It is our mission and passion to share the beauty and energy of Africa with the entire world, and one of the best ways to illustrate what you might experience on safari is through speaking with a professional safari guide. For this reason, we’ve created a new Live the Magic of Africa blog series, Q&A with Professional Safari Guide, Mark Homann.
Mark Homann
Raised in Zimbabwe’s farming community, Mark earned his Professional Guides license at the young age of twenty-two. His formative years as a safari guide were spent managing camps and leading specialized safaris for companies with a heavy focus toward sustainable, community-based natural resource management.
Mark and his family now live outside of Hilton Head, South Carolina, where he works as a safari consultant to organize safaris in Eastern and Southern Africa. Mark is also available as a personal safari guide by special request.
We are delighted that Mark has decided to join the Hills of Africa as one of our Africa travel specialists.
Below is a Q & A with Mark:
1. How does having your own personal safari guide differ from experiencing safari in a group of individuals?
A private safari gives you the flexibility of having all of your experiences focus primarily on your interests. I can recall many times, while on a group safari, people’s interests differed and a compromise was always the result.
For example, if you witness a lion make a kill for the first time, you may want to spend the whole morning tracking the pack—as it could be your only chance to see them. But, if you’re on a group safari, the other guests may have already seen lots of lions and want to move on quickly to other experiences.
2. What types of individuals would benefit from having a personal safari guide? Who would not benefit from having a personal safari guide?
In my opinion, everyone on safari would benefit from having a private guide. Private guides typically have a lot more experience and are at the top of the industry, which makes your safari experience highly adventurous and exciting. They work hand in hand with resident or lodge guides so you experience not one, but two personal safari guides. A pure luxury while on safari.
3. What traits make for a great safari guide?
There has always been a debate about what makes a good guide. Some people love wildlife and know so much about all the various wildlife of Africa, but don’t have the socializing skills to effectively communicate their knowledge and excitement, while others are great with people but not as informed about the wildlife. With that said, the best guides are those who love talking about wildlife and interacting with people, and have a lot of enthusiasm.
4. What characteristics would describe your ideal safari-goer / client / participant?
The best clients on a safari are people that are interested, excited, and enthusiastic, and ask a lot of questions.
Be the first to let us know what you think of our new blog series, Q&A with Professional Safari Guide, Mark Homann in our comments section.
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