James has had a passion for Africa for as long as he can remember, and worked in almost every role in the safari industry there is. He now represents Asilia, assisting agents with their clients and requests. He knows Ruaha extremely well and it is one of his own personal favourite areas of Tanzania. James discusses all of the Asilia camps, Jabali, Kwihala and Usangu and it was fascinating to hear about the huge input to conservation tourism has in Ruaha National Park....
Aug 21, 2023•46 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Pascal is an utterly charming man, who runs the camp with both warmth and great efficiency. He is extremely experienced when it comes to tourism in Tanzania and this really shows in the immaculate way Jabali Ridge operates. Jabali Ridge is a modern and chic camp nestled in one of the best game viewing areas of Ruaha National Park in Southern Tanzania. Pascal emanates calm and friendliness and you feel instantly relaxed in his company.
Aug 21, 2023•18 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Mark is a great character and we loved hearing about the building of Ikuka, which wasn't easy. He is an accomplished and esteemed guide and wildlife photographer, and has huge history in Tanzania - we'd love to do another podcast about that alone! Mark and his wife Chloe have created a paradise in this remote Tanzanian park which is bound to enchant anyone who stays there.
Aug 21, 2023•26 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Chevy is one of the managers at Ikuka Safari Camp in Ruaha National Park, Southern Tanzania. California born and bred she has been in Tanzania for 15 years, doing various fascinating things until ending up as the warm heart of luxury camp Ikuka. She is a wonderfully friendly person, and makes every single guest feel at home. The camp itself is perfectly appointed with stunning views as far as the eye can see, stunning understated but stylish decor and delicious food. The guides here are exceptio...
Aug 21, 2023•48 min•Season 5Ep. 2
We've been busy out in Ruaha in Southern Tanzania, travelling the length of this amazing National Park and ensuring that the camps and lodges there are up to scratch for our clients - they didn't disappoint.
Aug 21, 2023•1 min•Season 5Ep. 1
This is Brian's second very kind foray onto our podcast - he has travelled so extensively in Africa that we could record hundreds of safari podcast episodes with him. His story telling manner, as well as the safari stories themselves, is spell binding. He has just released his memoirs West With The Light and if you only ever read one book about Africa read that. 'Britain's best wildlife writer' – The Scotsman ''A beautifully written book' – Tony Fitzjohn 'Don't send him to Torremolinos; it's not...
Dec 27, 2021•9 min•Season 4Ep. 6
We were so honoured that Kim agreed to do our podcast - he has made so many immeasurably magical wildlife programs, all completely unique because Kim actually immerses himself into his subjects lives, gains their trust and thereby catches a lot of unseen footage of the species he is following. Man Cheetah Wild is one of the best cheetah programs we have ever seen. "It’s about the lifestyle and cameras provide me with the challenge to bring home stunning images and footage to share with the world...
Dec 20, 2021•41 min•Season 4Ep. 5
You really get a sense of what being on safari with Gordie & Felicia would be like in this amazing insight into some of their own safari experiences. They are such a wonderful safari couple, with two wild safari babies now having joined their family. Safaris Unlimited runs some of the most exclusive riding safaris in Kenya, with top quality horses and remote campsites in the Masai Mara, Laikipia and Amboseli. Gordie's family have such a long standing history in Kenya which is also fascinatin...
Dec 13, 2021•21 min•Season 4Ep. 4
We've known Ryan for years and are thrilled to say he has now joined The Luxury Safari Company team since leaving the Zambian bush to be with his wife and forthcoming baby. His time guiding has meant that he has tonnes of tales of living the safari lifestyle - here are just a few. Ryan Wilmot has spent the past 17 years as a professional guide and camp manager in some of Southern Africa’s top lodges, National parks, and private reserves. He holds an honors degree in Nature Conservation which is ...
Dec 06, 2021•16 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Riccardo has had such a varied career before he founded Saruni Camps (Saruni Mara, Wild, Samburu & Rhino) in Kenya that we are sure we could record several podcasts but here we have a few of his tales of his life in Kenya. Born in Italy in 1961, Riccardo Orizio is a reporter, author, safari guide and conservationist. As a foreign correspondent for the Italian daily newspapers Corriere della Sera and La Repubblica, for the magazines Il Mondo, Fortune and Epoca, and then for CNN, in his “first...
Nov 29, 2021•26 min•Season 4Ep. 2
To kick off series 4 of Talking Bush, Safaris & Luxury Travel we have Bruce Simpson - Bruce has probably spent more time on safari in his life than anyone else and has unrivalled experience of running luxury safari camps and companies within Africa. Bruce Simpson started his ecotourism career in 1990 working as a guide at Londolozi in the well-known Sabi-Sand Game Reserve of South Africa and ended up in various management roles with companies including Londolozi, & Beyond and Singita. Br...
Nov 22, 2021•24 min•Season 4Ep. 1
Richard Yoga manages Asilia Naboisho Camp in the private Naboisho Conservancy in the Masai Mara - he has a wealth of experience and this really shines through in his quiet and confident manner. We had a great laugh with him and he has the perfect mixture of professionalism and humour. The camp had the most wonderful atmosphere and this is no doubt down to the amazing management, lead by Richard.
Oct 17, 2021•16 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Douglas Dichana is a larger than life character who is truly the warm heart of Great Plains Mara Plains Camp in the exclusive OLARE MOTOROGI CONSERVANCY in the Masai Mara. He is full of laughter, jokes and passion for hospitality and the wilderness. In short he is just brilliant and we loved our time spent with him at Mara Plains. Mara Plains is one of the most luxurious safari camps in the whole of the Masai Mara and they have access not only to the busier reserve, but to game rich private cons...
Oct 17, 2021•24 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Marietta has been in the Mara for years, and now runs Great Plains Mara Nyika Camp with calm efficiency, while making the camp feel warm and inviting with her friendly and smiley manner. This camp is luxury personified in a remote corner of the wildlife full Naboisho Conservancy. Please note we work with lots and lots of safari camps in the Masai Mara, and this short "Masai Mara" safari podcast series is just an intro to some of the characters you will meet when on safari here.
Oct 16, 2021•12 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Gosh Lucas is a fantastic guide - he guides all the photographers and bush walkers from Asilia Naboisho Camp, in the remote Naboisho Conservancy in the Masai Mara. The conservancy lends itself to Lucas's style of guiding, which is full of laughter, and unrivalled knowledge - there are very few camps here and so very few vehicles, BUT tonnes of wildlife particularly the cats. Lucas has self taught himself everything and is expected to have passed his Gold Level guiding exams by the end of this ye...
Oct 16, 2021•4 min•Season 3Ep. 2
David is a silver level Kenyan guide at Offbeat Ndoto in the Mara North Conservancy, Masai Mara. He is a highly educated man with a twinkle in his eye and a fantastic sense of humour. He has travelled to the States, UK and Hong Kong to educate people about the Masai way of life, and the abundant wildlife the Masai Mara is so famous for. A luxury safari with David is just that, he knows the bush like the back of his hand. We spent time with a cheetah family he had known for years - he eventually ...
Oct 16, 2021•11 min•Season 3Ep. 1
Family friend John Rendall was privileged to be Christian The Lion's human family, and was the one, alongside his friend Ace who bought him from Harrods and eventually took him on the amazing journey to Kenya where he was rehabilitated by George Adamson into the African wilderness. The story is world famous and to hear it in John's own words is truly amazing.
Mar 02, 2021•39 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Benson is head waiter and head of front of house at luxury safari camp Saruni Samburu in Samburu, Northern Kenya. He is decked out in all his Masai finery as despite being in Samburu he is from the Masai tribe. His is a charming and quiet man, with a great sense of humour and a passion for the stars making him one of the leading astro-guides in Kenya. His knowledge of the night sky is second to none and Saruni Samburu is an exceptional place for star gazing as you get good views of the Northern ...
Feb 23, 2021•8 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Salum Mpapa is head guide at Chem Chem Safaris, which encompasses Chem Chem Lodge, Little Chem Chem Bushcamp and exclusive use Chem Chem Forest Camp - three extremely high end safari camps located in the Tarangire area bordering Lake Manyara. Their conservation and community initiatives are second to none and this suits Salum perfectly, since he comes from a family heavily involved with anti poaching and game ranging in Southern Tanzania. He has a warm and generous smile and is obviously very ha...
Feb 16, 2021•14 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Chad was drawn to the bush and wilderness from a young age and has found his happy place in the wild and remote Timbavati on the border of the Greater Kruger. Here he is the head guide at Tanda Tula Safari Camp - one of the only owner run safari camps in the area. The camp is luxurious, welcoming and has an extremely good reputation for a reason. The game viewing is exceptional helped by their teams of expert safari guides and trackers, many of whom have worked for Tanda for years and years. We ...
Feb 09, 2021•28 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Baraka is widely known as one of the best managers in Tanzania - he is a big bear of a man who has managed a variety of camps and lodges in Tanzania but is happiest in the bush. Namiri Plains runs like clockwork with an exceptionally happy atmosphere all thanks to Baraka. It is a joyous place with some of the best wildlife viewing in the whole of the Serengeti. Manja is a safari guide at Namiri Plains and recently made an exceptional discovery out on the plains of the Serengeti which has now bee...
Feb 02, 2021•27 min•Season 2Ep. 6
We have known Cecilia for a long time and her career path has been incredibly impressive, leading up to this point where she has become the first ever Masai lady to manage a lodge. She is a warm and friendly person and fiercely intelligent. Her passion for safaris and the bush is infectious and we're not surprised safari guests absolutely adore her. She was brought up in the Mara to a father who was head of the conservancy, and instilled a great passion for the wildlife and landscape in all of h...
Jan 26, 2021•18 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Thuso's story is one of achieving your dreams and he really has done everything you can possibly do in the safari industry, born from a passion for wildlife cultivated on a school trip as a teenager. He is the most endearing, cheerful and jolly man - but his knowledge of the bush and the wildlife is impressive. He was enchanting to talk to and he instils this in the guides he now trains for Ker & Downey Botswana. Ker & Downey have several luxury safari camps in Botswana and are a dynamic...
Jan 19, 2021•24 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Deirdre is an inspirational woman who has been an esteemed safari guide for over 20 years and is now settled at Tswalu Kalahari as their indomitable Safari Manager. She too has so many stories of the various places she has worked but it was Tswalu we talked about mostly - this amazing wilderness in Northern South Africa is located in the Green Kalahari and is a hotbed of endangered and rare species, all of which are highly protected in this well funded area. Tswalu is unrivalled in their conserv...
Jan 12, 2021•15 min•Season 2Ep. 3
John Barclay and James Stenner are taking the safari industry by storm - they are the next generation of legendary private guides and their luxury Botswana mobile safaris are becoming world famous due to their unrivalled knowledge of the bush and the wildlife, their huge sense of fun and sense of humour, and their unique luxury 'sexy hexy' mobile safari tents. You could sit around the campfire on safari with them and be endlessly entertained by their unlimited stories from growing up in the wild...
Jan 05, 2021•29 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Chris and Sam Tett founded Bushtracks Africa in 1997 and are widely known as the leading ground agent in Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe, Their knowledge of these areas of Southern Africa and the safari industry there is unrivalled, not least because they live full time on the banks of the Zambezi River in Zambia. Chris is a wonderfully humble and charming man considering the success he has had and we loved hearing his stories of when they first started running safaris from this wild area. They ha...
Dec 29, 2020•24 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Tyrone is a prime example of someone who not only passionately loves the wilderness but also knows it like the back of his hand. His two camps in Kafue, which he owns with partner Phil Jeffery, are two of the most remote safari camps in Africa and promise an adventure which is second to none. Not only will your game viewing be exceptional, but the opportunity to immerse yourself in the real authentic Africa is around every corner when on safari with Tyrone and Phil.
Sep 11, 2020•21 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Not only have David's achievements behind the lens been extraordinary, but he is also a passionate philanthropist with all royalties from his latest (magical) book being donated to Tusk and WildAid. We were so lucky not only to plan his recent exploration of Tanzania and Kenya but also to spend some time chatting to him about his first photographs, his favourite Africa experiences, and his thoughts on the affect of COVID on conservation. He is a quietly knowledgeable man, who is a complete pleas...
Sep 02, 2020•28 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Alex is a warm and charismatic person who we love seeing out on safari, or at the travel shows. He really has unrivalled experience when it comes to safaris having been brought up in the wilds of Africa and guiding clients from a young age, in the days when you had a couple of tents and a land rover. His camps are luxurious, in some of the most remote locations of the Serengeti and Mara, and all are eco friendly - with much of the cost of your stay being contributed directly to conservation of t...
Aug 21, 2020•33 min•Season 1Ep. 11
On the 1st August 2020 our MD Rose Hipwood flew on the first flight to Kenya, to assess the protocols in place for keeping guests safe while on safari. Here is the audio version of the collection of reports she did, you can watch the videos on our YouTube channel. She had the most incredible safari at Cottar's 1920s Safari Camp in the Masai Mara followed by a private villa retreat on the Kenyan Coast.
Aug 14, 2020•14 min•Season 1Ep. 9
