Zimbabwe: reviews from our travellers

"Our trip was special. Everything exceeded expectations, travel was seamless and very well organized.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Not really. One thing we would have taken had we known was our gators for the walking safaris as `stuff` really gets into your shoes and socks." Read full review: 24 nights in Africa; 4 on a Botswana safari

"Once again, Maruska came up trumps (the first time by recommending Flatdogs in Zambia).

This was a totally different, but fascinating experience.

It was a little wet at Amalinda but not enough to spoil it, and they badly need the rain." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 8 on a Zimbabwe safari

"Our trip was amazing.

Other than getting soaked through on one game drive at Shinde, it is hard to imagine how it could have gone better.

Everything happened on time and as it should. I can't think of a single person who wasn't helpful or better.

We traveled with our children and each place we stayed was great for them as well as us. We wanted a variety of experiences, but with a certain level of comfort and we were not left wanting. Really, an outstanding experience!" Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 6 on a Botswana safari

"This was a special, month-long trip to revisit some of our favourite places in Zimbabwe, Botswana and Western Cape. We were joined for part of it by 6 family members, including one son-in-law and two grandchildren (aged 8 & 10) who were having their first experience of Africa.

Lucy took a lot of trouble putting together an itinerary in which everyone’s requests could be included. She made some excellent suggestions for accommodation and activities, which we all enjoyed. The Zambezi cruise on New Year’s Eve was just one example.

As there were eight of us for almost half of the tour, we were treated as a ‘group’. This meant we had our own vehicle and guide for safaris, which was very relaxing and we all had a lot of fun.

A major flight delay at the start threatened to seriously derail our itinerary. It was a couple of days before Christmas, but the team at Expert Africa sprang into action and got everything back on track incredibly quickly.

The South African part of the holiday was just the two of us. It included a hire car and some very high quality accommodation.

We had very high expectations of this trip and were not disappointed, thanks to Lucy and her colleagues." Read full review: 32 nights in Africa; 11 on a Zimbabwe safari

"Really great trip. I discussed what I wanted to see with Anton before the trip, and we planned the itinerary together. The accommodation was great, and we packed a lot into three and a half days.
Very happy with a memorable trip!" Read full review: 5 nights in Africa; 4 on a Zimbabwe safari

"All went very smoothly and was a great experience.

Standard of 2 of the camps much higher than expected . 1 slightly less so but compensated for great guiding and wildlife viewing .

One bonus of the Duba Explorers Camp is they ( Great Plains Group ) have introduced a really good lounge at Maun airport which was really helpful as we had 2 and a half hours to wait ." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"We loved our holiday.
We’d have appreciated advice on tips at the beginning as at the recommended levels they add significant cost. We only found out by chance just before departure & had to get more $ at the last minute." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 9 on a Botswana safari

"Our trip was great and I am very satisfied with everything. The advice and general knowledge when planning the trip was very good and everyone at Expert Africa was super helpful.

I followed obviously their recommendations of camps and was very impressed with both but the timing of the stays and the rhythm of the holiday was managed well too. The travel on the ground was very good, flying between camps and being driven over the border.

Advice on tipping was very helpful and on what to pack. I didn’t realise we had to pay cash (US$) at the border between Botswana and Zimbabwe though and that did cause a detour to find an ATM and a risk that they wouldn’t like local currency, but it worked out well in the end.

Expert Africa doesn’t usually book your international flights which I would have preferred as it took me a long time to work out times, connections and prices.

Also, Expert Africa did not initially book the activities at Victoria Falls although when I struggled to deal directly with a local company, they did step in and manage it all very well.

I would suggest that be handled too internally as it’s best to book early and you will get a better response as a company and I just wanted reassurance that it was all booked and organised." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 7 on a Botswana safari

"Tom organised all aspects of our trip and he put together a wonderful itinerary balancing seeing the landscapes of Namibia with the wildlife viewing as we wanted.

He suggested a series of memorably good lodges and camps with sensible more basic options for when we simply needed a comfortable guesthouse for a night rather than luxury lodge. He discussed and booked a series of excellent activities for us and we kept in contact throughout the period up to the trip.

To demonstrate the great level of service. We managed to leave an ipad at Damaraland Camp and between the wonderful camp staff and Tom and his colleague Tracey's efforts and ingenuity they managed to organise its return to us back in London - this was definitely above and beyond!.

All in all it was a wonderful holiday, faultlessly organised and we would very highly recommend Expert Africa." Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 13 on a Namibia trip

"Didn't really know what we wanted to do so were reliant on Amanda's advice. We loved all aspects of Nkwali Lodge ...the Lodge, the staff. the food, the location, the safari trips, walking safari and our guide Perry. He was so enthusiastic about his job and making sure we really enjoyed our stay. Also the hostess Bianca arranged for us to having a morning in town to do a craft workshop and visit a school. Perfect 4 days.

Palm Ridge was a bit of a contrast and we enjoyed relaxing by the Zambezi after several 530am starts. Again the staff were excellent and Tina at activities desk arranged several outings once we recuperated.

There were no hiccups throughout the trip ...we were met at airports, picked up in hotels, Zimbabwe visa organised. All ran very smoothly.

If I had to change one thing I would have stayed an extra night in Lusaka. For 2 reasons ...we loved the Latitude 15 hotel and also it would have been interesting to see centre of Lusaka. However we accept total responsibility as at no point did we ask Amanda to do that for us and also we had a limited no of days for trip.

The whole trip was amazing and far exceeded expectations. Shall thank Keith Drew for recommending Expert Africa." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 5 on a Zambia safari