A field guide to Africa.

A letter from the Plan Desk.

By Amani Okafor, Senior Editor for Africa. Issue Nº 15, Spring 2026.

Africa is large. Which is the secret almost every guidebook gets wrong. Fifty-four countries, two thousand languages, and a landmass that swallows the United States, China, India and most of Europe with room to spare. The temptation is to treat that scale like a sampler — three countries in two weeks, a continent in three. Don't. The Africa worth writing about is the patient one. The medina you walk for two days before you even try to find your way out. The fly-camp you stay long enough at to know the elephants by ear. The Atlas pass you cross slowly enough to actually see. One country at a time, or one circuit at a time. The continent does not reward sprinting. This page is the manual we wished existed when we started — everything we'd send a friend before their first African trip, and a few things only useful on the fifth.

How to use this issue.

Read it like a magazine. Skim the chapter heads, dip into whatever pulls at you. Twelve chapters in order: countries, regions, when to go, itineraries, food, transport, budget, language, festivals, neighborhoods, packing, and the FAQ. The links inside take you to specific guides — 548 of them — for the deep work. The country tiles take you to the country sub-atlas; the festivals take you to the year-round calendar.

Twelve countries, the honest atlas.

The continent's most-travelled twelve, sorted by guide depth not GDP or alphabet. Featured below: Morocco — the country we have written about for the longest, and the easiest first chapter on the continent. Click any tile for the full sub-atlas, or jump to the directory at /en/plan/itineraries/africa.

1. 

   Morocco — Rabat — 78 guides — 9 to 14 days

   The first chapter for almost every Africa traveller. Imperial cities and a thousand-year-old food culture, hours from Europe. Marrakech to Fes via the Atlas — start with one medina, never the whole country in a week.

2. Kenya — Nairobi — 64 guides — 8 to 12 days

   The original safari country. The Mara in August, Lamu year-round, Nairobi for one slow night before flying north.

3. Tanzania — Dodoma — 58 guides — 10 to 14 days

   Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Zanzibar. The classic east-Africa loop is built around this country. Bush plane between camps, never road.

4. South Africa — Pretoria — 71 guides — 10 to 16 days

   The most infrastructure on the continent. Cape Town, Garden Route, Kruger — the easiest first safari, and self-drive country.

5. Egypt — Cairo — 49 guides — 8 to 12 days

   Cairo, the Nile slow, Luxor, Aswan. Skip the Hurghada package; do four nights on the river by felucca instead.

6. Ethiopia — Addis Ababa — 32 guides — 10 to 14 days

   Lalibela rock churches, Gondar castles, Simien plateau. Highland coffee culture, and Timkat in January is the trip of a lifetime.

7. Rwanda — Kigali — 28 guides — 5 to 8 days

   The cleanest, most-organised gorilla trek logistics. Volcanoes National Park, two trekking days, four cool nights at altitude.

8. Senegal — Dakar — 24 guides — 7 to 10 days

   Île de Gorée, the pink lake, Sine-Saloum delta. December for cool dry harmattan light. The most underrated west-Africa entry.

9. Ghana — Accra — 21 guides — 8 to 12 days

   Accra to Cape Coast to Kumasi. The Year of Return programme keeps reshaping this trip — book a homestay, not a hotel.

10. Namibia — Windhoek — 36 guides — 10 to 14 days

    Sossusvlei dunes, Damaraland, Etosha. The best self-drive on the continent — fifteen days, fifteen lodges, 4×4 only.

11. Uganda — Kampala — 26 guides — 7 to 10 days

    Bwindi, Queen Elizabeth, Murchison Falls. Gorillas plus tree-climbing lions plus a different Nile. Cheaper than Rwanda.

12. Madagascar — Antananarivo — 22 guides — 10 to 14 days

    RN7 from Tana to Tulear — baobabs, lemurs, and one of the worst-best roads in the world. Endemic everything.

The continent in five clusters.

Borders are political; weather, food, and the road conditions are not. We group Africa the way travelers actually move through it — by climate, by season, by table.

01. North Africa.

The Maghreb plus Egypt — medinas, Sahara, mint tea, mezze. Easy for first-timers, hours from Europe, and the cheapest doorway onto the continent. Best between March and May, again from October through November.

• Imperial Morocco. Marrakech, Fes, Chefchaouen, Essaouira. The medinas and the road between them — riads, tagines, and the wide quiet of the Atlas. March, April, October, November.
• Nile slow. Cairo to Aswan by train and felucca. Skip Hurghada; do four nights on the river instead. October, November, March.
• Tunisia and Algeria. The Roman ruins of Dougga and Timgad with almost nobody in them. Couscous in the south. April or October only.

02. East Africa.

The classic safari belt — Serengeti, Mara, Ngorongoro, Bwindi. The most expensive Africa, the most photographed, and still worth every shilling if you go in the right month.

• Great Migration loop. Mara River crossings July to September; calving in southern Serengeti is January–February. Either is the trip.
• Gorilla trekking. Volcanoes (Rwanda) and Bwindi (Uganda). Permits sell out 6 months out — the trek itself is two to seven hours of mud and gold.
• Zanzibar shoulder. Stone Town plus three nights on Paje or Matemwe. Avoid March–May rains. Spice farms beat the resort tour.

03. Southern Africa.

Self-drive country — Garden Route, Skeleton Coast, Okavango. The most infrastructure on the continent, the easiest first safari, and the only place braai gets a section to itself.

• Cape Town and the Garden Route. Cape Town three nights, Garden Route four. Add Kruger for a first safari; add the Cederberg if it's not.
• Namibia self-drive. Sossusvlei, Damaraland, Etosha — fifteen days, the best driving in Africa. May, June, September, October. 4×4 only.
• Okavango plus Vic Falls. The Delta in flood, Chobe by mokoro, Vic Falls by helicopter. The two-week trip everybody saves for.

04. West Africa.

The most underrated quarter of the continent — Senegalese mbalax, Ghanaian highlife, Beninois voodoo. Fewer Western tourists, the biggest cultural payoff per dollar.

• Dakar plus Sine-Saloum. Île de Gorée, the pink lake, three nights in the delta. December for cool dry harmattan light.
• Ghana plus Côte d'Ivoire. Accra to Cape Coast to Kumasi. The Year of Return programme keeps reshaping this trip — book a homestay.
• Benin and Togo. Voodoo in Ouidah, stilt villages in Ganvié, the slim coastline up to Lomé. November before the harmattan dust.

05. The Indian Ocean and the Horn.

Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion, Seychelles, plus the Horn — Ethiopia and Djibouti. The continent's other coasts, often overlooked and almost always cheaper than they should be.

• Madagascar slow. RN7 from Tana to Tulear — baobabs, lemurs, and one of the worst-best roads in the world. Ten days minimum.
• Ethiopia rock churches. Lalibela, Gondar, Simien Mountains. Timkat in January is the ceremony of a lifetime — book six months out.
• Mauritius and Seychelles. Ten days, two islands, no resort. Hike Le Morne; rent a bungalow on La Digue. Cheaper than a Bali honeymoon.

When to go — dry vs wet.

Africa runs on rain, not temperature. The continent has two seasons in most places, and they sit at opposite ends of the calendar depending where you stand. Here is the year, region by region — peak (P), shoulder (S), low (L), festival (F).

• North Africa. Peak Mar–May, Oct–Nov. Shoulder Sep, Jan. Low Jun–Aug (45°C in the Sahara) and Dec.
• East Africa. Peak Jun–Sep (dry) and late Dec–early Mar (calving). Shoulder Oct, Feb. Low Mar–May (long rains).
• Southern Africa. Peak Mar–Apr, Jul–Oct. Self-drive country runs all year, but the bush is best in winter dry.
• West Africa. Peak Nov–Feb (cool, dry harmattan). Shoulder Mar, Oct. Long low Apr–Sep (heavy rains).
• Horn / Indian Ocean. Peak Apr–May, Sep–Nov. Festival Jan–Feb (Timkat). Low Jun–Aug.

The dry season is the safari season.

East and southern Africa pivot on rainfall, not temperature. June through October the grass is short, the rivers thin, and the animals come to the water. That's when you go. 22 to 28 degrees Celsius in the day, 8 to 14 at dawn.

The Sahara doesn't do summer.

March, April, October, and November are the only honest months for the Maghreb desert. June through August is 45°C in the shade, and there isn't any. Spring and autumn for the Sahara — every other Maghreb season is a punishment.

January is Timkat in Ethiopia.

Three days of Orthodox processions in Lalibela and Gondar. Book six months ahead, ride the cool-dry highland morning, and stay long enough to attend more than one stop. 18 to 22 degrees on the plateau.

Four itineraries worth stealing.

The plans we'd send to a friend, road-tested and updated each spring. Click for day-by-day. The full library lives at /en/plan/itineraries/africa.

12 days — Tanzania safari circuit, north to coast.

The honest Serengeti loop plus three nights on Zanzibar. Bush plane, not road. Cost tier $$$. Built by Lucia, August 2025.

1. Arusha — 1 night. Land late, transfer in the morning.
2. Tarangire — 2 nights. Baobab country, elephant herds at the river.
3. Ngorongoro Crater — 1 night. Crater rim sunrise, descend at 6:30.
4. Central Serengeti — 3 nights. Mobile camp, two game drives a day.
5. Stone Town and Matemwe — 4 nights. Decompress on the Indian Ocean.

10 days — Morocco, Marrakech to the Atlas to Fes.

Three medinas and one mountain night. Trains plus one shared transfer. First-trip Africa. Cost tier $$. Built by Iris, March 2025.

1. Marrakech — 3 nights. Riad in the medina, Jemaa el-Fnaa, the souks at dawn.
2. High Atlas (Imlil) — 1 night. Walk to Aroumd, dinner at altitude.
3. Aït Benhaddou — 1 night. Kasbah, sunset on the ksar.
4. Merzouga (Sahara) — 1 night. Camel into the dunes, sleep under stars.
5. Fes — 3 nights. Tannery, mosque tour, the second-oldest medina in Morocco.

21 days — Cape to Cairo, slowly.

The continent end-to-end. Trains where they exist, regional flights for the gaps. The trip you take once. Cost tier $$$$. Built by Marcus, September 2025.

1. Cape Town — 3 nights. Bo-Kaap, Table Mountain, a Stellenbosch day.
2. Vic Falls plus Chobe — 3 nights. The falls by helicopter, the river by mokoro.
3. Zanzibar — 3 nights. Stone Town, then Matemwe to slow down.
4. Lalibela — 3 nights. The eleven monolithic churches. Timkat if January.
5. Cairo and Luxor — 5 nights. Pyramids first, Nile felucca for the rest.

Three more, by tag.

• 8 days, gorilla trekking Rwanda + Uganda. Volcanoes and Bwindi back to back. Two permits, two trekking days. Built by Eli, July 2025.
• 14 days, Namibia self-drive. Windhoek, Sossusvlei, Swakopmund, Damaraland, Etosha. 4×4 essential. Built by Marcus, May 2025.
• 10 days, Senegal slow. Dakar, Saint-Louis, Sine-Saloum, Île de Gorée. Built by Amani, December 2025.

Food and drink, country by country.

One immutable rule per kitchen. Order this, drink that, never make the obvious mistake.

• Maroc — The tagine is the meal. Slow-cooked lamb with prunes, chicken with preserved lemon, kefta with egg. Eaten with bread, never a fork. Sit on the floor; tear, don't cut. Pair: tagine kefta with mint tea, three pours.
• Ethiopia — Eat with your hands. Injera is sourdough crepe and plate at once. Tear, scoop, share. Right hand only — and never finish what's in front of you first. Pair: doro wat with tej.
• South Africa — The braai is a verb. Saturday is built around it. Boerewors, lamb chops, mielies, the whole afternoon outside. Skip the fancy steakhouse — every backyard does it better. Pair: boerewors with pinotage.
• West Africa — Jollof is a war. Senegal calls it thieboudienne, Ghana and Nigeria fight over the rest. The truth: each version is correct in its own kitchen. Pair: jollof rice with hibiscus.
• Egypt — Koshari is the office lunch. Rice, lentils, pasta, fried onions, tomato sauce. Five lira. Faster than McDonald's, and Cairo eats nothing else at noon on Tuesday. Pair: koshari with karkade.
• Cape Town — Bobotie isn't curry. Cape Malay's signature — spiced minced meat under an egg custard, served with yellow rice. The dish that taught Dutch food to be interesting. Pair: bobotie with chenin blanc.

Bush flights, overland trucks, occasional rails.

Africa moves on small planes, 4×4s, and shared minibuses. Trains exist in Morocco, Egypt, Kenya and South Africa — and almost nowhere else. Plan accordingly. Bush planes (Cessna Caravans) are the safari taxi: noisy, hot, and the only sensible way to move between Tanzania, Kenya and Botswana camps. Soft duffels only — hard cases get refused at the strip. 15kg per person is the limit. Overland trucks (Acacia, Intrepid, Dragoman) work for younger budgets and longer trips. Public transport works fine in Morocco, Egypt and South Africa. Self-drive is excellent in Namibia and South Africa and almost nowhere else — even Kenyan roads are punishing.

Door-to-door comparison.

• Cape Town to Joburg — train (Blue Train, 27h, scenic), plane 2h 10m.
• Marrakech to Fes — train 7h 00m, plane 1h 00m.
• Cairo to Aswan — sleeper train 12h 30m, plane 1h 30m.
• Nairobi to Mombasa — SGR train 5h, plane 1h 05m.
• Addis to Lalibela — no train, plane 1h 10m.

Six routes worth knowing.

• Marrakech RAK to Fes FEZ — 7h 00m by ONCF rail, daily.
• Cairo CAI to Aswan ASW — 12h 30m sleeper train, nightly.
• Nairobi NBO to Mombasa MBA — 5h by SGR Madaraka Express.
• Johannesburg JNB to Cape Town CPT — 27h Blue Train, twice weekly.
• Dakar DKR to Saint-Louis SLU — 4h 30m by bus, hourly.
• Addis ADD to Lalibela LLI — 1h 10m by Ethiopian domestic.

Three Africas, three budgets.

The continent doesn't share a price list. North Africa is among the cheapest places in the world. East Africa safaris are among the most expensive. West Africa sits in the middle. Plan for the actual region you're visiting, not an average.

North and West — $65 a day. Riads, shared taxis, market food.

Bed $22 to $48. Food $10 to $18. Transit $8 to $14. Sights $10. Realistic across Morocco, Egypt, Senegal, Ghana. Riads are often cheaper than hostels and three times as nice.

Safari (East / South) — $520 a day. Mid-tier camp, two game drives, full board.

Bed and park $340 to $460. Food included. Game drives included. Park fees $60 to $90. The unavoidable tier on a Tanzania, Kenya, Botswana or Zambia trip. Mid-range camps are a third the price of luxury and 80% the experience.

Editorial Africa — $1,400 a day. &Beyond, Wilderness, Singita class.

Bed $900 to $1,400. Food and drinks included. Bush flights $200 to $400. Guide tip $25 to $40. The big lodges price in dollars and book out 12 months ahead. Worth it for one or two nights, not a whole trip — pair with mid-range camps.

Five phrases per country.

Two thousand languages live on the continent; nobody is going to learn them in advance. The four words that move every meal forward, and the one that opens every door. Try them; locals notice.

• Maroc · Darija. Salam (hello). Shukran (thank you). Lhsab afak (the bill, please). Atay bnaana (mint tea).
• Egypt · Masri. As-salaamu alaykum (peace be upon you). Shukran (thank you). Al-hisaab law samaht (the bill). Karkade (hibiscus tea).
• Kenya · Swahili. Jambo / Habari (hello / how are you). Asante sana (thank you very much). Bili tafadhali (the bill). Hakuna matata (no problem — yes, real).
• Ethiopia · Amharic. Selam (peace / hello). Ameseginalehu (thank you). Hisabun yimattalin (may we have the bill). Buna (coffee, the ceremony version).
• Senegal · Wolof. Salaam aleekum (hello). Jërejëf (thank you). Adduna ma fii (the bill). Bissap (hibiscus drink).
• South Africa · Zulu. Sawubona (hello). Ngiyabonga (thank you). Ungubani igama lakho? (what's your name?). Sharp sharp (universal slang).
• Rwanda · Kinyarwanda. Muraho (hello). Murakoze (thank you). Faktura nyamuneka (the bill). Amazi (water).
• Madagascar · Malagasy. Salama (hello). Misaotra (thank you). Ny faktiora azafady (the bill). Vary (rice, three meals a day).

Festivals worth a detour.

Six dates that bend an itinerary. Book early; some sell out a year ahead, and the desert ones move location for safety.

• Carnival — Cape Town, January. The minstrel parade. Cape Malay troupes in satin and parasols dance Long Street on Tweede Nuwe Jaar. The continent's loudest second-of-January. Four stars.
• Timkat — Lalibela / Gondar, January. Three days of Orthodox processions. Replicas of the Ark of the Covenant carried under brocade umbrellas through hill towns. Dawn baptism on day three. Five stars.
• Festival au Désert — Mali (in exile), January. Tuareg desert music gathering — has moved repeatedly for safety, currently held in exile in Mauritania. Track the dates carefully. Five stars.
• Fes Festival of World Sacred Music — Morocco, May/June. Sufi nights at Bab Boujloud. Nine days of qawwali, gospel, ney flute, fado. Tickets affordable, queues long, the 11pm courtyards are the show. Five stars.
• Lake of Stars — Malawi, September/October. Three days, one lake. Pan-African line-up on the shore of Lake Malawi. Tent camp, small crowd, the friendliest festival in Africa by a margin. Four stars.
• Afrochella / Afrofuture — Accra, December. Diaspora homecoming. Afrobeats, fashion, food trucks. The headline week of Ghana's Year of Return programme — book lodging four months out. Four stars.

Six neighborhoods we trust.

Stay here. Eat here. Walk for two days before you do anything else.

• Bo-Kaap — Cape Town. The pastel-painted Cape Malay quarter on the Signal Hill side. Walking distance to everything, and bobotie within a block in three directions. Why: Cape Malay, walkable.
• Médina de Marrakech — Marrakech. Inside the walls. Riad with a courtyard pool, walk twenty minutes to Jemaa el-Fnaa, never look at a tourist bus again. Why: riad, old city.
• Westlands — Nairobi. Where the safari traveller stays a night before flying north. Walkable restaurants, two malls, the nyama choma at Carnivore. Why: layover, restaurants.
• Plateau — Dakar. The harbor end of Dakar. Independence Square is the start of every walk; the rooftop bars run until 2am on Friday. Why: sea breeze, music.
• Zamalek — Cairo. An island in the Nile. Tree-lined, cafés on every corner, Cairo as a city you'd want to live in. A taxi to the pyramids is twenty minutes either way. Why: island, trees.
• Stone Town — Zanzibar. The carved-door old quarter. Stay inside the walls one night before the beach — Forodhani night market for fish, then a roof for the call to prayer. Why: spice port, walls.

Pack for sun, dust, and bush.

The packing list that fits in a 15kg soft duffel — bush flights ban hard cases. Trade the bright t-shirts for two long linen shirts you actually like.

Clothing — sun, dust, and bush.

• Two long-sleeve linen shirts (sun, mosquitoes).
• Convertible trousers — never shorts on game drives.
• A wide-brim hat that survives a backpack.
• Closed-toe shoes for trekking, sandals for camp.
• Light fleece — Serengeti dawn is 8°C.
• Sunglasses with side coverage (dust).
• Two buffs or shemagh for face cover.
• Tip: khaki, sand, olive. No bright colours, no white, no blue.

Bags and tech — soft-sided, 15kg max.

• Soft-sided duffel — bush flights ban hard cases.
• Daypack with a 2L bladder.
• Universal Type-C / D / G adapter.
• Headlamp with red filter for camp.
• Power bank 10,000 mAh.
• Quick-dry travel towel.
• Wet wipes / hand sanitiser everywhere.
• Tip: bring twice the cash you think; ATMs are unreliable outside cities.

Health and admin — don't get sick.

• Yellow fever certificate (required East and Central).
• Malaria prophylaxis — confirm with a travel clinic.
• DEET 30%+ insect repellent.
• Rehydration salts and broad-spectrum antibiotics.
• Photocopies of passport, visa, vaccination card.
• Travel insurance with medical evacuation (mandatory).
• Two USD $100 bills for visa-on-arrival fees.
• Tip: never drink the tap water, never the hotel ice. Bottled or filtered, every time.

The questions, answered.

The eight questions every reader sends before a first African trip. Updated April 2026.

When is the actual best time for an Africa safari?

July through October for east and southern Africa — dry season, short grass, animals at the water. The Mara River crossings peak between late July and early September. For the calving season in southern Serengeti, go in late January through February instead.

Visas — what do I actually need?

Most Africa countries are not Schengen, and almost every one wants its own visa. Kenya, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Egypt, Morocco, and South Africa all run e-visa portals — apply 30 plus days out. Tanzania and Uganda allow visa-on-arrival but bring two USD $100 bills. The new EAC tourist visa covers Kenya plus Rwanda plus Uganda on a single permit.

Is a safari worth it if I have never been to Africa?

Almost always yes — but pick the right country. South Africa or Namibia for self-drive first-timers. Tanzania or Kenya if you can spend $400 plus a night and want fly-in camps. Avoid Botswana on a first trip; it is the most expensive and the least signposted.

Malaria, yellow fever, vaccinations — what is required?

Yellow fever is required for entry into many east and central African countries; get the shot at least 10 days before travel and carry the yellow card. Malaria is endemic in most of sub-Saharan Africa — talk to a travel clinic about doxycycline or Malarone prophylaxis 4 to 8 weeks ahead. Hep A, typhoid and rabies pre-exposure are worth the conversation.

Can I drink the tap water?

No, almost nowhere. Bottled or filtered, every time. That includes ice, salads, and the hotel water glass. Carry a Steripen or Grayl filter if you are going to be out of cities for more than a few days. Cape Town is the main exception — its tap water is fine.

Is Africa safe to travel?

Africa is fifty-four countries; the question is meaningless at that scale. Morocco, Egypt, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Ghana have well-established tourism. Cape Town, Nairobi and Johannesburg ask for the same urban awareness as São Paulo or New Orleans. Check the UK FCDO and US State Department advisories two weeks before travel.

How much is enough time for an Africa trip?

10 to 14 days for one country, 18 to 21 days for cape-to-cairo style multi-country. A safari needs at least four nights at one camp; one-night safaris are a tax on your sleep schedule. Morocco rewards two weeks more than ten days because of the long road between cities.

Should I book a tour or go independent?

Independent works for Morocco, Egypt, Senegal, Ghana, South Africa and Namibia. Book a tour or specialist agent for Tanzania, Kenya, Botswana, Rwanda, Uganda and Madagascar — the bush logistics, permits, and bush flights are not a DIY exercise. Use a specialist with offices on the ground; avoid the global brands that subcontract everything.

Four more dispatches.

1. How to plan a Tanzania safari that doesn't cost twenty thousand dollars. Lucia, 11 min read.
2. The Marrakech medina, in three doors. Iris, 7 min read.
3. Cape Town in four days, no bus tour. Marcus, 9 min read.
4. Lalibela at Timkat — what nobody tells you. Eli, 8 min read.

End of Issue Nº 15 — Africa.

HowTo: Travel Edition. Issue Nº 015. Spring 2026. Published 25 April 2026. Field desk Marrakech. 1,400 contributors strong.

Dry season. Bush flights. Two long lunches. One country at a time. Soft bag only. Don't rush the medina.