Wild Zambezi was most impressed with a thought-provoking and important Social Media post written by Namibian-based Digital Creator, Birgit Mohrmann on 3 March 2026.
We believe that her observations about selling 'Authentic Africa' are especially true for Southern Africa, and deserve to be widely shared. Here's what she has to say:-
'I am off to Berlin attending ITB (International travel trade show). I have been doing this for decades and it's becoming routine answering the usual questions of "what's new and exciting!"
After so many trade shows, you can become jaded...especially when the latest requests are about offering guests "Authentic Africa". In an era where overtourism, franchise hotels opening in ecological sensitive areas, and influencers and content creators seem to dominate the narrative, people demand authenticity, but don't understand what it really means. AI tells the stories now and guides are pressured to get close to exciting wildlife as promised on social media. It looks so easy on your screen, why should it be difficult in real life...maybe the guide didn't try hard enough?
But I want to remind everyone what authentic really means.
Authentic Namibia can mean lots of bugs, especially when you leave the lights on. Yes, spiders, scorpions, and plenty of flying and crawling insects. Unlike many other first world cities, we didn't kill every bug for the sake of agriculture or human comfort. Bugs are an essential part of the natural world and you can see how European countries are desperately trying to bring back the bees. A place without bugs means an ecosystem out of balance. If you care about eco-tourism, that doesn't mean just protecting the rhinos, but the bugs too. So yes, it's highly likely that even in your 6-star premium villa, in Africa, there will be a Flattie, watching you (it’s a harmless spider which loves creeping along walls and catching mossies, but yes, it looks creepy)
Talking about the rhinos, let's move away from the Big Five narrative. It was a term that big game hunters use to collect their trophies, killing the Big Five. Why are eco-sensitized tourists demanding Big Five tourism too? Seeing a cheetah hunt is just as fascinating as a leopard stalk (and likely more exhilarating too). Coming across a pod of hippos is just as terrifyingly exciting as encountering a herd of buffalo (I'd say much scarier). And for me, coming across a highly endangered pangolin is a hundred times more meaningful than a lazy pride of lions.
Let's face it, selling a trip to Africa is a terrible endeavour. Things often never work out as planned. The weather is unpredictable, often too hot, the sun bites and come June/July, it's bitterly cold in Namibia, dusty and windy.
Because we respect our nature, even the grasses, and the little animals hiding in the shrubs, and we don't want to scar the landscape, we don't drive offroad in Namibia to find the animals. That's terribly inconvenient, imagine that, travelling thousands of miles worrying about the Carbon footprint, why should a little bundubashing be frowned up. Ridiculous - how else are we going to find the animals?!
Recently we had an operator ask us, when planning a trip for a group of well-travelled HNWI (High Net-Worth Individual), if our guides can't just drive ahead and look for the wildlife and only once found, to radio back and bring the tourists. I was incredulous and had to bite my tongue. I wanted to suggest staying home and visiting their local zoo. Save their money because they clearly do not understand the magic of a game drive. It's like a good mystery movie with an intelligent narrative, with complex plot, slow burn, with unexpected twists and the bad guy wasn't who you expected. Instead, they just wanted a Netflix action movie with cheap CGI (Computer-Generated Imagery).
But the magic of a drive is the anticipation of what we will see. The wait, the stalk, the tracking. The few false starts...is that a rhino...nope just a termite hill. Is that a lion roaring? Nope, an ostrich, they sound very similar. You strain your eyes, the day is getting long, hot and you start cursing the many springboks. And if this is an authentic safari, you will come up empty, returning to the lodge feeling a bit deflated. A sad ending, the hero didn't win! But authentic means...unexpected, spontaneous, natural and not always as you hoped it to be.
Did you know that more than 80% of lion hunts are unsuccessful. So why should your game drive be more successful, when lions are much better at this?
This is where the fun of a game drive begins. It's the failures, the disappointments that make it special. When you do finally come across a herd of breeding herd of elephants with babies, after spending days looking for them, it’s pure magic. Only when it's earned the hard way, is it truly appreciated.
And most importantly, appreciating everything that nature offers, that's when any drive is magic, enjoying the full spectrum of life, the birds, the trees, the geology, the rivers, the sand, the fresh air, the deafening quiet.
So let's change our marketing pitch....there are easier destinations to visit, with better guarantees. The weather is unpredictable, the animals don't always show up, and in Namibia, distances are far and wide, so travelling around Namibia is not, and never will be, as easy as travelling around the Okavango Delta.
Shall I be honest? Yes lots of spiders, although highly unlikely that you will be bitten by one. There is no such thing as the best time to visit. I don't know if you will see a leopard, I really don't because Namibian leopards hide well.
But, I can tell you this. Africa will surprise you, every single time, regardless which country you visit. A visit here will ensure a full spectrum of emotions that make a rich life, a life well lived. Hope and sorrow. Squashed dreams. Realized dreams. Utter joy. Bitter disappointment. Sleep deprivation. Long days. Dirt, discomfort, strange smells and most likely a sun burn and sand in your shoes, enduring cracked lips and bad hair. In Africa you will most definitely find true human connection, where we all enthusiastically speak poor English. And Love....Africa is love.
You will fall in love with our imperfect destination, because you realized that here, authentic lies in the discomfort and disappointment, followed by moments of joy. And that's why our visitors keep coming back, for those hard earned moments of pure magic.
So let's try to step back a little, remember why we sell trips to Africa. It's not the curated, the guaranteed, the desperate promises. It's the story, in the age of AI, of how life should be lived. Warts and all, a real love story full of drama, sadness and happiness.'