Ulinda Safari Trails
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 1997)
- Member Of:
- HATAB & BOGA
- Tour Types:
- Customizable private tours and fixed group tours
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $400 to $1,360 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email John Whitehurst | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beyond expectations - a first safari experience with a real taste of the bush...
Informative and helpful pre-booking support from Jane Bettenay helped the decision and a first safari started with excitement and hopes. First day in at Khwai Jane found leopard with cub and kill - magical - and an early start the next day was rewarded with two hours or more exclusively watching and photographing the mother and cub at close range from the thoughtfully adapted vehicle. Stunning! None of the 10 days disappointed with many more sightings and special memories of the wildlife and northern Botswana. Kwhai and Chobe river trips were brilliant with more close encounters and wildlife thrills including baby elephants swimming and lions in the sunset.
The 'bush' safari style suited well with evening camp fires, relaxed times and a good level of camp style comforts. Jane, and particularly her staff, were amazing and provided lovely food and much hard work with their individual skills, abilities and friendliness making the experience so rewarding. An great taste of Africa and a hunger for more!
NZ
Email Gloria Shrubsall | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Authentic, well planned, efficiently organised and warmly welcoming with amazing meals!
After many birding and wildlife safaris throughout Africa I recently spent 23 days with three friends on Ulinda Safari Trails 23 day Botswana Safari. This was, without doubt, the most exciting, comfortable, well planned and efficiently run safari and I cannot recommend Jane Bettenay and her team highly enough to those travellers who want to experience a real wildlife adventure visiting Botswana's great national parks. A special feature is Jane's specially designed four wheel drive Toyota Landcruisers with "pop tops" that allow passengers to keep warm in the morning/evening when it can be extremely cold in "open" vehicles and still have unobstructed views when game viewing/photographing. Anyone wanting a taste of the real Africa camping safari should definitely get in touch with Ulinda Safari Trails!!
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wealth of experience and excellent service
We did a quicky with Ulinda and it was perfectly organized.
Moremi Game Reserve – in ONE day. Yes it can be done with Jane and Sarah and crew.
- “This is not a zoo” – Once in a lifetime experience to sleep within 30 meters to a herd of Hippo’s – they are quite communicative
- Sometimes the road is the goal – being in Moremi
- Thanks to the great service of Jane and her team this will be forever in our mind
- Gin and Tonic as sun-downer
- Many stories by the fire
- Excellent chicken with Mango sauce
Jane was the first female tour operator in Zimbabwe before moving to Botswana. Jane and her daughter Sarah plus crew make a clockwork organized safari with attention to detail.
I would go again with Ulinda - next a bit longer.
Email Chris | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Okavango Delta mobile safari - a fantastic way to see the wildlife
We requested a 6 day safari from Ulinda back in March 2018 to be taken in June this year. Our early request allowed Jane Bettenay of Ulinda to obtain camping permits in 3 excellent locations in the Okavango Delta for wildlife viewing. Email communication was timely and clear.
Our first 2 nights were near second bridge and were ideal for hippo and birds. The second two nights were at Xini Camp and this was sensational - hippos, elephants, zebra, lion, baboons, honey badgers - what an amazing place! The final two nights were spent near Khwai North Gate and were superb for lions.
This tour would be ideal for small groups of friends or a family traveling together. Food was plentiful and delicious. Sundowners were enjoyable and in spectacular locations. The Popemobile style Troopcarriers are ideal for watching the wildlife with their pop up tops allowing 360 degree views. An excellent platform for photography. The new ensuite tents are also perfect for doing ablutions at night in safety!
All in all, the Okavango Delta provided us with an experience that far exceeded our expectations and will remain as one of our most thrilling and dramatic experiences. Our thanks to the team: Jane, Victor, Pini and Image.
US
Email Janet | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
This camping safari experience was indeed an adventure of a life time!
Jane was very quick in responding to queries and provided a well designed two-week safari. You do not fly between camps, but rather drive and once and awhile may even get stuck in the sand temporarily, which adds to this African adventure. We were camped in national parks, thus stayed where the animals lived with an elephant or two walking through or near the camp. Falling asleep to the sounds of lions roaring, elephants trumpeting, and hippos snorting was fascinating. May was a great month go since there were few crowds. In fact, Jane was keen that we observed animals without the crowd of other vehicles. Often we were the only ones to witness a giraffe and Cape buffalo drinking, a leopard next to the trail, a lion calling to two 18-month old lion cubs and seeing them bound out of the grass. We held our breath as we observed a young lion stalk and chase an impala. We were thrilled to see a three-month old lion cub nursing, African Painted Dogs playing, elephants (cows, bulls, and many calves) everywhere, cape buffalo, zebra and wildebeest herds on the move, giraffes with calves grazing the tree tops, honey badgers dashing, warthogs running, dozens of various birds, hippos in and out of the water and the the list goes on...
Aside from amazing animal observations, the Ulinda crew provided delicious meals all cooked over an open fire. They even baked a birthday cake for my husband. The tent was large with a double cot, nice touch. Showering in an enclosed, open to the evening sky shower was priceless.
If you are looking for a camping safari, Ulinda is certainly worth consideration. Enjoy, we did!
Email Cicely Havely | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The Best.
We thought Botswana would be out of our budget, then a friend with whom we'd travelled in Namibia pointed us to Jane and her company. From the first email contact, we knew we were on the right track. Four of us (two pensioners) booked a ten-day safari that took us from Kasane to Maun, staying in five different locations.
I'm not a natural camper, but the magic of sunrise in the bush and evenings around the camp-fire and under the stars more than made up for quite basic but perfectly adequate sleeping quarters. The tents aren't huge, but they're not cramped either; the bedding is ample and very cosy (starry nights in May are chilly - but no insects) and our en-suite pit toilet (you shovel in a layer of the sandy soil that's been dug out) was really no hardship. We quickly decided that glamping was for softies and would artificially cut you off from the authentic experience that we were enjoying.
And we enjoyed every minute. Because we were four, we had a vehicle to ourselves and could stop and start at the pace that the two avid photographers wanted. Our guide, Spokes Ntshwabi, was superb: quiet, very knowledgeable and charming with it. We had lots of marvellous sightings, many of them all to ourselves as a distinctive part of the Ulinda offering is to get away from the most beaten tracks. (Not that there were ever many other vehicles; these National Parks are huge.)
Back in camp for lunch, a snooze and a shower, then off again. The afternoon game drive always ended with a hefty G'n'T at some scenic spot to watch the sun go down. Then back in the gloaming for a superb dinner, ample (free) wine and yarns round the campfire. The food was always superb. Remember that for the whole 10 days there was nowhere to take on supplies, but we always had fresh vegetables, salads and (for the carnivores) world-class local meats: the beef fillet was the best ever. All that and beautiful fresh bread.
Jane herself is a tireless host. The whole trip was impeccably organised but the effort didn't show. Her team (who cook and manage the assembly and dismantling at every camp site) are charming as well as very hard-working. The three boat trips that were part of the package were all different and unforgettably lovely. Now we have thousands of photos to edit down and thousands of memories to match.
We are all seasoned travellers of many years, but - back in civilisation (which seemed dull in comparison) - we agreed that this was the best.
Thanks, Jane - and everyone
SE
Email Tomas | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Outstanding mobile safari in Chobe River, Savuti, Khawi and Moremi national parks Botzwana.
This was my second safari. The first was a lodge safari in South Africa in 2017. The mobile safari with Ulinda Safari Trials exceeded my expectations by far. Comparing with my lodge safari, which was very good, the mobile safari with Jane and her team gave me however a much more genuine feeling of the stunning nature and wildlife in Botzwana. Photography was an very essential factor why I decided for Ulinda and since Jane is a photographer she knows what is needed to place the car right to get the right light etc.
Everything worked perfect from the first contact and on. I can really recommend Ulinda Safari Trials especially if photography is essential.
Exceptional experience in the beautiful Okavango Delta
Beautiful weather, unbelievable wildlife exposure, great photography opportunities, wonderful camp staff and food, comfortable tenting, very good safari companions, and Jane kept the whole thing rolling along with minimal problems. Even when unforseen mechanical problems arose the group as a whole pulled together and we got to were we needed to be. I would rate this as an excellent safari option for a new traveler to Africa or a seasoned safari goer. All good. Thanks Jane and crew!!!
Email Jack Tennant | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Awsome Experince
We booked a 9 night safari in April 2017 with Ulinda because of the owners vast experience. Jane has been around this industry for 30 + years so her knowledge of the areas and game is invaluable. She was always able to answer any questions we had and if not she had a virtule libary of reference books on board. Our very first night in Naxi Pan we had lion camp within 30m of our tents, this happened a few times on our trip as well elephant into camp at Kwhai. My youngest son Tom was so hell bent on seeing Cheetha in the wild and he wasnt dissapointed not only did we see 7 Cheetha but witnessed a kill in the Kalahari all thanks to Janes persistence.The wildlife we saw was well above our expectaion. The camp food was to die for, we never had the same meal twice in 9 nights and what Hasi was able to produce with such limited equipment was nothing short of amazing. Jane has had the same 3 crew with her now for 10 + years which says it all. They all worked hard to ensure our short stay was the most enjoyable time ever. I would not hestite to recommend this operation to anyone wanting the ultimate African experience
Visited April 2017
NZ
Email Gloria Bentley-Reaney | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fun filled,lots of wild life,very experienced operator .highly recommend this company.
Great communication with all aspects before and after trip,plus extremely well priced for the high quality
of this safari.
Loved the closed pop up top comfortable vehicle,great viewing,plus plus for all seasons.Did feel for the folk who paid a small fortune at the lodges to view wild life in freezing open safari vehicles,they looked miserable .
Everything ran like clock work,nice tents with toilet attached,great food and wine,sundowners always in a great spot .
We were a group of four fit seniors,one a birder like Jane,so we got to learn more about local species,we were very lucky to see a lot,thanks to Jane and Glo.
Could not fault anything,Janes driving skills are a legend,and so are some of her experiences in Australia and Africa.
Great team,will try to go again.