Travelling Africa does pose certain health risks for which you can take precaution. Visit your medical practitioner or Travel Clinic to ensure that you get the correct vaccinations, at least six months before your venture into Africa. Some vaccinations require several treatments with a time gap in between each. Whilst the advice given here under is accurate at the time of publication, check with your health clinic prior to travel to ensure that requirements haven’t changed.
Yellow fever
Yellow fever is endemic in the tropics of Africa and America but is a much bigger problem in Africa. It is a virus transmitted by a mosquito which flourishes in human habitations, especially under slum conditions and is thus prevalent in the large urban informal settlements in tropical Africa. Continue reading Get your vaccinations for travelling Africa!→
If you intend travelling off the beaten track, you should be familiar with your vehicle and be equipped to act as your own bush mechanic, especially if you intend travelling solo. Pete Barber did a bush mechanics course prior to our recent seven month solo return trip from Cape Town to Ethiopia and also learned a lot during the journey, which he gladly shares. Continue reading Bush mechanic notes for solo overlanders→
It’s no wonder ‘Africa ready’ 4×4’s are in such high demand and that the rental companies do such good business hiring them out. It takes knowledge and experience, in our case both gained through generous advice, to determine what you need, where to find it and then plenty of time to get it all done.
A few hours spent at the 4×4 outfit centres in Cape Town showed us that there appeared to be two ways of fitting out a vehicle and that the sales staff was quite happy to advise the unlimited budget option. We preferred to look for more cost-effective solutions, avoiding the brand names wherever possible. Continue reading Canopy and add-ons→
