Reviews of safaris to Central Highlands

"We were very happy with the help and guidance Angela at Expert Africa provided.

Going on a trip to any African country, even a country with a reputation for being very safe such as Namibia means that you need to rely on the expertise of others, especially if it is your first visit to the continent and you are responsible for the safety of two young teenagers.

After an initial conversation we received a detailed suggested schedule, the pricing was very clear to understand and we received a huge amount of practical advice.

All the potential pitfalls were mentioned and the itinerary was exactly what we wanted. We received a guide book on the booking and a very clear and detailed advice booklet.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

As the itinerary is bespoke for each customer the only suggestion that I can think of is a guide to the time for each drive, perhaps with the map.

We left Windhoek later than we should and arrived at the Namib Lodge just as the sun was setting. 5 minutes after arriving the sun had gone behind the mountain range and we never saw the facilities until the next morning.

If we had received some guidance on the length of time we would have set out earlier as it took longer than the 5 hours we had allowed.

We are very happy with the service provided and thank you for making the trip so enjoyable." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 10 on a Namibia trip

"From out first contact with Tracy to the end the help, advice and service was superb.
Tracy gave us plenty of tips on the various camps, pros and cons of some of our choices which helped our final decisions on places to stay and kept us informed throughout of flights, costs etc.

The holiday was better than we had imagined and any slight reservations that we may have had about drivng oursleves about were soon put aside with the empty roads and clearly marked map that Tracy supplied.

We enjoyed the mix of camps that we stayed in and meeting the many staff members that made our stays so enjoyable. It is a shame that the NWR have not invested in Okaukuejo because the location is so good. It was like staying at Butlins after a night at Claridges.

Our previous African trip was to Botswana, only staying in the reserves so this time having the mix of wildlife and real life made for an overall better experience and a small taste of Namibian life.

Thank you for organising a great trip.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
No.
All the literature was superb and service 100%" Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"We thoroughly enjoyed our trip. We planned the trip specifically to see as much wildlife as possible and expected Etosha to be the highlight but the rest of the trip more than matched this. We particularly enjoyed staying at the smaller camps of Kulala, Erongo and Okanjima.

You mentioned that previous customers had reported back that they would have preferred a 4-wheel drive car. We found our 2-wheel drive car fine. In fact the major irritation of the holiday was 4-wheel drive cars speeding past us, particularly in Etosha, causing dust clouds." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 14 on a Namibia trip

"Other than the flights it was absolutely wonderful - a real joy. Sabina was friendly, knowledgeable, patient and helpful and the organisation was impressive.

A couple of general points:

You are right: one doesn’t need a 4WD. Nor a second spare tyre (though we did come across a 4WD with its third puncture of their trip). The only disadvantage of not having a 4WD is that we had to go VERY slowly over some of the gravel roads, whereas I suspect we could have gone faster (though no less uncomfortably) in a 4WD. For example, it might be worth noting that it took nearly an hour from the tarmac road to the Elegant Farmstead.

The (more tourist-orientated?) petrol stations at Okakeujo, Naumatoni, Solitaire and Sesriem did take credit cards (the guide book says that none does).

Accommodation was generally a delight - largely gorgeous, well-appointed and well looked-after places in perfect surroundings.

Warm clothing - I took a very light cardigan, a light jumper and a fleece. This was ample (the guidebook mentions people who wished they’d brought pashminas, blankets etc… not sure why!). Fleeces were worn only at night (game viewing) or in the early morning (at Dune 45), other than at Swakopmund where they were worn all the time!

Route was fine and just right for the duration, especially as some of the distances were long. Etosha, Damaraland, Sossusvlei were all must-see destinations. The only driving we didn’t like was the section between Khorixas and Doro Nawas where the gravel road was very uncomfortable. It was a pity we had to do Okakeujo before Halali but it wasn’t a big problem. The only possible change we might have made would have been to spend one day less in the Sossusvlei area – there isn’t really two days’ worth of activity here unless one is a hiker (which we weren’t) - and travelled back a day earlier." Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"Our trip was fabulous. Everything went as planned and every stop was better than we thought it would be. our service from Expert Africa was personal and our contact, Maruska Adye was very knowledgeable and provided excellent personalized, service.

When we go back to Africa we would be disappointed if we were unable to use Expert Africa again as our guide.

Cout our entire party as highly satisfied and grateful." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 9 on a Namibia trip

"A hugely enjoyable trip which will live long in the memories. Namibia proved to be a friendly and welcoming country and it was easy to travel around with our kids who met plenty of other children from all over Europe.

Highlights are many and varied including the 1st sunset over the Kalahari at Bagatelle, hiking the Quiver Tree gorge, sand dunes at 1st light in Sossusvlei, Tommys Living Desert Tour, desert adapted elephants and lizards at Camp Kipwe, barbecued game at Taleni (our kids favourite meal), seeing 3 cheetah in Etosha, warthogs on the lawn at Mushara and the universally friendly people we met on our travels." Read full review: 24 nights in Africa; 22 on a Namibia trip

"A fantastic holiday spoilt by the fiasco at the airport on the return journey" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"We loved our trip. Namibia is amazing an d we would recommend it to anyone. Fabulous wildlife, amazing scenery, easy to get around and very friendly people.

Many thanks to Angela for all here help and guidance. She was a great advisor." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 7 on a Namibia trip

"We loved our time in Namibia-the variety in what we saw and experienced, the people we met.....we had hoped for a holiday of a lifetime and we got it!!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
We didn't have a price breakdown of each accommodation. I'm still undecided if this would have would have been helpful or not......it may have been interesting to compare places, and may have affected feedback, as value for money is another factor." Read full review: 25 nights in Africa; 15 on a Namibia trip

"We had an excellently planned holiday, although we found it quite tiring towards the end of our three week stay.

The camps were mainly excellent and certainly as good as we had hoped. We had an unfortunate incident when my wife's bag was stolen from the car outside our guest house in Windhoek and the staff at Galton House couldn't have been more helpful, as were the head office staff at Wilderness Safaris in helping us resolve matters.

There is obviously quite a bit of crime in Windhoek (and possibly other towns) and travellers should be aware of this and keep their wits about them. We were identified as a target once we arrived in Windhoek while driving a hire car with South African number plates, followed, and then robbed outside our guest house in a quiet street with nobody else around. If my wife's handbag had been hidden in the back of the car or in the boot things may have been different.

However, this didn't detract from a very enjoyable three weeks in a scenically amazing country with Namibian people who made our stay memorable." Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 18 on a Namibia trip