Reviews of safaris to Central Highlands

"We'd been to southern Africa a few times before (SA and Botswana), so we wondered how Namibia would compare with those countries. In some ways, for us, it combines the best aspects of those two countries - relatively straightforward self-drive, great wildlife, dramatic and varied scenery, great accommodation and good food.

One thing we'd do differently next time (fingers crossed that there is a next time!) is to hire a 4x4 - our little Toyota Yaris coped with everything we threw at it but we'd have been more comfortable in a vehicle with greater ground clearance and a softer ride.
Big thanks to Gwynneth for all her help and advice - our trip ran really smoothly.

Suggestions for improvement:

Not really, we would use you again for the countries where we feel we want the peace of mind of booking through a tour operator." Read full review: 22 nights in Africa; 20 on a Namibia trip

"All I can say is that we had never expected to travel to Namibia before this holiday but after it, we are so glad we have.

Seeing wonderful animals such as leopard, cheetah, elephants, lions and hordes of antelopes etc. in the wild and with the assistance and genuine affection for their jobs of the local guides, we both feel as though we have experienced something no one else has had...

Obviously, other people are doing the same, but we were made to feel very special by almost all of the people we met and by their staff, and it really made a difference to our holiday. The local people seemed so friendly and attentive to tourists and many countries around the world could benefit from their 'ideas on customer service'. A superb trip all round." Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"Our trip to Namibia was enjoyable, although some of the driving distances were long this was more than made up by the fantastic places we visitied.

For the most part the lodges were excellent and all the locals we met really helped to make our holiday special.

The information pack provided by Expert Africa, including leaflets / maps and a guide to the region was really useful and great to have with us." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"First of all, we would like to mention two issues:
1. the distances from one to another place does not seem very long if you see the distance in kilometer on paper, but in reality it can take you quite a long time, especially when a big part of your trip is on gravel roads. Some travel days were in that sense quite tough for us.
2. our bank card has been skimmed in Tsumeb. Looking back, we probably know that it happened when some 'very helpful' guy wanted us to help with our transaction at an ATM. Of course, we have not been careful enough, but please be aware, these guys seem to be experienced and it all goes very fast, without any violence whatsoever.

Okay, those are the only two (minor) complaints, but overall our two weeks in Namibia were great! We have seen a lot of different things and have done a lot of things. All the lodges we have stayed in were unforgettable in their own way, however Desert Homestead, Doro Nawas, Etosha Aoba Lodge and Erongo Wilderness Lodge stand out. We really like the lay-down sandboarding near Swakopmund and also enjoyed the surrealistic landscape of the Sossusvlei. The most unforgettable thing of our holiday was, however, the Etosha National Park or more in general the game watching in Namibia. It is at times breathtaking to see wild animals at very close distance. We would like to recommend a trip to this beautiful country in all its elements to everyone!

Suggestions for improvements:

We experienced your service as very helpful and useful. We cannot think of anything to improve it." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 11 on a Namibia trip

"Overall a rewarding experience, we only saw one solitary male lion in etosha although we heard the roars each night (my wife was convinced
that these were actually recordings played for our benefit)!!

The directions for Frans Indongo on your map were not correct, the D2804 is really a 4wd road. the correct route would be to carry on the
B1 road to the D2433, the lodge manager confirmed this. Not a compaint just a point of interest." Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 17 on a Namibia trip

"This was very much a 'trip of a lifetime' for us and we certainly weren't disappointed. With the benefit of hindsight it might have been better to visit fewer places and have more time at each, but, the downside is that we wouldn't have seen the range of landscapes etc that we did. Nevertheless, the high mileages we necessarily clocked up meant that what appears on the schedule as 2 or 3 nights, in reality, translates into only 1 or 2 days and we hadn't really factored that in.

With a trip such as this there were 'highlights' just about everyday (which itself tells it's own story) but, that said there was, of course, still a personal 'pecking order' which for us would be this: spending 3 nights/2 full days with Bruno Nebe at Mundulea was, quite simply, a dellight and a real priviledge and was, by a long way, the best highlight for us.

Next would be Zebra River Lodge which was so relaxing and where the welcome and hospitality from our (stand-in hosts) Merle and Thom oozed genuinenss and care (something we found rather llacking at most of the 'up-market' lodges where it felt like everything was done to a standard format of 'one size fits all' mentality rather than looking at the requirements of the individual guest.

Joint 3rd would be our day spent with Allie and the trackers at Desert Rhino Camp and with Wayne, Alexandra and Heidi on the Sandwich Harbour trip. Finally our very sincere thanks to Maruska who organised every part of our trip from start to finish with both professionalism and great proficiency and, at at all times a really friendly disposition - even in the face of my multiple e-mail enquiries and on the occasion when I answered her call on my mobille with a greeting of "Hi babes!" (mistakenly thinking it was my wife Joy calling!!). She was even kind enough to say that it made her day!

On that note thanks once again to Maruska, Chris and all the staff at Expert Africa for masterminding such a wonderful holiday. We are now saving our pennies so that hopefully we can undertake another big trip in the not too distant future" Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 18 on a Namibia trip

"A wonderful & memorable trip.

It's hard to say what's so great about Namibia, for me it was the sheer isolation and desertedness of the place (especially coming from London), driving for hours and maybe seeing 1 or 2 other cars. Lovely, friendly people. Guides who were all really passionate about what they do and their country, and proud of their country and their way of life.

An amazingly clean country, everyone really cared about keeping it clean and tidy, preserving their resources, looking after the wildlife, the environment etc.

Suggestions for improvements:

Your brochure is excellent compared to others I've used.

The only thing missing is an estimated price for the accommodation. This would be really helpful so we know whether we're choosing the most expensive or cheapest accommodation, and therefore, if for example, your quote is a bit high, we could've looked at choosing accommodation that might've brought the price down a little." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 14 on a Namibia trip

"Marvellous (despite the problems with air Namibia)

Suggestions for improvements:

I honestly can't think of any suggestions. The service you offer has been excellent & we are also grateful for your ongoing help while we sort out our insurance claims" Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"This was our third trip to Africa and certainly one of our best.

Our itinerary as prepared by Expert Africa perfectly and the recommendations of our agent, Gwynneth, for Xigera in Botswana, and Erongo Wilderness Lodge and Olive Grove Guest House in Namibia, lived up to our expectations.

We like the flexibility of being able to combine our own travel arrangements with those made for us by Expert Africa." Read full review: 34 nights in Africa; 12 on a Namibia trip

"Namibia was stunning and the perfect destination for a fly-drive. Due to the heavy rains that they have experienced this year we feel that a 2wd car is insufficent for some of the gravel roads and would recommend vehicles with more clearance or a 4x4.

We have no hesitation in recommending Namibia as wonderful destination

Suggestions for improvements:

Keep the good work up." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 7 on a Namibia trip