Reviews of trips to Lusaka area

"The fact that we have now made ten trips with EA since 2006 speaks for itself - and this one was right up there with the best. We continue to have no hesitation recommending Chris and his team to others." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 8 on a Zimbabwe safari

"Accommodation was good or excellent. Staff were attentive, cheerful and helpful. It was a truly memorable holiday

There was a lack of game in general which detracted from an otherwise excellent safari.

We were told there was a 14 day menu but we had same dinner on consecutive nights on two occasions which was disappointing. On one occasion the menu should have been fish and I suspect as my wife does not like fish the next days menu was prepared ather than making her a different dish. The last night was completely vegetarian, I wonder whether this was because some other guest(s) were vegetarians.

I bought with me two batteries and a charger with me for my camera. The limited time in which batteries could be re-charged during the middle of the day meant I could not leave the camera on during game drives and hence missed photo opportunties as the camera powered up and secondly I had insufficent power to review and delete photos between game drives. The solar power systems appear to be inadequate to service the charging to batteries and the rest of the camp.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

There was not enough emphasis on how sparse the game could be at this time of year by the Expert Africa staff. When we were there the guiding staff had a much more realistic view on what we might see." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 11 on a Zambia safari

"Any concerns about a return trip not living up to expectations were ill founded. Every bit as good as last year but also different.
As ever a very warm welcome from everyone there in all the camps and this was much appreciated.

One note, just a day before we arrived the currency switched from dollars to kwachas only, this wasn't a problem as there was an ATM at Lusaka airport. This does mean that taxes etc must now be paid in Kwachas.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Zambia safari

"Going in the early season is quite different and well worth it

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Keep up the personal touch and the loads of advice, which everyone we met gets from Expert Africa." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 11 on a Zambia safari

"Zambia, after its recent elections seems to be heading in the right direction, generally. It can only be hoped that the national park/game reserves can be maintained by the right people and in the right way. Zimbabwe is not an option on principle while the beautiful people there continue to suffer.

Zambia- the South Luangwa valley is one of(certainly my favourite) game reserves in Africa. NormanCarr safaris have the best guides and the combinations of different bush camps give one the best experiences of safari in Africa.

Thank you to everyone associated with NormanCarr safaris." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 12 on a Zambia safari

"A good trip with great lion sightings.

In comparison, the general level of service isn't as good as Robin Pope's, but the cakes are better!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

None. I think you're an excellent company and one I've recommended to friends." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 10 on a Zambia safari

"Excellent trip and I enjoyed every moment .

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Not really - just keep up the good work." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 5 on a Zambia safari

"Everything went wonderfully well as we returned to our 4 favorite camps in Luangwa. Plenty of new things to see and do, and we met up with all our good friends in the camps there. What a bit of paradise it is.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No. Just keep it up! We value the service EA has given to us on 5 trips to Africa, and have recommended it to others at the camps.

The advice before the trip is especially helpful as it avoids the wrong expectations/clothing/cameras/binoculars etc that other operators seem to ignore." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 14 on a Zambia safari

"Outstanding trip. We thought our last visit to Zambia couldn't be bettered, but it has been. All the camps were excellent - no negative comments or suggestions for improvement. The African bush remains as alluring as ever.

Unfortunately for our bank balance we'll be back - please wait for the call!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

We really can't think of any. This is our fourth trip organised through Expert Africa, and every one has exceeded expectations. We've also recommended you to others, and they've also experienced outstanding service.

Keep it up!" Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 16 on a Zambia safari

"We had a wonderful time! The lodges and camps were very much as we expected - or even better. It is true that one can 'travel light' because washing really does come back on the same day. Our sightings of wildlife were beyond our expectations and have left us with some marvellous memories - and hundreds of photos. We saw leopards on no fewer that seven occasions, and lions that were within touching diistance, not to mention all the antelopes, birds and other animals.

Unfortunately there was one event that could have spoilt our holiday had we not been fairly seasoned travellers who do not easliy panic. On arrival at Lusaka we discovered that our names were not on the Proflight list for the flight to Mfuwe, and it was full. The existence of our Expert Africa voucher for the flight proved totally worthless. Fortunatey we were assisted by staff from Tours Africa, who tried to contact Expert Africa for us but it was before office hours in the UK, and Chris McIntyre's phone was on voicemail.

They then contacted Heather at Tafika, and she sorted out an eTicket for the midday flight. All this meant we lost a morning hanging around at Lusaka airport, when we were expecting to be travelling out to the Luangwa valley. When we did arrive at Mfuwe we were met by a driver who had had to make an extra round trip to pick us up when he should have been on his way to one of the Tafika bushcamps. So our arrival at Tafika was all very rushed in the end, and not at all the relaxing start to a holiday that had been planned.

We would point out that Heather also checked our return Proflight flight, and passed on an eTicket (booked by Claire Scott), as there was no booking for that either. She also checked with Shentons that they were expecting us. Considering that this holiday was booked in early February this experience was very disappointing." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 11 on a Zambia safari