Have you spent way too much time on the Adventures By Disney website like me? If so, when exploring all the destinations near and far, you probably were totally enthralled by one of the farthest (and most adventurous) of their offerings — the South African Safari.

Although this trip has always been tempting, Disney went and WAY upped the ante. Adventures By Disney will be offering an Adult-Exclusive South African adventure celebrating the 20th anniversary of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park with Imagineer Joe Rohde and Dr. Mark Penning. Joe Rohde, as you probably know, is the creative genius behind the creation of Animal Kingdom, so this 20 year milestone truly means something to him. Rohde will share his stories of Africa and how it inspired the creation of Animal Kingdom Park. Dr. Mark Penning is the VP of Animal Sciences at Animal Kingdom (and a native South African), which means that he’ll have very poignant insights into the creatures seen on the trip. Plus Rohde declares, “Dr. Mark Penning is a great raconteur and a party animal” (bonus!). Both will share their personal stories during a the trip along with a variety of activities and presentations.

The trip will include visits to the Kapama Game Reserve, Knysna Elephant Park, see the penguins of Boulders Beach, Monkeyland Primate Sanctuary, Table Mountain, and the Cape of Good Hope. Seriously amazing.

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I will be joining Adventures by Disney on a South African Safari this fall, along with Dr. Mark Penning, VP of Animal Sciences at Animal Kingdom. It’s a special trip to commemorate 20 years of Disney’s Animal Kingdom… so it’s kind of a one time thing. The dates are November 30 to December 9. Paste this and visit the Adventures by Disney site… https://www.adventuresbydisney.com/asia-africa-australia/south-africa-vacations/safari/ I am going to encourage people to sketch during this trip. Each guest will get a Sketchbook and pens similar to the ones I use when I do my own sketches, like this one of a kopje in the Serengeti. The point of sketching is not necessarily to create an accurate picture of what you saw… But rather to create a holistic memory of what you saw. This is an important distinction. Some people become very nervous about sketching because they are worried that they cannot produce a photographic replica. But that is not the reason to sketch. When you take the time to sketch, you can print a very vivid memory into your brain, regardless of the quality of the sketch. I have even have conversations with abstract artists sketches represent no recognizable image at all who can corroborate this. So if you were going to go on a once in a lifetime Safari, And you wanted to remember it very very vividly… The best way to do that is with sketches. In any case, it won’t be a required part of the curriculum… But I think it will be really fun… And as an ex-art teacher… I am perfectly happy to help anyone who is interested. I definitely think this would be a pretty cool trip. That Dr. Mark Penning is a great raconteur and a party animal. See you in South Africa!!!

A post shared by Joe Rohde (@joerohde) on Apr 22, 2018 at 8:20pm PDT

Joe Rohde, ever the artist (and an ex-art teacher), will encourage guests to sketch during the trip. “Each guest will get a sketchbook and pens similar to the ones I use when I do my own sketches,” he wrote. “Like this one of a kopje in the Serengeti. The point of sketching is not necessarily to create an accurate picture of what you saw… When you take the time to sketch, you can print a very vivid memory into your brain, regardless of the quality of the sketch.” Rohde continued saying, “I definitely think this would be a pretty cool trip.” Uh, yeah. It WILL.

The dates for this once-in-a-lifetime experience are November 30 to December 9. Find out more right here.

Photos: Adventures By Disney