Reviews of safaris to Central Kalahari Game Reserve

"We were 6 people wanting to avoid the bus tour type trip so that we could control our own schedule and itinerary.

It started with us trying to arrange everything but soon found it difficult to determine which location/accommodation would be "right" for us. Luckily, we came in contact with Expert Africa and the help and recommendations that were given were excellent and in the end, they arranged all the accommodations (save one), the safaris and the air charter. Their guidance on length of stay was very helpful and the resorts, hotels and safaris proved to be excellent and enjoyed by all.

We were guided by Sabina for the Namibia portion and Lucy for the Botswana portion and were rewarded with prompt responses and suggestions to our many questions.

Highly recommend them." Read full review: 7 nights in Africa; 5 on a Botswana safari

"An excellent holiday. We greatly appreciated the help and advice you gave us before we booked the trip - everything went very well indeed. A holiday to remember! We met some lovely people on our travels, both fellow travellers, and the staff at the camps along the way. Everyone we met seemed genuinely keen to be helpful and ensure we had a good time in their country. The wildlife and landscapes we saw were wonderful." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 9 on a Botswana safari

"March is a non-traditional time to visit Botswana, but we found it awesome. The central Kalahari is bursting with life. And the Okavango Delta was awesome too - though the grass was tall, and many of the roads were muddy.

Expert Africa did a great job at putting together a diverse itinerary; in every camp we saw different types of game and landscapes. Their description of the camps and game likely to be seen was very accurate. All the camps were great - well above our expectations. And the off-season rates were very good for the quality of the experience.

This was our first safari, and we were mesmerized by the experience. It is amazing how close the game is willing to come, and how much there is to see. It's like driving into the middle of a Natural Geographic documentary. One of the peak experiences of our lives." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Botswana safari

"Mark Hitchcock took on the task of organising this trip for us. He did a great job and says he could not have done it without Nick Hobbs input.

This was an outstanding trip and my first visit to Botswana. We knew we were taking a risk going towards the end of the rainy season but that we would also see more birds at that time. In the event we had great weather throughout and our drivers also coped with the consequence of the previous flooding. We never got stuck!
In my opinion, with Nick Hobbs input, Mark put together the perfect trip for us. We are very experienced travellers, with a keen and developed interest in the natural world, natural sciences, the environment and exploring new places. We were not there to see the "Big Five" (we did see four of them anyway). We had an unforgettable experience and many, many laughs along the way.

Having been on about 6 weeks of safaris in the past since 1991, i thought this off season trip was also good value for money.

When a problem arose, once we were able to contact you, Chris resolved our issues with an acceptable solution. You cannot ask for more. Well done to him and his team and organisation. I am happy to recommend Expert Africa to others." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 12 on a Botswana safari

"Fantastic!

In the following section, the team member who put our trip together was actually Nick Hobbs; Lucy Copson took over from Nick after he left Expert Africa. My ratings below refer to Nick. Lucy was very helpful and professional in transacting the safari and in dealing with an issue encountered while in Botswana.

Thanks Lucy!" Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 12 on a Botswana safari

"Thank you again, Maruska. Everything went absolutely perfectly, exactly according to plan. We just could not have asked for more, truly a trip of a lifetime. We especially loved Primate Safaris in Rwanda and our guide Sura." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"A great trip. All the arrangements worked well.

Namibia and Botswana are beautiful countries.

We hope to go again and would certainly use Expert Africa." Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 16 on a Namibia trip

"I had a wonderful experience as did my friends.

It was well planned. I was worried we were moving to much but as we did it all made good sense.

We saw more then I could have imagined and the staff were beyond helpful." Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 10 on a Botswana safari

"When I arrived in Johannesburg from Heathrow, London I was given assistance and found myself in a smallish room with television and noise blaring out and about 8 assistants doing nothing. Eventually I asked to be taken to the Gate for Kasane.

When I arrived in Johannesburg Airport from Maun it took nearly 2 hours to get through passport control and I had to re-enter, departures because baggage cannot go direct from Maun to Heathrow. A man who had an identity pass insisted that he gave me guidance ( which I said I did not want) because he knew where I should go.

He wanted $10 for the privilege,, which he did not get, and showed me to the wrong place anyway. After several attempts to get help a lady official opened a barrier and took me through in front of the queue and made sure I had assistance. The 'assistance' said if I wanted to give him "something" I was not to give it to him in front of anyone.(he did not get anything either!). ..Is there no other route to Botswana?

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

I was very satisfied with Lucy's assistance in arranging my visit to Botswana and will definitely consider Expert Africa's assistance if I need any help in the future.

Lucy partly remembered arranging my trip to Botswana six years ago and from that trip we planned this one. Through our Emails I found Lucy friendly, lucid and easy to communicate with and within a few days at short notice My Botswana itinerary was in place. Each stage of the plan went smoothly and there were no hold-ups or my being left stranded. Even at Maun airport I received unexpected assistance to make sure I was where I was expected to be.

My experience of a very enjoyable and well-planned trip leaves me without any suggestions for improving Expert Africa's service - except for, perhaps, including within this form a feature that prevents automatic deletion when accidentally pressing a wrong key or Back to previous page..........

VERY MANY THANKS, LUCY, FOR ARRANGING MY TRIP SO EFFICIENTLY, FROM, JEAN." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 13 on a Botswana safari

"We had a fabulous trip with no disappointments at every stage. The trip was very varied with a range of different excellent game viewing in different environments. The staff everywhere were welcoming with the best trained being the And Beyond staff. The quality of the game viewing ( e.g. three separate lion kills!) was exceptional. In addition to game drives the most memorable and instructive activities were the photographic safari on the Chobe, bush walk and star gazing in the Kalahari.

I do think that the flora aspect of these places are a resource to be developed as their was little information on them unless one asked questions. Premises should label plants important to the animals and the community as it is part of the narrative of the environment.

We would like to thank Lucy Copson for the time and trouble she took to tailor a Safari that met our needs which resulted in two very happy travelers!

We would be happy to recommend Expert Africa to anyone wanting to visit Botswana." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 10 on a Botswana safari