African Safari Consultants LLC Arvostelua 

We had a fantastic trip to South Africa, thanks to Ilze at African Safaris, and we never could have gotten the same experience without her. As someone who usually researches and arranges my own travel, I am so happy we chose to work with Ilze as the choices, arrangements and overall cost were much better than if we'd done it ourselves. Great service and everything turned out exactly as booked. I've already recommended Ilze to my friends and raved about the trip.

The transfers, lodging, logistics, meals were all above expectations (which were very high). The Safari guides were the icing on the cake. The whole experience was magical and the stay at TAASA and spending our days with Jimson made it the best trip for me and I have been very lucky in my life. Wholeheartedly give this 5 Stars plus

The trip itself was amazing, however, we used African Safaris for the booking process, and the service was lacking. First of all, giving an agency in South Africa book an agency in Nairobi to book my tour in Tanzania is a money grab. As well, our agent Ilze Fox was more interested in her commission than to listening to her clients. I am a luxury concierge of over a decade, I am more than familiar with the role of preparing itineraries, finding appropriate experiences for guests, etc. I was not impressed with her responses, her refusal to understand and appreciate my budget. She was away during our trip, which she made a point to tell me once we had a problem, instead of providing us with a contact number for who could help if she was unavailable. And our final hotel booking was missing for two guests. This means she did not reconfirm the reservations she sent out on behalf of our family, and one was missed.

This is minimal, but despite being told she would follow up with us after our trip, she did not. I also asked her to let me know what happened with the missed booking and she never reaponded. African Safaris is using AfriTrek as a booking service, and I highly recommend skipping the run around and going straight to Afri-Trek.

Ilze informed me that "things are different in Africa, and you cannot show up to a hotel and relax in the lobby until check in, you have to book a room from the night before if you will arrive early, or if you have a late flight, you must book a hotel for that night." I explained that I have travelled around the world, in various levels of luxury, and I am perfectly happy to get dinner or explore a village before going to the airport.

It took four emails for her to understand that I was not planning to spend another $500+ (that she would make commission on) so that I can arrive to a hotel at 8 am and have a room, instead of simply waiting until noon.... I refused multiple times, to the extent of asking her to "please respect my wishes" and I called the hotel directly who told me, there was absolutely no issue with us waiting in the lobby. Of course we could have breakfast and there were loads of activities they could arrange for us..... I told this to Ilze and she acted as if this was not true, so I did actually call and check a second time.

When I arrived at the hotel at 7 am, with no room booked from the night before.... They gladly sat us to enjoy breakfast and had the room ready before we even finished our coffee.

Highly recommend working with Afri-Trek directly !!! They are also your ACTUAL drivers/on site contacts. And if you are working with Ilze, be careful as she is not 100% honest.

Ilze Fox at African Safari Consultants and their team provided great suggestions for our extended family safari and helped us narrow down wonderful choices for our Kenyan safari. She created a custom bespoke safari experience for us which included all the logistics, bush flights, camps/lodges and experiences we were looking for, all within our budget. The trip was perfect in every way.

Ilze, at African Safari Consultants, has now set up two trips for us, both fabulous. The first, a couples trip, was to Tanzania and Uganda. The second was a family trip to Southern Africa. When we needed some special accommodations at the last minute, she was all over it. She planned a variety of activities and lodging. Ilze's communications were quick and concise. I can highly recommend her!

I have been to Africa 3 times and Liesl, from African Safaris’s has been our trusted travel agent. She planned and perfectly executed one of a kind amazing holidays. We couldn’t be happier with her recommendations and planning. I would highly recommend Liesl and her team if you’re planning an African holiday.

Overall, a normal service

Liesl was excellent at making all the arrangements on safari lodging, accurate transportation and on selecting a very very special Mozambique beach stay.
A perfect vacation! Thanks!!

Ilze made African Safari planning a breeze. We got to know of Ilze and African Safari through friends of ours who used her services, and had a great experience. We had an amazing experience ourselves. Every step of the process was clearly explained, I felt like we were in the loop throughout the process, the costs were clear, arrangements were top notch.

This is the ONLY way to see Safari, which for most people is a once in a lifetime experience.

Couldn't recommend Ilze highly enough.

The quality of the places we stayed and how we were treated
magical trip of a lifetime

Planning & Logistics
1) All porters and transfers were fantastic on every leg
2) Helicopter rides were great also & good way to save time
3) In general, all hotels except Retreat had excellent rooms, amenities, on-site staff
4) You may want to confirm seat preferences for internal flights with clients ahead of time. Also offer first/business option if there is one.

Rwanda
1) Serena hotel was solid. Good staff, food, etc.
2) Tours (coffee, etc) were nice and well done for the time we were there.
3) Singita Katanza house was phenomenal. Maybe spend more time there if you have the budget and the desire.
4) For clients staying at Singita, let themm know that they do provide clean backpacks, rain proof coats, gaiters, glovers, etc. Along with masks, and amenity kit so you can reduce weight
5) Do not recommend Heaven Retreat hotel - not well kept
6) Drivers and guides in Rwanda were excellent. Personable, helpful and knew our schedule and had great ability to coordinate logistics
7) Wondering if there was a way to save the stay in Kigali on the way out and just have gone straight to capetown. The day in Kigali at the end was essentially a wasted day

South Africa
1) Hotel was fantastic
2) Wine tour was great.
3) Hindsight we should've had a dinner reservation the night of the food tour
4) Food tour was great - probably didn't need a dedicated guide and driver for that day as the food guide was with us for 4 hours.

Botswana
1) Daunara was an exceptional property and staff was superb.
2) Daunara provides clean tote bags, water bottles and binoculars in the rooms so no need to pack any of this stuff
3) Great extra activities - Mokoro, Elephant Haven, could've helicoptered to Victoria Falls, etc. Would be good to let guests know so they can choose if they want to.
4) Nadia shared that we could've left some luggage at their office in Maun airport or had our bags driven in from the airport allowing us to avoid the weight restriction.
5) Animal viewing was good, but not exceptional. We saw Lions, elephants, wild dogs, antelopes, etc. Did not see any leopards, cheetah's and the Lions were limited in terms of citings. Maybe it was the time of year? Either way, we enjoyed it immmesly but it felt like more of a hunt for animals than in the past. Still good fun.

Other

African Safari nailed it! They created a "once in a lifetime" first-class experience that wowed us. We can't stop talking about this amazing trip and sharing the photos with friends.

5⭐️
I was recommended to Liesl at African Safari consultants by a friend who had just finished planning his 4th safari with Liesl, so that told me something right there!

Honestly the 2 week itinerary that Liesl planned out for the 6 of us was meticulous in all details.
Even with several “monkey wrenches” (airline cancellations, etc) thrown at us, Liesl was able to smooth everything out for us and take care of things sometimes on a moments notice.
The hotels and lodges that were chosen for us were absolutely amazing. Mount Nelson Hotel in Capetown, Mukwa River Lodge in Victoria Falls & Kings Camp at Water Buck Timbavati.

This was a trip that we will remember forever and go into our memories for a lifetime.
Thank you Liesl for putting this bucket list trip of a lifetime together for us! It was exceptional❣️
Wayne & Denise Ricci

Ilze customized a wonderful itinerary that exceeded our expectations! She took into consideration our desires, and through frequent communication developed a great vacation package.

We loved Arathusa in South Africa! The waterhole animals, the game drives, the staff, and accommodations were just what we were looking for! We also loved the Okavango Delta, more specifically Kadizora Camp. We called this tented experience primitive-posh. Our flight arrived a little late to the camp. We thought we had missed the afternoon game drive, However, the driver took us to the exact location where we met up with our guide for our stay. We were grateful that they were so accommodating and friendly.

Throughout our trip the scheduled transport services were always prompt and courteous. Everything ran like clockwork!

We can’t thank Ilze enough for such a spectacular vacation! She was recommended to us, and we will definitely recommend her services to others!

We experienced 14 days in Africa as a continuous stream of entertainment.
Our vacation was custom-tailored to our request and special limitations of one of our party were taken care of as integral part of the planning at every step.
The implementation of the plan ticked like a clock-work, all sections fitted together seamlessly.
All selected lodges, transfers, tour operators were fully reliable, totally friendly and exceeded expectations in every way.

Very good experience. Highly recommend

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A Seamless, Epic Safari Experience – Twice Thanks to Liesl Matthews, Safari Guru!

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Liesl Matthews from African Safari Consultants twice now—and both times were absolutely incredible.

My first safari was back in 2015, a trip through South Africa, Zambia, and Botswana that Liesl planned for a friend and me. That journey went off without a single issue, and the memories still live vividly in my mind. So when my husband and I began talking about a second safari for 2025, I knew there was only one person I’d trust to plan it: Liesl Matthews.

This time around, I wanted to build on what I had loved the first time—but also make a few changes, like incorporating bush plane flights between lodges to maximize our time and minimize fatigue. I shared my previous itinerary and wishlist with Liesl, and she took it from there.

She sent us sample itineraries, walked us through our options, and every lodge and resort recommendation was spot on. We ended up staying at:

Tawi Lodge

Ol Seki Hemingways Mara

TAASA Lodge

Baraza Resort & Spa in Zanzibar

Each one was amazing in its own way, and we genuinely loved every single property.

Beyond lodging, Liesl handled all of our East African logistics, including:

Flight bookings (including bush planes)

Ground transfers in Nairobi and Zanzibar

Meet-and-greet services at Nairobi and Wilson airports (a huge stress-reliever!)

Our hot air balloon ride

An ocean excursion in Zanzibar

Everything was timed perfectly and ran like clockwork. Every person who met us along the way was professional, kind, and knew exactly who we were and where we were going next—which made the entire journey stress-free and incredibly smooth.

Liesl’s attention to detail, her expertise, and her thoughtful, curated approach to safari planning made all the difference. I went into this second trip fully confident that it would be epic, because the first one had set the bar so high—and she exceeded it again.

🦓 Highly Recommend!
If you're thinking of planning a safari—whether it's your first or fifth—I cannot recommend Liesl Matthews highly enough. She’s knowledgeable, responsive, easy to work with, and truly a Safari Guru in every sense of the word.

We’re already dreaming of our next safari, and without a doubt, Liesl will be the one to plan it!

Camille was great to work with! She asked a lot of questions about what we wanted to see, how long we wanted to be in Africa, how many camps and other stops, and importantly, our budget goals. Then she provided multiple itinerary options for us to consider and eventually chose from. Then, on the actual trip, every place and every connection was exactly as planned . All travel, connections, transfers, etc. worked seamlessly and without a glitch!

From the moment we were greeted at the airport by our guide Annie we felt welcomed and well-attended. Our agent Liesl had thought of and saw to it that everything we wanted to do had been well planned and executed. From the accommodations to meals to activities our entire trip was sensational. A once in a lifetime experience. There was also built in downtime to experience our own adventures. We saw the Big 7 with the aid of tremendous rangers and trackers. And got a deep appreciation for their depth of knowledge. Lazarus (and Zeb) at Little Bush Camp were particularly adept at finding the animals we wanted to see. They got us to 6 of the Big 7.
Victoria Falls and the Okavango Delta were also beautiful. Our last night in the Skybeds under a full moon and glorious Southern Cross was the perfect ending to our trip. If you’re even thinking of visiting Africa, do yourself a favor and let Liesl Matthews help you plan YOUR perfect trip!

We were recommended Ilze Fox from a colleague. Everything was done via email and in a friendly, professional manner. She looked after EVERYTHING and made our trip one of a lifetime.
We had an amazing time !