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 Priscilla | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Small operation with knowledgable guides and comfortable arrangements!
Chris, our guide from Zimbabwe, was very knowledgable and eager to show us the best that Kruger has to offer taking us to different parts of the park to try to catch a diversity of animals. He was patient and easy to connect with. Being a private tour, we were happy to be able to have the freedom to stop and continue on as our schedule allowed and it allowed us to find what we were most interested in. We saw 4 of the Big 5 on our 3-day tour which is really 2 days with the transfers from Joburg taking half a day each way.
We didn't realize that the driver and guide were one and the same person but this seemed to be the norm at Kruger. Our chef was lovely and made delicious foods but we would have appreciated being given different options beforehand to select our menu from.
Thale from the head office was not very responsive regarding the booking after the initial engagements were made. He doesn't seem to be on the ground with his guides and so may be a bit out of touch with the goings on.
Reply from Wild Planet Safari
Posted on Feb 5, 2024Hi Priscilla,
thank you for the review. I just want to clear up what might be a misunderstanding. I am in contact with my guides every step of the way as well as the transfer company. I made sure you were on the transfer and that my guides were there to pick up when you arrived. I provided them with all the guest info, booking info for the tour as well as a menu for all the meals, based upon the info you provided in the booking form. I know how important staying in contact before and during a safari is, and will always do my very best to stay on top of communication.
Email Andrew Turner | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Friendly guides who helped us see lots of animals within Kruger
Friendly guides who helped us see lots of animals within Kruger
Email Darren | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A well thought and planned African experience
Our tour started in Johannesburg and went up through Kruger and Zimbabwe finishing at Victoria Falls
Our family 4 had a driver/spotter and chef/spotter throughout Kruger- with their expertise we saw everything and had great time. Zimbabwe we had one person doing both jobs - bar no electricity we had a ball. Highlights being walking with rhinos, matapo hills and close experiences with lion and leopard. Food better than expected.
US
Email Chelsea Curry | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A personalized experience with delicious food and comfortable accommodations.
My husband and I's experience with Wild Plant Safari was great! We had a personalized experience as it was just the two of us and our guide. Our guide Gibson really worked to make sure we saw as many animals as possible and we really appreciated his vast knowledge about the animals as well. He was a wizard at spotting the animals through the bush. The food was very good as well and accommodations were comfortable. We enjoyed our jam packed days and would recommend this a safari over a group safari any day.
QA
Email Laurie | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Guide and Assistant Save the Safari Experience
The safari turned out to be a great experience despite a rocky start. Our guide, Chris and his assistant, Benjamin were absolutely wonderful and did their best to provide a good experience. The rocky beginning started with me having to contact the person I was booking with about pick up information which she had not provided. On the drive out Chris mentioned that we would be in Kruger National Park for 3 days, but unlike what the proposal that had not been modified in advance, we would not be staying at Skukuza for 2 nights. Instead we would be in a smaller camp for one night and have to move to Satara for the next two nights. This would have been fine, but we were prepared to be staying where we could get cash from a bank and get WiFi in the camp. Neither was available outside Skukuza so we struggled with that. The company should have informed us well in advance about the change. Also, Chris had not been told that we were supposed to go on the Panoramic Route on day 3 and 4. When he talked to the manager about this, we were given the option of going on this as planned. However, we would have had to pack and move again. Instead we agreed to have a quick Panoramic Route trip the last day only. The guides were great and flexible. Benjamin's food was absolutely fantastic. Chris is very knowledgeable and helped us see the Big 5 and so much more. These two men saved the trip!
Email Sand | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Informal and easy going
+ves:
- Wild Planet Safari responds promptly to all email communication. It is very easy to organise the tours.
- They demonstrate much flexibility and can adapt to your last minute request.
- They are a small team and seem to be passionate about wildlife. Ryan shows significant know-how of the wilderness.
- Polite with a true sense of caring.
-ves:
- The vehicle is quite humble, no land rovers here.
- no fancy food on the tours
Email Pamela | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
An unforgettable journey of a lifetime, a "must do" for everybody
It was so easy to book our trip (for my daughter and myself) with Wild Planet Safari. Everything was done online with Thale whose service and communications were excellent. Our guides Chris and Lungisani were friendly and courteous and great "spotters" of the wildlife which we saw in abundance. We were so lucky to see a pack of 12 wild dogs together, in addition to a group of six cheetahs in one sighting. We saw the big five plus more and were rewarded during our bush walk with a sighting of a pride of lions with cubs. It's difficult to mention a highlight of the tour, there were so many! I'll be back!
AR
Email jose dominguez | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excelente aventura. Guia muy experimentado. Viaje entre 20/05 y 27/05/2017
La atención de Ryan, Thale y sus ayudantes fue muy buena. El es un experimentado hombre de campamento. La familia nos ofreció su tienda para comer y nos hicieron probar en varias oportunidades el vino local, que es muy rico. El safari cubrió nuestras expectativas, aunque debo reconocer que no poder bajar del vehículo en ningún momento fue un poco cansador. No obstante ello, quiero mencionar algunos puntos que tienen que ver con la información y satisfacción del cliente, entendiendo que le puede servir a otros viajeros:
-Nosotros, probablemente por una cuestión de marketing, y de mirar los capítulos exitosos de Animal Planet o de NatGeo, no estábamos bien informados de la dinámica de Kruger, de que “no es un zoo” como nos manifestó Ryan, y que los felinos pueden aparecer… o no. Hay que estar preparado para ello.
-No somos asiduos viajeros de aventura, ni de safari, pero hemos recorrido bastantes lugares del Caribe y America del sur; y como turistas internacionales nos sorprendió un poco no poder decir cuántas veces quisiéramos que se detenga de tal o cual forma para sacar una fotografía… teníamos que aceptar el criterio de Ryan, como si estuviésemos haciendo su safari y no el nuestro…
-De acuerdo a lo manifestado en los correos previos mantenidos con Thale, en ningún momento se nos dijo que la bebida no estaba incluida en el precio… ni siquiera el agua. Se mencionó que la comida estaba cubierta, menos dos almuerzos y una cena, pero nada más. Tampoco el almuerzo del dia de salida estaba cubierto. Nosotros supusimos que la bebida si, porque se nos pidió indicar en formulario previo de adhesión nuestra preferencia por el tipo de bebida, y esto nos creó confusión…. De todos modos, reitero que Ryan nos invitó con vino en varias oportunidades. Para evitar la confusión sugerimos que quiten del formulario previo la mención a preferencia de bebidas y que agreguen, en cambio, una mención muy clara indicando que la bebida no está incluida en el precio.
-En una parada del camino de regreso, Ryan se enojó con nosotros por regatear el precio de algunas artesanías, manifestando que esa gente pobre tiene días y días de trabajo sobre cada artículo, y que no es moralmente aceptable ese regateo. Pues bien, luego de abonar una obra casi U$40, encontramos exactamente la misma en Johannesburgo por la mitad de precio. Asi que como le contesté, Ryan debe dejar a los turistas ser turistas y limitarse a opinar sobre su actividad de guía, que es lo que conoce.
-Tomen los servicios de Wild Planet Safari y al finalizar, recuerden solicitar el pen drive o la memoria prometida con las fotos tomadas por Ryan o por Lungisani. Se les olvidó entregarnos la nuestra.
The attention of Ryan, Thale and his assistants was very good. He is an experienced camp man. The family offered us their tent to eat and we did try the local wine several times which is very rich. The safari met our expectations, although I must admit that being unable to get off the vehicle at any time was a bit tiring. Nevertheless, I want to mention some points that have to do with information and customer satisfaction, understanding that this can serve other travelers:
We, probably because of a marketing issue, and looking at the successful chapters of Animal Planet TV or NatGeo TV, we were not well informed of Kruger's dynamics, that" it's not a zoo"as Ryan told us, and that felines may appear ... or not. You have to be prepared for it.
We are not very adventure travelers, nor safari, but we have visited many places in the Caribbean and South America; And as international tourists we were a little surprised not to be able to say how many times we wanted to stop in some way or another to take a picture ... we had to accept Ryan's criteria, as if we were doing his safari and not ours...
According to the previous emails maintained with Thale, at no time told us that the drink was not included in the price ... not even the water. It was mentioned that the food was covered, minus two lunches and one dinner, but nothing more. Also the lunch on the day of departure was not covered. We assumed that the drink would, because we were asked to indicate in our previous membership form our preference for the type of drink, and this created confusion... Anyway, I reiterate that Ryan invited us with wine on several occasions. To avoid confusion we suggest that you remove from the previous form the mention of beverage preference and instead add a very clear mention stating that the drink is not included in the price
At a stop on the way back, Ryan was angry with us for haggling over the price of some handicrafts, stating that these poor people have days and days of work on each item, and that bargaining is not morally acceptable. Well, after paying a work almost U$ 40, we find exactly the same in Johannesburg for half the price. So, as I said, Ryan must let tourists be tourists and just comment on his guide activity, which is what he knows.
Take the services of Wild Planet Safari and at the end, remember to request the pen drive or the promised memory with the photos taken by Ryan or Lungisani. They forgot to give us ours.
Email Therese | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Good experience
Ryan was very prompt in replying to my emails and very accommodating of our requests to customise our 15 day tour of eastern South Africa. He was very knowledgeable about the wildlife and particularly the birdlife of the areas we visited. The accommodation he booked for us lived up to and sometimes surpassed our expectations. It was a combination of lodges and luxury tents. Overall we had a very memorable and enjoyable safari tour and I would certainly recommend this company.
US
Email Joe | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent and knowledgeable guides enabled perfect viewing of the Big 5
Communication and service were great, and overall enjoyed our experience. Ultimately everyone's goal is to see the big 5, and we saw them all and more thanks to the determination and expertise of our guides. They understood the tricks and necessities to navigate the park at the right time as well as the right places to see the different wildlife, while avoiding super crowded areas. Certain services, such as walk-about and night drive, are not allowed by private guides within Kruger - but Ryan arranged these tours on our behalf with the in-house park rangers.
Accommodations were exactly as expected - however, we were completely blow away and happily surprised by the additional hospitality when our guides prepared our meals the entire time we were in the park.
The overall logistics were convenient and helpful. They picked us up in Jo-burg, transporting us all the way to Kruger National Park. The drive and scenery and additional information along the journey were wonderful. They also drove us back to Jo-burg and dropped us off at the airport with plenty of time to catch our flight.
One downside was being in an enclosed vehicle the whole time, rather than the perceived experience of "open vehicle safari"; however, the enclosed vehicle enabled them to provide the Jo-Burg pick up and drop off, so that was a trade-off we proactively chose. Ultimately, the enclosed vehicle did not prohibit our views nor the overall experience of the safari.
We were very happy with our experience and would recommend to others looking for a great safari experience within the national park.