26th May 2020
Own Correspondent
Since 1983, Wilderness Safaris claims it has been dedicated to conserving and restoring Africa’s wilderness and wildlife by creating life-changing journeys and inspiring positive action.
It is through these journeys to Africa’s wide open spaces and untouched pristine wilderness areas that the company alleges it has helped conserve 2.3 million hectares of precious intact ecosystems and biodiversity, while supporting local communities at the same time. It is also for this reason that Wilderness Safaris is ready and waiting to welcome guests back to Africa’s soon as the time is right, to ensure that its restorative safaris continue to make a difference in the new world of travel.
“As people rethink how they travel going forward, we strongly believe that the luxury of space and the ability to explore pristine wilderness areas in relative privacy will make an African safari one of the most appealing options for travel during this time”, said Dave Bennett, Managing Director of Wilderness Safaris.
He said, ““We empathise with all around the globe who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and we look forward to the day when we can start welcoming our guests back to our beautiful conservation areas again”.
Wilderness Safaris’ ecotourism model focuses on a high-end, low-impact offering, meaning that its luxury camps are small and exclusive, set within large pristine wilderness areas, and offer an uncrowded alternative to many of the world’s other top tourist destinations. The current pandemic has also highlighted humanity’s current destructive relationship with nature, and emphasised an acute need to protect Earth’s biodiversity. Africa is not only home to the world’s most diverse mega-fauna (the big mammals like lion, elephant, giraffe, gorillas and many more) but it’s also a continent with some of the largest and greatest remaining tracts of natural habitat and astounding biodiversity.
“This is what makes the setting of our small camps so unique, with the healing power of nature accentuated in the wildlife-rich ecosystems where we operate. These pristine areas also offer our guests the perfect opportunity to reconnect with the natural world, themselves and their families, especially after this time of extreme social distancing”, adds Dave.
While travel restrictions are still in place, Wilderness Safaris will continue to support anti-poaching and other conservation and community upliftment initiatives in all of its regions of operation, keeping the best interests of its staff, guests, Government partners and communities at heart. Once these restrictions are lifted, the company is ready to welcome back its guests, having put extensive new protocols in place so visitors can be confident that their health and safety is well taken care of – from the minute they land in Africa, and throughout their journey.
“Our guests and partners can rest assured that we are deeply committed to addressing all possible concerns in relation to Health and Safety at our camps, on our aircraft, and in our touring plus transfer operations. Hygiene and sanitation, in relation to both guests and staff, were always a top priority for us, and have only been heightened in light of the pandemic. Masks, sanitizers and the like will be available, plus we are applying the golden rules of prevention, as directed by the WHO across all areas of our operation. Our comprehensive Health and Safety guidelines will cover all measures in place across our business to ensure guests’ needs are met throughout their journey.
“We are grateful for the ongoing support from our guests and travel partners to help support our ongoing conservation and community efforts. We hope that our exclusive safari offering and our ongoing commitment to Health and Safety will give our guests peace of mind – knowing that when our borders open again, and we welcome them back with open arms, they will be able to truly relax, unwind and reconnect with the natural world around them”, Dave concludes.
Since 1983, Wilderness Safaris says it has been dedicated to conserving and restoring Africa’s wilderness and wildlife by creating life-changing journeys and inspiring positive action.
It boasts of being Africa’s leading authentic and sustainable ecotourism operator, Wilderness Safaris operates camps and safaris in some of Africa’s best wildlife and wilderness areas. These include Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
In this way it offers its guests private access to almost 2.5 million hectares (over six million acres) of Africa’s most remote and pristine wildlife areas, while remaining fiercely committed to protecting our planet’s precious natural and cultural resources.
