Reviews of trips to Livingstone & Victoria Falls

"I feel so lucky and grateful to have made acquaintance with Justin Huff from Expert Africa. His knowledge was so thorough and immediate that I knew I had to take advantage of his service to plan our African adventure-- even to the extent that I risked a relationship with a very important friend who is a travel agent. I just didn't want to make any mistakes, traveling so far and at such expense!

We met someone on our trip who had spent the equivalent of four months at a full time job researching his trip to Africa, rejecting agency after agency when they didn't include or provide the amenities that this man deemed essential to a perfect safari. I was BEYOND DELIGHTED to learn that every single thing this man had learned was the best way to go, Justin at Expert Africa had included in our trip to the extent that it was literally perfect. I don't think I can put it any more succinctly than that.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Only one. I felt that canvas wallet you provided was a tad excessive, as I have no future use for it, and didn't really need it during the trip. Maybe others feel differently, but I do plan to send ours back.

Thank you so much for running a fantastic operation!" Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 11 on a Kenya safari

"The trip was all we expected it to be and more. The choice of lodges was excellent and that has to be down to the experience of Expert Africa.
Extending our stay in some of the lodges was the correct decision as it allowed us to relax rather than feel we were always on the move.
We would definitely use ExpertAfrica again if we visited Africa again." Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 16 on a Zambia safari

"It was our first time using a company to plan our trip and our first time in Africa. I worked with Freddie for a year and a half. He always answered my emails promptly and all his advises were outstanding. We met another traveler that had used his service and were impressed how he had catered to our different needs so perfectly. I have already recommended Expert Africa, especially Freddie to a bunch of friends. The trip was flawless, with staff welcoming us everywhere and assuring that we would get safely to our next destination.
Zambia was incredible and the sightings were amazing." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zambia safari

"Lucy helped us organize this short break after many other options were considered. Lucy is intimately familiar with options in that region and gave us impartial and practical advice. I look forward to booking out next trip with Expert Africa." Read full review: 5 nights in Africa; 4 on a Zambia safari

"This was the holiday of a lifetime for our family and Expert Africa, Freddie, made it so with his advice in the planning and reassurances through to a Dubai/ Lusaka delay.

Freddie was able to gather together a range of options that suited our budget & patiently responded to a myriad of questions put to him.

I have since recommended this company to friends/ family who usually use other operators for long haul because of the customer service and attention to detail." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 7 on a Zambia safari

"The trip was perfect. Zambia is an amazing country and the combination between the lower Zambezi and the Vic Falls worked really well. It was an amazing trip and very well planned thanks to Megan from Expert Africa. I was confused in the beginning on where to go for a short holiday and Megan helped me in the best way possible as if she were planning for her family. Thank you Expert Africa!" Read full review: 4 nights in Africa; 4 on a Zambia safari

"This was a first time safari and first trip to Africa. Altogether an extraordinary experience!" Read full review: 8 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"It was an amazing holiday, thoroughly enjoyed by everyone." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 10 on a Zambia safari

"This was the trip of a lifetime. With our children, aged 20 & 19, we were looking for a holiday the whole family could enjoy and we certainly got it. Everything went off perfectly. The planning of the trip with Sabina and her advice was of the highest standard. Everything was exactly as described.

There were representatives to welcome us on arrival at Windhoek, there were no booking misunderstandings at any lodges, the transfer from Kasane in Botswana to Livingstone in Zambia went smoothly and lastly the transfer to Livingstone airport, all on time and according to plan. We dropped our car off in Kasane, were collected by safari vehicle and transferred to the river where we were taken across by boat into Zambia and collected on the other side with the driver helping us get through the 'interesting' Zambian border checkpoint (the Zambian officials were rude and unhelpful well below the standard in Botswana or Namibia).

The border official, despite having a water dispenser in her office, sent our driver back to the car to get her a bottle of water! Bearing in mind that we had driven about 4 hours from our last lodge in the Caprivi and arrived early, the logistics of this transfer was impressive. (Just for info there are trucks queuing at this crossing as they move between Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana for as far as the eye can see with it taking them on average 2 to 3 weeks to get across - per the local taxi driver - so I could imagine the transfer potentially going horribly wrong!).

Just a tip, when arriving in Botswana we needed to dip ALL our shoes (foot and mouth prevention) so make sure you have all shoes handy so you don't have to unpack suitcases at the border.

The design of the three week trip, balancing the length of drives, stop-overs and rest days while still trying to see as much as possible was brilliant and could not have been done without the expert advice of Sabina and her patience in the early days while she tried to understand what we wanted to get out of the holiday.

We travelled during June and July and the weather was fabulous. Warm sunny days and mostly cool nights. We certainly needed warm jackets for the evenings whereas during the day we needed shorts and t-shirts.

Tips that worked for us:
(1) in the U.K. we purchased a tracks4africa map of Namibia (£10) online and transferred it onto our Garmin SatNav which we took with us and this made navigating stress free.
(2) Covering our suitcases in bin bags to keep them dust free was essential as the canopy definitely was not dust proof.
(3) We purchased a cooler box locally and this allowed us to keep our picnic food fresh and drinks cool for the long drives. You can buy ice for the cooler box at any service station;
(4) an upgrade to a 4x4 gave us extra flexibility and comfort on long drives.

We were surprised at how expensive most of the lodges were so this was, for us, a particularly expensive holiday but in the end worth every penny.

I would not hesitate to recommend Expert Africa and would use them again." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 17 on a Namibia trip

"I want to thank Expert Africa and especially Lucy Copson for organizing our (me, my wife, and two teenage children) trip to Zambia, Africa. This was our first trip to Africa and we knew little about the continent.

I must say that the website for Expert Africa really helped our understanding of what each country has to offer in the way of safaris and you can start to narrow down your options according to your wants and needs. But it wasn't until chatting with Lucy that everything really came into focus. After one phone conversation she really grasped what the family and I were looking for and organized our unforgettable trip to Zambia.

With first hand knowledge of the bush camps in South Luangwa National Park, Lucy choose two that were an absolute fit for us. We went on drive safaris, walking safaris, night drives, and even an overnight camp out and learned about all the animals, birds, and plants of the park.

Lucy also chose for us our excursion to Livingstone which was an excellent way to end our stay in Zambia.

Once again, thank you Expert Africa and Lucy for putting together an unforgettable bucket list trip for the family and I." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zambia safari