Feedback and Comments From Our Guests

We had an amazing holiday, yet again you surpassed yourself in the choice of accommodations and locations. If we were to come again we would be more than happy to stay in each one of them and would certainly recommend them to others. I can't single out one of them as being 'worse' than the others so I will comment on them all together. The standard of each room had us both stunned, everywhere was spotlessly clean and the people were all extremely friendly and helpful. All of the guesthouses excelled our expectations and were all more like good quality hotels than b&b's or guest houses.

Each of the locations were perfect and logical so that we could explore the areas, and we managed to get in all the activities we were planning.

You excelled yourself choosing Kwandwe for us. We had a family room which was enormous and so luxurious, the staff friendly and attentive, food beautiful, absolutely no complaints at all. Even though this was our 5th safari we still managed to see animals we hadn't seen before so we were more than happy. (I would still like to get a bit closer to a black rhino though so we will just have to do another safari at some time!)

The first guest house we stayed in, Blackheath Lodge, was our choice which was the only one we changed from your suggestions I didn't know if you had ever used it before, so I was a little worried before we arrived that it might not be quite what we expected. However, we were certainly not disappointed. It was located in Seapoint so slightly out of the actual city atmosphere which is what we like (neither of us like the noise and hustle bustle of cities), yet it was still only a few minutes away from the V&A Waterfront. The accommodation was again spotlessly clean, the rooms we had were both different and extremely comfortable, the staff were very helpful and more than happy to recommend and book restaurants and activities for us. They even had a mobile phone and ipad in each of the rooms for guests to use while they were there which was a nice touch. I would certainly say that this could be worth you looking at to see if it fits your criteria.

To sum it all up, we had a brilliant holiday and can't actually think of one thing to complain about. Thank you Madi for arranging everything, it all ran smoothly, everywhere we stayed were expecting us and gave us a really warm welcome. It is just a shame that it had to come to an end. We are currently thinking of next years holidays and if any of them are in an area that you deal with we will definitely be coming back to you for your services.

My trip to Springbok Lodge was great. The driver was on time to bring me there and very professional. the car was new or almost new and the driver was very nice and talkative. I met nice people in the lodge so I cancelled the driver I had to go back to Durban, but this was only because I prefer to drive with friends I met there.

About the lodge, it was really fantastic. The lodge is amazing and the service there is great. People are very kind and attentionate, the infrastrcuture is nice, and the rangers are very well educated and know many things.So honestly it was great. It was so nice I regreted I did not stay longer !!!

Your service was also amazing, you were very kind to me and helped me, especially since I changed my mind so many times and so last minute. So thank you very much. I had a great time. If I ever go back to South Africa I will definitely contact you again for some help, Thanks again for everything.

Everything went like clockwork for us. Our absolute favorite was Xakanaxa. They made us feel like family! Wish we could have stayed longer. Our safari guide Chemical was terrific.This lodge suited our tastes perfectly. We really enjoyed seeing Vic Falls.Our guide Sim was terrific. Had a wonderful Chobe River cruise in the evening. Wonderful sightings. Thanks for another great trip.

Just wanted to say thank you for putting together a great trip. We had a fantastic time and everything went smoothly. We saw tons of animals and ate way too much good food. Learned so much from Neil and enjoyed his company. My highlight was all the baby animals we saw along the way, the baby lions, leopard, hyenas, zebras and of course elephants. It really was the trip of a lifetime.

Madi,

I wish to thank you and all the people associated with our trip for an incredible experience. I can honestly state that I have never been on a vacation, in the US or elsewhere in the world, self-arranged or through an agent, where every aspect of the trip, all arrangements, transfers, and activities worked according to plan, as flawlessly as was on this trip.

Your recommended accommodations were world-class. Your selected guides (Shawn and Frank) were knowledgeable, interesting, and genuinely interested in assuring our visit as guests in their country went as well as could be possible. They know their stuff. And they handled our little group’s idiosyncrasies with humor and a great attitude.

We had fun, we learned a great deal about South Africa, we had incredible experiences on safari, and I think we all left wanting to have more.

I’m sure you’ll also be hearing from Debbie in the very near future.

Well done to you and all the team involved with our trip.

Hi - Madi, yes we had a great time!

I loved the accommodation - especially Africa Sky which was just like in the movies (think Out of Africa etc) and the food was great there too.

Our stay at the Greenfire was also great - my 20 yr old son thought the guides were amazing in their knowledge, our hosts were very charming - and our chef fantastic. It great to meet the other guests, so a nice feature of that place is the friendliness. We did see lots of wildlife even though it was so dry and still winter. My only thought is to go back for another stay when everything is blooming... but it was nice not to have bugs around.

Cape Town is a lovely city and we really liked the location of our hotel - not on a busy street but tucked into that colourful section of the Bo Kaap. Ursula was very helpful and efficient and got us set up with day tours that were excellent, and so we saw a lot in a short stay. All the transport worked well - and we had some interesting chats with drivers too.

Thanks to you for putting it all together, as with my last minute meeting being set (and changed) and my work commitments, I was glad to have your resources to help. I would definitely contact you again for my next trip to Africa - I am now keen to get to Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania and Mozambique...we shall see!

Dear Madi,

I am back in India today after my trip. May I please thank you for all your support and cooperation. I must also say that the arrangement was excellent and my stay at Greenfire has been unbelievable, splendid. It will always be a part of my best memories. Thank you so much. Take care. Warm regards.

Everything was wonderful with the trip! Simon was really fantastic and very knowledgeable.

Thanks for following up with us and we hope for the opportunity to go back to Africa and do a different safari with Simon!

We had a wonderful time in SA. I think it may have been the best family trip we have ever taken! We found nThambo and Arathusa to be very different properties and we loved both of them for different reasons.

nThambo is quite rustic and has a colonial-in-the-bush feel about it. All your meals are taken together around one table and you get to know the others quite well. It feels like one big family, a very intimate experience. Very "authentic" and not resort-y if that makes sense.

The jeep used for the drives is very raked so each row sees quite clearly above the next. Our guide was quietly-spoken Luan, who our son renamed "Google Bush", a fountain of information who could answer any and all questions in great detail. Our tracker Issack was brilliant! We were fortunate to see a great variety of game, including lions who were hunting (not just sleeping!) and two viewings of wild dogs. We saw four of the "big 5" at nThambo and were very satisfied with our game drives. The day before we arrived, they had seen a white lion and also lions mating. Overall, we really enjoyed the "in the bush", intimate feeling of nThambo.

The map for Arathusa is excellent although the distances are off a bit. The road from Acornhoek into Arathusa is also dirt and was very rough, so again a higher clearance vehicle would be best. We had a Mercedes sedan and really felt that an SUV would have been better for the drive.

Our rooms at Arathusa were the Wildbock and the Hippo. Apparently they are the newest luxury rooms and there were spectacular! The front of the room was a wall of floor to ceiling windows directly facing the water hole. Being right on the waterhole was amazing as there was a constant stream of animals. We had kudu and impalas right in front of our doors. At one point, there was a herd of 31 elephants at the hole. There are always hippos around as well.

The meals are served communally outdoors underneath a shelter but separate dining can be arranged.

Sean and Rifos were our ranger and tracker. Sean is outgoing and his enthusiasm is infectious! He has a particular interest in birds and made a point of finding out what we had viewed previously and combined that with the "wishlist" of others in the jeep to determine what to look for. A keen photographer, Sean always made sure that he positioned the jeep in the best possible way which was greatly appreciated! We saw the big 5 at Arathusa and had three leopard viewings, including mating. We also were lucky to have a good viewing of a cheetah.

Arathusa is definitely more luxurious in surroundings, with a lovely infinity pool and lots of common areas to sit and relax in. It feels much more like a "resort" than nThambo.

We loved our time at both places and are glad that we went to each of them. Of the two, I think Arathusa would appeal to most people and nThambo for the more adventurous and "flexible".

Madi, thanks so much for all your help, advice and patience in planning our trip.

Hi Madi,

I just wanted to thank you for all your help with the booking and your patience is greatly appreciated.

I am now back at home and everything went really well. I truly enjoyed the safari and Gomo Gomo is a wonderful resort. The accommodation, facilities and setting was great and the staff were attentive. I highly recommend them.

I will keep your contact details and if I ever make it back to South Africa again, I will contact you. I will also pass on your details to friends if any of them are heading that way.

Thank you very much once again.

Dear Madi, only with a full 10 points (of a 10 point scale) we can value you and your company input in this great experience.

South Africa has totally changed our outlook. It was great journey.

As we were the newbies, this safari lodge (especially not fully booked) with especially friendly staff was the best way for us to be introduced to the life in the lodge experience.

We watched BIG5 during first 24:00 hours. Of course our expectations after that increased. And here my point to suggest to other newbies is to compare safaris to fishing: You never know when you'll catch your BIG fish.

Our Panoramic route at first glance seemed little bit pricey. But... knowing how much I saved on lack of stress by not driving and that Boris' English was easy to understand for us non-English, his ability to teach us about South Africa during the tour, totally made it worth every cent. Please give Boris my personal thanks for the facts, opinions and empathy we received.

Finally – great job, thank you very much.

Everything was just prefect and smooth as it can get.

We have seen big 5 on day 1 – and it continued to be …..

Thanks for the great organization.