Nick van de Wiel of Tailor Made Safaris
Tailor Made Safaris
- Located In:
-
Netherlands
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2009)
- Member Of:
- FGASA, TKZN, MHCTO & EDTEA
- Tour Types:
- Self-drive mid-range & luxury tours
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $86 to $377 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A great trip which we won't forget!
We have thoroughly enjoyed our trip, and Tailor Made Safaris had organised it to the utmost detail, leaving us not to worry about anything. We booked rather last minute and yet Tailor Made Safaris managed to organise everything. The best destination, in our opinion, was Tembe Elephant Park. The park and the lodge are managed by super friendly people that are committed to give you an experience of a life time! And sure they did! You could notice that the staff enjoyed working there, which was great to see! Apart from doing game drives, we also enjoyed some time at the Elephant Viewing Hide and spend hours there watching herds of elephant that came to drink. Fantastic!
In summary: A great tour which we won't forget! Tailor Made Safaris, thanks a million for everything!
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Thank you letter from Veldhoven
Already home for 4 weeks now, back in the rhythm of daily life. Every evening we sit down and discuss the day’s events and often we come back to talking about our experiences in South Africa and the great times we had there.
How we enjoyed this holiday!
We found Tailor Made Safaris through word of mouth and were told that it would offer us great trips at a reasonable price.
We then contacted the company and told them what we would like to plan for our holiday. We talked about the budget straight away so that there would be no false expectations.
Within a few days we had a wonderful proposal for a trip of 16 days through Kwa Zulu Natal, together we tinkered with some of the final details so that we were a 100% happy with the itinerary. This was a great start and we were very excited, but were cautious that things sometimes look better on paper than in real life.
With high expectations we flew with 7 people, via Johannesburg to Durban where we were picked up by Geert, waiting for us dressed in his ranger outfit! And so the adventure began.
The first few days we spent in various wildlife sanctuaries. The striking thing about this was that you encountered few tourists allowing you to get the real sense of Africa. In these parks, we experienced not only beautiful scenery but also a great variety of animals (including the Big Five). The enthusiasm which Geert and Freya showed from morning to evening was great. They took care of everything to perfection. They shared their knowledge with us in a pleasant way, and we have really learned a lot about nature and animals.
Every day was a new adventure with a variety of activities from snorkeling, boat trips, just lazing on the beach with a fabulous lunch, excursions to traditional fish traps, more beautiful wildlife parks and game drives, days to relax , whale watching, visiting a Zulu village, feeding elephants, petting a cheetah and a horse ride between wildebeest and zebras. The pace at which we gained new experiences was perfect. Not too fast so that you had time to enjoy everything. Also, the travel times between the various accommodations was not too long so that you still felt like you were on a relaxing holiday.
The accommodations ranged from good to very good. Each venue had its own charm such as beautiful settings, great hospitality and very tasty food so we could not say which the best one was at the end of the journey.
Geert asked us which activity we enjoyed most, but we failed to choose just one as there were so many great activities.
Some of our party had already done a trip by bus through South Africa with a large tour group. In itself, this trip was pretty fun, but now that they have experienced the journey with Geert and Freya they noticed the difference. The bus trip was a lot of traveling time and enjoying brief moments. Geert and Freya showed us the real Africa.
In short, highly recommended! We will definitely be coming back.
Bart , Karin , Jaga , Cor , Rob , Marieke , Bert
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
10 out of 10 for a fantastic family trip!!!
What a GREAT journey with Christmas and New Year included!
We also had the special honor of having both Nick and Freya on tour with us! It’s crazy how life is, one moment your sit at your hairdressers, talking about possible next holiday destinations and the next moment you’re driving around South Africa! A long and in depth preparation via emails paid off to ensure that the whole trip from beginning to end was exactly what we wanted. A long journey via Dubai brought us on Christmas Eve 2011 to the private lodge in Hluhluwe iMfolozi where the decorated Christmas table was waiting for us. Nick had gathered Christmas decorations and gifts which was wonderful. We then spent 3 days doing game drives and walks with the lodges guides who were very competent. We were lucky because on the first day we saw lion, hyena, a lizard and a herd of more than a 100 elephants. During one of the game walks we even saw a lion in a tree. So we could have gone home after that….I don’t think so, we were just getting warmed up! And the photography course provided by Nick had to be put into practice.
We then travelled to Kosi Forest Lodge in Kosi Bay for the water element of our tour. Here we took beautiful pictures of tropical fish (snorkeling safaris), water lilies and tropical birds during our canoe tour and a loggerhead turtle laying eggs on the beach during our turtle - tour. That was really impressive and indescribable. And there was always a big lunch, served on a nicely set table, on the beach or on that wonderful vantage point.
On New Year's Eve our “fireworks “were from very energetic, traditional Zulu dancers in Tembe Elephant Park . The commitment of the staff, the guide there and all the dancers was very special. For the real "die- hards " there was another game drive ( at 05.00 ) on New Year’s morning and Nick and Freya were back in action !
Our last pit stop before we went home was the heavenly home of our host and hostess; St. Lucia Estuary. There we combined the bush and beach, including a hug with a baby crocodile, a cuddle with two elephants and one with a CHEETAH! During the whole tour we took over 3000 photos, you name it we saw it, apart from a leopard, but we did see a leopard-tortoise and that was wonderful!
The photos remind us of our first visit to South Africa, but we are infected with the South African safari virus. It was memorable and we will definitely return in the foreseeable future! Hopefully back to Nick and/or Freya, because they were great!
C u again soon :-)
NL
Email Frank Veldhuijzen | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A great experience!
A great experience for us, something we had not expected in our wildest dreams
Surprising! Enjoy a real holiday and learn something! The design of our trip was perfect with game drives interspersed with other interesting things from South Africa, and seeing how the locals live, with time to also enjoy a good book in the lodge in St. Lucia.
It isn't necessary do think about somebody else: our next trip to SA will be with Tailor Made Safaris
NL
Email Jan en Martine | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Coming home with a shameless amount of pictures!
For the second time we went with Geert on the hunt for big and small game in South Africa. Not in the home province of Geert like last year, but in Pilanesberg, Soutpansberg, Kruger and the Panorama route. What an experience yet again to see such beautiful landscapes, filled with many animals that Geert can tell fascinating stories about. Pilanesberg is really a beautiful park and was a logical bridge between Johannesburg and Kruger. Soutpansberg is a wonderful place to unwind; what views!
And then of course Kruger. We drove to the south from the north (Punda Maria), and have thus gained a good overall impression of the park, both in nature and facilities. Unforgettable days! The afternoon trip out to Kruger Moholoholo Rehab Centre was definitely worth it.
Finally we did the Panorama route with Graskop as our base. Beautiful views - a must!
Also thanks to Geert we again came home from a brilliant holiday with many great memories and a shameless amount of photos, we have attached some examples.
For all images, see: Note Tailor Made Safaris: very worthwhile to watch! There are really beautiful pictures!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joco_knoop/sets/72157631849966852/
and:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/---martine---/sets/72157631951767533/
Geert , until next time!
Jan and Martine (Utrecht, The Netherlands )
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Phenomenal Honeymoon
Phenomenal Honeymoon!
Firstly we want to thank Tailor Made Safaris for our phenomenal honeymoon! The trip exceeded all of our expectations. Everything was perfect; romantic lodges, deserted beaches, private dinners under the stars, but also culture and safari!
We started with a few days on the beach to rest after our wedding. From our porch we looked out over the sea and deserted beach. After that we went to a romantic lodge in the woods, where in the evening candles and oil lamps were lit everywhere, both inside and outside and on the paths running to our lodge. In the evening we enjoyed a private candlelight dinner in a clearing in the forest.
After this our safari really started and we saw many animals to admire in the Mkhuze Game Reserve, Tembe Elephant Park, St. Lucia, iSimangaliso Wetland Park and Hluhluwe -iMfolozi Park ; all different but all equally beautiful. And in the evenings we enjoyed African braais, it was very cozy. Your private guide was not just a guide but also a private cook and chauffeur etc.
During the trip, the program was adapted to our needs, and was not rushed, everything we did was relaxed. We really feel that we have experienced real Africa, and not just sightseeing on the tourist trail!
Tailor Made Safaris, thank you again!
Sandra and Sebastian Weijers, The Netherlands
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A perfect combination of wildlife, nature, photography, adventure and relaxation!
We have come back from our lovely trip through Kwazulu Natal (Mkhuze, Kosi Bay, Tembe Elephant Park, St. Lucia, Hluhluwe, Drakensberg) and it has taken us quite a while to work our way through the many beautiful photos and videos.
The trip was a perfect combination of wildlife, nature, photography, adventure and relaxation. Tailor Made Safaris has shown us this beautiful part of South Africa in a special way, with a highly skilled and attentive private guide and a sturdy 4x4 Land Cruiser. An unforgettable safari experience! As active travelers and ‘hobby’ photographers the many "up- close and personal” encounters with Elephants, Rhinos, Giraffes, Lions and Wild Dogs, and the beautiful nature was a real treat.
The trip was diverse and varied: forest, savanna, tropical forest, dune, beach, marsh and rugged mountains; various environments and wildlife parks came into our over three week trip.
We can also tick off 2 more UNESCO World Heritage sites from our wish list: Ukhahlamba in the Drakensberg and the iSimangaliso Wetland Park. Due to the good organization, the beautiful accommodations and personalized treatment of Tailor Made Safaris, we feel privileged to have been able to experience such a safari.
Darja and Sander (The Hague - The Netherlands )
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A great self-drive trip through Northern South Africa!
Geert and Freya, we want to thank you for the great service you have given us in the preparation and compilation of our self-drive trip. Tailor Made Safaris has provided us with good information, through the wonderful book produced by Geert and also via skype and email sessions prior to the holiday. The trip we did was a good fit for our needs and requirements and our perception of South Africa.
We can absolutely recommend Tailor Made Safaris! No better organizer!
A cordial greeting from Marcel and Brigitte Kramer, Ronald and Wiesje Kramer,
Hengelo, The Netherlands
NL
Email Manouk Goettsch | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best holiday ever!
We never been on a holiday outside of Europe and I am so happy that we booked our holiday with Tailor Made Safaris!
We booked a self-drive tour from Drakensbergen, via St. Lucia, to Mozambique, Tembe Elephant Park and we ended our fantastic journey in Swaziland.
Everything was perfectly arranged. The accomodations, the navigation, the excursions. We never booked a holiday that was so well-organized.
Also all the accomodations where beautiful, clean and of high quality.
We recommend Tailor Made Safaris to all our friends and we ensure you that you can't find a better operator for your dream journey to South Africa!!
NL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An unforgettable journey. In one word: Awesome!
It was memorable and we are confident that we will go back. We greatly enjoyed the Drakensberg , the many animals that we saw ( zebras , giraffes , antelopes , the " cats " including lions, elephants , wild dogs , whales , dolphins, turtles , etc. ) And the very friendly locals. Tailor Made Safaris planned a wonderful trip for us by listening to our needs and delivering what we asked for. The three and a half week trip provided a variety of activities and adventures and also a chance to relax. The Mozambique and Swaziland extensions, each for a few days were very nice. The accommodations was very good (luxury bed and breakfasts to beautiful luxury tents). We found it very helpful that Geert and Freya were continuously accessible and worked ceaselessly to please us. An unforgettable journey. In one word: Awesome! Thanks a lot for everything and see you soon!