The COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating for the tourism sector in our country.

According to a report released by Statistics South Africa, foreign arrivals dropped by 71% to less than 5 million in 2020. Many businesses will not survive; others are adapting to the new situation and surviving as best they can.

But, as the saying goes, it’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good. Tourist attractions and lodges may have lost their international clientele, but by changing their focus they have opened up for domestic tourism. Game lodges and tour operators who used to cater almost exclusively for the international market are now attracting domestic, and even local, guests. Many South Africans who may never have seen a wild animal before are reclaiming their heritage.

Frank Watts, together with his partner Dianne Wichman, runs a Hoedspruit-based safari company with the entertaining name The Other Animals Safaris. Frank has worked in the tourism industry for over 28 years, and in 2012 he decided to set up his own company. From a modest start, he and Dianne built up a thriving business until the devastating blow struck by the pandemic brought it to its knees. They were left with only two vehicles, and no guests, but carried on – and discovered an amazing change to the face of tourism.

Before the pandemic, Frank’s customers were exclusively international. Many were here to see the Big Five and had high expectations, which he sought to fulfill, but the guests were often missing out on the smaller things. He now takes mainly his own countrymen into the bush, and the experience has been uplifting.

Frank remembers special occasions, as when a lodge on Hoedspruit Wildlife Estate asked him to take a local couple on a game drive on the estate.

He was apprehensive, worrying that there wouldn’t be enough to keep them interested, but how wrong he was. The guests appreciated all the small things and were ecstatic at seeing giraffe, zebra, and wildebeest, and Frank remembers the drive as one of the most rewarding he’d ever done – without seeing a single representative of the Big Five!

The Other Animals Safaris do a variety of tours, including locally into the Pridelands reserve which is open to the Kruger National Park but only minutes from our town centre. I was invited to go on an afternoon drive with Frank and six guests, a foursome from Johannesburg and a young couple from Polokwane. The good cheer in the vehicle was obvious already when they picked me up outside the Rhino Convention Centre and continued throughout the drive. For some of the guests, this was their first-ever encounter with wild animals and they thoroughly enjoyed it. Even as the temperature dropped, the enjoyment on board did not!

The Other Animals Safaris offer morning, afternoon, and whole day tours into the Kruger National Park, but during the winter months setting off before sunrise in an open vehicle may not be ideal. But why go all the way to Kruger, when the Greater Kruger Conservancy is on our doorstep?

The Pridelands Conservancy is open to the Kruger, and it even has all the Big Five for those who are keen to see them. Throughout the winter months, The Other Animals Safaris will offer mid-morning drives into Pridelands, leaving around 9.30 for a 3 – 4 hour drive. Bring your own picnic to enjoy in the middle of the bush in the winter sunshine – what a lovely way to see the wildlife right on our doorstep.

To find out more about The Other Animals Safaris, go to their web site

www.theotheranimals.co.za

For bookings please contact Dianne – 0768345602 or Frank – 0796970442