A Haute Voyage: Finding the change within

After successfully completing our seventh Greatest Safari on Earth, the one word that keeps spilling from my lips is gratitude. Having hosted this transformative journey aboard our Emirates Executive Private Jet multiple times, one might think that I’ve seen it all. In fact, it’s the opposite, the more I do it the more pleasure I get from it. Perhaps it is Africa’s wild beauty, pristine nature, golden light and thriving wildlife. However, more than anything it’s the people. The new guests each year who get to share this homeland of ours and the people I get to connect them with…my people, the people who raised me.

What struck my team and I most this year was the desire of our guests to go deeper, to absorb every moment in full comprehension. To lift the lid on the inner workings of all they saw, felt and heard – from the natural rhythms and migratory patterns of wildlife to the vastly diverse culture and history of the countries we visited. That innate, deeply human need to be intimately in tune with nature was the beating heart of this year’s journeys. I have always said that The Greatest Safari on Earth isn’t just about redefining ‘beyond first class’ travel, it’s about learning more about our world and how we show up in it. A kind of “haute voyage.” It’s about what truly matters. That undefinable feeling of intimacy and connection so central to our well-being and to the richness of our human experience. Isn’t that what we’re all searching for on this journey called life?

From the moment we soared into the glittering Dubai night sky towards Africa, laughter flowed, excitement bubbled and new friendships formed. Our guests spanned generations, from young men in their twenties to recent retirees and repeat guests. Landing in Zimbabwe at Matetsi, our first destination, never fails to amaze everyone on board. The country of my birth holds multitudes. In just a few days, you see, feel and learn more about this sacred landscape than most people will in a lifetime. The soul-reverberating roar and cool mist of Victoria Falls jolts your consciousness awake. The glassy, hippo-dotted waters of the Zambezi, the crunch of the grass underfoot as you observe your first baby elephant up-close, and the warm, almost psychedelic glow of the sunset illuminating a landscape unchanged for thousands of years all work together to set in motion a change within.

In Botswana, we bore witness to our planet’s largest inland delta by helicopter, Land Rover and mokoro (traditional dugout canoe). And this year the sightings were truly beyond belief. To see critically endangered African painted dogs feeding their pups close to the den after a kill and lionesses cautiously leading their cubs across predator-laced waters showed the universality of love between parent and child. A reminder that we’re not so different after all.

In Kenya, we observed the great migration in action in the Maasai Mara, the bedrock of Maasai culture and spectacular wildlife, from hot air balloon. Our lodge, Angama, has the best view in all of Africa, literally suspended between heaven and earth.

Finally, we finished in Rwanda, a tiny country with a mighty heart. To conclude a journey of this scale and emotion in the volcanic, rainforest home of the mountain gorillas is profoundly emotional. We share a staggering 98% of our DNA with these gentle giants. After climbing through the lush jungle – to spend time with our closest primate cousins (who share 98% of our DNA) who are so strong yet so fragile and entirely dependent on conservation – the prevalence of peace is a reminder of what’s important. Every guest left the mountain forever changed and inspired by the courage of both the gorillas and the conservationists we met behind the scenes.

Lives forever changed

I began this mailer to you expressing my immense gratitude for every moment, person and place we were so fortunate to experience on The Greatest Safari on Earth. I, my team and every guest on both trips left my home continent with a profound sense of re-connection to the wild, to each other and to ourselves. Therein lies the art of the design behind The Greatest Safari on Earth – traveling consciously, thoughtfully and seamlessly to Africa to find what we didn’t know we were looking for…the truest, best version of ourselves. And for that, we are forever grateful.

I hope this exploration together of both the outer and inner landscape of Africa’s unique culture and the wildlife encourages you to know better the power of this land and its people; whose graciousness, knowledge and wisdom are my perpetual inspiration.

Join our next Greatest Safari on Earth: August 10 - 22, August 25 - September 6, 2025. This inimitable adventure aboard the unbridled luxury of the Emirates Executive Private Jet costs $165,000 per person. To book, kindly contact welcome@roarafrica.com or click here.