From Tourist to guardian:
HOW YOUR SAFARI CHOICES MATTER
Where Travelers Become Participants in Positive Change
beyond photos: how your safari can create lasting change
Your journey with us offers opportunities to participate in truly transformative conservation work. Join wildlife researchers tracking endangered cheetah populations in the Serengeti. Participate in anti-poaching patrol training with local rangers in Zambia.
Help marine biologists monitor sea turtle nesting sites along the East African coast. Meet the dedicated gorilla doctors in Rwanda who provide life-saving veterinary care to mountain gorilla families.
Or simply stay at lodges where your presence directly funds lion conservation programs and community-owned wildlife reserves.
We carefully design each safari to address the critical challenges facing Africa’s natural heritage. Stay at eco-lodges pioneering carbon-neutral operations and plastic-free initiatives to combat climate change. Visit innovative projects where community-managed buffer zones are reducing human-wildlife conflict through beehive fences and predator-proof bomas.
Engage with local Maasai communities implementing sustainable grazing practices that preserve critical wildlife corridors. Experience firsthand how community conservation agreements are transforming former poaching hotspots into thriving conservancies, creating jobs and preserving cultural heritage while protecting endangered species. Each experience is thoughtfully selected to showcase solutions rather than simply highlighting problems.
Beyond these hands-on experiences, we commit a portion of every booking to vetted conservation organizations making real differences on the ground—from combating wildlife trafficking to supporting community-led conservation areas. With Artisans of Safari, your journey becomes part of Africa’s conservation story, creating ripples of positive change that extend far beyond your time there.
Our Commitment to Responsible Travel
At Artisans of Safari,
conservation and community engagement form the bedrock of our approach to planning your journey to Africa.
Far more than marketing terms, these principles guide every partnership we forge and every experience we create. We carefully select properties and operators who demonstrate genuine commitment to sustainability, ethical practices, and meaningful conservation impact.
Beyond Tourism: Creating Meaningful Connections
Do you want to connect with local communities and make a positive impact on the places you travel?
Is authenticity and respect for the people paramount? Do you worry about canned, exploitative, inauthentic encounters that just feel wrong? We do, too.
With Artisans of Safari, you can rest assured we’ve vetted every one of the community exchanges we offer. They’re as real as they look, and you’re not paying for a show. You’re providing meaningful support and meeting people who are genuinely glad to have you there.
From Visitor to Valued Ally: A Different Approach
When your safari includes community engagement, you experience the truest, most natural representation of the people and their lives.
This is not an amusement park, and you haven’t bought an entrance pass.
The partners and lodge owners we work with build relationships with local communities over many years by supporting schools, clinics, farms, and economic initiatives. By staying with these community-minded properties, you support their efforts too, bolstering grassroots work that creates meaningful, lasting change.
Our Conservation Focus Areas: Pioneering a Path Forward
At Artisans of Safari, we’re not content to simply witness Africa’s natural wonders—we’re actively shaping their future through innovative conservation partnerships that push boundaries and create lasting change. Our focus areas represent the cutting edge of where tourism meets conservation science, community empowerment, and sustainable innovation.
Addressing Overtourism:
While many safari-goers flock to the same popular destinations, we believe in avoiding some of those “must-see” places in favor of similar areas that aren’t as well known. Our deep connections throughout Africa allow us to guide you to pristine wilderness areas where wildlife thrives without the pressure of mass tourism—places where you might be the only vehicle at a spectacular lion sighting or have an entire stretch of savanna to yourself at sunset.
From intimate, owner-run camps in Tanzania’s southern circuits to remote walking safaris in Zambia’s untouched wilderness areas, we specialize in experiences far from the convoy of safari vehicles. These lesser-known regions not only offer exceptional wildlife encounters but also help distribute tourism benefits to communities that need it most, preventing the environmental strain that comes with overtourism in hotspot areas.
The Art of Slow Safari: Quality Over Quantity
Here’s the secret: you simply don’t have to see everything.
We consistently find that the less our clients move around, the higher their ratings of the experience. Sometimes just staying in camp and reading a book—pausing from time to time to identify a bird or to check out the impala in the distance—is the best possible way to renew your spirit.
While many operators create itineraries with movement every two days, we ask: Why? You’ll see similar wildlife, just in different areas, and all you’ll have for your trouble is more time in planes and airports—the least enjoyable part of a trip.
True immersion happens when you slow down long enough to notice the small wonders: the dung beetle’s determined labor, the intricate social dynamics of an elephant herd, or the changing light across the landscape throughout the day. By designing journeys with fewer stops and longer stays, we create space for those transformative moments that define a truly exceptional safari experience.
Human-Wildlife Conflict Resolution: One of the most pressing issues in wildlife conservation is the delicate balance between human communities and wildlife. We partner with organizations at the forefront of developing innovative solutions that allow people and animals to coexist harmoniously. Lodges like Chilo Gorge in Zimbabwe, Singita in Tanzania and Kalepo in Kenya are at the forefront.
Climate Challenges: We’re confronting plastic pollution, environmental degradation, and climate risks across Africa through innovative solutions that protect ecosystems, empower communities, and drive sustainable transformation. Organizations like Ele-Collection are doing important work and you can visit their project when in Victoria Falls.
Off-the-Beaten-Path Experiences:
We’re re-imagining travel beyond crowded destinations by strategically redirecting exploration to less-known African regions, championing economic opportunities for marginalized communities, authentic cultural experiences, and protecting local ecosystems from overtourism.
The New Era of Safari Tourism:
We’re driving transformative change in safaris by highlighting pioneering innovators who minimize environmental impact, save wildlife, empower local communities, and create meaningful, immersive experiences that inspire industry-wide evolution.
No matter your style, we offer experiences you’ll love:
- Ample opportunities to support wildlife conservation
- A slowed-down pace with time to savor your surroundings
- Authentic, sincere, fulfilling interactions with local communities
- Walks alongside local guides who will share their way of life
- Experiences in both rural, off-the-grid and urban locations
- The satisfaction of knowing your visit is a positive cultural and economic investment
Conserversations On Africa's Most Pressing Topics
Dive deeper into these important topics with our founder Karin Jones in her video podcast series “Conversations with Africa’s Safari ChangeMakers.”
Each episode features discussions with conservation leaders, community representatives, and safari innovators who are making a difference across Africa.