Africa: Reviews from our travellers

"The entire trip was impeccably organised by Expert Africa. Travellers should be aware that they do not book international flights or arrange travel insurance. End July/August is a splendid time to go on safari in Tanzania; we came across no mosquitos and few Tsetse flies. The three lodges we stayed at were each very different in feel and location and this made a fascinating two week safari with four nights at each lodge, followed by a week in Zanzibar. With two game drives a day one is often out in the bush for up to 12 hours a day and one has to be prepared to be in the jeeps for this length of time, as the opportunities for getting out are very limited because of safety. The bush is, of course, wild and the going often rough, so first time safari goers need to be prepared to be thrown around in jeeps (but with seat belts!).

The game viewing at this time of year is magnificent and we saw several crossings of the wildebeast in the Mara river, quite a few prides of lions in the Ruaha, including the full pride of 13 at one point and two close up sightings of an entire pack of wild dogs at Beho Beho. Three separate leopard sightings in the Serengeti were very special.

Zanzibar is the ideal place to wind down after a safari but one needs to choose one's hotel carefully according to what atmosphere and recreations one wants. Near Stone Town, or not, swimable beach, or not, isolated or not. Some of the taxi and shuttle drivers can be quite on the wild side, but it is the nature of the island!

Our expectations were more than fulfilled on this magical trip." Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 12 on a Tanzania safari

"We had 7 amazing days at 3 camps in an around the delta in August (Gomoti, Machaba and Lebala). Compared to places like the Mara/Kruger/Serengeti, I'd say there was less volume of game (or the plains are less open, so it's harder to see) - sometimes you'd go a couple of days without seeing a lion - so you had to work a bit harder for the sightings. However, the fact that they're all private reserves (or private-ish) means that when you're driving around you are in total isolation, and your sightings can mostly be enjoyed without other vehicles for as long as you like.

Even though there are several reserves and concessions, nothing is fenced - that's great as it makes it truly wild, the downside being that animals can cross the dividing lines but people can't, so you need to go to a few different camps to minimize the probability that the animal you wanted to see crossed the border yesterday and so isn't accessible (this happens quite a bit).

We had great sightings of leopard and wild dogs, saw the big 5 in a single day, had some truly amazing night drives - lion hunts, wildcat, serval, civet, owls galore - and picked up over 100 species of birds in the week. We went on a motor boat trip once, which was very beautiful, really relaxing. We also tried the mokoro, which didn't do much for us (felt quite rickety, and didn't see anything).

In August, the temperature goes from 5 degrees in the morning to close to 30 in the afternoon - that contrast really enhanced the experience as it felt like you were moving from one place to another every day.

All in all, it was by far the most thrilling safari experience I've been on - the tranquility makes it seem so much more wild/natural - and so in future I think I'll be coming back to Botswana rather than Kenya or Tanzania.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No - Megan was fantastic as always" Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"Trip entirely met expectations and organisation was faultless with good steers on content

The excellent detail on website helped choose with Tracy the best options" Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 8 on a Botswana safari

"Overall this was a very enjoyable safari which blended northern Botswana with the Okavango Delta. We enjoyed many memorable times with the 'cats' - Cheetah, Leopard and Lion, as well as a 'first-time' with a family of Wild Dog (6 adults and 4 pups) and some special times with our all-time favourites - Elephants.
We were a little 'shocked' by the low temperature overnight at the start of our safari (end of July). We normally visit Botswana at the end of September but thought we should experience a different time of year.
Perhaps due to the low temperatures at the start of our safari (it warmed up during our stay) we felt that, perhaps, 11 days was slightly too long and 9 days would have been better.
Throughout our visit we were impressed by the friendliness and cheerfulness of the Botswanian people." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 11 on a Botswana safari

"The whole trip was extremely well planned for us and worked very well.

We were glad to have used flights between the camps. We were particularly glad to have visited the Haonib Valley and our days there were, with Ongava, the highlights of our trip. If we had had an extra day in the Haonib Valley we would like to have visited their new Skeleton Coast camp.

In retrospect, we feel it would have been interesting to have visited the Skeleton Coast in the north or to have visited Swakopmund and Walvis bay. Both were clearly popular with many of the other visitors we met." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"Trip was the holiday of a liftetime!" Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"Expert Africa did a great job and it all worked out perfectly.

The recommendations we got for camps were excellent and it was great that each camp was all-inclusive." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 17 on a Namibia trip

"This is more than likely to have been our last safari to Africa.

It was therefor a safari of mixed emotions one of some sadness, being a goodbye, but on the other hand another of great experiences and memories which will last for years not only of the wildlife and environment but of the many people we have met over the years whose whole outlook was to look after you and maximise your enjoyment.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Over the many years we have had the pleasure of dealing with Expert Africa we have always received the most friendly advice and assistance.

We cannot make any suggestions for improvement and can only give them our most grateful thanks." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 14 on a Zambia safari

"This was our 4th visit to southern/eastern Africa, and although each trip has been different and wonderful, this was probably our best trip yet.

The highlight was our time spent at Kichaka in Ruaha, since walking safaris are our favorite activity. Owner/Guide Andrew Molinare (Moli) gets rave reviews, and deserves every one of them.

We visited 5 parks and camps, with significant travel distances involved. Expert Africa did a fantastic job coordinating all the internal flights with Coastal Aviation, and everything went extremely smoothly." Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 18 on a Tanzania safari

"This trip replicated one I did on my own two years ago - I raved about it so much this time I persuaded my partner and some friends to come along too. A superb place to have a safari holiday - great animal sightings and lovely camps to stay in.

I've not been there other than in July so cannot comment on timings in comparison with other times in the year, other than to say the early morning drives start a bit chilly so warm clothing and a hat essential - but the days 'hotted' up as soon as the sun was up, but never to the extent that it was uncomfortable or made sleep difficult.

Outside of the park there are recommendations to stop at Tribal Textiles and the South Luangwa Project before returning home. We found Tribal Textiles a bit of a disappointment - we understood that the proceeds went to the local community, but the prices were very high to the extent that we felt extortionate.

On the other hand the South Luangwa Project shop was much better, and although we realised we were paying more than a 'local' price, were happy to do that to help the local economy, and those the Project was supporting. If we ever manage to get back to the South Luangwa we would stop at the Project shop on the way in - they will take measurements and make you up clothing to collect on the way home - that would be a great reminder of the holiday." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zambia safari