Zambia: reviews from our travellers

"This was the perfectly orchestrated trip, introducing us to southern Africa. Maruska's ability to listen and plan an experience for complete strangers is uncanny.

Her recommendations assured us of perfect days, every day. To be met at a remote airfield, an hour late, by a jeep who dropped us at a waiting boat at the side of the river, met at the other side and taken to a hotel, all by kind, proud, and efficient staff is an amazing feat. It never occurred to us to be worried - we just accepted each step as part of our wonderful journey.

Looking back it could have been a series of mishaps - but it was perfect! Graeme never wants to travel anywhere else because we enjoyed sights and experiences we never imagined - endless desert, rich delta, the power and beauty of the animals, the kind and gentle people, and moving music. Thank you for the gift!" Read full review: 24 nights in Africa; 9 on a Namibia trip

"Botswana was our 5th trip to Africa on safari holiday. We had very high expectations on the basis of outstanding previous experiences. But we returned very disappointed. There were few exciting moments and our memories, quite honestly, are of relative dullness. Our photos convey this; we have relatively few and those which we have are not as good as others taken on previous trips. The meerkats and vic falls were the exception but this was an extremely expensive way to see them!!

There was just no excitement. We were expecting the delta to be lush and teeming with wildlife but in reality it is just a series of islands interspersed with wet bits. We went all the way to Botswana and didn't even see a hippo! And we saw just one elephant in the water. You see more in Kenya! The country is also very flat and visually dull. Even the short flights are boring.

The guides are all very pleasant but come across as bored. Where is the enthusiasm?

It's hard to put it onto words without coming across as overly moany. We regret going, to be honest, as it is an expensive country (why???) and we could have had 4 good other holidays in place of this one. We won't be recommending Botswana to anyone.

This appears to be a country which is cleverly marketed but fails to deliver in reality." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 10 on a Botswana safari

"A great holiday, very well organized by Expert Africa. The suggestion to stay at the Islands of Siankaba was spot on, we really enjoyed our time there, as well as on the day trip to Chobe. To our surprise, the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge was a really nice place, which we did not expect from some of the comments we read on Trip Advisor earlier on.

Our only mild disappointment were the falls themselves (out of the hands of all that had to do with this trip) - there was so much water and hence so much spray in the air that it was not easy to really see the falls, but the good glimpses we got were fantastic.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

We were very impressed with the friendliness and efficiency of both Megan Ingoldby who handled the initial contact and Maruska Adye who led us through the steps and finalized the program - you could not really do better - and in such a cordial manner! Your brochure and guides as well as your website are amazing, never have I seen better!

We will certainly keep you in mind when we organize our next trip to Africa." Read full review: 5 nights in Africa; 3 on a Zambia safari

"Wonderful holiday with fabulous memories" Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 12 on a Botswana safari

"AS above - once in a life time experience apart from the last day of our stay.

But then, we are glad that we met some very good people in the safari parks, ate amazing food, fortunate enough to see all Big 5s and were looked after by 2 very good teams in the lodges.

Will certainly consider RPS again." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 6 on a Zambia safari

"All arrangements worked out perfectly, the ground handling was greay all in all a very positive experience" Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 6 on a Zambia safari

"it could have been perfect. but it wasnt quite
delayed baggage didn't help but that was BA and Air Botswana mixup but five days late ! luckily I had a spare T shirt and bought a hat at Maun.
stolen phone,...at Maun airport in jacket pocket.
baggage hold not checked at Little Kwara strip.. seats not checked either before take off,.. caused me distress and a lot of work for Chan Gu and other staff.. shame really.
in order.. we loved Footsteps , we really liked Little Kwara , Bushbuck River lodge was agood location with helpful cheerful owner..and good value, delicious food there.. Siankaba was a lovely place to end our safari and get ready to leave...the views across the river and the staff were so freindly.. evening cruise is still remembered.

Thanks Maruska for helping to put a good package together" Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 8 on a Botswana safari

"Given all the flights and different accommodation there was plenty of opportunity for this holiday to go wrong. In the event there was only one potential problem which we narrowly averted - our transfer from the Livingstone to Botswana. At 7pm the evening before our departure we'd not had any transfer instructions. We asked at the desk of The Royal Livingstone who said that all the offices were shut so they couldn't find out any details for us but that most transfers were around 9am. So we went to bed that evening having set our alarms for 7:45. Fortunately my husband got up at 7am to discover a letter under the door telling us we'd be collected at 7:45!

The accommodation was better than we'd expected but, in each instance, had the atmosphere that we'd hoped for so well done to Nick Hobbs and the female (can't rememember her name) who recommended Bazaruto Lodge.

Very impressed by Expert Africa and Wilderness Safaris and would recommend them to anyone thinking of going to Africa." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"Having visited the South Luangwa, and these camps, in the dry season, we wanted to experience them in the Emerald Season. The trip exceeded our expectations. We saw many different birds, and although the animals are, in principle, harder to spot in the lush bush, we were rewarded with some spectacular sightings, due to the skill of our guides: Braston at Nkwali and Daudi at Nsefu.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

I can't think of anything to add!" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zambia safari

"Great short trip at a very different time of the year to the main tourist season. The stark contrast between the brown of the dry season, and the lush greens of this time of year was most striking. It was alike a completely different place. The light was clear - little dust in the air - great for photographs. The weather was a little variable - first few days were overcast with occasional light rain and one very rainy day. The second part of the trip brought bright sunshine every day.

Watching an already high Luangwa River rise by around 2 metres in a day and a half was quite memorable. Plenty to see - lots of the larger animals and birds around, all looking very healthy. The big cats were inevitably more elusive although we had a great leopard sighting on our way in, and a couple of lion sightings while we were there. Best of all, though, it was like having our own private safari - we were the only guests in each camp, and the staff were all very welcoming and accommodating of our requests and interests. It also meant we could spend as little or as much time as we wanted on each sighting without worrying about the needs and interests of other guests.

If you've been on safari a few times in the dry season, we'd most definitely recommend visiting at this time of year.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

None we can think of. We keep recommending you to others, so that's certainly an endorsement!" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Zambia safari