Viva Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 50-100 employees (Founded in 1991)
- Member Of:
- Southern Africa Tourism Services Association
- Tour Types:
- Mid-range tours that, when possible, use accommodations owned and operated by them
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $81 to $200 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
Email Trudi | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Everything we wanted
We were really happy with all the services provided by Viva Safaris and the whole team were great - from being picked up in Johannesburg, being met at Tremisana and experiencing our first safari - everything was perfect and well organised. The team are friendly and knowledgeable and really made our experience special.
Thanks to you and everyone at Viva Safaris for a great time.
I would definitely recommend them for value for money, seeing a huge range of animals and meeting other like minded travellers.
NL
Email Sam | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good
It was a really could experience! Passionate staff and rangers. Loved it!
CH
Email Carmen and Thomas | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Good organized
The Safari was great. We liked the Tremisana Lodge. The Food there and the whole organisation was super. We saw a lot of animals
DE
Email Lisanne | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Consulting, organization and acommodation were great!
Balule as a smaller reserve was great, didn't like Kruger as much as it was more a drive in a safari zoo. Tremisana and Marc's treehouse lodge have both been great places stay and very welcoming. The game drives in Balule had been more personal and Rocky our guide had very good instincts. The Bush walk at Marc's treehouse lodge was more about plants and animals' behaviours which was very interesting and added great value to the trip.
US
Email Lee-Ann Mills | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The experience was magical
The accommodations for the first night of our stay was sketchy at best !!! - when we transferred to our "tree house" camp, the accommodations were as expected and honestly, a step up from where we stayed the first night. The tours were fantastic - the drives/guides were knowledgeable and the vehicles were great - we spotted all the animals we wanted to see (except a Leopard) - was a great time of the year to go on Safari (warm days and cool nights/mornings) - also, since it's outside of the "rainy" season, the vegetation made for great animal spotting! Overall, the experience was fantastic!
Amazing Budget safari
Tour well organized and amazing. Tremisana lodge comfortable and nice. Marc's camp budget, cooking and staff very good. Planning organization efficient. Tent too small and without place to wardrobe.
it was a very nice experience at tremisana, great time and guides, marc’s much less nice
it is all pretty good, especially at tremisana was fantastic, amazing rangers and professional guides..lovely experience! marc’s was pretty poor
US
Email Andrew | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very fund 5-day safari
Had a great time with Viva Safaris. Did a 5-day, 4-night safari, with the first night at Tremisana Lodge and the last 3 days at Marc's Treehouse. The various drives and walks to see animals were fantastic. We saw tons of animals and had knowledgeable guides who could tell us a lot about what we were seeing (and find more animals for us). The trip to the animal rehab center was fun, too. All in all, the safari was very well organized by all the Viva Safaris staff. The food provided was also very good, and they were very accommodating with dietary restrictions.
The one negative would be the accommodations. Our room at Tremisana Lodge was in poor condition and the bathroom was basically in the same room as the bed. This may have been an outlier room at Tremisana, but it was still below expectations, particularly since Tremisana is supposed to be one of their nicer lodges. Marc's Treehouse also was a bit disappointing. Only a few of the cabins were true treehouses - the rest were just cabins made of bamboo and tree branches. And because the property is sprawling, some of the cabins are a 10-15 minute walk from the main lodge area, which was inconvenient and difficult to do with suitcases.
The staff at both lodges was fantastic, though, and helpful at all times. Viva was also helpful in planning the trip, and answered all questions ahead of time. Highly recommend using Viva for a South African safari, but I would keep expectations regarding accommodations a bit low.
DE
Email Martina | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great Safaris with nice guides!
Everything works fine, special thanks to Smilie and Nico!!
Thank you for the Big Five!
US
Email Wood | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Vacation by Kruger Park for reasonable price
Pros:
Very reasonable prices for location and accommodations.
On time pick up at JNB hotel.
Lodge Rooms was clean and comfortable but a bit small for our family of 3.
Program/tours - variety of tours and places to go, really enjoyed the conservation visit!
Breakfast was very good, as well as other meals.
Lodge staff friendly.
Most of the guides, despite of young, looked passioned about their job and were very friendly.
Cons:
Location - day to go to Kruger was cold and had to ride 30-40 mins on open vehicle (with tarp on one side).
Lodge bar only accepts cash - this was an issue for us, since we did not take much cash on our trip, so we could not drink as much we wanted on our vacation!
Liability Waiver - this created a big commotion on the van to the Lodge. None of us know about that when we booked the trip. The explanations were confusing. Some told us was for the van ride only and others that it was for the Safari tours. I have done Safaris before and don't recall signing nothing like that. This was an unpleasant and unnecessary stress during our Vacation.
Internet - only works on the lobby area.