After making her name hurtling down snow-covered mountains, former Olympic skier Chemmy Alcott found herself in very different surroundings to experience a moment she’ll never forget.
The Ski Sunday presenter was celebrating her tenth wedding anniversary in Africa with her husband Dougie Crawford and their sons Locki, seven, and Cooper, five, when together they watched a magical sunset over the Serengeti.
© Chemmy Alcott“It was incredible to watch the magic through their eyes and to see how enchanted they were,” she tells HELLO!, exclusively sharing photos from the family holiday, which re-created the couple’s honeymoon to Tanzania ten years ago. “It felt like the boys’ first proper adventure. I know they will remember it forever.”
Chemmy, 41, and fellow professional skier Dougie, 37, tied the knot on 6 June 2014 in a fairytale ceremony at West London’s Syon House, followed by a honeymoon safari, which marked the beginning of their “adult life” – made all the more poignant by the fact the pair had just retired from competitive racing. “This trip reminded Dougie and me of our new beginning we had ten years ago,” says Chemmy.
© Chemmy AlcottThe family stayed at Nimali Tarangire and Nimali Mara, sleeping in beautiful safari lodges, with the glass-fronted tented suites offering stunning panoramas of grassy savannahs.
© Chemmy AlcottExcursions into the wild brought thrilling sightings of lions, giraffes, baby elephants and hyenas. “We also saw a rhino, which sparked a conversation with the boys about extinction and how important it is to protect the world around us,” Chemmy says. “The one thing we didn’t see was a leopard, so we’ll have to come back.”
Organised with the help of Stubborn Mule Travel, which specialises in holidays tailored for families, and the Tanzania Tourist Board, the trip saw Chemmy and Dougie re-create memories from their honeymoon. Among them were visiting a Maasai village, where the boys were “enthralled” to meet a warrior who had lost his fingers to a lion, and a primary school helped by the children’s charity Right to Play.
© Chemmy Alcott“We’re very fortunate for the incredible life we have, so I wanted my boys to see other children their age who are living with challenges. They got so much from it. We had a two-hour drive back from the school and they asked Dougie and me questions the whole way.”
Chemmy and her family ended the weeklong trip in Zanzibar, at the archipelago’s Lux* Marijani hotel, where they enjoyed snorkelling, dolphin-spotting and climbing coconut palms – and even feasted on a luxurious floating breakfast in the resort’s pool.
© Chemmy AlcottIt was the perfect way to celebrate a decade of marriage, says Chemmy, and the couple’s love has only grown stronger over the years.
“We’re team-mates,” she says. “There’s a silent understanding that we’ll always support each other through everything and that’s become ingrained in our love after ten years. What I love most is how Dougie brings out the best in me. He’s the gel that keeps our family together and happy. I’m so lucky to have found my soulmate.”
A two-week holiday for a family of four in Tanzania, including safari and beach, costs from £19,000. For further information or to book, visit nimaliafrica.com, luxresorts.com/en/zanzibar/hotel/luxmarijani or stubbornmuletravel.com. For further information on Tanzania, visit tanzaniatourism.go.tz.
