Luxury Defined
"Luxury" is a very relative concept – for a safari company or local outfitter it usually means whatever profitable “deals” they can negotiate (with lodges and ground operators) that will eventually get classified as “luxurious” in their itineraries! Anyone familiar with the luxury end of the safari industry in East Africa will find many glaring deficiencies in self-proclaimed luxury safaris from overrated international companies who feature so prominently in glossy travel magazines!
Travel Advisors who can distinguish between true luxury and fake luxury and advise their clients accordingly are unfortunately in very short supply. Fortunately, this creates opportunity and any agency who wants to enter the luxury safari market can be successful with our support.
Luxury prices don't always translate into luxury safaris! We cannot be more serious about this statement! How much you pay for your safari is meaningless - some people believe they are on a luxury safari on $300 per person a day! Some perceive a luxury safari to cost at least $1000 per day! Many THINK they are on a luxury safari because they paid $900 a day for a safari offered by a big name safari company - meanwhile it may only have a fair market value of $500 a day! Here are five examples of big-name "luxury" safaris with luxury prices yet the lodging, group sizes and vehicle arrangements are considered "tourist-class" by any definition. Also see our reviews for each:
Micato Safaris - Stanley Wing Group size 24 in 4 vehicles with 6 people each! Use mostly tourist-class lodges.
Micato Safaris - Heart of Kenya and Tanzania Group size 24 in 4 vehicles with 6 people each! Use mostly tourist-class lodges.
Tauck - Tanzania: A Grand Safari Group size 24 in 4 vehicles with 6 people each! Use mostly tourist-class lodges.
A&K - Highlights of Tanzania Group size 18 in 3 vehicles with 6 people each! Use mostly tourist-class lodges.
International Expeditions - Tanzania Classic Group size 12 in 2 vehicles with 6 people each! Use mostly tourist-class lodges.
Speaking of overpaying for a safari; in this economy even the super-rich are unwilling to spend recklessly. Do you know one popular brochure safari from a prominent supplier sells for $21,150 per person, yet its commissionable rack rate (or "street value") is only $12,150 per person? An overpayment of $9000 per person for a 2 week safari! That's a massive $18,000 per couple! We reviewed this safari in the Itinerary Reviews section.
In East Africa, the most expensive lodges or camps are not always the best choices! This is a very important point that many travel agents and overseas tour companies either do not understand or won't admit! They blindly book clients only in lodges & camps from the Conde Naste top100 list! With wildlife movement patterns that change every month, the best lodging is the right lodging, at the right time, in the right place at the right price within budget limitations. Would your affluent client rather stay in a large $2000 per couple per night lodge far away from any major wildlife, or in a $1200 private luxury tented camp (for 2 only) with perhaps fewer amenities but right in the midst of the wildebeest migration?
In East Africa, the most expensive lodges or camps are not always the best choices! This is a very important point that many travel agents and overseas tour companies either do not understand or won't admit! They blindly book clients only in lodges & camps from the Conde Naste top100 list! With wildlife movement patterns that change every month, the best lodging is the right lodging, at the right time, in the right place at the right price within budget limitations. Would your affluent client rather stay in a large $2000 per couple per night lodge far away from any major wildlife, or in a $1200 private luxury tented camp (for 2 only) with perhaps fewer amenities but right in the midst of the wildebeest migration?
Here at F&S, we do not define luxury in monetary terms because it is impossible. For us, luxury means Space, Time and Ease.
