Tourists have been urged not to book certain peak-season safari trips to avoid creating a ‘dreadful spectacle’.

We are currently amidst a safari boom. Travellers going on organised adventures to Africa in 2023 increased by 33%, compared to 2019, according to Skift. Travel to Tanzania was up 48% and Kenya was up 22% overall.

One of the most highly anticipated aspects of an African safari is witnessing the Great Migration —the largest overland wildlife migration on Earth. More than 1.5 million wildebeest, along with 250,000 zebras, 300,000 Thomson’s gazelles and various other antelope species, thunder across the plains between the southern Serengeti and the Masai Mara in search of fresh grazing land.

Despite being a year-round migration, one time of year attracts tourists more than ever: the river crossing season of July and August. A Tent With A View, an eco-conscious safari company, receives five times more inquiries during this time than at other times of the year.

While there is huge demand for the trips, the company is very happy to sacrifice bookings over these peak months of July and August because – according to David Guthrie, founder of A Tent With A View – it is a “poster for unsustainable and unethical tourism.”

David explained: “It’s dreadful to witness. During river crossing season, hundreds of safari vehicles swarm the Mara River, all competing for the best view of the animals. Some even encroach on the animals’ path, blocking them as they prepare to make the dangerous crossing. We have to remember that while it’s an incredible spectacle for us, this is the most perilous part of the migration for the animals. Many don’t survive the leap, either falling short or falling prey to crocodiles waiting in the water.

“They need to be on high alert and large safari vehicles skirting into their way and blocking them make this impossible, putting their lives in serious danger and reducing survival rates. Along with being unethical, this is an unnecessary and unnatural disruption of one of the oldest and last great land migrations on the planet.”

The wildebeest and the rest of the animals cross the river due to the fear of famine as they follow the scent of fresh vegetation across the river. “I guarantee we’ll look back on the mass tourism that we are seeing during the migration’s river crossing season in years to come and see it as a poster for unsustainable and unethical tourism,” David added.

He urged those who wished to see the year-round Great Migration to come at different times of the year. “Without a doubt, it is The Calving Season of January and February that offers the most amazing time to see The Great Migration,” David said.

Over 500,000 wildebeest calves are born within a matter of weeks in the southern Serengeti during these months.

“It’s extraordinary to watch the newborn wildebeest go from birth to finding their feet, standing and then running alongside the adults, all in just a matter of minutes. The presence of so many calves also draws large numbers of predators, so you have a higher chance of spotting the iconic big cats—lions, leopards, and cheetahs—in action.”