Best Places To Visit
– Kenya
– South Africa
– Mauritius
– Madagascar
– Morocco
Best Time To Visit
The overall best time to visit most of Africa is from October to March, but the best time to visit North Africa is from May to June. This all depends on where the country is in relation to the equator.
Best Food To Eat
– Jollof
– Tagine
– Shakshouka
Culture, landscapes and nature.
Africa is the world’s second largest continent and contains over 50 countries.
Africa is in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. It is spread across three of the major lines of latitude: the Tropic of Cancer, the Equator and the Tropic of Capricorn. The north of Africa shares a boundary with Asia.
The most notable locations of Africa include the Sahara desert, Mount Kilimanjaro and The Amazon Rainforest.
Intro & Culture
CURRENCY
In Africa, there is such a huge range of currencies used. Some countries might not accept card payments, but if they do I would definitely recommend looking into a card that doesn’t charge you for payments or withdrawals abroad. I use Monzo, which is an app based bank account and contactless card (there are lots of similar ones to choose from though). It also alerts you once you’ve used the card and also gives you the current exchange rate and location on purchases too.
Top Tip: Download the app “Currency Plus” to get currency conversions on the go. It updates daily and when connected to WiFi or Network to give you the latest conversion and you can have multiple currencies shown in one go.
Download here: Apple App Store // Google Play Store
LANGUAGE
There is such a wide range of languages spoken across Africa, but they will speak English to help with communication depending on their education level.
TIMEZONE
The time zone in Africa can vary depending on where the country is in relation to the equator. There are six standard time zones, having an offset range of between UTC-1 and UTC+4.
CUISINE
Food is amazing in Africa. There are so many different restaurants which cater for different cuisines and tastes. There are so many different dishes you need to try.
01. Make the most of happy hours – There are a lot of bars and restaurants that have happy hours where most drinks will be half price. If you are into that kind of thing, make sure you make the most of this offer. You can also have happy hour offers for eating out but not all restaurants will have this offer.
02. When travelling on public transport, use a savers or travel card – Do not buy a travel card ticket from a machine as you will always get caught out by peak travel fares. Make sure you have a contactless credit or debit card or a savers card.
03. In a restaurant, be sure to check for dishes of the day or a saver deal – Most of these deals will be around for students but that doesn’t mean you can’t make the most of a cheaper meal. Eating out can be quite expensive, but you don’t always have to fork out on a meal.
04. Leave taxi/Uber travel for when you have longer journeys or travelling with luggage – I wouldn’t want to be stuck in traffic in a taxi or Uber as the metre will be running and wasting money. If you can, try to use public transport and leave a taxi/Uber as a last resort especially if you are travelling with lots of luggage. You don’t want to carry heavy suitcases around.
Budget Tips
Suggested Daily Budget – 115-120 EUR / 100-115 GBP
This is a suggested daily budget. This daily budget isn’t including accommodation or excursions.
Travel Tips
VISAS
You will need a visa to travel to Africa, so it’s worth checking before you travel for the requirements.
Check if you need a Visa or other documentation here…
With iVisa, all of your travel document requirements are all in one place. They help give you that piece of mind when checking you have everything you need to enter a country without any hassle.
You can apply for everything from visas, tourist cards, invitation letters and health declaration forms for COVID-19 differently from their website. It’s very quick and easy to use and they are very fast at processing your applications, some things can even be FREE for whichever travel document you need. You can even pay for speedy processing and delivery if you are in a rush.
INJECTIONS
You will need injections to travel to Africa, no matter where you are coming from.
READ MORE: A Guide to Vaccinations And Visas Around The World
CAPITAL/CITY
There are so many capitals across Africa that are worth travelling to.
The capital of Kenya is Nairobi
The capital of South Africa is actually Pretoria (Administrative Capital), Cape Town (Legislative Capital) and Bloemfontein (Judicial Capital). Johannesburg is one of the biggest cities in South Africa and often mistaken for the capital.
The capital of Morocco is Rabat.
ACCOMMODATION
There are so many hotels and accommodation across the Africa depending on where you are planning to stay. These can vary from major hotel chains, AirBnB’s, homestays or hostels. Make sure you check out AirBnB and also TripAdvisor for booking your hotel or hostel.
ACCOMMODATION I’VE STAYED IN
•
Explore Africa
North
Algeria
Egypt
Libya
Morocco
Tunisia
East
Ethiopia
Kenya
Seychelles
Tanzania
Madagascar
Mozambique
Zambia
South/Central
Botswana
Cameroon
Chad
Congo
Namibia
South Africa
West
Ghana
Senegal
Nigeria
Mali
Mauritania
DRIVING
It is difficult to say whether it’s safe to drive in Africa. It depends if you feel confident enough and know the driving laws.
FLIGHTS
Flights to Africa can be from any major city across the world or from having a stopover in a major city if you are coming from somewhere smaller. Be sure to search Skyscanner to find your best time to fly.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Public transport can vary across Africa depending on if you are travelling to a built up country with the infrastructure or if you are visiting a more third world country.
Packing Tips
WHAT TO WEAR
You can wear pretty much anything in Africa, of course depending on the weather. It is always best to come prepared for all weathers because you never know what weather you are going to get. You will also need to take into account religious laws on clothing and make sure you dress modestly.
WEATHER
As I said above, the weather can be very mixed and can change at any point. So make sure you are prepared for the weather you’ll be visiting in. I would recommend always having a pair of sunglasses and an umbrella in your bag just in case.
Activities
THINGS TO SEE & DO
There is so much to do in Africa depending on where you are in the country. The biggest things to do is visit the Sahara or go on a safari trip.
HIGHLIGHTS OF AFRICA
• Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
• Wildlife Safari, Kenya
• Sahara Desert
• Table Mountain, South Africa