Probably everyone dreams of visiting each part of the world during their life. The dreamiest travel destinations are located in Africa. Africa contains a lot of beautiful and incredible attractions for trip lovers. One of these countries is Eswatini. The Kingdom of Eswatini, or Swaziland by its colonial name, is located in southern Africa and surrounded by South Africa and Mozambique. This landlocked country is one of the last absolute monarchies in the world. Eswatini is one of the smallest countries in Africa is known for its civility and comparably peacefulness in this region. Are you wondering what is the capital of Eswatini? Well, the capital of Eswatini, a small economy, is Mbabane. There are numerous interesting facts about Eswatini that we want to talk about today; for example, did you know that there were no prisons in Eswatini before 1968? Or did you know that Eswatini is having strong cultural ties with Britain? At least for me, it is one of the interesting facts about Eswatini. With its incredible dances, festivals, culture, art, and fantastic nature, this South African country is worth a visit for anyone looking to expand their worldview. After a little discussion of where is Eswatini located, let's focus on the benefits of traveling to this country.
1. Nature
This country's relaxing landscape with its rivers, waterfalls, and rocks is the main way to spiritual rest. Eswatini is surrounded by Highveld, Middleveld, Lowveld, and Lebombo mountains, which allows seeing the incredible scenery by hiking. Ezulwini Valley and Sheba's Breast mountains have a marvelous view, and it is why they are considered one of the best places to visit in Eswatini. There is also the Malolotja Nature Reserve, which offers walking and hiking tours for visitors. Moreover, you can find here the largest granite cave system in the whole of South Africa. The Great Usuthu River, several dams like Maguga provide you with a great landscape and fishing, white water rafting, and boat trips.
2. Culture
One of the main criteria that influence our choice of the next travel destination is cultural diversity. The interesting and diverse culture of Eswatini is going to make your trip more colorful. Accidently you can be part of great festivals such as Umhlanga (Reed Dance) and Incwala. These are traditional ceremonies attended by thousands of Swazi. As I mentioned before, British traces is felt in this country's culture. The British Empire colonized Eswatini for a long time. You can feel British manifestation in some of the country's customs. One of them is afternoon tea. If you think that you can get acquainted with Eswatini culture only during the daytime, you make a mistake. The nightlife is enormous here. Casinos, entertainment places that provide thriving local scenes such as House on Fire venue will not allow being bored here.
3. People
We cannot speak about travel to Eswatini without emphasizing the warm attitude of this country's people. Cheerful smiles, wonderful greetings will make your trip much more comfortable and pleasant. The Swazi people are very welcoming and incredibly proud of their country's unique culture and traditions. The most beautiful of it is that they are always ready to share you with their culture. Eswatini government implements many community-run tourism initiatives where you can experience local people's daily lives, and it is called a local homestead. This is clear evidence of the welcoming attitude of the Eswatini people. Therefore, people who will travel to Eswatini will not have difficulties with communication and will feel comfortable traveling there.
4. Adventure
If you look for adventure during your travel, Eswatini is the right place for you. It is so remarkable that you can find plenty of adventures in such a small country as Eswatini. Its mountains, rivers, valleys will give you a great opportunity to enjoy it. One of them is abseiling. Considered that abseiling is a very safe activity for all ages. During abseiling in Eswatini, you will get a great memory of admirable scenery. Caving tours in the vast network of tunnels of the Gobholo caves near Mbabane is one of the most exciting adventure activities. It is a physical activity where you can walk, crawl, body-jam, scramble, and slighter on your belly through the rocky passages of the cave. A big advantage of Eswatini is its small size, which makes everything in this country more accessible. Mountain biking, river rafting, slackpacking, horse riding, guided hiking Canopy tours, Aerial Cable Trail are the activities that will make your travel more exciting.
5. Wildlife
The local wildlife of Eswatini is the main reason to come here, because of the variety of animal and bird species. The Famous Mkhaya Game Reserve in the east of the country is one of the Eswatini best places to visit. Here you can find the Big Five (elephants, rhinos, leopards, buffalos, and lions); however, white rhinos are more interesting for tourists. This place is home to an exotic type of birds such as purple-crested touraco, buff-spotted flufftail,pink-throated twinspot.
6. Cuisine
If you can't find a suitable meal for yourself in the country of travel, it may cause you some uncomfortable situations. The delicious cuisine of Eswatini will not allow you to experience this. This country's main food is sorghum and maize, served with goat meat and chakalaka (vegetable relish). Even though the country is landlocked, you can find various types of seafood imported from Mozambique.
7. Local Art
Since you already know where is Eswatini, we can talk about art next. The main feature of their art is a craft. A creative basket of bright colors, wood and stone carvings, glassware, exquisite candles, batik products, ornaments are just a small part of Eswatini's art. There is also Swaki CandlesCenter. The major products of this center are candles. In this center, you can make a candle by yourself as a souvenir. This experience will definitely add some color to your trip!
8. Safari
African Bush is an essential reason for travel to Eswatini. A huge number of parks and nature reserves make this country an appropriate option for safaris. One of them is Millwane, which offers an epic safari experience. The best side of this is that there are no predators here, so it allows visitors to explore it on foot, bike, or horseback almost for free. Zebras, impala, kudu, warthog, hippos, and other different animals live here.
9. Family activities
Traveling toEswatiniis very suitable for family trips. You can find activities that are compatible with your budget, and each member of your family can discover for yourself ideal entertainment. Canopy Tours is one of the famous family activities. It takes place in the Malolotja Nature Reserve. During this activity, you will get a bird's eye view of the forest. You will have a great time of Swaziland with your family.
10. Accommodation
Great accommodation can make your travel to Eswatini unforgettable. The luxurious Stone Camp in the Mkhaya Game Reserve is a great place that will help you to obtain a fantastic experience. The interesting fact that there are no windows or doors. It has only low walls and a gate to keep the prowling hyena and jackals out while you sleep. It gives you an excellent opportunity to live in a true wilderness. On the other hand, Phophonyane Falls Ecolodge is the home to honeycombs huts made on traditional Swazi dwellings. These big huts consist of vaulted ceilings and verandas, ideal for watching the sunrise over the mountains.
Conclusion
If you try to run away from people's density, Eswatini is an excellent option for you. It is great for people who travel to Eswatini to get to know new cultures. The Kingdom of Eswatini can be a suitable choice for people who want to enjoy the sunshine on their summer holiday. You can forget all difficulties of life in the atmosphere of Eswatini summer sunshine in magnificent nature. In conclusion, if you want to travel to a place where you get an unforgettable experience, plan your trip and buy a ticket to Eswatini.