Photographic Safari in Sabi Sabi Review

I went on a safari to Sabi Sands this year, and Discover Africa arranged the perfect 5 day stay for me. I was planning on a fairly short notice of 2 months considering Oct is high season in the sands, but Barry Greenshields was able to fetch some great accommodation options for me.

He recommended the Sabi Sabi little Bush Camp and it was absolutely amazing; the wildlife experience, the accommodation, cleanliness of the camp, facilities, the food, guides and the staff was all top notch. Being a photography hobbyist, I had laid out my expectations of getting some great photos of wildlife especially big cats in the safari, and surely enough I managed to have some amazing sightings on Lions and the elusive Leopard.

I had quite a few Leopard sightings, during the day as well as in the night, making for some amazing photos. Other than the big 5, I also got to see some very beautiful birds which are always a great subject for photos along with other prey animals as well.

Being a tour operator, I think the real value the company can offer is i) giving accommodation recommendation based on experience (actual stay experience is up to the accommodation management but the tour operator must know what it is like and whether it would meet the client’s expectation), ii) effective and responsive communication, iii) being transparent with costs and iv) ensuring the booking process is smooth and the client does not experience hiccups on the logistics or payments etc.

I was very happy that Barry was great in all these areas – from the planning process, from recommending the accommodation, accounting for my budget and tending to all my queries. Communication was fast and responsive with all channels available i.e. email, WhatsApp, call etc and I didn’t have to wait long for getting responses despite it being busy season. He was also very transparent with trip costs i.e. the accommodation cost, flight ticket and transfer cost etc so that I would know exactly what I am paying for and make adjustments accordingly to suit my budget.

Sometimes tour operators do not provide cost breakups since the client would then make comparisons, but I believe that if your service is good, you have fair prices and a host of accommodations to choose from then there shouldn’t be anything to hide – the client will recognize value and pay for it accordingly. They had booked air tickets as well to and from Johannesburg and every thing was super smooth throughout the trip – I just had to sit back and enjoy the trip. The payment process was also very easy – i.e. no “5% extra if you pay by credit card”, etc.

If I go to South Africa again, I would definitely book with Discover Africa again.

Asmar travelled to South Africa in October and wrote the Photographic Safari in Sabi Sabi Review on 22 October 2024

The trip included: Sabi Sand Luxury Lodges Big Five Safaris Big Cat Safaris Sabi Sabi Little Bush Camp