Africa: Reviews from our travellers

"More than pleased that we returned to the Seychelles

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Not really just keep up the good work and thanks." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 10 on a Seychelles holiday

"Another wonderful holiday to my favourite safari destination in Africa.

Kafue and the Luangwa valley was an excellent combination due to the diversity of landscapes, animals and birds that it provided." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Zambia safari

"Good.

Ive already exhausted myself writing detailed reviews of every aspect and my Tanzanian Tummy is beckoning me elsewhere very soon." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari

"The trip was very good. Sabina's advice to spend the first night at the Olive Grove in Windhoek to avoid the risk of our incoming flight from Johannesburg being late and our missing the flight to Damaraland Camp was very good. The Olive Grove was delightful and relaxing and dinner on the terrace made a marvellous start to the holiday.

Etosha National Park was slightly disappointing for us as we had been on many safaris in South Africa and Botswana, and Etosha was very much like the Kruger National Park in South Africa, where again one had to stay on the roads through the park. However the reserve around the lodge was much better and the driver could drive over a much wider area, and the scenery there was stunning, with plenty of wild life, including a caracal which I gather isn't frequently seen. Seeing a vast herd of zebra patiently waiting for three lions to leave a water hole so that they could then have a drink was also fascinating. The guide also went to great lengths to find us white rhinos.

We liked Damaraland and the harsh, volcanic scenery. My wife really enjoyed Sossusvlei and the dunes. I had expected them to be the highlight of the trip, coming at the end, but I'm afraid the anticipated Wow Factor didn't materialise for me, but I still enjoyed the excursion and the Dead Vlei was most dramatic.

Providing landing cards for Namibia, with instructions how to complete them, was a great bonus. None were available on the plane and all the passengers had to scramble to get them and fill them in at Windhoek airport so we were almost the first people through passport control.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

On the landing card there is a question asking how much we anticipated spending in Namibia. I said I didn't know and that was not acceptable, although the passport officer wasn't bothered what figure I put in as long as I put in some figure. You might point this out with the information you provide about completing the landing card as a couple next to us were given quite a hard time about the way they had completed the form." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 7 on a Namibia trip

"We loved the trip (we knew we would because my sister and her husband enjoyed it so much two years ago) Good variety of experiences.

Wonderful country, lovely people, excellent guides" Read full review: 27 nights in Africa; 12 on a Namibia trip

"It was great to get out of our rental car (Toyota Corolla) we drove 5000 KM from Cape Town via Namibia) and let someone else take care of us. Generally very satisfied with some minor hiccups. Was very glad Expert Africa organized this as we were worn out from planning out trip.from So Africa to Maun. Tracy did a terrific job of taking care of us in a very short time. she listened to our concerns and needs an put together a an excellent package that included getting to the airport in Livingston. I would recommend her to friends.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
Since we did this last minute we never received the literature before we left. We saw it on return and would have been helpful.. We made an inquiry to EA even though we were working with someone else. The previous company was not listening to what we wanted and generally fell on their face so we switched to EA and are glad we did, they are pros. Tracy also gave us ideas for places to go in the Okavango Delta (Goma Lagoon Lodge) panhandle which worked out great." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"A great trip. Am already planning the next one. Claire have you any ideas?" Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 11 on a Zambia safari

"The previous year I said that would be it done it once but came back again and it was excellent." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 10 on a Zambia safari

"Overall we had a wonderful time and were grateful for the advice, recommendations and help with planning from Expert Africa..

Fuel stations were frequent and mostly took cards by staff at the pumps. The lodges were very well appointed with soap, shampoo, hairdryers, dressing gowns and fridges (not at Grootberg). Not all lodges provided laundry facilities, despite an indication that they would (under exclusions) on the itinerary.

We were travelling with friends who had their own car so bought walkie talkies which were very useful together with a free road map app that my husband downloaded to his phone which didn't need internet and it was invaluable. Highly recommend the app. We drove 2,500 kms, mostly on dirt roads, some better than others.

We thought all the tours (with the exception of Grootberg) were very good value with knowledgeable guides who certainly didn't clock watch. Staff were always helpful and friendly, the food was variable and the wine good quality and value." Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 16 on a Namibia trip

"This was one of our best ever family holidays - ideally for older children (in our case, young adults) - with many amazing animals to see, landscapes which were stunning, and different cultures between the highlands, the Mara and the coast.

The four legs of the trip - Borana in the Highlands, a not for profit conservancy which is helping re-establish the black rhino to the first Maasai-owned Camp in the Mara, to six days on Lamu island, a centre of Swahili culture, provided wonderful contrasts and very different experiences.

We could not have wished for a more perfect trip which exceeded all expectations. Now we would love to explore more of Kenya and see more of sub-Saharan Africa. Problem is, we also loved where we went and would like to return to these places and people too! Not the worst problem to have...asante sana, Expert Africa!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Expert Africa could offer a bit more information about activities in addition to quality of camps and lodges -- including interrogating the interests of a family group in order to get them to plan more of what they can get out of a trip. We didn't realise until the end of our first day at Borana, for example, that horse riding really offered the chance of a safari on horseback - and this then made Borana very special.

On the other hand, the flexibility of the Expert Africa team in allowing us to stay at a friend's private accommodation on Lamu was greatly appreciated. The process of building up the itinerary was a very positive experience and I trusted Richard Trillo's advice and in depth knowledge.

On the quote: It would have been nice to have had more of a breakdown of costs and options as I didn't feel able to weigh up alternatives fully. On the other hand, the itinerary was fairly fixed when it came to where we wanted to go on safari.

Finding ways of helping providers be as green as possible would be beneficial - not just conserving species (and we did donate to the Rhino International fund) but also ways of eliminating plastic in camps is important as these are visible ways of leaving less impact. After all, the Kenyan government has banned all plastic bags, so camps and airlines including safarilink should be encouraged to have refillable water canteens, etc. And camps can easily switch.

On Lamu - I would certainly explore the growing private villa/house rental options as these a fun, private and often of historic interest. Otherwise, airbnb and tripadvisor will take a share of your future business....(Our situation was coincidental and through a friend who owns a place with bandas at the end of the island...)

In summary, I rate Expert Africa highly and would recommend you to others! Many thanks." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 8 on a Kenya safari