When you arrive in N'Djamena airport there will be a hotel representative outside the airport building to meet you and take you on the short drive to the La Residence Hotel which is very near to the airport. Depending on your arrival time you can relax and enjoy by the pool or we can also arrange a vehicle and guide to take you through some of the local street markets in the city the Museum of Chad or just on the edge of the city there is the original palace and museum of the Gaoui Kingdom which is always very interesting.
Today you will have an early breakfast and then off to the airport for the charter flight that will take you to Zakouma National Park - This flight is almost 2 hours long in a Cessna Caravan. When you arrive at the airport all the documents required for your passport certification will be handled then, the representative from African Parks will take those documents from you there and your passport will be then returned to you either at camp or when you return to N'Djamena - I know it sounds daunting however I assure you the system works and all passports do get returned.
When we land in Zakouma we then have a short 45 min drive to the camp but make sure you have your binoculars and cameras ready as the safari starts right from the airstrip.
While we are here you will have a range of activities available to us but each day we work out what is going to work best, so we shall keep everything as flexible as possible to get the best from this amazing National Park. We will be able to do Game drives, Bush walks, Night drives and if necessary we can also drive off road.
The day normally starts with a very early breakfast and then just as it starts to get light we will then set off to explore the park and usually return in time for lunch, then it is siesta time in the heat of the day before we set off again later in the afternoon. We would then return to camp in the early evening using the spotlight to look for some of the amazing nocturnal creatures that live here, like pale fox, aardvark, serval, porcupine, genets etc.
There are many new species to see here in Zakouma that you may not have seen before which include Llewels Hartebeest, Tiang, Kordofans Giraffe, Red Fronted Gazelle and Buffon's Kob. The buffalo here are the Central African Savannah Buffalo's which look like a blend between the African Buffalo and Forest Buffalo. Pale Fox, Senegal Galago, West African Ground Squirrel, Tantalus and Patas Monkey's are other specials here to look out for.
An interesting thing to do while in this area is to visit one of the Nomad markets that get set up near one of the nearby villages. These are a hive of activity and a really genuine experience as nothing is being set up for tourists and all is as it has been for hundreds of years with the Nomad traders crossing back and forwards across the Sahel bringing various goods that their families have traded for generations. Please note ladies should wear head scarves and long trousers and sleeves to respect the local cultures.
The birding here is amazing and I recommend the best bird book for this area as being the Birds of Africa - South of the Sahara. I will have a copy with me but always nice to have your own. For birding enthusiasts or for people who just like birds this has to be one of the most incredible spectacles to see, the volume of birds in Zakouma is breathtaking and there is always a chance of seeing a previously unrecorded species to the area here.
Another full day to spend the day exploring this beautiful park and we also have the option of spending the night out at a fly camp set up in the South of the park this is a great night out overlooking a very busy body of water on the Salamat River.
A part of our safari here will be to spend the day in search of the herds of elephants that were so badly poached here for generations that they now find it better to move in mostly one huge herd that can number up towards 700 elephants. It is an amazing sight to see if we get it right, you would think it is easy to find a herd that size but they have done well by keeping themselves moving and away from humans.
You will also be able to meet some of the people that make this park work and what happens behind the scenes to keep the park safe and how they work with the local communities to make sure everyone benefits from this park.
The return flight to N'Djamena is planned around guests using Ethiopian Airlines from N'Djamena. If your flights are later in the day then we can arrange for a day use room at the hotel you used on arrival, a much better option that sitting in the airport which really has no facility for this.
