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Planning GuideYour First Luxury Safari — Everything You Need to Know
Your first safari is unlike any other holiday you will take. It is more logistically complex, more emotionally intense, and more rewarding than anything you have experienced before. But the gap between a good first safari and a disappointing one is almost entirely determined by decisions made before you leave — the country, the camp, the timing and what you pack. This is everything our specialists wish someone had told them before their first safari , and everything they now tell every first-time client. Which Country for Your First Safari? For a first safari, our specialists almost always recommend Kenya or Tanzania . Both offer the highest concentration of wildlife, the most reliable game viewing, the best infrastructure and the most iconic landscapes. You will see the Big Five. You will see them frequently. The camps and lodges range from excellent to extraordinary. South Africa is a strong alternative if you want to combine safari with wine country, coastal scenery and a city experience (Cape Town). Botswana is exceptional but more expensive, more remote, and better suited to repeat visitors who already know what they want from a safari. Our recommendation for a first safari: Kenya. Direct flights from London, the Masai Mara is one of the finest reserves in Africa, and the Mara Conservancies offer private, uncrowded game drives even in peak season. Bush Camp vs Lodge — What’s the Difference? A tented camp is not what you think it is. A “tent” at a luxury safari camp is a permanent, insulated structure with a proper bed, en-suite bathroom, running water, electricity, and often a private deck and plunge pool. The canvas walls are the point — you fall asleep hearing the bush. A lion calling at 2am is part of the experience, not a problem. A lodge is a permanent building — stone, wood, glass. Angama Mara, Singita Serengeti House and andBeyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge are lodges. They feel more like a luxury hotel. The game drive experience is identical. For a first safari, our specialists recommend a tented camp . The immersion in the environment is what makes safari unique — a lodge distances you from it. If you are genuinely uncomfortable with the idea of canvas walls, a lodge is the right choice, but most clients who try a tented camp for the first time never go back to lodges. “The first time a lion calls in the dark and you realise there is nothing between you and it but canvas and fifty metres of grass — that is the moment you understand what safari actually is.” — Manny, Adventure & Safari Specialist How Long to Go A minimum of 4 nights on safari. Fewer than that and you will not settle into the rhythm — early wake-ups, morning drives, afternoon siestas, evening drives, dinner under the stars. It takes two days to decompress and stop looking at your phone. The real safari begins on day three. The ideal first safari is 6–7 nights, split across two camps in different ecosystems. The Masai Mara for big cats and open savannah, then Amboseli for elephants and Kilimanjaro views. Or the Serengeti for the Migration, then the Ngorongoro Crater for the caldera experience. Two camps give you variety without exhaustion. If you are combining safari with a beach extension (Zanzibar, Maldives, Mauritius), budget 4–5 nights on safari and 4–5 nights on the beach. The combination of bush and coast is one of the finest holiday formats in luxury travel. Health, Safety and Malaria Most safari destinations in East Africa are in malaria zones. You will need antimalarial medication — consult your GP or a travel health clinic at least 6 weeks before departure. The most commonly prescribed options are Malarone (atovaquone/proguanil) and Doxycycline. Both are effective. Malarone has fewer side effects for most people. Yellow fever vaccination is required for entry into Kenya and Tanzania if you are travelling from or via a yellow fever endemic country. Check current requirements with your specialist. Safari is safe. The camps are professionally managed, the guides are experienced, and the animals are wild but not dangerous to guests who follow the rules. The main rule: do not leave your tent at night without an escort, and do not stand up in the vehicle during a game drive. These are simple and sensible. What to Pack — and What Not To Colours: Neutral tones — khaki, olive, tan, grey. Avoid bright white (reflects light and startles animals), dark blue and black (attract tsetse flies in some areas). No camouflage (this is military-associated in some African countries and can cause problems). Layers: Mornings on safari are cold — often single digits at dawn in the Mara during July and August. You need a warm fleece or down jacket for the morning drive and a light shirt for midday. The temperature swing between 6am and noon can be 20 degrees. Bags: Soft bags only. Light aircraft luggage limits are typically 15-20kg per person in a soft-sided bag (no hard suitcases - they do not fit in the aircraft hold). This is a firm limit, not a suggestion. Pack less than you think you need. The camp will launder your clothes daily. Camera: A telephoto lens (at minimum 200mm, ideally 100–400mm) will transform your photography. A phone camera will not do justice to a lion at 30 metres. If you do not own a telephoto lens, some camps have them available to borrow. What to Expect on a Typical Day 5:00–5:30am: Wake-up call. Tea or coffee at the main area. It is dark and cold. Dress warmly. 6:00–9:30am: Morning game drive. This is the best wildlife viewing of the day. Cats are active, light is golden, the bush is alive. Your guide will stop for a bush breakfast midway -coffee and pastries under an acacia tree. 10:00am–3:30pm: Brunch at camp, followed by free time. Read, swim, sleep, visit the spa. The heat of the day is not productive for game viewing — the animals rest, and so should you. 4:00–6:30pm: Afternoon game drive. The light softens, the temperature drops, and predators begin to stir. Sundowners — gin and tonic in the bush as the sun sets — are a sacred safari tradition. 7:30pm: Dinner. Often outdoors, often around a fire, often extraordinary. Safari dining is one of the underappreciated pleasures of the experience. How Much It Costs A luxury safari in Kenya or Tanzania, including return flights from the UK, internal transfers, full-board accommodation and game drives, starts from approximately £4,500–6,000 per person for 7 nights. At the top end (Singita, andBeyond, Angama), expect £8,000–15,000 per person. These prices are all-inclusive — every meal, every drink, every game drive. Adding a beach extension (5 nights in Zanzibar or the Maldives) adds approximately £2,000–5,000 per person depending on the destination and property. Every booking through HighStreet Holidays is ATOL protected (No. 12118). Your money is financially secure from the moment you book.
Property ReviewAngama Mara Review — Is This Kenya’s Finest Safari Lodge?
Angama Mara sits on the edge of the Great Rift Valley, 300 metres above the Masai Mara. The view from the main deck — an unbroken sweep of savannah stretching to the horizon, the Mara River threading through it — is one of the most famous in African hospitality. It is the view that launched a thousand Instagram posts and a fair number of marriage proposals. But a view does not make a safari lodge. After two stays and dozens of clients sent there, our specialists can tell you what Angama Mara actually delivers once the view has settled into the background. The Location — Why It Matters Angama Mara is located on the Oloololo Escarpment, on the western boundary of the Masai Mara National Reserve. This is significant for two reasons. First, the escarpment gives the lodge its defining characteristic — that elevated position, suspended between the sky and the plains below. Second, and more importantly for the safari experience, the western Mara is where many of the river crossings during the Great Migration take place. The Mara River runs directly below the lodge. During Migration season (July to October), guests at Angama can be at the river within a 30-minute drive. During the rest of the year, the western Mara offers excellent resident game viewing — lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant and buffalo are all present year-round. The area is less visited than the central Mara Triangle, which means fewer vehicles at sightings. The Tented Suites There are 30 tented suites in two camps of 15, set into the hillside below the main area. Each tent has floor-to-ceiling glass on the valley-facing side — a design choice that would feel wrong anywhere else but here is justified entirely. You wake to the view. You fall asleep to it. The canvas and glass combination creates an experience that is both immersed in the bush and protected from it. The tents are spacious (approximately 100 square metres), well-designed, and feel considerably more refined than most safari accommodation. The bathrooms are generous. The mini-bar is complimentary. The Wi-Fi works, though using it feels slightly like checking your phone during a cathedral service. One detail worth noting: the walk from the main area to the tents is steep. Angama is built on a hillside, and the paths descend significantly. This is not a flat-ground camp. It is not prohibitive — the paths are well-maintained and there are vehicles available — but it is worth knowing if mobility is a consideration. “Angama changed what I thought a safari camp could be. It is not roughing it in luxury. It is genuine refinement, suspended above the Mara.” — Manny, Adventure & Safari Specialist The Guiding Guiding at Angama is excellent. The guides are Maasai and Kenyan, experienced, and genuinely knowledgeable about both the ecology and the local culture. Game drives are in custom-built Land Cruisers with pop-up roofs. The maximum is 6 guests per vehicle, which is standard for luxury Kenya camps. What sets Angama apart on the guiding front is the bush breakfasts and the flexibility. Guides will adjust the drive to what is happening in the reserve on any given morning — if there is a kill nearby, you go. If the river crossing is active, you go. The schedule serves the wildlife, not the other way around. The Photographic Studio Angama has an on-site photographic studio staffed by a professional photographer. This is one of the features that sets it apart from other Mara camps. Guests can borrow professional camera equipment (including long telephoto lenses), get in-field guidance during game drives, and have their images processed and printed at the studio. For keen photographers, this alone is a reason to choose Angama over comparable lodges. Dining Dining at Angama is varied, well-executed and served in constantly changing locations. Breakfast on the deck overlooking the valley. Lunch in the shamba (garden). Dinner under the stars, or in the boma (outdoor enclosure), or occasionally as a bush dinner out in the reserve itself. The food is a blend of Kenyan and international, with a strong emphasis on local ingredients — the shamba grows herbs and vegetables on site. The quality is a clear step above what most safari camps deliver. It is not Soneva Fushi-level fine dining, but it is genuinely excellent and consistently surprising for a property in the middle of the Masai Mara. Who It’s For — and Who It’s Not For Angama is for: Couples. Honeymooners who want safari and romance in one place. Photographers. Repeat visitors to Kenya who want the finest camp in the western Mara. Travellers who value design and atmosphere as much as wildlife. Angama is not for: Families with young children (minimum age is 5, and the steep terrain makes it impractical for toddlers). Travellers who want a flat, easy-access camp. Anyone who prioritises the Mara Conservancies’ off-road driving — Angama is in the National Reserve where vehicles must stay on established tracks. The Verdict Angama Mara is, in our view , the finest property in the Masai Mara for a particular kind of traveller — one who values design, atmosphere and that extraordinary elevated position as much as the wildlife below. For that traveller, there is nowhere better.
Planning GuideHow to Plan the Perfect Honeymoon — A Specialist’s Honest Guide
In eight years of arranging honeymoons, our specialists have learned one thing above all else: the couples who have the best honeymoons are almost never the ones who spent the most money. They are the ones who made the right decisions early — about destination, timing, pace and expectation — and avoided the mistakes that trip up everyone else. This guide covers everything our specialists tell their clients in the first conversation. It is not a list of destinations. It is the decisions that determine whether your honeymoon is good or genuinely unforgettable. When to Start Planning Start planning your honeymoon at the same time you start planning your wedding — 9 to 12 months before your departure date. Not 9 months before the wedding, 9 months before you actually travel. If you are getting married in June and honeymooning in September, that means starting in September the year before. The reason is availability. The properties that make a honeymoon extraordinary — Soneva Fushi in the Maldives, Angama Mara in Kenya, COMO Laucala in Fiji — have limited room counts. The best villas and suites at these properties book 6–9 months ahead for peak season. Leave it until three months before and your first-choice property will almost certainly be full. The single most common mistake our specialists see is couples who plan the wedding first, collapse afterwards, then start thinking about the honeymoon with eight weeks to go. By that point, you are choosing from what is left rather than what is best. Destination: Start with the Feeling, Not the Place Most couples start with a destination: “We want to go to the Maldives.” That is fine. But the better question is: what do you want to feel? Do you want to do nothing for two weeks? The Maldives, Seychelles or Mauritius will deliver that. Do you want adventure with luxury? Kenya and Tanzania, followed by a beach in Zanzibar, will give you both. Do you want culture, food and exploration? Japan, Italy or Vietnam. Do you want something nobody else has done? Antarctica, Galápagos, French Polynesia. The destination should serve the feeling, not the other way around. Our specialists have had couples insist on the Maldives because it is the “honeymoon destination”, only to discover on day four that two weeks of doing nothing is not what either of them actually wanted. The right conversation at the start prevents this entirely. “The couples who have the best honeymoons are the ones who were honest about what they actually enjoy — not what honeymoons are supposed to look like on Instagram.” — Anna, Romance & Honeymoon Specialist Budget: How to Think About It Honeymoon budgets range from £3,000 per person to £30,000 per person. Both can produce extraordinary trips. The difference is not quality — it is scope. At £3,000–5,000 per person, you can have a genuinely luxurious week in Mauritius, the Seychelles or Bali. At £5,000–10,000, the Maldives, a Kenya-Zanzibar combination, or two weeks in Japan become realistic. Above £10,000, you are in private island and Aman territory. Two things that consistently catch couples off guard: internal transfers (seaplane transfers in the Maldives cost £400–600 per person return) and meal plans (half-board at a top Maldives resort adds £150–250 per person per day). Build these into your budget from the start, not as surprises at the end. The Multi-Centre Question Should you visit one destination or two? Our general guidance: if your honeymoon is 7–10 days, stay in one place. If it is 10–14 days, two destinations work well. If it is longer than 14 days, three is possible but two is usually better. The classic multi-centre honeymoon combinations that work consistently: safari in Kenya or Tanzania followed by beach in the Maldives or Zanzibar. Dubai city break followed by the Maldives. Bali culture and rice terraces followed by an overwater villa in the Maldives or a private island in Fiji. Japan followed by beach time in Thailand or Bali. The combinations that look good on paper but often do not work in practice: three countries in two weeks (too rushed, too many flights, too many hotel check-ins). Anywhere involving long layovers in transit cities. Mixing a very active itinerary with a very relaxed one in a way that creates whiplash rather than flow. The Five Mistakes Couples Make Most Often Leaving immediately after the wedding. You will be exhausted. Build in at least two days between the wedding and your departure. Ideally three. The first day of your honeymoon should not be spent recovering from the day before. Choosing a destination because of a single photograph. A photograph tells you nothing about the weather, the transfer logistics, the dining options or whether the resort is under renovation. A conversation with a specialist tells you all of it. Overcomplicating the itinerary. The temptation to see and do everything is strongest on a honeymoon — this is your one big trip. Resist it. The best honeymoons have generous pace and deliberate downtime. You should be bored at some point. That is how you decompress. Not telling the resort it is your honeymoon. Every good property offers complimentary honeymoon touches — champagne on arrival, a romantic dinner setup, a room upgrade if available. But they need to know. Your specialist should flag this at booking, and you should mention it at check-in. Booking without ATOL protection. Your honeymoon is likely the most expensive holiday you will ever take. ATOL protection means your money is financially protected if anything goes wrong — airline failure, operator collapse, anything. Every booking through HighStreet Holidays is ATOL protected (No. 12118). Our Top Honeymoon Destinations by Type The One Thing That Matters Most After hundreds of honeymoons arranged, our specialists know one thing for certain: the couples who talk to a specialist early, honestly, and without a fixed idea have better honeymoons than those who arrive with a Pinterest board and a rigid plan. Your honeymoon is not a checklist. It is a trip that should feel like the first chapter of the next part of your life. Getting it right takes a conversation — not a search engine.
When to VisitBest Time to Visit Kenya — Safari Season Explained
Kenya is not a single safari destination. It is a country of dramatically different ecosystems, each with its own rhythm, its own season, and its own wildlife calendar. The Masai Mara in July is a different experience to the Mara in February. Amboseli in the dry season is a different world to Amboseli in the rains. Getting the timing right changes everything. Our Africa specialists have guided clients through every month of the Kenyan safari year. Here is what they tell them. Kenya’s Two Dry Seasons Kenya has two dry seasons and two wet seasons. The long dry season runs from late June to October. The short dry season runs from January to mid-March. Between them sit the long rains (March to May) and the short rains (November to December). The dry seasons are the traditional “best time” for safari. The grass is shorter, animals concentrate around water sources, and the bush is more open — all of which make wildlife easier to see. But the wet seasons are not the disaster most people assume, and in some areas they are actively better. July to October — The Great Migration If there is a single reason most clients come to Kenya, it is the Great Migration. Between July and October, approximately 1.5 million wildebeest, 200,000 zebra and 500,000 gazelle cross the Mara River from Tanzania’s Serengeti into Kenya’s Masai Mara. The river crossings — chaotic, dangerous, staggering in scale — are among the most dramatic wildlife events on earth. July and August are peak season. The camps are at their busiest and prices are at their highest. September and October offer the same migration spectacle with slightly fewer visitors and marginally lower rates. If your dates are flexible, late September is our Africa specialists’ favourite — the herds are still in the Mara, the light is extraordinary, and the camps feel less crowded. Best for: First-time visitors who want the Migration. Big cat encounters. River crossings. Classic safari photography. “I have watched the wildebeest cross the Mara River over fifty times. It has never once felt routine. The scale of it defeats familiarity.” — Nick, Africa & Safari Specialist January to March — The Green Season The short dry season from January to mid-March is underrated and undervisited. The landscape is lush and green after the short rains, the air is clear, and the Mara is at its most photogenic. This is calving season in the southern Serengeti (just across the border), and the predator activity in the Mara itself remains excellent year-round. Amboseli National Park is at its absolute best in January and February. The skies are reliably clear, and Mount Kilimanjaro — visible from most camps in Amboseli — is at its most dramatic against the dry-season blue. Elephant herds in Amboseli during this period are among the finest wildlife photography subjects in Africa. Best for: Photography (green landscape, Kilimanjaro backdrops). Quieter camps. Lower prices than peak season. Amboseli at its finest. Pricing: January to March rates are typically 20–30% lower than July–August peak. Availability is significantly better. The Long Rains — April and May April and May are the wettest months in Kenya. Many camps in the Masai Mara close for part of this period. Roads can become difficult. This is the lowest season, and for most travellers our specialists would not recommend it as a first visit. However: Laikipia and the northern conservancies (Ol Pejeta, Lewa, Borana) remain accessible year-round and are genuinely excellent in April and May. The landscape is at its greenest, birdlife is exceptional, and the camps that remain open offer significant discounts. For repeat visitors who know what they are getting, April safari in Laikipia can be remarkable. November and December — The Short Rains The short rains arrive in November and typically last into mid-December. Rain falls in short afternoon bursts rather than all-day downpours. The bush transforms from dry gold to vivid green within days. Birdlife explodes — migratory species arrive from Europe, and the resident species are in breeding plumage. The Mara is still excellent in November. The Migration herds have largely returned to Tanzania, but the resident wildlife — lion, leopard, cheetah, elephant, buffalo — remains year-round. The camps are quiet, the rates are low, and the light after rain is the best photographic light of the entire year. Best for: Birdwatchers. Photographers who want dramatic skies. Budget-conscious travellers. Anyone who values quiet camps over peak-season crowds. Which Region, Which Month? Kenya is not one destination. The right region depends on the month: Block Field The Verdict There is no single best time to visit Kenya. The Migration demands July to October. Photography demands January to March. Value demands November. And for travellers who are flexible and trust their specialist, every month has something worth seeing. The conversation that matters is not “when should I go?” but “what do I want to see?” That is what our Africa specialists are here to answer.
ComparisonBotswana vs Kenya: Which African Safari Is Right for You?
This is the safari decision that keeps coming up. Both Kenya and Botswana deliver extraordinary wildlife encounters. Both are among the finest safari destinations on earth. But they are fundamentally different experiences — in landscape, in camp style, in wildlife density, in price, and in what they ask of you as a traveller. Our specialists have spent months in both countries across fifteen years. Here is their honest, no-agenda comparison. The Feel — What Each Country Is Actually Like Kenya is vast, varied and dramatic. The Masai Mara is rolling savannah stretching to the horizon. Amboseli has Kilimanjaro as a permanent backdrop. Laikipia is semi-arid bush country with a completely different character. Kenya gives you variety within a single trip — you can experience three genuinely different ecosystems in a two-week safari. Botswana is defined by water. The Okavango Delta is a 20,000-square-kilometre inland delta that floods annually, creating a mosaic of channels, islands, lagoons and floodplains. Chobe has the highest concentration of elephants in Africa. The Makgadikgadi Pans are lunar in their emptiness. Botswana is quieter, more exclusive, and more expensive — by design. If Kenya is a symphony — loud, varied, dramatic — Botswana is a string quartet: intimate, refined, and quietly extraordinary. “Kenya gives you the spectacle. Botswana gives you the intimacy. Both change you. They just change you differently.” — Nick, Africa & Safari Specialist Wildlife Kenya: Wildlife density in the Masai Mara is arguably the highest in Africa. You will see the Big Five. You will see them frequently. The Great Migration (July–October) brings 1.5 million wildebeest and the predators that follow them. Kenya is the place for volume, drama and the classic safari photograph — lion on a kopje, cheetah in the golden grass, Mara River crossings. Botswana: Wildlife encounters in Botswana are less frequent but more intimate. A walking safari in the Delta, with a Mokoro canoe glide through lily-covered channels, followed by an elephant herd crossing a floodplain — this is Botswana at its best. Wild dog sightings are more common than in Kenya. Leopard sightings in the Moremi are excellent. The elephants in Chobe are the most dramatic herds our specialists have ever seen — thousands strong, wading across the river. Winner: Kenya for sheer volume and the Migration spectacle. Botswana for intimate, uncrowded encounters and the water-based safari experience. Camp Style & Exclusivity Kenya: Kenya has the full range — from excellent value mid-range camps to the ultra-luxury end (Angama Mara, andBeyond Bateleur, Cottar’s 1920s). The Mara Conservancies (private conservancies bordering the national reserve) offer exclusivity that the reserve itself cannot — off-road driving, night drives, walking safaris, and far fewer vehicles. Botswana: Botswana has deliberately positioned itself as a high-value, low-volume destination. Camp sizes are smaller (typically 8–16 guests). Prices are higher. The result is genuine exclusivity — you will rarely share a sighting with another vehicle. The government limits tourism numbers through high park fees and camp size restrictions. This is intentional, and it works. Winner: Botswana, for guaranteed exclusivity. Kenya matches it in the private conservancies but not in the national reserve, which can be busy during peak Migration season. Getting There Kenya: Direct flights from London to Nairobi take approximately 8.5 hours (British Airways, Kenya Airways). From Nairobi, a domestic flight to the Masai Mara takes 45 minutes. Total travel time from Heathrow to your camp: approximately 12–14 hours. Straightforward. Botswana: There are no direct flights from the UK to Botswana. The most common routes are via Johannesburg (approximately 11 hours to JNB, then 2 hours to Maun or Kasane) or via Nairobi. Internal transfers within Botswana are almost always by light aircraft. Total travel time: 16–20 hours. More complex, more expensive, more time-consuming. Winner: Kenya, significantly. The direct London–Nairobi flight makes Kenya one of the most accessible safari destinations in Africa. Value Kenya: Kenya offers genuine value at every level. A luxury safari in the Mara Conservancies — private camp, full-board, game drives — costs from £400–700 per person per night. At the top end (Angama Mara, Cottar’s), expect £800–1,200. A 7-night luxury safari including flights from the UK starts from approximately £4,500–6,000 per person. Botswana: Botswana is expensive by design. A luxury camp in the Okavango Delta costs £700–1,500 per person per night. At the top end (Mombo, Jao, DumaTau), expect £1,500–2,500. A 7-night safari including international and internal flights starts from approximately £7,000–12,000 per person. The internal light aircraft transfers add £500–1,000 alone. Winner: Kenya, for value at every level. You can have a world-class safari in Kenya for roughly half the cost of a comparable trip in Botswana. Best Time to Visit Kenya: July to October for the Migration. January to March for green season photography and Amboseli. Good year-round in Laikipia. Botswana: May to October for the Delta flood season (the water rises, concentrating wildlife on islands). July to October for peak wildlife viewing. The green season (November to March) is beautiful but many camps are inaccessible. The Verdict — Choose Kenya If / Choose Botswana If Block Field Both countries deliver world-class safari. The choice comes down to what kind of experience you want, and a conversation with one of our Africa specialists will settle it in twenty minutes.
Where to GoWhere to Go on Holiday in Winter 2026 — Our Picks
Every year, the same question arrives with the September rain: where should I go this winter? The answer changes year to year — new properties open, flight routes shift, and some destinations become genuinely better or worse depending on what has happened in the world. These are our specialists’ picks for winter 2026 — the destinations they are actively recommending to clients right now, and why. The Maldives — Still the Benchmark The Maldives remains the single most requested winter sun destination among our clients, and for good reason. December to March is peak dry season, the water is at its clearest, and the resorts are at their most polished. Soneva Fushi in the Baa Atoll, One&Only Reethi Rah, and the new Patina Maldives are all exceptional choices. The caveat: Christmas and New Year in the Maldives is the most expensive two weeks in luxury travel. If your dates are flexible, early January or February offer identical weather at significantly lower prices. Barbados — The Caribbean at Its Most Refined The west coast of Barbados in winter is perfection. Calm turquoise water, golden sand, and a culinary scene that has quietly become one of the best in the Caribbean. Sandy Lane remains the benchmark, but Cobblers Cove and The Sandpiper offer a more intimate scale. The flight from London is direct (approximately 8.5 hours), which makes Barbados one of the most accessible Caribbean islands. Kenya — Green Season Safari January and February in Kenya is green season — the landscape is lush, the light is extraordinary, and the camps are quiet. This is not Migration season (that is July to October), but the resident wildlife in the Masai Mara is excellent year-round. Amboseli is at its absolute best in January, with clear views of Kilimanjaro against blue skies. Prices are 20–30% lower than peak. Thailand — The East at Its Most Welcoming November to February is Thailand’s dry season — warm, sunny, and the humidity drops to manageable levels. Koh Samui, Phuket and Krabi are all excellent. For something more distinctive, consider Chiang Mai in the north — cooler temperatures, temple culture, and the night markets at their vibrant best. Oman — The Desert at Its Most Comfortable Oman in winter is one of the Middle East’s best-kept secrets. Temperatures hover around 25°C, the air is dry and clear, and the landscape — dramatic wadis, ancient forts, empty coastline — is at its most inviting. Alila Jabal Akhdar, perched on the rim of a canyon in the Al Hajar mountains, is one of the most striking hotel locations in the world. Sri Lanka — Two Coasts, Two Seasons Sri Lanka’s weather splits by coast: the south and west coasts are dry from November to March, making this the ideal winter window. The tea trails of the hill country are at their greenest. Combine south-coast beaches (Tangalle, Weligama) with cultural triangle temples (Sigiriya, Dambulla) and a few days in the highlands for one of the most varied short-haul winter trips available from the UK. Dubai — The Obvious Done Well Dubai in winter is not subtle and does not pretend to be. But at its best — a desert camp at sunset, a table at Nobu on Palm Jumeirah, a morning at the souks before the crowds — it delivers a particular kind of luxury that no other destination replicates. December to February temperatures are perfect (22–28°C). The flight is short (7 hours). The family infrastructure is world-class. South Africa — Safari Meets Coast December to February is summer in South Africa. The Cape Winelands are at their most beautiful, Cape Town’s beaches are warm, and the Eastern Cape safari reserves (Shamwari, Kwandwe) are in excellent game-viewing condition. Combine Cape Town, the Garden Route and a Big Five safari for a winter trip that covers everything. Mauritius — The Quiet Indian Ocean Mauritius is warmer and slightly wetter than the Maldives in winter, but the west coast (where the best resorts sit) remains reliably sunny. One&Only Le Saint Géran, LUX* Le Morne and The Oberoi are all excellent. Mauritius offers more to do beyond the beach than the Maldives — markets, rum distilleries, nature reserves, a genuine local culture — which makes it a strong choice for travellers who get restless after three days of doing nothing. Antarctica — The Ultimate Winter Escape December to February is the Antarctic summer — 20 hours of daylight, temperatures around 0°C, and the ice retreats enough for expedition vessels to navigate the channels and peninsulas. This is the most extraordinary trip our specialists arrange. Scenic Eclipse II offers the most luxurious expedition cruise experience currently operating. Book 12–18 months ahead — the best cabins sell fast. Every destination in this list, from the Maldives to Antarctica, is ATOL protected when booked through HighStreet Holidays (No. 12118). Your money is secure, your flights are included, and your specialist handles every detail.
From the Maldives Specialist
The Maldives is about which version of yourself you want to be for seven days.Travel specialist
From the Africa Specialist
A safari is the only holiday where you go to be genuinely surprised.James Okafor
From the Founder
Travel can be more personal, more considered, and more genuine.Monis · Founder
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