Safari Logistics: Mobile Camps and Safaris.

“What makes safaris that offer Mobile Camps more costly than others?” People who book safaris frequently ask this question.

The short answer: ensuring that there is a perfectly chilled Sauvignon Blanc for your sundowner 500 kilometers from the closest store as the sun sets over the African bush is no small job.

We must examine the logistics of operating a mobile camp in detail in order to gain a better understanding. We asked two professionals to respond to your inquiries.

A Mobile Camp: What Is It?

Simply put, mobile camps are ones that travel. These campsites are set up in a different location every day (or every few days), in contrast to permanent, fixed campgrounds.

The location of your camp varies throughout your journey, giving you the opportunity to take in new sights, sounds, and perspectives, but your guide and camp personnel stay the same. From sandy desert to swampland, savannah, and tall mountains, Africa offers a breathtakingly diverse landscape. It’s wonderful to be able to go about and experience as much of it as you can.

Before you arrive, the camp is built up, and after you depart, it is torn down.

Who Establishes the Camp?

That will vary according on your preference for a fully-serviced safari or a semi-participation safari.

If your safari is fully-serviced, the trained camp staff will have everything ready and set up by the time you go to your campsite for the night. You will have to pack and set up your own tent if you are on a semi-participation one. Your involvement ends there; camp personnel will handle all other aspects of camp life, such as food.

You have little to no involvement in the day-to-day operations of the camp when you go on a mobile camping safari. All you need to do is unwind and take in the stunning African wilderness.

On a mobile safari, how many people work?

A guide, hostess, chef, and two camp staff are typically included in each safari, though this can vary from one safari to the next. The guide and one camp assistant/chef are usually the only people on semi-participation safaris.

Where, how, laundry, and other things?

On a fully serviced safari, the mobile safari operator brings all linens, towels, and bedding (and mattresses!). Tents and camping mattresses are typically provided by semi-participation safaris, but you will need to bring your own sleeping bags or rent them.

The difficulties (and expense) of ensuring everyone is comfortable cannot be understated, as some of the camps are 500 kilometers or more from the closest town, which might only be a gas station and supply store!

Laundry is no different. Water is a constant problem in the African jungle. Water is limited, so it is best to have extra clean clothes so that we can conserve it, even though little items can be washed at camp. Back at the base or permanent camp, bedding and other items are cleaned.

Who is responsible for cooking and cleaning?

For both semi-participation and fully-serviced safaris, the trained chef and camp assistants handle all cooking and cleaning. You have this holiday!

What is the source of the food and supplies?

The logistics become quite important at this point. On the safari, all food and beverages, including fresh fruit and vegetables, are brought. These come from the closest town, which is frequently five hours’ travel from the base camp or permanent location. Fresh supplies will be flown in or driven in, depending on the location. To guarantee fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs, a few safari firms have even set up their own farms at base camp!

A top priority is making sure you have tasty, fresh food after spending the day observing wildlife.

Supplies are kept fresh thanks to the refrigerators and freezers that are installed in every safari vehicle on mobile safaris. And that as you watch the African sun set over the bush, there’s plenty of ice to keep your G & T cool.

Again, whether or not refreshments are provided depends on the safari company. Drinks are typically excluded at semi-participation safaris. Although they are paid for separately, they are unquestionably available.

Are Connectivity and Electricity Available?

The fact that most campsites lack electricity, WiFi, and cell phone service is one of the best things about going on a mobile safari.

The goal of going on safari is to reconnect with nature, hear the sounds of the bush without being distracted by the ringing and buzzing of cell phones, and view the stars in the vast African night sky free from light pollution. You’ll be left speechless with awe.

But don’t worry—you can still capture photographic proof of your once-in-a-lifetime safari experience because the camera batteries can be charged using an inverter on the safari cars!