Happy Birthday, Gorongosa National Park! On this day in 1960, the Gorongosa Reserve in Mozambique was degreed a national park. It had been a game reserve since 1935.

You may have heard about Gorongosa when reporter Scott Pelley featured the national park on 60 Minutes in a segment called “Saving a Global Treasure.” View the video clip of Gorongosa on 60 Minutes.

This page will be continually updated to archive a list of the luxury accommodations on the Zambia side of Victoria Falls. If you know of an option that’s not listed, please let us know!

Islands of Siankaba
Postnet 621, Private Bag E891, Lusaka
Tel: 260 211 260 279

The Royal Livingstone
Mosi-oa-Tunya Road, Livingstone
Tel: 260 213 321 122

Tongabezi Lodge & Sindabezi Island
Private Bag 31, Livingstone
Tel: 260 213 327 450
Rates: from $450 per person per night

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

Photo of Sindabezi courtesy of Tongabezi Lodge

This page will be continually updated to archive a list of the game lodges in Zambia’s Lower Zambezi National Park. If you know of a luxury lodge that’s not listed, please let us know!

Ana Tree Lodge
P.O. Box 32661, Lusaka
Tel: 260 211 250 730
Rates: $575 per person per night (doesn’t include the bar)

Chiawa Camp
P.O. Box 30972, Lusaka
Tel: 260 211 261 588

Chongwe River Camp
P.O. Box CA 102, Lusaka
Tel: 260 211 278 248

Kasaka River Lodge
Tel: 260 211 256 201
Rates: from $395 per person per night

Royal Zambezi Lodge
P/Bag CH42, Lusaka
Tel: 260 211 840 682
Rates: from $380 per person per night

Sanctuary Zambezi Kulefu Camp
Rates: from $400 per person per night

Sausage Tree Camp
P.O. Box 35139, Lusaka 10101
Tel: 260 211 845 204

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

Photo courtesy of Sausage Tree Camp

I’ve been doing a lot of online holiday shopping and recently picked up some nice travel gifts at Magellan’s Travel Supplies. When my items arrived, the box also contained a flyer about Magellan’s partnership with a nonprofit organization called SEE International.

According to the organization, 75 percent of the world’s 37 million cases of blindness are actually treatable, making the loss of sight a humanitarian emergency.

SEE International puts together teams of volunteer ophthalmologists to go where their help is needed, including places like Thailand, Mexico, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe.

Since 1974 SEE’s eye surgeons have performed more than 360,000 sight-storing procedures.

Magellan’s has been a corporate partner of SEE International for over 20 years, providing travel kits for surgeons as well as advertising outreach to its customers.

Expeditions to the following countries are scheduled for 2010: Swaziland, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Ghana, The Gambia, Nigeria, Namibia, and Kenya.

Donations are tax deductible and may be made online via a secure server. Visit See International’s website or call 1-(805)963-3303 and mention that you heard about the organization from Magellan’s Travel Supplies.

Surgical Eye Expeditions (SEE) International is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Tax ID #31-1682275.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

Photo of Maasai woman and child courtesy of iStockPhoto.com

If you’re a member of HHonors, Hilton’s frequent guest program, you’ll want to keep tabs on the upcoming opening of Hilton Windhoek in Namibia.

Hilton Worldwide recently signed a management agreement with Pride of Africa Hospitality, Africa Pride Hospitality, and United Africa Group for the first Hilton property in the country.

Mark your calendar for mid-2010. That’s when this brand new 154-room hotel will open its doors in Namibia’s capital city.

This Hilton is especially appealing since it’s part of a mixed-use development that includes a casino, restaurants, and boutiques as well as residential houses and offices.

The hotel is under construction now. Stay tuned for more details as Hilton releases them.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

Photo courtesy of Namibia Tourism Board

Project in Zambia with Plan Australia

Do you remember the 1999 movie Office Space with Jennifer Aniston and Ron Livingston? It’s a favorite of mine and if you haven’t seen it, I’ll need to explain one of the plot lines in order to set up this blog post.

Do you remember the 1999 movie Office Space with Jennifer Aniston and Ron Livingston? It’s a favorite of mine and if you haven’t seen it, I’ll need to explain one of the plot lines in order to set up this blog post.

Livingston plays Peter Gibbons, who works in an administrative role at a computer company called Initech. When his friends are laid off, they conspire to devise a way to skim fractions of pennies off all financial transactions being handled by Initech. Consider it micro-embezzling.

Think about it… fractions of a dollar seem like chump change on its own, but combine all those fractions together and we’re talking big money.

That’s sort of the concept that The Footprints Network, based in Australia, has embraced to fight poverty across the globe. They believe that micro donations—between $1 and $5—made by consumers during online transactions can help fund community development projects.

The network funds programs that upgrade farming, education, access to clean water, and sight restoration—all in an effort to eliminate poverty. One of the current projects on the docket focuses on improving farming in Zambia. This will, in turn, increase access to food for the poorest families in the region. Plan Australia is overseeing the training program.

Founded in 2004 by WorldNomads.com after the Asian tsunami, 302,278 individuals have raised more than $785,383 for 53 projects around the world.

“Alleviating the extreme cycle of poverty and the ills that accompany it is everyone’s moral responsibility,” said Chris Novel, general manager of WorldNomads.com. “Yet the extent of world poverty can seem so overwhelming that many of us are left feeling helpless and that the problems are just too big for any one person to make a difference.”

In just five years, WorldNomads.com has developed an independent network of e-commerce businesses that share the same ethics and values and, through technology, seek to change the world by asking customers spending money online to make a small donation to charity at the same time.

WorldNomads.com supports all administrative costs of the program so 100 percent of donations go directly to the projects.

While the network is small, it is growing. “We’re looking for more online e-commerce business partners to integrate the Footprints mechanism into their shopping carts and, transaction by transaction, help make a difference,” said Noble.

This is definitely a program worth watching. For more information, visit The Footprints Network.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

South African Airways is offering a good deal for economy roundtrip travel from U.S. gateways to Johannesburg. From now through April 30, 2010, you can fly roundtrip from New York (JFK) or Washington Dulles (IAD) for $950 per person. (Of course, you’ll also pay approximately $140 for the required governmental taxes, departure fees, and the September 11 security fee.)

Similar low fares are also available from other U.S. cities.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

What Else Will You Do During the World Cup?

Are you heading to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa? You’re going to enjoy a few games and maybe go on safari, but have you thought about doing some service work while you’re there?

Elevate Destinations has put together a few customized community tours in South Africa that will show travelers some of the challenges facing communities in Johannesburg, Durban, and Cape Town. Special tours can be organized for a minimum of one to two days.

Suggested Tours in South Africa

• Johannesburg—Visit community projects in Soweto with former soccer players such as Andre Arendse and Linda Buthelezi.
• Cape Town—Tour three different city community empowerment projects on a one-day tour.
• Durban—Head to the Indigo Skate Park in the Valley of a Thousand Hills, a rural area in Durban where skate boarding has brought hope to this community.

Download Elevate Destination’s World Cup Community Touring pdf.

For more information, visit Elevated Destinations or call (617) 661-0203.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

I really like what Abercrombie & Kent is doing with its organization, Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy. The tour packager that’s known for high-end expeditions to the far corners of the globe is now offering individuals the chance to be part of the solution to a local problem in a far-off location.

As the holiday season approaches, Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy is remindng everyone that donations make fantastic gifts for friends and family who have everything.

“This year the focus is on what money cannot buy—shared experiences and treasured memories,” says Abercrombie & Kent Vice Chairman Jorie Butler Kent, who guides Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy. “Our guests are looking for more meaningful ways to celebrate with their families and asked us to create a Gift Program that makes it easy to donate to projects making a difference in places they have visited.”

With the help of A&K’s 62 worldwide offices, Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy has identified grassroots organizations, spearheaded by dedicated local experts in conservation, education, community development, and public health.

These are inspiring gifts designed to honor a friend or family member.  Donations range from $10 for a simple HIV test to help prevent the transmission of AIDS to an unborn child to $500 for a field trip for Maasai children who have never been on safari.

Here are three programs being offered right now. Visit Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy to read about all donation programs throughout the world.

HIV Testing in Uganda
Uganda Bwindi Community Hospital
—$10 helps assess the HIV status of a local resident with a simple field test.

Restore a Natural Landmark 
in Morocco
Morocco—Protection of the Palmeraie—
$50 plants a tree to help restore the delicate ecosystem in this thousand-year-old date palm grove, a Marrakech landmark.

A Safari Field Trip
Kenya — Friends of Conservation—
$500 gives 20 Maasai children the chance to discover their natural heritage and learn the value of protecting wildlife with a field trip to the Masai Mara National Reserve.

Donations can be made online through Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy’s secure website www.akphilanthropy.org with 100 percent of all donations going directly to the project selected.  Gift certificates will be delivered to the recipient(s) electronically or printed and mailed.

To make a donation as a family—or in honor of a loved one—go to www.akphilanthropy.org. One hundred percent of your charitable gift to Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy goes directly to support local projects worldwide. Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy is established in the United States as a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Your charitable gift is tax deductible as provided by law.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

South African Airways

South African Airways is running a promo for roundtrip economy air from New York or Washington, D.C., from November 1–December 9, 2009 and January 7–April 30, 2010. The roundtrip price is $930 per person. Similar fares are available from other U.S. gateways.

Here’s the fine print: Fare is for travel in economy class and inclusive of fuel surcharges. Valid for travel November 1 to December 9, 2009 and January 7 to April 30, 2010. Seats are limited and may not be available on all flights. Travel taxes are additional. Cancellations before departure are subject to a $250 penalty and no shows are non-refundable. After departure, tickets are non-refundable. Changes prior to departure are not permitted. Changes after departure are subject to a $250 fee. Ticketing must be completed within 48 hours after reservations are made. Maximum stay is 12 months. Fare does not include (a) Passenger Facility Charges of up to $18 USD depending upon the itinerary chosen (b) Federal Segment Fee of $3.60 USD per flight segment (flight segment is defined as one takeoff and one landing) (c) September 11th Security Fee of $2.50 USD per flight segment that originates at a U.S. point (d) international government taxes and fees of up to $200 varying by destination and currency exchange rates at the time of purchase. Additional baggage charges may apply.

—Andrea M. Rotondo for LuxurySafariExperts.com

Photo courtesy of South African Airways