African Welcome Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 1999)
- Member Of:
- Southern Africa Tourism Services Association
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $127 to $485 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
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Email Suzanne & Jed Ackerman | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
BEYOND ALL EXPECTATIONS
We used African Welcome safaris for The Rwanda portion of our trip to Africa. From the moment Moses, our guide, picked us up at the airport until the evening he dropped us off several days later, he was nothing but outstanding. Everything was planned for and taken care of. Our stay at Serenna hotel in Rwanda was good. We went to Volcano National Park staying at Sabyino Silverback Lodge. The Lodge was more than we hoped for. First class in every way. The staff were remarkable.
Kathy, who pulled all this together for this part of our African trip did a phenomenal job.
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Email Laura | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfectly executed - even during Covid lockdown!
My family of four (including two teenagers) had the trip of a lifetime thanks to Kathi Simon’s expertise and attentiveness. We planned our trip two years ago and decided we would travel during Covid no matter what! Over those 24 months, Kathi invested a great deal of time listening to our requests, answering our questions and crafting the perfect trip, just for us. As the date approached, she was wonderful reassuring us about traveling during Covid and was able to make a few last minute adjustments to comply with current restrictions.
Once we left home, all of our stress and anxiety disappeared. Travel to South Africa was incredibly seamless and we were shocked how open and welcoming everyone was (even at the airport and passport control!). We kept saying “that was so easy!” We had heard that the average level of service in SA is 5 star service and this is the truth! At each of our 3 destinations (Four Rosmead Hotel, Hamilton’s Tented Camp and Elephant Plains) we experienced superior service and attention. We were treated like family and developed great relationships along the way. We never once felt nervous, unsafe or concerned about the pandemic. In fact, we loved having most of the typical tourist spots much to ourselves! Of course, Cape Town was unforgettable and the safari game drives were epic! The hubs and I loved Hamilton’s for its level of luxury and romantic setting. My kids loved Elephant Plains for the game drives, pool table and family accommodations. We all loved Four Rosmead for it’s quaint homey feel and fabulous breakfasts. In the end, we couldn’t believe how much we experienced in 9 days, with still plenty of relaxation time! Before we even left for home, my husband and I were planning a return trip! And we will definitely be using Kathi and African Welcomes Safari again!
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Email Preston Alder | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Exceptional service and catering to our needs
African Welcome Safaris coordinated a fantastic safari trip to South Africa. We were originally supposed to go in April of 2020, but delayed over a year due to COVID. Our first safari accommodations closed due to COVID but they handled everything really well and helped us get there in June 2021.
From our transportation to and from the safari, to finding the right safari for our group, they nailed it. Everything was safe, clean, and included exceptional service.
ID
Email Dr Mejri | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Offers the ultimate way to experience South Africa
We visited South Africa between 8 May and 18 May 2021. Our overall holiday experience was excellent. The decision to book the trip with African Welcome Safaris was pretty straightforward: throughout the years we built a close relationship with Alex and Kathi and fully trust their personalized services.
This trip was actually supposed to take place in 2020 but the pandemic meddled with our plans. This year, Alex and Kathi provided all the literature, advice and information we needed to feel reassured and forge ahead with the trip. Upon landing in Johanesbourg, it was easy to see that South Africa was ready for tourists and taking Covid-19 protective measures very seriously. Mask wearing is compulsory almost everywhere including in
public transport and on domestic flights.
We felt absolutely safe both in the amazing lodges of the Mluwati Concession in the Kruger National Park and in Cape Town. Everyone was expecting us and a top-class service was never an issue. Food quality in lodges was simply beyond expectations.
The Imbali Chef was truly outstanding and prepared for our daughter vegan menus tasting every bit as good as our the ones for carnivores. Our itinerary combined five days in the magic Kruger with five days in the stunning CapeTown. Simply put, our trip was fantastic and Alex felt like it was so well deserved- because of the Covid situation, which made things uncertain. We won't wait so long to return to South Africa!
Thank you so much, Alex and Kathy. It was unquestionably worth going and we would not have made it without you!
CA
Email Laraine | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Incredible animals, skilled guides. Many extraordinary conversations about life in South Africa.
Kathi organized every detail. While we were still at home, she found ways to communicate to ensure she understood what we were looking for and very flexibly modified suggestions accordingly. Continued to communicate while we were on the trip, reassuring us that someone was always tracking our whereabouts. Able to troubleshoot a couple of times when adjustments were required leading to totally smooth service.
We had 3 different safari experiences. They were all different and all excellent. Each guide was very skilled. The subtle way they located animals and knew where to position our vehicles to get the best views were my favourite parts.
Kathi encouraged us to go to Tanzania for a true "African" experience. It was a real highlight of the trip.
We had asked for some hiking to be part of out trip. When she included a hiking guide, we had excellent experiences.
CA
Email Rosemary | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
This was the best planned and executed vacation we have ever had!!
Throughout our experience with African Welcome Safaris we have found them to be helpful, knowledgeable and very easy to communicate with. We found them to be responsive to our initial queries, mindful of what we said we wanted, while at the same time helpful in making suggestions for things we didn’t know about. We found our drivers, accommodations and safari experience to all be above our expectations. Should you be fortunate enough to have Rhys as your driver at any point, he is amazing. Sabi Sands Little Bush Lodge is a truly lovely experience with such a small, private guest number. The Michalangelo hotel in Johannesburg is the nicest we have ever stayed in and we have stayed in many hotels, in many countries! Thank you so much Kathi, for organizing our trip of a lifetime!
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Email Maxime Delpy | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Tailored to the Needs and Perfect Performance
Great dialogue before the trip, with flexible approach and valuable input.
Perfect execution of the service during the trip: flawless service everywhere with drivers on time, very clean cars, knowledgeable individuals.
Extremely good service! Definitely worth the experience!
SG
Email Alison | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Superb
Communications done with Kathi via email and Whatsapp was smooth and quick, despite the time difference.
My husband and I were impressed with how she came up with a summary for us on our Africa itinerary.
Follow-ups were done well too with the respective safaris and partner agencies. Overall we were really satisfied, our Namibia and Kenya legs were epic, only problem we had was with Lion Sands at Kruger, first night the air conditioning was out and we had to take initiative to get it fixed, second night the power at the treehouse went off twice and ruined our stay. Hopefully we will get our refund as it's still pending.
SG
Email Rachel Yeo | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fabulous, fuss free and extremely responsive!
Kathi was the person we communicated with from the start. She was extremely helpful and responsive, and her detailed itinerary for us from the start was so helpful in giving us a good idea of what each day looked like as well as travel times, accommodations etc. all the accommodations she chose for our group were wonderful. The safari tour was definitely the highlight of our time in South Africa. Mills Manor was the perfect space for our large group and the staff there were extremely thoughtful and attentive. Our ranger/guide for our stay was very knowledgeable and every meal was a feast! I would highly recommend working with Kathi!
Email Jackie Baker | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic service and attention to detail!
Excellent from start to finish. Kathi gave us the best advice and service both before after and during our trip . Nothing was too much trouble and after us having a problem with the flights we booked from the UK Kathi was immediately on the case to help out from her end . When away we had some queries regarding board set up in the hotel and she was able to answer them immediately. All reminders regarding flights check in and documents required were given well in advance. Quality of accommodation was second to none . Can’t speak highly enough of Kathi and all advice we received. Will definitely be in touch again for our next trip .