South Africa: reviews from our travellers

"Trip as a whole was great!

In retrospect, I would have not spent four nights at Machaba (or any probably), but as I spent a day there sick I'm glad I didn't have to fly that day as well. I was disappointed in the suggestion of Machaba, since I had specifically said I wanted to avoid the 20-cars-around-one-animal sort of safari. That only occurred around the leopards and the lions, but still... I had raised this concern specifically with Richard and he assured me that the guides would manage it, but there was no way to manage it with so many camps/lodges and individual drivers." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 12 on a Botswana safari

"All the transfers to lodges and airports by Ilios were very good.

The drivers were always on time (in fact early) and very helpful with the luggage." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 11 on a South Africa trip

"- we had an amazing time

- saw lots of animals and wild life - safari, whales, penguins

- we had a lot of weather too - fire in Cape Town, snow just outside Cape Town, fog and rain in Kwandwe & Plett, stromy winds in Hermanus, but we also had some sunny days

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

- we like to book with specialist companies, travel agents that are specialist in a region or country

- we very much enjoyed our face to face meeting with Tracy and she put a very nice trip together

- we missed a bit the option of having a day planned out at Plettenberg or Cape Town for example, but we got all the information so that we can plan our days" Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 11 on a South Africa trip

"Maruska and Expert Africa were terrific. Very knowledgeable and helpful.

After listening to my interests, she recommended camps which we felt covered good variety of environments and experiences. I think starting in Hwange and finishing in the Delta was ideal as our Hwange guide was very educational and the wildlife at Kwara particularly superb. If we ended at Hwange we would have felt 3 nights probably sufficient, though were lucky enough for my son to spot a leopard and see a pride of 14 lions in our last 24 hr.

It was also great to have all the arrangements and transportation taken care of." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"We had a perfect holiday.

The hotels were all very good, the people are lovely and so pleasant. Getting around was very easy.

We absolutely loved South Africa, there is so much to see and do. Cage diving with the sharks, whale watching and the safari where fun.

We will be back." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 13 on a South Africa trip

"We loved Botswana and Malawi but our hearts belong in the Valley. We’re already planning the next trip.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Just keep up the good work." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 9 on a Malawi trip

"Our whole trip was magnificent. Cape Town was busy with so much to see and do; we visited District Six Museum, the Planetarium, Slave Lodge, Heart of Cape Town museum [home to Dr Christian Barnard's first heart transplant]; the Cape Peninsula -Cape Point, Boulders Beach, did the Chapmans Peak Drive, V and A Waterfront and of course Robben Island, Table Mountain, Signal Hill and the stunning Kirstenbosch Gardens. We also spent a day driving to the West Coast National Park to see the wild spring flowers- truly incredible scenery.

At our time in Franschoek we visited Paarl, the motor museum and the very pretty town of Stellenbosch visiting the village museum. En route to Hermanus, we stopped at the beautiful Vergelden Winery with lovely grounds and buildings and enjoyed an incredible lunch in the sunshine. We saw whales on our walking tour in Hermanus and visited three lovely wineries each with a different character.

We saw an incredible array of wildlife in Bostwana and our stay at Muchenje was truly a dream come true.

At Victoria Falls, we did a falls tour, had a helicopter flight over the area and did a bridge history tour. On our last afternoon we took 'high tea' at the Victoria Falls Hotel and admired the stunning view and interiors of the hotel. This was coupled with bonus wildlife sightings at our hotel the Victoria Fallls Safari Lodge.

Thank you to Tracy Lederer who worked so hard to tailor the holiday to our requirements - it was truly a trip of a lifetime and one we shall always remember - along with our month long trip to Namibia [also organised by Tracy] back in 2010!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
None; everything was wonderful - thank you." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 10 on a South Africa trip

"We had a great time. We had some really good experiences, had some great views and met some lovely people. Everyone was really helpful and pleased that we were visiting their country, both in South Africa and Namibia.

We had hoped to see the spring flowers in Namaqualand, but realised before we arrived that the drought would mean it unlikely. We saw a few, which was lovely but also did more walking than we might have done and found other things to do which we really enjoyed.

Highlights of the trip were Twee Rivieren at Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, Fish River Canyon, Kolmanskop (outside Luderitz), Augrabies Falls and the Eagle's Nest at Aus.

Thanks to Tracy for the original inspiration and Claire for making it happen." Read full review: 23 nights in Africa; 13 on a South Africa trip

"EA had organised the majority of our trip and we were very happy with our choice of accommodation and the arrangements made." Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 7 on a South Africa trip

"We had a lovely trip, with special fondness for the Kwando Camps.

Oh my goodness, they go out of the way to make the guest experience special. The best guides and staff we've had.

Not crazy about Wilderness Safaris and will try to avoid them the future.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

You are wonderful and I'm looking at a 2020 trip to Kenya and Rwanda.

I'll be in touch!" Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 14 on a Botswana safari