The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting Outfitters - Offered and Discounted Hunts How much money to go on a safari?Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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I am setting a goal of going to Africa on safari with my wife, and my teenage boy. I want a ballpark estimate of how much money I would need. We would leave from Virginia U.S. I am not a trophy hunter. So I might shoot something to eat, and save the pelt to take home.Maybe a head mount if it was something particularly beautiful. But I don't have a single trophy in my house in the traditional sense. I don't have much use for fancy food, no gourmet meals. I mostly eat deer stew. We virtually never go out to eat unless it is a business meeting. I would probably like to spend a lot of time tracking, and stalking animals to as close as possible, I am very patient. I would take a couple cameras, but I'm just an average guy with a camera. My wife would probably like to spend time teaching our boy as much as she could about whatever is available to learn. Animals, culture, history, climate, anything interesting. I guess I am thinking a week or so. And assume I find my own flight to get there, I'm sure my wife could find a good deal. Please bear in mind I have no idea what I am doing. So my plan may have problems I know nothing about, feel free to offer advice. With all that in mind, not including air fair, how much money do I need? Please educate me about tips, too. I keep hearing about them. I want to make sure everybody gets a fair wage, but I really have no idea. Sand Creek November 29 1864 | ||
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1. You should be able to get a very nice safari with 4 or more animals for $4,500 to $5,500 for you plus additional money (daily rate) for each of the others in your party. 2. If you wish to ship trophies home, count on another $1,500 not including taxidermy. 3. If you wish to track and stalk, be sure to get a skinny PH as if you get a fat one, they probably won't want to track and stalk much. Also, if you really wish to track, stalk and get close, I would suggest handgun or bow hunting. Also make it clear to whoever you hunt with that you don't wish to sit by a water hole. 4. On pretty much any reputable African safari, you'll have excellent food whether you want it or not. 5. Assuming you're going to South Africa, air fare will probably run in the range of $1,800 each. 6. In my opinion, a reasonable tip would be 10% of the todal cost of the safari divided among the various people that had a personal hand in making your trip pleasurable. I would book with no one who specifies what a tip should be and, if they waste your time or if the safari isn't at least average, don't tip at all. | |||
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Price depends on place you hunt and trophies you want. I know a guy that went and did not spend much at all. He shot duikers, steenbucks,warthogs, Mountain reedbucks and anything else he could for under $500. He also shot a couple more expensive animals but in the end he shot a pile of critters and it did not cost much at all. South africa has the most types of species and the prices are generally very good for day rates. Be aware of the real cheap guys unless you know someone who has hunted with the outfitt. I sent you a PM with some more info earlier as well. | |||
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DRSS Kreighoff 470 NE Valmet 412 30/06 & 9.3x74R | |||
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nother option is to find someone where you can get in on a cull hunt. That will be much cheaper but you often can nto keep anything. YOu are still going to drop almost $6k on airfare so why cul hunt. However I did want to through out the option for you. DRSS Kreighoff 470 NE Valmet 412 30/06 & 9.3x74R | |||
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Thanks for the helpful replies. I would like to reiterate, I hunt a LOT. But I rarely kill except for food. Just my thing. I have a groundhog skin here for a trophy. I killed him at 35 inches. That's about the only kind of trophy I have. Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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Hello Frank Just trying to cut you some slack. Are you for real about a groundhog skin that you shot at 35 INCHES? Are you from Culpepper, Va.? Deo Vindice, Don Sons of Confederate Veterans Black Horse Camp #780 | |||
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Yep. Culpeper va. It took me about an hour to move into the where the groundhog was feeding. There were 3 hogs and a rabbit there. I moved in so slowly they didn't know I was there. They were all within 10 yards of me. It's a different kind of hunting. The skill I work on is getting close. Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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several things come to mind. since air fare will be a significant part of your overall cost( not to mention time required), i would definitely stay for 10 days- after all, once you are there, adding 2-3 extra days does not add a lot of additional cost. plus it will take a day( or more) to get over jet lag plus another day to get into a "safari rhythm", leaving you with 5 days of pure enjoyment on a 7 day vacation. with a total of 13-14 days allotted( remember it takes AT LEAST a day of travel time in each direction), you can hunt for a week and spend the remaining time sight seeing( game parks tours, fishing, etc.). your outfitter can easily arrange after- safari touring or you can do it yourself( i have always done some internet research, then arranged it myself- generally at a considerable savings over what the outfitter offered). you will save a BOAT LOAD of money if you are willing to forego shipping any trophies home. no matter what anyone says, it costs a helluva lot of money to ship stuff home PLUS the cost of taxidermy once it arrives. after each of my 9 safaris, i spent at least as much afterward( often more- much more) on trophy shipment/taxidermy. and i have had taxidermy work done over there and here with some but not a lot of cost savings. you will find some outstanding deals on this forum for plains game packages- usually they include 4-5 animals with 2 large ones(kudu, wildebeast, etc.) and 2 small ones( impala, warthog, steenbok,etc). if the package is for small stuff only it will be a lot cheaper( and bear in mind that if you see a huge whatever, you can almost ALWAYS shoot him him and pay the added trophy fee- there are basically no seasons and essentially no limits on the various species unless its near the end of the hunting period and all the quota for a given species and ranch has been shot- even then it is usually "negotiable". most important advice: realize that you are going to Africa and a third world country. little things can and probably will go wrong but it is how you react to them- positively or negatively- that will determine the overall enjoyment of your trip. TAKE THE PROPER MINDSET AND YOU WILL HAVE THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE. GO WITH THE IDEA THAT EVERYTHING SHOULD WORK LIKE IT DOES IN AMERICA AND YOU WILL WASTE YOUR MONEY. Vote Trump- Putin’s best friend… | |||
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I got a large bull groundhog this year at about 36 inches. It was living under my porch so I ascended my hide (aka, my porch) and when it poked its head out of its hole, I put a hole in it with a 357 Magnum. How satisfying... I don't yet have a groundhog hide yet in my trophy room though. If you like to stalk things, use a bow and be sure to make it VERY clear to whoever you hunt with how you like to hunt. The modus operandi of many safari operators is to get the job done as efficiently as possible. That means, if you're cull hunting you'll likely shoot from a rest on the vehicle or via a spotlight at night. As far as trophies are concerned, you can have hides sent back. Zebra hides for instance are quite pretty. You can also do European mounts which are just bleached skull/horns on a wall plaque which isn't that expensive. | |||
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Understood. I am paying attention.
Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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What is the difference between 7 days, 10 days, 15 days? Is there a "usual" amount of time to stay based on resources,season, and stuff like that? Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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Just awesome being able to hunt right in the front yard.  It's a little late in the season for 'hogs, but there are a couple in my yard just begging to go into the freezer. I would have tagged on the other day. But I would have had to drop my wifes favorite coffee mug in the gravel driveway in order to draw my gun. If I broke that mug there would have been lots of trouble. No 'hog is worth that kind of trouble.
Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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Frank, P.M. sent. Deo Vindice, Don Sons of Confederate Veterans Black Horse Camp #780 | |||
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The "usual" time for many is 5 to 7 days. Considering the fact that about 16 HOURS of the trip is over the Atlantic, I would never go that far and hunt for any less than 10 days and 14 days is more my style. | |||
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Agreed. I think ten days is the minimum. I know many others go for shorter periods but to invest that much time and money in the travel I think an extra few days is well worth it. Mike | |||
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Like this?  ______________________ RMEF Life Member SCI DRSS Chapuis 9,3/9,3 + 20/20 Simson 12/12/9,3 Zoli 7x57R/12 Kreighoff .470/.470 We band of 9,3ers! The Few. The Pissed. The Taxpayers. | |||
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Hello, look here david posted a very good package eastern cape and I posted some package for limpopo province Limpopo As you see hunting is not very expensive. Your wife will probably pay another 120$ per day and you son maybe 70$ or less. I would recommend that you book a all inkl. (beginner)package with few animals and add the trophies you like. That gives you the opportunity to hunt without pressure. If you want to do walk&stalk make that clear before you book the hunt. Dennis | |||
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Frank, For the remainder of 2011, I can give you 5 hunting days with 6 nights with 5 trophies for $2,600: 5 days 6 nights $2,600.00 USD 1 x Impala 1 x Warthog 1 x Springbuck 1 x Blesbuck 1 x Duiker or Steenbuck This is not a cull hunt, but you take any mature trophy no matter how high they score. If you would like more details, just drop me a line. I'll need to know your timeframe. Regards, David Gray Ghost Hunting Safaris http://grayghostsafaris.com Phone: 615-860-4333 Email: hunts@grayghostsafaris.com NRA Benefactor DSC Professional Member SCI Member RMEF Life Member NWTF Guardian Life Sponsor NAHC Life Member Rowland Ward - SCI Scorer Took the wife the Eastern Cape for her first hunt: http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6881000262 Hunting in the Stormberg, Winterberg and Hankey Mountains of the Eastern Cape 2018 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/4801073142 Hunting the Eastern Cape, RSA May 22nd - June 15th 2007 http://forums.accuratereloadin...=810104007#810104007 16 Days in Zimbabwe: Leopard, plains game, fowl and more: http://forums.accuratereloadin...=212108409#212108409 Natal: Rhino, Croc, Nyala, Bushbuck and more http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6341092311 Recent hunt in the Eastern Cape, August 2010: Pics added http://forums.accuratereloadin...261039941#9261039941 10 days in the Stormberg Mountains http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/7781081322 Back in the Stormberg Mountains with friends: May-June 2017 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6001078232 "Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading" - Thomas Jefferson Every morning the Zebra wakes up knowing it must outrun the fastest Lion if it wants to stay alive. Every morning the Lion wakes up knowing it must outrun the slowest Zebra or it will starve. It makes no difference if you are a Zebra or a Lion; when the Sun comes up in Africa, you must wake up running...... "If you're being chased by a Lion, you don't have to be faster than the Lion, you just have to be faster than the person next to you." | |||
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I think your groundhog is missing his head. But yeah, like that.
Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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Thanks for the replies and all the info. Right now what I am doing is trying to get a bottom line dollar figure so I know what my goal is. I'll all everything up in a little while here. It looks to me like air fare( we will find a deal), hunt package, tips, and my wife and boy. I definitely like the sound of the beginner package. Maybe I'll use this as the excuse I need to buy a desert eagle with open sights. That could be my hunting gun, if I shoot anything. I'm going to guess $1000.00 each on air fare, and guess $10,000.00 for the whole thing,everything. Plus the cost of the gun. Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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$1K each for airfare would be a great bargain. Possibly during low (hot) season, but I doubt you'll get away that cheap. I'm booked leaving Aug 15th from Phila. thru Atlanta to Joberg. Cost was $1,448. Airfare from Dulles to Joberg on SAA was actually slightly more when I booked my trip. Tom Z NRA Life Member | |||
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I think you are very low on yoru cost of airfare. Like the poster above me he paid almost 41500 for his and mine was even higher as i had to fly to Dulles from Colorado first. I would budget $1500 or even 41800 per ticket. Now on you wanting to bring a Desert eagle I think that will be a no go as there is a bog isue with Semi Automatics in SA. Most PH's will rent youa rifle for a very reasonable rate and it is about teh same as the cost of yoru rifle permits anyway. With the animals inthe package David Keith listed a 243 or a 25/06 would do and prety much any rifle you own larger than a .223 woudl work. Since you like to getclose even a 30/30 would work great. DRSS Kreighoff 470 NE Valmet 412 30/06 & 9.3x74R | |||
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My wife is amazing at finding good deals. I'll put her on the trail of this to see what she can come up with.
Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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I totally forgot about the semi-auto restriction. I have a .35 Rem single shot pistol with iron sights I could bring. That would emphasize my point about close. Or I could rent a rifle, it makes little difference to me. Most of my shooting will be done with a camera anyway.
Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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You are already more than most of the way there after making the decision to go. The money is only relevant if you use it as an excuse. David's post offers serious savings and a real opportunity to hunt in a great area with some of the best trophies around. More than that you will be hunting with a very generous couple and staff who genuinely care about hunting and in providing you with a great opportunity. I hunted the area in 2008 and had the best time. The population of real trophies was large enough to make clear decisions for what I wanted. I let them know the type of hunt I wanted and they provided exactly that. I hunted spot and stalk, on foot and on my belly to my hearts content. We used cover and terrain to creep and crawl as close as we wanted. My shooting at the time was terrible beyond a hundred yards but my ph got me within yards of the animals I had selected as part of the package as well as the trophies I selected as extras. My kudu, spotted at a few thousand yards was shot at less than 80, my gemsbok spotted at a mile was ultimately shot at less than 30 after stalking into ambush distance on three different setups. You want to talk about going slow, we watched and waited on him to be sure first that it was a male and secondly to know he was an old guy. The crew will work as hard as you are willing. Forget about going spartan with the grub. I enjoyed family meals with the family and a rich diet which included my game is the lifestyle they enjoy daily. I like you at home hunt a cold camp and a can of chili beans is enough but I could really get used to eating sausages cooked by the 3 foot coil over an open fire with biscuits and gravy followed by more biscuits with homemade marmalade on a regular basis. I believe you will find the location and the folks opening their lifestyle to you well worth the effort on your part to get there. The area surrounding the hunting ranch is rich with history and outstanding architectural splendor. The ranch managers wife is a professional teacher and offers tours which your family will greatly enjoy. Keith, the ranch manager was born there and went out with us more than a couple of times, His wealth of information about the habitat, the birds and fauna was fascinating. A great way to add to the great experience of even being there. 10 days was not enough for me and I doubt 30 would have been either so I know a week will never do for you. Here is my report on this hunt. Enjoy http://forums.accuratereloadin.../6321043/m/387100449 Frank | |||
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 Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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Sir, Doing this for a living I can tell you that a trip like this will cost you, ballpark figure, of about $10,000.00. Flights, accommodation, hunting and trophies within reason. Drop me a line if you want a quote. Regards, Charl van Rooyen Owner Infinito Travel Group www.infinito-safaris.com charl@infinito-safaris.com Cell: +27 78 444 7661 Tel: +27 13 262 4077 Fax:+27 13 262 3845 Hereford Street 28A Groblersdal 0470 Limpopo R.S.A. "For the Infinite adventure" Plains Game Dangerous Game Bucket List Specialists Wing-Shooting In House Taxidermy Studio In House Dip and Pack Facility In House Shipping Service Non-Hunting Tours and Safaris Flight bookings "I promise every hunter visiting us our personal attention from the moment we meet you, until your trophies hang on your wall. Our all inclusive service chain means you work with one person (me) taking responsibility during the whole process. Affordable and reputable Hunting Safaris is our game! With a our all inclusive door to door service, who else do you want to have fun with?" South Africa Tanzania Uganda | |||
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Airfare you can figure for yourself. Prices vary from month to month and day to day. Generally, Sept on is cheaper. You may or may not need a connecting flight once you get to JNB (the main jumping off point). We run an operation where you can self cater. This keeps the daily rate very reasonable. This operation does not allow hunting from vehicles, so it's all on foot. Tented camp. Your family would have the place to yourselves. Special rates for father/son hunts. Your wife counts as an "observer" and since you are self-catering, we only ask $50 per day to cover accommo. There are some day trips your wife and son could make ... cultural and ocean. Drop me a PM if you want the details. Russ Russ Gould - Whitworth Arms LLC BigfiveHQ.com, Large Calibers and African Safaris Doublegunhq.com, Fine English, American and German Double Rifles and Shotguns VH2Q.com, Varmint Rifles and Gear | |||
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Ok. I need to come up with the $10,000.00 And THEN my wife and I have some decisions to make. Thanks for the help. Sand Creek November 29 1864 | |||
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I went through a similar exercise earlier in the year. I am planning for 2013. PM me your email id & I'll send you a spreadsheet with all the info I have gathered. Good luck on your venture. Half the fun is planning & dreaming! "When the wind stops....start rowing. When the wind starts, get the sail up quick." | |||
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frank4570: Wish you the best of luck in putting this hunting african trip together. Especially having your family with you. I learned a lot from reading this post and there are a lot of valuable advice and good offers from every one out there. Thank you guys that will help me put my plan together too. Heck I already started. Malek Good hunting/shooting and God's best. Best regards Malek Good Hunting/Shooting and God's best. | |||
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You guys ain't still buyin' this are you? | |||
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The Accurate Reloading Forums THE ACCURATE RELOADING.COM FORUMS Hunting Outfitters - Offered and Discounted Hunts How much money to go on a safari?
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