50th Birthday Celebration
Well what can I say to you all? Thank you thank you from the bottom of my heart for making my 50th birthday such a wonderful and memorable birthday for me. We had the most amazing holiday and I can only thank you all for making it so special for me. I know that Simon had a lot of ideas but the
staff at the Saxon, Royal Malewane and Singita Lebombo went above and beyond to make our stay truly special. To be upgraded in both the Saxon and Royal Malewane was something else - so much so that I burst in to tears when I walked in to the suites.
Thank you for making that happen for us.
The Saxon were fabulous and every night a bottle of champagne was left in our room. The Royal Malewane was exceptional; Natham the head chef went all out to make sure everything was done for us and his cooking was probably the best I have ever had. He treated us like royalty! The head guide Juan was fantastic and we saw all the animals and more. Our room was out of this world and you didn't want to leave it. Lebombo again the staff were fantastic (Deidre the head ranger was exceptional) and made my birthday such a special day for me. White and silver balloons on the truck and in the room, a surprise bush breakfast (with giraffes present, as requested!), presents from the staff, sun downer with champagne and a private dinner by the river lit up by lanterns and candles. They had also organised a special birthday cake for me and the local choir sang for us. I really was completely overwhelmed by everything everybody had done for me. I could go on and on but above all you at Roar Africa have been amazing too and I thank you all for your professionalism and making sure that everything went smoothly for us.
I certainly would recommend you to anybody going on a safari; your attention
to detail and quick response to any requests is above and beyond. And then to cap it all you gave me a massage for my birthday at the Saxon on our last day. Totally unexpected so thank you for thinking of me; very thoughtful of you all.
Simon & Sarah Ashby (London/Bermuda, 2012)
The trip was incredible, we were floored!!! I can't thank you enough for your help and savvy throughout. Thank you so much again and happy new year!!
Andrew Mason & Jenny Gillespie Mason (Chicago, 2011)
SA is by far the most beautiful country we have ever traveled to and the only place to book through is ROAR AFRICA. We were fortunate enough to have James McBride recommend ROAR AFRICA to us. We blindly followed direction and thank heavens as everything was to perfection!
From the food, to the properties and recommendations. All the planning from the minute we left to the minute we arrived home, every possible detail and more was all taken care of. We are nervous we will never want to travel anywhere else again. We actually had never worked with a specialist tour operator before and we simply can't believe how our holiday came alive at the hands of ROAR AFRICA. For example we were treated to lunch at one of the most beautiful restaurants in the world in winelands. The Chef came out to meet us, welcome us and prepared a special menu around what we felt like eating at that moment. So many other touches were customized to meet our needs along the way...I've never seen a company work with such intuition - we were very spoilt and can't wait to go back.
Thank you for everything it was a spectacular trip!
Chris Burch (C Wonder & Tory Burch) & Monika Chang (New York, 2011)
Our guide Stephen, Michael (Kensington Place) and Kevin Pongola (Singita Lebombo) were all great. The animals were amazing, accommodations superb, service was attentive, and food delicious. We had a wonderful wonderful time and can't wait to return.
Thank you.
Ed & Nicole (Washington DC, 2011)
A HUGE heartfelt thank you to Debs and her brilliant team for creating the most memorable and incredibly special experience of our lifetime. Every detail was perfectly planned and executed, surpassing all of our (wildest) dreams and wishes! We will cherish every moment forever.
Roar Africa is always highly professional and most knowledgeable in every way. We really fell in love with the beautiful Seychelles. Each property we visited per Roar Africa's recommendation was exceptional and provided the perfect balance for our Honeymoon. Desroches Island has to be the most stunning and magical place on earth!
We cannot thank you enough for all of your endless efforts, expertise and personal touches that made our Honeymoon so extraordinary and exceptional. We very much look forward to planning many more wonderful travel experiences together with you!
Michael & Victoria Nethersole (London, 2011)
The whole safari was wonderful down to every detail and great planning for sure. The upgrade was especially nice for me and Carole and of course, we all needed and loved the massages.
So we'll be booking with ROAR AFRICA again for sure! Thanks for your patience in dealing with our crazy schedules and for being so accommodating and thoughtful.
Next time, it just needs to be a bit longer!
Pat Mitchell (New York, 2011)
Deborah,
Thank you for your marvelous service and care.
We had the most wonderful time...and so appreciate the fabulous upgrades and the marvelous gift massage!
The Singita Grumeti properties and people are extraordinary, as they are in South Africa, but 340,000 private acres made this trip even more unforgettable.
With deep gratitude,
Carole Black (Los Angeles, 2011)
ROAR AFRICA designed a personal safari in South Africa for my children & I during the Christmas holidays. Every detail was to guarantee a exciting and memorable trip. From fresh flowers on our bed at Lion Sands spelling out Merry Christmas, stockings hung on our door after Christmas eve dinner, riding on the backs of elephants at the Elephant Whisper to actually petting a cheetah. Thanks to Geoff our wonderfully knowledgeable guide & host we saw the very best of Cape Town, watched 5 Great White Sharks swim by our boat and enjoyed the local food and wine in Franschhoek.
What an amazing opportunity to bond as a family and experience trip that the kids said "changed their lives". I recommend everyone experience the unique treasures of Africa once in their lifetime with ROAR AFRICA.
Vanessa Williams (Westchester NY, 2009)
Hi Deb,
I wanted to take some time to thank you and the entire team at Roar Africa for the trip of a lifetime. As a piece of background before this review, please keep in mind that I work in the travel industry and travel extensively. In expressing our thanks, it seems appropriate to me to start with the trip planning and then get into the trip.
From the get go, you provided vastly superior service than any of the other providers we looked at for the trip. You provided knowledgeable recommendations on itinerary rather than simply a canned tour program. Our trip was really and truly personalized and I can't envision getting better service anywhere else. ... Without your recommendation, we would have missed several key pieces of the trip, including all of Zambia . The great thing about it was that the service provided by your team only got better after you had secured our business. We made changes to itinerary and you made it happen. Not only did you make it happen, but your team was able secure surprise upgrades for us throughout. Now on to the trip...
[shortened]
Deb, this truly was the trip of a lifetime. I cannot fathom this trip coming of near as well had we worked with anyone else or been stuck a standardized tour. Your team more than delivered on everything. Everything was top notch. We will definitely use your services when we return with our entire family in the future. Without question, we recommend your services to anyone traveling to South Africa or southern Africa in general.
Thank you for everything,
Jeff and Diana (San Marcos, California 2010)
Dear Deb,
Thank you for all the organizing you did for the our family trip to South Africa.
It was superb and seamless in its' execution due to ROAR AFRICA's input.
Best,
Our Family (London, 2009)
Deb!
Words cant even begin to describe the time we had, the most amazing trip of our life. We met some wonderful people and just can't say enough about the level of service we received from start to finish.
Andy was such a pleasure and we will never be able to thank him enough. It was a level of service I have never experienced. We have already provided your information to several friends and are trying to relay our experience to others.
I could go on forever! I really can't say enough about everything, you and your staff planned the most wonderful trip, truly a trip of a lifetime. One we will always remember and forever share with those around us.
While over 8,000 miles away having your family and friends on the ground gave us the comfort to enjoy the wonders around knowing we were safe and taken care of.
Thank you so very much Deb.
Sincerely,
Kyle and Laura (Ohio, 2010)
Dear Deb,
Thanks so much for everything. We had a fabulous time. Everyone loved the experience and we have three more converts to South Africa. Every aspect of the trip was perfect and I wouldn't have changed a thing. I will def be recommending you to anyone who is thinking of a trip to Southern Africa.
Brian our guide around the Cape area was really nice and a favorite of all 5 of us. He did a great job and was terribly helpful; plus he took a lot of excellent photos and gave them to us which I appreciated as I hope to put together a big album as soon as I can.
That's it for a quick report. Mainly I wanted to thank you right away and congratulate you on arranging such a superb journey. The cultural/educational/political African experiences were just right, too. I'll be in touch again soon.
Thanks again,
Monica Wambold (New York 2009)
Published in the October 2009 issue of Travel+Leisure Magazine:
READER'S FIND: AFRICA
My friend and I recently took a trip of a lifetime-a custom tour through South Africa, Zambia, and Botswana designed by ROAR AFRICA. We were not assigned to any assistant; the company's CEO-South African native Deborah Calmeyer-helped us craft our ideal itinerary herself. As two very picky New Yorkers we had done our research, but Deborah steered us to amazing safari camps, hotels, restaurants, and sites that we would never have discovered on our own. Plus, her local guides were always there to answer our questions.
Beth (New York 2009)
Dear Deb
Honestly...I don't think I can remotely get all of my thoughts and feelings out in an email there's just so much to say! Would you call me sometime this week whenever you have a chance, I'm dying to tell you all about it!
If you told me to go jump off the Brooklyn Bridge right now, I probably would- because I basically trust your opinion and recommendations more than anyone else's on the planet. Oh- and I miss your dad sooooo much!!!!
Thank you for everything - can't wait to talk to you about it!!
Nicole (New York 2009)
We were initially intimidated by the logistics of organizing a safari for our honeymoon. But once we found ROAR AFRICA, all of the arrangements fell into place. The trip ended up being seamless and we had the experience of a lifetime!
Thomas & Benan (New York 2008)
Hi Deb!
We could not have imagined how great the trip turned out to be no matter how much we anticipated what it would be like. Spending the time with Richard and Geoff was like being with old friends - especially Geoff. Their knowledge of S Africa and wine - even Geoff's knowledge of wine : ) - gave great perspective and their easy-going and friendly manner made us feel like friends were showing us around and never like we were being "guided". We loved hearing the stories of Geoff's experience as an African farmer and all of the great adventures he has had. It was truly time very warmly and fun spent together. With as amazing a time as we had, the experience was really made by the warmth of Geoff and Richard.
Vic Falls was majestic to see and Zambia such a contrast to what we had seen in S Africa. To see black Africans living in villages where subsistence is the objective of everyday life is something that should be seen by everybody fortunate enough to be able to travel to Africa. I would encourage you to encourage people who have never been to Africa to make that a part of their trip.
Lion Sands is an incredible experience. They have to be one of the true greatest destination luxury accommodations in the world.
Deb, we could not have had a better trip and a better experience and it was really made because of all the thought and effort your family put into making this an incredible experience for us. Thank you.
Todd (New York 2008)
Dear Deborah,
Our trip to South Africa and Mozambique was spectacular. At Kruger, the game drives during the days and in the evenings were overwhelming. It was amazing to be part of the animals' natural environment, and observe them functioning as if we weren't there. People tell you ahead, but to actually see it does feel a bit like one is participating in a surreal situation.
And, Deborah, the "icing on the cake" was our guide Geoff. His grasp of the history, current and past, his passion, his insight into the political situation and his willingness to talk about all of these things with us, candidly, was simply wonderful. He is so articulate and bright, and the sharing of so much valuable information, while in Cape Town and the surrounding areas, was an added bonus. We feel we have a new and extraordinary friend, and we can't wait to go back and spend time with him in another part of Africa..or welcome him with open arms when he is next in the states.
Kathryn and I have never taken a trip where we paid so little attention to the details, prior to the trip. ROAR AFRICA's planning and execution were superb, and we thank you for that luxury.
Kathryn & Alan (North Carolina 2007)
