Matt W's biography
Having grown up in South Africa since the age of 6, with a mother who works in the travel industry and a father who grew up close to Kruger National Park, Matt enjoyed going on safari from a very young age. Safari was a significant part of his early years.
Family holidays to the Kruger, the Garden Route, the Cape Winelands, KwaZulu-Natal, and across other parts of South Africa were a fixture of Matt’s childhood and teenage years. Going on safari was always the highlight, though, and he looked forward the most to these trips, which imbued him with a passion for Africa’s iconic wildlife.
As he’d had an interest in writing from a young age, Matt thought it would be a good idea to study journalism. Midway through his studies, though, he realised it wasn’t the career path he wanted to take. During his time at university, he’d started working as an administrative assistant for a small tour operator, simply to earn some pocket money. However, he picked up a notable interest in the travel industry, as it united two of his primary passions: travel and wildlife.
Matt gradually moved from admin assistant to junior travel consultant. At first his work involved trips just to South Africa, but eventually he moved up through the ranks to the intermediate level and started putting together trips to other destinations in Southern Africa. He then joined one of the world’s premier online travel operators, where he learned about many more destinations and extended his knowledge and expertise to East Africa.
With a desire to spread his wings and explore more of the world – Europe in particular – Matt decided to move to the UK. Here he has taken up a position at YZ, selling safari destinations across Southern and East Africa.