Africa: Reviews from our travellers

"Although I have been on several safaris, this was my families first experience and I had several criteria.

A country I hadn't visited.
At least two camps which would give a wide range of habitat so that we could go on drives, walks and boats.
Game viewing without 50 other vehicles around
Small camps which concentrated less on luxury and more on the game viewing and the bush experience but without sleeping on campbeds and washing in buckets.
Guides who were enthusiastic and knowledgeable and who loved the animals and their country
Open vehicles and preferably ones with only 4 to 6 people.

Eleanor came up trumps in every respect. On day one, when we reached Selous camp after a stunning game drive from the airstrip, my son said "mum, if we go home now this will still have exceeded all my expectations "

Experience piled on experience - so many memorable moments - the matriarch elephant who decided to check out our vehicle and was literally eyeball to eyeball with Stella. The cheetahs strolling past us. The 8 lions on a fresh kill. The 2 hippos fighting on the bank within 50 yards of our bush breakfast.The giraffe kindergarden. The fish eagles and the goliath herons making catches.

Thank you Ellie , Expert Africa and all those fabulous people in Tanzania, from the taxi driver who picked us up and tried to teach us some Swahili, to the guides and trackers and staff at all the camps who loved their country and wanted us to love it too.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Maybe I'm undemanding but I think you are pretty damn good !" Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 7 on a Tanzania safari

"Fantastic short trip but was good combination of safari and then relaxing on beach. Everything was organised perfectly and no problems.

The service was fantastic from day 1 and very attentive and was exactly what I wanted. Help and input from team was great and there was fantastic communication and organisation! Thank you Elizabeth!" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 4 on a Tanzania safari

"We had a great trip, but there were a few things that could have made it even better.

The cancellation of the British Air flights to Dar turned out to be a bigger headache than we anticipated. Kenya Air service was not very good and the extra stop and layover time in Nairobi was frustrating. If others are going to Dar I'd suggest looking into other options.

We chose to be driven to Selous rather than fly. But that took 2 long days (7 hours in the car each day). When we arrived in Selous others told us that they often drove to Dar on a different road in about 6 hours. We would have missed Mikumi NP, but there really wasn't enough to see there to justify the longer drive.

We were really disappointed in Jongomero, although others there were very pleased with it. The upscale facilities, pool, etc. were enough to satisfy others (many who seem to be booked into a Siwandu/Jongomero/Ras Kutani trip), most who seemed to be on their first safari. We selected Jongomero because of the great guiding on walks that was supposed to be there. But that guide (Molly) had left. Game there was very skittish and vehicle-shy. After a fantastic 3 days at Kwihala, Jongomero was a real letdown. We took a chance on the place, knowing that Molly had left after we booked it. That turned out to be a mistake.

But on a positive note, our 3 days at Kwihala and 4 days at Chole Mjini were absolutely spectacular and the memories from there are what will stay with us from this trip." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 14 on a Tanzania safari

"A wonderful experience which exceeded our expectations. Everything went smoothly. I felt completely confident with the advice and planning provided by Expert Africa

Only wish we wouldn't have to save for years to do it again.........

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
None spring to mind" Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zambia safari

"The overall trip was excellent with the Rekero and Naboisho camps being the highlight. Ellie from Expert Africa was very responsive and helpful and she was good at identifying the type of holiday we wanted from our emails and telephone conversations.

Expert Africa provide lots of advance information and contact numbers in case of emergency but there were no problems at all with the trip organisation. I have already recommended using the company to several friends" Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 13 on a Kenya safari

"We had an absolutely fabulous trip. It met all our expectations and we will be planning a return trip to Africa sometime in the future.

We would definitely use Expert Africa again as you were very helpful, knowledgeable and provided the most competitive quote for our trip. Well done and thank you." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 11 on a Zambia safari

"Angela made our trip very special. I had researched our itinerary in great detail, but she added the cherries on the top of the cake. MEGA THANKS ANGELA!

Our tour was first rate. Namibia sets very high standards for itself and mostly achieves them. As our group travelled in June and July we knew the nights would be cold, but this wasn't a problem except we didn't linger in the outdoor showers!!!

We were glad to have the extra spare-wheel and also pleased to have paid a little more to upgrade to a Nissan Xtrail. We saw people in ordinary saloon cars having some problems here & there. The Bradt Guide and marked map were in constant use. Thanks for providing these.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Only one small initial blip, on arrival at Daan Viljeon we had to pay 170 N$ for entry even though we had rooms booked there.
I knew it was included because Angela had written it in our very first quote, but the lady on the barrier would not let us in without first paying. We were tired after our flight and not knowing what to do. It would have helped if we had had a voucher to give her to satisfy her needs! Maybe you could include one next time in your very snazzy Expert Africa wallet?

All 4 of us voted this our best African holiday experience...so THANK YOU EXPERT AFRICA TEAM!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"Thank you again for a brilliant honeymoon. We really enjoy our holiday from start to finish. You really took the stress out. Of organising a holiday where we stayed at several different places so we could just relax." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 8 on a Zanzibar holiday

"The trip Nick Hobbs and I put together for our family with 3 adult children, far exceeded our expectations.

For me the night in Maun allowed me to be ready, not tired from travel, to appreciate every moment of our camps in the okavango delta.The combination of 3 camps over 8 nights was given the thumbs up by all, as being exactly the right amount of time at each camp and overall. It gave us time to enjoy the wonderful different aspects of 3 areas without a huge amount of travel between. We were able to capture sights of different animals in different surroundings, ie seeing the lions at Duba Plains swim. We were also able to appreciate the things they had in common, their care for the local environment and the future for the animals.

Finishing the trip, in Victoria Falls with an exhilarating Helicopter trip and an amazing time Walking with the Lions aided by Paul our wonderful guide , was perfect. Our extra day, then gave us the chance to wander around the views at the Falls National Park, go to Zambia, explore the town and markets and soak up the ambience on the hotel verandah.

Two travel hiccups, lost luggage and lost phone, were extremely well managed by Nick and the team at Expert Africa. I would highly recommend them to others. Thank you for a special holiday." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 9 on a Botswana safari

"The Zambia vacation was our first trip to Africa, and we couldn't have wished for a better experience.

The trip exceeded any expectations and the wildest imaginations we had about a trip to Africa. We have been married for almost a decade, but we had never gone on a honeymoon, and we decided to plan this trip as a belated version of it. It only took a few conversations with Claire Scott at Expert Africa to narrow down the endless list of choices to an itinerary that would fit our needs and our budget, and in retrospect we can only say that she scored perfect. Everything we had discussed during the planning phase matched what we experienced during the trip. Her experience and suggestions were invaluable, and we would definitely work with her again on another trip.

We picked Zambia as our destination because we wanted to visit the Victoria Falls, and we added a safari in South Luangwa after reading up on the various game parks in Southern Africa and upon recommendation by Claire Scott. Although we learned that it is one of the best known parks in Zambia it never felt crowded. Many times we felt like we had the park to ourselves. The wildlife is impressive, and with an open mind you'll be rewarded with amazing sightings. In conversations with Africa "veterans", many of which had visited several countries or were working in the travel business, we learned that South Luangwa is one of the best destinations in Africa to see wildlife.

We spent all of our time in South Luangwa in camps by the Robin Pope Safari company, and if we ever have the opportunity to return to South Luangwa we will definitely stay at their camps again. The level of organization and professionalism is remarkable, and, most importantly, the camp are located in beautiful areas of the park. All of the Robin Pope guides we met were very experienced and knowledgeable. We highly recommend them!

Seeing the Victoria Falls at the end of our trip was just amazing. The Falls were why we had traveled to Africa in the first place, and they did not disappoint. It is truly one of the natural wonders of the world, and it is definitely worth the trip." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 10 on a Zambia safari