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A walk on the wild side with Mahlatini

14th September 2011 Print

Luxury African travel company Mahlatini is offering holidaymakers the chance to experience a safari in Zambia with a difference.

The Belfast based travel retailer has teamed up with award winning Robin Pope Safaris to offer a holiday that allows participants to interact with the wildlife of Zambia in the way nature intended, up close and personal in their natural habitats. This safari takes holidaymakers into the bush on foot.

The walking safari, follows a route through the unspoilt South Luangwa National Park in Zambia. Walking is the best way to get close to the animals in this beautifully remote and wild terrain as they are unused to contact with man and easily frightened by vehicles. The safari passes through the Park’s diverse areas of woodland, riverine areas, petrified forest and open pans, allowing participants to soak up the Park’s outstanding natural beauty.

Accommodation comes in the form of a mobile camp which follows the participants through the bush. Holidaymakers will stay in walk-in tents complete with camp beds, shower under a nearby tree and rather than a toilet there is a long drop complete with wooden throne. To complete the full outdoors experience food is sometimes cooked on campfire.

The concept behind this unique safari is to totally immerse holidaymakers in the bush so they learn its many facets. They will get to track the tiniest of residents such as ants, the many indigenous species of bird and larger inhabitants such as buffalo and lions. On foot they can get much closer to the wildlife than they would be able to in a vehicle and experience the Zambian bush with an ‘animal eye view’.

Mahlatini are dedicated to creating holidays that will allow their customers to become fully immersed in the culture and wildlife of the African continent through more unusual and inspirational travel experiences. The Mahlatini team have all lived or travelled extensively in Africa and are passionate about the continent. The company’s name is even a Zulu word meaning ‘love of the African bush’.

Greg Fox of Mahlatini said “We are delighted to be able to offer our customers this fantastic walking safari experience with Robin Pope Safaris. Robin Pope, the founder of Robin Pope Safaris along with the legendary Norman Carr is one of the pioneers of the walking safari. He has lived in Zambia all of his life and so his and the other guides knowledge of the country is immense. Walking has to be one of the best ways to experience the African bush and enjoy the beauty of the Zambian countryside and wildlife from a completely different perspective. We guarantee that anyone who embarks on this trip will return with ‘mahlatini’ - an enduring love of the African bush”

A 10 night walking safari with Mahlatini staying at the Nkwali and Tena Tena Camps will cost between £3,675 to £3,950 per person sharing and from £4,200 to £4725 for a single traveller. Further information and a suggested itinerary can be found on the Mahlatini website, mahlatini.com.