Choosing a safari - any advice please?

[user12945938]

DS (15) and I are going to do a once in a lifetime ( because of the price!!!) safari next summer. I can stretch to about £5k for the two of us. Obviously he wants to see the big 5 and i would like to combine with a few beach days and get some snorkelling in! Any advice would be welcome please

We have just returned from Madikwe which was recommended to me by another mnetter. We had the most amazing time we saw the big 5 every day for 5 days. It's also a malaria free area.

I cannot wait to go back, for us it really was a trip of a lifetime.

Check out Somak holidays, we booked our holiday through them and it was really reasonable (for a safari!) we went on safari in Kenya for five days staying in three locations including Treetops, followed by four days at a beach hotel in Mombasa.

Both sound amazing, going to research those options now, thank you

Have just come back from an amazing visit to South Africa. As part of our three week holiday we spent 3 days on safari in Entabeni safari conservancy. It was recommended by a company called Travel Butlers that another Mner recommended. They were happy to book the safari and a transfer from Johannesburg to the reserve. But also drew up an itinerary for me that gave me some ideas of what I could book independently. South Africa proved to be a beautiful and easy place to travel in. Whilst we didn't see all the big 5 (didn't see the buffalo or leopard) we certainly saw elephants, rhino, Lions and cheetahs amongst loads of other animals. Beautiful site to stay with open access through the camp for wildlife to move through so I 'bumped' into giraffe, impala and warthogs while walking between the dining room and our 'tent'. Blooming amazing. Also went with 3 school aged 7 - 11 who absolutely loved it.

There are a number of maleria free game parks if you prefer not to take maleria tablets.

My advice would be to find a travel agent, they have the experience to give you the best holiday for the price you want to pay.
We did that and got an amazing trip, and my friend has just booked her honeymoon to see the migration across the plain lands. She would have never thought about that if she hadn't had it recommended

I have had great experiences with Kuoni but they are on the pricy side.

If you want to do things independently Bigfoot Adventures in Kenya did ours last year. We went for the cheapest option which they did warn us was a bit budget but they do great tours on the more expensive side too. They team were great and I would hugely recommend them.

Beach in Mombasa is lovely. I've stayed at Voyager and at the Sarova Whitesands. (Sarova more recently) Both lovely. Serena also very nice at the top end. The Tamarind is nice but less beachy. Restaurant there is very good and worth a visit.

I'd go all inclusive in the resorts probably as there is not much to do outside of the hotels.

It is amazing! You'll have a great time!

I will second Madikwe. We stayed at Tuningi Safari Lodge and had an amazing time. That said, it was 9 years ago!!! But we all still talk about it.
As a PP said, one of the reasons we chose it was being malaria free as i didn't fancy the (potential) daily battle of getting a 5, nearly7 and 8 year old to take it.

Madikwe sarfari lodge. Amazing place. We all want to go back.

We went with Rainbow Tours who were fantastic. Stayed at Kicheche Base Camp in the Masa Mara in Kenya. Saw all of the big five and leopards every single day of the safari. We went on honeymoon but there were several families with teenagers in camp. Couldn't recommend it more.