Christine Sales Office
Wildlife Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 1971)
- Member Of:
- Southern Africa Tourism Services Association
- Tour Types:
- Small & medium group tours (Mid-range)
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $211 to $236 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
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Email Elaine | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Hoppy was wonderful!!! Very friendly and knowledgeable.
My husband and I took a 3 day/ 2 night safari. We did not know what to expect at the lodge or the safari itself. So getting to the airport and having Hoppy (our guide) pick us up right where they said they would and right on time! It was a little bit of a trip to the lodge, but Hoppy gave a some insight to the the land and culture which was good. When we got to the lodge we were pleasantly surprised, the rooms were ready and clean. We then jumped on to our first drive in the open jeep that was waiting for us. Hoppy was great trying to locate the animals and we found them. It was amazing to see all of the animals only feet away from us. When booking this trip, ask about the night safari. If you can book a private drive and driver.
The food at the lodge was simply amazing! We think that it was the best meals on our stay in SA!
I would definitely recommend this trip. Remember to ask for Hoppy!
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Email Puneet & Neha | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent safari with outstanding guide (Hoppy)
We took the 4 day Kruger safari (we are a couple in our early thirties). We were picked up from our hotel near Jo'berg airport in the early morning, and after a 6 hour drive (with a break for lunch), we arrived at Sabie river lodge. Spent the evening swimming in the pool, with a beer in hand and looking at a family of 13 Hippos who live in the river right in front of the lodge. This was a truly outstanding experience - the lodge is very nice. As a bonus, the next day morning we also had a family of elephants down at the river during breakfast time. The game rides were outstanding - Kruger has a wealth of diversity in both animal and birdlife. And our guide was a genius at spotting them. The best part was that the guide didn't just concentrate on the big 5 (which you will see plenty of) but really made an effort to show us many other animals and birds (and even insects - watching a dung beetle rolling elephant dung down the road is a highlight). Our guide's name was Hoppy Havell - and he became good friends with us over the course of the 4 days. The food was pretty good throughout - and we even got time to sneak off for a nice massage at the Skakuza camp in between game drives (tip - book early if you want a massage, then you can work with your guide to leave a little early and return in time for you treatment while not missing time on the game drive).
Overall: 5 on 5
Food: 4.5 on 5
Sabie river lodge: 5 on 5
Skakuza camp: 4 on 5
Game drive and animal \ bird\ insect viewing: 4.9 on 5 (we missed seeing the Cheetahs and Leopards - but hey this gives us a reason to come back)
Guide (Hoppy Havell): 10 on 5 (Outstanding guide - ask for him)
Puneet & Neha
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Email Ben R | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic experience and value! Highly recommended!
Everything was amazing and easy to set up. Liese, our guide, was so wonderful and knowledgeable and we already miss her! The service, accommodations, food.... all of it, was incredible and I would recommend Wildlife Safaris to anyone who gets this once in a lifetime experience! Thank you guys so much.
Email Priscilla | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
We had a magical time on our trip with George to the Kruger Park.
The arrangements were faultless -and thoughtful! The bonus was seeing the big 5, but enjoyed just as much seeing the tortoise cross the road, the baby jackals teasing their parents, the enormous crocodile, and many birds. I could go on..our check list was pretty full!
It was more than we could have hoped for. Thank you so much George and Wildlife Safaris.
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Email David Dolloff | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Our guide Nik was fantastic. His knowledge of the park and animals, made our trip unforgettable.
The trip could not have gone better. From the booking to the final day of the trip, there where no issues. Our guide Nik was a great host. He knew so much about the park and the animals, it was like a history lesson. We where a family of 5 and we saw 4 of the big 5, the Cheetah was elusive. We had some close up encounters with the Elephants, Lions, Giraffes and Rhino's. We spent many hours searching for animals and we where rewarded almost at every turn.It was a trip we will always remember and talk about again and again for a long time. I would highly recommend, Wildlife Safari, as a tour group. I could go on but it is a experience you need to see for yourself, you will not be disappointed. Thank you Nik for sharing your knowledge and love for Kruger Park.
NZ
Email Christine | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience!
We did the 4 day Classic Kruger Safari with this very professional company. Excellent communication, answered all my questions very promptly by email! Payment was very easy. We did our safari in a closed vehicle due to poor weather. At first we did wonder if we would feel less ‘at one’ with nature in a closed vehicle, but overall this made it more comfortable for us. We did however go in an open truck on the night time safari (on our last night). We saw a huge variety of animals! Big 5 didn’t take long to tick off. Our guide (Hoppy) has excellent knowledge about the animals and is a master at spotting animals from very very far away! Going in October was perfect because it’s not too busy (fewer cars in the park = better chance at getting a good view of the spotted animals!). Also the animals were out and about more (it wasn’t too hot so the animals weren’t away hiding in the shade). The accommodation is pretty basic but always clean, comfortable, and with air conditioning.
My only two recommendations: a bit more down time to ourselves would have been nice (i.e. dinner or lunch to ourselves); and a chilly bin in the vehicle to keep our drinks cool.
Overall we had an unforgettable experience and would definitely recommend this company!
DE
Email Simone and Alex | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great tour, excellent guide
We were booked on the 4 day Kruger Park and Panorama Route and had a really great time from start to finish. Our guide Liese was fantastic, we learned a lot about both the nature and animals as well as about South Africa in general. Thanks again, Liese, for the amazing trip!
NZ
Email Simon Mitchell | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Outstanding fairly priced safari with an engaged and extremely knowledgeable guide.
My wife and I (plus two close friends and a new friend we made of the trip!) have just had the most marvellous experience with Wildlife Safaris in the Kruger. I can only offer them my sincere congratulations and thanks. One of their senior guides, Hoppy, is absolutely brilliant. He was unfailingly attentive to all our needs, conservative, responsible, sensitive to the animals, and fun to be around. He clearly has a deep knowledge of the animals' distribution and patterns of behaviour, and this served us extremely well. We saw some simply amazing things which none of us will ever forget.
In my opinion Wildlife Safaris position themselves in the safari market perfectly for the needs of professional people who don't want "basic", but who are also not particularly interested in a massively expensive luxury event. I suspect that in some of these operations there would be a danger of the pampering potentially compromising the actual safari experience. Our safari was very fairly priced, way more than adequate from the comfort point of view, and simply outstanding in the areas that were important to us (seeing the animals and learning about them from an engaged knowledgeable guide). The company also allowed us to alter our safari itinerary on the fly as certain things grabbed our attention and we prioritized some experiences over others. Highly recommended!
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Email Lynn | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wildlife Safaris and our extraordinary guide Hoppy, made this one of the best experiences ever.
Organizing the safari with Christine was a pleasure. We were fortunate to have Hoppy as our guide. He was good humored and was a wealth of information on flora, fauna and animal life. We were lucky to see the big 5 on multiple days including the elusive Black Rhino. Our safari exceeded all of our expectations and was the highlight of our ZA visit.
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Email Jean | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Outstanding!
We booked the 5 day Kruger Park safari. Happy to say all communications regarding booking as well as other questions were promptly answered by Christine. Accommodations were fine and meals were good. Anthony was our guide and he was great!! Every game drive was a delight as he shared so much interesting information about all the animals and birds we were seeing and we saw many! We never felt rushed and always had time to take lots of photos. Everything about this trip was wonderfully memorable!