Africa: Reviews from our travellers

"Great trip. We were really lucky with our sitings and saw so many.

Unfortunately I moved on too quickly and missed the section on which animals we saw on safari. [Ed: this comment refer to how this traveller filled out our feedback form.]

Our guides Zachary, Omari and James were first class, their knowledge of the animals, birds, flora and habitat was encyclopaedic." Read full review: 8 nights in Africa; 4 on a Tanzania safari

"For a long time we thought we wouldn't be able to have our holiday because of the Coronavirus and as it happens, we had to cancel our visit to Botswana. But with the help of Maruska at Expert Africa we were still able to visit Tanzania and Zanzibar. Everything was very fluid with plans changing almost daily right up until the date of departure (and beyond)! due to airline cancellations because of Covid. However, Maruska was incredibly patient and helpful in identifying solutions and alternatives and she also proactively (and mostly successfully) sought refunds for the parts of the holiday that we couldn't undertake (a couple of lodges in Botswana offered to postpone our bookings but were reluctant to give refunds but they succumbed to Maruska's charms eventually). And although I didn't book our international flights through Expert Africa, Maruska kept an eye on all of our travel arrangements, even whilst we were away, and alerted us when our return flight was cancelled.
The holiday itself was way beyond our expectations partly, I suspect, because there were so few other tourists about. In some of the lodges we visited we were the only guests which meant that we were treated like VIPs. And what lodges! The Lemala camps were excellent and Maruska negotiated a very good deal for us by using only Lemala for our safari accommodation and the deal included our own vehicle and guide throughout, which meant that we could go where we wanted to go, when we wanted to go, instead of being tied to a strict timetable for game viewing. As far as the game viewing was concerned, having been told by a couple of friends that their experiences included having to vie for a view of the animals with 100s of other vehicles, we instead found ourselves to be in splendid isolation with almost every animal we saw. The only downside was having to come home." Read full review: 41 nights in Africa; 11 on a Tanzania safari

"Africa - and in this case - Kenya is open and in need of international tourists.

A bit more planning is necessary, and you will need to have a Covid test but the minute you land at JKIA your heart will soar.

Just go. You won’t regret it." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 9 on a Kenya safari

"This 16-night safari was arranged at short notice after we had to defer a planned trip to Zambia. We chose Tanzania for a third visit because there were good flights available and the country has fewest (Covid-19) restrictions for visitors among African countries.

On Olivia's advice we went to Tarangire for the first time: we loved the scenery and were astounded by the numbers of elephants. The prospect of fewer visitors being around also lured us to the Serengeti and we witnessed the mind-blowing spectacle of 10,000 wildebeest galloping majestically across the Mara.

There is normal life out there beyond the Covid black hole known as the UK. In Tanzania day-to-day interactions with other human beings are, well, normal. Simple practical precautions are in place like hand sanitising and masks on the small bush planes.

The welcome we received without exception was tremendous but we were just so pleased to be there and were privileged to have magical wildlife encounters with no-one else around and see a couple of great migration river crossings with a handful of other people present. Truly a once (although it was twice!) in a lifetime experience.

All this added up to a very special adventure tempered somewhat by the fact that many camps remain closed with those still open operating on reduced staff. We only hope common sense prevails over hysteria with so many people's lives in other parts of the world so drastically affected. Not just the humans but the wildlife too.

If anyone out there wants to go on safari there has never been a better time. The people of Tanzania will really appreciate you making the effort." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 16 on a Tanzania safari

"This was one of the most enjoyable trips to Africa over the last 12 years.

Everything went smoothly from beginning to end in spite of having to re-arrange the itinerary numerous times due to factors out of our control. The fact that we managed to go at all was a miracle.

In fact I told Maruska that her name in English meant miracle worker because that was what she did. Perform a miracle." Read full review: 22 nights in Africa; 20 on a Zambia safari

"Why go to the National Reserve when you can do all of this with these terrific people in a spectacular natural setting, with true freedom to roam?" Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 10 on a Kenya safari

"I travel to Africa a few times a year.

I waited all summer for this pandemic to abate. It was just not happening! One day, feeling a mixture of bravery and self pity, I called Claire. "I know this is short notice, but I need to get to Africa". We looked at a few options and came up with a modest, do-able itinerary. I booked the flights, got a Covid-test and was on my way.

I travelled 24 hours to get to Zambia and more than 34 hours to get home. Overall, I had a great trip. I couldn't have felt safer and more welcome. Few tourists, lots of game, friendly and accommodating hosts.

I would do it again in a heartbeat, and probably will!" Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zambia safari

"Everything went very well, it was exactly the kind of experience we were looking for and the children had a blast." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 8 on a Zanzibar holiday

"We had a fantastic holiday. It was so good to be able to escape the UK for a bit.

Sabina was incredibly helpful and we had a lot of last minute changes due to covid restrictions and various flights been cancelled and a couple of our original places to stay were closed. She dealt with it all in a very professional and helpful way, always getting back to us really quickly and making sure we were up to date with all the latest information.

We felt completely safe the whole time we were on our holiday, and Namibia is clearly dealing with Covid much better than we are back in the UK." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 18 on a Namibia trip

"This trip was organised last minute to replace cancelled trips to Zambia.

I picked Kenya due to direct flights and because I saw an opportunity to catch the wild dog pack at Laikipia Wilderness with their puppies fresh out of the den. I knew Laikipia Wilderness could be accessed by road transfer, so I could be picked up straight from the airport. It was a good decision to avoid internal flights - it seems they are subject to cancellations if passenger numbers are low- another couple I met had their flight to Amboseli cancelled. Overall, everything went smoothly and it was a relief to be back in the bush.

The trip was a massive success in terms of finding the dogs with their puppies, and the pandemic has provided me with an opportunity to travel at a time of year that would usually be out of my budget, especially as a solo traveler with single supplements to contend with (all waived now due to so few travelers).

I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a safari in Kenya to anyone who wants to travel at the moment - it's the ultimate "socially distanced" holiday and Kenya is easy to get to from the UK and the testing requirements for entry to Kenya provide some peace of mind that all passengers on the flight should have a negative test." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 13 on a Kenya safari