Botswana: reviews from our travellers

"The trip went beyond our expectations for adventure, learning, excitement and fun. I believe Expert Africa made the trip a big success because they are a full service safari planning company. The website and staff provided all that was needed for making decisions and getting the right arrangement. We spent three weeks on the trip that involved 11 accommodations, three airline flights, driving 2800 km on the left side of the road and numerous guides, staff and assistants. That it all went well and left us wishing for more meant they must be doing something right." Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 11 on a Namibia trip

"This was truly the trip of a lifetime!

Megan was great to deal with. She had wonderful ideas about where we should go; we really liked the camps and the private mobile safari was a once in a lifetime wonderful experience. Because of Covid and an unexpected shoulder surgery, she had to schedule and reschedule everything 3 times, which she did without complaint.

She suggested that we spend the night in Johannesburg at City Lodge Tambo both on the way there and back which was a great suggestion. (We were also able to leave one piece of luggage there while we went on safari).

We would heartily recommend using Expert Africa for a trip to Botswana." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 12 on a Botswana safari

"Really good trip overall. The transport issue mentioned in Namibia did not set the best tone and I admit to being worried about how the rest of the trip would go after that happened.

Everything was great from there on out, except until the very end when two persons in my traveling party tested positive for COVID at Splash Camp, Botswana. There were a lot of details that needed help and attention for these two persons when they were told they had to stay in Botswana an extra five days, at a camp with zero internet availability. The camp does have a satellite phone for emergencies. They reached out to Expert Africa to request help in making alternative travel arrangements and important notifications to people at home and received zero assistance.

This lack of helpful response did not set well with us as a group of five travelers having spent a combined (approximate) $50k between us on this once in a lifetime type of travel experience. So the beginning and end of the trip were not the most shining examples of Expert Africa’s service. But the majority of our trip was great. So take that information any way you wish. Just sharing our true experiences." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 7 on a Zambia safari

"My memory is that I asked Sabina to get us the perfect experience when I very first spoke to her. She did! This was our third visit to Namibia (the only one booked through Expert Africa) and it was the best of the lot. Absolutely every detail was better than we had expected. Everything went completely according to plan. That this happened while the planning was mostly done in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, when nothing seemed to stay the same week to week, is astonishing. I can’t imagine the amount of work that was going on in the background.

Every question (no matter how daft) was answered in full. Documents etc were sent out in a timely manner and were of good quality. There were handy little extras included too - such as a credit-sized card detailing all phone numbers that could be required in an emergency and a booklet giving information about hire car return, tipping and all the other things that are better to know than not.

The only critique I would have is that it would be helpful to offer a sat nav with the hire cars, or perhaps to give more detailed driving directions. The tourist map provided (seemingly to all tourists, whoever they booked through) was not completely accurate and, therefore, was the subject of many conversations with other travellers. It was also old, so did not cover the new roads around Windhoek which made the journey to the airport, um, “interesting”. Fortunately, we had given ourselves plenty of time and had a vague memory of the roads around Windhoek but could have got completely lost. In fairness though, Google maps was of no greater help.

All in all an amazing holiday. Thank you Sabina (and Expert Africa generally). We will be back," Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 17 on a Namibia trip

"Absolutely fantastic holiday.

Twice postponed due to covid it did not disappoint when we finally got there.

Everything went extremely smoothly, it was both exciting and relaxing at the same time and we cannot wait to go back.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No, I think the service is well above and beyond what can be expected and so was our trip" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 14 on a Namibia trip

"Fantastic!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"Everything was perfect from organization to the actual trip" Read full review: 5 nights in Africa; 4 on a Botswana safari

"We could not be happier with our trip. The planning process went very smoothly. We received prompt and helpful replies to our email questions. Maruska was very informative and in addition to arranging most of out trip, she kindly and helpfully advised us on aspects of our trip that weren't booked by Expert Africa.

The camps all exceeded our expectations in every way, accommodations, food, activities. The transitions from one activity to another were flawless; there was always someone expecting us at the appropriate time and escorting us to the next flight or camp or activity.

We have travelled extensively in developing countries and this was the most stress free trip we have ever taken. It was pleasant, relaxing, and simply wonderful.

Though masks are not often used in Botswana, we never felt threatened by COVID. During our entire trip, we were almost never indoors with other people. During the one exception, our flights, the pilots wore masks and we were instructed do the same. Game drives were in open vehicles and all meals were served outdoors with the option of being nowhere near other diners.

We are confident that our risk was less on the trip than it would have been had we stayed home.

After a couple of days, we just stopped thinking about it." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 4 on a Botswana safari

"This was our second trip to Botswana with Expert Africa.

Despite our initial nervousness about this trip post- COVID, everything went extremely well. The advice and support provided by Tracy Lederer was invaluable in setting up our excellent itinerary. Whilst we knew that April/May are not the best times to see wildlife in Botswana, we were nevertheless able to see a wide variety of wildlife and birds during our trip, largely thanks to excellent guiding.

King’s Pool was a fantastic place to start as one would expect from a Wilderness Safaris camp. Kwara Camp was an excellent choice with a real focus on wildlife - we were very impressed with Kwando Safaris. Camp Kalahari was a very different and interesting place to finish - we had a wonderful experience there and would highly recommend it.

Overall the trip was amazing - it may have cost a lot of money but we will always treasure the experience.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No - we are very happy with everything done by Expert Africa. Thank you." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 11 on a Botswana safari

"The entire trip was incredible, none of us wanted to go home. The planning was excellent and everything went flawlessly. The guides inNamibia and Botswana were excellent. It was wonderful being in these countries and meeting the people who are very happy to have tourists returning.

Maruska designed a trip for us that matched all of our goals. She was outstanding during the pandemic in rescheduling a couple of times and kept us informed of everything she was working on and changes. She is the best travel consultant we have ever worked with. She is timely and precise in her dealings with suppliers and companies in Africa. She was very responsive throughout the 3 years of planning. We highly recommend her. Thank you Maruska!" Read full review: 32 nights in Africa; 16 on a Namibia trip