Africa Driven Reviews 

My dream holiday has always been to travel in Africa. My wife and I finally made the trip this year and chose to do some 'self-drive over-landing' using the services of Africa Driven. I am so incredibly glad we did.

We were also fortunate to have stayed in some relatively luxurious safari lodges, but in hindsight, it was the self-driving adventure that has the most amazing memories.

Africa Drivens' recommendations were absolutely spot-on and we were also in (what appeared to us anyway) the best camping site in each respective camp. The vehicle provided through a third-party but arranged through Africa Driven was easily managed and the tent etc was very easily to erect and very comfortable.

The journey was well managed so that the actual length of driving each day was easily manageable, and the directions/information provided before hand was impeccable. The information provided prior is truly amazing and is always being updated.

From the outset Africa Driven was incredible and happily answered any question we had. A totally professional outfit that I can't recommend high enough.

The trip was so good my wife and I are intending to return within the next 6 months and we most certainly will be using Africa Driven again. AAAAA++++

Our trip with Africa Driven was an unforgettable self-drive adventure, starting in Maun, Botswana, and finishing at the spectacular Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. The carefully balanced mix of wild camping and comfortable lodges was perfect, allowing us to experience the best of Africa in a variety of ways.

A reliable, well-equipped vehicle was provided by one of Africa Driven's preferred vehicle hire companies. Complete with two rooftop tents, a ground tent, and all the camping equipment we needed. The vehicle was comfortable, easy to drive and perfectly suited to the demanding conditions we encountered each day.

The detailed itinerary was excellent, providing clear directions, useful information, and tips to support us throughout the journey. When flooding in the Okavango Delta meant plans had to change, Phil responded quickly with revised routes and alternative accommodation, ensuring our adventure continued with minimal disruption.

The variety of accommodation was one of the highlights of the trip. We experienced everything from remote campsites to beautiful safari lodges. One unforgettable evening, while I was cooking dinner, a pack of African wild dogs ran straight through our campsite a memory we'll never forget. From bucket showers and shared ablution blocks to private facilities at luxury lodges, every stop offered a different experience and added to the adventure. The occasional stay at a lodge provided the perfect opportunity to relax and recharge before heading back into the bush. Without exception, the staff at every campsite and lodge were incredibly friendly, welcoming and worked tirelessly to make our stay enjoyable.

The wildlife viewing throughout the journey was simply outstanding. We saw countless antelope, giraffes, lions, wildebeest, hippos, buffalo and enormous herds of elephants, along with the incredible birdlife of the Okavango Delta and Chobe National Park. Every day brought something new, making each drive an adventure in itself.

This was our fourth trip to Africa, and I would normally organise our itineraries myself. On this occasion, however, we entrusted everything to Phil and the Africa Driven team, and it proved to be one of the best decisions we made. Their knowledge, attention to detail, flexibility and outstanding customer service exceeded every expectation.

We cannot recommend Africa Driven highly enough.

We have just returned from a fantastic self-drive trip around Botswana organised by Africa Driven with too many highlights to mention. The organisation was excellent with the handbook and app providing everything we needed regarding instructions. Phil was very patient during the booking process as we had a couple of major changes to make.

The choice of lodges was excellent as was the choice of operators for the excursions - all very friendly, knowledgeable and efficient.

There were many highlights regarding the wildlife and scenery, with a good mixture of game drives with local guides coupled with the ability to do some on your own. We had not used a 4x4 before but really enjoyed the driving and the vehicle was excellent.

As others have mentioned, you don't need to look any further than Africa Driven - you're in safe hands!

Our trip with Africa Driven was an unforgettable self-drive adventure through Namibia and Botswana, ending at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. We loved the independence of the self-drive, backed by the benefit of having the logistics expertly worked out by the team. The mix of wild camping, comfortable glamping, and finer resorts was perfect. It truly was the trip of a lifetime.

Africa Driven provided us with a very reliable vehicle. It came fully equipped, with two tents and all the equipment you could need, which allowed our group of two couples to easily experience this trip together. The truck handled the deep sand tracks and rugged gravel roads that we encountered along the way. Furthermore, their assistance in planning the itinerary, mapping out exactly where to buy fuel and groceries, and knowing that any support we needed was just a phone call away gave us peace of mind.

Mixing up the type of accommodation is definitely the way to go. By camping in the dark sky reserve in the Namib Desert, we were able to experience the sight of more stars than we had ever seen in our lives. We loved hearing the nocturnal sounds of the wildlife in the bush from our rooftop tents and from the glamping tents, and then being able to fully recharge at a fancier resort along the way.

I would highly recommend both Namibia and Botswana. The landscapes of Namibia are vast, colourful, and constantly changing as you drive. Starting the trip there—where the campgrounds are safely fenced—allows you to comfortably ease into the experience of camping amongst the wildlife. The wildlife viewing along the entire route was spectacular. We saw everything from various antelope species, foxes, and hares, to giraffes, lions, wildebeest, white rhinos, and massive herds of elephants—not to mention the incredible birdlife of the Okavango and Chobe regions.

Having your own vehicle gives you the freedom to stop whenever and wherever you want. We also had pre-arranged excursions and guided safaris dotted along the route, which really added to the overall experience.

This was actually our second trip with Phil, Andy, and their group (they were previously called Drive Botswana). We loved our first trip with Drive Botswana so much, our second adventure followed a very similar path.

I cannot recommend Africa Driven highly enough!

Overall we had a great trip and truly exceptional experience across the duration of our trip in Botswana based on the itinerary Africa Driven put in place, with a great mix of basic, rustic camping and luxury catered accommodation. We had special sightings in Savuti, Moremi, Chobe and Nxai Pans while Pel's Island, Kubu Lodge and Leopard Plains were all excellent places to spend some quality downtime. The river boat trip in Chobe also was, as advertised, very memorable

We had an amazing African trip organized by Africa Driven. Accommodation, flights, and transfer are smooth and nice. The notebook of Botswana they mailed to us is very useful, especially for bird watching. We definitely will choose Africa Driven as our next African trip planner!!!

Phil has organised our last three trips to Botswana, and we have been extremely happy with the service provided by Africa Driven.

For our first visit to Botswana, we opted for a pre-planned itinerary, which Phil was able to arrange for us at relatively short notice. The trip was exceptionally well organised and gave us the confidence to return year after year.

For the last two trips, we created our own itinerary, and Phil was invaluable in helping us refine it. He provided excellent advice on the best order to visit each destination, suggested ideal places to stay along the way, and shared knowledge that greatly enhanced our experience.

This year, due to unusually high water levels in Botswana, we had to make some last-minute changes to our plans. Phil presented us with several alternative options, and efficiently arranged the changes we requested, ensuring our trip went smoothly despite the unexpected challenges.

Communication is always easy, prompt, and informative. Phil is consistently available to answer questions and provide expert advice on every aspect of our trips. His knowledge of Botswana and Southern Africa is outstanding, and his recommendations have always proven to be spot on.

I cannot recommend Africa Driven highly enough. Their professionalism, flexibility, and attention to detail have made each of our holidays memorable and stress-free. We would not consider using anyone else to arrange our trips in Southern Africa.

Just back from my fourth trip organised by Andy and Phil. Excellent as always! They really listen to our requests and their itineraries are always full of gems. This year they had to make last minute changes because of flooding in Botswana and we really appreciated their initiative, which definitely averted possible driving difficulties. I could not recommend Africa Driven more highly and will defuse them again.

Africa Driven organised a 23 day self-drive through Botswana and Namibia this April for myself, partner and child. I normally organise all our travel ourselves, as I am pretty picky about where we stay and what we want to see. However, except for a couple of amendments I suggested to Phil in the organising stage, everything else was in their hands. We had an amazing time.

Coming from the UK and not having done any self-drive like this before in southern Africa, I was a little nervous about the roads, wildlife and general safety. Everything went really smoothly and it was a fabulous adventure. The organisation, the information, the locations chosen, the very sturdy car (that Toyota can drive through anything!), the communication were all excellent and we saw so much of the two countries. Timings were well judged and the amount of rest vs driving was perfect for us and we felt extraordinarily lucky with some of our wildlife sightings and experiences.

We highly recommend Africa Driven. Thanks so much.

Yes our experience was great because we did and experienced what we wanted, Phil was always their when we needed thank u

Nous sommes partis au Botswana en septembre 2025! Grâce à African Drive (anciennement Drive Botswana), et la patience de Phil, tout s’est très bien passé! Nous adorons organiser nous-même nos voyage, mais la réservation au Botswana paraissait compliqué! Là, notre voyage était celui que l’on voulait, mais avec les conseils de spécialiste!

Petits bémoles : l’organisation du Starlink était laborieuse! Et The Old House à Kasane n’était paw un établissement avec dew gens agréables! Nous n’y retournerons pas chez eux!

Conclusions : nous sommes ravis du travail d’African Driven, encore merci pour tout!

We made a second amazing travel with Africa Driven, in Botswana and Zimbabwe. They tailored our itinerary according to our preferences and assist us before, during the organization, and for the whole duration of our trip, which was indeed very smooth also thanks to their support. I highly recommend this tour operator, they have a strong experience in the countries they work with, kindness and availability to support their customers. They really make a good job with your trip!!!

Africa Driven provided a superlative service in arranging a two week safari in Zambia for 5 of us. The choice of campsites and lodges, and 4x4 truck provider was faultless. Highlight of the trip was a two day stay at the Kasabushi Lodge along the Kafue River. Without the expert local knowledge which Africa Driven has, the holiday could have been very different, but it was the best holiday we as a family have ever had! This was the second two week holiday we have had through Drive Botswana/Africa Driven and we can't praise Andy & Phil highly enough.

Africa Driven organised a fantastic self drive trip to Zambia. Everything was well planned and the trip went smoothly with accurate information provided in advance. Zambia offers a remote and much quieter experience than its neighbours with amazing landscapes and wildlife viewing without the crowds.

Review from Deborah and Simon from the UK. (August/September 2025). Thank you so much to Andy and Phil of African Driven - a much better name than its former name Drive Botswana because we spent almost all our three and half week holiday in Zimbabwe! We gave them a list of the places we wanted to visit and had an amazing, well planned itinerary presented to us. All the bookings were done ahead for us and everything worked smoothly. Also some great suggestions of places to stay. Our vehicle which we self drove was well equipped with everything we needed for camping and was brilliant. We visited Chobe, Vic Falls, Hwange, Chizarira, Matusadona and Mana Pools National Parks. One of the highlights of our trip was using the ferry back across Kariba Lake. Already talking about our next trip with African Driven and loved Zimbabwe so much we want to go back and see more of it.

Phil helped plan a wonderful honeymoon for my husband and I - we travelled to Namibia and Zimbabwe. It had the perfect balance of 'honeymoon' and exploring two amazing countries at a good price.

Throughout the process Phil was incredibly patient with us exploring a range of ideas to find the right balance for us. There was nothing too ‘corporate’ about Phil’s approach especially when compared to some other companies we initially looked at. It genuinely felt like a trip built for us and that we were still in the ‘driving seat’ to design our itinerary.

Phil was an amazing support and gave us confidence in our trip – it was so good knowing we had all the logistics in place. Every reservation/lodge was brilliant and we couldn’t have asked for more. All the driving instructions for Namibia were spot on too (we even went without a sat nav some days because they were so clear). We also really appreciated the country guides with handy tips on shops/restaurants etc.

I’d recommend Africa Driven to all my friends/family. Thank you for an amazing trip!

If you're thinking about a road trip in Botswana, without a doubt, go with Africa Driven. Communication, planning, and support were all top-notch. Andy went above and beyond to make trip a real success, and I'd would no hesitation in recommending Africa Driven.

Africa Driven organized for us a tailored 2weeks tour in Botswana and we had a great time. The trip plan was well balanced in terms of distances and time, in line with our requests. Andy gave us detailed information and day-by-day instructions. We highly recommend Africa Driven

We were so happy with our entire itinerary that Africa Driven created for us. We had a good variety of accommodations and our nights in the roof top tent of our hilux were so much fun. We will never forget hearing the lions roaring while we laid in our tent at Savuti. We had elephants in our camp at Khwai and hippos eating grass just outside our tent chalet at 3rd bridge, all exactly what we had hoped for! And our stay at Omogolo Hideaways was so awesome! Such a unique experience to sit and watch the elephants up close and personal all day long on our private water hole. It was definitely a "pinch me" moment. We really enjoyed our bush dinner there, sitting around the fire visiting with the owner for hours. Also our overnight mokoro trip, camping on an island, watching all the wildlife, and going on bush walks was another highlight for us. The family that guided us was so full of knowledge and passion, we will never forget it. Thanks also for making all the transfer arrangements and booking our devils pool experience at Victoria Falls. It all went flawlessly. Oh, also our private river cruise with Flame of Africa on the Chobe River was amazing! I think we had the nicest boat on the river. The Chobe River was spectacular and beautiful. Seeing elephants swimming in the river was a wish list experience fulfilled. We drove the entire Chobe River Front from Kasane to Muchenje and couldn't believe our eyes with all the wildlife everywhere. We decided the theme of our entire Africa trip was "Africa just keeps on giving". Just when we thought we had seen it all, we had another amazing encounter. Wow!

We highly recommend Africa Driven, led by Andy and Phil! Thank you!

Andy and Phil from Africa Driven put together a Botswana itinerary that perfectly matched my budget and my wish list. The tour provided a variety of experiences in three separate parks. The accommodation was a combination of full board and self catering and each one was superb in its own way. Andy and Phil kept me up to date relating to the bridges and roads and helped out when I had mechanical issues. Highly recommeded if you are looking for a holiday of a lifetime.