Botswana Safari – Short and Sweet

The trip that was put together by Chrizaan Troch at Discover Africa was amazing. The accommodation was perfect as was the driving experience. This was our third self drive tour in Namibia and it was one of the best. Maps, accommodation, car, support all seamless.

We contacted Discover Africa to help us plan my 40th birthday trip and we have no regrets. Justin organised the perfect trip and everything went so smoothly. Our trip was truly amazing and the accommodation options he suggested for us were all amazing in different ways. We would highly recommend.

We began planning our safari by researching companies that offer both prepackaged and custom tailored trips. We interviewed our top 4 over Zoom or by telephone. Discover Africa, and Diane in particular, came out miles ahead of the others. Diane listened to our needs, anticipated things we had not thought of and provided suggestions, and worked with us to tweak this trip to be exactly what we wanted. Communications was top notch. Their portal for providing trip details was beautiful, thorough and very easy to use. Payment was seamless.

The trip itself turned out to be everything we had asked for and more. The logistics of moving us from camp to camp and country to country had is a bit worried, as it was just the two of us and not an entire tour group. Well we needn’t have worried. Between Diane, the camp management and the transportation providers things ran seamlessly. We had lots of contact numbers for Diane, Discover Africa and our providers should we run into any snags, but all went very smoothly.

Moyra's Southern Africa Safari Experience

The camps themselves, as well as Cape Town, were beyond our expectations. People truly couldn’t do enough for us. We felt safe and cared for at all times. The food was plentiful, varied and delicious. The scenery was spectacular and varied. The guides were friendly, so knowledgeable, and very accommodating. We saw every animal on our list apart from the elusive cheetah. We experienced some very rare and fortunate sightings. We particularly enjoyed the communal dining at the camps and were happy to meet travellers from far and wide, learn from them, and develop new friendships.

One of the highlights for me was the welcome and pre dinner entertainment provided by the staff at the camps. Cooks, housekeeping, guides, managers, waitstaff…they all came out with singing and dancing that was just so beautiful and heartfelt. How privileged we were to spend time with such multitalented and beautiful people.

Looking at our early plans for the trip, the style of travel, and our budget, the trip evolved into something so much more customized, comfortable, and yes…more expensive. Before leaving on the trip I was second guessing how much I chose to spend and whether it was overkill. Let me tell you…this trip was worth every Penny. It was the experience of a lifetime and I’m so glad we discovered Discover Africa and Diane who made it all possible.

What a fantastic choice we made! We are from the uk and decided to book our tour with a local African tour operator rather than someone from the uk who has never visited the place. The trip was booked pre-pandemic, however, all way through lockdown Megan from Discover Africa, contacted us regularly, kept us updated and made sure that as soon as the borders were open that our trip went ahead.

We visited SA, Botswana, Namibia & Tanzania. Every transfer was on time, every hotel was excellent and on each safari we saw amazing things – including seeing the big 5 (although not guaranteed!)

Towards the end of the trip SA went on to the “red list” and we couldn’t get home, what a relief it was to know that with a quick whatsapp call, Megan was on to it, hotels were booked and a tour of the Garden route sorted during our extended stay. Our favourites were Babylonstoren and Grootbost which allowed us to experience the diversity of South African nature.

The whole trip was an experience of a lifetime, the Serengeti, the Okavango Delta, Etosha, the Ngorongoro crater to name but a few places we visited.

In essence I would highly recommend Discover Africa to anyone wishing to travel there. I will most definitely be using them again. Great work Megan!

Right from the initial enquiry we were given useful advice on the type of trip to do in Botswana in February, the booking was handled efficiently, and all contact was of a friendly and courteous nature. We had some issues with our international flights, but our consultant (Judy Burrows) helped us to resolve these despite not having been involved in the booking process.

The safari itself ran very smoothly, from being met off our flight and assisted through the airport in Maun by representatives of the charter flight company (Moremi), through all the transfers between camps, and a final meet and transfer to our hotel at the end of our trip. The camps were all of an excellent standard, and we had many memorable sightings of animals and birds. The guides were very knowledgeable and skilled at tracking predators in particular.

The food was excellent, and rooms comfortable and clean. It was good to see that the safari company (Kwando) employed mainly local people at all levels including management, and the inclusion of a short session of singing and dancing by camp staff before dinner one night was a highlight of the holiday.

I would definitely use Discover Africa again for future trips.

It took one e-mail to Discover Africa (very friendly and competent staff), one phone call for details and one phone call for minor modifications and in the end we had a perfect holiday experience – a magical Botswana safari as they titled it. The self-driving tour (4×4 camper) included Kalahari, the pans, Okavango, Victoria falls, Tuli block.

In detail we have been at some fantastic spots we would have missed without their recommendations. The pre-organized accommodation (on campgrounds in our camper, in tented camps, in hotels and in luxury safari lodges) turned out as a mixture tailored to us.

Summary: Discover Africa organized a perfect trip for us.