Safari and Wildlife

14 days, 13 nights in IRAN, May 2-15, 2018. Highlights: Fly Tehran to Bandar Abbas on the Persian Gulf/bird-watching in mangrove forests and almond, pistachio groves/fly to Ahvaz for birding at Dez and Karkheh rivers/Kelardasht in the Alborz Mountains/Babolsar and Sari at Caspian Sea/Touran National Park. $5,650 ppdo plus internal flights (about $540).

10 days, 9 nights in luxury safari camps. Group limit, 16. Highlights: Arrive Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA/in ZAMBIA, twilight Zambezi cruise/in ZIMBABWE, Victoria Falls/in BOTSWANA, Chobe National Park, Okavango Delta. $7,495-$12,995 ppdo (per departure date). Single supp., $1,495-$5,495. Internal air, from $1,775. Abercrombie & Kent (Downers Grove, IL; 888/611-4711, www.abercrombiekent.com).

12-day, 11-night bus trip, Nov. 12-23, 2018. “Easy to moderate walking.” Highlights: From Tel Aviv, drive to birding sites along coast/Hula Nature Reserve, home to golden jackals, wild boars/Hula Agamon Park, home to cranes, eagles/Mount Hermon/Beit She’an Valley, home to black storks/Jerusalem Bird Observatory/Ein Gedi Reserve/Eilat Bird-Watching Park. $4,425 (12-15 people) or $4,675 (less than 12) ppdo. Single supp., $735. Sierra Club (Oakland, CA; 415/977-5522, www.sc.org/adventure-travel).

7 days, 6 nights. Highlights: Victoria Falls, ZIMBABWE/in Botswana, drive to Chobe National Park, home to zebras, lions/two nights at Chobe Elephant Camp/in Okavango Delta, mokoro trips, game and night drives, bush walks. £2,122-£3,102 (near $2,845-$4,160) ppdo per dates. Single supp., £125-£750 ($170-$1,005). Tribes Travel (The Old Dairy, Wood Farm, Ipswich Rd., Otley, Suffolk, England, IP6 9JW, U.K.; in US, 800/608-4651, www.tribes.co.uk).

11 days, 10 nights. January-February & April-December 2018. Group limit, 12. Highlights: Windhoek/sand dunes in Namib-Naukluft National Park/Sesriem Canyon/Walvis Bay Lagoon/Cape Cross/ancient Bushmen paintings at Twyfelfontein/Petrified Forest/Etosha National Park, home to leopards, rhinos/in Otjiwarongo, Cheetah Conservation Foundation. $2,459 ppdo. Single supp., $349. Bestway Tours & Safaris (8678 Greenall Ave., Ste. 206, Burnaby, BC, V5J 3M6, Canada; US/Can., 800/663-0844, www.bestway.com).

Great Plains Conservancy and Ride Kenya opened Ride Kenya — Mara, the first permanent horse stables in Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve, in February 2017. 

Guests at Maasai Mara safari camps or camps at the nearby Olare Motorogi, Naboisho and Mara North private conservancies can take a 2-hour morning or afternoon guided horseback safari from the stables, which have 16 horses from South Africa trained to carry experienced or beginner riders. Safaris begin at 8 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. $250 per person, with safety equipment provided.  

You’ll need to supply your own sleeping bag and pillow, but all else is provided on a “Roar ’n‘ Snore Overnight Camp” sleep-over at the Melbourne Zoo in southeastern Australia.

Tents (with mattresses) are in the former elephant house, where you have dinner, then explore the zoo after dark, seeing nocturnal creatures and listening to camp hosts’ stories. After supper, retire to your tent. Wake to the calls of gibbons and birds, eat breakfast, then enjoy up-close animal encounters and behind-the-scenes experiences.