Guest Reviews

Hi Ilaria

Thanks so much for reaching out. We had an amazing time! I can't imagine anyone better than Nicky. She knew where to find all the animals, was super knowledgeable, and really easy to engage with. She's got to be one of your best guides. The accommodations were also wonderful. We were able to see a leopard, lions, cheetahs, as well as the other animals that one would typically see. Thanks again for an unforgettable experience.

Hi Lauren! Rufus was awesome. Picked us up and took the scenic route through Kruger NP on the way to our lodging. That kicked off our safari before we even checked in! Saw giraffes and zebras, among others. We really appreciated him going above and beyond.

Nicky was the best guide we could have asked for. My girls are getting into birding, and Nicky was great at that on our drives. Our 3 days in Kruger were amazing. The accommodations inside Kruger were very nice. Clean, comfortable, convenient. Would recommend. It was a bonus to us that Nicky cooked our breakfast and dinners. Nice touch. Was expecting to eat at onsite restaurants/cafes. 

The Tomo lodge and private reserve was a nice change of pace and scenery. The Tomo lodge was awesome! And the staff were 5-star all around. Can't say enough about how fabulous a place they have there. Highly recommend.

The safari drives in the private reserves were very different from inside Kruger. It was further north, so drier and more bleak. The guides from Tomo were awesome! Having a guide and tracker was great, and we did track leopards and rhinos. The big difference was that we mostly drove the same area for 3 days. It was great that we experienced Kruger NP first. I would not recommend more than 2-3 days at the private reserve.  

Overall, it was an amazing 7 days. Really appreciate your attentiveness, support, and coordination. From pick-up to drop-off, it was a great experience and fabulous adventure. I will definitely be recommending Wild Wings to all who ask and will reach out again when we are planning our next adventure.  

We had an absolutely fantastic experience with Wild Wings Safaris, from the very first conversation to the moment our safari ended. Since returning home, we have already been telling anyone who is considering a safari to use Wild Wings Safaris.

Our experience started with Ilaria, who was absolutely fantastic to work with. We had a lot of questions and weren't sure exactly how we wanted to structure our safari. Rather than simply recommending one package, Ilaria took the time to understand what we were looking for and worked through the options with us.

She provided us with different choices of accommodations, safari locations, trip durations and estimated costs, allowing us to compare the options and decide what worked best for our family. We had several conversations, including FaceTime calls, and she was always patient and responsive when we had additional questions or wanted to change something.

That personal attention made a huge difference. Planning a safari from another country can seem complicated, with different parks, private reserves, accommodations, drives and transportation to consider. Ilaria made the entire process feel manageable and straightforward. We always felt that she was working with us to create the trip we wanted rather than simply trying to sell us a package.

That level of service continued when we arrived in South Africa.

From the moment we met Nicky at the airport, along with the other couple who joined our safari, we had a great feeling about the trip.

We cannot say enough good things about Nicky. She was a fantastic guide, driver, cook, animal spotter and simply a wonderful person to spend time with.

Her dedication to finding wildlife was incredible. She worked tirelessly to give us the best possible opportunities for sightings and clearly had an extensive knowledge of Kruger and its wildlife. She also seemed to know so many of the other guides, which was another advantage when trying to determine where animals had recently been spotted.

What impressed us most was watching her do everything at once — driving safely, spotting animals that we would have completely missed, explaining what we were seeing, answering our endless questions and sharing her knowledge throughout the day.

The animal sightings were well beyond our expectations, and we had some truly unforgettable encounters.

The thing that stands out most about Wild Wings Safaris is the quality of service from beginning to end.

Illaria helped us figure out what kind of safari we wanted and gave us different options to consider. Nicky then delivered an outstanding experience once we arrived. There was a genuine feeling throughout the trip that everyone cared about making sure we had a great experience.

It is hard to find this level of personal customer service nowadays.

Thank you to Illaria, Nicky and the entire Wild Wings Safaris team for making our trip so positive, memorable and special.

Dear Cathari,

We wanted to send a huge thank you for planning and coordinating our Southern Africa trip for our group of 11. We’re so grateful you worked with us to create an itinerary that fit our budget, and we really appreciated your patience through several revisions until we landed on the optimal option for everyone.

Victoria Falls was a highlight. The prebooked activities let us explore the best of the area without any stress, and we loved the Boma dinner and all the meals you arranged. We were even able to add Chobe National Park, and the game drive there was outstanding—we saw a pride of eight lions hunting warthogs, which was unforgettable.

Mdluli Safari Lodge has been incredible. The staff have been delightful, and we’ve enjoyed every game drive. Thanks to your planning, we’ve now seen most of the Big Five and even the Ugly Five. On our first night we saw a lion right in the Mdluli Concession, and on our last night we made it up to the viewpoint for a stunning sunset. The food has been fantastic, and the breakfast packs for early drives were a lovely touch.

The transport you arranged made all the logistics super easy for our group, and we felt well taken care of from start to finish. We encountered some uncertainty about our last transfer to Kruger Airport from Mdluli Safari Lodge because different pickup times were listed in the app; however, reception at the lodge clarified it for us. 

Dear Mike, 

We don't have enough words to thank you. Thank you for everything: the excellent communication before our trip, your organization, and, above all, for sharing Nicky's passion for Kruger National Park with us.

It wasn't just about seeing the wildlife—although we were fortunate enough to see so much. What made this trip truly special was sharing those few days with Nicky. It was an experience that will stay with us for a very long time, and one that we are still talking and thinking about.

Despite the challenges caused by my wife's reduced mobility, we were able to complete the trip, and we enjoyed every single day.

Once again, thank you for everything. Please give Nicky a big hug from all of us.

Our next destination: Namibia!

We'll be in touch again in a few months to start planning it.

Dear Lauren, 

Everything about our South African adventure was fantastic and memorable.  Starting with our pickup and drive from the airport to Motswari, which was a fun way to start to see animals in the National Park.  The staff at Motswari were warm, full of energy, attentive, and always helpful. We loved talking with the staff as we were waiting for dinner or sitting in the open-air community room. We enjoyed spending time during our breaks overlooking the river and all the animals that came to peacefully drink at the water's edge.

The food was outstanding and plentiful.  We loved the singing and joy the staff had in presenting the meals.

The safaris were so amazing that it's hard to put into words how much we enjoyed them.  Our driver and tracker were so knowledgeable.  We saw so many animals, and even though we went on 10 safaris, every day we saw several new species of animals. 

I appreciated the fact that connectivity was limited, as it was a good way to ensure we just disengaged and enjoyed our time.

We are very appreciative of all you did to make this a once-in-a-lifetime experience for us.  Starting with your first communication, you provided outstanding service, and your follow-through was exemplary.  Your notes and communications throughout our trip preparation and during the trip made us feel confident that we were going to have a great time... and we certainly did.

I'm so glad you were able to get us into the Motswari.  We are considering returning in the next 1-2 years, and it's all because of your help and the great time we had at the Motswari.

Thank You for everything you did to make our trip so memorable.  You are our friend for life.

Hi Lauren, 

From start to finish, we thought this was one of the best travel experiences we've ever had.

Appreciate that you've been exceptionally responsive and thorough with the planning. Thanks for replying quickly to every email and query, and making sure our needs were taken care of from the very first conversation until we landed back home in Singapore. I really appreciated how you've consistently checked in on our travel status and experience throughout the trip - a rare level of care compared to many agencies that go quiet after payment. Having someone so attentive behind the scenes gave us real peace of mind.

At Ivory Wilderness River Rock Lodge, the staff were incredibly friendly and hospitable. We felt genuinely looked after - even calling our safari guide back from the drive so we wouldn't miss the afternoon outing after arriving just a bit late. They also accommodated our food requests and surprised us with beautiful honeymoon decorations in our room, which was such a thoughtful touch.

Our safari guide also deserves special mention. She was kind enough to return for us, worked tirelessly to find the animals we hoped to see, and was a wealth of knowledge - easy to talk to and clearly passionate about the bush. One standout moment was her navigating through rough, thorny tracks after dark to help us catch a rare sighting of a leopard. We didn't manage to see it in the end as it was getting too dangerous, but we really appreciated her effort.

All in, the combination of meticulous planning, heartfelt service, and extraordinary guiding made this safari truly outstanding. We left with full hearts, wonderful photos, and immense gratitude for everyone who made it happen. Highly recommended. :)

Ilaria

Thanks for your email. We are now safely back from South Africa and adjusting to the cold and rain!

We continue to think that the 5-day Best of Kruger safari is the best safari we have done. We saw the Big 5 on all 3 trips, and the Magnificent 7 (with the addition of cheetah and wild dogs) on 2 of them. The guides were all excellent, seemingly always in the right place at just the right time, with Simon and Nicky in particular showing their passion for the bush and getting us in just the right place for the perfect photo.

The SAN Parks accommodation in Skukuza and Satara is perfectly adequate and suits our requirements (we don't need more than 3-star accommodation). That said, experiencing the refurbished accommodation at Skukuza on the trip with Nicky was a treat!

The Perry's Bridge Hotel was excellent, with very helpful staff and good breakfast options at Kuka Restaurant.

We found that linking 3 5-day trips worked well, giving us one night after each short trip to reset (lie in, do some washing, and rest) before embarking on the next trip. If you were ever to offer a 6-night group tour, with 3 nights in each of Skukuza and Satara, we would be interested.  

As you know, we are doing 2 more 5-day safaris in October, and are planning another trip in May next year, so we will shortly be back in touch to book some more!

Hi Lauren,

We had an amazing 5-day safari experience from start to finish. The organisation was excellent, and everything ran smoothly. We really appreciated the itinerary — staying two nights in one camp and two nights in another was perfect. It allowed us to relax, enjoy each location, and not feel rushed.

The bush walk and the night safari were definite highlights. Both were unforgettable and gave us a completely different perspective on the wildlife and surroundings.

A special thank you to our guide Rufus, who was our driver, guide, and cook. He truly went above and beyond. He has excellent people skills, is very patient, and extremely well organised. He made us feel comfortable at all times and ensured everything was taken care of. His knowledge and positive attitude made the trip even more special.

Overall, this safari exceeded our expectations. Highly recommended.

Thank you for the amazing experience.

Dearest Clare

Our stay at Thabamati at the beginning of December last year was exceptional! I could not have asked for better hospitality. The lodge, the private experience, with only the four luxury tents and a few guests, was everything I could wish for my 60th. Thank you for suggesting it to us and making all the arrangements to ensure a glitch-free trip.

We saw beautiful wildlife, both on our game drives and from the deck at the lodge, and have never seen the Kruger region as green as during our visit! It was a truly unforgettable experience.

Unfortunately, Barnie became very ill on the second day of our stay. Our hosts were very compassionate and did everything they could to make him as comfortable as possible. Even the transfer company were champions. We were taken to the Hoedspruit Mediclinic instead of the airport, and overnight accommodation and additional transfers to the airport the following day were arranged. Everyone was extremely helpful and caring.

Thanks again for helping us find this beautiful place and making our stay such a special experience in spite of a few humps in the road.

Hi Ilaria,

Yes, everything went well and it was a nice trip! For sure, if someone asks me recommendations regarding safaris, I will tell them about Wild Wings Safaris. The whole safari was very well arranged. Very nice and clean accommodations, shuttles services were always within the scheduled times, the way the game drives were planned were perfect to have increased chances of spotting even the rarest animals and our guide was very good too. I think his written name should be something like Rufus... I could see that he was always very committed in giving us the best experience possible. He was always in good mood, interacting with the whole group and it was clearly noticeable that he has a lot of experience and knowledge with game drives, the life of the savannah and everything related to it. He enjoys his work and that made a better experience. In sum, all the people somehow included in the safari were nice, as well as generally in South Africa. Of course, all your planning, support and prompt availability to help me and make sure I had the best trip possible was also obvious. Thank you for all your care and kindness!  Wish you all the best!

Hi Clare,

Thank you so much for helping us plan a trip of a lifetime!! Every aspect of this trip was extraordinary!!! The details were impeccable!!

Each driver we had was so kind and helpful. Our driver, Ryan, who picked us up and drove us on our wine tour, was friendly, engaging and an excellent driver. We thoroughly enjoyed our day with him!

Ohhhh, and Arathusa ❤️❤️❤️ was a beautiful lodge, we did get a water-facing suite which we were very excited about, excellent service, friendly staff, great food and entertainment. Our guide, Debeer, and tracker, Ishmael, were just the best, very knowledgeable and fun! We saw The Big 5 and soooo much more, including a honey badger and a pack of African Wild Dog puppies!! I had an awesome massage with Winnie; she is a gem of a person, and we loved hearing story time from sweet Ronnie, who was very attentive to our needs at every meal. The first day we arrived a bit late for our safari drive, but Amen had made us some delicious sandwiches and brought them to our room with two bottles of wine; we really appreciated his kindness. One morning after our game drive, the staff had a beautiful breakfast set up out in an opening in the bush. It was beautiful to ride up to this incredible site! So very special! We just can't say enough great things about Arathusa!

The Commodore Hotel was charming; we really enjoyed the view and location. Staff were friendly and the breakfast was always good! It was a good hotel choice for us! We booked a couple of tours on our own through Viator, which worked out very nicely.

Thank you again, Clare, for planning this awesome trip for us! We highly recommend you and Wild Wings Safaris! Excellent job!