"We would recommend Chalo Africa for those looking for a unique and responsible wilderness experience"

The game safari industry in Kenya caters basically to a western clientele. That’s why it was a refreshing change to come across an Indian company like Chalo Africa that caters specifically to Indian needs. More importantly , what made us happy was that we were looking for a more specialized wilderness experience, keeping in mind that we make many visits to sanctuaries and national parks. We liked the fact that they were willing to experiment and help plan a holiday away from a cookie-cutter approach and keeping in mind our desire to get an offbeat wildlife experience. Sangeeta from their team, made several suggestions on what we could do to get off the tourist trail and get a more intimate wildlife experience.

I also like the fact that they tie up with counterparts in Africa who believe in the principle of ‘responsible tourism’ and take that very seriously. The bushcamp they suggested for us, had no walls constructed, (so we had wild animals coming to sniff our tents at night !) and use of resources like lights and water was restricted to the minimal. We would recommend Chalo Africa for anyone looking for a unique and responsible wilderness experience!

Bahar Dutt is a wildlife conservationist and journalist
Vijay Bedi is a award winning wildlife film maker

Bahar and Vijay wrote about their trip to the Masai Mara in National Geographic Traveller India, December 2013 issue. Read the full article here.