I cannot fault Bench International. They were not only helpful and very knowledgeable but not a thing went wrong! Everything went to plan and we were totally impressed by their professionalism and friendliness. They seemed to genuinely care about what we wanted and went out of their way to make our trip our most memorable. Their knowledge of Africa was second to none and I'm so glad we did everything they suggested as it was perfect. Do yourself a favour and contact Bench. Julie was amazing...

We had a truly exceptional African experience thanks to the wonderful staff at Bench Africa. They were great listeners, reliable, efficient and the trip they planned for us far exceeded our expectations which were high already! Thank you!

Great experience with this Company. They looked after my travel plans and being a world traveller I would count this as one of my best travel experiences. The sarfari at the Black Rinho Lodge was just the amount of animal contact I wanted. The Rovos train from Pretoria to Cape Town was out of this world . While the accommodation I had in Cape Town was excellent. Karen McKilliam, the agent at Bench Africa locked into what I wanted to experience and her professionalism was excellent. Ask for Karen as she is outstanding in communicating and her travel plans for me was spot on. No worries in the whole of my trip. Would love to travel with this Company again

I headed ott to travel via the Rovos train from Pretoria to Cape Town. A remarkable trip in itself but further enhanced with the help of Karin from Bench Africa. Karen organised all my internal travel by car and train within South Africa. When the schedule said car pick up , there was a car to pick me up. My ten day trip entailed a safari and train trip. All went so smoothly that as a world traveler I would consider this adventure as one of the best I've experienced. I organised my flights with frequent flyer points but everything else was done by Karen from Bench Africa Would recommend this company without hesitation. John

We booked and chose our African experience through our local travel agent. After perusing all the booklets and catalogues available on Africa, Bench International had by far the more comprehensive trips and covered exactly what we were looking for. They covered a variety of levels of accommodation, sights and tour sizes. We were looking for small group, personalised safari's staying in secure accommodation along with a self-drive garden route finish within our budget. Bench put together the most amazing 5 weeks of our lives in August/September this year, covering our total wish list and more. They then provided ALL the information possible in a travel booklet including our itinerary, country information, approximately what amount of money we would require,tipping advice etc that we used like a bible on a daily basis. We started our trip in Arusha where we arrived at lunch time and had the afternoon to spare. Our Bench advisor 'Charles' who met at us our Hotel after being collected from the airport by our first tour guide 'Edwin', advised us not to leave the secured grounds of our accommodation. At our disappointment of being stuck in a room all afternoon (after 5 flights from Australia over the previous 2 days) Charles went over and beyond our expectations and arranged for a friend to come and collect us and take us for a 31/2 hour walk through Arusha and experience the local people and markets, then onto the local Tanzanite museum. We felt very secure in his company and had the most amazing insight into this city that would otherwise never have been available to us. The next morning 'Edwin' began our 7 day, Tanzanian part of the '12 day Highlights of East Africa' tour including Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti N/P & Lake Manyara N/P. Bench matched us perfectly with another couple of similar age and personality to make our small group tour extremely enjoyable - and found us new life long friends. Edwin had over 10 years experience as a tour guide and was extremely knowledgeable and could not do enough for us before leaving us at the Kenyan border for 'Freddie' our next very experienced tour guide. Freddie took us on to Amboseli N/P, Masai Mara Game Reserve, Lake Nakuru & Nairobi. By the time Freddie completed our Highlights of East Africa tour, we had seen ALL of the Big 5, some several times over! This included a Lioness killing a Warthog, Leopard attack on Gazelle, mating Rhino's & Lions, many Elephants and Buffalo on a daily basis - ALL at very close range. AMAZING! From here we flew to Zimbabwe for 4 days at Victoria Falls Safari Lodge. We are so glad Bench offered the extra optional activities of a Helicopter flight over Victoria Falls & the Zambezi River which gives a whole different appreciation of this landscape from the sky; Elephant Back Safari and Lion encounter which gave us very personal time learning about these amazing animals and walking/riding with them through their natural environment and not in caged areas. From here we flew to Cape Town and on our own began a 12 day self-drive Garden Route trip. With a suggestion list from Bench we explored Cape Town, the Winelands and the garden route up to Port Elizabeth. Our hire car & accommodation once again was perfectly arranged to our taste and budget. During our trip we stayed in top hotels, tented lodges and on a coffee farm. All this accommodation was immaculate, well presented and many provided 3 meals a day including a packed lunch box on the days we were on Safari drives. At no time on our tour did we feel unsecure as our guides were local people with great local knowledge. Everything went perfectly to plan with our very experienced tour guides Edwin and Freddie offering over and above what we expected. We would highly recommend Bench International to anyone and if we were ever to return to these beautiful countries would never travel with anyone else. Thank you Bench and your tour staff for a once in a lifetime most amazing holiday to Africa. Rob & Carleen Hargreaves, Queensland

From the time of booking the experience with Bench was incredible. Every question was answered and at any time I felt I could find answers to my sometimes rather obscure question. The documents......well for anyone like me who is a bit of a nerd for nice, pretty and unique things I was more than excited to receive them. Information overload so that no stone was left unturned for my upcoming adventure. The trip was amazing as was the destination. It certainly allows one to immerse themselves in not only the culture and people but to totally be awe inspired each and everyday. Africa is an explosion to the senses and an incredible gift to the soul. My love for animals only grew as each day I was rewarded with incredible sightings and extremely humbling moments. The guides where an inspiration with their knowledge and love of their country. The lodges and tented camps where beyond my expectations and the tranquility and scenery was always an added bonus. I can certainly recommend Bench whom I will no doubt use again in the near future. As a destination I would urge anyone wanting a journey of a lifetime to look into one of these simply incredible itineraries.

All arrangements made by Hanna from Bench Africa worked out perfect, all airline tickets and transfers went very smoothly. Our three night stay at Honeyguide Khoka Moya Tent Camp in Manyeleti Game reserve was the highlight, the staff at the camp were warm and friendly especially our safari guides Leyton and Phillip. The kids had a great time and we observed plenty of wildlife. We also had a great time in Victoria Falls were we stayed at Victoria Falls Safari Suites Lodge, the accomodation was perfect for a family of four and the staff were excellent. The people of South Africa and Zimbabwe that we met on our trip could not have been more attentive and friendly. We are talking about returning to see more of Africa on our next family holiday.

We recently completed a Bench Tour in Namibia. Our tour guide was Toni Hart (Wilderness Safaris). We had a great time. We knew little of Namibia prior to our holiday and had been urged to visit Namibia by expat South Africans from my work. It was a truly fascinating trip with a touch of pioneering adventure. Our guide Toni was remarkable, driving long distances sharing an incredible amount of knowledge and personal information about Namibia and South Africa. Our bush camps were wonderfully remote, quiet and spectacular. The food was also exceptional, comparable to the best restaurants in the city. Our trip was altered as we travelled to take advantage of the weather and our physical condition. We were introduced to the locals giving us greater understanding of the life before European habitation. Thank you to Bench International and to Toni for a wonderful & exciting time together. Graham & Jenny Miller

I used Bench International for my trip in September 2016 to Rwanda to see the mountain gorillas and found it truly amazing. The gorilla group I requested my guide managed to arrange for me which was the famous Titus group and the silverback even charged me on my gorilla trek which was unique. I am planning to go back to Africa next year to visit Uganda, Tanzania, Morocco and perhaps Egypt if it is safe and will be using Bench International and have even requested a brochure.

I left most of the arrangements in the hands of my agent at Bench who managed to put together a comprehensive itinerary which ensured we saw the maximum amount of animals in the wild, as well as staying at varied and interesting safari camps and hotels. The trip lasted a month and included stop-overs in Johannesburg, Victoria Falls, and lengthy stays in Botswana and Tanzania (including 6 days in Zanzibar - an add on that we organised for extra relaxation and deep sea fishing). It was a trip of a lifetime and I highly recommend Bench and our agent, Stephanie!