Who Wants to Tour Africa? 🦓

[Mike]

First, an admission of failure: I tried to do this a couple of years ago and the timing sabotaged my efforts. The pall of COVID still hung over the world, and South Africa was experiencing a level of internal strife. But, I’d still like to do it—in fact, I know I will do it. If you are seriously interested in doing this in 2024 or 2025,  please let me know by sending me a personal message here or by emailing me at boomgarden@gmail.com.

This is the outline, with pretty much everything yet to be determined:

-We’ll most likely work with Ayres Adventures, MotoQuest or Edelweiss. Every motorcycle tour operator has their strengths, but these three seem to be best suited for Africa, with Ayres in particular having experienced guides who were born in Africa and have significant riding experience there.

 
-The tour itself, not inclusive of airfare or any pre-/post-tour stays, will likely be in the range of $10-15,000 for a solo rider, and a lesser amount for a passenger or for a single supplement. I’m envisioning that most riders will want to be on a GS1200/1250 type of motorcycle, though all of these companies offer alternatives. Most riding would be on pavement, and unpaved roads would be only moderately challenging. Since this is a trip that most of us will only do once in a lifetime, we’re going to ask the suppliers to offer something more than a bare bones experience, focusing on quality food and accommodations.

 

-Most meals and all room accommodations will be included. Whatever the itinerary, a large part of the focus will be on viewing wildlife in national parks or reserves. I think that a Cape Town to Johannesburg itinerary (or the reverse) is most likely, but I’m also going to investigate longer routing, possibly from Nairobi to Cape Town.

 

-There will be a support vehicle to handle repairs and haul luggage, as well as those travelers—possibly a spouse or SO—who doesn’t want to spend the entire trip as a pillion passenger. 

Most of these companies require a minimum group size of 8-12, with smaller groups possible, but costing significantly more.

Again, if you’re interested, let me know.  This will be a trip for riders who are reasonably experienced and capable of handling occasionally challenging riding scenarios. I’m currently trying to gauge how many might seriously be interested. In the interest of full disclosure, my wife and I own a small, very specialized travel agency. We could possibly assist with securing flights or accommodations before or after, but that’s not our focus…and frankly isn’t all that worthwhile financially…so you should plan on making those arrangements on your own. 

If you’re seriously interested, please let me know. I’ll prioritize this based on who’s first in the door.