect for bookings made after 1 Jan 2014. If you book before 2013 ends, you’ll save yourself a packet (certainly several hundred pounds – likely even a thousand).

The message is simple: anyone eager to visit Zambia should book now! Still extraordinarily wild, boasting some of the best guides in Africa and an abundance of big game, Zambia offers a superb safari experience, staying at intimate, owner-run camps.

Walking safaris were pioneered here and are unequalled. Being on foot, it’s all about sounds, smells and secrets and, instead of ticking off the Big Five from a truck, you learn to sniff out elephants, follow the tracks of hyenas and correctly decipher every rustle, squawk or snap your ears pick up. It’s an utterly thrilling experience.

What’s more, night drives are allowed within the national parks of Zambia – an activity usually only possible on private reserves in other safari destinations. This gives you the opportunity to see more elusive animals such as leopard, porcupine and hyena.

Package: Expert Africa (expertafrica.com) is offering its Oribi Safari for £6,414 pp (two sharing) in August; with the increased VAT, this same trip will become £7,250 pp. That's a saving of over £800 pp.

Expert Africa (expertafrica.com) – 2012 British Travel Awards winner of Best Overall Tour Operator To Sub Sahara Africa - covers Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, the Seychelles, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.