We just wanted to thank you for arranging the most amazing East African safari.

The lodges and camps that you selected each had their own unique qualities, all of them offering opulent luxury, superb dining and excellent service. From the highly efficient meet & greet on arrival at Kilimanjaro airport to our return departure from Dar es Salaam, all the arrangements worked perfectly. On safari, the flexibility of our guides and their knowledge was only surpassed by the sightings that we experienced. Afterwords, our time spent relaxing on Zanzibar Island was equally luxurious and the tranquil escape perfectly balanced the intensity of our safari experience.

We will certainly use Best of South Africa again and thoroughly recommend your services to anyone travelling to Africa.

We came across Best of South Africa Travel whilst planning a 3 week family
holiday to South Africa back in 2019. We soon realised that no one knows South
Africa travel and planning adventures with children quite like Ash does. She
seemed to instinctively understand when we wanted family adventure and when we
were looking for a bit of luxury and worked tirelessly to put our dream
itinerary together within our budget. She was incredibly patient with our
constant questions and changes of plans and we soon had our dream trip booked:
Cape Town, The Winelands, Hermanus, Cape Argulhus, Knysna and a Safari in the
Eastern Capei. Sadly Covid put paid to our original plans but booking direct
with Ash meant she was able to move our trip multiple times and keep our
reservations in the face of multiple lockdowns and international travel bans. We
finally managed to travel in April and May 2022 and it was definitely worth the
wait. For an active and adventurous family with children aged 7 and 9 it really
was the trip of a lifetime!

Well, what can I say. Our original plans for a short trip to see friends in Cape Town last Easter turned into a ‘magical mystery tour’ after I was introduced to Ash at Best of South Africa Travel. Of course Covid completely scuppered our plans, but somehow (due to bizarre tier decisions made by Boris and his crew) we managed to get away just before Christmas. Multiple flight cancellations, lockdowns in SA and Zimbabwe, alcohol bans…nothing seemed to phase Ash. Somehow we stuck to the amazing itinerary that she had created for us. We stayed in 6 different locations over 18 days. The highlight was New Year’s eve at Somalisa Expeditions Camp in Hwange ..where the Pandemic had scared away all of the other guests (but not the animals) and we were the only family staying, looked after by 35 staff. We cannot recommend Ash highly enough if you want a truly personalised tour organised by someone who really cares!

My husband and I booked our holiday in South Africa and Mauritius with Best of South Africa Travel. Ash was brilliant she organised all our hotels at our different destinations in South Africa and we were very impressed with the high standard of them all. Ash also booked tours for us, recommending different interesting tours we would not have known about without her expertise. Also, the little touches of being met when we got off our flight and help checking in at the various airports we used made our holiday easier and more relaxing. We would definitely recommend Best of South Africa Travel and will use them again when we return to Zimbabwe and Botswana next year.

Back safe and sound and 3rd wash is on.  Thank you so much for all your blood, sweat and tears - it really was the holiday of a lifetime and all your information on where to go and eat was all spot on. Thank you from all of us xxxx

I have just had the most wonderful holiday in South Africa. Made so special by our agent Ash, who not only went that extra mile for us but I also felt she had our best interests in mind at all times. Her advise was absolutely Spot On when interpreting our requirements. Each hotel was both varied and amazing. Her communication excelled before, during and after our holiday. She was always available which helped me feel much safer.  I rate her skills as  an agent second to none.

Hi Ash,
Enjoy the goodies.
Us girls spent the morning going through all our pics and reliving our amazing adventure. It truly was a holiday of a  lifetime made all the better with your help and guidance before and during the trip.

My wife and I have just returned from a three week tour in South Africa arranged by Best of South Africa Travel. From the very first contact with Ash we felt reassured that the service we would get would be according to our needs. We were not disappointed. She organised an itinerary that covered all we wanted to experience, and not  according to what she wanted to sell us! This was important to us. From the Safari in the Kruger to Whale  Watching in the Indian Ocean every aspect of the arrangements were as she described it not better. From accommodation to transfers it was of a high standard and of great value. Even when unexpected problems arose such as BA going on strike, Ash made all the necessary arrangement to ensure our holiday was not disrupted, even whilst she was herself on holiday! I would highly recommend this company and will be contacting them again on our next tour of a wonderful continent.

My adult son and I recently returned from an amazing trip to South Africa organised by Ash of Best of South Africa.  It was a tailor made holiday staying in two different game reserves - Etali in Madikwe and Mhondoro in Welgevonden.  A couple of days before we were due to fly BA announced their pilots were striking and our outgoing flight to Jo’berg was cancelled!  Ash was on a family holiday in Greece but within hours and a few texts she had re-scheduled us to fly a day earlier and arranged for us to stay one night in Sandton Sun hotel in Jo’berg. We had a beautiful room on the 19th floor with amazing views over the city.  Ash is a star and  amazingly efficient.  We were met and greeted at the BA plane steps and led quickly through the airport to a  waiting air conditioned comfortable car.   In the morning another car was waiting to drive us to the Fedair terminal for our flight in a 12-seater plane to the first game reserve.  Ash obviously knows SA intimately and she even organised beautiful big ‘0' birthday cakes in both lodges accompanied by the staff singing happy birthday in Ndebele and English!  Nothing fazes Ash - she even contacted my GP to email a letter to both lodges permitting me to go on walking safaris as am over 60!  If you are thinking of going to SA would thoroughly recommend you book with Ash of Best of South Africa Travel. Forget the big tour companies who cover numerous countries -  small is best - you wont regret it!  Throughout the holiday Ash was always in contact through WhatsApp.  Thank you Ash for a brilliant, very memorable holiday following a difficult year.

Our trip to South Africa was an absolute dream. Ash organised everything brilliantly, from the big decisions right down to the smallest details. The best way to see South Africa for sure

Dear Ash
We are home safely from our wonderful holiday. We had the best time and cannot thank you enough for all your perfect organisation. Each part of our itinerary was fabulous and so different. Everyone we met was kind; nothing  was ever too much trouble at the lodges and on the tours; the food and drink were excellent and we  have certainly got a taste for luxury accommodation!!

The holiday far exceeded our expectations and we wouldn't hesitate to recommend you to others. We will do a Tripadvisor review later this week. We are thinking of visiting the Cape Town area in a couple of years and hope
you will be interested in helping us arrange it.

Thank you again for everything

Hi Ash! I just wanted to say a huge THANK YOU for organising such a fantastic trip for us. We loved every minute and your recommendations really helped make it. If I hear of anyone looking to go to SA I will point them in ur direction! I hope you and your family have a lovely Christmas. Thanks again. Lottie and Will xx

In spite of the weather playing havoc with our travel plans , Ash Jarvis of Best of South Africa Travels took everything in hand and ensured that our party of 9 which had managed to meet up in Johannesberg could relax and wait in comfort before continuing our journey to Kwazulu-Natal. There began the trip of  a lifetime surpassing the expectations of all, young and old.  Ash had organised our stay in the Villa at Thanda Game Reserve - as we were a large party we had the house and grounds to ourselves and were looked after by the local staff like
royalty. The game drives were so exciting and we were lucky to see all the Big 5.  Both the tracker and the ranger were extremely knowledgeable and were happy to share their knowledge with us. The food was exquisite and the “surprises” amazing (we will not detail them in order to keep the secret for future guests).

After 4 nights in Thanda we  were driven to Thonga Beach Lodge situated right on the beach on the Elephant Coast. It felt like we had reached the end of the world and oh, it was so beautiful ! Once again all the staff were so friendly and knowledgeable, always happy to teach us about their culture and the wildlife. Whales, dolphins, turtles, hippos … we saw them all and more ! The food was exquisite (including vegan dishes) and the Spa treatment was as good as it comes.

Thank you Ash for making this trip such a wonderful experience.

Best of South Africa Travel put together the most phenomenal trip for our family with minimal input from ourselves.  Work and family commitments meant we trusted our holiday planning entirely to Ash and she did us proud.  Ash put together a fantastic Garden Route itinerary for our family of four combining a great Safari, Plettenburg Bay activities, Winelands and then Capetown’s mixture of historic sites and beautiful walks. 

Our children loved the hotels almost as much as everything we did as they were so spoiled by staff at each stop. 

The information pack (which included treats for the kids) was a great help for planning each phase of the trip and, whenever needed, Ash was always on hand on WhatsApp to answer any queries we had. 

The trip ticked every box  we hoped for and we can’t thank Best of South Africa Travel enough for giving us such an amazing holiday.

Whenever I hear any friend contemplating a trip to South Africa, I now rush at them with every reason under the sun why they should let Ash Jarvis and the Best of South Africa Travel take care of their whole trip – because she gets it 100% right. Ash listened to what we wanted for our special 15-year wedding anniversary trip to a country we fell in love with years before, only this time to take our children and my parents-in-law. The whole family was blown away by every single detail, from the amazing accommodation sites Ash recommended to the many unforgettable experiences and the fabulous South African hospitality permeating the entire experience.

Ash imparts her unbelievably intimate knowledge of each and every destination/accommodation/activity as freely as she does her time for you; always in contact via e-mail/WhatsApp and ready to help with the tiniest of details. My parents-in-law are already planning on returning this year and my kids keep asking when we can return… Ash, we will be in contact again!

Hi Ash, all back safe and sound, and well, here’s the thing... Andy says it was his best holiday EVER! And what he loved was that there was always something next on the agenda to look forward to...

Andy’s parents were blown away by the whole experience and will no doubt be repeat customers at least once -  You are a master itinerary planner and you got everything EXACTLY right for our multigenerational family trip, which was by no means an easy task!  Well done!

We loved every bit of our time there thanks to you and your wonderful country with its ever hospitable people...  and most exciting is that it now makes us want to go back sooner rather than later!!! Thank you!!!

Best of South Africa Travel really lives up to it’s name! I planned a trip for my partner’s 40th birthday and nothing  was too much trouble for Ash. She helped me put together a bespoke trip involving 3 separate stays and suggested activities / restaurants for each. The recommended hotels were amazing (and just as described) and the folder with  all of our information in proved very useful. Rather than simply a glossy PR exercise for beautiful South Africa, it   included all of the practical information we needed, right down to driving directions between our locations. We   had an amazing trip and have no hesitation in recommending Best of South Africa Travel to anyone considering a  trip, you won’t regret it!

Wow!, received the documents last night and was blown away by the presentation and quality of the travel folder and wallet.

The added touch of the personal message and sweets from your daughter was very special and my daughter really appreciated the gift. Please pass on a very big thank you to her.

The additional information, hints and tips and travel atlas will come in very handy. Thanks again for all your help and patience with arranging our trip of a lifetime.

We are all very excited and can’t wait to visit SA.

We are still on an absolute high from our incredible trip to South Africa and cannot recommend booking with Ash Jarvis at Best of South Africa Travel highly enough. Ash ‘got it right’ from the get go. Not only is her knowledge of where to go, stay and what to do unbeatable, but she also has a knack, an intuition
for what is exactly right for you. From where to get the best breakfast, pizza or Michelin starred meal. The best time to visit the best places. What is a must, what can be a maybe, what is a wet weather option. All of this information delivered in a fantastically informative and friendly way.

Our trip was amazing. Kwandwe Ecca Lodge for a safari was incredible, Tsala Treetop in Plettenberg Bay was superb, our room at the Radisson Blu Waterfront Capetown was perfect for us.

But, the real reason to book with Best of South Africa Travel is Ash - you won’t get better. 

I just wanted to drop you an e mail to say a very big thank you for organising such a wonderful trip for Matthew and I. It truly was the holiday of a lifetime, and I do not say that in a causal way.

What a stunning country you have. Everything surpassed my expectations. I could have happily stayed in Franshhoek my whole life.

Thank you for everything. We will definitely go again.

Myself and my girlfriend recently returned from a fantastic stay at the Mhondoro Game lodge in the Welgevonden game reserve in South Africa.

Ash from Best Of South Africa travel organized our pick up and drop off and helped us plan our stay in this fantastic lodge.

I would highly recommend anyone looking to book a safari holiday or indeed any South African trip to get in touch with Ash as she is incredibly helpful , experienced and can offer some great deals

Best family holiday we’ve ever had.

We are just back from a spectacular 2 weeks in South Africa. We took our 8 year old son back having visited on our own 10 years ago and we all had one of the best holidays. We wanted our son to see "the real Africa" at the same time as doing the usual touristy things (including a very patient son as we toured the beautiful winelands). Best Of South Africa Travel helped us plan our holiday to cover off exactly what we felt we wanted but gave really great advice for other ideas so we could get the most out of the holiday (Mpumalanga). We managed to tick off all the boxes as well as see the Big 5 (including rare cheetah and wild dog sitings!) on a wonderful safari in the Sabi Sands.

Thanks for organising such a memorable trip. It was absolutely fantastic, we all cried our eyes out when we left Sabi Sabi...thank you

We have just come back from a wonderful 7 night break to South Africa. We were incredibly well looking after from the second we stepped off the plane, by a lovely representative of Best of South Africa Travel - who met us and escorted us through customs and immigration literally behind the pilots. It was very efficient, and we felt very sorry for everyone else who had to queue for at least an hour! We didn’t want to hire a car and drive ourselves, so we had private transfers to two amazing game lodges, Marataba Safari Lodge and Madikwe Kopano. Best of SA Travel arranged a bush dinner for my husbands 70th birthday which was very special and a real treat to have supper out in the middle of the bush with candles and lanterns lighting up the tables. All in all we had a most wonderful time and plan to go back and do Cape Town and Winelands in 2018. We will definitely book with Ash and her team again, we felt very well looked after from start to finish.

"We were referred to Ash by a mutual friend and were specifically looking for a unique experience for our family which involved a game park.  After a brief discussion around what we would like to see and do, Ash then came back with a package that met us at Jo'burg airport, flew us into the Kruger where our three day safari staying in a 5 star lodge began.  This intimate lodge with our own dedicated guide gave us an amazing experience seeing the big five and many more types of wildlife.  We then stayed in a luxury guesthouse outside of the park, drove the Panorama Route and visited an elephant sanctuary where we got to lead and ride the elephants - an experience our children will remember forever.  This six day portion of a three month world holiday was still the highlight of the whole trip for me.  We would not have experienced this but for Ash's local knowledge and attention to our specific needs.  I have recommended friends to Ash who have subsequently also arranged similar holidays via her.  I would love to come back and see more of South Africa in the years to come and will definitely use Ash again for this."

Local knowledge makes a huge difference! When I asked Ash at Best of South Africa to give me some guidance on how to make the most of our trip to Cape Town and Franschhoek wine valley, I felt sure she would be able to send me in the right direction. It never occurred  to me that she would organise our itinerary down to the last detail. It was like we were walking in Ash’s footsteps as she led the way, showing us the wonderful places that she had of course discovered as a native of this amazing country. From the best time of day to enjoy  a particular location right down to the best hotel room number so you maxed on the view. She took into account the ages of our three children, the pace that we would be able to travel at comfortably, and the style and ambiance that would suit our personalities. Like living in a tailor made suit we felt comfortable, safe and confident. Instead of feeling like a tourist I felt like a privileged guest. Ash opened the door and opened our eyes to a spectacular world of exteriors and interiors. Our personal tour guide and proxy host.