Four awesome African escapes

Wild new style in Kenya’s greater Mara

Naretoi is a novel model for safari-conservation in Kenya’s Mara-Serengeti ecosystem; a 1,000-acre private estate that’s a former farm, now rewilded, whose proceeds support the Enonkishu Conservancy, a unique cooperative of Mara families managing land sustainably for both livestock and wildlife. Collection in the Wild has been operating private-stay safari accommodations here for some time; new to its portfolio are three Wild Villas – Amani, Jamani and Olmarei.

They offer variations on the same safari-chic modernism, with four or five bedrooms, large pools and lawns, and full staff, including a chef. Private guides can lead game drives through 45,000 acres of nearby northern Mara conservancies; walking safaris are on offer too.

Mozambique’s wilderness success story

Gorongosa is a national park with an up-and-down history (not unlike that of Mozambique, the country it’s in). But for the past 16 years it has been the beneficiary of a unique public-private partnership between the national government and philanthropist Greg Carr. The partnership aims to restore the extraordinary wildlife populations the park was known for in the 20th century, before the country’s civil war decimated them by up to 90 per cent. Today it’s known as the Park for Peace, and considered a success story (the country’s occasional political fragility notwithstanding).

In late August, Natural World Safaris will offer an inspiring eight-day safari into the park to see the Gorongosa Project in practice. NWS’s guests will be led by longtime private guide Rob Janisch; they can meet the scientists on the ground (and assist them in data collection), shadow the staff of the first wildlife veterinary unit to operate permanently in a national park, and visit one of southern Africa’s biggest pangolin research centres.

Maximum indulgence and unparalleled nature in Tanzania

A one-of-a-kind private eyrie in a one-of-a-kind private reserve is the best way to sum up Milele, the new five-bedroom villa that’s part of Singita’s portfolio of lodges and residences on Grumeti, above the Serengeti National Park. The wildlife encounters that happen here have been called unparalleled in east Africa and the ultra-coddling quality of the stay is equally unparalleled: Singita Grumeti comprises some of the continent’s loveliest camps and lodges, and one of its finest wine cellars.

Milele skews contemporary, and spectacular, with private decks for each ensuite, a large outdoor living room (complete with firepit), and heated spa pool plus fitness centre. It comes with a full staff of field guides to lead private game drives, chef, and housekeepers – and the option to spend half a day visiting any number of programmes run by the Grumeti Fund, Singita’s nonprofit partner.

Stargazing on safari in the Okavango Delta’s remotest reaches

More than any other safari operator in southern Africa, Wilderness has the corner on Botswana from the lo-fi to the mega-luxe, stretching from the Namibian border at Linyanti down into the lushest reaches of the Okavango Delta. The latest to join its ranks is Mokete, a tented camp in the vast and near-untouched Mababe private reserve on the Delta’s eastern edge.

It’s known for having very few people, and robust populations of both hyena and lion; its combination of plain, rich marsh and mopane woodland brings gorgeous mixes of landscape along with the excellent megafauna-spotting potential. The camp itself is contemporary and light-footprint; its nine tents have solar-powered mod cons and – a nice fillip – retractable roofs for nighttime stargazing.