From the Serengeti's Great Migration crossings to the pyramids of Giza. Gorilla trekking in Rwanda's Virunga forests, Kilimanjaro at 5,895 metres, Victoria Falls, Cape Town at the tip of the continent, Moroccan medinas, Zanzibar's spice-island beaches. Cooee has guided small groups across Africa from our Brisbane office since 1991.
54 countries. Approximately 30.4 million square kilometres — larger than China, India, the USA, Japan, and most of Europe combined. The richest biodiversity on Earth, the oldest archaeological record of human history, and travel experiences genuinely unavailable anywhere else.
Africa is unlike anywhere else. The world's second-largest continent spans an extraordinary range of landscapes — from the snow-capped peak of Kilimanjaro (5,895 m) to the sprawling red dunes of the Namib Desert, from the Congo Basin's rainforests to Zanzibar's turquoise Indian Ocean. It encompasses over 100 UNESCO World Heritage sites, more than 2,000 languages, and the continent's 54 nations represent cultures, histories, and landscapes as varied as the wider world itself.
For Australian travellers, Africa holds a particular magnetism. The classic safari experience — witnessing the Great Migration in the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem (1.5 million wildebeest, 700,000 zebra, 300,000 Thomson's gazelle moving in an annual circular migration), tracking mountain gorillas in the Virunga forests of Rwanda and Uganda, watching elephant herds silhouetted against sunset over the Okavango Delta — is a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with the natural world. But Africa's appeal extends far beyond wildlife. Ancient civilisations left the Pyramids of Giza, the temples of Karnak, the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, and the medinas of Morocco. Cities like Cape Town, Nairobi, Marrakech, and Cairo pulse with culture, music, food, and creative energy.
Africa rewards preparation and respect. Understanding the continent's diversity is essential: the Africa of the Serengeti is utterly different from the Africa of the Sahara, the Nile Valley, the Cape Winelands, or the West African coast. Our guide navigates the continent by region, season, and experience — helping you match the right destination to the right time of year, and the right kind of trip to the kind of traveller you are.
Eight destinations that anchor most Australian trips to Africa. Most first-time visitors combine two — a classic East African safari paired with Zanzibar; Cape Town paired with the Garden Route and Kruger; Egypt's pyramids combined with a Nile cruise.
East Africa · Safari capital of the world
The safari capital. Maasai Mara + Serengeti + Ngorongoro Crater + Amboseli (with Kilimanjaro views). Mara River crossings late July-October; Serengeti calving late January-March. Best combined on a 10-14 day two-country itinerary. East Africa Tourist Visa (Kenya + Uganda + Rwanda) USD $100.
South Africa · Table Mountain & Winelands
Consistently ranked among the world's most beautiful cities. Table Mountain, V&A Waterfront, Robben Island. Stellenbosch and Franschhoek wine estates. Garden Route east to Port Elizabeth. Kruger National Park Big Five extension possible. Visa-free 90 days for Australian passport holders.
North Africa · Marrakech & Sahara
Marrakech medina + Jemaa el-Fna at dusk. Fez (the world's oldest continuously-inhabited medina, since 789 CE). Chefchaouen's blue-washed streets. High Atlas mountain passes. Sahara overnight camps at Erg Chebbi — camel trekking, silent desert nights. Visa-free 90 days.
Tanzania · Indian Ocean spice island
The spice island off the Tanzania coast — the classic East African safari finale. Stone Town's coral-rag UNESCO old quarter. Nungwi and Kendwa beaches. Spice farm tours. Best beach season December-March. Mandatory inbound travel insurance (ZIC, USD $44) required from October 2024.
North Africa · Pyramids & Nile cruise
Pyramids of Giza (4,500 years old, the only surviving Ancient Wonder). Valley of the Kings and Queens. Luxor's Karnak and Hatshepsut temples. Nile cruise Luxor to Aswan. The new Grand Egyptian Museum near Giza displays the complete Tutankhamun collection. Visa on arrival USD $25.
Zimbabwe · Zambia
108m drop, 1.7km wide — the largest waterfall in the world by combined height and width. Known to the Tonga as Mosi-oa-Tunya — "the smoke that thunders". Zimbabwe and Zambia share the falls; the KAZA UniVisa (USD $50) lets you cross between them. Peak flow February-May; swim Devil's Pool September-December.
Sossusvlei · Etosha · Skeleton Coast
Sossusvlei — the towering red-orange dunes of the Namib (the oldest desert on Earth). Deadvlei's surreal ancient camel-thorn skeletons. Etosha National Park for Big Five safari at waterhole hides. Skeleton Coast shipwrecks. Swakopmund for adventure activities. Visa-free 90 days.
Volcanoes NP · Mountain gorilla trekking
Volcanoes National Park — where Dian Fossey worked and where approximately half of the world's ~1,000 remaining mountain gorillas live. The trek is an hour to a full day; one hour with the gorilla family once you reach them. Permits USD $1,500 per person, book 3-6 months ahead. e-Visa USD $50.
Because the continent straddles the equator, there is no single Africa travel season. The key is matching your destination to the right months. Four broad windows below; more detail by region and by wildlife event.
Classic East African safari season. Sparse vegetation, predictable animal movement, exceptional game viewing. Mara River crossings peak late July - early October in Kenya's Maasai Mara. Serengeti plains are dry. Book safari camps 12-18 months ahead.
Southern Serengeti wildebeest calving Jan-Mar — hundreds of thousands of births attracting big-cat predators. Southern Africa (South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana) at its lushest. North Africa (Morocco, Egypt) at its most pleasant — avoid summer heat. Zanzibar excellent in December.
Prime time for Zanzibar, Mozambique, Seychelles, Mauritius, Madagascar. Warm, clear water and the sunniest weeks. South Africa's Cape Town hits peak tourism (their summer / our winter) — Cape Point, Garden Route, and winelands are excellent. Combine safari + beach for the classic two-destination trip.
The best months to visit Morocco and Egypt. Day-time highs typically 18-25°C, cold desert nights (layers essential). Perfect for Marrakech, Fez, the Atlas Mountains, the Sahara, Luxor, Aswan, and Nile cruises. Summer (June-August) is genuinely uncomfortable in both countries — avoid.
Mara River crossings (Kenya): mid-July to early October · peak August-September. Wildebeest calving (Tanzania, southern Serengeti): late January - early March · predator action at its highest. Gorilla trekking (Rwanda / Uganda): year-round but drier June-September and December-February most comfortable. Mountain gorilla permits: Rwanda USD $1,500 per hour-long trek (premium but essential for habitat funding); Uganda USD $800. Victoria Falls: peak flow March-May; best photography June-August; Devil's Pool open only September-December when water is low.
Thinking of Africa by region is how we plan itineraries. Each has its own character, infrastructure, ideal season, and signature experiences. Most Australian trips anchor on one region; more ambitious itineraries pair two (East Africa + Southern Africa; North Africa + Middle East).
Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Ethiopia. Home to the world's best-known safari landscapes — Serengeti, Maasai Mara, Ngorongoro Crater, Amboseli. Mountain gorillas in Rwanda's Volcanoes NP and Uganda's Bwindi. Climb Kilimanjaro. Finish with Zanzibar for the classic safari-beach pairing. Peak season June-October.
Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia. The Pyramids of Giza, the Nile from Luxor to Aswan, the Valley of the Kings. Marrakech's medina (UNESCO), the Atlas Mountains, Sahara dune camps, the blue-washed walls of Chefchaouen. Best October-April; summer is genuinely too hot. Tunisia's Roman ruins at Dougga and El Jem are remarkable and under-visited.
South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Zambia. The most traveller-friendly part of Africa — first-class infrastructure, the Big Five in Kruger and Etosha, Cape Town (consistently voted one of the world's best cities), the Cape Winelands, the Garden Route, Namibia's Sossusvlei dunes, Botswana's Okavango Delta, and Victoria Falls.
Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Cape Verde. Africa's cultural heartbeat — the source of much of the continent's music, art, and cuisine. Cosmopolitan Accra and Dakar, vibrant nightlife, remarkable food scenes. The legacy of the transatlantic slave trade sites (Cape Coast Castle in Ghana; Gorée Island in Senegal) is deeply moving. For experienced Africa travellers.
Rwanda, Uganda, DRC, Republic of Congo, Gabon. The Congo Basin — the world's second-largest rainforest after the Amazon. Mountain gorillas (Rwanda and Uganda are the accessible entry points; trips into DRC require more planning and are political-situation dependent). Chimpanzee tracking in Kibale. Gabon's Loango NP offers uniquely beach-meets-rainforest wildlife.
Eight experiences that define African travel — the ones you'll recount for the rest of your life. Cooee runs small-group tours built around every one of these.
1.5 million wildebeest and 700,000 zebra thunder across the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem in a 3,000-km annual circular migration — one of Earth's greatest wildlife spectacles.
July — Oct · MaraOne hour in the company of a habituated mountain gorilla family in Rwanda's Volcanoes NP or Uganda's Bwindi. Profound, emotional, unlike any other wildlife encounter.
Year-roundSleep in a luxury desert camp under a billion stars. Camel trek over towering Erg Chebbi dunes in Morocco or the Sahara's edge in Tunisia. Absolute silence at dawn.
Oct — AprilMosi-oa-Tunya — "the smoke that thunders." Walk the gorge rim, bungee jump the bridge, white-water raft the Zambezi, or swim in Devil's Pool (Sept-Dec only).
AdventureDhow cruises, Stone Town's UNESCO alleys, coral-reef diving, and spice-farm tours. Africa's most romantic island escape — and the classic finale to an East African safari.
Beach · CultureThe Great Pyramid of Giza. The Valley of the Kings. A week-long Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan. 5,000 years of continuous human civilisation — and nowhere else on Earth.
HistoryAfrica's highest peak — 5,895 m, the world's tallest free-standing mountain. Five ecological zones from rainforest to arctic summit over 7-8 days. No technical climbing; moderate-to-high fitness.
TrekkingHike Table Mountain at sunrise. Drive the Garden Route. Spend afternoons in Stellenbosch and Franschhoek vineyards. The most polished city break on the African continent.
Food · WineAfrica is 16-22 hours from Brisbane via Middle East or Asian hubs. Once on the continent, domestic flights, 4WD safari vehicles, and (in Southern Africa) self-drive are the standard options.
Visa policies for African countries change more often than most regions. Cooee handles every application for you, but the table below is current as of April 2026. Always cross-check against official government sources close to your departure.
| Destination | Requirement | Cost (approx) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya | eTA required | USD $30-35 | Changed January 2024: old e-Visa replaced by the Kenya eTA at etakenya.go.ke. Apply at least 5 business days before travel. Single entry, valid 90 days. |
| Tanzania | e-Visa | USD $50 | Apply at visa.immigration.go.tz. Ordinary single-entry visa valid 90 days. VOA also available at major airports. |
| South Africa | Visa-free | No fee | Up to 90 days visa-free for Australian passport holders. Passport must be valid 30+ days beyond departure date. |
| Morocco | Visa-free | No fee | Up to 90 days visa-free. No advance application needed — simply arrive at any international entry point. |
| Egypt | VOA or e-Visa | USD $25 | Visa on arrival at Cairo, Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh airports. e-Visa also available online in advance. Single entry, valid 30 days. |
| Rwanda | e-Visa | USD $50 | Apply at irembo.gov.rw. East Africa Tourist Visa (Kenya + Uganda + Rwanda) is ~USD $100 for multi-country trips — good value. |
| Uganda | e-Visa | USD $50 | Apply at visas.immigration.go.ug. East Africa Tourist Visa strongly recommended if pairing with Kenya or Rwanda. |
| Zimbabwe | VOA | USD $30 | Single entry at main ports. The KAZA UniVisa (Zimbabwe + Zambia) at USD $50 is better value if visiting both sides of Victoria Falls. |
| Namibia | Visa-free | No fee | Up to 90 days visa-free for Australian passport holders. Passport valid 6+ months beyond departure. |
| Botswana | Visa-free | No fee | Up to 90 days visa-free for Australian passport holders. Common onward from South Africa. |
The Africa most Australian travellers visit is home to many Indigenous and long-established communities — the Maasai and Samburu of Kenya and Tanzania, the San (Bushmen) of Botswana and Namibia, the Himba of northern Namibia, the Berber / Amazigh of Morocco, the Bedouin of Egypt and across North Africa, the Batwa of Rwanda and Uganda. We work with community-based tourism operators where possible, prioritise photography with consent, don't treat cultural visits as "performances," and support tours that channel revenue back to communities rather than extract it. Cooee's guides brief every group on appropriate conduct, dress, gift-giving norms, and photography protocols before entering cultural sites.
From 35+ years of Cooee Africa trips. The advice we give every guest in their pre-departure briefing.
Premium Serengeti, Mara, and Okavango Delta camps have very limited space. Peak season (July-October) fills earliest. For a specific Great Migration date in a specific camp, book 18 months ahead.
Khaki, olive, and beige only. Bright colours disturb wildlife; blue and black attract tsetse flies. Bring layers — Mara and Serengeti mornings are cold. Closed shoes; proper hat; polarised sunglasses.
USD is preferred across East and Southern Africa for tips, visas on arrival, and incidentals. Carry a mix of $1, $5, $10, and $20 notes. Post-2009 bills only — older notes are often refused. ATMs work in cities but not bush camps.
Safari guides and camp staff rely on tips — they make a material difference to livelihoods. Cooee guidance: USD $15-25/day per guest for your main guide; USD $10/day/guest shared among camp staff. Passed in sealed envelope at end of stay.
Africa is 54 nations with vastly different cultures, religions, and customs. In Muslim North Africa, dress modestly. Always ask before photographing people (and respect "no"). Learn a few words of Swahili in East Africa or Arabic in North Africa — it's appreciated everywhere.
Kilimanjaro summit is 5,895m. Ethiopian highlands sit at 2,000-3,000m. Lesotho and parts of Rwanda are high-altitude. Climb slowly. Hydrate. Discuss altitude medication (Diamox) with your doctor pre-trip if summit attempts are planned.
A phone camera is not enough for safari. Minimum 200mm zoom lens (400mm ideal). Bring spare batteries and memory cards — charging at bush camps is limited. Dust covers for lens changes in 4WDs.
Wildlife doesn't run to schedule. Flights get delayed. Roads get blocked. Africa rewards flexibility — build a day or two of buffer into every itinerary. The memorable moments usually happen in the space between the things you planned.
Brisbane-based, 35+ years. Small groups of 16 or fewer. Africa specialists with personal experience across every country we sell. Start with a no-obligation conversation about what you actually want from your trip — we'll design it around you.
Tell us what you're dreaming about — a classic Kenya + Tanzania safari, gorilla trekking in Rwanda, the pyramids and Nile, Cape Town and the Garden Route. We'll respond within 1 business day with a tailored proposal from our Brisbane office.