Team Wild Planet Safari
Wild Planet Safari
- Office In:
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Member Of:
- SATSA & FGASA
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $200 to $410 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
Email Noelene Cole | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
An awesome, informative,wonderful experience. Best holiday ever.
Planning of the trip was excellent. Our expectations were more than met. The knowledge of wildlife, fauna and birds from Ryan is exceptional and we learnt and experienced so much.
Highly recommended tour operator and guide. Every detail was taken care of.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An extremely satisfying safari
We found Wild Planet Safari on the internet, but got really interested when we read the reviews here on safaribookings.com. They sounded too good to be true. Should we dare take a chance on this? We did, and we were more than totally satisfied with the entire experience.
As we thought about it, we began to realize that a 3-4 day tour of Kruger Park was not going to be nearly enough, especially considering the cost of flying to South Africa; a long-enough tour was needed to make it worth the cost. Ten-day tours sounded interesting, and when we contacted Ryan and Thale about it, we worked together to custom-design a 13-day private tour for the two of us.
We can’t say enough about how easy Ryan and Thale were to work with. They helped us figure out what we were wanting in a safari experience, and then they designed the trip around that. Whenever we had questions, they were ready with straightforward answers that were proactive, answering our follow-up questions without us having to ask. They were always a step ahead of us in working everything out. They thoughtfully accommodated all of the special situations that accompanied us, and went out of their way to make everything work out just perfectly.
The safari itself was a dream come true. We had been planning to do something like this for many years, so we had plenty of imaginative ideas about how great a safari should be, but our experiences with Ryan and Thale far exceeded them all. Every detail of the safari was perfectly planned. Ryan and Thale work together extremely well and make everything happen just like it should. Our days were organized as efficiently as possible, to maximize the amount of time we could spend on game drives. It’s hard to imagine a bush guide that could be more knowledgeable than Ryan. He’s got an incredible knack for finding animals. He knows how they think and behave, and his explanations are both amazing and easy to understand. He understands how the “bush” works; how all of the plants, trees, insects, and animals are interrelated. We were spell-bound by everything he had to tell us. There was nothing we could ask him that he couldn’t explain to us perfectly well. You’d expect that the Kruger Park guides would be even more amazing, but that’s not the case; Ryan out-shined them all.
The accommodations were great. We spent some evenings in tents, one night in a bird hide, and some evenings in bungalows. The food was terrific. Thale’s cooking expertise really showed in the evening meals. Everything was cooked over an open fire, and we enjoyed long conversations over delicious suppers. Even though they were the tour operators and we were the guests, most of the time it just felt like we were camping together as friends.
Beyond the safari, Ryan and Thale helped us plan the extra time we had available in Johannesburg. They arranged for some extra tours, accompanied us at meals, and even had us to their own home for meals and to meet their family and friends.
If we ever go back to South Africa, it’s a slam dunk that we’ll be signing up for another tour with Ryan and Thale.
Email Andy and Angela, Southend, England. | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Two week round trip from joburg up to Limpopo, through Kruger, Durban, zululand, draakensburg,return
Undoubtably the most memorable two week journey we've experienced. Cute loved up guides, Ryan knows his subject, Thale great bush cook. Personally tailored service from guys who love the job, plenty communication prior to setting out. Mostly camping ( cos that's what we asked for) with a few nights in cosy accommodation. Dawn to dusk game drives, plenty game, astounding scenery. God's own country. Particularly enjoyed arriving and leaving at the home of Ryan's folks who made us feel like we'd known them for years. Loved the whole experience and would do it again tomorrow.
US
Email JocelynH | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Experience of a lifetime!!!
I cannot rave about our safari with Wild Planet enough. Ryan and Thale were absolutely phenomenal. They were extremely knowlegeable and they did an excellent job locating and tracking the animals, and they were able to answer any question we had about each. Additionally, they were really friendly, laid back and flexible and made the entire experience very enjoyable. We were a little hesitant about wiring money to pay for the safari ahead of time, but it was a totally seamless process. We really could not have asked for a better safari experience from beginning to end. Go with wild planet, you will not regret it.
US
Email Jingjing-RTW | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our dream comes true and beyond!
We love Ryan and Thale, we're having a 10 days family tour with them right now. It's been amazing and super lucky. They went out of their way to arrange everything to make sure we're pampered。they even arranged our flight, resort stay and pickup/drop off before tour started. We've two kids 8 & 6 and they adore Ryan & Thale. They're not only super aknowlegable as guides, also a super cook, playmate for our kids. They made our dreams come true. Kids are convinced Ryan can talk to animals and he can make them to show up.
We also got to meet their family and they're all very warm and fun. We've been traveling around the world, South Africa is definitely our highlight. Thank you Ryan and Thale!
AT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great 11-days Kruger safari tour!
Very well organized Kruger safari tour! We've had loads of game drives in different areas of the park, seeing a lot of different animals including the big 5. The very nice guide showed and explained to us all the things to be seen in Kruger national park, and at night we sat by the fire enjoying barbecue while listening to stories about the land and the park. The camping equipment is very nice and generous, and bungalow accomodation can be arranged individually.
BE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
a perfect customized trip in a friendly ambience
Thales and Ryan proposed a safari tour which responded perfectly to my expectations. Everything was well organised although my request was at very short notice and with little flexibility from my side. They are very well organised, with new and safe material which made me feel relax. I appreciated their good knowledge of wildlife and birds of South Africa. Without them I would'nt have been able to discover all what I saw and it was a pleasure to travel with them. I warmly recommend!
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely amazing, unbelievable experience!
Right from the beginning Thale and Ryan were always available to talk to and answer any question I had.
After we had booked our safari, I had let them know that I would be spending a night in Johannesburg by myself (my husband was meeting me 2 weeks later for our safari). Ryan graciously offered to pick me up from the airport and let me stay at his place and then take me back to the airport the next morning to catch my flight. This was absolutely above and beyond! So unbelievably generous and kind.
The actual safari itself was even better than my husband or I could have imagined. Ryan knew exactly where to take us to see the animals we wanted to see and even once we spotted them he knew the right spot to stop to get the good picture! The food was amazing, real home cooked meals on safari, which is much more than we were expecting (we expecting camping food). He even had some new meat for us to try (like ostrich and wild boar).
The whole experience was absolutely amazing and we would 110% book with Wild Planet Safari again and again!
SE
Email Johan | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An extraordinary adventure, take us back!
Me and my wife Emma did a 15 day eastern circle tour in August with guide Ryan.
A word that runs like a thread through the entire trip is "exciting". All the way from Johannesburg through Kruger and back again. We thought it would be a transport route to the Kruger Park but Ryan is very well-read and tell stories about his own experiences, Rugby, landscape to South Africa's history all the way to Kruger. The trip would take 7 hours but it felt like 2 :-)
We never thought we 'd get so close to wild animals and untouched nature as we did when we booked this trip, Kruger is amazing! And what Ryan does not know about animals and nature is not worth knowing , he also tells us in a way that is easy to set.
The highlight of the trip was day 6 just outside the Satara camp . In one day we saw a herd of Wild Dogs , one leopard and two rhinos!
The food also exceeded our expectations , Ryan cooked everything from scratch and almost always over an open fire. So cozy!
We would warmly recommend others to book with Wild Planet Safari!
Have a nice trip! / Johan and Emma.
SE
Email Fredrik Tiverman | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A wild safari
This was the second time I was on a safari with Wild Planet Safari and its guide Ryan but the first for my wife. We were on a 6 nights/7 days tour in Kruger Like last time we had a really adventurous time, we saw all the big 5 and a lot of other cool animals such as cheetah, wild dogs, large spotted genet, hyena and honey badger!
Ryan knows his way around Kruger and where to find all the animals you want to see!
All the meals we were served during our tour was excellent, he is a real braai-master!
Thanks to Ryan and Thale for this experience, it was awesome! We will be back, that's for sure!!!