Ole Serai Luxury Camp Moru Kopjes

Discover Africa Safaris made the entire experience very enjoyable. If anything went wrong Dev and his team were on it in moments. Every part of the trip was conducted by professionals from Federal airlines to the two safari lodges.

I can’t say enough about the Impodimo Lodge. The guide and tracker were excellent in both knowledge of the area and all the different animals we saw. All the meals were excellent and the staff were all so helpful and pleasant. We especially enjoyed sitting each night with our “jeep mates” for a great dinner and conversation. Sebastian, our guide would also regale us with wonderful stories. Sebastian, even ensured we made the last day morning trip because of a chance that there were cheetahs in the area. Sure enough we were able to take numerous photos of the 5 brothers and still make the flight back to Johannesburg.

Moving on to Hoyo Hoyo Safari lodge proved to be just as great. Although the meals were structured with only Trish and I at our table, the food was to die for with local dishes and wonderful desserts. Again the staff was of a caliber designated for 5 star accommodations. It also didn’t hurt when the afternoon elephant parade interrupted lunch time. I believe the only downside to our entire excursion was the return flight from Hoyo Hoyo as it was a commercial flight. That is how great of a time we had when the only thing to complain about was what every traveler complains about no matter where they are.

May I just say that if we were to make another trip I would be hesitant to use anyone other than Devryn and Discover Africa Safaris as our planner for another trip of a lifetime. Thanks to all!

I was very pleased with the information, help and booking process provided by Cayleigh

I chose a travel agency for four reasons. Years in business, quantity and quality of reviews, customisability, and local expertise. Discover Africa and my agent, Adelle, met or exceeded all expectations. I gave Adelle my budget and modified one of their suggested tours. Five stars.

We travelled this summer with Discover Africa Safaris for the first time to Botswana, after spending 2 summers in Kenya and Tanzania. We got recommendations for this travel agency from friends and were really very satisfied with the service provided!

We were travelling with 2 small children and were extra cautious, but Dev planned everything perfectly. The lodge he suggested was out of this world! During our stay he was always available (although we didn’t encounter not a single problem). This was our most beautiful journey to the African continent and we would really recommend Discover Africa.

We did a 3-week bespoke tour with Discover Africa and specifically Devryn Panaino. South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana game parks. Our group of 6 had a fantastic time, as the itinerary was top notch, transfers smooth and now we can’t wait to go back. We were nervous about small plane transfers but it was very smooth and professional service. In fact, it puts Aussie’s Jetstar in the shade. We saw all the animals big 5, ugly 5, small 5 and everything in between. Would definitely recommend this company and Devryn. Hot tip: be prepared to spend a bit of money it’s worth it for a truly unique experience.

Vicki's Southern Africa Journey

We had been thinking about a Southern Africa safari trip for a few years and had some valuable input from Zimbabwean friends who had been on tour many times. So we had a general idea of when and where but needed guidance on the finer details and options, as well as someone to put it all together once we’d agreed on an itinerary (South Africa, Zimbabwe and Botswana). This was possibly going to be our one and only trip of this type so we wanted to get it right!

I saw an ad for a tour similar to what I had in mind so contacted Discover Africa (DA). Devryn was able to clearly outline his preferences that would meet the brief. He suggested the order of travel, how long at each place, what type of accommodation (generally getting better as we progressed), how to get from A to B, etc., via several email conversations.

We had a Zoom meeting with him before finalising the plan, where we were able to ask further questions, which he was able to answer confidently and competently, given he had been to these places himself.

We felt confident enough with his recommendations to lock it in 12 months ahead of the trip.
Naturally, you anticipate some things will go wrong on tour, e.g., a missed connection, a guide not turning up, or accommodation not being as described, and we were mentally prepared for that.

Garry's Safari Experience

However, every connection was made on time and the accommodation exceeded our high expectations!

The Safari experience itself (which Devryn obviously couldn’t guarantee) was superb. The guides from the lodges we used were experienced, informative, respectful of the animals, and considerate of what we had and hadn’t seen previously and so every day (twice a day!) was another trip into the unknown. Everyone hopes to see the Big 5, which we did early on. After that it was a matter of literally sitting back in the jeep and seeing what would turn up. The birdlife was better than I expected (the lilac-breasted roller was a favourite), and seeing small animals like mongooses (4 different species), a chameleon and a steenbok were unexpected highlights.

The food was varied at the various lodges, with usually a buffet of 3 main courses of western-style cuisine (although I ate wildebeest, crocodile, kudu and springbok when it was offered). We finished off with 3 nights in Cape Town to let the Safari experience sink in, which was a very good move.

So in summary, we did some initial research, worked out a plan with Devryn, and he nailed the brief. We’ll never know if it could have been even better, but I seriously doubt it.