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Best African travel destinations for 2023

The ideal time to plan your next vacation is as soon as you return from your last one. While getting back to work and setting goals for the year is good and necessary, work life can bring with it a certain amount of stress which can be offset by the anticipation of something good. According to a study conducted in 2015, “anticipating a positive event is uniquely able to induce positive emotions.”

We’ve rounded up 12 sublime locations to holiday in Africa – so that you can start planning.

January and February
1. Cape Town, South Africa 
Voted both the best city in Africa and the best in the world, by readers of Travel + Leisure and The Telegraph respectively, we agree that Cape Town is certainly gorgeous. The city has an especially vibrant energy in summer, with its restaurants and brilliant white beaches buzzing with both locals and visitors. 

2. The Garden Route, South Africa
The Garden Route stretches from Mossel Bay along South Africa’s southern coast as far as the dramatically beautiful Storms River in the Tsitsikamma section of the Garden Route National Park. The area’s forests, rivers and beaches can be explored by vehicle, on foot, by boat, by zipline or on a mountain bike. It’s an ideal destination for family travel and is home to landmark sites like the Map of Africa, the Knysna Heads, Featherbed and Robberg Nature Reserve as well as the Cango Caves.

March and April:
3. Seychelles 
One of the best times of year to visit Seychelles’ pristine palm-fringed beaches, framed by granite boulders, is between March and April when the trade winds don’t blow. The water is warm and clear and your days can be filled by doing as little or as much as you choose. Sailing, snorkelling, scuba diving, trips on glass bottom boats or massages by the poolside are all possibilities.

4. Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
​​While it can be enjoyable to visit Victoria Falls in November and December when the flow of the Victoria Falls is at its lowest and you can visit Devil’s Pool, if you want to experience the falls at their peak, April is one of the best months to do so. The rainy season will just have ended and while the weather is still pleasantly warm (and even hot) it will have cooled somewhat after the summer. As April is not considered high season you can secure better deals with off-peak rates too.

May and June:
5. Bangweulu swamps, Zambia
Birders will enjoy a visit to Zambia in May during the dry season to search for the prehistoric-looking shoebills. These birds favour marshes and wetlands and are typically found in the Bangweulu swamps on the country’s northern plateau. You can also spot them in Kasanka National Park, to the southwest of the wetlands.

6. Gorilla Trekking, Rwanda
A gorilla trek in Rwanda is a bucket-list item no matter what time of year you go. However, the dry season between June and September makes hiking through the jungle to find these gentle apes a bit easier. 

July and August:
7. Serengeti, Tanzania
The great migration of wildebeest is a spectacle that fascinates visitors each season. After crossing the Grumeti River the herds of wildebeest continue north and begin crossing the Mara River in July and August. It’s not only the wildebeest that are attracted to this river crossing but also wildlife enthusiasts and photographers who marvel at the spectacle.

8. Kruger National Park, South Africa
While Kruger is a year-round destination, the vegetation is not as lush during the dry winter season, providing better game-viewing opportunities. Besides being an excellent place to see the Big Five on safari, the Greater Kruger also offers an array of luxury lodges with modern facilities, excellent service and outstanding cuisine.

September and October:
9. Sossusvlei, Namibia
Climb Dune 45 or take photos of these iconic crescent-shaped red dunes before visiting the nearby Deadvlei with its cracked clay pan and petrified trees, then visit the nearby Sesriem Canyon. An early morning balloon trip that gives you a birds-eye perspective over the Namib Desert, followed by a champagne breakfast, will be a memorable addition to any holiday here.

10. Vilanculos and Bazaruto, Mozambique
While the tropical destinations of Vilanculos and the Bazaruto Archipelago can be enjoyed all year round, the dry season from June to November is best, with September and October being ideal. Scuba divers will also find visibility is also better during the dry season.

November and December
11. Chobe, Botswana
The winter safari season is busier than others in Botswana, however, November allows visitors to Chobe to witness not only its voluminous elephant population (and the rest of the Big Five) but also the annual zebra migration. In November herds of zebra congregate to form a mass of about 20,000 animals. After spending the dry months in the vicinity of the Chobe River floodplain, they begin migrating southwards to the Nxai Pan area at the end of November and in early December.

12. Grand Gaube, Mauritius
The island nation of Mauritius is a short flight away from South Africa and offers a perfect tropical escape. Explore the sandy, palm-lined beaches of Grand Gaube where you can snorkel in warm, azure water or take a day trip to Coin de Mire – a small island off the coast. The warm, clear waters around this nature reserve provide the ideal location for snorkelling and scuba diving. You may spot sting rays, triggerfish, parrot fish and leaf fish, among others.

If you’d like help in planning a seamless holiday in any of these destinations or the others that we cover, drop us a line and we’ll be happy to help.

Here’s to a new year full of travel adventures.

The Leopard Team

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    We curate each journey for you. Every itinerary is handcrafted to ensure that it matches perfectly with your wishes. We tailor each itinerary so every detail feels perfect. From breathtaking beaches to adventurous safaris, spectacular views, hotels and knowledgeable guides.

    Jessica Maitland-Stuart
    Brand Identity Designer
    Jessica is an accomplished strategic brand designer known for her typography and concept-led design approach. She used these finely-honed skills to develop Leopard’s branding and continues to design each of our personalised client itineraries.

    Jessica’s design philosophy focuses on collaborating with clients and building successful working relationships with small start-ups that share her drive to make an impact through the work she produces. That means her design doesn’t end with the artwork; extending into production to find ways of reducing both cost and environmental impact in symmetry with the design.

    Jessica is an avid runner, winning multiple marathons and ultras, a wife and mother of two, and she holds a BA degree in Brand Communication. She was recognised by the International Society of Typographic Designers and founded her own studio in 2007. Her company, Garage East (inspired by the ‘garagistes’ of France), is driven by the pursuit of meticulous craftsmanship.
    Hailey-Rose Kirsten
    Social Media
    Hailey-Rose lives in Cape Town and loves the city she grew up in. When she’s not working, she loves trying restaurants in beautiful locations (she has a ‘no eating in a shopping mall’ policy – if she can help it). She loves walking in nature and swimming in the ocean. (You may even find her occasionally taking a dip in the middle of winter).

    Hailey-Rose helps Leopard execute its social media strategy. She gathers relevant images and video content and publishes Leopard’s posts along with catchy audio. She keeps on top of Instagram trends and works with Elise to bring Leopard’s social media to life, keeping it in alignment with the Leopard brand.
    Elise Kirsten
    Digital Strategist
    Elise is passionate about travel and storytelling, like the rest of the Leopard team. She was the former online editor of Getaway magazine, South Africa’s oldest travel publication, and since 2020 has worked as a freelance travel journalist, helping brands and organisations in the travel sector to communicate with clarity and purpose.

    At Leopard, Elise helps to shape the company’s digital strategy and brings her writing expertise to life by alternating with Diana to pen newsletters, social content and website features.

    Married to her straight‑out‑of‑high‑school sweetheart and a proud mother of two adult daughters, Elise loves wide open spaces. When she’s not behind her desk, you’ll find her travelling, hiking, mountain biking or exploring the ocean — always chasing the next remarkable story.
    Caitlin Sidebottom
    Journey Support Specialist
    Growing up in Johannesburg, fondly known as the “City of Gold”, Caitlin was privileged to explore diverse destinations across South Africa, from game reserves to the warm shores of KwaZulu-Natal. She also treasures memories of visiting family in Vumba, Zimbabwe, where she loved being immersed in nature and the sense of freedom it brought. “I was awestruck when I visited both Victoria Falls and the Great Zimbabwe Ruins,” she recalls.

    Married with two small children, Caitlin enjoys spending time in nature, with friends, running, swimming and scuba diving. She describes her career as “meandering and colourful”. With a background in psychology and social development, she has worked as both a researcher and a counsellor. While moving into tourism seemed like a big shift, she soon discovered a clear continuity. "Travel can help people encounter life-giving experiences that reveal what it means to truly thrive and have the potential to influence how you live after returning home," says Caitlin.

    At Leopard, Caitlin supports the sales team to ensure every client enjoys a seamless experience. She also supports travellers while on the road, helps refine systems and processes, plans events, works closely with Leopard’s suppliers and conducts site inspections. Caitlin is passionate about tailoring each experience to fit you perfectly, so you can focus on the stories and memories you’ll take home.
    Pilar Peña
    Travel Designer | Spanish
    Pilar grew up in Marbella, in the south of Spain, known, much like Africa, for its sunshine. She moved to Johannesburg in 2013, and after more than a decade of living in Africa, she says that she feels her heart is half South African.

    When she arrived in South Africa, Pilar worked as a journalist and covered many big news stories for a newspaper and radio station in Spain. She considers it an amazing period of her life in Africa, but she wanted to embrace something different.

    Between working and being dedicated to raising her family, she travelled through southern Africa. During this time, her love for Africa, its sunsets, people, culture and landscapes continued to grow. Pilar wanted to share ‘the preciousness of this country and continent with everyone’. Now, as part of Leopard, she can do that.

    As a Spanish speaker, she works with the Spanish and Latin American markets and feels she is a true ambassador for South Africa. At Leopard, she works with clients to create a bespoke, tailor-made itinerary, where each day in Africa forms part of a perfectly dreamy trip. Pilar says that everyone should get to experience the magic of Africa.
    Helen du Toit
    Finance Manager
    Until the age of three, Helen lived in a little stone cottage in the Kyle Game Reserve, in Zimbabwe until she and her family relocated to the Kariba Dam on the great Zambezi River. Here, Helen’s father managed a Fisheries Research Institute and she grew up immersed in a culture of tourism. She also spent many Sunday afternoons in the bush observing wildlife with her family.

    Helen moved to South Africa in the early ’80s and after leaving school, she entered the travel industry. She travelled to many countries for business research and later became a specialist in travel to South America, which she visited numerous times.

    Her husband’s work required the family to settle in the little town of Mtunzini, a beautiful spot on the north coast of KwaZulu-Natal, where she took a job in the finance department at the local school. This began a chapter in Helen’s life that prepared her for corporate finance. Later, Helen worked as an imports and exports administrator and then as treasurer for a large multinational company in Johannesburg while undertaking post-graduate studies in Corporate Governance and Administration.

    When she and her family moved back to Durban, Helen worked as a bursar of a large private school. She was delighted to be living near the ocean again and couldn’t resist getting her open-water diving certificate, as her son was a scuba diving instructor. Helen’s love of adventure and creation has been a constant theme throughout her life.

    She was delighted to return to the travel industry and joined Leopard in September 2022 as a finance manager.
    Daphnée Filliette
    Senior Travel Designer | French and English
    Daphnée was born in Lille, in the Hauts-de-France region of France. A passionate traveller, she has lived and worked in several countries around the world.

    She first worked in the United States, where she has family, then moved to England to complete a Master’s in International Marketing, and later to Oceania, where she tried “WWOOFing” — working on a farm in exchange for room and board. Along the way, she met a great love in Paris, who would later become her husband, and this brought her back to France to find work and start a family.

    Daphnée began her career in fashion marketing and, in 2012, created her own fashion brand, managing all aspects of building a business.

    In 2016, Daphnée and her family had the wonderful opportunity to live in South Africa. “The question didn’t even arise — let’s go, that was obvious!” she recalls. Since then, they have welcomed three children and are enjoying life in Johannesburg.

    Daphnée has worked in the tourism industry for 10 years, specialising in Africa. Her favourite countries include Kenya and Namibia, though she also fell in love with Madagascar and Botswana. Her next adventure will be to Zambia.
    Diana Granoux
    Founder | Senior Travel Designer
    Diana was born in Zimbabwe and started her life on the banks of the great Lake Kariba. She moved to South Africa when she was a toddler and grew up in Kwa-Zulu Natal. Diana has vivid memories of long winter holidays spent camping in Zimbabwe, Namibia, Botswana and South Africa with her family. Her parents loved the bush and her father started his own tour operating company in 1992. He was an early pioneering specialist in bird watching safaris in South Africa.

    As she grew up, Diana became aware of the big, wide world outside of the African countries she knew so well, and she took her first solo overseas trip at age 14 to London to visit her father’s family. From that moment she became fascinated with experiencing the world beyond what she knew. Diana has since travelled extensively through Africa, Europe, America and Asia.

    Diana is married to a Frenchman and has two young kids, who are simultaneously developing a love for biltong & braai’s, and baguettes & brie. After 16 years gaining valuable experience working for big corporates in South Africa, Diana decided to follow her passion for travel and start Leopard. Diana has had the privilege of planning holidays for American celebrities, European royalty and high-net-worth individuals as well as regular folks who want to do a trip of a lifetime to Africa.

    She wants to create, with Leopard, a company that gives customers something unique: a curated experience of Africa, made especially for them. She says, “From the moment they arrive in Africa, to the moment they depart, I want them to have a seamless experience. I want them to enjoy the best the continent has to offer, leaving with memories that last a lifetime.”