Malaria Free Family-Friendly Safari with Cape Town & Garden Route Tour

We contacted Zicasso not knowing what to expect.  We usually plan our own trips, but this was kind of a biggie to places we were not familiar with and I thought I would like someone else to do the legwork for a change.  We wanted to go to South Africa and Botswana and mostly just see animals in the wild at Kruger National Park, but, I also wanted to go to Cape Town because I had heard wonderful things about that city. 

We provided the information requested to Zicasso, and very shortly afterward we were contacted by three agencies.  We also contacted a couple of others on our own to see what they could offer.  The ones we contacted outside of Zicasso wanted to put us on tours with lots of other people with regimented itineraries... not what we were looking for at all.  Of the three agencies that contacted us through Zicasso, one was off the charts with pricing and we were able to eliminate that one fairly quickly.  The other two were both fabulous - the tours were just what we were looking for and the people we dealt with really went out of their way to mold the itineraries to what we wanted. 

It was a really tough decision between the two remaining agencies.  I think the deciding factor ended up being this travel agent had lived in South Africa and was a guide himself, and now lived in Florida (a few hours from where we live).  I'm sure the other trip would have been wonderful, but the one we chose was really terrific. 

Everything the agent planned worked like clockwork. We were met everywhere we went, driven where we needed to go, and treated very well at each stop.  The driver meetings and checkins and border crossings and internal flights were all on schedule.

We really liked Cape Town - wish we could have spent more time there.  The hop-on-hop-off busses went very well on the first day.  We spent quite a bit of time at the harbor - what a nice place.  Unfortunately the table mountain cable car was closed due to weather.  Can’t do anything about that.  We scheduled a private tour for the next day and and it went really well - we got to see some of the main points our agent mentioned.  We needed at least 2 or 3 more days there though - maybe a week - maybe 2…

All of the preserves we visited had their own charms and amenities.  I think we probably liked Pondoro the best - it just seemed to have everything.  I liked the guides and trackers at all three preserves - each handles the drives a little differently, and all were fun.  My wife really enjoyed the drives.  This was a dream trip for her.  Except for the flights to and from SA, this was a terrific trip.  (The flights were just too long, especially the trip home.  From the time we left the preserve until the time we got home, we were traveling 42 hours.  If we should ever consider doing this again, I think we’ll break up the flights and stay a couple of days somewhere in between, both coming and going.)

The only problem we had on the trip was the weather - nothing to be done about that.  It was pretty cool and a bit drizzly in Cape Town, but we dressed for it and were fine.  When we arrived at Mashatu Tented Camp, our third preserve, a cold front arrived with us.  It was very cold the evening we got there and our evening game drive about froze our butts off.  Showering under the stars was not an option.    We huddled under the blankets, which kept us quite warm, and slept until a cold early morning game drive called - put on a bunch of layers, and set off.  But it did warm up that day, and a shower was welcome around noon.  Every day was warmer at Mashatu and more pleasant after that, and our final night, we were finally able to shower under the stars comfortably.  

Monwana, our second preserve, was very pleasant as well. We liked it there and enjoyed looking at the pond where the animals came to drink.  One of my wifes favorite memories was watching about 35 elephants march down to the pond on a particularly hot day and splash around in the pond.  The staff, as with all three places, was very nice.

Our agent must have answered a hundred questions from me from the time I first inquired until final payment.  He was always quick to respond (even once when he was on vacation.  We are currently Facebook friends and share pictures.

We had a very enjoyable trip to Victoria Falls, back to the Republic of South Africa (via Botswana) for a typical safari experience in the Northwest Province at Madikwe Game Reserve, and then a week in the Cape.  Our travel agency suggested the Victoria Falls stop and Elephant Camp in particular.  Elephant Camp was very nice (and we were in the intimate four "tent" family camp that opened just in March) with excellent service and good food.  However, our agent oversold the opportunity to interact with the somewhat tamed elephants on the Wild Horizons/Elephant Camp Reserve.  We had literally no more than five minutes with the elephants, feeding them, so far less than we expected.  We enjoyed the visit to Victoria Falls National Park, as well as a canoe safari on the Zambezi above the falls.  We also very much enjoyed our time at Madikwe Safari Lodge, a very nice facility with an excellent guide, good food, but not always top-rate service.  However, I wish the agent had suggested the opportunity to fly in and out of Madikwe because it has an air strip, and this would have saved us a great deal of travel time doing mostly road transfers to and from Madikwe.  Our travel company was responsive to our requests for particular accommodations in Franschhoek and Cape Town, though they were different than the accommodations suggested by Born Free.  In both cases, we enjoyed our choices very much, as much because of location as because of the facilities themselves.   In Zimbabwe and Madikwe, service was not always up to par at all facilities, and meals were not always as excellent as we expected, but our travel company is not responsible for this.  

When our son left his Kindle on one of the transfers, Born Free helped track it down and get it sent by courier to catch up with us at Cape Town.  This was very helpful, but instead of charging us the cost of the courier and telling us what that cost was, they passed onto us the round figure of ZAR 500. I would have preferred transparency on that.  One of the other transfer operators officiously collected form the safari lodge things of ours (plaster imprints of animal tracks) we had asked them for--she did this while we were having breakfast our last morning.  But then the transfer operator forgot to give the things to us when she dropped us off at Oliver Tambo Airport--even though they were on the front seat of the van next to her!  Again, we were able to get these items sent by courier to catch up with us on Cape Town, but I didn't think we should bear the cost of that.   

We had a great trip.  I talked with our safari travel agent a few times on the phone and email to talk about what we wanted to do and she recommended places that turned out to be exactly what we wanted.  I felt that our travel agent really listened to what I wanted to get out of the trip.  It was a once in a lifetime Adventure so we wanted to get it right.  Thanks!  We had three nights at each location – Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, Ngoma Lodge in Botswana and Dulini Lodge in South Africa.  We were taken care of from beginning to end with people at each place to get us where we needed to go.  Generally speaking, I can’t say enough about how well we were treated during the whole trip.

Victoria Falls is spectacular!  We took the guided walk to see all the viewing sites on the Zimbabwe side of the falls.  They will rent you a poncho for $3.  I’m so glad we got them because in some places we got soaked.  Our agent recommended that if we go into town we should stop at the Elephant Walk shopping mall.  We did and ended up getting several things.  It had artists who did various crafts, so I knew we were getting original and unique mementos from our stay there.  I was really happy with the place we stayed in Victoria Falls.  When we got there, there was a mixup with the rooms.  Our agent stepped in and got it fixed right away.  Our rooms had decks that overlooked the watering hole.  It was amazing to get up in the morning, step out on my deck and see elephants, impalas and crocodiles meandering around the watering hole.  One night for dinner we had a Boma, which is kind of like an African luau with local dancing and singing.  They get everybody involved so it was a lot of fun. 

Next we drove to Ngoma Lodge in Botswana.  It was truly in the middle of nowhere so I wasn’t sure what to expect.  Every aspect of it was wonderful.  The lodge was on higher ground so we overlooked the flood plains of the Chobe River.  They had a multi-level deck with lots of places to sit and enjoy the view.  In our rooms the whole wall was windows so we had a view that just went on and on.  And we had a deck with a plunge pool.  We never got to use it because we were so busy.  Near the lodge, there was a watering hole.  Each morning the zebras, giraffes, impala and more came to the watering hole to drink.  We took our meals on the deck so we could enjoy it all while we ate.  The food and the service were good.  They really pampered us.  We went on game drives each day.  One thing I really wanted to see was elephants crossing the Chobe River.  I had heard about it and seen pictures.  We saw a herd of what must have been over 100 elephants crossing the river.  It was one of my favorite highlights.  We saw lots of impalas, kudus, elephants, giraffes, and so much more.  We saw a lion stalking a kudu.  Nearby there was a herd of giraffes that got scared and ran away.  They are so graceful when they run.  They really went out of their way to ensure we had a good stay.  Our game driver grew up in a nearby village so was really familiar with the area and knew exactly where to take us for the best game viewing.

Our last stop was at Dulini Lodge.  It is a private game reserve outside of Kruger National Park in South Africa.  The room was huge with an extra-large bathroom, living room and large deck with a plunge pool.  Elephants walked in the dry river bed off of our deck.  The grounds were all grassy and covered with trees.  It was beautiful.  Every day animals came up and grazed on the grass.  We ate outside here too with elegant dinners and excellent service.  Sometimes we ate by ourselves and sometimes in small groups.  Try the kudu steak and the wart hog.  They were both delicious.  We tried lots of foods we had never heard of.  Most of them were really good.  Both lodges had expert chefs.  We went on game drives every day.  We would tell our game driver what we wanted to see and he and his tracker would look for tracks.  One time we saw three lions resting after eating their fresh kill.  In another part of the park we saw a leopard with her cub and a fresh kill in the tree.  Then we saw a lion with three cubs.  We saw so much on every game drive.

I was really pleased with the whole trip.  The locations were just what we wanted.  We were really pampered with the food, service and amenities.  We saw game on every single drive we went on.  Three nights in each place worked out really well.  I would whole heartedly recommend this safari travel company to plan your trip.

This was a phenomenal experience, perhaps my best yet facilitated by Zicasso, and the fulfillment of a childhood dream.

From start to finish, our agent was a superb planner and communicator. She was easy to talk to via email and over the phone, and expertly asked all the right questions to tease out the details she needed to craft the perfect trip for me. She was equally adept at answering all of the questions I had, which helped me to make informed decisions throughout the process.

Despite booking my safari less than a year in advance (when the standard practice is usually two years out) and on a budget that was no doubt way less than what luxury travelers splurge, our agent was able to arrange the perfect combination of accommodations and tours that provided me with a luxurious, comfortable, enjoyable, and memorable experience. She was even able to amend my confirmed plans a bit late in the game after what was originally a solo trip became a trip for two when my mom, awe-struck by the awesome itinerary, implored me to let her join.

This was our first safari and first venture into southern Africa. While our agent and all our guides along the way tempered our expectations about what we'd be able to see once out in the wilderness, luck was on our side. We ended up seeing just about everything. We spotted four of the Big Five on our three days in the reserve in the Kruger Park (elephant, buffalo, leopard, rhino). The lions eluded us there, but we got more than our fill of them in the Okavango Delta. In addition to those, we had the pleasure of spotting wild dog and hyena packs with cubs in their dens, zebra, giraffe, hippos galore, crocodiles, baboons, monkeys, impalas to no end, kudu, an owl, ostriches, fish eagles, and a ton of other pretty birds. There was never a boring day. Despite our good fortune, I'm happy our agent was realistic and cautious in setting expectations.

One reason for this trip was to celebrate my mom's 75th birthday. Our agent went above and beyond in that regard, surprising us with a decorative towel arrangement in our first hotel, a bottle of wine in our first game camp, and another bottle of wine and a cake at our third hotel. That was a nice and unexpected touch, and much appreciated.

All of our accommodations were top-notch. The hotel in South Africa was in an excellent location, with modern facilities, friendly staff, and a superb kitchen. The private camp in the Kruger Park was a nice first introduction to the wilderness as it was basically a hotel in the middle of nowhere, complete with luxurious facilities and super-friendly and helpful staff. The lodge in Elandskop was wonderful and I regret that we didn't have more free time to enjoy it. The staff were very friendly, the restaurant very elegant, and the rooms very comfortable. The camp in Botswana was as close to camping as we'll ever come (glamping), but similarly offered wonderfully welcoming service, comfortable facilities, and a memorable experience. Finally, the Cape Town hotel offered a great location, friendly service, and wonderful food. Overall, the travel advisor did well with the choice of accommodations.

Similarly, our travel agent partnered with a great selection of local tour operators to ensure our every transfer and tour went smoothly and comfortably. I'd happily work with her again on future trips to the region and would highly recommend her services to all.

Our family of 11 including 4 grandchildren, 10 years old and younger, had a fabulous time in South Africa.  We were in South Africa for 8 nights after our arrival.  During our time we spent three days exploring Cape Town and adjacent areas with an excellent tour guide.  He was able to engage the grandchildren, be patient with them but also ensured that the adults were exposed and engaged in Cape Town and area related opportunities.  We stayed in an apartment which worked well because of its proximity to entertainment, food and fun things to do.  The casual nature of the apartments fit our needs with the younger grandchildren and the rest of the family very well.  Before we even got to Cape Town, we were very satisfied with the arranged meeting of our flight in Johannesburg since their assistance to get us through customs, help rebook us, since our incoming flight was delayed and get on our belated way after over 24 hours of travel.  The pickup in Cape Town was well done and our guide within Cape Town was outstanding, as previously mentioned.

We then spent three days at Shamwari Game Reserve of safari which was also very well done.  Great food, great service and comfortable surroundings.  We saw lots of animals, everyone felt pampered and we had control of our schedule.

Finally, after returning to Cape Town we were driven tour accommodation which was a fantastic home and venue along the ocean in another reserve, this one a botanical reserve.    What a way to spend the last two days of our vacation as the only people staying at the beautifully outfitted home with a full staff that took pampering to a new level.  From the first fifteen minutes after arriving we knew we had made a good decision despite the long traveling day from Shamwari to Elizabethtown, flying to Capetown and the 4 hour drive to the Beach House.  We had a "Sundowner" on the beach which included drinks of choice, appetizers, boarding down sand dunes by kids and grandkids and a sunset that will be long remembered. 

Our extended family has taken vacations to Ireland, Italy, Canada, Mexico, various locations in the US  and this was agreed by all to be the most enjoyable, best planned and with the capable abilities of our safari tour operator the best executed of all of our vacations.

This safari travel company went above and beyond in the planning of my "once in a lifetime" trip.  They got us in and out of 3 countries in Africa without any complications.  The two safari lodges that they chose gave us very different experiences. Kambaku Lodge, a private reserve on the border of Kruger was an off road, go wherever the animals are, kind of safari.  Muchenje Safari Lodge, in Botswana, had a daily drive into Chobe National Park.  The highlight of Muchenje is the river cruise where we were able to get up close and personal with Cape Buffalo and more elephants than we could count. 

We added an additional tour at the last minute in Cape Town and our travel company immediately took care of all of it.

They did an amazing job!