This Tour Is Offered By
Owners Ines & Christopher
Indigo Safaris
- Offices In:
-
United Kingdom
United States
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2009)
- Member Of:
- ASTA, APTA, FGASA & DEMA
- Tour Types:
- Customizable private tours and fixed group tours
- Destinations:
-
BW
KM
MGMWMUMZNARWSCZATZUGZMZW
Indigo Safaris are experts in bespoke travel in Africa. We know every place we sell, having lived in Southern & Eastern Africa, and having travelled extensively in the countries we promote. With team members in SA, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Tanzania, the UK, & the USA, we only work with the best, tried and tested local suppliers, and sell at the same rate, or less, as if you contacted them directly. We visit suppliers regularly to maintain delivery standards and find new locations for your adventures
Reviews185
PR
I have travelled all over the world, and Indigo Safaris tops the list of all tour operators.
Following is a thank-you letter that I wrote to Shannon who planned my trip. Please read to the end. You will thank me later.
Hi Shannon:
When I started to plan the trip to South Africa, I wanted it to be seamless, adventurous, enjoyable, educational, and delightful, and thanks to you, ALL MY WISHES WERE GRANTED! You gave Mark the most complete and wonderful 60th birthday possible, and I thank you.
Please accept my deepest gratitude for understanding my requests and for attending to them so meticulously and appropriately. You kept me informed of your planning and sent me such detailed updates. I never had an anxious moment. You and Indigo Safaris are the absolute best!
We arrived into Johannesburg one day late because of issues with the plane. We took off at the right time on the right day, but after thirty minutes of flying, we returned to JFK where we were delayed for 24 hours. But this didn’t affect your planning. You got in touch with all related parties to rearrange schedules, so that our arrival would be perfect.
A pleasant young man met us in Johannesburg and took us to the charming Safari Club with its thatched roof, and shortly after, our tour guide arrived for our trip to the Apartheid Museum and then to Soweto. I had no idea that Soweto was so huge.
Dinner and breakfast were great at the Safari Club.
The following morning, it was off to the Tremisana Game Lodge, some seven hours away from Johannesburg, but the drive was comfortable and we were able to stop along the way when necessary.
Our first adventure - the 3 Hr. Landcruiser Sunset Drive in the Balule section of Kruger Park was spectacular. I’ll include some of the pictures I took of several animals. Gosh, I wish that I had written the names of all of them, because now I can’t remember.
The Bush braai was new to me but enjoyable. At the end of dinner three hyenas appeared apparently looking for leftovers.
On the ride back in the night, we saw elephants and giraffes.
The following morning at 5:30, we went by Landcruiser to a remote part of the Balule Game Reserve to begin our 4Hr bush walk. I was petrified at first, imagining animals racing to attack me, but my fear dissipated once I understood the expertise of our guide and noticed the rifle over his shoulder, and once I began seeing all sorts of animals - rhinoceros, gigantic elephants, towering giraffes, lazy crocodiles, and scheming hippopotamus. Lord, what a walk. It was a wonderful lifetime experience, but next time, I’ll go to a near-by zoo. 😂😂😂
Then we were off to Marc’s Treehouse Lodge - extremely rustic! The food was outstanding. (Steps into some of the cabins are dangerous. A member of my party fell as she stepped down from one step to the other. Instead of there being a flat board where her foot should have landed, there was an open space and one leg went under the step as the other flew into the air.)
We spent a whole day at Kruger Park, in an elevated, windowless, open game viewing vehicle which allowed us to have the best view of the animals - zebras, a giraffe which died while giving birth, ostriches, herds of elephants, kudus, waterbucks, impalas, gemsbok, and so many others, including a white lion!
Next day - Cape Town
On arrival in Cape Town, the representatives from both the car rental company and the taxi were present to greet us, and the journey to the inclusive Blackheath Lodge was smooth and uneventful.
What an outstanding hotel. It was as if Riano and the entire team at Blackheath were waiting just for us. Of course, there were other guests who were given the same attention we received. When Riano escorted into the villa, we encountered pure luxury, flowers, a welcome package, and then the bottle of champagne you sent, arrived. Thank you so much. We were so thrilled with the service at Blackheath, that on our departure morning, we called the entire staff together and toasted them using the champagne you sent. I wish that you could have been with us at that moment. We highly and excitingly recommend the Blackheath Lodge.
On September 19, Mark’s birthday, which you planned so carefully, our perfect tour guide picked us up whisked us off for our three-vineyard, wine and cheese tasting experience. You forgot nothing. Mark thoroughly enjoyed the day and even after all that wine, was able to WALK BY HIMSELF, and take pictures in front of the Victor Verster Prison, the last place where Nelson Mandela stayed before his release in 1990.
The last day that you planned for us went off without a hitch. Again, like clockwork, the van to take our friends arrived on time, and we returned the rented car, dent-free.
THANK YOU SHANNON. You created the perfect 60th birthday for my husband.
Howard
NZ
Shannon was 100% committed, professional, attentive operator that always went the extra mile for us.
Shannon was an absolute pleasure to deal with and was available at a moment’s notice if there was anything we needed to know or tweak in our itinerary. She was informative and reliable and provided us with the tour of a lifetime to Namibia that was top notch accommodation wise as well as excellent value for money. The activities that she suggested we partake in (ie the game drive in Etosha, the Damaraland elephant drive and the Sossusvlei visit) were wonderfully informative and well run too.
The four of us loved every minute and cannot recommend Shannon highly enough.
Great responsiveness and clear communication
Michele was wonderful - communication before and during the trip was quick and clear. We had one concern during our trip and trajectory of our experience changed quickly and significantly after getting Michele included. Highly recommend - lots of great family memories.
IT
Luxury safari
Very high level tour
Private guide
Luxury hotel
All good
CO
Indigo Safari was the worst of the companies I booked a safari with in Africa
Indigo Safari was the worst of the companies I booked a safari with. The companies in Kenya, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe were very diligent. It's true that the safari itself is run by different companies, bringing together groups and different accommodations, but everywhere the company I booked with, picked me up at the hotel and took me to the departure point. Indigo Safari doesn't do this, and the excellent manager who assisted me simply made me feel like I couldn't make any demands. In the others safaris, every day, everyone was attentive to informing me about the schedule, pickup time, and what each game included. In Namibia, with Indigo Safari, I had to find out at the accommodations what time they would pick me up, and they would contact Namibia 2 Go, the operator, and then inform me of the time and program. The excellent manager only informed me, once, that I had to be at the departure point fifteen minutes before the departure time, and I didn't know which one. I asked her several times if water was included, but she didn't answer. She also didn't inform me if lunch was included. Every day I eat breakfast and one meal, either lunch or dinner, and she offered me a plan without either option. Since he never explained the scope of the meal, he forced me to pay extra for food at the lodgings.
Namibia 2 Go, the opearator, every day, carried not only water but also other beverages and always brought lunch for everyone, asking first if they were vegetarians or had a special diet. The top manager seems to have no idea how to operate in the field. But the worst part of all was that I asked for a quote for two safaris, one in Salousvlei and another in Etosha, and manipulated me into choosing the most expensive plans with absurdly high food charges, arguing that the other lodges, more reasonable but also mid-range, were full. At both locations, the Namibia 2 Go vehicles arrived at these lodges first, and from there they took me, usually alone, to the other lodge. At reception, they always asked me why I wasn't staying there, and when I explained, they told me they weren't full at the time. The top manager got upset because I insisted that the safaris I wanted were available; if they weren't, they would close them and wouldn't allow me to quote them. I felt manipulated and poorly treated, and I informed him. His reaction was unprofessional, and after the start date, which he had no idea what time it would start, he never contacted me about anything. The safari was over, and she never did.
Reply from Indigo Safaris
Posted on Oct 16, 2025We strive to provide excellent service and value and have built our reputation on it over the 16 years we have been in business. We take complaints very seriously and investigate them as thouroughly as possible, as mistakes can occasionally occur, and we are always looking to improve.
In this case, Roberto was looked after by Michele, one of our Senior Safari Specialists. Michele has over thirty years of travel and hospitality experience in operations, lodge management, and safari planning and regularly gets great reviews on this platform and others. At no point was Roberto in contact with any of our management team. Perhaps the reference to "top manager" is the result of using online translation tools from his native language.
We offer safaris which are fully escorted like the safaris Roberto had previously done in Kenya, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. The Namibia safari that Roberto booked was not an escorted safari. The one he booked makes use of daily shuttles to get from one destination to the next and it is the guest's responsibility to get to the shuttle stops on time. This shuttle tour is much more affordable than an escorted tour. These shuttle tours also provide more freedom and flexibility than an escorted tour. We offered him several Namibia escorted group tours, including a cheaper group camping tour, all of which he turned down.
The itinerary for the trip that Roberto booked can be found here: https://wetu.com/ItineraryOutputs/Discovery/eeb95061-f10c-44d8-be2a-23116b52ca67
The above link shows departure times for all the transfers from one lodge to the next. In addition, on day 1 of the tour, it explicitly states that a pick up is not included from his hotel in Windhoek, a hotel that he booked himself, not through us. This fact was again brought to Roberto's attention by email before he arrived in Windhoek, when he contacted Michele and asked for information regarding the transfer he replied that it was not his job to read itineraries, it was our job to pick him up, despite it being made as clear as possible that Indigo Safaris does not have vehicles on the ground doing transfers, and that these are arranged through tried and trusted third parties.
The above itinerary link also states that lunch is not included. Roberto was also informed of this in emails before he booked the tour. The other guests on the tour who had packed lunches had bought them themselves from the lodges they stayed in. Roberto could have done this, too, if he had wanted to.
We provide all of our guests with all the information they need before embarking on a safari. When we send guests the invoice for their safari, we encourage them to read their itinerary again and double check that they are happy with everything.
On top of the pretrip digital itinerary, and PDF invoice with inclusions and exclusions, and a travel app with all the details of the digital itinerary in it, that can be viewed when offline.
If Roberto had read his itinerary, all of his unhappiness could have been avoided.
In response to Roberto's allegation that we manipulated him into booking more expensive lodges, he booked this tour of his own free will. At the time of booking, the more affordable lodges were fully booked. His claim that the other tour was available relates to him seeing the itinerary on Safari Bookings and not understanding that it is a sample and does not reflect live, dynamic availabilities.
That the cheaper accommodation was not available was explained to Roberto and Michele sent screenshots of availability from the lodges to prove to him that they were fully booked. We also have emails from the lodges stating that the more affordable options were unavailable; otherwise, we would have booked them. The lodge has confirmed that between the time of booking and Roberto arriving at the lodge, there were cancellations, with provisional bookings that did not materialise.
We did not force Roberto to book anything. If he didn't want to book the more expensive lodges, he didn't have to. He was free to book a different tour with another company.
Guests are also free to get quotes from other safari operators to ensure that they are getting good value for money, and we are always happy to explain the reasons for the price of our safaris.
However, this was a last-minute enquiry, and Roberto seemed to be in a rush to book it without reading everything properly first, something beyond our control.
If any problems arise during a safari, clients can WhatsApp their safari specialists, who will do their best to resolve the issue. Roberto had Michele's work and personal WhatsApp. Furthermore, Michele messaged Roberto via WhatsApp several times during the trip, but he never responded.
It was only several weeks after the tour that Roberto expressed any dissatisfaction, and we tried to clear this up with him, explaining the above, but his communication was limited to a seven-word response.
Regrettably, Roberto didn't have an experience that would have prompted him to leave a great review, like hundreds of other clients have left on this platform and others. Still, I believe Michele and Indigo Safaris can shoulder no responsibility for that in this case.
Christopher, Managing Director, Indigo Safaris.
