Matthew Grace & Nicolette Grace ~ Founder & Owner
African Safari Guru
- Office In:
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 2005)
- Member Of:
- SATOA, FGASA, SATIB, DEAT, CASSETHA, For Wildlife Non Profit Trust & Prodly South African
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $474 to $1,393 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
DE
Email Svein, Nadja & Katharina | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Experience of a Lifetime
Planning our first ever trip to South Africa, we searched for potential tour operators to help us realize our African Dream. Within 1 hour of posting our general inquiry on Saferibookings.com, Matthew had responded, and never seemed to go off-line after that. Within no time, he had put together a set of options, and had the perfect package put together for us, with 5 days Madikwe Sarafi Lodge and 4 nights More Quarters (Cape Town) with local tours.
This was only the beginning of a fantastic relationship with Matthew, who by all standards proved to be the best organizers we have had the pleasure to meet. He makes the impossible possible, and follows you up every step of your trip to make sure everything is ok and to your liking. One example worth mentioning is the evening just before dinner we contacted Matthew to check the possibility to alter our program for the next morning in Cape Town, and within no time he had organized everything (from Johannesburg) with our local Tour Operator in cape town and before dessert we had received the updated itinerary via WhatsApp. Never have we seen this kind of good service anywhere before.
Matthew Grace is THE African Safari Guru. If you ever consider to travel anywhere in Africa, he’s the man. We’ve never met anybody so dedicated to his clients, country and wildlife, and he seems to have a never ending network of people and companies to help take care of you every step of the way. It’s really a one-stop-shop for any travel and any budget-range, and he is with you all the way until you arrive back home. Even then he checks how your return trip was. Our trip was truly an Experience of a Lifetime, mainly made possible through Matthew Grace and THE African Safari Guru!
CA
Email Debbie and Glenn | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a lifetime!
Matt at African Safari Guru helped us put together a custom safari vacation that suited us perfectly. From the initial contact and planning of our trip to the final transfer to the airport for our trip home everything went smoothly and was very well done. Even though our initial flight was 2 hrs lathe arriving Matt and Nicolette were at the airport to greet us when we finaly landed. Matt picked two excellent lodges for us to visit - Lukimbi Lodge in Kruger and Arathusa in Sabi Sands and the accomodations and game drives at both lodges not only met but exceeded our expectations. We had fabulous close encounters with all of the Big 5 and even had black rhino and wild dog pack sitings! Thanks to African Safari Guru for all the wonderful memories, we will definitely recommend you to our friends!
US
Email Annette & Michael | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing safari experience!
Matt is a true South African and loves his country. That comes through in everything he says and does. He is very knowledgeable about his country, the people and the wildlife. We had dinner with him and his wife, and we got to have a sample platter of biltong, a must have when you're there.
This was a wedding anniversary trip and Matt notified both lodges and made sure we got a special treat in both places, and we did. It's that kind of extra that makes Matt great.
We initially gave Matt a budget to work with and he sent us detailed proposals with pros and cons for each place he had in the list. The choices were all excellent and we loved the lodges we stayed at. In both places, service, food, and wildlife viewing was excellent. We preferred Arathusa because there was more opportunity to get to know other people in your "game drive" group. Lukimbi was excellent too, but we wouldn't return there in high season because we prefer adult-only environments.
The transfers were all taken care of by Matt personally. He drove us from Johannesburg to Sabi Sands, then from there to Lukimbi in Kruger National Park, and then to Nelspruit airport.
All-in-all, excellent value for an excellent experience. Thanks Matt!
US
Email Abhijit | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Priceless!!!
What a trip, Africa. What a travel agent, Matt. Priceless!
Matt planned an amazing 2 week adventure for 2 families to SA, Zimbabwe and, Zambia. Going to a new country, you always expect some hiccups, but nothing in our case. Everything was perfect .... from transfers, to personal chefs, to Safari's, to kids entertainment ...everythign went smooth and perfectly.
We visited CapeTown, VicFalls, The Hide (in Zimbabwe, a must do), and Madikwe (in SA). Matt took personal care and went above and beyond to meet us personally and chauffeur us from Johansburg to Madikwe and back.
For people planning Safari Trips ... The Hide in Zimbabwe is a magical place, and must do.
I cannot recommend Matt enough ... give him a call, and he will take the best care of you and your family at a personal level!!!
IT
Email Marco (Gibbo) | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A true jump in wildlife.
Beautiful place, good food, nice people, breath taking location and true contact with wildlife.
CA
Email Calvin | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Matthew organzied an amazing trip for us. From the time we contacted him to the end of our trip.
We wanted a trip of a lifetime to South Africa to see the big 5 and to see Victoria Falls. Matthew at African Safari Guru looked after us in the most amazing way I ever thought possible. I must admit I was quite worried about setting up our trip and all the logistics involved, but once I realized that Matthew had our backs and that he was there anytime if we needed him, I became quite at ease. Matthew arranged all the behind the scenes arrangements and everything went perfectly. He is knowledgeable, sincere and passionate about his job, and following his suggestions we were able to select a perfect trip for us. Having spoken at length to Matthew, he impressed me with his knowledge and expertise and I realized that there are many other variations of the trip that were available. Something for everyone's taste. We were able to pick the ones that suited us the best. As I believed he figured out what we wanted and suggested options that we would enjoy.
Several of our friends are wishing for a trip similar to ours. I have without reservation have recommended they get in touch with Matthew, as we have had such a positive experience with him. Thank you Matthew for everything!
US
Email Kassie + Rick | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely amazing safari - not one complaint
Matthew set up an amazing experience and trip for us - from the time he picked us up at the airport - to the time that we left to go back to the states. He planned through our trip with us and was available every step of the way. Our safari was perfect and the experience in cape town was a blast.
LU
Email Fiona and Laurent | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our best holiday yet!
We asked Matthew for help in organizing our vacation. Even today we have not recovered from this unforgettable experience.
Matthew found us an absolutely amazing and idyllic Lodge located in Kruger Park where we were pampered and had the chance to be in touch with the animal world.
In Cape Town, Matthew organized and suggested several activities not to be missed (cage-diving, Wine-tour).
Matthew organized all our transfers from the airport to the hotel and vice versa.
Matthew is a wonderful person who loves to share his passion for wildlife and South African culture. We had the chance to spend some time with him and his wife. Sympathetic and endearing, we are very happy to have made their acquaintances.
We recommend everyone to refer to their expertise. If you're looking for a tailor-made trip, Matthew is the one for you! Thanks again for everything !!! :)
Email Angela | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing day safari experience!
Matthew was so helpful every step of the planning process. My sister and I had one entire day in Johannesburg in between our flights, and Matthew suggested the Pilanesburg Safari Day Trip. The day trip starts incredibly early - 4am - Matthew picked us up from our accommodation (you could also arrange a pick up from the airport) and drove us straight to Pilanesburg, stopping for breakfast and snacks along the way. Matthew was an incredibly experienced tour guide and has extensive knowledge of the animals. He tailored the trip to fit our interests, allowing us to stop at various waterholes and look for specific animals. I saw my very first chameleon and caracal, among the usual safari animals such as rhinos and giraffes.
After the safari we were dropped off at the airport in time for our next flight. I would highly recommend booking a trip with Matthew for a personalised tour and his knowledge of the African bush!
Email Carole & Adrian Murphy | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Travelling is not being alone, but shared with people as passionate about travel too
Please read until the end, this guy will either become part of your experience or step outside so you have a unique experience. I feel I have to start by apologising to everyone who has looked for a Guide in South Africa to help plan a holiday of a lifetime-especially if you have chosen someone other than Matthew Grace of TheAfricanSafariGuru in the past 2 weeks, my apology stands. That’s how long it has taken me to come back to reality following a holiday involving Matt and TheAfricanSafariGuru. Another saying (in the UK) is to follow your ‘gut’ feeling. That’s what we did in booking this excellent guy, it’s been 2 weeks of still living the experience, so these comments are as fresh as though they happened yesterday. With holidays of a lifetime one can spend a fortune or be restricted to a budget (like us). Whichever way Matt’s input of experiences, contacts, knowledge of his native land and sheer personality are worth every penny, dollar rand or whatever currency you live with.
To start with Matt keeps in regular contact with you throughout the booking, whether like us you contact him months in advance or a shorter time scale. He always takes your ideas/requests/wishes into account alongside offering great ideas himself. If you’re not sure what you want, with his variety of suggestions between you, you soon develop a plan. Matt dedicates himself to that personal special service we all look for in a creative relationship.
TheAfricanSafariGuru helped with suggesting flights to fit in with our schedule’s, offered suggestions on where to stay at each point of our journey and listened to our own preferences. Take Cape Town, we looked at Matt’s suggestions of places to stay, of which he had carefully chosen of varying kinds. He had chosen hotel’s on the V & A Waterfront, self-catering apartments along the beaches, small beach hotels and Guest Houses. We also did our research and came up with our options. Matt took time to check on reviews of these places, recommending through his findings. We stayed in a guest house chosen by us, Matt took care of transport to and from the airport. He professionally respected we wanted this time on our own, contacting us only at times of priority.
A similar situation happened in choosing the Safari, now this is well in Matt’s zone. We looked around too, choosing a smaller National Park. Matt once again arranged everything, from airport pick up, Lodges to stay were recommended by him, he also offered suggestions to add to our itinerary. Hence we went on an estuary cruise to see Hippo’s and Crocs, to visit a Zulu Reserve, a Cheetah project before heading to the Safari. Matt ensured that we would be safe, accompanying us on most days, divulging his vast knowledge of areas around.
Once at the Safari, Matt left us in their capable hands, having provided us with a detailed itinerary of our 4 days on safari.
Matt has opportunities to cover every pocket, he always delivers. A great example of this, is when my son got in touch with Matt to suggest and arrange a special birthday surprise from my family. My son knew he wanted a Hot Air Balloon experience, not knowing the logistics of it. Speaking with Matt, together a place was picked taking into account where we would be on our travelling holiday. It was superb. Not only was I proud of my family for personal reasons, but Matt excelled in not only keeping a secret, but also in executing in style a very important moment for me and the family.
Likewise, I asked him to arrange a horse riding experience, again although he had not had such a request in the particular area we were staying, he checked out Harties Horse Trials. Again, a fab choice for a wonderful experience, well beyond my expectations.
I truly believe Matthew Grace of TheAfricanSafariGuru can turn ideas and suggestions into excellent beyond experience adventures. Never mind 5 stars, this is beyond scoring, he is the tops for us.