LB Safaris

Unique tailor made holidays: Individual travellers or small groups travelling for the first time or on a repeat visit to Southern Africa* that require a unique holiday that is good value for money. Whether you wish to self drive, be driven, personally guided, go on a train journey, go on safaris/game drives, fly in safaris or any combination of these is possible. *(South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Swaziland & Lesotho)

Small scale and personally run: If you prefer small scale and personally run cosy accommodations, avoiding where possible mass tourism combined with personal service, passion and extensive knowledge, LB Safaris are able to assist!

Special interests: For the traveller who has special interests like hiking, golf, art, diving, honeymooning etc. LB Safaris is a suitable partner. As a rule we work closely with acknowledged specialists we often know personally.  We prefer companies that use where feasible, environmentally friendly practises and that has a fair & social employment policy for the local people. As a rule we use THETA registered guides and if suitable we also promote FTTSA (Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa) accommodations and/or companies.

Off the beaten track: For traveller that has been but the visit was to short, fast or touristic we offer a relaxed tempo of travel discovering off the beaten track places and avoiding where possible mass tourism.

Don’t want to sit in front of your computer for hours trying to figure out what is available, possible and suitable for your unique requirements? Use our passion, knowledge and contacts to get that special holiday for yourself!

Flights already booked? No problem! We specialise in offering holidays that connects flawlessly with your booked flights.

Special needs & requirements? If you have special needs or specific requirements like personal dietary needs or if you are partially disabled we will gladly assist you.

The first step would be to make a cost estimate specifically to your requirements. A cost estimate usually contains extensive information regarding the route offered, all costs expected (including costs expected during your travel like for instance, eating out, fuel, toll roads etc.). Due to our system (custom designed for us) and making cost estimates daily our estimate are usually very accurate. Should it not be exactly what you had in mind it is always possible to adjust the cost estimate after it has been made to further suite your requirements.

Only once, you are satisfied with what is being offered we go ahead and turn the cost estimate into a quote. All accommodations* and other services will then be contacted and provisionally booked. This process usually takes between 2 and 4 days. When this process is completed, we offer you a quote that is valid for several days. If you wish to accept our quote, it therefore offers you enough time to find and book your flights and so complete the whole package. *Due to the small scale nature of most of our accommodations we only request availability and provisionally book once we know the enquiry made is serious and a quote has been requested!

Should you accept our quote we will send you a booking confirmation and request a deposit payment if required. Invoicing and payment will always be done via the local agent in your country. Vouchers, route descriptions and other travel documents will dispatch by post or e-mail within 1 to 2 weeks of receiving full payment or at least 14 days before departure.

Please note:
Any contact regarding your booking like questions, extra information,  changes etc. may always be made directly with LB Safaris. Also during travelling we offer you a 24 hours per day, 7 days per week back up service from all our offices.

Flights already booked?
No problem! We specialize in offering holidays that connects flawlessly with your booked flights. With an extensive range of accommodations we have listed, it will virtually always be possible to offer you a very suitable place to stay over. This ensures that you should always be able to travel your chosen route!

Affordable Bespoke Travel.
Custom made trips cost no extra and is always a private LB Safaris journey uniquely designed just for you. We offer you a private and personalized experience, designed uniquely each time. With every bespoke journey, we make use of the same expertise and creativity that we apply to all of our tours and trips to offer you an incredible experience. Let us know what you have in mind and we will do the rest.

More on who we are.
LB Safaris is a Southern Africa tour operator specializing in personalized individual and small-scale group travel for the discerning traveller. Mass tourism is for as far as is possible avoided and our preferred suppliers are usually small-scale personally run accommodations or operators. The goal is to offer the most suitable accommodation and services within a reasonable budget.

Secure and safe booking of our holidays.
We are socially aware and where possible promote environmentally friendly tourism. As a rule we use THETA registered guides and if suitable we also promote FTTSA (Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa) accommodations and/or companies.

We encourage sustainable tourism.
We also endeavour to encourage sustainable tourism and the use of FTTSA (Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa) accommodation and operators where possible. With a sales office in the Netherlands, we are conveniently situated in Europe and backed up by both the Pretoria and Windhoek offices in Southern Africa. Our staff in the European office are multi lingual and mostly born and raised South Africans with a passion for Southern Africa.

Compare before you buy!
Part of being able to determine whether anything is good value for money it is to compare. Especially as it usually concerns at relatively large sum of money. It is however imperative that when a comparison is made it is done on an equal footing. As a rule you usually get what you pay for!

What has been included?
For instance, when we offer accommodation in a national park the compulsory conservation (entry) fees are included where possible. Is the rental car offered fully insured and what back up services are normally included. Are the offered accommodations clean with a good personal service or do they at barely suffice? Are the distances between stops driveable and is enough time given to explore en route?

Realistic expextations?
It is important also to make sure your expectations are realistic and your available budget is used to its maximum potential. At LB Safaris, we gladly accept the challenge to make the most of your budget. Anybody can offer cheap accommodation but usually you get what you pay for!

Basic comfort.
To ensure your safety and comfort we prefer not to use the smallest car but rather a car with sufficient engine capacity for the route you are taking and it includes air-conditioning with sufficient luggage space. On average, you will probably be driving longer distances that you normally do so driving comfort is important. As a rule, we use Budget Rent a Car that offers excellent service throughout the country and a large fleet of new vehicles. Accommodations offered are usually on average 3 to 4 star when compared to Europe and in as a rule always have a private en-suite bathroom.

Service and back up.
When arriving at night it is standard practice to include a personal meet and greet and/or shuttle service to the first nights accommodation. We also believe that 24/7 backup, good road map, route description, game drives as well as entry fees where unavoidable and pre payable should be part of the package or included in the price.

Affordable Bespoke Travel.
Custom made trips cost no extra and is always a private LB Safaris journey uniquely designed just for you. We offer you a private and personalized experience, designed uniquely each time. With every bespoke journey, we make use of the same expertise and creativity that we apply to all of our tours and trips to offer you an incredible experience. Let us know what you have in mind and we will do the rest.

To further assist you in maximizing your available budget we suggest the following:

a) Choose the right time to fly. Most airlines no not only have different season prices but also increase the seat price, as the plane gets fuller. It could therefore be a lot cheaper to fly a couple of days later or earlier.

b) Travel out of season. Southern Africa has something to offer most travellers all year round. For more advice, please do not hesitate to ask us for advice.

c) Rent a suitable car. You do not need a 4X4 to travel through most of Southern Africa. For more advice, please do not hesitate to ask us for advice.

d) With a limited budget request more self catering accommodations. We also have several good quality budget accommodations without the frills or maybe not so perfectly located that offer good value for money.

e) Finally, it is also possible to shorten the intended trip by a day or two. It is worth doing well rather than trying to stuff everything into one trip.

If this all fails and your budget is still not quite enough rather save a bit longer and go several months later.

To successfully offer you the right trip it is important to ensure your expectations are realistically met.

Please note: Our tailor made holidays are also bookable under local legislation and travel guarantee terms in the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

We also offer a 24/7 back up service in case of emergency from all our offices and always include a proper map book, route description in all self drive tours as a standard procedure.

3 Golden rules of planning a good trip
1) Plan the accommodation stopovers properly.
It is advisable not to plan several one night stops in a row. Getting a good rest is essential if you would like to have a relaxed holiday and be able to take in a vast amount of new scenery. All accommodations en-route should be clean, have friendly staff and comply with your wishes.

2) Take time to explore.
Where required and if suitable, we plan enough time for you to take time to explore. However, it is impossible to explore such a large area completely in the time most travellers have at their disposal. Our philosophy is to rather see less and experience more.

3) Distances travelled should be feasible.
In general roads in South Africa and Namibia of a very high standard. Even the unsealed roads of Namibia are mostly of a high standard and driveable by normal car. It is very important however to plan the distances properly and take into consideration all possible conditions. Not only the terrain you drive through but also scenic stops may determine what a driveable distance is. We regularly travel throughout the region and have years of experience to offer our clients when planning a trip.

LB Safaris offers accommodations that we visit and inspect personally or regular intervals. We very often know the owners personally and have a long working relationship with them. Mostly we offer small scale personally run accommodations like guest houses, the better bed and breakfast stay over, personally run lodges and small hotels that have a comparable quality of between 3 and 4 stars. We rate accommodations not only on hygiene but also friendly service, personal atmosphere and where possible special surroundings, beautiful views etc. Should we offer a self-catering or more basic accommodation we prefer to use the AA (Automobile Association) as a guideline for quality and what is offered? We also know which accommodations have a good kitchen and where you cannot eat out thus helping you determine which accommodations should only be B&B.

To ensure the best possible value for money we do not always opt for the cheapest possible services. Personal service, small scale and special features like a beautiful view or excellent service also play part in our choice. We have at our disposal a large amount of accommodations that range from basic to spectacular enabling us to offer most travellers something of their preference and more. Combined with our knowledge of the best possible route and frequency of staying over, drivability of certain routes etc we can probably offer most travellers an experience of a lifetime and unforgettable holiday to Southern Africa.