A. H.
Trip Review: Amazing! The experiences themselves were magical -- but what made the whole trip so fabulous was that Victoria had taken care of every detail of a logistically heavy trip so that we had no worries and could just enjoy every experience fully. I really wanted to make sure we were in places that had been vetted -- safe, comfortable, experienced guides (knowledgeable and safety), etc. I had many "wants" on my list. I shared them all with Victoria on our first call and she hit it out of the ballpark! She listened to what I wanted from this experience -- asked questions, made recommendations, then came up with the perfect itinerary right at the budget I had given her.
Most Memorable Moment: Honestly -- everything. Each experience was new to us -- and magical. The sunrise/sunset in the Okavango Delta may be the most beautiful thing one can experience.
Advice For Future Clients: Be prepared to be awed! There is so much to experience! One thinks of seeing the animals when they plan their trip but there is so much else! Most especially was meeting locals and hearing their stories about their villages. There is so much natural beauty to experience as well. Practically my advice would be layers layers layers and take advantage of the laundry service so that you pack lightly!
Maureen Hirthler
Trip Review: This Safari was about as perfect can be in this world of ours. From the minute we landed we were taken care of by the Saruni staff. We never felt uncertain or unsafe. We saw every possible animal, including the leopard. But we enjoyed much more learning about the land and animals from our guides.
Most Memorable Moment: Up in the hot air, balloon, we were flying over a swampy area. It was very serene to a large hippopotamus burst out of the reeds and started to lumber away. It completely took me by surprise.
Advice For Future Clients: Marvel
Geoffrey Gladstein
Trip Review: I would say we would consider this itinerary just perfect. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Most Memorable Moment: A little scared time with elephants warning us away and being in a Mokoro, not too far from a bunch of hippos. Seeing the wild dogs go out in the evening and make a kill was quite memorable.
Advice For Future Clients: GO
Allen Troy
Trip Review: We stayed at Elewana lodges where the rooms were spacious, staff and service were excellent. The food and presentation was very good the guides were very knowledgeable and accommodating.
Most Memorable Moment: Seeing the migration.
Advice For Future Clients: It’s not a relaxing vacation.
Nicole Spaulding
Trip Review: The trip of a lifetime! Every detail was taken care of. African Portfolio's knowledge of the area(s) was incredible.
Most Memorable Moment: Seeing the animals up close, especially watching the lions eat a buffalo. Every single game drive was amazing, it never got old (and we did a total of 8!).
Advice For Future Clients: GO!
Lisa Herz
Trip Review: It was a truly wonderful trip and the planning by Victoria was seamless! We had an incredible time.
Most Memorable Moment: The first pride of lions coming toward us at Savute.
Advice For Future Clients: Use African Portfolio to plan your trip!
Aneesha Raghunathan
Most Memorable Moment: Stargazing at the lodge and seeing all the big 5 multiple times! Seeing a baby leopard in a tree trying to catch a squirrel at golden hour.
Advice For Future Clients: Definitely try a few different lodges, was nice to have a mix of a family owned one vs the more corporate owned one.
Collene Nelson
Trip Review: I did not make the arrangements but would highly recommend African Portfolio.
Most Memorable Moment: Getting stuck in the mud and having it turn into a cocktail party! The Boabab trees, especially at sunset but to know they can be over 4000 years old!!
Advice For Future Clients: Bring two pairs of tennis/hiking shoes... in case it rains!
Terri Weisbord
Trip Review: The trip was amazing!
Most Memorable Moment: So many things. The Gorillas, the Dian Fossey museum, the first giraffe, lion and zebras we saw. How many animals were in the Ngorongoro crater. So spectacular. The people singing to us when we arrived or for my birthday or anniversary. And of course that amazing surprise lunch that was so over the top incredible I will remember it forever! But so many more things can't limit it to the most.
Advice For Future Clients: Bring more tip money. These people work so hard for you and deserve all of it. Also they only weighed our suitcases not the backpacks so I panicked for no reason - hahaha.
Debra Williamson
Trip Review: This was my second safari trip through African Portfolio. It's truly stress free travel, African Portfolio is there every step of the way so no worries about anything. They are always there to answer my questions .
Most Memorable Moment: Going on walking tours at Goliath Camp. Getting to see the amazing animals up close.
Kathy Henderson
Trip Review: Our trip was amazing. Victoria Falls was so beautiful and powerful. The rainbows were incredible. The boutique hotel we stayed at was perfect, just what we needed. Our luxury tent safari was everything I could dream of. The staff was great, the food excellent and our ranger, Charlie, was so experienced and knowledgeable. We were able to get up so close to the animals and see amazing interactions. This was a once in a lifetime trip.
Most Memorable Moment: On our safari drive we came across 11 lions that were eating a giraffe that they killed the night before. Hyenas were circling waiting for the leftovers and 4 elephants were on the side. We were right in the middle of all this, about 8-10 feet from the lions in a open air jeep. We just watched all this for I don't know how long. Incredible!
Advice For Future Clients: A must do trip.
William Engelhard
Trip Review: Your staff, the facilities, all who took care of us, the guides and the locations were stunning and beyond my expectations. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you for this entire venture.
Most Memorable Moment: Seeing a very natural landscape, mostly untouched by the development of humans. This could have been much as it looked 1000s of years ago.
Advice For Future Clients: Consider taking a prescription of Z-pack. I did need it the last day of the trip.
Jeannie Evans
Trip Review: All the details were taken care of and everything was planned to perfection. Vanessa was incredible and very responsive!!
Karen Knutson
Trip Review: We LOVED the safari at Tintswalo!! Guides were great, the lodge was beautiful and the service overall was excellent. We also liked the San Sabi lodge but not as much as Tintswalo. Everything on the trip was extremely organized and the accommodations were all great.
Most Memorable Moment: We had so many! We had some very special animal encounters on our safaris and were able to see all of the Magnificent 7! Probably one of the lion or leopard encounters would be at the top.
Advice For Future Clients: Make sure to try more than one safari lodge because that will give you more of a chance to see different animals. Since we spent time in two different locations, we were able to see different animals at each place.