Affordable African Safaris

A safari is nearly always more than you want to spend. Faced with this reality, sometimes you may decide to increase your budget but that may not be possible. Here are some of our more affordable safaris and less expensive safari lodges and camps…

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Overview

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What on earth do we mean by “Affordable African Safaris”? Elsewhere we’ve talked about how a safari is often more than you want to spend. And that's true. So on this page, we focus on lodges and areas which are on the affordable side of this spectrum.

PRO TIP: Make sure you budget considerably more for your nights on safari within a trip. You may want to economize in other ways - See our page on Africa Safari Pricing for some rough per night prices - in order to know what to budget for good private game reserves.

Below are some of our more affordable African safaris and less expensive game lodges and camps.

These tend to be - though not exclusively - in South Africa or Namibia, Here the Rand is relatively weak versus the world currencies giving you better value for your money. Also our sample South Africa safari tours usually include non-safari areas such as Cape Town or the Garden Route. This naturally brings down the overall cost.

(Plus you can easily opt to self-drive in the Cape which brings down the cost still more.)

What do you get at OUR affordable game lodges?

In this world of online travel sites, it’s easy to get confused as to why a game lodge is comparatively inexpensive. All game reserves are NOT created equal. So if a game lodge seems very reasonable, you need to ask why? When choosing an affordable African safari, we steer clear of the lesser game reserves. (They may say they are Big Five reserves but how many of each species do they really have? And are they free-roaming?)

You are looking for a proper safari and not a zoo experience.

Instead we focus on the affordable game lodges which are in good game-viewing areas. The accommodation will be simpler, the food not so elegant. Yes, the guiding may be a little less refined. But you will be on safari in the same terrain as much more expensive lodges, tracking the same wildlife.

Similarly some of the lesser known game reserves in remote areas offer a fantastic safari experience. That's why you need to talk to the safari experts! (End of small rant.)

As long as you have the correct expectations, these affordable lodges can be every bit as good as their pricier cousins.

Note: Below we highlight affordable game lodges for their area.

Download our Insiders Guide to Namibia Safaris

Major Game Reserves, Sample Tours & Camps, plus the low-down on Best Time to Visit! Get our Free Guide here
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Everything worked out perfectly
"Just a quick note to let you know everything worked out perfectly! We had a great time and the accommodations were excellent. We even had two elephants visiting our tent at Simbavati one evening. You can imagine the excitement! Thank you for your hard work to make this a fantastic safari. " - Mrs Brigitte, USA
We will certainly use Cedarberg again
"All the arrangements worked perfectly – no hiccups at all. We will certainly use Cedarberg again and will recommend the company to others. We were particularly impressed by the fact that the ground agents met us from every flight and saw us on to the next flight so if anything had gone awry there was someone on hand to help us sort it out. As one gets older that is enormously comforting. " - Ms Sandra Clark, UK
Rwanda was inspiring
"My wife and I approached Cederberg requesting a draft itinerary and recommendations for a visit to Rwanda. We received prompt, well-informed assistance, and a final itinerary which was absolutely perfect. Our tour of the country was well-structured in terms of acclimatisation, pace and variety. On the second last day of our visit, we met up with another group who had opted for a different tour ..." - Mr David, USA
We honestly had the trip of a life time and it was a magical time for our whole family.
"We honestly had the trip of a life time and it was a magical time for our whole family. From the animals in the Serengeti to the palm fringed perfect beaches of Zanzibar it was two weeks we will never forget. We had a superb guide and saw the big 5 on safari which was really special. Thank you so much Milandi. " - Jos Palmer
Everything was perfectly organised
"Mari did an incredible job planning our holiday. Not only did Mari communicate extremely well throughout the whole process, but the trip was beyond our expectations " - Mr Yeats, USA
 
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Ginny Russell

AFRICAN TRAVEL SPECIALIST

Hi I'm Ginny, I'm here to help you plan your ideal holiday experience GET IN TOUCH