Craig your expert safari planner & private guide
Southern African Tours
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2008)
- Member Of:
- SATSA & CTT
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $79 to $129 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
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Email Sara R. | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful adventure!!
Highly recommend this tour company. Gerry was a fantastic guide for our private 11-day tour ; very knowledgeable about the history of the country and very eager to be sure we were taken care of and that we had a great experience. Sheilagh was very thorough in setting up all of our accommodations and reservations and sending us a detailed itinerary along with contact info prior to our arrival. The 2 highlights of the tour were Kruger and Cape Town. In Kruger, we were fortunate to see almost all of the animals in their natural habitats: leopard, elephants, giraffes, zebras, rhinos, hippos, baboons, buffalo, wildebeest, hyenas, water bucks. Cape Town is the most beautiful city I have every visited: 360 degree views of mountains and coastline; the penguins; botanical gardens. Blyde River Canyon was also spectacular. Take a good camera with a good zoom lens. Can't say enough...this company is trustworthy and eager to be sure you have a memorable trip. And we loved that it was a private tour with just the 5 of us in a van and not in a big tour bus with 20-40 other people. All the accommodations were very nice and clean with good breakfasts included.
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Email Steve | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great “once in a lifetime” experiences with knowledgeable local guide. Overall great value!
Anyone looking for great experiences in Southern Africa should consider hiring Craig as their private tour guide. Being a native South African, Craig has local firsthand knowledge of South Africa past and present. He answered all our questions and educated us about 'all things South Africa' with knowledge and pride. His own enthusiasm was contagious! Our adventure in South Africa would not have been as seamless and positive if it wasn't for Craig.
Our family of 4 from Toronto, Canada had an incredible time with Craig as our private tour guide. We hired his company for 2 separate trips; a 4 day 3 night tour of the Southern Cape (including Cape Point, Oudtshoorn, Congo Caves, Private Game Reserve, Cape Agulhas, Hermanus and Betty’s Bay) and a 5 day 4 night tour of Swaziland, Kruger Park (including many hours of Safari driving) and the Blyde River Canyon.
Craig took care of all the details including itinerary, bookings, vehicle rental, driving and guiding. We appreciated that Craig drove us through spectacular regions, ensured we saw major tour spots, as well as, experienced special 'off the beaten track' places that made our trip so special. The best things about our trip were the many excursions, knowledgeable local guide, flexible itinerary and overall great value.
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Email Terri J | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Exceeded Expectations on Safari & Cape Town City Tour
Our experience with Craig and Bianca with Southern African Tours was exceptional. They were incredibly easy to work with, responsive to messages, and provided solutions to our specific travel needs. We were delighted with our Kruger safari and accommodations at Umbhaba Eco Lodge. Our game driver, Fortune, was knowledgeable and highly skilled in spotting animals. I had read "80% chance of spotting the big 5 in a three day safari". We saw them all (repeatedly) in our first day! We were astonished by how close we were to the animals. I never would have believed how many animal species could be viewed so close in Kruger and with the exceptional skill of our guide. My husband and I had booked a semi-private tour and the company of a Danish couple and Spanish solo traveler added to our enjoyment. Also more eyes in helping to spot animals. We also visited the Elephant Whisper. It was neat to learn more about the elephants and get to interact with them directly.
We did the Panorama Tour one day and visited God’s Window, Bourke’s Luck potholes, and Blyde River Canyon-3 Rondavels. It was a private tour with Nicky as our guide. Nicky was very knowledgeable and set the pace to ensure the best viewing times (to avoid the fog). We enjoy hiking and it was a pleasure to get out and walk/hike these unique and beautiful settings.
We completed our trip with a private 2-day Cape Town city tour. Gareth was our guide and organized and timed everything perfectly. We stayed at Radisson Red which is an ideal location to safely enjoy the city night life. We had a wonderful dinner at Den Aker (French/Belgian) and highly recommend. A few of our favorites included Table Mountain, the Boulder Beach penguin colony, and Cape Good Hope. There was high wind and Table Mountain had been closed the day prior. Gareth was on top of all details and was monitoring the situation and our itinerary to ensure we were able to see it and at the optimal visibility. Sightings of wild baboon and ostrich right at the side of the road were an unexpected delight. After wine tasting at De Grendel, Gareth surprised us with a stop at a lovely beach and we were able to tip our toes in the water. We ended our adventure with a drummies and dinner show before heading to the airport for a late night flight back to the USA.
We truly had the most wonderful time. Without hesitation, we felt completely safe and well cared for. Our program was customized with the safari, panoramic tour and Cape Town and we would not have changed a thing. We give Southern African Tours a 5+ star rating and highly recommend.
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Email Lori Collins | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Dream Africa Holiday
Wow, Southern African Tours custom tailored a 12 day trip for us that included all of my ‘ must see’ including Kruger National Park, Cape Town, Boulders Beach and Victoria Falls. Our trip was perfect and very reasonably priced. I can’t recommend these folks highly enough. Great company, very responsive!
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Email Aurora | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The tour was excellent, extremely organized and we had a great time.
We went on a tour to Cape Town, then headed to Zimbabwe and Botswana for three amazing days.
Cape Town was incredible, we had the chance to visit the table mountain, Cape of Good Hope, Boulder’s beach, Dickinson Island and go on a tour of the wine lands. Our guide was very kind, informed and extremely professional. We had a great time!
Zimbabwe and Botswana were a true dream.. we went on a safari and a boat cruise. The food was delicious. The people were amazing and everything was perfect. Everything was extremely organized, we never got bored.
Wonderful!
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Email Dr. Gabriel Minz | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
South African Odyssey with personalized touch
We have just finished an 18 day South Africa tour from Johannesburg to Cape Town by minivan with Craig, Bianca, and Jerry.Craig, the owner planned every detail to our extensive trip through South Africa.Our family of three travelled in a comfortable, air conditioned van from Johannesburg/Soweto to Blyde River Canyon,Kruger National Park,Swaziland, Isimangaliso Wetland Park,Durban, the Garden Route, till
the Cape of Good Hope with lots of time in beautiful Cape Town including the Winelands.
From the moment we got in touch with Craig on email, he responded to all our inquiries and adjusted our tour to suit our needs.He was able
to add my adult son to the itinerary just a few weeks before leaving.Craig and Jerry have an extensive knowledge of South Africa and were great raconteurs of it's intense history and knew a lot about the wildlife we encountered along the way.The accommodations Craig arranged were
comfortable usually including a satisfying breakfast and the places we stopped along the way were all fascinating.
I would highly recommend this small local tour company which gave us personalized service great value for the money as compared to
tour companies based in the U.S.A. or Britain.Craig, Bianca, and Jerry gave us an unforgettable trip and I would highly recommend them to
anyone.
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Email Roman | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fast response, clear information, good informations
Agency staff provide all information, available for all questions all the time, tailored program is ok.
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Email Heather Willis | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Tour of Cape Town and Surrounds - Thank-You!!
My husband and I toured with Southern African Tours in late September 2019, and we can't say enough good things about this company. Craig and his team organized and executed a perfect and wonderful tour of Cape Town and surrounds for us. Right from the start, Craig was responsive in his emails. While the company does do pre-arranged tours, based on our interests, Craig tailored a private tour itinerary for us, including whale watching, cheetah visits, wine tasting, wildflowers and amazing scenic vistas, and shark diving. Our tour guide, Derek, was fantastic, we had the absolute best time with him. He was knowledgeable and lots of fun! The B & B's used by Southern African Tours are first rate, we were very impressed. While we did not go to safari on this tour, we did see wildlife (lots of birds, Eland, Ostrich, Zebra, Bontebok, Baboons, and Springbok) which was an added bonus! Cape Town and area is absolutely beautiful - a must see destination! I really recommend Southern African Tours and Craig's team, thank-you for helping us realize such an amazing trip!!
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Email Brendan Jackson | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Once in a life time tour
My wife and I have just finished a Cape to Addo tour with Gerard from Southern African tours. What an incredible experience, we visited the West and East Cape, a diverse region of 2 oceans, 3 game reserves, mountains, semi desert, forests and lagoons.
Gerard was a fascinating guide and host. His knowledge, passion and tireless energy had us busy and attentive. Lol. I will definitely recommend Southern African Tours, we keen to come to the Kruger and that region next. Oh and Namibia!
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Email Jim Labelle | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Well managed and professional operation with great attention to service and satisfaction.
Craig and his team did an excellent job in working with some of our special timing requests on the 7 day Cape Town/Kruger tour. All transfers, lodging, and tours went off impeccably well....we put a lot of trust in Craig's operation and did not have to worry about any of the details.
A real blessing was meeting Gerard Maretz, our guide from Southern African Tours in and around Cape Town. He is a wealth of knowledge and experience, and I highly suggest requesting his services.
Cape Town is certainly one of the world's great beach cities, and Kruger is indeed the Garden of Eden. The lodging and tours that Craig's operations set up for us in both locales were perfect.
It was an amazing trip. I have been blessed to travel to many places in the world, and South Africa will be among the most memorable. We especially enjoyed all of the people of South Africa.....they have a unique understanding of human nature, regret, forgiveness, and most importantly hopefulness for the future. South Africa is one of the world's most special places geographically. It's rainbow of people make it an even more special place.