SALTY.TRAVEL

Our trip was EXCELLENT! Nadia was fantastic as were all of the drivers, guides etc. I would recommend Nadia and Kimkim to anyone.

The Best!

Nadia was very infomative from the very beginning. She answered all of our questions in a timely fashion. She shared information with us to help our travels smoother. She really went above and beyond ot make sure our stay was amazing. I would recommend Nadia to all of my friends.

Lucy was amazing! My dad got sick at the beginning of the trip and would up in the hospital for a couple days. But thanks to Lucy, I had a place to stay close to the hospital set up as soon as she knew I needed it and she checked in on my dad through out the trip. Being so far from home it was nice to have a local helping with all the little bumps in the road.

Leon was our guide in Cape Town and made the whole experience wonderful. He knew so much and was funny and friendly. My dad didn’t always feel up to walking and Leon stayed and was a great companion while we adventured a bit. Definitely made that portion of the trip special for our family. The Romney Park Luxury apartments were gorgeous! Their elevator was not working and they moved us to a ground floor apartment to make it easier for my dad, the ground floor was not nearly as nice of an apartment, but we appreciated the accommodation since their elevator was broken.

Marine Dynamics was greatly enjoyed by my husband and kid's. The shark diving was the highlight of the trip for my daughter. The Abalone hotel was lovely and they really enjoyed eating in town at The Chard- best milkshakes ever! Steaks, calamari and side dishes were also delicious!

Moditlo Lodge was my favorite stay. We were treated so well, every need anticipated, every staff member kind and attentive. They knew it was our anniversary and we were treated with hearts and champagne in our room. My dad’s birthday was also celebrated with all staff singing and a cake at lunch time. Kailey the check was phenomenal and our guide and tracker (Dumi and Derrick) were so knowledgeable and enthusiastic about making sure we had the best time. The game drives were the highlight of the trip for me, seeing hundreds of animals and my children getting to see all the ones they wanted to and more. The hot water bottles, lined ponchos and warm drinks made the chilly mornings and adventure and something to look forward too. My words don’t do the experience justice. I do wish we had know that the entire experience was outside the park, we would have asked to spend at least one day in Kruger.

Victoria Falls - the Shearwater was a real downgrade after Moditlo, no one cleaned our rooms or replaced amenities like coffee and water without a request and the staff wasn’t very responsive. More than once I stood in line waiting to be helped while watching staff gossip about guests, one night the kitchen staff got in a huge fight and you could hear them yelling at each other from the dining room. Definitely a place you kept all the doors locked every minute.

Kuda was a wonderful guide to the falls, full of local information and willing to share a lot about the culture and what it was like to grow up in Victoria Falls. The helicopter flight was the highlight of my dad’s trip and fell on his 82nd birthday. The view from above was spectacular! We also great enjoyed our tour of the Wildlife Trust, the work they do there is so important and fascinating. Kuda went on that trip with us as well and said he learned a lot himself.

Bamba train was fun. The Chobe day trip was my son’s favorite day and probably tied for one of my favorites as well. Our guides, Captain O, Terrance and Kenneth, were funny and obviously enjoyed showing us around on bus, boat and safari. We saw THOUSANDS of birds and animals that day, it was unreal and felt like the scenes you see in movies. Our fellow passengers were also very fun on this trip.

Our last experience was the Dusty Roads dinner and it was informative, colorful, whimsical and funny. We were able to try grubs - my daughter ate two!! And all kinds of different local foods while learning about what plants they came from and how they were prepared. The owner came to our table and chatted for quite awhile, it was interesting to learn about her family and time in Zimbabwe. We loved it!

We would encourage people to follow the travel agents advice and to not walk alone and keep valuables secure. I should have Ubered from my hotel to the hospital! Had to cancel my credit card and file a police report after an encounter in the street with a few young men.

AirLink was a very hit or miss airline to travel with about half the staff was polite, friendly and helpful, the other half was dismissive if not out and out rude at times.

All in all it was a trip of a lifetime and I would highly recommend working with Lucy. She was so helpful, kind and if she didn’t know the answer she said so and told you she would get it!

Hotel Reviews

Abalone Guest Lodge

Hermanus

Beautiful rooms with ocean views!

Authenticity & Character

Location

Close to cliff walks

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Lovely place to stay

Moditlo River Lodge

Hoedspruit

Treated like family and special guests all at the same time

Authenticity & Character

Location

Outside the park

Staff

Would give more stars if I could

Cleanliness & Comfort

Everything, the food was amazing

Shearwater Explorers Village

Victoria Falls

Didn’t really feel safe or welcome hear

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Staff gossiping about guests in another language, we may not have understood the words but the eye rolls, faces and tone are universally disrespectful body language and when you do it in another language and think the people around are to dumb to notice it is even ruder

Cleanliness & Comfort

Rooms could be cleaned up daily and amenities, like coffee and water replaced without having to ask

Romney Park Luxury Apartments

Cape Town

Staff was lovely and helpful. Breakfast was tasty and quick in the morning. Top floor apartments were so cute and probably the nicest apartment we stayed in. Such a nice place to stay with multiple family members and not have to go in and out of separate rooms with separate keys.

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Thoughtful and kind

Cleanliness & Comfort

Everything was exquisitely neat and tidy

Activity Reviews

Flight of the angels

South Africa

Very efficient

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Views were fantastic and ride was smooth as glass

Dusty Road Dinner Experience

Victoria Falls

Awesome concept and execution

Quality of Experience

Great service and good

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Chobe Full Day Safari Trip

Victoria Falls

One of the best days of the whole trip!

Quality of Experience

Couldn’t imagine the amount of wildlife!

Food

Nona’s are the bomb

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Friendly and helpful

Transport

Going back and forth between two countries and changing vehicles so many times could have been confusing or difficult and they made it super smooth!

Ride the Bamba Tram – A Unique Journey Through Victoria Falls

Victoria Falls

Pretty view and another way to have people come and sell you stuff

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust – High Care Rehabilitation & Lab Tour

Victoria Falls

Cool to see everything they were doing and meet their current guests

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Very informative

Transport

Cape Point & Penguins Tour

South Africa

This day was amazing!! Leon really helped make it memorable with his local historical knowledge.

Quality of Experience

Views and penguins

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Leon was awesome, lunch staff was okay

Transport

Safe and always early

On Safari

South Africa

Dumi and Derrick were the very best! It was so fun talking with them and learning from them.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Guides and trackers are amazing and funny

Transport

Always felt safe and looked after

Full Day City Tour, Robben Island & Table Mountain

South Africa

Love the look at local history by those directly impacted by the Robben Island prison. Table Mountain was spectacular and we felt lucky to have such nice weather.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Helpful and thoughtful

Transport

Shark Cage Diving

South Africa

According to my daughter - the best day of her life!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Transport

The boat ride was exciting and fast

Tour Victoria Falls

Victoria Falls

Much better with a guide - Kuda had so much local knowledge about the plants, the river as an energy source and local history. Greatly added to the walk.

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Local knowledge

Transport

On time and safe

Sunset Cruise - Signature Deck

Victoria Falls

We wound up on the dinner cruise instead of the dinner cruise. It was too late and cold for my 82 year old dad. Our itinerary said sunset cruise, but what was booked was the dinner cruise. It was nice, but not what we had planned.

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Thoughtful and provided blankets for my cold dad

Transport