What makes or breaks your decision to book a hunt

[CAustin]

This is a questions I think we as outfitters would like to know the answer to, What makes you the client decide on which and whom to book a hunt with?

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#1 Communication epically South Africa Outfitters. If you can’t answer my questions within 24-48 hours you don’t want my business. I have seen many constantly on the phone texting….so an answer to a simple question shouldn’t be too difficult. If you don’t have the ability to sit down each evening and spend 30 minutes answering emails or WhatsAp texts then you
are not set up to do business in this modern world.
#2 competitive pricing. There are many ways for the hunter to check pricing. So when an outfitter says he wants $500 for a baboon, nuisance animal, for example or $200 for a porcupine, nuisacne animal, that’s not competitive. Oh and jackels are $100……your kidding right!
#3 No recent US clients that I can talk to equals no booking.
#4 Tell me BS and I am out….Honesty is essential to me doing business with you. See #2 above ……the first outfitter I ever hunted with still wants $6,000 for a Sable in South Africa and says that is a great price……not hunting with them these days. Same outfitter quoted me an elephant hunt price in SA $15,000 more than what I paid Another outfitter. Said that was a fair price.
#4 Late model highly maintained transportation. Read two wheel drive single cab 8 year old truck……you don’t want my business
#5 Your lodge must be clean and have electricity
#6 Ask to be paid in full or anything over 10-15% a year in advance of the hunt forget it. Getting money into Africa is relatively easy but getting it back out is not.
I could go on but just don’t BS the potential client. Information flows so fast now like on this forum.

 

[Hunt anything]

Not a show stopper for me but surely a pet peeve is exorbitant fees for observer. I see 200 to 300 $US per day for my wife who accompanies me on every safari, I usually keep looking. She’s in the same bed and believe me, not that big an eater. 10 day safari and you wanna charge me $2000 extra for the pleasure of her company? No thanks. Laundry ain’t that expensive

Most camps in South Africa I’ve looked at charge 100 to 150 a day for observers , on the top end the camps in Mozambique I’ve been in were around 300 per day. Of course all supplies were flown in but some of that should have been negated because it would always come in with clients or driven in 8 hrs or so over piss poor roads!

 

[Art Lambart II]

In my opinion, it's perceived value, what am I getting for my money? I'm not a fan of extra fees, things like airport pick-up and drop-off fees, rifle rental, and ammo fees. I prefer all of those things rolled into a higher daily fee, the actual cost may not be any different but the perception is much different. The outfitter with the higher daily rate and no extra costs presents itself as a full-service all-inclusive operation. The outfitter with the additional fees gives the impression there could be more fees the client is unaware of and may be responsible for at the end of the hunt. No one I know likes extra fees, they always make me feel like I'm being cheated or taken advantage of.

The other thing I look at is the price of the smaller common animals (Impala, Blesbok, Springbuck, and warthog) If I have taken everything in my package or on my list and I still have hunting days left I'd like to keep hunting and not break the bank doing it. If I feel an outfitter's prices are too high for their smaller game I'll probably look for a different outfitter.

 

[Gemsbok45]

If your doing a once in a lifetime!,good luck with that but I do know people. Life happens. Book with an agency. I have never used one but I‘be livid here. If you are not in Africa yesterday you know very little about today. Having said that and I hate politicians who say that. This bunch of people on this website can get you where you want! You are enjoying the best part of a Safari now. Enjoy the process!!!

 

[WAB]

Yeah, last year at Dande we tracked for hours going up and down ridges. Without the 3rd tracker that stayed with the car driving to the place we ended up it would have been a mess. One time we actually walked a mile or so to the nearest road in the Jess in the dark, without the guy coming with the car it would have been several miles of backtracking. Interestingly I was the only one with a light as I had packed a headband light in my pocket.

If I remember your pics correctly, Len Taylor’s Tracker, Charles, was on your team. He is a good tracker.

 

[fourfive8]

Good question, actually great question! Of course most of us operate within budget boundaries. Within those parameters I've exclusively gone by gut feeling and communication with the outfitters, PHs or guides I've searched out and there is a very large pool to choose from! I've had very few if any disappointments and no real horror stories as reported occasionally here- not even close. I tend to trust my own gut over fabricated marketing techniques or themes designed to sell me something. Even when trips are not exactly what was expected, I've learned to re-evaluate and make the lemonade from the lemons, on the fly, in real time.

I remember "targeting" the Limpopo in RSA years ago as one of the top producers of big kudu- at least that's what the buzz was and still is I guess. After all, everyone dreaming of PG in Africa dreams of big kudu! I contacted a reputable PH and outfitter that did Limpopo and went. Lost track of number of kudu bulls I saw but took a very attractive but the smallest (shortest horn length) of all my kudu but killed an absolute whopper! red hartebeest. In addition got in some excellent fly fishing in the RSA Midlands along the way and saw some country I wouldn't have ordinarily seen. Met people I wouldn't have if I hadn't gone on that hunt. All lemonade from lemons. Additionally, that hunt opened the way and offered a contact with an outfitter and land owner in Botswana, a trip I had been dreaming of for a long time. I put together the Botswana trip. During that trip fell in love with Botswana and the people but haven't been able to return because of the covid crazies and my budget constraints. Took a kudu exceeding 63" and an outstanding 40" bull oryx- a very humbling experience to me. If I get to go back, I wouldn't not hunt kudu or oryx but hang out, relax and try to get behind those San trackers on eland. If we could find an old, broomed, broken-horned bull on a track I'd probably try to take him, otherwise just hang out enjoying the boma fire, sipping coffee or Grouse and exchanging stories.

Recommendation? .... Communicate directly with those you plan to go with, learn patience, use the gut and figure a way to turn lemons into lemonade.

 

[Tanks]

One thing to keep in mind in regards to what is expected and what is unacceptable is based on the Country one is hunting. You are not going to find full time electricity, Internet/cell phone access, photo opportunity for Big Five etc. outside of RSA, in a lot of the free range hunting concessions. So, if one wants full creature comforts, stick with RSA hunting.

Most camps outside of RSA do have generators that run for a bit in the morning and also at night. Hot water is limited due to water tank being heated with wood fire (they fire it up some time before wake up and in the evening). I must admit though, I am done with bucket showers in the morning so I do appreciate running hot water for showers.

 

[Ridge Runner]

@Tanks
The travel days should be included. We had a 10 day hunt that included being picked up from the airport.
What people are not seeing is that even tho you don't hunt the first day the PH still has the travel time to and from the air port and in our case that was 4 hours for him by two vehicles round trip.
That is HIS TIME. If you had to arrange your own tspt that would cost more than the day rate.
All the time to prepare for you arrival has to be accounted for. Setting up for your hunt isn't cheap.

I have a friend that provides guided hunts in Australia and before he even gets a client he is up for $50,000 just to get the concession, staff, fuel and all the other items needed that are unseen like insurances and they aren't cheap.
Don't begrudge the PH for wanting to be paid for a none shooting day.
Would you work a day for FREE.
Bob

I could be wrong, But...

Outfitter owner/ PH or owner who hires PHs calculate their expenses into the daily rates and/or also the trophy fees. If they don't, then they would be out of business before they even get started.

Just guessing based on my experiences of 3 trips. My first two trips I arrived at PE early in the afternoon met up with my PH and it was late afternoon/early evening when we arrived at the lodge. The third trip I arrived mid/late morning dropped off my gear in the bungalow, was able to check my sights, with 6 hours of daylight left my PH asked if I wanted to hunt or unpack.....I came to hunt... unpacking can wait till after dinner and a little after dinner socializing.

Two animals on my list were warthog and baboon which the lodge property is known to have quality trophy sizes of both. Although we weren't successful it did revive the emotional excitement, Now! I am back in Africa! Rather than that dull blah say feeling one might be experiencing having just cleared SAPS, yeah, Finally!, I'm here in Africa, again.

 

[gcbailey]

I will be making my first trip to Africa this month, so take that for what it’s worth. I have used guides in the US and the same principles applied.

Personality. I am very particular with who I hunt with, whether that be with another client or a guide. I am willing to pay more for a guide that is like minded and compensate by reducing the numbers of animals I hunt. I have had some guides before that were foul mouthed know-it-alls. That wasn’t for me.

The second big consideration was have a guide who answered my questions, put my mind at ease, and was excited to hunt (or at least seem to be) as myself. Of course cost is always a factor. As stated, I would rather either bag less animals or even delay my trip and save to hunt with the guide I want. Nothing could be worse than hunting with someone you don’t like. It won’t be enjoyable and even if I got the hunt at a bargain, I wouldn’t appreciate it or have good memories.

I have been on a couple of hunts where I ended up not firing a single round, but I had such a great time with my guide, one of the trips is actually still one of my favorites. The guide worked hard, taught me a lot about an animal I had little experience with, and was a great story teller. That’s just how it goes sometimes. The hunt just turned into an awesome camping trip.

 

[Jaegger]

I’ve never been on an African hunt with no tracker. I assume you’re not hunting elephant or buffalo? In the Kalahari, watching the bushmen at work is one of the highlights.

@WAB I 2nd the comment on experience working w/ skilled trackers & thankfully amajority of my experience has been cutting a trail on fresh tracks vs. tracking a wounded trophy … utterly amazing to watch them sort thru tracks at congregation points then pick The Right tracks/trail.

I had afew long treks where I had my doubts about The Right Trail & told myself “be nice - play along …” only to be internally embarrassed when the trophy emerged & the stix went up! Frick’in cool experience …

I’ve always made an effort to develop a friendship w/ the driver/trackers, shoe strings, coffee, pop tarts, candy for the kids seem to make their eyes abit sharper (LOL) as the hunt develops.

Botswana is my 2023 focus & especially a trek w/ Bushmen. P.S. won’t need to pack shoe strings for the Bushmen …

Happy Trails

 

[Jaegger]

@Tanks
The travel days should be included. We had a 10 day hunt that included being picked up from the airport.
What people are not seeing is that even tho you don't hunt the first day the PH still has the travel time to and from the air port and in our case that was 4 hours for him by two vehicles round trip.
That is HIS TIME. If you had to arrange your own tspt that would cost more than the day rate.
All the time to prepare for you arrival has to be accounted for. Setting up for your hunt isn't cheap.

I have a friend that provides guided hunts in Australia and before he even gets a client he is up for $50,000 just to get the concession, staff, fuel and all the other items needed that are unseen like insurances and they aren't cheap.
Don't begrudge the PH for wanting to be paid for a none shooting day.
Would you work a day for FREE.
Bob

@Bob Nelson 35Whelen … Australia, a definite Bucket-List hunt locale & I would enjoy + appreciate reaching out over PM for abit of mentoring on Do’s & Dont’s for proper planning, plus, the only locale my Son + two/2 Son-in-Laws immediate stated, “I’m in on this trip!”

 

[Jaegger]

I could be wrong, But...

Outfitter owner/ PH or owner who hires PHs calculate their expenses into the daily rates and/or also the trophy fees. If they don't, then they would be out of business before they even get started.

Just guessing based on my experiences of 3 trips. My first two trips I arrived at PE early in the afternoon met up with my PH and it was late afternoon/early evening when we arrived at the lodge. The third trip I arrived mid/late morning dropped off my gear in the bungalow, was able to check my sights, with 6 hours of daylight left my PH asked if I wanted to hunt or unpack.....I came to hunt... unpacking can wait till after dinner and a little after dinner socializing.

Two animals on my list were warthog and baboon which the lodge property is known to have quality trophy sizes of both. Although we weren't successful it did revive the emotional excitement, Now! I am back in Africa! Rather than that dull blah say feeling one might be experiencing having just cleared SAPS, yeah, Finally!, I'm here in Africa, again.

@Ridge Runner … Bingo! I always arrive in Country afew days early countering Airline F-Up’s (on the rise!), jet lag, & the Outfitter can promptly collect me in the Morning, Day of Arrival & I’m hunting that day after Siesta!

I specifically request Day of Departure AM hunt, cleanup @ Lunch & shuttle @ 1300hrs maximizes my days/time in camp.

An Observer Rate Day before & after the # of hunt days equally works but that’s 2-days I could be On the Road doing other Country activities.

Enjoy your African Adventure!

 

[VertigoBE]

Very interesting thread, not only for outfitters, but prospective hunters too. I do like the public posting of the daily and trophy fees. I tend to prefer to do a lot of window shopping before committing. Combining location, species and the prices. As far as judging a PH, I’m not sure I have enough experience to do so myself and will rather rely on feedback from others.

 

[Zach Lape]

#1 Communication epically South Africa Outfitters. If you can’t answer my questions within 24-48 hours you don’t want my business. I have seen many constantly on the phone texting….so an answer to a simple question shouldn’t be too difficult. If you don’t have the ability to sit down each evening and spend 30 minutes answering emails or WhatsAp texts then you
are not set up to do business in this modern world.
#2 competitive pricing. There are many ways for the hunter to check pricing. So when an outfitter says he wants $500 for a baboon, nuisance animal, for example or $200 for a porcupine, nuisacne animal, that’s not competitive. Oh and jackels are $100……your kidding right!
#3 No recent US clients that I can talk to equals no booking.
#4 Tell me BS and I am out….Honesty is essential to me doing business with you. See #2 above ……the first outfitter I ever hunted with still wants $6,000 for a Sable in South Africa and says that is a great price……not hunting with them these days. Same outfitter quoted me an elephant hunt price in SA $15,000 more than what I paid Another outfitter. Said that was a fair price.
#4 Late model highly maintained transportation. Read two wheel drive single cab 8 year old truck……you don’t want my business
#5 Your lodge must be clean and have electricity
#6 Ask to be paid in full or anything over 10-15% a year in advance of the hunt forget it. Getting money into Africa is relatively easy but getting it back out is not.
I could go on but just don’t BS the potential client. Information flows so fast now like on this forum.

This is one thing that amazes me with outfitters all over the world is the terrible response time if they even do. I had a mountain lion guide who i messaged and said im ready to book then quit replying to message back 4 months later acting like nothing had happened.
I also had some african outfitters never responded or respond once and quit. Not sure how guys do business like that, maybe repeat customers?

 

[CAustin]

One thing to keep in mind in regards to what is expected and what is unacceptable is based on the Country one is hunting. You are not going to find full time electricity, Internet/cell phone access, photo opportunity for Big Five etc. outside of RSA, in a lot of the free range hunting concessions. So, if one wants full creature comforts, stick with RSA hunting.

Most camps outside of RSA do have generators that run for a bit in the morning and also at night. Hot water is limited due to water tank being heated with wood fire (they fire it up some time before wake up and in the evening). I must admit though, I am done with bucket showers in the morning so I do appreciate running hot water for showers.

I disagree that one must stick with South Africa fir creature comforts. Hunted Namibia last year and they had electricity with back up generator. Will hunt Zimbabwe in the Omay this year and they have solar power with charged battery system….also a generator if needed.
I have a friend in Tanzania who has the same type system. WiFi in all three places described. So I stand by what I said. If an outfitter doesn’t have these things he is not set up to do business in the modern world. For the price you pay per day in remote areas of $650 to $1500 a day the outfitter better figure out how to provide basic creature comforts and they can or they are just pocketing the money.

I agree that hot water is a must.

 

[cooper552]

Price is a consideration but far down the list on final choice. As much I as I want to I doubt there is a full bag safaris in my price range and if there was I am not sure I want it. After deciding on area and/or species The big consideration is value and connection with outfitter. Value and price are completely different. I am looking for an experience and know that will cost money. That said The biggest influence is recommendations from people I trust and know what I enjoy. There are many different types of hunting experiences and I do not want to start a debate on what’s better. Whether you are high fence or free range, luxury or fly camp doesn’t matter as long as you are hunting and matching your desires with the out fitter. My first safaris was with Tholo in Botswana and I loved it so much I went back the following year. I would go back just to ride around on the back of the truck with Steven and Besa missing jackals and drinking gin and tonic. When I wanted to try a different area I used that experience as a reference when asking for recommendations and I am confident my trip this year to Roslyn in Zimbabwe will be another great experience. To sum up. The client needs to know what they want and then search out an outfitter that fits the criteria through recommendations of people they know that have been there. If you can meet the ph prior to booking that is a plus on knowing if you can connect and not be miserable riding around for a week.

 

[Ravensview]

I was debating responding here as I haven’t been to Africa yet, I am still working through this process, but the main thing I am looking at is the overall experience of the hunt ( not trophy’s taken), I know one sure no go for me was the type of hunt experience posted on here recently where they were chasing and shooting down animals from a truck.

 

[Scott CWO]

-- Recommendations and reviews from others.
-- Interview with the outfitter.
-- Cost and cost breakdown. For example, at SCI this year, I interviewed an outfitter for a big tusker hunt in Botswana, a 14 day hunt was offered for 80K+. I was fine with the overall cost. However, if the hunt was unsuccessful, trophy fee credit was $10K which made it a daily fee of $5K+ for the hunt. I passed.

This whole daily rate issue that African wilderness operators use in marketing in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Tanzania, etc… is absurd and just a way to make it appear that the hunts are cheaper than they really are priced. These hunts have a total price whether you hunt the whole time allotted or not. Refunds are not given if you finish early and leave so it’s not really a daily rate. It is a marketing tool that is used throughout the industry to avoid price shock. A quality wilderness hunt is very expensive and it has nothing to do with daily rates. If you get your animals early and leave, there’s no refund. Therefore, it’s not a daily rate. Some South Africa and Namibia operators offer true daily rates where you can book for 5, 7, 10 or 14 days. On the contrary, most multi-species hunts in wild areas are booked for 10 or more days and the total price is the price. In North America and most of the world, hunts are advertised at the total cost without daily rates. A stone sheep might be $60k, a Dall’s sheep might be $30k, a Marco Polo might be $40k, a moose might be $23k with no mention of daily rates. If you want an elephant, breaking it down into a daily rate means nothing. The price is the price.

 

[375Fox]

This whole daily rate issue that African wilderness operators use in marketing in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Tanzania, etc… is absurd and just a way to make it appear that the hunts are cheaper than they really are priced. These hunts have a total price whether you hunt the whole time allotted or not. Refunds are not given if you finish early and leave so it’s not really a daily rate. It is a marketing tool that is used throughout the industry to avoid price shock. A quality wilderness hunt is very expensive and it has nothing to do with daily rates. If you get your animals early and leave, there’s no refund. Therefore, it’s not a daily rate. Some South Africa and Namibia operators offer true daily rates where you can book for 5, 7, 10 or 14 days. On the contrary, most multi-species hunts in wild areas are booked for 10 or more days and the total price is the price. In North America and most of the world, hunts are advertised at the total cost without daily rates. A stone sheep might be $60k, a Dall’s sheep might be $30k, a Marco Polo might be $40k, a moose might be $23k with no mention of daily rates. If you want an elephant, breaking it down into a daily rate means nothing. The price is the price.

I suppose it’s how you look at it. I’ve never left a hunt early in Africa, but have in USA and Europe. I’ve always stayed for full days I booked even when I took my primary animals early. I’ve never run out of plains game quota to hunt. I think that is what I like best about Africa is you can take advantage of all the days you booked, unlike a single tag in North America where your hunt and guide’s obligation ends once tagged out. However, you aren’t wrong that there is a total price at the start of the hunt.

 

[steve white]

Remoteness, as near as possible to true wilderness is what I want...in a word, wild. Creature comfort in tented camps is far good enough for me. Worst hunt I ever had was the cheapest advertised in the area. It was too tame. In at least part of Namibia, the FARM owns the game shot--you don't get to use any of the meat or even bones for baiting--even if you paid for baiting! They will put out daissies for leopard bait, and baboon if you are lucky enough to shoot one. Best to consider that in your choice. Things like road check station shakedowns are part of corrupt Africa and beyond the control of the outfitter. Annoying, but part of the pay to play.