In this blog, we’ve selected five holidays with opportunities to watch and photograph wildlife after dark. Whether joining a guided night walk, heading out on a spotlighting drive or settling into a photographic hide, there are plenty of opportunities to discover wildlife once the sun goes down.
Some mammals are best sought after dark, making an evening excursion well worth staying up for. Exploring by torchlight or waiting in a hide brings a different perspective to a wildlife holiday, with opportunities to see species that are often missed during the day. Continue reading to see our top five wildlife holidays which feature night safaris.
Image by Dani Free
Aardvark, aardwolf and brown hyena are among the species we hope to find on this small-group safari. Explore the Makgadikgadi and Central Kalahari before heading to a private reserve, where extended night drives offer opportunities to look for honey badger, Cape porcupine, springhare and African wildcat.
Image by Mike Gordon
Search for binturong, marbled cat, banded civet and, with luck, the elusive Sunda clouded leopard on this small-group tour. Extended spotlighting drives in Deramakot and the Danum Valley allow plenty of time to look for Borneo’s nocturnal mammals, including western tarsiers and several species of flying squirrel.
Image by Sable Valley Lodge
Join rangers on a 24-hour wildlife count on a private concession bordering Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park. Watch elephant, buffalo and sable gather at the waterhole, with activity continuing after dark under the light of the supermoon. We’ll also track white rhino on foot and accompany researchers monitoring African wild dogs.
Image by Nick Garbutt
Madagascar’s forests are home to an extraordinary variety of nocturnal mammals, including tiny mouse lemurs, giant jumping rats and the bizarre aye-aye. On this small-group tour, we explore Kirindy Forest, Andasibe-Mantadia National Park and Palmarium Reserve on foot by day and after dark, searching for these unusual species alongside fosa, indri and Verreaux’s sifaka.
Image by Ben Sutcliffe
For something closer to home, photograph polecat, pine and beech marten, and badger on this short break in the Netherlands. With exclusive use of a specially equipped hide, we can stay late into the night, with expert help on camera settings and composition. By day, woodland birds, including woodpeckers, nuthatches and jays, provide plenty of subjects.
Find out more about our rare mammal watching holidays, where there are plenty of night safari opportunities. For further inspiration, contact our team today.
If you're inspired by this article, you may be interested in the following:
Group Tour
A dedicated small group mammal watching holiday in Botswana in pursuit of some of the region’s more difficult to see species, including aardvark, brown hyena and aardwolf, alongside such iconic species as black-maned lion, cheetah, meerkat and huge herds of migrating zebra. Find Out More about Botswana’s Rare Mammals
Group Tour
A dedicated small group mammal watching holiday to Borneo’s rainforests in pursuit of the region's rarest mammal species, including the iconic Bornean orangutan, Asian elephant, the secretive Malay sun bear and the majestic Sunda clouded leopard, alongside a fabulous variety of reptiles, amphibians and birds. Find Out More about Borneo’s Rare Mammals
Group Tour
Offering one of our most immersive African safaris, this tour gives you the opportunity to join rangers on a 24-hour wildlife count across a wildlife-rich 6,000-hectare private concession. Timed to take place over the dates of a supermoon, this trip offers perfect conditions to observe wildlife into the night. Find Out More about Wildlife under the Supermoon
Group Tour
Taking in two of Madagascar’s most rewarding and contrasting wildlife hotspots, this small group tour focuses on a range of rare and special mammals. Led by a local wildlife expert we search for the enigmatic fosa, the mysterious aye aye and a fantastic range of rare lemurs. Find Out More about Madagascar’s Rare Mammals
Group Tour
This expert-led small group trip, limited to just four participants, takes you to a small private nature reserve in rural Netherlands, where from a professionally-designed hide it's possible to photograph four species of mustelid by night, including polecat, beech and pine marten, and a variety of woodland birds by day. Find Out More about Polecats, Martens, Badgers & Bird Photography
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Awarded Silver in Favourite Tour Operator for Nature & Wildlife 2024 & 2025
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Awarded Bronze in Best Travel Company for Wildlife & Nature Holidays 2024
