Where to go for an African safari holiday in February

1. Our recommended safari holidays for February

For travellers whose priority is big game viewing safaris, the majority of Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Namibia is best avoided at this time of year. Tanzania and Kenya, however, do not experience the heavy rains, and both are excellent for game viewing. The Great Migration's calving season is in full swing and all the cats are at their most active as they hunt among the large herds. Gorilla trekking is perfect in February, as Rwanda, like Kenya and Tanzania, is in its dry season.

2. Tanzania holidays

Tanzania’s Northern Circuit is a very good holiday destination in February – indeed, the Serengeti is outrageously good throughout January, February and March, with February being calving month for the Great Migration. Safari aficionados flock to the Serengeti at this time of year, solely for the chance of combining their holiday with the two to three weeks when the migration is calving in full.

This is the time of year when approximately 500,000 wildebeest are born in less than a month! It is also at this time that the Serengeti becomes the finest place in Africa to view cheetah, and the sheer concentration of predators on the huge open plains is astonishing. We also use a couple of camps down in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (effectively an extension of the Serengeti), which offer in addition some of the finest cultural interactions and walking operations on the continent. A safari holiday designed around the Serengeti and Ngorongoro is superb for February.

3. South Africa holidays

South Africa is a great holiday destination in February, particularly down in Cape Town and along the famous Garden Route. The climate differs greatly between the north and south of the country, but a safari in both the Kruger National Park and Sabi Sands is still superb.

4. Kenya holidays

Kenya is in its hot dry season in February and is excellent both for big game safari and bird viewing in the Maasai Mara and Laikipia. As many water sources dry up animals congregate around watering holes making game viewing much easier than the wetter months. The calving season is now also underway and all the cats are extremely active trying to use this opportunity for easy prey.

5. Rwanda holidays

February is a popular time to visit Rwanda due to warm and generally sunny weather, making for good gorilla-trekking conditions. We recommend Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge and Bisate Lodge. This month does see a gradual increase in rain as it moves towards March, but the changeable weather patterns around Volcanoes National Park make it hard to predict.