QA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Unforgettable Experience!
I always wanted to visit Africa since i was a child, explore the greenery, meet the people, see wildlife in its natural form so i convinced my husband that one of the things that we ought to do is visit Africa and climb Mt. Killimanjaro!
Since this trip meant so much to me i just wanted it to be perfect, i remember sending soo many emails with all sorts of queries and questions to peter and he not even for once shut me down or was unavailable to answer them.
From arranging a tour according to our budget, giving us the best of the lodges to stay in, ensuring we are in the company of well informed guides, they really made our experience in Africa a truly unforgettable one!
Excellent guides, friendly staff
Bubezi Safaris provided us with an excellent trip, hosted by knowledgeable drivers and friendly staff in general. Although we only spend two days with them I'm very pleased with their service.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The 8-day trip was relaxing, well-organized, and of great value
The communications in planning this trip were very good, the service was excellent, and the trip generally lived up to our expectations--even though when we booked it we did not exactly know what to expect. The first thing to understand is that this the 8-day safari is not a constant trip in the bush. Our director from Africa-Zim, Blessing, is wonderful--very organized and professional, as well as informative. Moreover, it was only our family on this tour--me, my husband, and our adult daughter, and we really appreciated the flexibility this trip offered. The first day we traveled from Livingstone to the Chobe Safari Hotel. The hotel was luxurious and the service was great, as was the boat tour on the Chobe river that we took the afternoon we arrived. The guide on the boat was superb in his ability to spot and talk about wildlife. The next day, we went to the Chobe game reserve, and once again, the sights were spectacular, and the expert guide made the 3-4 hour outing quite wonderful. The following day we drove about 7 hours to Maun and the Sedia Hotel. The hotel is not the best; the outing to the Okavanga Delta was very interesting, but we saw little wild life, in part because of the season. Nothing was scheduled for the next day in Maun, so my husband and I paid extra for a trip to the Moremi Game Reserve. It was a long drive, but once again, the guide was absolutely wonderful and it was well worth the added expense. The following day we spent in the Africa-Zim air-conditioned, comfortable van driving back to Victoria Falls. The Rainbow hotel was lovely, with a view of Victoria Falls and all the amenities one would want. We had a great time touring Victorian Falls the following day. Blessing then took us to the exquisite, historical Victoria Falls Hotel for a wonderful lunch, and then a celebratory dinner of authentic Africa cuisine at the Bhoma Hotel (with music, drums, singing, and dancing) our last night. It had been my husband's birthday the day before, and Blessing went out of his way to have the restaurant present him with a birthday cake. We had a wonderful trip. The only slight downside were the long drives between Chobe, the Okavanga Delta and back to Vic Falls, but the scenery was interesting, the air conditioned van very comfortable, and we really enjoyed talking to Blessing and learned a huge amount from our conversations with him. We had a wonderful trip for a very reasonable price and I strongly recommend Africa-Zim. Thank you so very much, Blessing.
HK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Kenya by Sakshi Verma (www.sakshi.photography)
I've only been on one safari holiday in Kenya. This one lived up to all my expectations, and more!
vast and remote
4.000 km² and just a few guests... this is Khaudum NP. More or less impossible to travel in rainy season because of water and mud, deep sand in dry season and a mixture of both in between (March to May and October to November).
You will find 2 camps - Sikereti in the south, about 40 or 50 KM north of the southern entrance. Some shady places, 2 showers with cold water, 2 toilets - thats it. No electrical power, no comfort. It's for people who enjoy bush camping. Khaudum camp in the north, what means 100 KM south of the tar road will offer more - there is some building-work at the moment and in December 2014 travellers should find a new lodge and 6 or 8 campsites - offering some amenities.
Between these camps you drive some nasty tracks, deep sand, sometimes mud. Some of the tracks are overgrown with plants and bushes - so take care about the cooler of your car and clean it - the seeds will clog your Radiator!
Bring everything with you - if you have a problem with your car or if you get stucked there is nobody - think about water, food, recovery gear, GPS, maybe a Sat-phone to call help if you are in deep trouble. Fill up Diesel - you should be able to drive 500 KM on tar-roads to get through the deep sand of the park. Consumtion of the car at least doubles!
Best time to visit the park is the European summer - you might see Elephants Giraffe, Lions. Game leaves the park and trek to Botswana in the rainy season. To be able to travel the park you should have 4x4-experience and a reliable car - if you have the chance travel together to be able to help each other!
Until building-work is done the pad north of the Khaudum camp ist nasty to drive - the building trucks (huge and 6x6) make the sand deaper as it is normally. 3 days for the park are ok - first day to Sikereti camp and some game drive, second day from Sikereti to Khaudum camp, third day from Khaudum to Caprivi-camps. Ask the wardens at Sikereti - they might have some Information what tracks you can use and tracks that are not existing anymore. Try to find the water-holes and use the stands for game-viewing!
Khaudum is nothing for faint-hearted people but an adventure in a vast land!
NZ
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Small tour, excellent guide, and mix of national and private parks & experiences.
Exceeded expectations. Variety of accommodation always with ensuite facilities. Comfortable eight seater vehicle. Masihambe have good alliances with knowledgeable individuals and tourist operators. Any questions answered before and during tour. Good mixture of activities, parks, experiences, accommodation and meals.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing life experience in Kruger!
What an amazing trip. We were picked up at our hotel in Joburg and took the sightseeing drive to Hazyview. (Definitely stock up on the smoked macadamia nuts along the way!) Gods window and another great stop at a waterfall. Great sights. We arrived at Hippo Hollow and enjoyed staying in one of the garden chalets... it would have been nice to have a river view to watch the hippos at night and the elephants by day but all in all we were only 10 meters from the view so all was fine. We were picked up at 4pm for a night safari (it gets cold in April!) and actually saw a leopard eating an impala in a tree! Super rare and makes up for our not seeing a lion during the rest of our trip. The full day trips were very nice. less activity during mid-day but it was really nice to turn off the truck and soak in the sound and view from time to time. so peaceful.
What we did:
-1 night safari - Was ok but would not repeat. basically you shine a spotlight and drive slowly looking for eyes reflecting back at you. 99% are impala. we did a larger group with 10 people (strangers) and would not opt for that group size again. you lose all peaceful elements of the drive
-2 full day safari - definitely recommend a private tour or going with another couple you may know. its a long time to spend with strangers you may not care for
-1 1/2 day morning safari - this was fine as we were leaving for Joburg afterwards
What I would change...
-I would consider adding in a hike through the park with one of the trackers. This looks VERY cool!(and safe)
-I would consider staying at a camp inside the park. I actually would like to get deep into the [park and stray at one of the small camps... by camp I mean a small fenced in area with permanent tents and toilet. bare bones but very down to earth. May as well get very acquainted with the local beasts!
Ute and Roho Ya Chui did a great job and were very attentive of our needs during our trip. Its a fear that once you pay the broker is done with you but this was not the case with Ute. She is attentive and fast to respond during our trip. This is worth a lot and when we do another safari Ute will be receiving a call from us.
Enjoy your trip!
** Oh, one more thing. If you choose to do everything bay car/truck you cont need to buy all the safari gear listed on various sites. a tan shirt is more than enough. the animals cant see your legs in the truck and there are so many people moving through the park that you could have a flashing light on top of your head and the animals wouldn't care. okay, maybe that's an exaggeration but you get my point.
Enjoy!
Arusha to Serengeti in 7 Glorious Days
We experienced the adventure of a lifetime during our 7 days travelling from Arusha in the east to the Serengeti in the west. Erasto Mollel was a fabulous guide who is well educated in the culture, wildlife and flora of Tanzania. He arranged the itinerary and accommodations for our private tour but we modified it to see other interesting things that we discovered or to adjust timing in a location. We were there at the beginning of the rainy season (low season) and Erasto knew the best spots at each location to find animals. It took some time but with Erasto’s persistence, we saw three black rhinos at Ngorongoro Crater, which was high on our list of animals we wanted to see.
We stayed in clean, upscale lodges with good food and traveled in a Land Cruiser, which is much more comfortable for the dirt roads than a van. We often took different paths than tour operators traditionally take and were well rewarded. If you are open and adventurous, Erasto will introduce you to Africa in a unique and personal way.
I recommend E&H Blessed Safari's for the trip you will remember for a lifetime.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A wonderful combination of scenery, wildlife, accomodations and personality.
We haven't been home but a couple of days and are already planning a new expedition with Thinus Blaauw of CrissCross Namibia Safaris. Our almost 3 week tour of Namibia hit all the highlights we had read about as well as a few places we never would have found on our own. The camps and lodges suited us well, even though we booked late and Thinus had to scramble to reserve all the places we needed. Pretravel communication included a complete description of possible itineraries as well as a an effort to get to know our small group of four early elderly travelers. Thinus led us deftly but never with a heavy hand and there was always opportunity for aimless wandering and picture taking. But his strongest suit may be a sense of humor that cushioned even the rockiest gravel road.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Namibia and Thinus Blaauw constantly amazed us
We spent 3 weeks traveling the length of Namibia with Thinus Blaauw in May just after the "rainy" season in a 6 person 4WD van. Every day was a new adventure and Namibia had a new surprise for us from beautiful desert dunes and open skies to canyons and moonscape to unique quiver trees and fossils to minerals and ghost towns to waterfalls and animals. The mix of cultures and peoples was wonderful too. Thinus put together an ambitious itinerary at our request and made it all happen. European dining and lodging in a remote setting. What's not to like? The best part may have been Thinus himself, a native and veteran of the many changes that have occurred in Namibia; he is a wealth of information, not to mention kindness, realism and optimism for the future of his country. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience and would gladly travel again with CrissCross Namibia.