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Safari packages, honestly explained

African safari packages, shaped around you rather than a departure date

We do not run fixed departures. What follows are routes we build often, with the nights, the inclusions and indicative prices written down: a starting shape you can react to, before we adjust all of it to your dates and your party.

Price my journey See the sample routes

Tailor-made, not fixed departures

There is no group to join and no set date to work around. Every route here is a template we rebuild for you.

Land-only prices

Every figure on this page excludes international flights, so the comparisons are like for like.

Flights and transfers built in

Every route includes the internal flights, light-aircraft hops and road transfers between stops, not just the lodge nights.

Seven, ten or fourteen nights

The sample routes below show nights per stop and a guide price for each, so the durations compare before you enquire.

Read this first

Why there is no "book now" button on this page.

Most safari packages sold online are one of two things: a fixed-date group departure with seats to fill, or a rate sheet dressed up as an itinerary. Neither survives contact with a real party: a nine-year-old who cannot do a five-hour transfer, a returning traveller who has already done Kruger, a honeymoon that needs a private vehicle rather than a shared one.

So the routes below are templates, not products. Every one has been booked in some form, and every one changes once we know your dates. What stays constant is the structure: three to four nights per reserve, internal flights that make sense, and inclusions confirmed in writing before you commit to anything.

If you want the version of this that is entirely yours from the first line, start with a brief instead of a route.

How the planning works

Five steps, and a person at every one of them.

Nothing here is automated. The sequence below is what happens between your first message and your first game drive.

  1. 01

    Send a safari brief

    Ten minutes on dates, travellers, pace and budget. It goes straight to a specialist who plans African travel full-time.

  2. 02

    A conversation, not a quote

    We test the brief before we design anything: how far you will fly internally, whether the youngest traveller changes the reserve, and what you would rather spend the money on.

  3. 03

    Itinerary design

    You receive a routed itinerary of reserves, camps, nights per stop, internal flights and transfers, with the reasoning behind each choice and honest alternatives at other price points.

  4. 04

    Refine, then confirm

    We revise until the route is right, hold space while you decide, and confirm every inclusion in writing before anything is paid.

  5. 05

    Support while you travel

    Documents, briefing notes and a contactable team throughout. Missed connections and shifted transfers are our problem to solve, not yours.

Sample routes

Seven, ten and fourteen nights, and what each buys you.

Nights are the real currency in safari planning. These are the lengths that work, and what changes as the trip gets longer.

None of these exact?

Start with what matters to you.

Tell us your dates, party and the one thing the journey must deliver.

Plan your safari

Package prices appear only where published and are reconfirmed for your dates and party before booking.

Indicative pricing

What these journeys tend to cost.

Land-only, per person sharing, in the shoulder months. Read them as the bottom of a range rather than a quotation: the same route in peak dry season or at an icon camp can sit far above.

7 nights
from about US$5,000 per person
One safari reserve plus a city stay, with a single internal flight between them.
10 nights
from about US$8,000 per person
Two safari regions, or one reserve plus a landmark such as Victoria Falls or the Indian Ocean.
14 nights
from about US$15,000 per person
Two or three countries, several internal flights, and long enough at each camp for the rhythm to settle.
Green season
frequently a third below the figures above
November to March in Southern Africa. Fewer vehicles, newborn animals, dramatic skies, and the occasional afternoon indoors.

Festive weeks, peak dry season and exclusive-use villas sit well above these figures. We confirm real, dated rates before you commit; nothing on this page is a quotation.

Inclusions

What a price like this covers, and what it does not.

Comparing safari prices is only meaningful once the inclusion list is on the table. One lodge's nightly rate carries drives, drinks and laundry; another's carries the bed.

Included in the guide prices

  • All accommodation along the route, at the room category quoted
  • Full board at safari camps and lodges, with house drinks at most properties
  • Two guided game activities a day on safari, in a shared vehicle unless a private one is quoted
  • Internal flights, light-aircraft hops and road transfers between every stop
  • Park, reserve and conservation fees
  • Arrival and departure transfers, and a documented itinerary with contact numbers

Not included

  • International flights to and from Africa, always quoted separately
  • Visas, travel insurance, vaccinations and antimalarials
  • Meals outside the safari camps, such as lunch and dinner in Cape Town
  • Premium wines and spirits, spa treatments and boutique purchases
  • Private vehicles and private guiding, unless specified in your itinerary
  • Optional extras such as helicopter flights, balloon safaris and gorilla permits
  • Staff gratuities

City hotels are normally quoted room-only or with breakfast; safari camps are all-inclusive. The exact list for every property in your itinerary is confirmed in writing before you commit.

Why this is safe to hand over

The credentials behind the guide prices.

A package asks you to pay for something you cannot inspect first. These are the things that should make that reasonable.

IATA accreditation

Agency number 96097083, the accreditation airlines require before an agency may issue tickets in its own right.

Booking terms you can read first

Our terms and conditions are published on this site, so the payment schedule and cancellation rules are readable before you commit to anything.

Read our terms and conditions

Direct relationships with camps

We contract with lodges and reserves directly, which is how we get straight answers on refurbishments, guiding changes and what a rate genuinely includes.

Everything in writing

Inclusions, exclusions, cancellation terms and the full routing are confirmed on paper before a deposit is taken.

Plan your safari WhatsApp a specialist

The kind of places involved

Camps and lodges these routes are built from.

Examples of the standard, not a fixed inventory. Which of them appears in your itinerary depends on your dates, your budget and who is travelling.

Before you enquire

Questions we are asked every week.

Are these fixed-departure packages?

No. Africa Luxury Escapes does not run fixed departures or group tours. Every route on this page is a template that gets rebuilt around your dates, your party and your pace before anything is booked.

Do the prices include international flights?

No. Every figure on this page is land-only. International flights are quoted separately so you can compare routings and cabins on their own merits, and we can ticket them for you if you would rather not book them yourself.

How many nights do I actually need?

Seven is the shortest trip that does not feel rushed, because three to four nights in one reserve is the rhythm that works. Ten nights lets you pair two contrasting places. Fourteen lets you do that without a travel day dominating the middle of the trip.

Can I travel on my own dates?

Always. Dates are the first thing we plan around rather than the last thing we accommodate.

Is booking a package cheaper than arranging it myself?

Not automatically, and we will not pretend otherwise. What it buys is a route that works, rates and inclusions confirmed in writing, and one accountable team when a flight moves at short notice.

Which countries do these journeys cover?

South Africa, Botswana, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia, with Cape Town, Victoria Falls and the Indian Ocean islands as the usual additions.

Keep reading

Related safari planning pages

South Africa safari packages How tailor-made planning works The complete luxury safari guide Best time to travel, region by region Family safaris in Africa

Land-only, tailor-made

Pick a route, then let us take it apart.

Tell us which shape appeals and what you would change about it. A specialist comes back within one working day with a costed version for your dates.

Plan your safari
Plan your safari