Reviews of wild planet safari

Chris was the perfect guide. So knowledgable. So kind.

Our experience could not have been any more perfect thanks to both Chris and Hopeson. We saw all the animals thanks to Chris' sharp eyesight and his ability to spot the most hidden animals. Hopeson made us the best food. Every meal was delicious, healthy, and filling. They took good care of us and we were able to see all the animals that we wanted. We left this safari completely satisfied with our experience! Great company and great people :)

Lisa Krzan

They were amazing! Everything went well

Wild planet was excellent! Thale had a lot of patience to answer all my doubts. Ruan was an excellent guide. Great person. Benjamin cooks very well! I figured the safari would be in an open vehicle, and it would probably be best to view the animals, but we managed to see many! The grass was high, which made it difficult to see it as well. But we got to see the Big Five. 2 lions from afar. I thought we'd see more. But many Elephants, which surprised me. The night drive was amazing! We saw hyenas from VERY close.Totally different from the daytime sarafi. We stayed in Skukuza. Next time I'll stay in Satara for about 4 or 5 days to enjoy it more and see more cats.

Henrique Azevedo

Basic safari billed as luxury, disappointing

Ryan is knowledgable and enthusiastic but customer service is not his strong point, it felt almost like we were following him around on his safari. Despite being billed as a luxury safari the food and accomodation were basic at best. For some reason he asked us in advance for our preferences for food, wines and spirits but then completely ignored what we had asked for. He only supplied one bottle of cheap wine which he shared with us so I ended up buying him more drinks than he provided. I would happily have paid more for the luxury touches I had specifically asked him for but he seemed not to have read my emails - he initially turned up at the wrong airport terminal.

Carl

The best safari company to feel at home, a wild one.

We loved our tour with Wild Planet. They made us feel really confortable, even in a wild place. They were really aware what they were doing and we felt secure in their hands. The handmade cook was SUPERB. <3

Gabriel

Great trip to Kruger

From start to finish, our trip was very well organised. Our guide was Ryan, a very personable chap who has a wealth of knowledge and knows what he is doing. His helper, Lungisani, also worked hard to make our experience as enjoyable as possible. As a result, it was a very full trip in which everything went well.

Mark & Heleena

Great times with Wild planet safari

It was very good!! The guys who had the safari really cared about what we wanted to do and listened to us. They showed us a lot of cool stuff and we saw a lot of animals! they also knew very much about the animals and also a lot of the trees and other stuff in the nature. Loved the food we had every night and had some cool nights beside the bonfire. Really recommend this company!!!

Joakim

Competent, efficient, responsive

This is my second Kruger safari with Wild Planet Safari , the first was by myself in August 2018 and the second with my 13 year old son Leo in August 2023 both safaris covered different areas of KNP . Chris was my guide/driver on both occasions … as a biologist and a seasoned safari goer I had several requests and he managed to deliver on all of them . We truly had BBC Nat Geo level sightings. I strongly recommend their services.

Eyad Hindi

Great 3-day tour with Chris

We had a great 3-day safari with Chris and Benjamin as our guides. We were glad to have a guide, because he was able to spot more animals than we did. Chris told us a lot about the trees and birds as well. The tour started when we left at Johannesburg. Chris showed enthousiasm and knowledge. On the second day we saw 17 rhino's before breakfast! Benjamin was a good cook.

Katlien

Life Changing Experience Due to Tour Guide Chris

My partner and I enjoyed the 4 day safari in Kruger with Chris and Hopesol of Wild Planet Safari. Here are some takeaways: 1. We tented at two different campgrounds. For both Hopesol set up our tents and cots, sleeping bags and fan. The campgrounds had a fence around the exterior but we still were able to see jackals and honey badgers at night. They just added to the experience - no concerns. 2. Each day, Hopesol cooked different meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner over a fire. Delicious. Included were an English Breakfast, pancakes, fruit salads, steaks, sausage (including ostrich), lamb, chicken roast - basically more than you can eat and still be so satisfied. Hopesol was so friendly and really wanted to know how our tour was going and how to improve it. It's hard to express how much we enjoyed the four of us talking about the day and other life events while enjoying those meals at dusk. 3. Chris drove the open air jeep for several guided tours each day, morning, afternoon and early evening. Everything that any review has said about Chris being a superior guide, friendly, welcoming and funny merely approach the truth. He made our trip what I consider the best vacation/experience of my life. My partner really wanted to see as many birds as possible and Chris would stop and point them out as we crossed paths. In the end we were able to count 78 new birds! Amazing. He recommended getting an Animals of Kruger Park picture book of what we might see and it helped us keep track of what we encountered as well as looking for others to scout. In the end, Chris takes such pride in what he does and he told us he is meant to work in the bush - we could not have had a better guide. 4. Value for the money? You could not have a better experience on safari - we were able to be on our own with just Chris and Hopesol, without a group that would require us to be distracted by others needs, wants, ways. We also went on a night trip led by a Kruger ranger, on which about 20 people crowded onto a jeep. While we were able to see some nocturnal animals like huge owls, a civet, some honey badgers and also lions just lying on the road in front of us, the crowd of people was almost painful after being with just Chris on a guided tour. We also went on a a guided walk of eight in Kruger with two armed rangers; that was fun to experience the animals and so extensive land from a ground perspective. We did see zebra and wildebeests moving up close. 5. Just Go. Experience the vastness of Kruger. You will be so happy you did this. We still say, "I wish we were on safari right now." Thanks, Wild Planet Safari. Thanks, Hopesol. Thanks, Chris. Chris, you have found something to do that makes others so happy. Not many people can say that.

Fred

Fantastic, Beyond our expectations!!

Good communications before we commenced the trip and the list of items to take was very useful. Very well planned trip and everything went smoothly and on time. We had a private tour for 6 days with just the two of us plus Guide / Ranger Anton and his assistant (and good cook) Benjamin. As such we could make small changes to the schedule without any problems. We were very happy with Anton and Benjamin, Anton very knowledgable and freindly, gave us lots of information and kept us entertained. Benjamin took care of the food and Brai (BBQ) . Good food and plenty of it! The schedule included game drives, morning walks, night drive and we visited three rest camps. Accommodation and facilities were excelent, good security and the shop on site has everything you might need. From the chalet we could see many animals including elephant and giraffe just outside the fence. Inside there were bush Buck abd the cheeky baboons. Night time you can listen to the animals and enjoy the peaceful environment. We saw many animals during the safari including 4 of the big 5 and going north through the park the experience just got better and better, the view points are fantastic. Thanks for the wonderful experience, highly recommended!

William & Valeriya

Very enjoy the safari tour

Chris was the tour guide, he is a very nice guy and very professional. He can see animals in a very long distance with his own eyes, he knows where to find the animals in the Kruger national park, whatever they are 'big five', 'small five', 'ugly five' or others. We did really enjoy our safari tour under his guidance. Benjamin was our cooker, we loved his cooking. How can a good safari tour without delicious foods, Benjamin amazingly did his job, and he also helped us to find more animals with his sharp eyes. Overall, the safari experience was great, highly recommend it to all of you.

Dancy

Great private camping safari experience

From the consultation to the booking to the execution everything was uncomplicated and familiar. Our guides Chris and Kerry made our family camp safari (2 adults, 1 child, 11 years) through the Kruger a real experience. We saw lots of wildlife and Chris spoiled us with great culinary. The facilities were fit for purpose and we enjoyed the adventure all around. Thanks also to Thale who answered all my questions with great patience.

Jutta Hackstock-Sabitzer

Perfect safari experience

At the beginning of November, we went on a three-day private safari with overnight stays at Skukuza Camp in Kruger National Park. The entire organisation and handling with Thale in advance was perfect, and we also received tips on how best to continue our journey in South Africa after the safari. We received an absolutely all-inclusive package. A transfer service in Johannesburg took us from the airport to Hazyview. There we met our guide Eric and the cook Keygi. We liked them both right from the start and they made us feel that we didn't have to worry or take care of anything. And that's exactly how the next few days went. We were treated to incredibly delicious food and saw fantastic wildlife in the park. Eric has been doing this for almost 20 years and was able to answer all our questions. We saw the Big Five within 1.5 days and much more. Wild Planet Safari offers an unforgettable experience with its all-inclusive service (transfer, accommodation, game drives and shared meals). We were able to concentrate fully on the animals and nature as we didn't have to worry about anything else. We can only recommend everyone to book a private safari here. If we ever get the chance to visit this beautiful place again, we will definitely book with Wild Planet Safari again. Many thanks to the entire Team.

Lukas & Andrea

An extraordinary adventure, take us back!

Me and my wife Emma did a 15 day eastern circle tour in August with guide Ryan. A word that runs like a thread through the entire trip is "exciting". All the way from Johannesburg through Kruger and back again. We thought it would be a transport route to the Kruger Park but Ryan is very well-read and tell stories about his own experiences, Rugby, landscape to South Africa's history all the way to Kruger. The trip would take 7 hours but it felt like 2 :-) We never thought we 'd get so close to wild animals and untouched nature as we did when we booked this trip, Kruger is amazing! And what Ryan does not know about animals and nature is not worth knowing , he also tells us in a way that is easy to set. The highlight of the trip was day 6 just outside the Satara camp . In one day we saw a herd of Wild Dogs , one leopard and two rhinos! The food also exceeded our expectations , Ryan cooked everything from scratch and almost always over an open fire. So cozy! We would warmly recommend others to book with Wild Planet Safari! Have a nice trip! / Johan and Emma.

Johan

Awesome safari trip!

This is one of the best trips we ever had, and big thanks to Thale and Ryan (wild planet safari) for showing us South Africa! South Africa is a beautiful country, and we got to see alot! In the national parks we saw the big five many times! Even saw hippos fighting, that was so cool! The service was always good, and these two guids knows everything! If you have a question i bet you $100 they will give you the correct answer! And Ryan(eagleeyes) will spot all the animal, although the animal is hidden far away! This whole trip was an amazing experience, and it's not the last time we're going with Wild Planet Safari on a trip! Thanks guys! :) Magnus and Christer!

Magnus

Terrific experience, Terrific value

We booked this tour to go on a professional safari & also to get ideas on how to do our own self drive safari. Ryan was very informative with all of the safari's he took us on & then very helpful with lots of information for us to do our own safari's afterwards. We booked as only two people online & were really pleased to find that weren't going away with a big group. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves & loved all the meals that were provided & our accommodation at Kruger, so we totally recommend 'Wild Planet Safari' to anyone interested in booking one. It was a very exciting experience & worth every cent!!!!

Sheree & Sally, Brisbane, Australia

Small operation with knowledgable guides and comfortable arrangements!

Chris, our guide from Zimbabwe, was very knowledgable and eager to show us the best that Kruger has to offer taking us to different parts of the park to try to catch a diversity of animals. He was patient and easy to connect with. Being a private tour, we were happy to be able to have the freedom to stop and continue on as our schedule allowed and it allowed us to find what we were most interested in. We saw 4 of the Big 5 on our 3-day tour which is really 2 days with the transfers from Joburg taking half a day each way. We didn't realize that the driver and guide were one and the same person but this seemed to be the norm at Kruger. Our chef was lovely and made delicious foods but we would have appreciated being given different options beforehand to select our menu from. Thale from the head office was not very responsive regarding the booking after the initial engagements were made. He doesn't seem to be on the ground with his guides and so may be a bit out of touch with the goings on.

Priscilla

Efficient

Travelled with my wife who is confined to a wheelchair, which was no problem when on Safari as the guides were very accommodating and helpful. Accommdation was a bit of a challenge regarding bathrooms but otherwise a fabulous experience.

George and Andrea

An unforgettable journey of a lifetime, a "must do" for everybody

It was so easy to book our trip (for my daughter and myself) with Wild Planet Safari. Everything was done online with Thale whose service and communications were excellent. Our guides Chris and Lungisani were friendly and courteous and great "spotters" of the wildlife which we saw in abundance. We were so lucky to see a pack of 12 wild dogs together, in addition to a group of six cheetahs in one sighting. We saw the big five plus more and were rewarded during our bush walk with a sighting of a pride of lions with cubs. It's difficult to mention a highlight of the tour, there were so many! I'll be back!

Pamela