journey LEVELS
Find Your SAFARI FIT: Style & Trip Investment
Planning for Your Safari Costs
Our journey levels
What Level Matches Your Travel Style & Trip Investment?
Some clients trip preferences fit neatly into one tier level’ while others may start at one level and then splurge at the end with the next notch up!
5 1/2-6 STARS
SAFARI ELITE
Off The Charts Unrivaled Private Safaris Crafted for You!
- PER PERSON, PER NIGHT
- COUNTRY DEPENDENT
- SEASON DEPENDENT
$ 2100-5400
5 STARS
REFINED ELEGANCE
Exquisite Journeys with Hidden Value!
- PER PERSON, PER NIGHT
- COUNTRY DEPENDENT
- SEASON DEPENDENT
$ 1300-2000
4 1/2 STARS
RAW luxury
Authentic, Nature Lover’s Safari
- PER PERSON, PER NIGHT
- COUNTRY DEPENDENT
- SEASON DEPENDENT
$ 850-1200
EXPERTISE MEETS YOUT TRAVEL STYLE
Journey Levels
Every safari we design is custom. This chart is simply a guide to help you understand the different styles of safari — from authentic and adventurous to highly private and ultra-luxury.
The biggest differences are not just the rooms. They are the guiding, location, privacy, logistics, food, service, wildlife access, and conservation impact.
Raw Luxury
Comfortable, soulful, and close to nature.
This is for travelers who want an authentic safari with good guiding, warm service, fresh meals, and a strong sense of place — without needing every luxury extra.
Refined Elegance
Stylish, polished, and beautifully run.
This level offers upgraded camps and lodges, excellent guiding, better logistics, refined service, and a more seamless safari experience.
Safari Elite
The most private and exceptional level of safari.
This includes Africa’s finest camps, top guides, private vehicles or charters, rare access, highly personalized service, and every detail handled with care.
The Tier We Don’t Sell
Mass-market safaris may cost less, but they often mean larger lodges, more vehicles, more time in transit, less flexibility, and less meaningful impact.
That is not the Africa we want to share.
How to Use This Chart
You do not have to choose one level for your entire safari. Many of the best journeys blend different styles.
Our job is to help you decide where to invest, where to simplify, and how to create the strongest safari for your interests, comfort level, and budget.
Journey Levels
Not all safaris are created equal. This guide helps explain the difference between mass-market travel, polished luxury, raw immersive wilderness, and the rarefied level of safari where privacy, access, guiding, logistics, conservation value, and attention to detail all come together.
| Journey Levels | Safari Elite | Refined Elegance | Raw Luxury | Safari Tier We Don’t Sell Mass Market Africa | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quality ★ |
Off the Charts Extreme attention to every detail 5½ - 6 Star |
Sophisticated, stylish, highly polished 5 Star |
Deluxe Low 5 Star |
Simple & rustic 4½ Star |
No frills, cookie cutter 2 to Low 4 Star |
| Safari Camp / Lodge Size ⛺ | Private or under 10 rooms / tents | 4 - 12 villas / tents | 6 - 25 rooms / tents | 6 - 25+ rooms / tents | 30+ rooms / tents |
| Location & Wildlife 🐾 | Extremely remote, extraordinary, untouched Big Five wilderness | Primarily private conservancies: remote, raw, off-the-grid Big Five areas | Combination of private conservancies and excellent locations in national reserves and parks, with fewer vehicles around wildlife sightings and strong Big Five potential | National parks only, often with no off-roading, night drives, open vehicles, or walking. More vehicles around sightings in high-density areas. | |
| Guides | Private, Africa’s best | Highest-caliber senior guides | Superior knowledge and highly experienced | Accomplished and enthusiastic | Entry level |
| Activities ✦ | Private, experiential, once-in-a-lifetime moments | More individualized or private, hands-on, immersive and authentic, based on the client’s interests | Scheduled, more staged and group-oriented | ||
| Service ♟ | Best in class | Finest | Excellent | Personable and homey | Basic |
| Food ♨ | Privately curated, out-of-this-world culinary food and wine | Epicurean plated, award-winning | Delicious plated fare | Simple, hearty, fresh and mostly plated | Buffets, cafeteria style |
| Logistics ✈ | Private charters | More time on safari versus traveling between locations. Mostly flying and may include private charters. | More safari time. Shared air charters and shorter scenic road segments. | Shared charters and slightly more time on the road. | More time in transit, more driving, backtracking and airport time. |
| Eco-Feel ♣ | Deeply remote | Authentic, low-impact to nature and designed to blend with the environment | Low priority | ||
| Privacy ◉ | Private villa, chef, butler, vehicle, pool and guide | Highly exclusive with lots of space | Moderately exclusive | Far from the masses, though with more shared experiences | Lack of privacy and bigger groups |
| Sustainable Conservation & Local Benefit ☘ | Lowest density, enduring purpose and benchmark environmental credentials | Tourism makes the highest positive impact, with lower density and excellent community and eco responsibility | Tourism has a favorable impact on conservation efforts and local communities, with the added benefit of a lower tourist-to-area ratio | Tourism dollars have minimal effect on supporting conservation or local communities. High tourist density negatively impacts wildlife. | |
|
Pricing Per Person, Per Night Country / Season Dependent/ Estimated |
Over $2,100 - $5,400+ x # Nights |
From $1,600 - $2,000 x # Nights |
From $1,000 - $1,500 x # Nights |
From $850 - $1,200+ x # Nights |
$125 - $450 x # Nights |
Safari Elite
Off-the-charts, highly private, deeply curated safari design.
Refined Elegance
Stylish, sophisticated, highly polished safari luxury.
Raw Luxury
Rustic, authentic, nature-forward safari with strong wilderness character.
Safari Tier We Don’t Sell
Mass Market Africa: higher density, lower personalization and less meaningful impact.
*Pricing is highly country, season, routing, room category and availability dependent. This framework is intended as a planning guide rather than a fixed rate sheet.
More Than a Room
Safari pricing is highly inclusive. Your investment usually covers the places you stay, the people who guide you, the wildlife access, the logistics, and the details that make the experience feel seamless.
HOW WE PRICE YOUR SAFARI
Every safari we plan is handcrafted—never pulled from a shelf or pieced together from a template. We start with a blank canvas and design your journey in harmony with the seasons, wildlife movements, and the kind of experience you’re hoping to have.
Because everything is custom-built, we offer your trip as a complete package rather than listing prices for each individual lodge or activity. Behind the scenes, we purchase all accommodations, guiding, and ground services at wholesale rates—and our wholesale partnerships and supplier agreements contractually require us to offer a full itinerary rather than break down the pricing for each element separately.
It’s a bit like buying a beautifully made meal or a well-built home—you’re paying for the whole, not for each ingredient or nail.
That said, we’re always transparent where we can be. We’re happy to break out internal flight costs, and we pass along all park and conservancy fees at cost, with no markup. These fees go directly to local national parks and community-run conservancies—helping to fund anti-poaching patrols, habitat restoration, and initiatives that uplift the communities who live alongside wildlife.
At our core, we believe travel should be a force for good. That’s why we only work with lodges and partners who are deeply invested in conservation, community empowerment, and regenerative tourism. When you travel with us, you’re not just exploring Africa’s wild places—you’re helping to protect them.
So while you may not see a line-by-line invoice, know that every element of your journey has been thoughtfully chosen to reflect not only your preferences—but also our shared value

The Black Mambas - South Africa's First All-Woman Anti-Poaching Team
All park and conservancy fees go directly to local national parks and community-run conservancies—helping to fund anti-poaching patrols, habitat restoration, and initiatives that uplift the communities who live alongside wildlife.
