African safari or Alaskan cruise in May? Because, weather.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alaska can be beautiful in May, but you have to be the kind of person who can ignore the weather and enjoy yourself even if it's damp and chilly. I wouldn't do a cruise then, I'd want to have activities planned that could be adjusted last-minute OR could continue regardless of weather. If hikes are planned, for instance, I'd just layer on extra clothes and add full rain gear (including boots and rain pants) and go. I wouldn't relish sitting on a cruise ship in damp 50 degree weather.

You can look at historical weather patterns here (using Juneau as an example):
https://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/PAJN/2017/5/1/MonthlyHistory.html?&reqdb.zip=&reqdb.magic=&reqdb.wmo=

Last year, Juneau had about 2.5 inches of rain over the month of May. But scroll down to the charts, and see how close the temp and dew point are? When they are close, that generally means it's damp with low clouds. When they meet, it's fog/mist/rain. So it was damp and misty nearly every morning last May, and about half the days that lasted all day.

For Africa, I've heard great things about safaris in Tanzania, self-guided trips through Kruger National Park in South Africa, or private game reserves in South Africa. I don't have any specific names, though.

This can be fairly boring. You spend 6+ hours a day driving around in your car hoping to see interesting animals. Maybe you do, maybe you don't. South Africa is absolutely worth a trip, no doubt. Personally I'd do a few days at a game reserve and spend the rest of the time touring the country. It's gourgeous, and very reasonable in terms of price.

It's probably worth it splitting time between Kruger and the private reserves surrounding the park. They're different experiences. Self-driving can be a hit or miss, the advantage of going with a professional guide is they know where to go and have extensive contacts with other guides and share the sightings with each other. As much as I enjoyed Kruger it is still not quite the same experience as the proper bush in Zambia or Kenya or Tanzania. It's hard to explain to neophytes why till they've seen both and can compare. The latter just has a dimension of wildness that Kruger doesn't (even if Kruger is still very nice).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:May is far and away the most miserable month to be in Alaska. Period.

Just yesterday I heard the same thing about September.

You are both wrong, I grew up there. September is among the most beautiful months in Alaska. Most Alaskans will tell you that March is the worst month, bar none.

May will be chilly, but not terrible. Never been to Africa.

To be fair, you should say that "breakup" is the worst month to be there...depending on the weather, that could be from March to May.
For the non-Alaskans, breakup refers to the massive melting of all the snow and ice that builds up during the winter...turns much of the area in to a giant mud pit, which can make for miserable hiking and general ugliness.

Can't imagine what anyone has against September.

[Anonymous]

IMHO, there is nothing like seeing the Great Migration during the summer months (July-Sept) in Kenya and Tanzania. It is exactly what you think of and hope for in a Safari. So I wouldn't go there if you must travel in May.

Likewise, I would not go to Alaska either (assuming from your Alaska or Safari choice that you are looking to see wild animals).

My vote would be a circumnavigation of Svalbard to see the polar bears, reindeer, whales, etc. Perfect weather for it and a similar price point to an African Safari.

[Anonymous]

^^googling “Svalbard” now....

[Anonymous]

If you want to go to South Africa, I recommend Madikwe for safariy over Kruger. Lovely lodges, guided game viewing and the park is smaller and the animal popular carefully managed. They have all of the Big 7 and a good chance you'll see them, because the rangers communicate sightings and you do have to go so far to catch up. Highly recommend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^^googling “Svalbard” now....

I've done this one and highly recommend:

https://www.expeditions.com/destinations/polar-regions/arctic/itineraries/land-of-the-ice-bears-an-in-depth-exploration-of-arctic-svalbard/overview/

You could also go with this one which I hear is also good:

https://www.polar-quest.com/trips/calendar

And these guys know it all:

https://www.gadventures.com/travel-styles/cruising/expedition-cruises/arctic/

[Anonymous]

Added bonus: if you have kids and they like the Golden Compass series, this is where it takes place!