Botswana: This natural park-dominated country has few cities and tons of wildlife. Chobe National Park has been touted as one of the best on the continent. Kgalagadi National Park is partially located in the Kalahari Desert shared by Botswana and South Africa, also has magnificent wildlife watching and majestic amber dunes in the largest wildlife preserve and conservation area in all of Southern Africa. The Okavango Delta is home to some of the largest populations of endangered mammals on the continent concentrating around a rare inland delta system that provides a breeding ground rich in biodiversity and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Just over the northern border in Zambia are the magnificent Victoria Falls which are a must-see visit in the region.
Egypt: The famed land of the Pharaohs has many attractions outside of the Great Pyramids of Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo. The capital city itself is a great tour 
with its museums and the enchanting old city filled with ancient Islamic mosques and temples. Temple cities such as Aswan, Luxor, and the Valley of the Kings and Queens are best visited by taking an overnight train to the end of the line at Aswan, then hopping on a traditional fallucca to sail up the Nile river a few days to Luxor. Bedouin camping trips to the White Desert in the Sahara with sunset camel rides are incomparable. The Sinai Peninsula provides some of the best diving in the world on its coastline with the Red Sea where spectacular marine parks and WWII battleship wrecks begged to be explored. Hiking to the top of Mount Horeb and watching the sunrise over Saint Catherine's Monastery is another unforgettable experience on the peninsula.
Kenya: The original home of the African safari experience, Kenya has been hosting international adventurers for hundreds of years and has a well-developed tourist 
infrastructure to support the influx of travelers. Almost all safari excursions hit the three main highlights of the Masai Mara National Reserve, Lake Naivasha National Park, and Lake Nakuru National Park. Two off-the-beaten-track national parks that provide raw, natural experiences minus the crowds are Hells Gate National Park (awesome rock climbing and free-roaming among wildlife) as well as Mount Kenya National Park which challenges mountaineers with a more technical climb than Kilimanjaro and is surrounded by magnificent nature with changing ecosystems nearly every hour of the trails to its various outposts.
Mozambique: This enigmatic nation differs from the inland safari country of its neighbors in having an incredible coastline of swaying palms, white sand beaches, 
picturesque ilhas, and colorful coral reefs. Crescent-shaped Mozambique island is a pleasure to explore and the Bazaruto Archipelago with its adjoining national marine park is ideal for underwater adventures. Gorongosa National Park is rich in biodiversity with uniquely spectacular and numerous ecological zones that host over 300 species of birds and countless other wildlife that make the Urema river basin their home. Inhambane is an old colonial city on the Arabian Sea and a jumping-off point for the beautiful beaches and nonstop nightlife of lively Tofo.
Morocco: The land of mysterious snake charmers, high mountains, endless Sahara dunes, bewildering markets, and rugged coastline has a spice for just about any palate. 
The Marrakesh medina is a magical conundrum of Berber carpet bazaars, medieval arts and crafts, famous souks, unique cuisines, and enchanting performers that will leave dizzying in sensory overload. The ancient city of Fez is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its astounding and well preserved Muslim mosques and historical Medina, and the relaxing beachside enclave of Essaouira is a well-known hippy hangout with beautiful beaches, strong waves, and an outstanding example of a fortified town of the mid-eighteenth century, surrounded by a magnificent seawall. Merzouga, rising out of The titanic Erg Chebbi dunes in the Sahara Desert provides an ethereal beauty best experienced on the back of a camel at sunset, and the wild west town of Merzouga makes the perfect jumping-off point.
Rwanda: This small, once embattled country has come a long way since the 1994 genocide that left the countryside in shambles but with all the international 
aid and humanitarian funds poured into the country, Rwanda has rebounded to become a highly desirable adventure tourist destination. The landscape is highly mountainous in the west with savanna in the east, with most tourism centered around Parc Nationals des Volcans to trek the forested slopes in search of the silverback mountain gorilla and in Nyungure Forest National Park to tramp among colobus monkeys and chimpanzees. A couple of off-the-beaten-track highlights are Gisenti and Kibuye on the sandy shores of Lake Kiru which is among the deepest and most voluminous lakes in the world.
South Africa: The most developed and economically advanced country on the continent has two spectacular cities in Johannesburg and Cape Town as well as 
a beautiful coastline and expansive national parks. Cape Town makes a fantastic base to explore the surrounding environment such as the Cape of Good Hope and the Twelve Apostles Highway, take a cable car up Table Mountain and abseil down, visit the penguin colony on Boulder's Beach or jump in a cage in the shark invested waters offshore to get up close and personal with great whites, this city has it all. Johannesburg is another cosmopolitan city and jumping-off point for safaris heading into the world-renown Kruger National Park and 4x4 expeditions north to Victoria Falls, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Tanzania: One of the most visited countries on the continent has three spectacular main attractions that marvel any location on the planet. First and foremost 
is a 4x4 safari into the great Serengeti National Park to witness the ecology of the great plains of Africa and if timed right, the Great Migration of the wildebeest. It's almost guaranteed to see the big five here (elephants, lions, buffalo, leopards rhinos). After a spectacular wildlife safari, many adventurers head to Moshi to gear up for the challenging trek up Mt. Kilimanjaro. Not a technical climb and capable by most in reasonably good shape, this once-in-a-lifetime experience takes about 5 days and is second to none in ecological beauty. Finally, the tropical island of Zanzibar in the Indian Ocean provides an ideal reprieve to relax after the backcountry excursions on its white-sand beaches, turquoise blue water, rainbow-colored reefs, and beachside cabanas.
Uganda: This magnificent country that straddles Lake Victoria has just about everything any African nation can offer, or ever hope for. From gorilla tracking in 
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park, cruising up to the base of the world's most powerful waterfalls on a wildlife safari through Murchison Falls National Park, tackling the challenging ice-capped peaks of the Rwenzori Mountains (mountains of the moon), bushwacking through the trees of Kibale Forest National Park among the chimpanzee tribes, whitewater rafting the mighty Nile river as it flows into Lake Victoria on class III-V rapids, or relaxing on the shores of one of the ssese islands for some hammock time on powdery white sand beaches, Uganda is the ultimate playground for anyone wanting to experience nature at its purest.
Zambia: Sharing the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Victoria Falls with Zimbabwe, Zambia has been welcoming wildlife enthusiasts and adventures since the Scottish 
explorer David Livingston was the first European to view the falls in 1855. Besides flirting with death in the Devil's Pools and the helicopter rides, whitewater rafting, bungee jumping, gorge swings, kayaking, and hiking the Victoria Falls area offers, Kafue National Park in the center of the country is one of the largest in all of Africa with an abundance of wildlife and safari opportunities over its vast savanna grasslands, swamps, and marshy creeks. South Luangwa National Park is touted as one of the best in all of Southern Africa for its abundance and diversity of wildlife and the Lower Zambezi National Park is another jem that offers great backwater canoeing excursions and bush camping on the Zambezi floodplain in the heart of the jungle.
Zimbabwe: Named after Great Zimbabwe, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that showcases the greatest medieval city in sub-Saharan Africa, the country also 
shares all the splendors and adrenaline-pumping activities of the Victoria Falls area and has a noble national park in Hwange that hosts the largest population of elephants in the world, over 100 species of animals and 400 species of birds. Matobo National Park is another UNESCO site that stuns with its otherworldly landscape of balancing boulders, granite towers, and large populations of leopards and rhinos as well as a third of all the species of eagles in the world! Large-scale tourism is still in its infancy in the majority of the country outside of Victoria Falls, with the natural coexistence of man and an environment eloquently woven together visible at every turn.
