How to chill-out in South Africa

Eat and sleep under the stars:

South Africa is the destination du jour if you want to spend your evenings al fresco.

The safari lodges are geared towards lantern-lit dinners, campfire suppers and drinks in the dark. Dinner will most likely be in a boma, the African term for a round corral that protects the diners and the campfire from the elements. The food is cooked to perfection on a braai, the African term for barbecue, and the meat more often than not comes served with salad, soup, vegetables and curries. One of the best meals I've had was a rack of lamb cooked to medium rare perfection as smoke clouded the stars overhead as I ate seated on curved canvas at a table lined with lanterns.

And if you can't get enough outdoor nocturnal action, a tree house is the place to spend a night. Safari staff will drive you to a far-flung part of the property where lions and leopards roam just before sunset, leaving you with dinner to quiet the belly, wine to bolster bravery and a just-in-case walkie talkie.

It has all the accoutrements of luxury and no barriers to the wild – walls and roofing are not included. In fact, at Lion Sands Tinyeleti Treehouse the protection you are afforded comes via the four-poster bed under mosquito net so you can see the stars as you lie back. The noises of the bush are dramatic and disconcerting but there is no thrill like it. A night in a treehouse may not provide your most restful sleep but it will be your most unforgettable.

Find your zen on a yoga safari:

Safari in a game vehicle is meditation in itself, but combine the bush immersion with yoga and your body will be in blissed out euphoria. Renshaw Travel can make this holistic holiday a reality on an 11-day Bush to Beach Safari itinerary.

You still enjoy the regular dawn and dusk game drives that come with staying at a safari lodge, but the downtime between 10am and 3pm involves one yoga class with the intensity dependent on the mood of the guests. Five days is spent in the bush and on the sixth day guests move up to Sodwana Bay for an ocean safari and yoga sessions on the beach. The final stop is a hilltop guest lodge where the yoga takes place as the sun rises over the Indian Ocean.

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