What to expect from your safari vehicle : There are a thousand things you may and should ask yourself before organizing an African safari. However, the topic of discussion today is one that many safari visitors ignore. Ask about your safari vehicle before selecting your Africa safari camp or lodge, regardless of how many safaris you have been previously. Your safari vehicle has the power to make or ruin your experience. You will spend several hours a day, day in and day out, in this vehicle. It will be your means of transportation to the animals and your means of navigating the dense and untamed bush. The fact that every Africa safari camp and lodge utilizes a distinct set of lodge may surprise you. Sometimes the changes are merely about cost-cutting, and other times it’s because they want to provide their customers with a unique safari experience.
Selecting a company that use subpar safari vehicles can make you feel really let down and envious of all the other safari vehicles you come across. However, how can someone who has never gone on safari know what makes a good and bad safari vehicle?
Features you want in your safari vehicle.
Let’s discuss the kind of safari vehicle you’ll need to get the experience you want on your African vacation.
Though open to the outdoors, the stadium-style seating in the rear are shielded from the sun and rain by a canopy. Among the features are a storage cooler, USB charging connections, fold-down windscreens, specialized tyres and wheels, a snorkel that lets us navigate through deep water, and more.
Toyota Land Cruiser.
Twenty-five years ago, the Land Rover was the standard safari vehicle. However, the game completely altered when the Toyota Land Cruiser, which later became the new Toyota safari vehicle, hit the market.
Amazing vehicles, Toyota Land Cruisers can drive through the muddiest situations without becoming stuck. It’s a strong, sturdy car with outstanding performance, dependability, and longevity. Even in the roughest of circumstances, it provides a comfortable ride, and the safari vehicle can run on only one fuel tank for days at a time.
But then again, a factory-fresh Toyota Land Cruiser off the shelf isn’t exactly what you’re looking for either. It has to be adjusted specifically for the conditions of a safari. These adjustments consist of;
Have a look at how unmodified this safari vehicle is. Since there is no snorkel, deep water will be a problem. The cab, the wheels and tyres, and other parts likewise appear to have undergone few or no alterations. In essence, it’s a pickup truck with seats in the rear.
Fully open vehicle.
If you’ve researched safaris in any way, you’ve undoubtedly seen a tonne of pictures featuring all kinds of vehicles. The majority of safari camps and lodges in Kenya and Tanzania use completely enclosed safari vehicles, where you must stand up to get a good view of the animals without windows.
Let’s start by discussing your seating area. The safari vans are fully open, with no doors, windows, or other obstructions obstructing your view. Then, some cars make the dual claims that they will “protect you from the elements” and alter your perception of the Bush.
You decide how much access you want to have to the animals, but we believe that the more, the better. We believe that the charm of your African Adventures is diminished when there is something between you and the wildlife. It changes the experience from being “in your face” majestic to more zoo-like.
You’ll have less dust to cope with if the seating area is closed, but we believe that’s all part of the safari experience. Instead of breathing in some dust and perhaps getting wet, we would rather be there, ready and waiting to see an elephant trumpeting at us or to see a lion stroll past our automobile.
But regardless of how open the vehicle is, the seating is as important. Middle seats are something you want to avoid in an automobile. Find out how many persons each car will be allowed by your safari operator. To ensure that everyone gets a window seat and isn’t trapped with a bad view, we only allow a maximum of six people per room.
This safari vehicle has a closed off seating section, which means an obscured view of the animals as well as a heated backseat experience. There’s probably no air conditioning in the rear, and there’s not much prospect of a wind because the front cab is walled off. That’s difficult. Furthermore, this automobile will not be useful for birdwatching.
Let’s talk about the driver’s cab second. There may be instances where the cab is closed, even in safari vehicles where the whole seating area is exposed to the outdoors. You most definitely DO NOT want this.
Your connection to your safari guide is cut off when the taxi is closed. Sure, by leaning out the window, he or she could still be able to communicate with you, but the interaction will be ten times more difficult and will significantly diminish the quality of your encounter.
Due to the closed cab of this safari vehicle, visitors get a far less intimate experience when speaking with their guide. There is a small, enclosed sitting area as well. There’s hardly much to see for the guests in the rear row. Observe the middle seat as well there are a lot of passengers in one car.
Safari car power charging.
Having access to authority is crucial, especially under the Bush administration. Given the prevalence of cameras, phones, and other technological gadgets among our visitors, we are aware that having a place to charge your gadgets is crucial to a pleasurable stay. Furthermore, it might be unsettling to depend only on battery power for gaming drives that last 12 to 13 hours.
The safari vehicle should have the USB charging ports for each seat, allowing you to simultaneously charge two devices while out on your regular game drives. You won’t ever have to be concerned about losing electricity.
Refrigerator system.
It’s just too hot to be without access to ice-cold water, juice, soda, or beer when the temperature reaches 35 degrees Celsius (95F). Therefore, find out from the operator if the safari car has a refrigeration system before selecting your African adventure tour.
Approximately two dozen cold drinks may be stored in the spacious refrigerator located in the centre of the first row of passenger seats. This implies that on a scorching day, you may still enjoy crisp, refreshing drinks no matter how far you are from camp.
On every game drive, we installed a cooler between the front two seats to keep food and beverages cold.
Storage options.
To get the most out of long-lasting gaming drives, you need to have ample storage capacity to accommodate the amount of material you bring along. You need space in your daypack for your phone, camera, extra jacket, and other personal belongings. Along with space for lunch, snacks, tables, seats, and other necessities for an all-day travel, there should also be place for these things.
There is plenty space for you to leave your stuff since, we can accommodate up to six people in our car. It is possible to store your belongings on the middle seat of the back two rows. You may stack your belongings on top of the refrigerator on the front row. Also, there is lots of space for you to store your bag at your feet as needed.
As for storage for tables and chairs, there is an extra storage rack on the back of the vehicle. The luggage of visitors can be stored on this foldable rack for transportation to and from the airport. In addition, we use it to transport lunch tables and chairs into the bush a need for any African expedition.
