AFRICA ESWATINI DESTINATIONS


T


he bass was provided by rutting impalas, their


mating call somewhere between a sneeze and a grunt. Tree frogs and cicadas laid down the backing track, hyenas harmonised with hysterical howls, while round-eyed greater bush babies pierced the air with eerily human shrieks. I listened to the nocturnal


orchestra from my open-sided stone cottage, tucked in a forest clearing and with just a net between me and the wildlife. In most safari destinations, sleeping so close to nature comes at a hefty premium. But with prices starting at around £120 per night including dinner,


sunrise safari and breakfast, Mkhaya Game Reserve offers a refreshingly affordable alternative. It’s just one of the factors that makes Eswatini – which recently changed its name from Swaziland – a bit different.


◗ ANIMAL KINGDOM Tucked on the eastern edge of South Africa and bordering Mozambique, this tiny landlocked kingdom is home to the big five – lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants and Cape buffaloes. Thanks to investment in anti- poaching efforts, the country has been a big success story in rhino conservation. Three have been poached, in total, since 1992,


Two white rhinos soon emerged and trotted ahead of our jeep, then we spied a mother and baby


compared with an average of two a day in Kruger National Park. This, combined with its small size and lack of crowds, makes it one of the best places to spot white and black rhinos in the wild. Eswatini is divided into three


broad areas – the mountainous Highveld, Middleveld savannah


and the Lowveld bushland, home to most wildlife sanctuaries and national parks. After drifting off to that forest soundtrack, I stirred to the gentle tinkling of a bell and a softly spoken “time to wake up”. Dressing in the dark for a sunrise safari is part of the experience at Mkhaya, which has no electricity. The air was thick with


birdsong as we drove into the bush, passing shrubby acacia trees backlit by a pink-gold sky. Two white rhinos soon emerged from the bush and trotted ahead of our jeep. Then we spied a mother and baby, its stubby legs just visible through the long grass. A little further, we stopped


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