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:
- $123 to $469 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
US
Email Jessica Klouser | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Organized, efficient, and extremely pleasant!
We had the pleasure of planning our African safari trip with Kathi Simon. From the very beginning we knew we were in great hands with Kathi. Since this was our first time visiting Africa, we had A LOT of questions. About what we should see, where we should go, accommodations, etc. Kathi was extremely responsive and patient. She answered all of our questions in a very quick time frame and provided us with great detail. We felt going into our trip that we were more than prepared for everything--which really set us at ease.
The tour she created for us exceeded our expectations. The accommodations and our activities were exactly what we wanted. The hotel and safari camp staffs could not have been nicer and more welcoming. When we arrived back at the Cape Grace Hotel in Capetown after our day of touring, the staff all welcomed us with "Welcome Home."
We had a fantastic tour guide, Rhys, for Cape Town and really felt like we were part of the culture!
At our safari camps, we had lunch every day with the giraffes, elephants, and gembocks!
At the Sabi Sands camp our ranger Ronny and tracker Mike went above and beyond for us--they asked us exactly what we hoped to see. On our last day we raced across Kruger and found the African wild dogs! We were riding right beside them in our jeep! We also saw 200+ cape buffalo all come to the watering hole. How magical!
It truly was an experience of a lifetime and I cannot thank Kathi enough for listening to us and planning this amazing trip for us!
US
Email Steve | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing experience in a great location!
Our safari with African Welcome Safaris was amazing and well coordinated. From the hotel pickup to the check in at the tent all went well. On the game drives we had a knowledgeable, funny guide who was able to give us a lot of information on the animals. We had good luck and were able to spot all of the "big 5" multiple times, which helped to make the experience even more memorable. Besides the animals, the park itself is beautiful and amazing to see.
SG
Email Xavier | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
We had a blast...! A class act by African Welcome.
Once my wife and I decided on South Africa for our honeymoon, I checked online for well-reviewed operators and quickly settled on African Welcome Safaris. Kathi was very responsive to my emails and queries.
Having shared my budget, a proposed itinerary and accommodation options was expediently provided. Kathi responded quickly to my request for alternative accommodation options. Fast forward and we had a wonderful time doing our self-driving tour through Cape Town and Franschhoek, followed by our safari experience at Simbavati Hillltop Lodge. We really had a blast throughout the entirety of our trip and everything went smoothly without a hitch. Would be happy to engage them again for future trips...!
ES
Email Paolo Mariggio | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent trip organization
I was please with the service that Alex and the team provided. We were a small group of travelers and a enjoyed very customized itinerary that gave us a good overall safary experiences. The lodges chosen were well organized and the staff friendly. The level of the facilities very high.
I would recommend African Welcome Safaries to anyone who wants a great safary experience.
BE
Email Dimitri | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent service: fast & relevant
I booked this safari (5 nights Manyeleti & Timbavati) only two weeks upfront, with quite specific requests. In spite of the period being high season, Alex provided me with an itinerary very quickly and was able to change one of the lodges according to my wishes, again very fast. The kind of customer service interaction that makes you happy :-) The safari itself was excellent and surpassed my expectations. The lodges were exactly what I wanted, and the rangers were a credit to their profession. Really, really nice!
Thanks Alex for putting together an unforgettable experience for me.
Cheers!
Dimitri
US
Email Seema Reddy | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very well organized and great communication.
We had a wonderful time on our safari and Africa trip organized by Kathi. We enjoyed each location. When we missed a connecting flight, Kathi was in constant communication with us. We loved Capetown and the Sabi Sabi Bush Lodge and would recommend Kathi to others to help with their trip.
US
Email Dj | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
If I could give it 10 stars I would!
No words can adequately describe the overall experience!
I booked this trip early 2018 with Kathi from African Welcome Safaris. She was professional, responsive and super friendly. She answered my 50,000 questions quickly and thoroughly and she handled all of the logistics beautifully.
The safari itself was an unforgettable experience. Selati Camp was out of this world. The staff paid such close attention to every possible detail. Ashleigh, the property manager, was so professional and kind. Keegan and Donald were our guide / tracker duo and they were AMAZING! SO knowledgeable and fun to spend hours each day with as we tracked game on our drives. The house staff (Lucy, Chef Dick, etc) were one in a million.
There were literally surprises around every corner! Expect unexpected experiences pulled together by the staff literally took our breath away (not going to say what they are to avoid ruining any surprises!). And there were wildlife surprises around every corner - from rounding the corner on our drive to go shopping to stumble upon a group of giraffe, to finding an elusive pair of lions wandering across the road en route to the airport on our departure day.
Like I said, 10 stars out of 5. Must book! I will be going back!
CA
Email Lucille | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Kathi is extremely responsive, patient, and worked very hard to plan a trip of a lifetime for us!
5 adults went on a 10-day self-drive tour of Namibia covering Sossusvlei, Swakopmund, Damaraland and Etosha National Park. African Welcome Safaris helped us plan the trip and booked us into incredible lodges along the way. We initially planned to go with 4 people, then it went down to 2, increased to 3 and finally very close to travel time we added a 4th and 5th person to the group. Kathi was extremely understanding and patient and was able to juggle the accommodation to suit this moving target! They provided a very detailed book of day to day driving and sites to visit.
Everything worked out according to plan and definitely met and exceeded our expectations! We stayed in a variety of lodges each with their own special character and strengths.
- Windhoek Country Club was a good place to get oriented and kick off our Namibian adventure! Dinner at Joe's Beerhouse was lovely and gave us our first taste of game meat. Unfortunately, showers flooded in 2 of the rooms - be careful!
- Hoodia Desert Lodge (Namibia Desert) was wonderful in all respects. A great welcome, very comfortable rooms, outside bathtub for 2 or 3 is fun, excellent dinners, very friendly staff and knowledgeable guide (Lucas), refreshing pool after a day in the desert, magnificent stars and sundowner not to be missed! Lunches could have been a little better.
- Swakopmund Luxury Suites - a great, clean, modern room with fabulous bathroom and a very friendly and helpful receptionist. Excellent seafood dinner at Tug restaurant. Enjoyed having a voucher for breakfast - chose Cordes and Co. which had an eclectic setting and very good food. We only had one night booked in Swakopmund, but would have liked one more to take in some of the activities and spend more time exploring the town.
- Mowani Mountain Camp (Damarland). Kathi was determined to get us in here and had to do some juggling to make it happen. This is a beautiful lodge in a very unique setting built into massive rocks. The food is outstanding and most of the staff was excellent. Sunset drinks and appetizers were special! Some of the attitudes and signage were a little pretentious e.g. for Superior guests only - need to make all guest feel equally welcome.
- Ongava Lodge (Ongava Private Game Park) - Excellent, warm welcome, magnificent setting with expansive views from the large patio. A well-stocked reserve so we saw a lot of game on the evening drive.
- Mushara Lodge (just outside Etosha National Park) - Probably the most comfortable accommodation (except for the single room), good amenities and food. The only lodge without a view and nowhere to walk. Lovely pool and meals. Great guide (Jonathan) who went the extra mile (Literally) to show us some incredible game. This lodge is great and the staff were good, but it felt like it lacked someone in charge.
Finally, we drove 2,200 kilometres. We had to go into Windhoek to get the vehicle from Namibia Car Rentals. This was time consuming, and it would have been better to get a car at the airport. The car was very reliable, and fortunately we did not have to use either of the 2 extra tires they recommended we take with us. They were great to come to the hotel to remove the additional seats in the back, which were too small for adults. We needed the extra room for luggage and the extra tire. The drive was not too onerous - about 5 or 6 hours on driving days - some more interesting than others. Don't miss the Spreetshoogte Pass on the way to Solitaire. Enjoyed the Cheetah Sanctuary at Solitaire.
All in all a fantastic vacation!
CA
Email Ashley and Braden | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best vacation of our life!
Our booking was done through Africa Welcome, and the owner, Kathi Simon, took amazing care of us from day 1 of planning. We were on opposite ends of the world, and Kathi had no problem answering our questions quickly and thoroughly, and making changes last minute - she was a gem and the entire reason we were able to go!
In South Africa, we started our voyage from Capetown, on to Franchoek (wine region) and then onward to Kruger National Park and then through Johannesburg on our way back home. The country of South Africa is like no other I have seen - it is so diverse, with a very westernized city like Capetown with amazing food and scenery, and then the wine region which was like Napa Valley or Okanagan (Canada) on steroids - it was THAT good - the buildings were designed beautifully and the wine was fantastic. And finally, the unbelievable wild animal life in Kruger National Park! It really was a dream trip and South Africa is an amazing place with many secrets that unfold for the tourist! Our private lodge, Simbavati, was beautiful, high-end, amazing service and food. Our guides and trackers made our trip, by teaching us so much about the animals, the terrain and the foliage. We loved every minute of our trip and have been highly recommending to anyone who will listen!
You MUST go to South Africa, we seriously thought about how we could move there, that's how amazing it is - no joke, you will be blown away!
Email Alan | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Totally competent
This was the fifth safari that African Welcome have sorted out for us. They know what we want before we ask and we just relax knowing it’s all in hand. We have total faith and we’ve never been let down. Looking forward to the next one
