AFRICA

There are 54 countries and two disputed areas, in a continent that stretches from the Mediterranean coast, through the Sahara, equatorial rain forests, and volcanic mountains down to the high plateau and dry savannahs of South Africa. And that’s not including tropical islands like the Seychelles and Mauritius!

Besides bucket-list safaris inland, most travelers return to the outer edges of the continent: the Indian Ocean island nations, the dignified North African desert, and the centuries-old colonial crossroads of South Africa. The islands have a distinctly South Asian flavor, and the desert regions bear influences from Arabian and Southern European cultures, while South Africa has a little bit of everything, settled by waves of migrations from Central Africa, Portugal, the Netherlands, France, England, Malaysia, and India.

There is wildlife that is not like anything you’ll find in Ontario or Provence, but you’re no more likely to find wildebeest wandering Cape Town than you would find moose meandering through Manhattan. In fact, Cape Town and New York were founded within 30 years of each other, and both are equally sophisticated and urbane. (OK, the New York subway is a little more developed than Cape Town’s Metrorail, but only a little.) Excursions into national parks and private refuges are very rewarding, though.

Requirements vary from country to country, so check individual countries’ visitor bureaus for updated information — or ask our villa specialists for help finding the latest advisories.

English is understood in most places, and French across North Africa and the Indian Ocean islands. Morocco’s official languages are Arabic and Berber. In South Africa, Afrikaans is as widely spoken as English, and mutually intelligible with Dutch. In most places across the continent, it would not be uncommon to meet a taxi driver or shopkeeper fluent in four European languages and six to eight African languages.