Vacation Plans and Dreams

[SaintsManiac]

Upcoming Trips:
Disney --March, July and October 2019
NYC --May/June 2020 (also bucket list!)
Universal--Thanksgiving 2020

Bucket List Trips:
Disneyland and Los Angeles (hoping for 2021)
Quebec-- hoping within 5 years

Dream Trip:
Tokyo Disney
Scotland and England

 

[TipsyTraveler]

I agree with Tipsy that Giraffe Manor is unbelievable. But she didn't mention that it is most likely outside of the budget for 99% of people. It's 1,500 USD per night minimum!

Rooms can be had at the Manor for less than that. Prices include all meals, most beverages, and a private driver, and are in line with other “luxury safari” accommodations in East Africa. Anyone looking to book a safari probably already knows it isn’t budget traveling!

 

[ronandannette]

I agree with Tipsy that Giraffe Manor is unbelievable. But she didn't mention that it is most likely outside of the budget for 99% of people. It's 1,500 USD per night minimum!

{{sigh}} Which is why African Safari is on my "Probably Only in My Imagination" list...

Rooms can be had at the Manor for less than that. Prices include all meals, most beverages, and a private driver, and are in line with other “luxury safari” accommodations in East Africa. Anyone looking to book a safari probably already knows it isn’t budget traveling!

It sounds AMAZING Tipsy; just amazing. And in terms of value for the dollar - priceless!

 

[TipsyTraveler]

Your trip sounds amazing!!!! When I first started researching, I looked at Kenya and Tanzania. With two kids in college and wanting a family safari, I just couldn't make the numbers fit my tiny budget. That's how we ended up choosing South Africa/Kruger Park with a combination of guided drives and self drives. Some day I'd like to go again with an itinerary much like yours. I also didn't use a tour operator. I did all my own research and booked all my accommodations and tours directly. I feel like I had way more control that way, and I could get exactly the experience I wanted verses a pre packaged tour. A couple of the camps we are staying in are remote and very small, which will give us a true bush experience. Shindzela only has 8 tents for a max of 16 people. Thank you for sharing about your trip. Every time I read about someone else's experience, I get even more excited for our trip!


I did look at a few Groupon options and was really interested in one from Odyssey Safaris. The $2900 per person rate looked really good, but I'm a teacher and my college kids still follow a school schedule. All the tour dates at that price point were for off season when school was in session. Unfortunately I have to go during prime vacation season. The trips also weren't quite as long as I wanted when you accounted for the 2+ travel days. You could add on a couple of extra days for more money though. I also wanted more tent camps on the itinerary. The $2900 pp option stayed mostly in Sopa lodges the whole trip. Some of the tours did leave from an airport near me (IAD). Other only left from New York, which would require extra money to fly or drive there. I can see how a Groupon Safari could be a great option for folks who had lots of flexibility. I'm going to keep my eye on Groupon for future trips for sure.

I’m excited for you! It was one of (maybe the) best trips I’ve ever taken. You’re going to have the best time.

I didn’t know South Africa was significantly cheaper than East, but that’s good info to know for the next time I start making safari plans.

Have fun!!!

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

Thanks @Mortlives @rlk @TipsyTraveler @Mrs. Ciz and @MrMiyagi for your tips about your Safari adventures! I'm looking into all of your suggestions. It's a bit tricky for us because our youngest will be 4, and some places insist that kids be at least 8. And I definitely want to avoid the 20 people packed in one vehicle, 20 cars parked around one pride of lions thing.

@Julie's Haircut I lived in Atlanta during the 1996 Olympics. It was kind of the worst, to be honest! But Atlanta traffic is always terrible and the city was not well designed for handling the influx of people. I'm kind of hoping to go to Beijing in 2022 as our friend's daughter stands a good chance of either competing or being an alternate in her sport, and I would love to go cheer her on. But yeah, the crowds will be intense.

 

[bananasplitkids]

Currently Planning/Planned Trips
Miami - end of this Month
Caribbean Cruise - November 2018
South Africa - Cape Town/Johannesburg/Kruger Park for safari - December 2019
Somewhere for my 30th - March 2019

Trips I want to take in the future
DC - I want to see the African American Musuem (most likely sometime in 2019)
Greece
Morrocco
Bali
Sydney

 

[bananasplitkids]

Your trip sounds amazing!!!! When I first started researching, I looked at Kenya and Tanzania. With two kids in college and wanting a family safari, I just couldn't make the numbers fit my tiny budget. That's how we ended up choosing South Africa/Kruger Park with a combination of guided drives and self drives. Some day I'd like to go again with an itinerary much like yours. I also didn't use a tour operator. I did all my own research and booked all my accommodations and tours directly. I feel like I had way more control that way, and I could get exactly the experience I wanted verses a pre packaged tour. A couple of the camps we are staying in are remote and very small, which will give us a true bush experience. Shindzela only has 8 tents for a max of 16 people. Thank you for sharing about your trip. Every time I read about someone else's experience, I get even more excited for our trip!


I did look at a few Groupon options and was really interested in one from Odyssey Safaris. The $2900 per person rate looked really good, but I'm a teacher and my college kids still follow a school schedule. All the tour dates at that price point were for off season when school was in session. Unfortunately I have to go during prime vacation season. The trips also weren't quite as long as I wanted when you accounted for the 2+ travel days. You could add on a couple of extra days for more money though. I also wanted more tent camps on the itinerary. The $2900 pp option stayed mostly in Sopa lodges the whole trip. Some of the tours did leave from an airport near me (IAD). Other only left from New York, which would require extra money to fly or drive there. I can see how a Groupon Safari could be a great option for folks who had lots of flexibility. I'm going to keep my eye on Groupon for future trips for sure.

I'm also currently planning a trip to South Africa for next year including safari at Kruger. Which camps are you staying at for your safari at Kruger? There's so many options and everytime I think I have one I like I find another one.

 

[SC Minnie]

Upcoming-
Long weekend in Orlando Labor Day weekend
Long weekend in Hilton head in Sept
Hawaii in Oct for 2 weeks - SC Minnie is turning 50
10 day cruise in Dec

2019
A week in an all inclusive in Mexico in Feb
A week in an all inclusive in Dom Rep in Sept

Bucket List
River cruise in Germany- that might be 2020 or 2021 we'll see

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I'm also currently planning a trip to South Africa for next year including safari at Kruger. Which camps are you staying at for your safari at Kruger? There's so many options and everytime I think I have one I like I find another one.

We are staying in a combination of places partly due to budget and partly to have a varied safari experience. For the first 5 days, I have 5 free rewards nights booked at Protea Hotels in the Hazyview area right on the edge of Kruger Park (great for my tiny budget). I can’t decide between Protea Hazyview (20 min from Phabeni Gate, close to the non safari activities we want to do, close to grocery stores and restaurants, nice rooms, nice grounds) or Protea Paul Kruger Gate (5 min from Paul Kruger Gate; remote - 45 min from activities, restaurants and stores; ok rooms but spectacular grounds). Right now I have both booked. We may actually do 3 nights at one, 2 nights at the other. From the Protea Hotel, we’ll do a day tour guided game drive with Kurt Safari and some self drives into Kruger and explore lower Kruger Park. We’ll also golf, visit Elephant Whisper, and drive the Panoramic Route. Then we have 2 nights in Tamboti Tent Camp (a Kruger SANParks camp) booked. We’ll do a sunset game drive through Orpen Camp and some self drives to explore middle Kruger Park. After that we move to Shindzela (a small private all inclusive safari tent camp in the Timbavati Reserve) for 2 nights.

There are so many cool SANParks camps to choose from that I can see why you are having a hard time picking them. We wanted to stay in tents and have more of a bush experience after the Protea Hotel, so that narrowed it down for us. Tamboti is also not too far away from Shindzela, so that helped. We picked Shindzela with some help from experts on the Fodor’s South Africa forum. I gave them my budget and tentative plans. The helpful folks there gave me a list of really good camps within my little budget. I research them all and booked my favorite. Staying there will give us some pampering at the end of our trip - a little tast of champagne on my beer budget!

Have fun planning your trip!!!!

 

[MIGrandma]

Upcoming:
2-week vacation in the upper peninsula of Michigan, with our camper at the end of the month and into September. We LOVE going back up there, to Sault Ste. Marie, Tahquamenon Rivermouth, Mackinaw City, Munising area, Manistique, etc.
In November is my Disneyworld trip with my adult daughter, it's our second trip there together and I am SO EXCITED about it!!
Next February we have a 7-night Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas cruise booked, and we plan to spend about a week in the Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge area before it.

In the not-so-distant future hopefully:
Alaska - but we are still undecided if we want to do a Princess cruise/land tour, fly there and rent a cabin for 2-3 weeks, or take our camper there for a 6-week journey.

We used to really want to go to Hawaii, we haven't crossed it off our list yet but it's not as important to us to go there as it is Alaska.

And we used to think about Germany, England, and a few other countries but we have pretty much lost our desire to go to any of them.

Still talking about a 3-week "out west" trip. DH has been out there but I never have. Would love to see the Grand Canyon, Old Faithful, Yellowstone, etc. but we haven't set a firm date for it yet.

 

[BLAZEY]

Upcoming trips March 2019 (not started planning other than the timing and possible accommodations) DH's mom aka Nana wants to go to Disneyland with her granddaughters. The youngest is now 4 and finally potty trained, and the older girls are 8 & 9. The older girls are in different school districts, but DD9 and DNeice 8 actually have the same 2 weeks off for spring break this year! Everyone seem to be on board with it, and Dneice 8 really would love to see the Harry Potter park. We did it in Orlando in March 2017, so the girls have been taking about it a lot. We will start planning in earnest once everyone is back from their summer holidays.

Trips I haven't planned yet but want to do. Take DD to Japan to visit my friend who happens to a a DD that is 1 week older than mine.

 

[BLAZEY]

Ooooh, good one!! My city has a bid in for the 2026 Winter Games. We hosted previously in 1988 and if we get another chance I'll be all over enjoying ever minute of it!!

If your city gets it we'll try and go. I was on mat leave will DD9 when the games were in Vancouver We should have got on the boat to the mainland but didn't. Really regret it. I went in 1998 to Nagano Japan to the Winter games and enjoyed it

 

[soccerdad72]

We actually have no currently booked trips (aside from a couple college visits).

Right now, the big vacation plan for the upcoming year is Hawaii (Maui and/or Kauai) with our boys for their graduations (8th grade and HS). My wife and I have gone twice, but not with our kids yet.

Bucket list for my wife and I is probably the South Pacific (Fiji, Bora Bora, etc.).

Ultimate dream trip (e.g. never gonna happen ) would be a couple weeks in Necker Island

 

[Kitty 34]

Going to Mackinaw City and Mackinac Island this coming weekend. Our 20th trip up there and our first with one of our grand babies!!

Possible trip to Vegas is starting to be discussed for next June.

 

[Julie's Haircut]

Ooooh, good one!! My city has a bid in for the 2026 Winter Games. We hosted previously in 1988 and if we get another chance I'll be all over enjoying ever minute of it!!

I suppose going to Tokyo for the Olympics isn't out of the realm of possibility; but I doubt I'll go. I can wait for L.A. in 2028 if I'm still alive.

If Calgary gets the Winter Games again I might consider going. I did visit once before, in 1994, to see the Flames play hockey.

@Julie's Haircut I lived in Atlanta during the 1996 Olympics. It was kind of the worst, to be honest! But Atlanta traffic is always terrible and the city was not well designed for handling the influx of people. I'm kind of hoping to go to Beijing in 2022 as our friend's daughter stands a good chance of either competing or being an alternate in her sport, and I would love to go cheer her on. But yeah, the crowds will be intense.

I did go to the Olympics in Atlanta. Just for one day. Flew in in the morning and flew back late that evening. I don't really recall the traffic but I do recall hearing of transportation issues.

We took the subway from the airport to downtown. Took a taxi to and from the Olympic Stadium for a late morning track & field session. Late in the afternoon walked to a gym on Georgia Tech's campus to see a women's indoor volleyball match. The rest of the time was just spent wandering around taking in the atmosphere. Return by subway to the airport before the flight home.