Africa: Reviews from our travellers

"I had a great time, thanks largely to Maruska's excellent planning :-). The combination of the fly-in safari and the self-drive trip in central Namibia allowed me to experience a fairly wide swathe of the country, including some amazing animals and birds and countryside, and to try out various hostelries.

I met some very interesting people and also thoroughly enjoyed the road trip on my own. The car went very well and I had no trouble finding my way around. Thank you for providing the map with all my stop-overs marked on it; that was very helpful.

The next trip I plan in Africa, you will be the first people I call. Thanks again!" Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 12 on a Namibia trip

"After a few discussions with Claire, she managed to tailor a trip that "ticked all our boxes" - we loved the guest houses and the order that we followed for our trip. With hindsight we would have stayed 1 night at St Francis and 2 at Wilderness as there was more to do there. We'd love to go back and will use Expert Africa if we do - maybe we'll explore the Drakensberg's next?

Everything was very easy and all we had to do was turn up at the various guest houses and that meant we could concentrate on enjoying our trip!

It was probably by accident rather than by design, but having complimentary laundry facilities at Ecca Lodge which was half way through our trip meant we kept luggage down to a minimum. Laundry didn't seem expensive anywhere but the fact that it is complimentary was a real bonus!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

I carried a bathrobe round for the whole trip - had I known that it was only Hog Hollow that didn't provide them, I wouldn't have bothered. Be great if all guest houses provided them?" Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 8 on a South Africa trip

"I don't think that I can really commit all my expectations, experiences and wonderment otherwise I will go on and on .....

Expert Africa did a terrific job, they organised everything for a fantastic holiday, we got everything and more that we could have expected or hoped for. You are so far out of your comfort zone, after a comfortable life in UK that so see what we did, the country, how it's people live and work, the animals, just everything will stick and be remembered.

All I can say is tell Expert Africa what you really would like and not like and I am sure they will come up trumps, we did and will never reget it. I have just had the holiday of my lifetime and would highly recommend it if you only do it once, the rewards will outweigh any cost involved." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari

"A holiday of a lifetime - and it lived up to it.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

You are extremely professional and it shows. expert sums it up." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari

"Ellie has handled my, sometimes eccentric and varied, requests in the past. Always excellently. This time was no exception.

In this case after exploring Expert Africa's great web sites, looking up flights possibilities and with some past experience I set out my stall for her. Her recommendation that I go for Eagles View and Dorobo Fly Camp were absolutely spot on. I am grateful for that alone but as always Ellie patched up the many flights, sleeping arrangements, rooms and guides as efficiently as ever with suggestions and recommendations.

The mixture of the Naboisho and Driftwood were for me perfect. It may be for some of your clients that the travel to and from Malindi are a bit arduous with the time between some flights and also the Fly Camp might not suit some. But the programme was one I would recommend to anyone mixing the Lodges and the Game and the Masai with the other Africa of Malindi and the sea.;a marvellous contrast.

I would not next time fly from Malindi and then wait for the BA flight back to UK which involved 6 plus hours in Departures at Nairobi. I would go and stay over at a lodge in Nairobi Game Park nearby

I had the best of my many trips out to Africa, and possibly the best travel holiday of my life despite (perhaps perversely) because I was going solo; i did things I might not have attempted with others there

I would not dream of doing another one without Ellie's guiding hand!!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Sorry to be boring but I cannot think of anything. I did have trouble getting logged in after the trip but that was probably me, more used, as I said to Ellie, to quill pens and parchment. She helped and was patience personified.....I am still unsure whether the Feed-back actually has got to you all!" Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 6 on a Kenya safari

"An excellent and very enjoyable trip. Everything was extremely well organised and went without any hitches. Mack Air was efficient and always arrived on time, the only scary moment being on our last flight to Maun when the pilot had to take very rapid avoiding action to prevent us from hitting a stork flying at 4,500 ft! All the Guides were attuned to the requirements of photographers and did their utmost to position their vehicles in the best position. The green season is a wonderful time to go but made their jobs all the harder so their efforts were very much appreciated." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 12 on a Botswana safari

"Very satisfactory doesn't really convey how happy we were with our trip. Everything was excellent. Right from the start when we first contacted Ellie it was obvious that we were dealing with someone who was really doing everything possible to ensure that we had a great holiday and we really did, apart from the fact that she couldn't conjure up sightings of Wild Dog and Whale Shark ( and I'm sure she would have if it were possible!) it really was a memorable holiday which all four of us would happily do again. Particular thanks are due for the recommendation to stay at Butiama Beach on Mafia which really was just the place we were looking for to unwind before returning home. We certainly would have no hesitation in recommending both Ellie and Expert Africa to friends and family and will definitely be contacting them again when next we return to Africa." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 13 on a Tanzania safari

"Fantastic!" Read full review: 8 nights in Africa; 8 on a Kenya safari

"All the way through our trip we were grateful to individuals that gave so much to help make our vacation so spectacular. Certain people were left out in the previous feedback. I want to give special thanks and kuddos to our guides in Rwanda, Hussein, our driver guide, as well as the amazing gorilla trekking guides. Fernando was an amazing gorilla trekking quide and teacher who ensured that we had a special, memorable experience watching these amazing creatures but also learned at the same time. How did he manage to learn all of our names in such a short time, incredible! If you have any interest in gorilla trekking I would jump at the chance. It's an experience of a lifetime! And please employ the local people as porters as this helps support them in a positive way instead of poaching.

Don't put off going on safari. So many species are under pressure from humans and habitat loss to survive.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Thanks to Ellie for her patience with our labored and prolonged itinerary planning. And thanks to Claire when she filled in during Ellie's absence. We benefitted enormously from her knowledge and suggestions.

Thanks so much to all for another amazing and unforgettable trip to Africa that we will never forget!" Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 5 on a Tanzania safari

"Our experience with Expert Africa was excellent overall. Our contact, Ellie Dunkels, was terrific to work with during the planning and confirmation of our trip. She is professional, knowledgeable and efficient. Our complimentary copy of The Rough Guide to Kenya was also an excellent resource and much appreciated." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 6 on a Kenya safari