Kirsten is one of our most experienced safari consultants. She is confident and knowledgeable designing trips across the whole of Africa, but her knowledge of South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia is especially good.
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Born and raised in South Africa, Kirsten is one of our most experienced safari consultants. Her knowledge of ground operations across Southern Africa was the reason we hired her at Yellow Zebra; she has over ten years experience in South Africa alone.
Expert destinations
Botswana, Kenya, Seychelles, South Africa, Mauritius, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Recent travel experience
Kirsten returns to South Africa every year to see her family; however, her most recent trip had her returning to Kenya, this time as a solo traveller. Here's her guide on what you can expect when travelling by yourself on safari.
Other recent YZ trips have seen her return to South Africa's Kruger and its private reserves, explore Mauritius again, take an extensive trip to Botswana for the second time, and visit Tanzania twice exploring the north, south, and then Zanzibar.
Kirsten's most memorable experience
“My most memorable safari was in Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique – a remote and truly wild park that very few people ever get to visit. I can never convey the feeling of being the only guests in a park of this size – a park adored by safari enthusiasts! We were out on our afternoon game drive and it started to pour with rain so we found shelter under a large tree and waited for the rain to stop. Once the rain had stopped the sun came out and with it a porcupine and its baby came out from a bush to dry off in the sun. For me safari is all about magical moments like this. Safari is not all about the Big Five!”
Kirsten's biography
Kirsten was born and bred in Durban on South Africa’s KwaZulu Natal coast. After studying Travel and Tourism, Kirsten worked for a ground agent in South Africa, running the main safari accounts. In March 2010 Kirsten moved to the UK with her husband and was snapped up by one of the UK’s leading safari operators. After four years working as their head of Southern African operations, Kirsten joined us at Yellow Zebra.
Kirsten has extensive knowledge of South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, and Mauritius – all are destinations she knows inside out and are the areas she focuses on at Yellow Zebra. Her knowledge of Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Seychelles, Kenya, and Tanzania is also extensive, having visited each country whilst working in the industry, and as a child growing up in Southern Africa.
Her experience working on the ground in Africa is invaluable as a sales consultant – very few specialists worldwide have this kind of experience. This in-depth knowledge of some of our main destinations makes her invaluable to Yellow Zebra and separates her from the vast majority of Southern Africa ‘experts’ out there. She is incredibly thorough with a real focus on the detail of her clients' trips. The best safaris are all about the detail…!
Client reviews
“Yellow Zebra planned an amazing safari for my husband and I! Kirsten worked with us to develop an itinerary that had lodges that complemented each other and provided a diverse experience... We definitely wanted to go and Kirsten made that happen. She answered all of our questions and scheduled our Covid tests in our lodges so they were convenient. Our safari far exceeded our expectations!"
"Kirsten listened to what we wanted in the trip and revised the itinerary a few times before confirming the booking to make sure we had the best experience possible. Her planning was thorough and all we had to do was literally show up in South Africa! Everything was arranged for us."
"I have booked holidays through Yellow Zebra every year since 2015 (and already booked for 2020!) travelling to Zambia, and can say that my bookings and requests have all been excellently handled by Kirsten... and the rest of the team who I have spoken to, nothing is too much trouble and I was kept fully informed through the booking process, and follow ups."
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"Yellow Zebra are genuine specialists; they know the African bush like the back of their hand."
Brian Jackman, safari expert for The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, Condé Nast, and the BBC
'Europe's Leading Safari Tour Operator' at the World Travel Awards
10 years in a row, since 2015
"What I really liked is that they got straight back to me when I asked any question and there was a personal contact. Organised a safari in Botswana and made informed suggestions to make our holiday "perfect"!"
Ron Hill
"James was great at listening and understanding what our group was looking for in our custom designed Safari. He put together a trip of a lifetime for 9 of us. He also found a way to do it within budget. The whole crew at Yellow Zebra was really easy to work with. One of our group members said "I..."
Donn
"We booked through Yellow Zebra because their staff was very timely with answers to our questions, and provided excellent advice regarding planning for a complex multi-destination photographic trip. "
Linda Bates
"Yellow Zebra are really the experts on safari. They were so helpful and knowledgeable in the booking process. Then they gave lots of useful advice just before the trip as well. We loved the lodges that they suggested for us, and had the holiday of a lifetime.."
SStacey
"I was impressed with the speed with which Sebastian produced a costed itinerary which met my needs. This and his detailed knowledge of the different safari areas of Zambia persuaded me to go with Yellow Zebra."