In August and September this year, my wife, Melissa, and I travelled throughout Africa, visiting seven national parks.

The first was the Kgalagadi National Park in the Kalahari Desert. We stayed for six nights and four nights at Xaus Lodge. The lodge is owned by the Khomani San (Bushman) and Mier communities.

To get there, we were driven for 1½ hours across 91 sand dunes, certainly what you call off the beaten track. The arid Kalahari Desert is a sight to behold with rolling red sand dunes and clay and salt pans to be explored. We visited the craft village run by the Bushman people and watched the people make jewellery, using simple hand tools, from bone and ostrich eggshell.

We flew to Cape Town for five nights going to the Bontebok National Park, West Cape National Park Penguin colony at Boulders Beach then on to the Cape of Good Hope National Park.

The last 14 days, we spent in the Kruger National Park staying at rest camps throughout the park. The wildlife is truly amazing. We hired a car to drive ourselves at our leisure to view heaps of wildlife, including so many different birds.

Each of the rest camps we stayed in has a restaurant where we ate all our meals.

What a great holiday we had.