If time is on your side, the best way to see Swaziland is by trekking, and several of the national parks offer excellent trails that are often generations old. Horse riding is another way to explore inaccessible parts of the country, and at Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, not far from Mbabane, you can watch wildlife doing its thing from the back of a horse. White-water rafting, mountainbike riding and abseiling are growing in the popularity stakes.

The Incwala (sometimes called Ncwala) or 'first fruits' ceremony takes place in December or January and is the most important in the Swazi calendar. Groups of bemanti (learned men) trek over the country, bringing back plants, river water and foam from the Indian Ocean to the Royal Kraal at Lobamba. Finally the king breaks his retreat, dances before the people and eats a pumpkin, a sign that Swazis can eat the new year's crops. In the Umhlanga held in August or September, marriageable young Swazi women journey from all over the kingdom to help repair the queen mother's home at Lobamba. The festival is a showcase of potential wives for the king and draws the nation together to remind people of their relationship and obligations to him.