Everybodies favourite guide, Trevor
Elephant Herd Tours & Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2002)
- Member Of:
- SATSA & MISA
- Tour Types:
- Customizable private tours and fixed group tours
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $69 to $1,104 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
NZ
Email Colleen | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our guide was extremely knowledgeable about all the different animals we saw
What an excellent time we had in both Kruger and Sabi. Both safaris were quite different to each other, and both very memorable
Email Joanne | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a lifetime
Incredible service from start to finish. Prompt and early entry means you get opportunities to see rare sighting before they hide from the heat. Our tour guide Smiley was absolutely amazing! His knowledge not just about the animals but the history was second to none.
My only issue is the lunch the guides used to receive as part of the service has been stopped. They work insanely hard, and this needs to be reinstated!!
Excellent guide, with the best wildlife spot eyes there are and lots of wildlife knowledge
Our guide, Bhekika Ngomane did an excellent job. He finds al the wildlife, even during driving the safari jeep. He knows a lot about the animals and can explain it in perfect English. The funny thing was that he understood parts of what we told each other, because Dutch and the South African language have some similarities. Next time we are going to ask for Bhekika again!!!
MY
Email Nurul Aklee | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The tour handled us was insightful, thoughtful and accommodating. They give best recommendations!
The tour was worth for the value for money. Brandon and his team was great, and even accommodate us and provide us different options when we need to lower down our budget. The alternative provided was beyond satisfactory. They were very friendly, and handled us in a very thoughtful manner when one of our activity got postponed due to the place itself. We were picked up slightly later than scheduled time for our first day, but the guide accommodated us by providing us extra time at the end. We also had trouble with change of plans as one of us had to do a detour and Brandon had patiently waited for one of our friends to arrive at the airport and transfer him safely and in timely manner to Umbkumbe. Please do the panoramic tour with them, cause their guides aren't just insightful on the safari, but also others and we truly enjoyed it! We ended up spending additional day with Elephant and Herd Tours. We couldn't have asked for better.
BE
Email Lies | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great safari tour, great guide!
We had a half day morning tour at Kruger. We saw a lot of animals. The guide had an eagle eye and found a lot of animals. He was also very experienced and had a lot of knowledge. So nice.
Email Damion Potter | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Superb value for money - and saw big five before lunch two days running!
The elephant herd team were excellent. We had a full 10 hour drive, in which we saw different parts of the park. The drivers worked together via radio if they had seen Lions, Leopards or Rhinos. Great value for money.
NL
Email Emmy and Maikel | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Informative, puntual and superfriendly!
We booked a 5-day Safari Trip with Red Africa. They partner with the Elephant Herd and we get why!
We got to know a total of four guides. Some where drivers and others were tourguides within Kruger and Panorama Route. All were extremely friendly and passionate in their own way. They were also punctual and cared about us having the best time. The tours were amazing and worth all the money, but getting to know the guides was such a huge part of why it was so great. Shout out to Bekhifa and Trevor!
AT
Email Pia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Misleading and dishonest
I cannot recommend booking any Safari tours with Elephant Herd.
We booked 2 tours with them on two subsequent days. Since the weather was supposed to be awful in the early morning on the second day, we thus discussed with Brendon & Rene to shift our private tour to start a bit later that day. They agreed to re-arrange our tour, picked us up at 7:30 am (instead of 5:30 am) but then brought us back 2 hours before tour end!! Instead of a 6-hour tour we only got a 4-hour Safari! We never received any money back nor did they apologize for miscommunicating and misleading us
Reply from Elephant Herd Tours & Safaris
Posted on Oct 17, 2023
At around 19h00 on the evening after your first safari, we received a request from you, via the guesthouse, requesting a different guide for the second safari on the following day as you wanted another guide’s perspective of the Kruger. We advised that, due to the lateness of the request and the fact that it was peak season, we could not oblige as all our other guides were already booked for the following day. As is standard practise, when guests book multiple safaris we normally schedule the same guide for all their safaris. You then requested to cancel your booking for the following day due to the prediction of possible rains. We advised that we could cancel the safari but that 100% cancellation fees would apply, as is the industry norm. We had previously, in emails, provided you with the link to our website which has the Terms & Conditions very clearly stipulated.
Then, instead of cancelling, you instead requested a later pick-up time for the following morning - not wanting a 05h30 start but a 07h30 pick-up, to which we complied. Our guide was at your premises by 07h15 for the scheduled 07h30 pick-up however, you only boarded the vehicle at 07h50, thus you were 20 minutes late for the scheduled and requested pick-up time – a fact you omitted to mention. Your safari was originally booked for the morning time slot being 05h30 -11h30. Smiley, our guide, dropped you off at your accommodation venue 12h03. The fact that you requested a later pick-up does not automatically qualify you to extend the drop off time which was clearly your assumption, and never our commitment to you. The safari vehicle was already pre-booked for an afternoon safari, with other guests collection scheduled for 12h30, which we explained to you telephonically when you called from the vehicle complaining that the guide was going to be exiting the park.
During said telephonic conversation you demanded a 50% refund and threatened that should the refund not be forthcoming that you would write bad reviews on every possible review channel/social platform, which threat you are now clearly following through with even though we did advise the guide to continue with the safari for an additional half hour, thus the 12h03 drop off but he could not extend any later as we had a 12h30 guest collection.
99.5% of the approximate 800+ guests per month that book and participate in a safari with us, have only positive reviews on the trip review sheets that the guests complete on a daily basis as well as on the various social media and advertising platforms. Our reputation, dedication, attention to detail, guides’ knowledge and professionalism are all highly rated and the vast number of positive reviews, as well as the number of “return” guests, can attest to the fact.
US
Email Kristen Scott | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Bhekifa was passionate about his job, we saw the big 5, very knowledgeable and kind
Bhekifa worked hard to ensure we saw the big 5 and we did! He was very intelligent about the animals and the plants! He is full of kindness and humility and gives you more than just a safari tour. Thank you, Bhekifa. It was truly a pleasure from my husband and I!
DE
Email Esteban | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Never again...
Very bad service, long response times (if any) and non-supportive team. Almost a month since my last message and still no answer...
We asked to change our tour guide, since we didn't get along too well because he was just driving up and down the main road in Kruger National Park all the time. We asked him many time to go somewhere else, even saying which roads to drive, and he did want he wanted... We tracked the route with the app Komoot to verify our assumptions, and we were always driving the same main roads. We have seen twice as many animals when we drove through the Park ourselves with our Rental Car, leaving the main Road - without official tour guides.
Brendon & Rene (the owners, I think) were kind while booking, but once it was booked, they were really unfriendly, disrespectful and inflexible.
I would never recommend someone to book with them.
Reply from Elephant Herd Tours & Safaris
Posted on Oct 23, 2023Ahh, Déjà vu. See your travel companion Pia’s comments, "Misleading and Dishonest" on the same review site for comparison. Same trip, different story !! Quite sad that one or two people in the same industry would stoop so low as to try discredit another company with different variations because they never got their way.
With regards to not replying to you, you are correct, I did not reply to your threat as we had already given you our verbal response: As a self-proclaimed professional tourism industry leader, you should know better than to book a trip, try cancel with 10 hours notice, change the pick-up to a later time, and then expect an extended day.
SEE YOUR WHATSAPP MESSAGE COPIED IN FOR EASY REFERENCE.
“ I am convinced you don’t want to read numerous frustrated and negative 1 star reviews of your tour on online platforms, we believe it is only fair to get a half refund from you of the unfinished tour today and the complications and stress caused not just today.
Please rethink the way you are handling your affairs also for the sake of future customers. This is the best advice I can give you – from someone also working in the tourism industry and having experience of managing multiple million dollar super delicate contracts as a main responsibility.”
We asked to change our tour guide, since we didn't get along too well because he was just driving up and down the main road in Kruger National Park all the time. We asked him many time to go somewhere else, even saying which roads to drive, and he did want he wanted... We tracked the route with the app Komoot to verify our assumptions, and we were always driving the same main roads.
Either my CarTracker is faulty, which it is not, or your Komoot never picked up signal in the Kruger Park. Your guide travelled quite a different route to what you say he did. Copies of our CarTracker report are readily available, but a brief breakdown is below.
05h40 Your guide Smiley, was at your accommodation venue, ready for your 05h45 pick-up
05h59 You had entered the Kruger Park and were driving from Kruger Gate towards Skukuza 4 way junction.
06h43 Crossed the low level bridge heading North to Tshokwane.
06h55 You took the Marula Loop gravel road, rejoining the Tshokwane tar road at 07h17.
07h42, You took the gravel road S36 to Jones Dam
08h22, You forked East onto the gravel road S34
08h52 Stopped at Tshokwane Picnic site for breakfast.
10h08, You left Tshokwane picnic site. You then rejoined the Tshokwane tar this time heading South, on a
roadway you had not travelled yet.
11h15, You turned East onto the High level bridge link road.
11h26. Turned East off high level bridge onto Eloff towards Lower Sabie
12h15 Headed East for 2 km. Stopped and turned back towards Mkhuhlu Picnic site. Now for the first time in 6
hours you were travelling the same road.
12h20 You stopped at Nkhulu Picnic site.
13h38 From here you back tracked heading West to get back to Skukuza.
14h37 You turned South towards Malelane. At 14h40, you did a U-Turn and headed back towards Skukuza,
14h57 You turned West to Kruger Gate Road where you exited the Kruger Park gate at 15h29.
If that is what you consider driving on the same roads….the less said the better!
If you wish to discredit me. Please have facts and don’t change the story after you saw my reply to Pia..Same guide, same vehicle. Different story.
I’ll let all past guests and future travelers decide for themselves.