Going wild

How do you ensure that South Africa’s awe-inspiring game reserves are accessible to disabled people? That was the challenge facing disabled entrepreneurs JJ Bezuidenhout and his wife Jennae, when they started their own safari business. Now, says JJ, the local tourist industry is starting to follow their lead

Eight years ago, a diving accident left me quadriplegic. After eight months recovering in hospital, myself and my wife Jennae moved nearer to my wife’s parents, who run a wildlife sanctuary in KwaZulu-Natal on the so-called Elephant Coast of South Africa (the north-east coast). Elephants would stroll by our fence every morning.

We now have our own large home, close enough to town that I can wheel myself to the shops, but still on the edge of the renowned Hluhluwe Umfolozi National Park, a “Big Five” game reserve (one where you can see lions, elephants, buffalo, rhinos and leopards).
We are also near the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park, also known as iSimangaliso Wetland Park, which includes the largest system of lakes and wetlands in South Africa, and is also a World Heritage Site.

Hluhluwe Umfolozi itself is the oldest and second largest game reserve in the country and home to the largest black rhino population in Africa.

We live in the middle of South Africa’s largest ecotourism area, which has 400 lodges (safari accommodation), and everyone we know, including our close relatives, is involved in the tourism industry, either working at or owning lodges, or working as game rangers or tour guides.

Because of this and my own experiences as a wheelchair-user (my wife has a hearing impairment), we decided two years ago to set up our own company, Access 2 Africa Safaris, to encourage those with accessibility challenges to visit our special slice of Africa. We also wanted to educate those in the hospitality and tourism industries.

When we first moved into the area eight years ago, we found many local attractions were inaccessible, so we set about encouraging everyone we came across to be wheelchair-friendly. We had often stayed in places that claimed they had accessible bathrooms, even though I couldn’t even get through the door. Jennae would have to shower me outside on the lawn or veranda with a bucket. We also have our own portable ramps, so we used them if there were too many obstacles.

We quickly learned there was no point getting frustrated. Instead, the answer was education. We have found most people to be extremely helpful and willing to make changes.

There is huge investment in tourism in KwaZulu-Natal and many lodges and hotels are being upgraded, so we have urged them not to have just one accessible room, but four or five, paving the way for larger groups of wheelchair-users to visit.

Most large tourist attractions are now accessible to wheelchair-users and other disabled travellers, thanks in part to the support of the KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Association, which complies with the anti-discrimination and access laws introduced by the ANC government after it won power in 1994.

These laws also ensured that the huge new tourism developments across South Africa are accessible, and that there is greater awareness of the needs of disabled people.

Our company sets out to make life as easy as possible for our disabled guests. So we offer free personal care, and arrange for the hire of mobility equipment if required.

Transport on our safaris is in our accessible Volkswagen Microbuses, which have space for two wheelchairs, and access via ramps. Our other transport is a larger Toyota Quantum minibus, with space for five wheelchairs and a hydraulic lift. All our vehicles have tie-downs for wheelchairs and air-conditioning. We pick up our guests in the minibus direct from Durban International Airport.

For our safaris for wheelchair-users who can transfer from their chairs, we use an open-top Land Rover Safari – elephants often walk so close to the vehicle that you can almost touch them. Those who use electric wheelchairs do the safari excursions in one of our accessible Microbuses, all of which offer height, a great view and sliding doors which allow close experiences to the natural wonders before them.

Because many of our guests have different needs and requirements, we tend to design each holiday personally. For instance, we have a quadriplegic man coming with his PA for a nine-day trip. He is staying in five-star accommodation throughout his time here. But his only request when it comes to activities has been: “No snakes.”

Hluhluwe now has accessible trails, and the award-winning Hilltop camp is accessible, as are many other lodges on the reserve.

I can’t think of any access barriers that we have failed to overcome. We always come up with a plan. There is a photograph of me swimming at Sodwana, a top dive resort on the Elephant Coast. We simply asked diving staff to carry my chair to the water’s edge, where the sand is hard and my Quickie Wheelchair can drive. Then my wife and a friend carried me into the sea.

We have yet to have any blind guests, but there are many attractions for them to enjoy: at uShaka Marine World in Durban, which has dolphins, sharks, aquariums, snorkelling pools and a wheelchair-friendly beach with floating chairs, a guide can help blind visitors feel the skin of a sea cucumber and a starfish in a tank.

There is a local crocodile farm where the owner has introduced a roped trail with Braille information and a touch tour of the animals and reptiles, which includes touching the baby crocodiles.

South Africa is one of the world’s most diverse and enchanting countries and those with mobility impairments will be spellbound and intrigued by the opportunities available to them to enjoy the sights and sounds of our culture and wildlife.

Information:
Access 2 Africa Safaris
– www.access2africasafaris.co.za Email info@access2africas afaris.co.za or jennae@vodamail.co.za or tel 0027 842642194

For a five-day safari and tour – R9,934 per person (about £600)

For a seven-day safari and tour – R12,420 per person (about £750)

For an 11-day safari and tour – R19,500 per person (about £1,180)

Prices above are only a guide and are based on four people per tour, and include all accommodation, safaris, activities, meals, accessible transport with fulltime driver, personal tour guide, safari game rangers and any personal assistance needed, but not flights.

All the newer hotels and lodges have several accessible rooms, and various lodges have accessible rooms with free hoists and shower chairs.

Accommodation near Durban for the 11-day safari is at the five-star Makaranga Lodge, which is  fully accessible and has 30 acres of its own botanical gardens, and at the four-star Hilltop Camp on the Hluhluwe Umfolozi reserve, the winner of a British Airways Tourism for Tomorrow Award.

Makaranga Lodge, www.makaranga.com

The Hilltop Camp, www.kznwildlife.com

uShaka Marine World, Durban, www.ushakamarineworld.co.za