Our Safari Blog

This was my 6th trip to South Africa and Botswana and, as always, Matthys van Aswegen made it a happy, safe, and exciting experience! My roommate, Glenna, and I thoroughly enjoyed the trip to South Africa’s Boulders Beach to visit the African Penguin Reserve and all the beautiful scenery in that area. Another Discover Africa staff member, Kayla Robson, joined Glenna and me for dinner one evening and it was such a delight getting acquainted with another Discover Africa person whose talents enrich the travel experience.

When we arrived in Botswana we were so pleased to have the two guides I have always requested and, even though I’ve been at Camps Moremi and Savute before, they provided us with safaris that added to my previous experiences, learning new things about animal behavior and, the bonus, twice seeing a cheetah – a cat I hadn’t yet seen in Botswana!

And I’m already planning my next trip to these two fabulous countries!

We had a wonderful safari experience, and Justin from Discover Africa made everything seamless from start to finish. Communication before the trip was clear and helpful, and we felt well supported throughout.

Some truly special moments including the fantastic lodge we stayed at (Arathusa) and the incredible wildlife sightings made the trip unforgettable.

Everything including flights and transfers ran smoothly, which allowed us to simply enjoy the experience. We would happily recommend Justin and Discover Africa to anyone planning a safari.

I was recommended Discover Africa by a friend who raved about them for their African Safari adventure and they didn’t disappoint. From the start the communication was timely, despite the time zone difference, and the advice was thorough and precise. It seemed to me that our agent, Susan, was always available no matter what time I was communicating with her. More than that she regularly checked in with me during our trip to make sure all was going well and checked us in for all our internal flights ahead of time.

The first thing Susan did was to find out what we wanted from our trip and then used that to tailor an itinary that met all our desires. Susan’s intimate knowledge of tourism in Africa had us booked into game reserves and guides in South Africa and Kenya which had all the big 5 on display plus more. The accommodation and tour guides she organised were fantastic.

Thanks to Susan we have had an African adventure taking in Karongwe and Masai Mara game reserves, Victoria Falls and the beautiful city of Cape Town which has provided photos, videos and memories we will cherish for the rest of our lives.

The service we recieved from Discover Africa was exceptional and went beyond our expectations. I couldn’t recommend them more highly.

We have just returned from a trip to 3 different safari camps in Botswana, a short trip to Victoria Falls and a gorilla trek in Rwanda that was booked with Susan from Discover Africa. We couldn’t be happier with the direction and support she gave us to truly make it a trip of a lifetime.

Although the three camps she booked for us were geographically quite close, they were very different in the wildlife viewing experiences, with different focuses for each (we were at camp Okavango, Xakanaxa camp and Chobe Game Lodge). We saw all the animals and birds we dreamed of seeing in Africa with the exception of the rhino as conservation efforts are currently underway and they are located only in central Botswana at this time. The accommodation was incredible at all of them, the food delicious and the staff exceptional. Such lovely, welcoming people.

Rwanda was an absolute favorite and not just for the amazing gorillas. The country is lush and beautiful, the people warm and welcoming and the Bishops house hotel was incredible.

Susan coordinated all of our bookings and when one of the airlines cancelled our flight within hours of our flying, she was completely on it and got us re-booked and on our way, even arriving an hour earlier than the previously scheduled flight. We would definitely book with Susan and Discover Africa again.

Africa was on my travel “wishlist” but I never thought I would actually get there

That all changed when our son was home for a visit over Christmas. He announced that he and a friend were going to Africa. They had selected DISCOVER AFRICA to plan their trip. He shared all the details with us and we decided it was an adventure we had to experience as well.

Our son connected us with Vihann Van Wyk at Discover Africa, the same agent he was using. Vihann was a pleasure to work with. He coordinated our trip with our son’s and tweaked the details as requested. Communication was a breeze through both email and WhatsApp. Vihann made suggestions as well as accepted specific requests from us to build a custom itinerary. No detail was overlooked. Some accommodations were adjusted to keep us within budget without sacrificing our experience.

All drivers, tour guides, experiences & lodging did not disappoint. All internal flights were on Airlink …. better than some regional airlines in the USA. The weather was perfect too!

Deborah's Safari Experience

Our itinerary included:

*CAPE TOWN – Radisson Blu Waterfront Hotel….very nice property with an excellent breakfast and beautiful outdoor dining. Must sees were the full day Cape Tour, Wine Tour to Stellenbosch, Table Mountain and High Tea at the Cape Grace Hotel.

*KRUGER NTL PARK – Lion Sands Tinga Lodge….a dream experience! Excellent private bungalow, twice daily game drives, delicious food, and a wonderful massage and facial at the spa. The staff was outstanding.

*VICTORIA FALLS – Shongwe Lookout Lodge…a modest property that met all our needs and saved us some money. We experienced the Zambezi River sunset cruise, Victoria Falls ( incredible!! ) , lunch at the Lookout Cafe and a visit to the historic Victoria Falls hotel for lunch.

*JOHANNESBURG – Marriott African Pride Hotel in Melrose Arch ….an upscale area with lots of shopping and dining. The Soweto Tour was an experience not to be missed. We visited Nelson Mandela’s office and home. The Apartheid Museum was sobering and moving.

Lastly, every where we went we met the nicest people….friendly and helpful.

Excellent adventure! An experience like no other!

Susan took care of us from the planning to the experience itself. She was always available for us in answering questions and find best solutions. While on tour she kept in contact with us all the time. In terms of services, very well organized and reliable local operators (Namibia).