South Africa Highlights & Safari Reviews

5 Rating 173 Reviews

About smarTours:

smarTours is a leading provider of direct-to-consumer, affordable travel experiences to exotic global destinations. The Company offers travelers curated, pre-packaged itineraries to over 50 destinations across the globe. By offering tours directly to consumers, the Company provides premium-quality experiences at value prices, and as a result, has cultivated a highly passionate and loyal community of repeat travelers. More than 200,000 travelers have taken a smarTours trip since the founding of the Company in 1996. smarTours is… the smarter way to see the world.

Visit Product Page

Phone:

800-337-7773

Email:

info@smartours.com

Location:

500 7TH AVE, 8TH FL,
NEW YORK
New York
10018

Visit Product Page

“Excellent Tour. The guide, Desmond Clack, was not only very knowledgeable, and personable with an excellent sense of humour but he worked diligently on the details to make the tour run smoothly and anticipated logistical issues. We had a great time.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Excellent, well organized tour of Africa, Shaun Bartnik was a great tour director, he took care of all the details, changes, add on tours and was a wealth of information. I was surprised by the quality of the accommodations and food. I would pass on Swaziland next time though, really didn't add anything to the experience BUT the Victoria Falls extension and Chobe Park are highly recommended, we also rode elephants and walked with the lions.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“This South Africa venture was our third smarTours outing, after India/Nepal and Vietnam/Cambodia. smarTours ticks all the boxes (which is why we keep coming back) - value for money, simple and clear booking processes and access to information, great hotels and transportation, and probably above all, great tour directors. We had Ron Armstrong as our tour director. Not only was he infinitely knowledgeable, but he helped us feel and understand both the history and the current issues facing this wonderful and complex country. We have no reservations whatsoever in recommending both the company and this particular tour.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“This was my first time traveling w/ smarTours (South Africa Highlights and Safari) and my first time traveling internationally on my own, but I must say I not once felt lonely or unsafe as my tour guide Renier was purely AMAZING! He made sure all single travelers (there were 3 in total) always felt part of the group or the family as that is sort of what we became during the trip. He was funny, uber knowledgable and super friendly. Not once did he get annoyed with the million and one questions people asked him, even during the times when he constantly had to repeat things for the chatty Kathy's on the bus. I really have to say he was one of the best parts of my trip! Shout out to Renier for being an awesome tour guide!!! I highly enjoyed all the scenery, seeing all the animals during the Game Drives, meeting all the people and trying out all the different foods. However, there are a few things I would definitely change for this tour. The amount of time spent at cool open markets was too short. We would stop to have lunch/shop and would have to do both in an hour or an hour and a half. Granted we were not shopping for homes, but I would have liked a little more time just to walk around and check things out instead of feeling rushed. This also goes for places like Table Mountain and The Potholes. More time to take everything in and really absorb the amazing views would have been great. I would also take out the trip to the DumaZulu Cultural Village as it's not a real village at all. It felt like I was at Disney watching people in costumes put on a show for us, with many of them who looked unhappy to even be there. Perhaps I was the naive to think I was walking into an actual village where the DumaZulu tribe actually lived at, but I was quite disappointed. I felt this part of the trip was a complete waste of time and could have been spent else where. I would have liked if there were a few more alternative options for people. I felt there were a few times where there was not much to do mainly because of the location of the hotel/lodge so having an option for an excursion or activity would have been nice. I would have also like to know going in that although some meals were included, drinks (of any kind) were not included. Not a huge deal, but just something I would have liked to be informed of before hand. (And if this was in the fine print and I missed it- my apologies in advance). All the hotel/lodge accommodations were great as well. They all had air conditioning, basic amenities (towels, hair dryers, shampoo/conditioner, etc) were well kept (of course some more than others) and the staff was usually friendly. Although food was usually buffet style breakfast, lunch and dinner), there was always a nice variety to please everyone, including those with a sweet tooth. The farewell dinner was fabulous and we all had such a fun time. I met some interesting people and made some new lifetime friends so overall I had a terrific trip and would consider smarTours again.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Best trip ever can't stop talking about it and showing the many pictures we tooks. Saw the big five animals in South Africa, Table Mountain, Wine Country, Cape of Good Hope, Victoria falls and more. Hotels were also great and the tour directors were very knowledgeable and insured we were safe at all times. This trip was so good we are currently planning our next trip with SmarTours.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Our Tour Guide, Shaun Bartnick, was the best! His ability to handle every request and solve problems was impressive. We enjoyed the sights all the way from Cape Town to Victoria Falls. Each Hotel or Lodge was unique and the food was excellent. The Safari guides in the game parks were outstanding and we got to see every animal we wanted to see except a Leopard. The Victoria Falls extension is also highly recommended but we missed having Shaun as our guide and fixer during that tour. He spoiled us!”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Loved your safari & highlights tour. Whether in the luxury area of Sandton or the shantytowns in Capetown, everyone was friendly; obliging; and hopeful for the future of this post apartheid country. Loved the up close and personal experiences with animals at Kruger. the food was excellent everywhere. our guide Ron was the best. Thank you again smarTours for the experience of a lifetime.”

Helpful Report

Posted 7 years ago

“The South African Highlights and Safari Tour could not have been packed more full of wonderful experiences- nature, history, and culture. Our guide, Jeremy Poole, was incredibly well informed on every aspect of this vast and complicated country. This was the first time my husband and I had ever taken a tour and I was a bit uncertain about giving up my autonomy as a traveler. Well, I am now a complete convert- with Smartours we were able to see and do and learn so much more than we would have had we been on our own. The accomodations were lovely, the food was excellent, and we had so much fun with our fellow travelers. Looking forward to the next trip!”

Helpful Report

Posted 7 years ago