Africa: Reviews from our travellers

"Overall this was one of the best vacations I have ever had.

No major complaints.

The ExpertAfrica staff was a pleasure. Ellie provided recommendations and booked a great trip.

While she was out of the office, Ann Lederman helped with some last minute details. Then, when our flights were screwed up and we arrived in Dar a day late, Ann re-worked our itinerary quickly and saved the trip!" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 4 on a Tanzania safari

"Our whole safari exceeded expectations. The staffs at the camps were very competent and professional, the food was delicious, and the accommodations were superb. The laundry service was also very convenient.

We were impressed how our drivers, Zebron, Sebastian, and Bertram, were able to navigate the maze of roads and off-road areas, and how they always ended up on a road back to the camps. We found the sand-bag bridges across some of the streams and the hand-powered ferry across the Luangwa River to be very interesting engineering accomplishments. And the Toyota Land Cruisers were able to handle all the driving conditions that were encountered.

The spotlight operators on the night game drives, Tom at Nkwali, Jonathan at Nsefu, and Chilamba at Tena Tena, were very effective in illuminating nocturnal animals, and we certainly appreciated their efforts also.

We were very pleased with the arrangements that Expert Africa made for us -- well done!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 7 on a Zambia safari

"From the first contact with Expert Africa we were confident that we had made a good choice.

The lengths Lucy was prepared to go to in order establish our expectations of the trip and match them to specific camps, within our timescale, was extraordinary. She obviously had firsthand experience and was super efficient. Lucy was always a pleasure to talk to, and we really do feel it is down to her expertise that we had such a well-organised and balanced holiday that could not have gone more smoothly.

We were also pleasantly surprised that your prices are so competitive when you offer such a personal service.

Suggestions for improvement:

We have been very happy." Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 11 on a Botswana safari

"We'd done a big trip to Tanzania with you 5 years ago. This one to new corners of Ruaha and Selous was just as good!

Your recommendation on the order of the camps - starting with Mdonya and working up to Beho Beho - was spot on. Trips to Tanzania (especially if you include Beho Beho) are not cheap, but well worth it. The logistics worked well, with Kearsley and Coastal doing there bit. We've rarely been back to the same camp twice but we did it with Mwagusi - and it remains our favourite of the 3 we visited this time.

We had been a bit worried about the new information about the Health Desks at Dar and the need to show your Yellow Fever certificate. You gave us some helpful info on your own experiences. And - after all that - we were never asked for the certificates! I think it would have been different if we were going to Zanzibar or coming from Kenya.

Many thanks - and look forward to travelling with you again." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari

"This was a wonderful trip, can't wait to go back. The organisation was excellent, especially the connections between Kasane and Zambia when we had to cross the river and we both thought we had to use the local ferry only to find we had our own personal boat to get us from Botswana to Zambia.

The lodges were excellent, as were the people and the food. We met some great people while we were there which made the trip even better.

No trip is perfect and we did feel that our pickup from Lebala airstrip at 10:00 in the morning was a bit early. We were obliged to cut short the early morning game drive and as a consequence did to not get a full breakfast. The pickup from Little Vumbura was at 13:00 so why could the same time not been applied for Lebala, or at least a bit later in order to have have breakfast.

But these are minor issues and in no way detracted from the overall success of the trip. There were so many highlights it's impossible to list them all, but the leopards mating at Little Vumbura is going to be hard to beat !!

Suggestions for improvement:

Keep doing what you are doing and you can't go wrong. Certainly I would happily recommend your company to anyone thinking of visiting southern Africa." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"Our trip was nearly flawless! It was great to have a vacation where all the details were arranged for us and all transports occurred on schedule.

Claire Scott was extremely patient, accepting changes to the duration of our trip and answering all questions without a hint of annoyance. We were totally delighted with the choice of hotels and her very good advice." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zanzibar holiday

"Everything that Expert Africa arranged was done efficiently. All the transfers were on time and we were kept informed at every transfer.

Thank you for making our holiday a magic experience." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 7 on a Tanzania safari

"This was a wonderful holiday - exceeding even our highest expectations. The mix of camps (from the family atmosphere of Tafika, to the exceptional game of Kaingo, to the luxury of Chiawa - worked brilliantly. We also thought Zambia a stunningly beautiful country, and hope its tourist industry continues to flourish - It deserves to become a must-visit destination.

I have selected Lucy as the expert africa team member who dealt most, but actually Maruska and claire did lots too (lucy was first though!) and the positive feedback applies to all of them (we were also very impressed with Maruska when we met her in Zambia)


p.s thanks again - we couldn't recommend Expert Africa highly enough. you've been great from start to finish." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 11 on a Zambia safari

"The African people were extremley helpful and nothing too much trouble for them. The landscape veiws are really good with a fantastic sunset every night. There is always something to see.

The days were warm and extra blankets provided while out early morning and late at night to help keep the cold out. The hot water bottles in the bed at night in Lagoon and Labala camps were very welcome.

Our main disappointment were missing predators at Linyanti camp othrerwise a very special and memorable holiday for us both." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 9 on a Botswana safari

"This trip exceeded our expectations in almost every respect and we are happy to recommend a similar holiday to others. Where we have commented on minor shortcomings, they did not detract from our enjoyment in the slightest.

From the first enquiry to Expert Africa, Maruska was most helpful and efficient, modifying and adjusting the itinerary to meet our requirements." Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 9 on a Namibia trip