Frequently asked questions

We're here to help for any questions you have regarding your African safari.

For any questions, or to start planning your trip, please send an email to helpmeplan@safari.com

How does it work, what is the process to book a safari?

It all starts with an enquiry.  It's best to provide dates (even if approximate), the number of people travelling and the countries or lodges you would like to visit.
A consultant will then get directly in touch with you to help you with availability, flights, transfers and finalising all the details of your trip.
When you are happy, the consultant will send a provisional booking mail allowing you to make payment and confirm the booking.

Once payment is received, we will get in touch to retrieve the details we need for your trip (there are not many) so that we can furnish the lodges/airlines/transfer with your information and also load your free travel insurance policy.

What is your refund policy?

First note that we can include travel insurance for as little as 1% of the booking value, which means we aim to make your booking fully refundable, regardless of when you cancel your booking.

Our cancellation policy is as follows:
For cancellations with more than 60 days prior to check-in, guests will be entitled to a full refund (excl flights).
For cancellations with 30-59 days prior to check-in, guests will receive a 50% refund on lodging costs (excl flights).
For cancellations less than 30 days prior to check-in, there is no refund.


But to reiterate, we can include travel insurance on bookings for a low fee, that includes cancellation cover and mitigates the costs above.
This means that if you incur any cancellation fees as shown above, for reasons outside of your control, your travel insurance will re-imburse you.
For more details feel free to get in touch with our consultants on helpmeplan@safari.com

What is your payment policy?

We require a 50% deposit to confirm a booking.
The balance will be determined by the payment schedule of the lodge(s) in your itinerary and we'll send reminders when the balance becomes due.

Is travelling to Africa safe?

At Safari.com, safety is our priority. It's at the core of who we are. We employ expert guides, use state-of-the-art vehicles, and rigorously monitor conditions to ensure your safari is as safe as it is spectacular. Explore with confidence and peace of mind. 

Africa is a safe holiday destination, especially when it comes to safaris. Most of our travelers fly to airports close to the reserves and are then transferred directly to lodges where you will only interact with a small number of people.

For additional peace of mind we can easily arrange travel insurance at highly competitive rates.
This means, that for any events outside of your control, you will have cover for any cancellation fees (up to $5k per person), medical cover (up to $2m) and various other scenarios. Additional coverage is available for an additional fee, feel free to speak to our consultants for more information.

Is it cheaper to book directly with lodges?

There is a common misconception that booking direct will be cheaper.
In fact, safari lodges and operators are required to sell at the same industry rate. The reason this can occur is because online travel agencies , like ourselves, receive a commission from lodges when our customers stay at a lodge.
Often lodge reservations are less equipped to deal with bespoke customer requirements and generally don't assist with flights and logistics involved with making your safari happen.

At Safari.com, we handle everything including flights, transfers and even include free travel insurance.  The result is an end-to-end experience that saves you time at the best price.

Can you assist with flights and transfers?

We'll handle everything. Your happiness is our primary concern from the moment you place an enquiry to the moment you return from your trip.

I have found a better price somewhere else, will Safari.com match it?

Because lodges and operators sell the lodging portion at the same price, this would be unusual.
But when this does occur, we will absolutely match it.

Read our best price guarantee.

Have our consultants actually visited the lodges they use in planning your trips?

Our consultants have been in the industry for some time and have in-depth knowledge and experience of all the lodges and suppliers they will use to create your safari trip. But knowledge alone is not enough, and we are constantly sending our consultants on safaris so that they have first-hand knowledge of the products they sell.

If you'd like to take a look at some of their experiences, we frequently post about their trips in our blog.

4.9
out of 5 based on
Apr 26, 2024
Shann was beyond amazing
Shann was beyond amazing. Listened to our needs, communicated super-efficiently and gave really honest excellent advice. She was so patient, kind and professional. The time difference across the globe made no difference. I am so excited for the itinerary she has put together. I usually cobble my own itinerary together for our holidays and it’s so time consuming and hard work. This was a piece of cake! Thank you Shann.
Leanne Bricker UK/UAE
,
AE
Apr 26, 2024
Great planning and service
Great planning and service, and everything worked like clockwork. We booked an Inyari Lodge safari with air with Safari.com. it wasn't clear if there will be 2 or three of us, so with Candis' help we booked a family chalet for 2 and added the third later when it was confirmed he can come. Candis put us on flights that maximized our game drive time (unlike some of the other guests) so we got all 6 drives in 3 nights. The lodge was great. Especially the game drives. We saw more than we hoped for. Additionally, Safari.com's insurance was very competitive. Highly recommended.
Yair Aizenberg
,
US
Apr 24, 2024
Kim helped us for the details of trip…
Kim helped us for the details of trip planning.
yan li
,
AU
Apr 23, 2024
Shann was amazing
Shann was amazing , great prompt service and went above and beyond to meet our travel requirements.
Kaliopi Stephens
,
Apr 22, 2024
My experience with safari.com is always…
My experience with safari.com is always incredibly, pascal made happen my dream again. He is the best always answering questions and making everything perfect.thank you again pascal, can’t wait to tell all about my second trip to Africa in October.
Tricia moyses
,
US
Apr 22, 2024
Thank you Heleen Coetzee for your excellent service!
Thank you Heleen Coetzee for your excellent service. We have booked through her at Kruger park numerous times. She is very helpful and quick to assist.
Charlene du Plessis
,
ZA
Apr 21, 2024
Fantastic travel agent for African safari family trip!
Wow! Shann was and is fantastic! She figured out a way to make our entire trip work. We are going on a 2 week trip to South Africa and Botswana. She really helped tie it all together as a wonderful, cohesive trip. She is super nice and super smart and very knowledgeable. She is also flexible and thoughtful, etc., etc. When the chips were down (and we literally were considering pulling the plug on the whole trip), she found a way to make the entire itinerary work and got us excited about our wonderful adventure! Highly recommend!
customer
,
US
Apr 20, 2024
safari booking
We were looking for a Safari. Anja from Safari.com supported us to book accommodation and flights, she was very polite, super fast and very supportive. We can recommend her and Safari.com, it was great to book there.
Michaela
,
IT
Apr 20, 2024
The customer service was top-notch!
I was really impressed with the level of service I received from Heleen Coetzee. I had a great experience with the customer service team at this company. They were very responsive and helpful, and they were able to resolve my issue quickly. I would definitely recommend this company to others.
customer
,
ZA
VIP service
Your own personal travel assistant
18 years in business
Attention to every detail
Relationships with 500+ operators through Africa
Consultants available 24/7
58,000+ customers and counting
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