African Safari: My wife and I are planning an African photo safari for next September. There are over 800 safari companies and we're trying to find one that will maximize our exposure...

zoso

My wife and I are planning an African photo safari for next September. There are over 800 safari companies and we're trying to find one that will maximize our exposure to the Big 5 and other animals. Everyone touts their area as the best...from Botswana to Tanzania to Kruger Park, So. Africa etc. etc. Any suggestions on where to go and who to use??

FrankR Loc: NYC

zoso wrote:

My wife and I are planning an African photo safari for next September. There are over 800 safari companies and we're trying to find one that will maximize our exposure to the Big 5 and other animals. Everyone touts their area as the best...from Botswana to Tanzania to Kruger Park, So. Africa etc. etc. Any suggestions on where to go and who to use??

From what little I know about it, S. Africa has the greatest variety of wildlife, not the huge numbers such as would be found on the Serengeti, but the greatest variety. The company Abercrombie & Kent is consistently rated among the best, but pricey as well.

JosephSF Loc: Sonoma County CA

I have used a couple of travel outfits for safari. The best I have found is:

Adventure Trave Desk

http://www.african-safari.com

The northern Kruger safari was outstanding with excellent accommodations . That being said, there are many high quality safari companies so you have to balance availabilty, preffered location and budget. Good luck!

Quixdraw Loc: x

Safari Club International www.safariclub.org is a good source as well.

Stevesaxe Loc: Marblehead

Tanzania all the way. Proudafricansafaris.com

jimfullwood Loc: Sarasota, but Ex pat from UK

We just got back from South Africa and had the best time ever. We made our arrangements here in the USA with South African Airlines Vacations and everything ran like clockwork. We went to Malaria free area's as well.

I am happy to put you in touch with the Lady that looked after us so well.

We did Capetown as well which added a little difference to the trip, it was beautiful.
I have posted some photo's here just a couple of weeks ago.

It was just brilliant.

hawaiidave Loc: Honolulu, HI

We (a group of ten from Hawaii) took Tauck Tours. They are also quite pricey but the tour director was top notch, the lodging selections were excellent, and the service excellent. The vehicles we used on game drives limited the passengers in each row to two. I noticed in the cheaper tours all three seats in a row were occupied. Our tour was Zambia (Victoria Falls) Botswana, the Okavango Delta, the Kalahari, Johannesburg, and ended up in Cape Town, South Africa. Our group now plans to take the Tanzania/Kenya tour offered by Tauck in 2017.

Bobbee

zoso wrote:

My wife and I are planning an African photo safari for next September. There are over 800 safari companies and we're trying to find one that will maximize our exposure to the Big 5 and other animals. Everyone touts their area as the best...from Botswana to Tanzania to Kruger Park, So. Africa etc. etc. Any suggestions on where to go and who to use??

I was in Kruger, We took a morning and night ride. there are other options. the guide keep in touch with radios and tell each other where the animals are. You will certainly see the Big 5. May take more than one day. You have to get reservations early to get inside one of the internal camps. Like NOW for next April, May, June. the tours are sanctioned from the park.

berchman Loc: South Central PA

zoso wrote:

My wife and I are planning an African photo safari for next September. There are over 800 safari companies and we're trying to find one that will maximize our exposure to the Big 5 and other animals. Everyone touts their area as the best...from Botswana to Tanzania to Kruger Park, So. Africa etc. etc. Any suggestions on where to go and who to use??

If you go on a *photo* safari, you will pay through the nose. However, you can still get plenty of good pictures on a safari which is not specifically touted as a photo safari and it will be a lot cheaper. I went on Overseas Adventure Travel's "Ultimate Africa"; I saw all the animals one could desire; I stayed at the same camps as those spending a lot more money, and I took all the pictures I wanted. My picture of a leopard has already sold twice. If you PM me, I can give you my name and each of you will save $100 off the trip. (I get $100 for referring you.) A few years ago someone else on UHH did this and ended up a happy camper (so to speak).
http://www.oattravel.com/trips?q=africa

edhjr Loc: Needham, MA

Check out africadreamsafaris.com. No preset trips. No one else with you except your guide. You decide each day what you want to do with their expert advice. You can model/customize your perfect trip to Tanzania using the information on their interactive website. Suggest you visit Zanzibar after the safari part of the trip. Also an amazing place.

Only Tanzania. Used them twice and have referred friends who have also used them. Amazing guides, no limits on time in the field, totally customized for you, you decide (with their advice to help) where to stay, etc, etc. Total perfection.

Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Tarangire parks all worth seeing.

aquadiver Loc: Planet Earth

I have toured both Kruger NP in South Africa and Botswana with https://www.wild4photographicsafaris.com/. Highly recommend. Stu Porter is the owner, very knowledgeable, an excellent photographer himself. He customizes his vehicles to provide the best support, storage and space for serious photography. Does tours in SA, Botswana, Kenya, Tanzania and Namibia. Tell him I sent you!

Bultaco Loc: Aiken, SC

hawaiidave wrote:

We (a group of ten from Hawaii) took Tauck Tours. ... (show quote)

My wife and I have been on 3 tours and Tauck is by far the best we have used.

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

berchman wrote:

If you go on a *photo* safari, you will pay throug... (show quote)

Pros and cons of the different groups. Most limit the size of the group to 12-15. A safari which is designated as a "photo safari" will cater to photographers. This may mean fewer passengers per seat (two or in some cases only ONE passenger per row of seats). Some will have a special "gear tent" with charging stations for batteries. A big thing to check out is weight restrictions on internal flights. Many safaris use small planes with severe weight restrictions - often 25 or 33 pounds - so if you are planning to take a lot of equipment you need to consider that. One photo safari I have looked in to actually charters a second plane for gear and has a GEAR weight limit of 50 pounds plus the normal luggage weight limit. But you do pay for the luxuries. I am finding that a good photo safari will run about $9,000 to $10,000 (I am looking at Tanzania and Kenya). The OAT trip costs about half that. Many UHH members have traveled with OAT and generally have a good experience except that a few have commented that the vehicles had too many people in them.

sr71 Loc: In Col. Juan Seguin Land

zoso wrote:

My wife and I are planning an African photo safari for next September. There are over 800 safari companies and we're trying to find one that will maximize our exposure to the Big 5 and other animals. Everyone touts their area as the best...from Botswana to Tanzania to Kruger Park, So. Africa etc. etc. Any suggestions on where to go and who to use??

http://bythom.com/photographic-travel/africa/how-to-think-about-equipmen.html

Check out the above link, he is a professional that does workshops in africa, if not then read his recommendations for equipment.....

CanadaNorm Loc: Ontario Canada

Tanzania and Overseas Adventure Travel. Perfect..big 5 in one day.