Celebrating 10 Years of Brandt Safaris
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A Journey Two Decades in the Making
This year marks two meaningful milestones for us: 10 years since the founding of Brandt Safaris, and 20 years since I first began my career in the safari industry.
Looking back to when we launched Brandt Safaris a decade ago, what I remember most is the excitement, pure excitement to share my love of Africa, its wildlife, and its people with travelers from around the world, especially those in the U.S. I had just moved here after meeting my now wife and co-founder while guiding on safari in South Africa. That journey, from the African bush to building a safari company together, shaped the spirit of everything we do.
My background was in elite guiding, working in some of the most exclusive lodges across Southern and East Africa. That experience taught me just how essential great guiding is to a truly transformative safari. Africa is vast, complex, and filled with choices, tens of thousands of options for camps, routes, and destinations. But not all of them deliver equally. I saw a clear need for someone who could cut through the noise, curate from deep experience, and design safaris with heart, precision, and a true understanding of what makes them exceptional.
So I poured that passion into Brandt Safaris, building a company grounded in authenticity, deep knowledge, and a personal connection to the places we send our guests.
The journey
From the Bush to the Mountains in the west: A Life Shaped by Safari
Between 2005 and 2015, I spent my days (and many nights) in the wild, guiding guests through some of Africa’s most remote and spectacular wilderness areas. It was a decade of full immersion, not just in the landscapes and wildlife, but in the deeper art of guiding: animal behavior, tracking, trailing, storytelling, and safety. I was obsessed with learning, always seeking out ways to deepen my knowledge and sharpen my skills.
One of the most meaningful relationships of that time was with my tracker, Ruel Ngwenya, who I worked with for nearly 10 years. Ruel grew up in the bush, relying on it for food, medicine, and survival. His knowledge was ancestral, intuitive, and rooted in lived experience. Walking alongside him, learning how to read the earth, how to listen, was one of the most formative influences of my life.
As a guide, I also had the opportunity to travel across Africa, visiting different ecosystems, countries, and camps. That foundation, those real, on-the-ground experiences, became the bedrock of Brandt Safaris. Before I ever booked a guest, I already knew many of the continent’s top lodges, guides, landowners, and private concessions firsthand.
And I loved spending time with guests.
Feeding off their energy, seeing Africa through their eyes, and witnessing their first encounters with an elephant or a leopard, it never got old. That enthusiasm was contagious and reaffirmed why I was doing what I was doing.
Over time, I achieved several elite guiding certifications and developed a network of relationships that would later help me build a company known for its attention to detail, deep expertise, and trusted insider access.
And then came COVID-19, one of the greatest challenges our industry has ever faced. For Brandt Safaris, it was a defining moment. We made it a priority to ensure that none of our guests lost their safari investment, and every single traveler was able to rebook and eventually travel. We protected our guests, our team, and our partners, and we came out stronger. That time also solidified many of the relationships we still have with camps and lodges today. It showed us who our real partners were, and who shared our values of service, transparency, and care.
That period wasn’t easy, but I look back on it as one of our biggest successes. It showed what Brandt Safaris stands for: doing the right thing, even when it’s hard.
A Company Built on Relationships, Not Marketing
As we celebrate 10 years of Brandt Safaris, one thing we’re especially proud of is this: nearly 100% of our business is built on referrals. We haven’t spent a dollar on advertising or marketing. Instead, we’ve focused every ounce of our energy on serving our guests exceptionally well, knowing that if we take care of them, they’ll share their experience with others.
We’ve grown organically, quietly, and intentionally, building a safari company that is truly family-owned and family-operated. When you travel with Brandt Safaris, you’re working directly with the owners. We don’t outsource our planning to call centers or sales teams or agents. We know our guests by name. We learn what matters most to them. And we stay connected with them before, during, and long after their trip.
Even as the world leans more heavily into automation and algorithms, we are committed to personal connection. Every safari we plan is bespoke, built with care, and grounded in decades of lived experience in Africa.
What also sets us apart is our focus.
We don’t try to be everything to everyone. We only sell Africa, and we believe that specialization matters. Africa is vast, layered, and full of nuance. Our deep guiding and lodge management experience across Southern and East Africa gives us insight into the things that can’t be Googled or crowdsourced, things like when to go where, which private concession has had a phenomenal lion pride this season, or which guides are best with kids, photographers, or first-time travelers.
We also host founder-led safaris every year, staying current, deepening our partnerships, and supporting conservation and community initiatives on the ground. Africa isn’t just a destination for us. It’s where Brandt Safaris was born. It’s where our hearts are. And it’s where we’ll continue to focus our energy for the years to come.
Looking Ahead: The Next Chapter
As we look to the next 10 years, we’re filled with excitement and gratitude.
We want to continue growing, but growing with intention. Our goal isn’t to become the biggest safari company out there. It’s to remain one of the most trusted. We want more people to find us the same way our past guests have: through word-of-mouth, through referrals, and through stories shared around dinner tables, campfires, trout streams and golf courses.
We’re excited to keep welcoming new travelers to Africa, people who are curious, passionate, and open to being transformed by the places, people, and wildlife they’ll encounter. Our hope is to introduce more guests to the best of Africa: its wildest parks, its most pristine corners, its warm hospitality, and its rich, diverse cultures. We want every journey to be deeply felt, beautifully paced, and unforgettable.
Most of all, we’re committed to staying true to who we are, family-owned, Africa-focused, guest-devoted, and grounded in 20 years of on-the-ground experience.
Here’s to the next chapter, and to many more safaris ahead.
