National Geographic Traveller - UK (2022-07 & 2022-08)

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Clean & green trips


CHOBE GAME LODGE, BOTSWANA
One of the first lodges to receive Botswana’s
highest level of eco-certification, Chobe Game
Lodge offered the country’s very first electric-
powered wildlife-watching, both by land and
by river. The expert, all-female guiding team
— another trademark — handle the ultra-green
fleet of four safari vehicles and four boats.
chobegamelodge.com


EMBOO RIVER CAMP, KENYA
Proudly carbon-negative, this is the first Maasai
Mara camp with an all-electric fleet of safari
vehicles: upcycled 1 990s Land Rovers, charged
using solar power. The owners want to dump the
old hunting term Big Five, too, in favour of the ‘Big
20 ’, celebrating unsung heroes of the savannah
from fireflies to Maasai giraffes. emboo.camp


SOSSUSVLEI DESERT LODGE, NAMIBIA

While this gloriously remote lodge doesn’t yet
have ESVs, it does have e-bikes: the best way
to navigate its starkly beautiful surroundings.
Exceptionally low light pollution ensures
astronomical adventures, too, via the lodge’s
open-air observatory or through the starry
skylight above your bed. andbeyond.com


OL PEJETA BUSH CAMP, KENYA

Famous for guarding the world’s last two
northern white rhinos, and healthy numbers of
black and southern white rhinos, Ol Pejeta in
Laikipia offers not-for-profit conservation safari
experiences in beautiful grass and woodland
landscapes. Ol Pejeta Bush Camp’s Kenya-built,
solar-powered ESV saves 1, 000 litres of diesel a
year. asiliaafrica.com


CHEETAH PLAINS, SOUTH AFRICA

Cheetah Plains, a sumptuous collection of
exclusive-use, solar-powered villas in Sabi Sands
Game Reserve in Greater Kruger, is owned by
Japie van Niekerk, one of South Africa’s few
early adopters of ESVs. Guests explore the
landscape in vehicles that are customised for
comfort as well as silence. cheetahplains.com


SHAWA LUANGWA CAMP, ZAMBIA
Bushwalks and ESV drives make perfect
partners. It’s now possible to sample both in
Africa’s top walking safari destination, South
Luangwa National Park. Launched in 2021 by
Zambia’s leading silent safari operator, Green
Safaris, and run by notable guide Jacob Shawa,
Shawa Luangwa is a new camp with e-Cruisers:
ESVs that Green Safaris helped develop
themselves. greensafaris.com


THE SILENT SAFARI

74 NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.CO.UK/TRAVEL

SAFARI
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