Best value for different areas

[Frederik]

Do yourself a favour since the outfitter as been accomodating have you asked or told him that the kudu over certain inches bother you?

You might just find that he should be able to make a plan for you.
Never hurts to ask but when that 58" kudu is infront of you and youre not sure yes or no and then make a deal after seeing him the chances of finding him again is very small.

 

[Tally-Ho HUNTING SAFARIS]

I dont think you should put your focus on the price of animals in different areas
Kudu in limpopo will be more expensive than in eastern cape but they are very different (in size) and its a compmetely different hunt
Rather focus on the type of hunt you want or the specie you are really after and then plan from there
Level of service is generally built into the day rates

If your peimary specie is kudu
Limpopo south africa is the place
And further north you go the better

We have a great area for kudu and would be happy to make a package deal to suit you

No animals we offer go up in price for any size you hunt

If you shoot a 60” kudu then well done btw we have hunted 3 of over 60” on our peoperty

Any questions or queries feel free to ask

 

[Manny R]

I will going to the DSC. I am trying to do some pre research on a leopard hunt in Africa. My question is to gain knowledge who I should really concentrate on visiting and speaking with about the hunt. I am not interested in the cheapest pricing but the best chance of getting a trophy leopard .

 

[revturbo9967]

Personally , the more research I did gearing up for Africa, the more lax my list became. Yes I have a few target animals, but this hunt is primarily for dangerous game first. I used to have a laundry list of plains game I wanted to hunt, and that hasn't changed. Today there is no longer a list in a specific order of what I want to find first and so on. I am going to hunt by opportunity only until I reach my budget. If the opportunity presents itself for a mature specimen and the animal is available, I will hunt in however it is presented to me and not via a package or list. Even if that animal isn't something I thought about before.

A perfect example is Waterbuck, an animal which I haven't given much attention too. The area I'm hunting has a strong, native population of Waterbuck and If one pops up before a trophy Kudu, I am not going to waste the opportunity. The only animal most likely off my list would be Sable, even if there was one on quota. And I only say that purely due to funds.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

Personally , the more research I did gearing up for Africa, the more lax my list became. Yes I have a few target animals, but this hunt is primarily for dangerous game first. I used to have a laundry list of plains game I wanted to hunt, and that hasn't changed. Today there is no longer a list in a specific order of what I want to find first and so on. I am going to hunt by opportunity only until I reach my budget. If the opportunity presents itself for a mature specimen and the animal is available, I will hunt in however it is presented to me and not via a package or list. Even if that animal isn't something I thought about before.

A perfect example is Waterbuck, an animal which I haven't given much attention too. The area I'm hunting has a strong, native population of Waterbuck and If one pops up before a trophy Kudu, I am not going to waste the opportunity. The only animal most likely off my list would be Sable, even if there was one on quota. And I only say that purely due to funds.

This is the method I subscribe to, with the exception of permitted animals.

Although, Sable seem to be a great value these days!

 

[revturbo9967]

This is the method I subscribe to, with the exception of permitted animals.

Although, Sable seem to be a great value these days!

I would certainly go after Sable if I still had funds and it was toward the end of the safari. I'm budgeting for a good mixed bag given the opportunity and Sable is a bit more in price vs other animals. Not that it shouldn't be. Hippo is around the same price where I am going and I would rather go after more DG if I can choose. Still, the hunt is never set in stone.

 

[Kevin Peacocke]

As others have said the advantage of hunting what is endemic to an area is that you can learn so much about them, why they are there, their habits and the symbiotic relationships with various other endemic species. A lot of that never follows re-located animals.

 

[PHOENIX PHIL]

I will going to the DSC. I am trying to do some pre research on a leopard hunt in Africa. My question is to gain knowledge who I should really concentrate on visiting and speaking with about the hunt. I am not interested in the cheapest pricing but the best chance of getting a trophy leopard .

Since you will be at DSC, please stop by the @JKO HUNTING SAFARIS booth. Jacques has a number of options for leopard in Namibia and Zimbabwe. Would like the opportunity to discuss a leopard hunt with you.

 

[NIGHTHAWK]

I would certainly go after Sable if I still had funds and it was toward the end of the safari. I'm budgeting for a good mixed bag given the opportunity and Sable is a bit more in price vs other animals. Not that it shouldn't be. Hippo is around the same price where I am going and I would rather go after more DG if I can choose. Still, the hunt is never set in stone.

I’d like to hunt a Hippo and Roan on my next trip. Please post your hunt…

 

[revturbo9967]

I’d like to hunt a Hippo and Roan on my next trip. Please post your hunt…

I certainly will!

 

[stoxicity]

Personally , the more research I did gearing up for Africa, the more lax my list became. Yes I have a few target animals, but this hunt is primarily for dangerous game first. I used to have a laundry list of plains game I wanted to hunt, and that hasn't changed. Today there is no longer a list in a specific order of what I want to find first and so on. I am going to hunt by opportunity only until I reach my budget. If the opportunity presents itself for a mature specimen and the animal is available, I will hunt in however it is presented to me and not via a package or list. Even if that animal isn't something I thought about before.

A perfect example is Waterbuck, an animal which I haven't given much attention too. The area I'm hunting has a strong, native population of Waterbuck and If one pops up before a trophy Kudu, I am not going to waste the opportunity. The only animal most likely off my list would be Sable, even if there was one on quota. And I only say that purely due to funds.

This is pretty much my exact thinking.

It was more just a thought exercise for future trips to be honest. For example, if I didn't take a Kudu this trip, what part of Africa would present the best value for a trophy Kudu another time. One day I would like to take an Oryx, but when the price quoted is double that from what I've seen in parts of Namibia I feel I would be better off passing on one this trip unless we come across something exceptional. On the flip side of that, the price I've been quoted on Zebra is as good as I've seen so I'll almost certainly target one this trip.

 

[BeeMaa]

@BeeMaa and @Angelo_orygun both hunter with Somerby I believe. May want to chat with them a bit on any info you may want. They had good things to say.

Thanks for the lead in @TTundra.

The wife and I had an amazing time with Somerby and hunted several camps over 10 days and we harvested 10 animals in that time. The reason for hunting several camps is that the best animals are not all in one spot. They catered the hunt to what we were looking for.

If I could do it over again, the only thing I'd change is to hunt fewer animals. Maybe 5 or 6 for a 10 day safari so we could have a little more time to stop and smell the roses. And I'd absolutely recommend Somerby as an outfitter in SA. They also have some camps in Zimbabwe.

 

[Nyati]

I have taken 29 different species in SA, and it took me 8 trips and travel to 6 different provinces.

 

[stoxicity]

Thanks for the lead in @TTundra.

The wife and I had an amazing time with Somerby and hunted several camps over 10 days and we harvested 10 animals in that time. The reason for hunting several camps is that the best animals are not all in one spot. They catered the hunt to what we were looking for.

If I could do it over again, the only thing I'd change is to hunt fewer animals. Maybe 5 or 6 for a 10 day safari so we could have a little more time to stop and smell the roses. And I'd absolutely recommend Somerby as an outfitter in SA. They also have some camps in Zimbabwe.

Trying to limit the amount of moving around as we'll be with our toddler. Happy to spend more time hunting less animals looking for quality over quantity. If I have to pass up something that's not readily available in our area, so be it.

 

[BeeMaa]

Trying to limit the amount of moving around as we'll be with our toddler. Happy to spend more time hunting less animals looking for quality over quantity. If I have to pass up something that's not readily available in our area, so be it.

Another thing is choose what kind of hunt you want and a specific species or two. Talk with several safari companies in person and see what you think. My wife and I had a list of questions a mile long and after a couple of days at a show we had it narrowed down to two outfitters. Many of those questions were plagiarized directly from this thread...

https://www.africahunting.com/threads/better-questions-to-ask-when-looking-for-a-hunt.23825/

It won't take long for you to figure out a budget, animals, area and outfitter at SCI. Being armed with good questions and information is an excellent start.

 

[shark_za]

Pricing for Kudu by size is designed to keep us locals from shooting all the good ones so we leave the really big ones for visitors coming over with US$.
That mindset should not creep into a foreign servicing operator.

Kudu, NW or Limpopo, even N KZN can turn out some beauts. Pricing will be best in Limpopo.
Bleskok in the areas you find Kudu, no go for me.
We call the Sondagbok, its the thing you go shoot on the Sunday of your hunt if you blanked the rest of the weekend. ;o)

Blesbok and Springbok, goto Namibia or the N-Cape and get them cheaply.

Gemsbok in Limpopo also way overpriced compared to the N-Cape.

 

[AdAstra92]

Thanks for the lead in @TTundra.

The wife and I had an amazing time with Somerby and hunted several camps over 10 days and we harvested 10 animals in that time. The reason for hunting several camps is that the best animals are not all in one spot. They catered the hunt to what we were looking for.

If I could do it over again, the only thing I'd change is to hunt fewer animals. Maybe 5 or 6 for a 10 day safari so we could have a little more time to stop and smell the roses. And I'd absolutely recommend Somerby as an outfitter in SA. They also have some camps in Zimbabwe.

So very glad to hear that it was amazing! I just put my deposit down with Somerby for 2026.

 

[Rare Breed]

That's exactly the sort of info I'm after!

My main target is Kudu but when it comes to add on species I'd like to get the best bang for buck with the view of going back to Africa in a different area in the future targeting different species.

Go @Game4Africa if you are after Kudu as your primary animal and looking for value. After much research long ago this is who I selected given Kudu was my #1 animal and was glad I did