Our favourite experiences for spotting fabulous felines

A lioness licking her cubs, elusive leopard keeping a watchful eye in the trees, or cheetah roaming the grassy plains – there’s nothing like sighting heavyweight felines to raise the pulse of a safari. There are 36 big cats prowling the globe, and Lightfoot’s Travel Designers can help you track down all the best big cat luxury safari holidays.

Sabi Sands game reserve, bordering Kruger national park, offers a chance to glimpse lion and leopard in pristine wilderness. Experienced trackers can expertly follow fresh cat tracks, leading to up-close encounters with these majestic animals. Nearby, biodiverse Timbavati nature reserve offers the chance to track big cats on a walking safari.

Leopard lovers should explore the Maasai Mara in Kenya, and cheetahs are often spotted in South Africa's Phinda, northern Botswana and Tanzania's Serengeti, where the flat plains are ideal for catching glimpses of these fantastic creatures..

Away from Africa, the Indian Subcontinent boasts big cats of its own, with rare wild tigers roaming the Bandhavgarh national park in India and leopards in their abundance at Yala National Park in Sri Lanka.