Like most good things, a safari should be savoured at leisure, step by step, at a pace that would make even the most nimble octogenarian feel like Usain Bolt. It's called a "slow safari" and it's a thing. Honestly. So sit back and let's find out why...

Modern life is a state of permanent rush - a weekly race to the weekend which we pack with the things we don't have time for from Monday to Friday. From the moment we open our eyes we're engaged in the task of making it to bedtime at the fastest speed possible, cramming as much into our lives as we possibly can. We convince ourselves that the fast pace of our lives is a necessity.

The result? Headless chicken syndrome - we never truly appreciate what's going on around us because we're too focussed on staying alive, legging it blindly for an average of 18 hours a day, seven days a week. So it's no surprise that when we get a phone call, email or WhatsApp about a safari, our clients generally want to get as much into whatever time they have as possible.

Don't get us wrong, we love sending you all over Africa. Really. But not literally and in 10 days. Or less. Possible or not, it's just not the way a safari should be. We always recommend at least three nights in each destination, but if you're open to it, we'd like you to go on a completely different type of safari - one where you can actually unpack your bag and forget what day it is... A slow safari.

Less pace, more Africa...

It's when you slow your safari down that the real magic happens and you let Africa under your skin and into your heart. It might sound mushy but it's actually true. Cross our hearts and other bits. You can't "do" Africa in one trip. It's like a fine wine - best tasted sip by sumptuous sip. You achieve this by spending more time at fewer camps, which in our book is much better than rushing your backsides off across a continent to tick names off on a list of destinations. 

Less really is more when it comes to a safari and there are a number of ways to achieve utter nirvana (and we don't mean playing Smells Like Teen Spirit as loud as possible through your air pods). For example - if you've got 10 days, try spending them in one or two easily linked countries with five nights in each. Ideally, spend 10 nights in one place! Shock, horror! Or make it 14 nights in two place... Three weeks in three places... A month in two places... 

OK. You get the idea. Which is to anchor yourself in a place where you can truly unwind, relax and immerse yourself. And become familiar with it, get to know it and understand it. Become local. Doing this allows you to spend quality time absorbing your surroundings, getting to know the rhythms of the wilderness and the people around you. 

Make like a tortoise

Travelling is always such a high stress passtime - the act of getting to point B from point A is inevitably a mission driven by timetables, departure times and hours of wasted energy spent waiting for planes, trains, automobiles and other forms of transport. 

By the time you get to your destination you're tired, feeling skanky, grouchy and anxious to get the vacation started. At full speed, in case you miss something. Don't be fooled, FOMO is real and is a vacation serial killer, slashing at your yearning for rest like Freddie Krueger on speed. 

By slowing things down you lose the fear of missing out and the need to do every single game activity every single day. Instead you rediscover the simple pleasure of sleeping late and staying in camp for a morning or afternoon, lounging by the pool, vegging out and just "being" in Africa. And you have the time to visit the local village, do a full-day in the bush with a picnic lunch, sleepout under the stars... All the things it's impossible to squeeze into two or even three nights. 

You also learn more about where you are in the world. This is a case of familiarity breeding contentment as you become settled and feel at ease in your surroundings. 

Take it all out...

One of the best ways to enjoy a slow safari is to make it a group effort, either with friends or family (or a combination of both) and take over the whole safari camp. 

You don't need a bus-load of people for this, especially with the small, intimate camps we love to work with. Sometimes eight will do the trick. Or even six. And a lot of camps and lodges have exclusive-use villas or safari houses that are ideal for taking it slow with your loved ones.

The advantage of having it all to yourself is that schedules can be thrown out of the window without affecting other guests and you can decide what you want to do and when with gay abandon. You'll have your own guide, your own safari vehicle and your own team of staff to make sure you're being slow enough. And to slow you down if you aren't!

Where do you find these amazing, exclusive places? You don't! We do! We know all the little secret places that are perfect for slow safaris like this so all you have to do is pick our brains and let us send you on the coolest, most chilled-out and chillaxed adventure into wild Africa possible. We promise you won't regret it!