Aidan Dunlop

About Aidan

Aidan’s early insights into wildlife and nature fuelled a lifelong and deep passion towards all things big and small in the natural world. This early experience led to his pursuing a career as a safari guide in South Africa. Here, for nearly eight years, he lived and worked in the adrenaline-pumping Sabi Sands.

Aidan did his training in the lesser-known Marataba section of the Marakele National Park in South Africa. After completing his training, he spent the rest of his guiding career across two very different lodges on either side of the Sabi Sands, before joining Yellow Zebra.

Expert destination

South Africa.

Aidan's recent travel experience

Aidan has recently come back from a two-week trip exploring some of the areas of South Africa he hadn’t been to before. Starting off in the iconic and diverse Phinda Game Reserve, he was blown away by the incredible array of landscapes and birdlife. He then jumped back to somewhat more familiar territory in the private game reserves bordering Kruger’s western boundary, where despite the high temperature there was an amazing level of game viewing. Moving farther south, spending a few nights at Mala Mala truly elevated the game viewing to exceptional, with truly prolific big game sightings. Next was a quick two flights to Madikwe to explore an area very new to him, where he was astounded by the difference in the wildlife and landscape, something that until then he had never seen.

Aidan's most memorable experience

“There are so many safari moments that will stay with me forever. For me, a recent visit to Mana Pools has the biggest collections of those moments – unfiltered, raw, and wildly beautiful. It’s the kind of place that makes you feel small in the best way possible.“I remember the scorching heat, the kind that clings to your skin and fills the air with the scent of dry earth, rendering cooling down virtually impossible. The Zambezi river shimmered in the distance, a lifeline in this vast, untamed wilderness. We spent our days on foot, bushwalking through the iconic winterthorn forests, tracking down large and potentially dangerous game.“Then there were the elephants. I’ll never forget the feeling of standing there, heart pounding, as one approached, close enough to hear its slow, rhythmic breaths. It was humbling, almost surreal, to share space with a creature so powerful yet so peaceful. And at night, when the campfire flickered and the stars stretched endlessly above, the same group of elephants wandered through camp, moving silently in the moonlight.“One evening, we stopped for sundowners in the middle of the bush, sipping ice-cold Zimbabwean beer as the red sun sunk towards the horizon. It should have been a peaceful moment – until we realised we weren’t alone. Lions lounged nearby, their golden eyes catching the last light of day. There was no panic, just an overwhelming sense of awe.“Mana Pools isn’t just a place I visited; it’s a place that consumed me, challenged me, and, in some ways, changed me. I'll never forget that feeling, and I intend to chase it with return trips soon!”

Aidan's biography

Aidan was born in Harare, Zimbabwe, but he moved to the Western Cape of South Africa when he was four years old. He first lived in a town called Knysna on the Garden Route, before relocating to Cape Town for the rest his primary school and high school.Aidan has been very fortunate to grow up in a family that shares his deep passion for nature. Their love for the outdoors began with trips to Zimbabwean reserves and, after moving to South Africa, they explored nearly all the national parks across his new home country. Aidan’s legendary, wilderness-loving grandfather often shared exciting and adrenaline-packed stories of his exciting past in Zimbabwe, and his passion and excitement cemented his grandson’s fascination with wildlife and nature.

From a young age, being surrounded by nature – whether along the coast or in the bush – instilled in Aidan a profound appreciation for all things natural and wild. This passion shaped his career as a safari guide, a life he lived for seven years at two lodges in the Sabi Sands. He made the most of the eight-week work cycles in the safari industry, using the two-week breaks to travel as much as possible. These breaks took him on incredible overseas trips and memorable adventures to wilderness areas like Mana Pools in Zimbabwe, the Namibian Orange River, and diving destinations in Mozambique.”