Discover Africa Safaris team
Discover Africa Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2002)
- Member Of:
- ATTA, SATSA, CTT & IGLTA
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $450 to $2,000 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 David | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Serengeti: Big Cats, Big Herds, The Big Five, the Best Guide
My early July eight-day safari was supposed to capture the Mara River crossings but the herds failed to cooperate and had only just reached the river on the last day. Nonetheless the safari was a fabulous success. We flew from Zanzibar directly to Lake Manyara to minimize drive times and spend more days on game drives. Antoinette put our trip together: the lake, Ngorongoro Crater, the Central Serengeti and the Northern Serengeti. Our guide delivered the goods. Penuel Tango had a vast knowledge of both the animals and the lay of the land along with a fully equipped and fully working vehicle that made the daily game drives easy and fun. Not only did he know where to find the prized critters, he could spot them from far away when all we could see were grass and trees. Lions, leopards, cheetahs, jackals, rhinos, elephants, buffalo, and the great herds were all open to us on every drive. He knew the stories of lion prides in the area. Our goal was to see as many animals as we could and we did. We were up close and personal with lions, cheetahs and leopards on every drive. He was patient made waiting for action a priority and in being so we were often had "private" viewings of the big cats.
The huge herds of the Northern Serengeti were a wonder to see and experience up close as they made their way north and Penuel knew all about them, their habits and life cycles.
Overnight lodging was the lesser part of each day but Antoinette arranged great camps with good food and accommodations that all had very attentive and friendly staff. Boxed lunches provided for game drives were sufficient and varied. July is peak season for safaris and we saw and learned about the experiences of others. Not all were perfect. Not all were well planned. Broken vehicles and bad guides happen. With Discover Africa we didn't have any troubles anytime during the adventure. The planning time Antoinette spent with me up front paid off mightily. Zoom calls with her topped trying to do things only by email.
Everything happened right on time and without any hitches. Flights were smooth and effortless, accommodations seamless, Guide interactions perfect. Excellent work all around.
NZ
Email Caroline | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Seamless Experience !
Megan, thank you!
I am so pleased I worked a 6 night Safari into my Itinerary.
3 nights, 2 days in each park was simply perfect.
Jock Safari Lodge in Kruger was outstanding in all areas, I recommend without hesitation.
Further north, the Sabi Sands provided excellent sightings.
US
Email Jennifer | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Discover Africa, especially Sudan, designed a perfect dream vacation that was 100% worry-free!
Susan at Discover Africa designed a perfect dream vacation for us that was spectacular and worry free. Even all the tour guides with African Eagle were amazing and every interaction was professional and seamless. The lodges she chose were out of this world fabulous, great food and personal attention. And oh, the animals!! Such amazing up close experiences made us feel so special. A million stars.
US
Email Jourden | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Once in a lifetime South African honeymoon
The trip in general was amazing, and planning coordination and expectations were on point. The reason for 3 stars is our first accommodation after over 24hrs of travel was overbooked. There was a lot of traffic due to a Formula E event in cape town so we had to get another Uber to another accommodation across town. This type of hiccup is the exact type of issue I wanted to avoid and have a flawless honeymoon. We had a tour starting early the next morning we had to get up extra early for and drive back across town because it was too late in the evening to notify the tour company our pickup location changed. Our travel consultant Vihann had been messaging on WhatsApp and told me to let him know if there are any issues. When I reached out to him he was unresponsive. To this day he has still not responded. Even if he apologized and said there’s nothing he could do, I would’ve felt better. It shows he truly did not care about our experience once he was paid. So minus 1 star for hiccup and minus 1 for lack of communication. Rest of the experience was A+.
US
Email Robert W | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Vist!
If you're going to South Africa and are trying to decide what to do, and how to get it all done, I suggest using Discover Africa. Adelle Bell was my consultant and she was a great help. After trying to organize on my own and getting information overload, I reached out to Adelle and she was spot on in her ideas and suggestions for my trip. I emailed her with my main goals. She then set up a call with me to gain greater information and then went to work with her suggestions for what I expressed I wanted to do. Discover Africa was not pushy trying to get me to spend money on excursions that I didn't really want to do. Instead, they arranged everything I wanted and I just showed up. All transfers, hotels, airfare, and safari experiences are set up and there was never any bad issues. I even received several messages while there just to make sure things were running smooth. I highly recommend. If I return, I will definitely use them(her) again.
Email Mick Stephens | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Absolutely amazing advice, support and execution. Susan is a superstar!
We are a family of 5 with three kids between 12-17 living in Melbourne, Australia. Coming out of Covid lockdown we were considering our options for the Christmas holidays; we wanted to do something special and were targeting a 4-5 week trip away. Do we stay in Australia, go further North to somewhere in Asia (again), maybe go East to the Pacific or further to South America or, as we finally decided, go west to Africa.
My wife and I had been very fortunate to have travelled reasonably extensively and independently in Africa pre-kids but with a limited timeframe and kids in tow we decided to look for a slightly more organised trip. We still wanted a level of independence but with more certainty on accommodation, transfers and timeframes. Being very busy with work and life generally we also wanted to 'outsource' a lot of the local travel related 'stuff'.
I reached out to Discover Africa via their website and was quickly contacted by Susan. From our very first zoom call with Susan I felt we were in very safe hands. Susan in a very experienced and knowledgeable operator and we quickly built a strong rapport. She was as interested in understanding who we were, how we like to travel as much as the where, when and budget. We told Susan our rough conceptual itinerary based around South Africa & Namibia. Yes we wanted to spend time on Safari but also wanted to expose the kids to local cultures and experiences.
After working with Susan on a number of iterations of the agenda we ended up settling on a self drive with a week in Cape Town and surrounds, driving North though Springbok into Namibia. In Namibia - Namib, Sossusviel, Swakopmund, Erongo Mountains (for Christmas), Etohsa and back down to Windhoek. From there we handed the car back and flew to Vic Falls transiting to Botswana - Kasane Forest and down to Savuti then back to Vic Falls then out via Johannesburg back to Melbourne. While it was not peak season for Safari we did have an amazing time and all without the crowds.
Yes the driving distances were large (Australians are generally quite used to this) and most of the roads quite rough but in all 100% worthwhile. Susan's suggestions for accommodation were absolutely on point and all aspects went smoothly. We did have some mechanical issues with the car we rented - a new Toyota Fortuna from Avis - cracked rim in the middle of the desert and some other issue that required a replacement car. Susan was across this and on the phone to Avis. She was in constant contact, checking how were were travelling, if we need anything and checking we made our destinations. She was like a travel support team and as always keen to hear what we had been doing, how the kids were enjoying everything and providing suggestions for interesting stops along, things to do or watch out for or restaurants worth visiting. The detailed itinerary Susan provided in .pdf and on the website, including all supporting documentation and vouchers, was extensive and detailed. This included driving directions and times.
I cannot recommend Susan and Discover Africa highly enough and will definitely be using their services again (hopefully sooner rather than later).
Email Richard | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Everything we hoped for - and more!
At the outset, we set out our budget, the type of accommodation we wanted and what we hoped to see and Discover Africa delivered on everything.
The travel arrangements - including ground and air transport worked smoothly - at each stage we were kept up to date with any schedule changes imposed by the airlines etc.
Our accommodation was just what we expected - both tented camps were comfortable with friendly welcoming staff who worked hard to ensure that we were happy. The food was good - nothing fancy but wholesome and plentiful if you wanted - in particular the breakfast and lunch boxes were well thought out with a good variety. There was a good selection of house drinks along with tea, coffee etc. The Hot water bottles in the tented camp above Ngorongoro was very welcome - we hadn't expected to be quite that cold.
Both guides were excellent - friendly, considerate and helpful but above all immensely knowledgeable on animals and birds.
We saw everything we expected to see and more - and to be honest, more than we had even hoped for. Our main goal was the Migration Crossing the Mara River but we also saw the Big Five - over two days - along with most of the other animal species and a wonderful variety of birdlife.
We have enjoyed previous safaris in Botswana - Okavanga Delta and Northern Kalahari - and in South Africa - Kruger and KZN - but this trip was probably the best overall safari experience that we have had.
Based on our experience, we would be happy to recommend Discover Africa to anyone interested in a Safari trip anywhere in Africa.
Email Zofia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Solo Trip
I had wanted to go to Africa for a long time but as a young solo female traveller was slightly nervous. I decided to book through a company and Discover Africa were amazing.
I booked in 2019 for a trip in 2020 - then Covid hit. They were great with delaying my trip until 2021 and then 2022.
The trip itself was seamless - I was picked up at the airport and all my transfers throughout my stay were smooth. The locations that were selected for me were amazing.
Adelle was incredibly helpful and responsive whenever I had questions or concerns.
It was brilliant.
US
Email MichMcge | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very accommodating and helpful!
I think it’s important to first note that we originally booked this trip for a 2020 visit, and due to the outbreak of Covid, we had to postpone it … And postpone it again … And postpone it again … And then postpone it for health reasons … And then we were finally able to travel. Through each of these re-bookings, we had the option of getting a refund or to move forward. The company never once suggested that we would lose money as a result of all the rebookings; also, each time we rebooked we made slight changes, and Alice was very flexible and able to accommodate. Even wants we traveled, due to a slight passport glitch, Alice was able to jump in and assist us. The places we stayed were all excellent, the animal sightings were countless, the service, the food …. All were excellent! We truly enjoyed every minute of this experience of a lifetime!
Email Bronwyn Hughes Photography | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
As a solo traveller was fantastic to have everything organised for a hassle free trip
Discover Africa organised 6 night safari to Maasai Mara Kenya for me in May 2022 as I was travelling on my own it was great to have Susan organise everything for me, I didn't have to worry about anything from transfers to accommodation everything ran very smoothly. I stayed at two different camp Ilkeliani Camp definitely being my favour wonderful small luxury camp. Being a wildlife photographer I managed to see and capture some amazing animals couldn't ask for more.
I would book with Discovery Africa again took all the hassle and stress out of travelling on my own.
