Zimbabwe

- South Africa

- Zimbabwe

Michael and Alexandra from Michigan travelled to South Africa and Zimbabwe

Hello Rob, from start to finish, this was a trip of a lifetime! As soon as we arrived we felt like family and were warmly welcomed by everyone. The staff at both Dulini Lodge and Singita Ebony Lodge were amazing. The attention to detail was incredible. Any request we had was accommodated. The animal sightings were simply astounding. In Victoria Falls, the sunrise walking tour was breath-taking and Clive was an absolute thrill to have as our guide. I know we questioned the sunset dinner cruise, but this greatly exceeded our expectations. Arriving in Cape Town, Tobie from Vineyard Ventures was an excellent addition even with the minimal time we spent with him. He was very knowledgeable of the area and delightful to talk to as we made our way from place to place. The Cape Grace hotel was fantastic. We took advantage of the complimentary wine tasting they offered in house daily starting at 6pm. This was a fun perk to experience while there! Both the food and service at Cape Grace was top notch. For our all-day tour of the Cape, we could not have asked for a better guide than Glen from Vineyard Ventures. She is absolutely delightful, and I cannot say enough good things about her. The first thing that caught my eye upon arrival at The Marine Hotel in Hermanus was the beautiful panoramic views of the ocean out of our room. Our whale watching excursion was very fun. Once again, the staff at Dyer Island Cruises were very knowledgeable and helpful. For our final day, we were happily gathered by Glen to take us through the South African winelands. She hit the nail on the head with our tour! We got to experience a little of everything from sauvignon blanc to cabernet sauvignon to the pride of South Africa, pinotage. At Mont Rochelle, the views of Franschhoek out of our room were gorgeous. Overall, this trip was simply amazing. We highly recommend both doing a trip to Africa as well as working with Safari Consultants for the planning. We cannot thank Rob and his team enough for the thought that went into planning a trip like this and for the memories we now have that will last us a lifetime

- South Africa

- Zimbabwe

Robert and Janet from Michigan travelled to South Africa and Zimbabwe

Dear Rob, the trip you planned for us was beyond the pale wonderful. We are home, but I am still processing all the fabulous things you planned for us. Loved everything, including all accommodations, Toby and fabulous Glen. You are amazing. Thank you for the wonderful memories.

- Malawi

- Zambia - Zimbabwe

Peter, Yannette, Oliver and William from Leicester travelled to Zimbabwe, Zambia & Malawi

Dear Mary, I promised a few comments from what has been a wonderful holiday. The plan to base our holiday on the Zambia bank of the Zambezi, opposite where we had our honeymoon was perfect – you have now organised South Africa, Namibia, Kenya and Zanzibar for us, and goodness knows how many for friends. We have loved each part of every trip. Our 2 super-highlights? Perhaps Sosian when the children were younger, and now Tusk and Mane Mobile Camping. It is the variety of textures and activities within these two settings combined with the outstanding and very personal organisation and delivery of every minute in a private setting that made them our favourite moments. Kyle and his fiancee Sarah put a huge amount of effort into making sure everything was as we hoped. Kayaking through crocodiles devouring a dead hippo (we lost count at 60 and they really were that close to our kayak and had to be pushed off), fishing (William caught the biggest Tigerfish in memory on that stretch of the river – first cast), then a surprise with Kyle showing him how to open his first bottle of “champagne” for an early birthday present, early morning drives watching 3 male lions playing together before resting, elephant galore eating from the trees, followed by a couple of hours peaceful walking in quite the most beautiful woodland. There were night drives to see new borne leopard and in the “quiet” 2 hours after lunch Kyle would take me fly fishing on my own, casting right into hippo pods where the tigers lurked – and all with almost no one else around. You have found a great new adventure here. I’d strongly recommend 4 nights as we did. Clive at Purple Patch Transfers and Tours was wonderfully colourful and hands on in Vic Falls and looked after us incredibly well. Pumulani really does have spectacular villas. We were again very lucky to be almost alone there so had wall to wall activities every day. So much for resting! Swimming with countless cichlids, tough walks up the hills, kayaking, pico sailing, dhow cruises, star gazing, paddle boarding, water skiing and tubing amongst the activities we did. A heart felt thank you again for your patience and advice. It has been a truly wonderful trip.

- Malawi

- Zambia - Zimbabwe

Peter, Yannette, Oliver and William from Leicester travelled to Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi

Dear Mary, we have had the most fabulous time and have been singing your praises to anyone who will listen! I shall write in more detail later but we have packed every second of the trip with adventures. And loved every moment. With Tusk and Mane, and Kyle and Sarah, you have achieved the near impossible given what you have arranged for us before. Providing the happiest holiday moments of our lives. It is simply exceptional.

- Botswana

- Namibia - Zimbabwe

Pamela from Leicester travelled to Zimbabwe, Namibia and Botswana

Dear Rob, I just wanted to say thank you for putting together such a wonderful itinerary. It was a memorable trip and every single day offered something magical. I just wanted to add my thanks and appreciation of a truly wonderful time in all three countries. The locations and accommodation were spot on – as always! It was fabulous – from the might of the Victoria Falls, to lions and their cubs, being entertained by the elephants (great to watch them drinking from the plunge pool at Somalisa!), seeing a cheetah, the elusive leopard and more hippos than I could imagine! The water-based viewing from the river boat and the peace and tranquility of the mokoro were amazing and a wonderful contrast! Thank you. It’s tough to be back!

- South Africa

- Zimbabwe

Judith and Martin from Durham travelled to South Africa and Zimbabwe

Hi Frances, we had a wonderful holiday and would like to thank you for all your help and advice. Although there were a few travel glitches, you had planned everything in meticulous detail, the hotels were all lovely, everybody looked after us well and left flowers, wine and chocolates in celebration of my birthday – you must have arranged that! All your written information was really helpful and detailed and we enjoyed using the App. This was just what I wanted – an unforgettable holiday to celebrate reaching 60 and you more than delivered on that. Those wonderful memories will remain long after the memory of our plane journey home has ended.

- Botswana

- South Africa - Zimbabwe

Clive, Helen, Jonathan, Hayley, James, Sarah, Thomas & Emily from Berkshire travelled to Botswana, Zimbabwe & South Africa

Hi Michele, I now have access to my emails and a mobile for the first time in over two weeks! Really we just wanted to say a great big thank you to you and your team. You put a fantastic itinerary together that really captured our requirements. All the accommodation was excellent and all the people we interacted with (with one slight exception) were lovely helpful people. Inevitably issues will arise on such a package but whatever arose your team responded very quickly and sorted things out – even over Christmas! We particularly appreciated your excellent response to the car hire issue. If we can provide any further reference or endorsement to support your business then just let us know. Once again many thanks for organising this trip of a lifetime.

- Zimbabwe

Susan and Derek from Staffordshire travelled to Zimbabwe

Hi Mary, just to tell you our trip was really wonderful. The dinner cruise was probably everyone’s highlight, a stunning sunset, entertaining crew on the boat and plenty of wildlife to view. The hotel was fabulous, we all loved the understated atmosphere and were very appreciative of what it must take to run everything given the economic situation. The golfers had two great games and enjoyed chatting to the caddies and viewing more wildlife from the golf course. Back at the hotel, Suzanne and I had our own wildlife show from our sunbeds with families of warthogs, mongooses, baboons and monkeys providing the entertainment. Amazingly, we hardly had any rain, lots of sun and we all loved the falls even without the big curtain of water. So a great result, many thanks again Mary!

- Botswana

- Zimbabwe

Diane from Canada travelled to Botswana and Zimbabwe

Hi Mary, just arrived home a day ago from Vic Falls… and I just wanted to say ‘thank you’ for creating a wonderful trip to Botswana and Zimbabwe! I had a fantastic time, took plenty of great photos and met some really interesting people along the way. I can’t recommend Pangolin Chobe Lodge enough!!! What a terrific experience working on advanced photographic skill development with the staff – especially Sabine. Great instructor/photo host! What a great suggestion Mary – I would definitely go back to Pangolin in a heartbeat! Thank you for talking me into staying at this location. It’s fantastic! I really appreciated all the time and effort you placed into organizing and coordinating this trip – I truly enjoyed it! Many thanks and I’ll be in touch to chat about the next destination soon!

- Zimbabwe

David and Pamela from Surrey travelled to Zimbabwe

Dear Rob, we had a good time in Zimbabwe. I think it’s true to say that it exceeded our expectations given the problems the country has had and continues to have. With fuel shortages and empty shelves in the shops the camps still manage to provide all their clients need. Both of the camps were well-managed and very much orientated to provide their guests with the best experiences they could. The elephants in Hwange gave us the best sightings we have ever had: better than Chobe. Seeing literally hundreds of elephants come down to the water hole to drink as the sun set was a remarkable sight. We saw more kudu in Hwange than we have seen anywhere and we also saw sable which are such beautiful antelopes. No leopards in Hwange but we did see good cheetah and lion. It was a privilege to be guided by Nick in Mana Pools. We walked with the dogs which was amazing. We also saw the elephant which stands on its hind-legs to break branches (they call him Boswell after a circus ele which was taught to stand on its hind-legs) which is another amazing sight. We also saw more eland in Mana Pools than we have ever seen before. Pamela had a great 60th birthday including the presentation of an elephant dung cake. They went out of their way to make it a special day. I should also add one final point. We have travelled with you so many times we expect things to run smoothly and once again they did. We forget that in Africa things often go wrong and things don’t happen as and when they should. Everything you organised was exactly as it should have been which we sort of take for granted when it’s clear that often doesn’t happen. Thanks again.