The Best African Safari Tour Companies in 2026: 19 Named on Two or More Independent Lists, Compared on Awards, Reviews, Prices and Booking Terms

Eight African safari tour companies are named on three of the five independent lists read for this page on 12 October 2026: Alluring Africa, Extraordinary Journeys, Go2Africa, Jacada Travel, Journeys by Design, Piper & Heath Travel, Timbuktu Travel and Travel Beyond. Eleven more are named on two, among them Rothschild Safaris, first in the Travel + Leisure readers’ survey of safari outfitters for 2026 with a score of 99.68. This page gives no score of its own. Each company is shown with what is public about it: who named it, its reviews on each platform, what its own website says about prices, deposits and payment protection, and the date each fact was read.

Verified 12 October 2026 · Travel + Leisure World’s Best Awards and A-List · Condé Nast Traveler and Condé Nast Traveller specialist lists · each company’s own website and booking terms · Google and Trustpilot

Which are the best African safari tour companies?

The African safari tour companies with the widest independent recognition in 2026 are Alluring Africa, Extraordinary Journeys, Go2Africa, Jacada Travel, Journeys by Design, Piper & Heath Travel, Timbuktu Travel and Travel Beyond: each is named on three of five independent lists, by readers and by editors. They are listed in alphabetical order, because the lists measure different things and this page does not add them up. The line that matters most on each card is the last one, which says who the company is not the fit for, taken only from limits the company itself publishes.

Partner. Extraordinary Journeys is a paid partner of this site. Partners are labelled. It is on this page by the same rule as every other company, and no company can pay to be added or to be shown differently.

Which other safari tour companies are named on two independent lists?

Eleven more African safari tour companies are named on two of the five lists: Africa Adventure Company, Africa Adventure Consultants, Deeper Africa, Mahlatini, Micato Safaris, Original Travel, Red Savannah, Rothschild Safaris, Scott Dunn, Stanley Safaris and Steppes Travel. Rothschild Safaris, Deeper Africa and Micato Safaris are first, second and fifth in the Travel + Leisure readers’ survey of safari outfitters; Scott Dunn, Red Savannah, Original Travel, Steppes Travel and Mahlatini are on the Condé Nast Traveller (UK) list.

Four companies are named on two of the lists and are not yet in our table, so their facts have not been read: Artisans of Safari, Hippo Creek Safaris and Premier Tours (each on the A-List and the Condé Nast Traveler list) and Wilderness Travel (11th in the tour operators survey and on the Condé Nast Traveler list). The tour operators survey also places “Ker & Downey” joint fifth without saying which of the companies of that name it means; the Ker & Downey page sets out which is which.

Which awards matter when choosing a safari company?

The awards that matter are the ones where you can see who decides: two of the five lists used here are decided by readers who have travelled, and three by magazine editors who name individual advisers. A company named by both has been checked from two directions. Each list below links to the publisher.

Two cautions. The readers’ scores are close: 1.47 points separate first from tenth among safari outfitters, so the order within the ten says little. And the editors’ lists name people, not companies, so a company with many advisers listed is often simply a larger company. For other awards, see the safari award credentials index.

Which African safari tour companies publish their prices?

Twelve of the nineteen show a price a person on their own itineraries: Extraordinary Journeys, Go2Africa, Jacada Travel and Timbuktu Travel among the eight, and Africa Adventure Company, Deeper Africa, Mahlatini, Micato Safaris, Original Travel, Red Savannah, Scott Dunn and Steppes Travel among the eleven. Journeys by Design, Rothschild Safaris, Stanley Safaris and Travel Beyond show none; Africa Adventure Consultants shows price bands only; and we could not read itinerary pages for Alluring Africa or Piper & Heath Travel. The lowest examples read on 12 October 2026 run from $7,800 a person for 10 nights in Kenya with Timbuktu Travel to $20,700 for a 10-day safari with Micato Safaris. Go2Africa and Jacada Travel show prices in the visitor’s currency, so the figures on their cards are in euros, as read from Spain. Prices are what each site showed on the day, not quotes. For what the same camps cost by the night, see what a safari costs by budget.

Four companies state a minimum budget. Travel Beyond: $15,000 a person in Africa, or $20,000 from June to September and over the winter holidays. Alluring Africa: $1,000 a person a day in low season, $1,500 in peak season. Africa Adventure Consultants: $10,000 a person, or $1,000 a person a day for safaris under 10 days. Stanley Safaris: from USD 1,000 a person a night.

How much deposit do safari tour companies ask for, and how is it protected?

Where it is stated, the deposit is 25% to 35% of the trip and the balance is due 60 to 112 days before travel: Piper & Heath Travel generally 25%, Go2Africa, Timbuktu Travel and Alluring Africa 30%, and Journeys by Design 30% or 35%. Go2Africa asks for the balance latest, at 60 days; Journeys by Design earliest, at 16 weeks. Extraordinary Journeys, Jacada Travel and Travel Beyond do not state a deposit amount on their websites. Once the balance is due, a cancellation costs 100% of the trip at six of the eight; Jacada Travel keeps 50% from 90 to 61 days before departure and 100% after that. Travel Beyond does not state a scale. Trip cancellation insurance matters with all of them.

On protection, five state a UK scheme with a number that can be checked on the ATOL register: Journeys by Design, Scott Dunn, Red Savannah, Original Travel and Steppes Travel. ATOL covers flight-inclusive trips sold in the UK, so a buyer elsewhere should ask what applies to them. Mahlatini states trust accounts, Go2Africa its own guarantee and Piper & Heath Travel a trust account. Six state nothing on their websites. The guide to safari deposits and payment terms explains what each scheme covers.

Three planning rules for choosing a safari tour company

1 · Start from the company’s own limits. A stated minimum budget, an Africa-only list of countries or a no-groups rule rules a company in or out faster than any award. The last line of each card above gives them.

2 · Read reviews one platform at a time. A company can show 5.0 on Google and nothing on Trustpilot, as Extraordinary Journeys and Travel Beyond do, or the reverse, as Jacada Travel does. Look at the count and the date of the newest review, not only the rating.

3 · Get the deposit, balance date and cancellation scale in writing before you pay. They differ by seven weeks between companies on this page, and three of the eight do not publish a deposit figure.

What changed for African safari tour companies in 2026

7 July 2026: Travel + Leisure published its World’s Best Awards, with Rothschild Safaris first among safari outfitters. 12 February 2026: the Travel + Leisure A-List was updated, with 34 advisers for African safaris. 5 February 2026: Go2Africa updated its cost guide, with nightly guideline rates by country. 12 October 2026: this page was first published, from facts read that day; it replaces no ranking and gives no score.