Africa Driven レビュー 187

Absolutely Brilliant trip of a lifetime. Two Couples, Two Toyota Land Cruisers and Two weeks of Adventure. Drive Botswana organised a personal itinerary, with a well planned route, clear instructions on how to reach each location, and where to stock up on fuel and provisions. When we had a slight problem with one of the vehicles, support staff in Maun were exceptionally helpful, fixed it immediately and soon sent us on our way, with a cheery smile and wave goodbye. The vehicle facilities were excellent. Sleeping quarters were clean and comfortable (and safe, being on top of vehicle!) and all equipment was well thought out. We saw so much of this beautiful country and enjoyed being so close to the animals. Where else could you share your supper with an elephant that decided to sleep in your camp site?Moremi. Hear a lion roar on his morning stroll ?Kalahari. Or see wild dogs running at dawn? Or find a leopard sunbathing Savuti. Unforgettable trip, great adventure and we will be back

Andy helped us organise a 5 week self- driving trip across Namibia, Botswana and to Victoria falls. From the beginning, the communication was very easy and fast. After hearing about our interests and which places we would like to visit, Andy came back with an interactive intenary proposal. After some adjustments, we had our plan and Andy booked all acommodation and some activities for us. We are experienced travellers but this was the first time we trusted someone to plan holidays for us. It turned out to be a great decision to work with Andy. We would not be able to make the best of this trip without his help.

During our preparation, Andy gave us a lot of advice on practical aspects and shipped us guidebooks and day-by-day instructions he wrote for us. Especially the later was extremely helpful with directions, places of interest and practical advice such as "make sure you fill up here. There will be no gas stations for a week now" or "it is best to pay park fees here. Credit cards are accepted". Once travelling, everything went very smoothly and we did not face any problems. Andy was also very responsive when we had practical questions along the way. In many places we went, the camp and lodge managers would say they really enjoy working with Andy and that he does a really good job. We are now lucky to be abke to attest to this. A solid 5-star service. Thanks for a truly amazing trip Andy!

We couldn't have asked for better organisation of our 17-night honeymoon trip in Botswana - DriveBotswana's expertise is clearly evident in the planning and guidance we received. Andy and team were very responsive, the guide book and materials provided gave us lots of local hints and tips and we had a great mix of camping and lodges. All in all this was a fantastic introduction to self-drive safari and we're looking forward to the next time!

We had a great four-week self-drive safari with DriveBotswana in June 2023, starting in Joburg, then visiting Kgalagadi, Fish River Canyon, Damaraland, Etosha, Caprivi, Moremi, Savuti, Chobe, and ending at River Front. It was our second self-drive safari with DriveBotswana and there will for sure be more! The safari was a complete success. We loved the itinerary and saw tons of game and amazing landscapes. Accomodation was excellent and the arrangements to assist us along the way all went as planned.

The car was almost brand new and in perfect condition. We had two brand new spare tyres and kit for helping us out if we got stuck in sand, but the vehicle powered through without incident.

There were many highlights on the safari itself. As this was our second trip we had been to many of the places before, but Southern Namibia was all new for us and we loved it. The Fish River Canyon was spectacular. We took the southern route from Canyon Lodge to Klein Aus vista, that is, via Aussenkehr, and then north on the western side of the canyon. This was a spectacular route and avoided covering the same road twice on the first bit of the way to Klein Aus Vista after leaving Canyon Lodge. We also loved visiting the coast, including Diaz Point south of Luderitz. The great bit about self drive is the ability to improvise!

As for lodges, we thought Rooiputs lodge in Kgalagadi was fantastic. Quite rustic but so relaxing and friendly. Location is also beautiful and the area is extremely rich in game. Desert Homestead Lodge and Etusis were both really good experiences. Klein Aus Vista and Canyon Lodge were bigger places, so less intimate but located in gorgeous places with amazing views. River Dance Lodge had become even better since we were last there, under new management. Ghoha Hills was fantastic, with seriously good game drives. Kubu Lodge was great. We also stayed in self catering camps, which made for variety and can highly be recommended.

The main objectives of our trip was to experience big nature. Namibia is simply awesome in terms of landscapes and game viewing was awesome in both Botswana and Namibia. Nossob River in Kgalagadi delivered lions and cheetah and honey badgers plus loads of raptors. We saw a cheetah take down a hartebeest right in-front of our eyes. We saw a crazy fight between tawny eagles and a verraux eagle owl. Etosha delivered many rhinos, elephant, lions, leopard. Moremi/Chobe gave us Roan, wild dogs, lions, including a fantastic episode where four wild dogs chased a hyena off a kill. Basically, we saw everything except Sable antelope.

Kgalagadi was the main focus of our trip and no disappointment. We saw many huge black-maned lions and many cheetahs. We also saw tons of honeybadgers and a great variety of raptors. In general, we saw more game in Nossob than in Aoub but this probably changes with the seasons etc. we also had a great stay at !Xaus which was beautiful and different from the typical game park experience. There is less game, but the desert landscape and the remoteness are unmatched. We enjoyed mixing up self catering with lodges. The whole Kgalagadi experience worked extremely well.

In short, we had an amazing four-week trip with DriveBotswana. The company has a really good reputation and everyone knows Phil and Andy!

Andy was a pleasure to work with throughout. He worked with us to help us identify our priorities and adapt the itinerary as our thinking changed. In the end, we settled on a 4 person, 4 week self-drive trip covering Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana in June and July of 2023. We elected to stay all but two nights at lodges, as my mother and our 14 year old traveled with us.

Being based in the US, we turned to Andy to organize accommodations, pick routes, suggest additions to the itinerary to add to the places we knew we wanted to see and to help us pick the place to go in a region (like the Okavango or Makgadigadi).

We had an incredible trip, with Sossusvlei, Etosha, Western Okavango, Chobe River/Kasane, Victoria Falls, and Hwange National Park being stand outs.

The truck and camping equipment worked well for the two nights of camping we did. All our stays were good to excellent. And some of the places were outstanding, like Sable Valley Lodge in Hwange.

DriveBotswana's directions were accurate and helpful. We always felt secure even when we were going through rough roads and remote territory. I will note that we didn't end up using the GPS system that came with the truck rental. It was clunky to use. Instead, we relied on Google maps (downloaded when necessary) and the excellent physical map for Namibia by National Geographic, and DriveBotswana's excellent directions.

There were a couple of minor hiccups as is inevitable in a 4 week journey, but Andy was responsive throughout. There were a couple of small places where the info on the detailed directions could be updated, but that's inevitable as well given the amount of info covered.

Overall, a highly satisfactory experience for a special holiday for us. Thanks, Andy!

Great experience with Drive Botswana. Booked a trip pretty last minute and they were very willing to make it happen when other companies told me they couldn't. Everything ran smoothly. The itinerary was well thought out and instructions easy to follow. I got a good vehicle and great accommodation. The trip was amazing!

Our experience with Drive Botswana was absolutely flawless. From the planning to the execution everything on our trip worked perfectly (which is not always a given in Africa). They really know the best spots and I can highly recommend them for a self drive Safari!

Planning a trip to Africa is always a nightmare because of the lack of information on the internet. That's why I decided to go to an agent. I found Dive Botswana from Trustpilot. I dropped them an email and told them my 'must-go' places in Botswana and my dates. Phil responded within 24 hours with a brilliant itinerary. He always responds within 24 hours during working days. It just took us less than five days to finalize all the itineraries.

They booked everything for us, from car rental to accommodations and activities. Our 14-day self-driving trip was perfect and without any trouble. They provided a roadbook 1 week before our departure. It listed all the details, such as road conditions and where for groceries/fuel. Their roadbook was our bible. It would be hassle-free if you follow it.

We met another family from the UK on a day trip to Victoria Falls who also booked with Drive Botswana. We were all very happy with their brilliant services.

We had seen all of the Big Five. Thanks to Phil for recommending us to go to Rhino Sanctuary, otherwise it would be impossible to see them all. We even saw a pack of African Wild Dogs and cheetahs in the Okanvango Delta which was a highlight of our trip.

Overall, I highly recommend Drive Botswana to anyone who is interested in self-driving or camping in Africa. I will book with them again for sure in the future!!

Phil is amazing. Interested in every detail of your trip and what you want to do. His advice is down to earth, wise, based on enormous experience so you know your trip will be perfect. Have used a few times. Trip went perfectly.

Botswana is just an amazing country to go to!

Thanks to Andy and the Drive Botswana team for creating our holiday of a lifetime.

Andy was brilliant from start to finish in helping to understand what sort of holiday we were looking for, then tailor and refine the perfect itinerary for us

From arrival in Botswana our holiday can only be described as stress free. This was because of the wonderful arrangements made by Drive Botswana – booking our vehicle, our campsites, our lodges and our transfers.

The map and Drive Botswana produced guidebook which came through our letter box a few weeks before departure was brilliant – in essence it became our bible. The daily driving directions and associated timings were spot on

The only think we had left to worry about was how long it would take to edit the thousands of photos we took in the Chobe and Nxai Pan!

I am not the sort of person who is in the habit of writes gushing reviews – but from start to finish Drive Botswana were faultless

Thanks again!

Andy and his team at Drive Botswana were fantastic - great local knowledge of both Namibia and Botswana and they were very happy to provide a tailored itinerary for us - including advice on what do include and skip based on our preferences. From advice and helping to book the right car and accommodation to providing incredibly clear and accurate driving instructions (including tips on where to stop for scenic shots etc), it was very well thought through. I would highly recommend.

Really wonderful experience all around. Drive Botswana catered our plans to exactly what we wanted, which was to focus around traditional music, doing mostly car camping with a couple lodge nights scattered in. Their communication is quick and precise, and when we had a last minute issue on the road they went above and beyond to step in and help us.

We had a great trip, booked in 2019 and eventually taken in 2022. DB organised it all and postponed everything smoothly as COVID continued. As with 2 previous 2 trips, this one turned out better than we could have hoped - fantastic lodges, game and travel arrangements all spot-on.

Drive Botswana organised the perfect trip for us in Namibia. A combination of camping and lodges which ensured we saw and experienced the country in a way we could never have done had we organised the trip ourselves due to his firsthand knowledge of Namibia. We shall be back Andy!

We normally organise our own trips but a planning a three week trip around Namibia, Botswana and a bit of Zimbabwe was too much so we opted for Drive Botswana after hearing other good reviews. We are so glad we did.

Phil and a team translated their real experience into the best itinerary for us. There were some points that without their guidance we thought we must had gone the wrong way (such is the wildness of some areas)! Every day we found ourselves saying "Phil's a genius" for some reason or another. For a self-drive trip where we were on our own, we also thought it was the perfect amount of instructions without being too prescriptive.

We were going to do this trip in 2020 but covid delayed it - Phil reorganised everything twice for us and was so accommodating.

The service is outstanding - questions are answers nearly immediately and any issues get resolved in an instance.

One point to note if you do self-drive - pay attention to the Avis safari vehicle - ie which type would most suit you and if everything works as some vehicles and their equipment are getting a bit tired.

In all, one of best companies we have delt with

My trip with my wife (both 70 years old) in Namibia (22 days, self drived) by Drive Botswana was excellent prepared without any complication or problems. The selection of visited places (town, nature, wild life, various accomodation in camps or lodges) were very good and interesting. The trip were from Windhoek to Ethosha, Terrase Bay, Swakopmund, dunes in Namib desert, Sesriem, Luderitz, Fish River Canyon) included the most interesant places in Namibia. The time and distances (total 4500 km) between all places proposed for our trip were optimal for us. The car Toyota Hillux with camp equipment and roof tent rented by Botswana Drive from Nabia2Go company was in perfect condition over the whole trip.
Many thanks to Andy for quick response to all my e-mails and very nice holiday in Namibia.
Jan and Zdena, Czech Republic

Words cannot express how amazing Drive Botswana have been but I shall give it my best go!

We initially got in touch with Andy in 2019, as we wanted to book a self-drive honeymoon around Nambia and Botswana in June 2020. We had researched several companies and Drive Botswana fitted the brief in terms of flexibility and budget. We went back and forth, with Andy being so accommodating with our whims, helping us to decide whether to go to the coast, or spend more time on safari - it was amazing being able to have a discussion with someone who knew the area back to front.

Then Covid happened. Andy was brilliant, he postponed our trip not once, but twice. We had to change some elemants, some companies were no longer available but he kept us updated and informed throughout.

We were able to go on the honeymoon in June 2022 and the information Andy provided was extremely helpful. There were detailed driving instructions which were more helpful than google maps and helped us to navigate the terrain and get to our destinations via the best route.

Every location we stayed at was phenomenal, picking up the vehicle was so easy, and we had the best time!

Thank you Drive Botswana!

We looked at several companies before choosing Drive Botswana, mainly based on their excellent reviews. From the start, they provided a platform that we worked together on, based on our route preferences and their expertise, some of the lodges had a limited number of rooms but they managed to book us in to all our choices and we even had an upgrade at Onguma the Fort to the Sultan Suite which was the most amazing location and stunning room.

Lots of miles on dusty roads which was so much fun, loved the skeleton coast drive which felt so remote, like the landscape of the moon. We had one tyre shread but this was covered under the package we had and we had this replaced at a local garage probably faster than you could in the UK.

Overall, we had the most amazing experience and we would thoroughly recommend Drive Botswana for the patience, expertise and advise

It was our first self-drive experience and thanks to Drive Botswana everything has been perfect! Phil and all the staff had been prompt and timely in every answer we needed since the beginning. In addition, they gave us all the indication to perfectly self-drive without any problem: maps, coordinates, phone numbers, lodge voucher...everything in our pocket, including a dedicated smartphone APP for the whole trip!
In addition to the (excellent) organization, everything during the stay was UNBELIEVABLE: car, lodges & hotels, meals, turistic guides, accomodation in general...PERFECT!!!

This was our second trip from Drive Botswana (my wife and traveled with them to Botswana years ago). This time, we traveled with our two kids (5 and 8) to Namibia. We stayed about 2 weeks and loved every minute of it. We did a mix of hotels and roof camping, touring the dessert, national parks, and other natural areas. It was a wonderful family trip. Andy had everything planned out perfectly. The right mix of driving times, events, restful times, exploration, etc. Truly a trip of a lifetime. We saw basically every animal you can see in Namibia! Namibia was great, Drive Botswana was great, the whole thing was perfect. If you want a family friend trip with nature, animals, and the environment, I can't recommend this highly enough!