South Africa is a predominantly sunny country, but when it does get cold you really feel it - indoor heating is limited, and everything is geared to fine weather. You'll need to pack with the weather in mind, especially in winter.

The Lesotho winter runs from May to July, when it often snows in the Highlands and sometimes in the lowlands too, which is great for skiing and very picturesque. Although the days are usually clear and warm, it does get extremely cold at night and ice can make driving hazardous in Highlands areas.

Kenya has complicated and rather unpredictable climatic shifts . Broadly, the pattern is that January to March is hot and dry, while from April to June it is hot and wet, a period known as the "long rains". From July until October the weather is very warm and dry, and then come the "short rains", making November and December warm and wet.