Tracy Lederer

Africa's friendly people, stunning wildlife and breathtaking scenery is a winning formula for me.

Specialist countries: Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, Rwanda

Tracy is in the UK and usually available:

UK time: 08:50-17:20 Mon, Tue, Wed; 08:50-16:20 Fri; 08:00-17:30 Thur; & occasional Saturdays.
See our office hours and locations.

More about Tracy...

Working as secondary school teacher from 1988 to 2002/3, I always utilised my extended summer holidays to travel the world. I would buy a flight somewhere and then spend the 6/7 weeks independently exploring the country visited in great detail. I also took two periods of unpaid leave to embark on longer periods of travel to satisfy my wanderlust, the first for five months and the second for eight months. My enthusiasm for scuba diving also developed during this time and I have now dived in Australia, S/E Asia, the Red Sea, Central America, the Caribbean and Madagascar, as well as Lake Malawi, Zanzibar and Mozambique in Africa.

My love of Africa began with a trip backpacking and hitch hiking around Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi in 1993. I then return to the continent in 1999 spending 6 weeks in Tanzania/Zanzibar, the highlights being climbing Mt Kilimanjaro and visiting the open plains of the Serengeti and the animal rich Ngorongoro Crater. Then in 2001 I embarked on an overland adventure from Victoria Falls, through Botswana into Namibia before heading south to finish in Cape Town. I loved the diversity of this trip – a pretty impressive waterfall (and heart stopping white-water rafting!), an inland delta with amazing wildlife, shimmering saltpans, beautiful deserts and a cosmopolitan city. A winning combination for me.

My passion for travel finally pushed me to make a career move from education into the travel industry. After working for a company tailor-making holidays for travellers with disabilities, I finally joined Expert Africa in 2004. I now specialise in creating trips to Namibia, Botswana, Rwanda, Mozambique and South Africa, and have spent many months over the years researching in these countries.

More recently, my then 4-year-old daughter joined me on a road trip from Cape Town, along the Garden Route, to the wildlife reserves around Port Elizabeth. It was wonderful to experience everything alongside young, fresh and excited eyes. We both had a brilliant time; she is fascinated with animals large and small - I never thought I would spend so much time willing two dung beetles to push their quarry off a road before the possibility of a vehicle coming along and squashing them. Another one hooked on Africa!

My most recent trip, in June 2018, was back to Namibia, where I refreshed my knowledge of Etosha and the Caprivi region. It was great to revisit these lovely areas, in one of my favourite countries.

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Tracy's most recent Africa trips

Namibia, Botswana

May 18 13 nights

After a couple of years absence, it was great to return to Namibia. Researching predominantly for the next edition of the Bradt guide, I explored eastern Etosha - the highlight being a cheetah with her four cubs. Then a whirlwind drive through the Caprivi took me to all the national parks and most lodges east of Rundu, finishing with a couple of nights on Impalila Island. Stunning sunsets over the perennial rivers, rare to Namibia outside the Caprivi, ended my days spectacularly.

I visited: Windhoek, Etosha National Park, Caprivi Strip, Chobe National Park

Botswana

Oct 17 13 nights

I was truly excited about returning to Botswana and the unique Okavango Delta, staying at new camps as well as old favorites. In addition, the Makgadikgadi pans were new to me and the area exceeded all expectations. The diversity here from spending time with endearing meerkats, quad biking on expansive salt pans, learning about ancient traditions from San people and seeing elusive desert wildlife like brown hyena and aardvark made it a very special experience which I would highly recommend.

I visited: Kalahari's Salt Pans, Moremi Game Reserve, Okavango Delta Safari Reserves

South Africa

Feb 16 17 nights

This fourth research trip to the Cape was very special as I travelled with my young daughter to see just how child friendly South Africa really is. I was not disappointed - she was not just accepted at the lodges but openly welcomed and well catered for; and the activities en route extensive. I could eulogise about many aspects but being on safari alongside an innocent and inquisitive mind was truly refreshing and Kwandwe’s Ecca Lodge could not have been a better place to experience this.

I visited: Cape Town, Hermanus, Little Karoo, Tsitsikamma | Garden Route National Park, Plettenberg Bay | Garden Route, Addo Elephant National Park, Kwandwe Private Game Reserve

Tracy's previous Africa research

Country	Arrived	Length of stay	Areas visited
Namibia	March 2015	14 nights	Windhoek, Central Highlands, Okonjima Nature Reserve, Damaraland, Skeleton Coast & Kaokoland, Waterberg Plateau National Park
South Africa	April 2014	11 nights	Cape Town, Winelands, De Hoop Nature Reserve, Plettenberg Bay \| Garden Route, Addo Elephant National Park
Botswana	March 2013	13 nights	Okavango Delta Safari Reserves, Moremi Game Reserve, Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Kalahari's Salt Pans
Botswana	September 2010	11 nights	Okavango Delta Safari Reserves, Moremi Game Reserve, Kwando-Linyanti area
Botswana	May 2010	13 nights	Okavango Delta Safari Reserves, Kwando-Linyanti area
Mozambique, Tanzania	October 2008	12 nights	Pemba & mainland, Quirimbas Archipelago, Dar es Salaam
South Africa	August 2008	11 nights	Cape Town, Hermanus, Grootbos Private Nature Reserve, Knysna \| Garden Route, Little Karoo, Tsitsikamma \| Garden Route National Park, Plettenberg Bay \| Garden Route, Addo Elephant National Park, Port Elizabeth
South Africa	November 2007	13 nights	Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Augrabies Falls National Park, Namaqualand, Cape Town, Winelands, Kwandwe Private Game Reserve
Namibia	May 2007	14 nights	Central Highlands, Skeleton Coast & Kaokoland, Okonjima Nature Reserve, Damaraland
Namibia, Mozambique, Botswana, Zambia	September 2006	16 nights	Okonjima Nature Reserve, Caprivi Strip, North-west Kalahari & Panhandle, Chobe National Park, Livingstone & Victoria Falls, Bazaruto Archipelago
Rwanda, Kenya	June 2006	9 nights	Lake Kivu, Volcanoes National Park, Akagera National Park, Nairobi
Namibia	April 2006	9 nights	Windhoek, Southern Namibia, Fish River Canyon, Luderitz
Namibia	November 2005	16 nights	Central Highlands, Bushmanland, Etosha National Park, Damaraland, Skeleton Coast & Kaokoland, Swakopmund & Walvis Bay
Namibia	January 2005	11 nights	Okonjima Nature Reserve, Etosha National Park, Swakopmund & Walvis Bay, Namib-Naukluft National Park, NamibRand Nature Reserve

Namibia

Major contributor 6th edition 2019

In 2007 I was thrilled to be involved in edition 3 having explored the quirky South and Lüderitz. Since then I’ve contributed to ed. 4 & 5, and am again a major contributor to this 6th edition after an in depth trip to eastern Etosha and the Caprivi.

Botswana

Contributor 5th edition 2018

Previously a significant contributor to the 4th edition in 2014, in 2017 I revisited the Okavango Delta and explored the Makgadikgadi Pans and used the knowledge gleaned to help update these chapters of this 5th edition.

Namibia

Contributor 5th edition 2015

In 2007 I was thrilled to get involved in edition 3 as a major contributor exploring the quirky Southwest and Lüderitz. Since then I’ve been a major contributor / contributor to edition 4 & 5 respectively, researching numerous fascinating areas.