I'm researching the costs of hunting in Namibia and did a spreadsheet of costs for safari companies recommended by members here on AR. I'm not going to list any names just the results of one evening's research.

Booking a 10 day plains game hunt for the seven animals that all the companies had in common shows this: (I used 1.3$ to the Euro, so prices might be a dollar or two off)

Kudu ................$676.....$800.....$800.....$800.....$1,100
Oryx ................$488.....$400.....$510.....$400.....$650
Warthog............$286.....$300.....$350.....$300.....$400
Steenbok...........$286.....$275.....$220.....$275.....$350
Hartmann's Zebra.. $845..... $700..... $870..... $700..... $1,100
Springbok.........$455.....$350......$195.....$350.....$500
Hartebeest........$487..... $450..... $520..... $450..... $600
Eland............. $1,690... $1,100... $1,590... $1,100... $1,500
Daily Fee 10 Days. $1,690... $4,000... $3,100... $3,500... $3,950

Total............. $6,903... $8,375... $8,155... $7,875... $10,150

The total costs differed from a low of $6903 to a high of $10,150 ($3,247) and daily fees showed a difference from $169 up to $400 per day.

Other trophy fees that not all companies had prices for:
Common Duiker..... $286..... $275..... $220..... $275
Blesbuck.......... $585.............. $330..... $400..... $600
Burchell Zebra.... $975.............. $850.............. $900
Impala............$650.............. $520..... $400..... $500
Klipspringer......$845..... $550.............. $550..... $1,200
Leopard........... $3,900.............................. $3,500
Giraffe.....................$975.....$975.....$975.....$1,500


I thought that it was interesting.

That's a good nights work!

Those prices for Hartmanns Zebra and Giraffe on the low end are very good............

Goes to show that S.A. is not THAT much more expensive than Namibia, or at least we are not.......

I suppose available trophy quality and accommodation standards have something to do with price variation?

quote:

Originally posted by Bwanamich:
I suppose available trophy quality and accommodation standards have something to do with price variation?

That would be one option. Another would be how the species was made available in that particular hunting area, was it there naturally, or do (fenced) properties have to be stocked with animals bought on auction? How does the population available breed, can animals be shot out of the natural population growth??

Finally, how well established a company is in the market certainly has an impact on prices. If clients are assured to arrive even at higher costs, then prices are almost bound to be higher compared to an outfitter trying to establish a name for himself. This could have something to do with perceived quality, but marketing issues may be just as important a factor.

- mike

Daily rates may be higher in remote areas where everything is brought in and the nearest store is many hours away.

if you look around in the web you will find a lot of hunting offers in Namibia. See: http://www.natron.net/jagde.htm
Ther'are game farms fenced and not fenced where you can find very cheap safaris with quite good, good, excellent services. The trophy fees depend of many factors as accomodation, abundance of the animals in the area and also is important the celebrity of the outfitter(In Erindi after an article of Craig Boddington in the SCI magazine they grow up the price very much, specially for leopard with hounds).
There are some german outfitters almost inconnues outside Germany that they offer a good compromise between cheap price, good services and good hunting areas.

Frank,

Namibia also has three classes of license for the guide/PH. Were all of these outfits in the same class?

I would also want to know the size of the ground that the operator is using.

We did our first African hunt in Namibia, and it is a great country for hunting.

jim

This is just information that I found curious, that any person researching for their first safari would stumble across, except that I only considered outfits that had favorable reviews here on AR.

All these numbers were culled from the advertised rates on the internet or what the outfits emailed me. I don't know all the different levels of service, accomodations and PH levels but just looked for stuff that any newby (like myself) would consider.

I left out all the "Game Farm" hunts but included hunts on ranches that they said were low fenced for cattle but had free access for wild animals and hunts on tribal concession areas.

Here's a chart for 10 different companies using the same 10 day hunt for the same 5 animals.

Kudu..............$676......$800......$800........$800......$1,100.....$750......$820......$1,040......$800......$850
Oryx...............$488......$400......$510.......$400.......$650.......$495.......$620......$605........$575......$600
Warthog........$286.......$300......$350.......$300.......$400.......$410.......$380.......$405.......$320.......$300
Hartebeest....$487.......$450......$520.......$450.......$600.......$550.......$550.......$605.......$750.......$725
Eland.............$1,690....$1,100...$1,590....$1,100....$1,500....$1,650....$1,750....$1,745....$1,800....$1,600
Day 1/1.........$1,690....$4,000....$3,100...$4,500....$3,950....$2,750....$3,300....$3,000.....$2,850....$2,450
Transfer .................................................................................$250.......$300.......................$300.......$200
Total..............$5,317....$7,050...$6,870....$7,550....$8,200....$6,855....$7,720....$7,400....$7,395....$6,725


Man, That is tough to get the columns to line up correctly!

Nice work. When you goona throw the outfitters names on there? Inquiring minds want to know!What your spreadsheet tells me is that Namibia's structure is very competitive on trophy fees- there isn't much of a variance from the average for most of the trophy fees. The same goes for daily rates as well. There was one super low daily rate- that made them by far the bargain of the bunch.
I personally wouldn't quibble over a few hundred extra bucks for a quality hunt, but everyone views quality differently. For some, 5 star accomodations would far outweigh trophy quality, for others, record book heads at the expense of all else.

If you did a study on the price of a steak dinner within 15 miles of my house you'd get a fairly interesting spread sheet....ranging from $6.99 to $69.99 (there is a Ruth Chris Steak House in the area).

One place I hunt on in Namibia has a surplus of gemsbok and giraffe so they are cheap. They have a lot of warthog but not many of much size, so they are cheap too. Another place has springbok in excess and a lot of eland...so prices on these would be at the lower end of the comparison list. Another place proved to be high on everything (trophy rates and daily rate) but didn't live up to their hype when it came to trophies on the ground. It was because the PH was trying to make a living and cover a lot of expenses as was the person who owned the property and recently invested a lot in the fancy lodge and accomadations.

My suggestion is not to get to carried away with spreadsheets and such. Time might be better spent talking with references. Not just the references, but the people that came with the references. You might find that family owned/operated operations are the best dollar value even if you pay a bit more per day and for trophies.

I've also seen the places that dump out a truck load of mediocre trophies from the game capture brokers a couple days before the next batch of clients show up. Do you want to be told to shoot the first kudu you see (47"), or be told 'wait...we can do much better' and shoot a 53"?

I've been hunting for nearly 50 years now. Traveling to some far off places to do it too. If anyone claims to have found a bargain in any hunting excursion they are usually ill informed.

This prices a Bargains compare Robin Hurts Gamsberg Ranch prices.
10 days Hunting 1x1 US$11300.- 2x1 US$8000.-
+ US$ 100.-per hunter per day Consession Fees
Trophy Fees are also not that cheap : Kudu US$ 1950.- , Red Hartebeest US$ 1950.- .... +15% Vat on Game Fees
Waidmannsheil in German Southwest Africa wish
Seloushunter

The above spreadsheet has the cost 10 different hunts for 5 animals for 10 day hunts. The range of values is between the low of $5317 and the high of $8200 or approimately $2900 difference. When I am doing statistical analysis which I do every day as an appraiser I generally leave out the highest and lowest value and then caluate the mean and median. The new range of values is between $6725 and $7720 or approximately a $1000 difference. The new mean is $7,280 and the median is $7,222 or approximately $500 above the lowest value and $500 below the lowest value. So let just consider the cost of the hunt at $7250.

Once a hunter reviews the hunt and checks references and the area of the hunt and decides which is best for that hunter then $500 either way should not make a difference. Also, the cost of packing and dipping were not included which can differ. Find the hunt that will best suit you and enjoy the trip.

I have two recommendations for you.

Don't go with Kalahari Hunting Safaris! PM me for more information.

And do talk to a expeditor like Coppersmith (or someone else) before you leave and have your trophies set up before you whack them.

Good work Fjold.

I have a spreadsheet with all the prices of 88 South African Hunting Outfitters. [With URL of cost page] Used to be more than 88, but I recently updated it. You know what all this effort tells me? You can't say how long is a piece of string! Or a steak meal costs between $ 6.99 and $ 69.99!

I've been hunting for 48 years, and I agree 100% with ALP#4

What counts is value-for-money, and that is not easy to judge without actually going to that steakhouse and eating one!

In good hunting,

Andrew McLaren

Fjold,

You've done a lot of research on cost and I do think we all are looking to stretch our dollars as far as is practical. What you might find though is that a 7 day hunt on a more expensive ranch might be a better value than a cheaper 10 day hunt.

I can think of a package hunt right now offering fantastic accommodations, excellent hunting on a huge track of land to include a kudu, eland, wildebeest and gemsbok all of which have fairly high trophy fees for $4900 2x1.

Mark

Gentlemen, I've drawn no conclusions about this information it is merely the start of the research that I am doing on booking my first hunt.

Just like the cost of airport transfers. Some companies offer the pick up and return between the airport to the camp for free while other companies in the same hunt area charge from $200 to $600. Some companies give you a discount on the airport pick up if you ride out to the camp with the crew.

Some companies offer dip and pack flat rate of $150, some cost $400 and some charge $50 per animal.

Some PH's don't tell you what level of qualification that they have, some do.

Some companies have beautiful lodges with swimming pools, some have tent camps and some have a spare room in their house that you stay in.

It's all data that goes into the decision making process.

Frank:
Yep, and some outfits charge $5 for each bird shot and also a "Trophy" fee for jackals and baboons.
Some outfits provide a gun/ammo and no charge for birds, jackals and baboons are free. Also, all the local beer and cheap scotch you can drink is free.
I won't hunt with anyone who charges $5 for a bird. To me, that is an indication they are in it for the money only.
I guess you "pays your money, and takes your chances!"

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Fjold,

You've done a lot of research on cost and I do think we all are looking to stretch our dollars as far as is practical. What you might find though is that a 7 day hunt on a more expensive ranch might be a better value than a cheaper 10 day hunt.

I can think of a package hunt right now offering fantastic accommodations, excellent hunting on a huge track of land to include a kudu, eland, wildebeest and gemsbok all of which have fairly high trophy fees for $4900 2x1.

Mark

THAT is a bloody good deal, Mark

quote:

Originally posted by TJ:
Frank:
Yep, and some outfits charge $5 for each bird shot and also a "Trophy" fee for jackals and baboons.
Some outfits provide a gun/ammo and no charge for birds, jackals and baboons are free. Also, all the local beer and cheap scotch you can drink is free.
I won't hunt with anyone who charges $5 for a bird. To me, that is an indication they are in it for the money only.
I guess you "pays your money, and takes your chances!"

Good point, TJ. On my last hunt with Mike Kibble, he provided shotguns and shells for a days birdshooting for nothing and baboons got you a pat on the back........as did jackals.