How safari pricing works: where the money goes

A luxury safari quote is mostly four things: the guiding and vehicle, the lodge itself, the conservation levy, and the flights that get you between lodges. Booking through a specialist like us costs the same as booking the lodge direct, because the lodge pays our commission from its own rate. For the nightly numbers themselves, see what a luxury safari in South Africa costs.

Safari pricing has a reputation for being opaque, and it has earned it. Two quotes for what looks like the same trip can differ by thousands, and nobody quite explains why. We build these quotes for a living, so here is the plain version.

Why the number is what it is

A safari price isn't retail. A luxury lodge is small by design, and it carries the same vehicles, trackers, kitchen and overheads whether 2 guests are in residence or 20. The nightly rate pays for the room and for everything that makes the room reachable.

Where the money lands

The guide, the tracker and the vehicle

Two game drives a day with a guide who has spent years learning one stretch of bush, and a tracker on the front of the vehicle reading it with them. Most lodges share a vehicle between a small number of guests, and a private vehicle is available as an upgrade. This is the line most people underestimate, and the one that decides whether a safari is excellent or merely fine.

The lodge itself

Usually less than you'd think. The room, the design, the upkeep of roofs and plumbing in a place with extreme weather. People are often surprised it isn't the biggest line.

The conservation levy

Every reserve charges a fee per guest per night. In South Africa's private reserves it's usually billed on top of the nightly rate. In Botswana and Kenya it's often higher and folded into the rate. Either way, it pays for anti-poaching units, fencing, roads and water in the dry months. Where the figure is high, the wildlife is usually the reason.

The staff

A small bush lodge runs on a high ratio of staff to guests. Chefs, housekeepers, mechanics, managers and the people who keep the water clean. Most of these are real careers in rural areas, and they're part of the cost of doing business somewhere with no infrastructure.

Getting between lodges

Very few proper safari lodges are practical to reach by road. You fly in on small aircraft to bush airstrips, sometimes in two or three legs, then transfer to the lodge. A two-lodge trip in the Okavango can carry a meaningful flight cost per person before you've unpacked.

The kitchen and the contingency

Fresh produce flown or driven in from hours away, and a small contingency behind every quote for the tyre that blows on a transfer or the evacuation nobody plans for.

What a lighter quote usually hides

A quote that looks markedly cheaper than the rest of the market is usually doing one of four things: swapping bush flights for long road transfers, using an area with little conservation overhead, putting more guests on a vehicle, or leaving out the levies, transfers and gratuities you'll be billed for on arrival.

None of those is wrong in itself. The trouble is that the quote often doesn't say which choice has been made. When we quote, the number we send is the number you pay. We'd rather look more expensive on the page and be accurate at the airport.

Why two quotes for the same trip differ

When you compare proposals side by side, the gap almost always comes down to a handful of decisions: the room category, the season your dates fall in, a shared or private vehicle, and whether flights, transfers and levies are in the headline figure or quietly left out of it.

How to get more safari for your money

• Travel in the shoulder or green season. The same lodge can cost considerably less, and in several reserves the viewing is as good or better.
• Consider South Africa first. It's usually meaningfully cheaper than Botswana or East Africa for a comparable lodge.
• Stay longer in fewer places. Every move adds a flight or transfer and costs you most of a game-viewing day.
• Choose the room that fits how you travel, not the grandest one on the page.

The biggest saving, though, is talking to someone before you fall for a photograph. Most costly safari mistakes aren't overspending. They're the right money spent on the wrong week, the wrong room, or the wrong lodge for who's travelling.

What it costs to work with us

There's no planning fee. You don't pay more by booking through us, because the lodges pay us a commission from their own rates. We're lodge agnostic, so we recommend what suits you, not what pays us most.

Common questions

Is it cheaper to book a safari lodge direct?

No. Lodges hold their rates whether you book direct or through a specialist. We're paid by the lodge, so booking direct usually means paying the same and doing the planning yourself.

What's included in a Marula Hill quote?

All lodge nights, meals, game activities, conservation and park fees, bush flights between lodges, and transfers at each end. International flights, gratuities, personal spending and travel insurance are shown separately.

Is a safari cheaper in low season?

Often, yes. The viewing is different rather than worse, and in some reserves it's at its best in the green months.

How far ahead should I book?

As soon as you know your dates. The small lodges we use most can fill a year or more ahead for July, August and December.

Trying to make sense of a quote, ours or someone else's? Tell us who's travelling and when, and we'll show you what the numbers mean. Start with a conversation.