There is so much in the news at the moment with regards to Rhino Poaching. It’s hard to work out if we are winning the war or losing it, but there certainly are many people involved in fighting this terrible trade. I was in a book store over the weekend in Cape Town and there, on [...]

Photo of the Week: Lion Cubs
There has been a fair focus on Lions this week with the release of “The Last Lions” movie trailor featuring Ma di Tau. They are also one of the huge reasons people travel to Africa, to see these amazing creatures in their wild, natural habitat. Part of the Big 5 (Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Buffalo & Rhino) group [...]
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Traveling with Children to Africa
With the midyear break looming many people have their vacations planned and will soon be gathering the family together for the annual summer break. The other day I found an app that you download that helps you pack for your vacation! I thought to myself “wow, we really don’t have to think about much these [...]
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Feedback from Clients
We have received some great feedback from a few clients that have recently traveled with us. It’s often something that is quite hard to get as clients are so busy catching up with life once they return from their vacations that they don’t have a chance to send through their thoughts. So, when we do [...]
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Photo of the Week – Wild Dogs in Madikwe
We are privileged to have this image from Stephen Raffay along with the beautiful Zebra images that we posted earlier this week on our Facebook page. Stephen is an avid wildlife photographer and has captured some awesome wildlife moments. This particular pack of Wild Dogs were tracked from just outside Tau Camp in the Malaria Free Madikwe Reserve [...]
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An unprovoked attack by an Elephant
Not so long ago I wrote about an incident where a Lion attacked a guest on a Walk in Victoria Falls. My main concern was that these are wild animals, we are in their territory and are WE not putting ourselves at risk, despite all the safety precautions, if something does go wrong? It is our [...]
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Photo of the Week – Lion Kill
With the beginnings of the annual migration in East Africa taking shape this week I thought I would include an image of a lion with a kill. This photo was taken recently by one of my colleagues, Liesl in the Masai Mara. The migration has a massive predator following – there is no shortage of food for these big [...]
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Anyone for the Sardine run?
South Africa is one of those amazing destinations when it doesn’t matter what time of the year you are visiting, there is always something to see! The various climatic zones between all the provinces means you have a wide choice of destinations, whenever you wish to travel. Although June is winter in the southern hemisphere (hence the 1st of June [...]
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Photographic Safaris at Ulusaba Private Game Reserve
Ulusaba Private Game Reserve, owned by Richard Branson, is a dream safari destination. Now amateur photographers can book a special photographic safari at Ulusaba which will be led by professional rangers and trackers who are experienced photographers. Learn how to interpret animal behavior so you can capture some outstanding pictures you’ll treasure forever. A major advantage of this special offer [...]
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Should We Be Walking With Lions?
Very recently, I read an article about a lady who was attacked by a lion cub while on a guided lion walk in Zimbabwe. It seems to be a completely unprovoked attack; there were other people in the group and all guests were accompanied by professional rangers who interact regularly with these huge cats. The [...]
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Staff Review: Bayethe Lodge
As we speak, I am on safari at Shamwari Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape! Our lodge, Bayethe, is a 5 star tented lodge with all the trimmings you would expect. The superb food and excellent service has pleasantly surprised me – my last visit here was a bit disappointing, but they have really picked [...]
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ASC Pic of the Week – Baby Cheetah
Keeping with the current theme of adorable pictures of the week, this week we’re bringing you one of the cutest shots of a ferocious predator that I’ve ever seen. This week’s photo, taken by former African Safaris Consultant client John Pickford, shows a young cheetah growling in the grass near Chief’s Island in the Okavango [...]
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Hello Liesl Yes we have been home a week now. The holiday was a great success mainly due to you and your company. Everything worked like clock work; all flights were on time, all meet and greets worked well. All of the rangers who were our guides were pleasant and very knowledgeable. The game lodges were excellent and the rooming was ideal in most instances. We have absolutely nothing negative to say. The Children were enthralled by Africa, its people and of course the multitude of animals that they encountered. It will be an experienced that will last. You asked about Alfajiri and it was as perfect as it could be. The owners were out of town and there was no one else staying there, so we had the whole place to ourselves. The staff were absolutely great ...as you would expect for a place like this...again though, there was a lot of complimentary stuff that we were not aware of ( i.e all of the massages, the golf, day trips to other beaches)...but it was a perfect end to a great safari holiday. You don't handle driving holidays in Spain by any chance do you? Anne and I are off there next year. Best regards and many thanks for a job well done ! Bob and Anne Robinson
Lise & Jeff, The safari was awesome. Among the many amazing animals and landscapes, we saw 3 kills - a pride of lions kill a cape buffalo, and twice saw cheetahs kill a gazelle. Solomon was really 100% responsible for making the trip so awesome. More than just a driver, he was unbelievably knowledgeable about absolutely everything - animals, plants, star constellations, geology, Tanzanian and African history, demographics. We didn't ask a single question that he didn't know the answer to, and we asked a lot of questions. We requested, and he and the camps obliged, for him to eat dinner with us and the other guests because he was so enjoyable to talk to. Not only was he smart, he was funny, considerate, polite, jovial. He also had an "instinct" for what animals were about to do - for example, one day there were a ton of trucks watching a leopard from a distance. Not only did he watch the leopard, but he watched where the leopard was LOOKING. He said "I think I know where it's going next" and drove us away from all of the other trucks. It jumped out of its tree and disappeared in the grass. A moment later, it emerged from the tall grass and jumped onto a log 10 yards from where Solomon had positioned our truck. Not one of the other trucks had done the same, and we got an up-close-and-personal view of the leopard. Then it walked right towards us and around the front of the truck. We have some amazing photos from the trip and I am getting a ton of questions about it. I tell everyone that if they ever go to Tanzania, they absolutely need to use Solomon as their guide. He went above-and-beyond the entire 10 days and it really made our trip special. Dylan
Hi Liesl, Sadly, our African journey has come to an end! Everything was flawless as far as arrangements. We loved absolutely everything we did. The apartment was great in Cape Town; loved the ostrich farm. African Perfection is worth recommending in Jeffrey's Bay. LOVED Bukela Lodge at Amakhala (very intimate experience, with easy access; though can't be compared to a Chobe, for example - two very different, but positive experiences). Zambezi Sun was great, although that was the only place Jim got violently ill one night from food we imagine, and Olivia had a scary high fever which came and went for 3 days. In Zambia we did the rhino walk and elephant back safari, both of which we loved. The kids and I did the village tour to Makuni Village which was far more authentic than I could've imagined. The guys had fun on their half day fishing. Olivia and I hired a driver and gave out more toys to an orphanage and kids on the streets. Wish we had time to pop into Zimbabwe for the day. LOVED Chobe Game Lodge... worth every penny to have splurged. Phenomenal animal sightings. Not many people were at the lodge (about 20 out of a capacity of 80) so once again it felt very intimate. Bush Tracks was an excellent company who showed up everywhere for every transfer on time and professional. Thanks for your superb planning with me. I wouldn't have changed a thing! Kim
Dear Jeff and Camille – So nice to get your holiday greeting and bad me for not ever writing “officially” to thank you both for the most amazing experience of my life – Simbambili and my safari experience. Your nose and ears must have been itching dozens upon dozens of times as I’ve recounted my adventure to friends and family and colleagues – and most recently, in our holiday letter. It still seems a bit like a dream…Funny, people have said things like, “Wow, now you can check that off your bucket list.” And I always reply, “Check it off?! Now I just want to go on safari again and again!” My time at Simbambili was life changing and life enhancing and there’s something about Africa that seems to have gotten under my skin. Guess that happens doesn’t it? Endless thanks to you both for helping to make my childhood dream come true! You guys rock! Happy holidays and all good things to you in the New Year ahead! Warmly, Melissa
Ilze, I’ll let Caty add on, but in a word the trip was outstanding! The place you got for us at De Waterkant was great – lots of character and an excellent location. The experience at Shamwari was also superb! We had great service, an outstanding ranger, and excellent accommodations. We’ll send you some pictures soon – I’m now trying to wade through them – I took almost 500! Thanks for all you help on the trip! Regards, Larry












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