OUR REPRESENTATIVES IN SOUTH AFRICA

Africa Direct is owned and run by two passionate wildlife enthusiasts who have collectively worked in the conservation and tourism industry for over twenty years.  Although we utilise every facet of what the hospitality industry in Southern Africa has to offer, we specialise in top class safari experiences!

As well as being part of the tour operating team at Africa Direct, where he is famous for planning spectacular journeys around Africa, Mike Karantonis heads up the Specialist Safari division. He is a specialist game ranger that has been guiding for 12 years in all parts of Africa and is now dedicated to privately hosting safari tours around Africa with his guests.

He  was based at Phinda Private Game Reserve as a Specialist Ranger for CCAfrica/andbeyond until the end of 2008.   Mike, his wife Lisa, and their two young children, Kira and Josh, now live in White River, a mere hour's drive from their beloved Kruger National Park, which is where you can find the whole family during any vacation time!

Mike has wanted to be a game ranger since the age of eight! After school he obtained a prestige diploma in game ranging and private lodge management. He slowly worked his way through the ranks and qualifications and after four years’ of guiding he was appointed Head Ranger of Phinda Forest and Vlei lodges. His qualifications also include being a trails guide, bird guide, canoe guide, evaluator, mentor and trainer for the CCAfrica/andbeyond group. Mike also has FGASA qualifications.  Some of the Specialist Safaris that Mike conducts are leopard research, white rhino darting, photographic safaris, specialist birding safaris, big cat safaris, predator safaris, bush skills and 7 wonders in 7 days (Phinda only).  He won the Munyawana Ranger of the Year award in 2004 and the CCAfrica Ranger of the Year award in 2007.   These prestigious awards of course made him the CC Africa/andbeyond Ranger of choice to conduct the safaris of any high profile clients.  He has also had a long standing relationship with the local community hence his in-depth involvement with the communities.

Mike has also experienced parts of East Africa such as Kenya and Tanzania, exploring the wonders of the great migration and the magnificence of Ngorogoro Crater. He has conducted ranger training at Matetsi in Zimbabwe and at Sossusvlei in Namibia.  One of his favorite pastimes, is enjoying sundowner drinks on the banks of the Khwai River in Botswana…..

Whether you want to specialise in photography, birds, habitats, animal behaviour or even just spend quality time at one sighting, this all becomes an option with having a specialist ranger privately hosting you on your safari!

Tanya Kotze as a Tour Operator has vast experience of personally visiting hundreds of lodges and hotels in order to be able to sell top quality products with confidence because of the fact that one cannot believe everything on the web or from what you see in a brochure. This dedicated approach of quality assurance has earned her the respect and regular return business in organising top quality, fun, value for money and perfectly balanced  visits to Southern Africa.

After completing her honours degree in Sociology, Tanya soon realised that it was time to follow her heart, and become part of Africa's growing tourism industry.  To her there is nothing as special as the African Bush with its unique fauna and flora, and to say that she is passionate about Africa's Big 5 would be an understatement! She has personally visited more than 50 of Africa's "Big 5" lodges during the past few years. There is no one with more personal experiences of luxury game lodges in South Africa than her. Tanya is a very keen birder - with her personal list exceeding 600. Her husband, Hilton, is an award winning wildlife photographer, and Tanya has arranged numerous wildlife photographic safaris for numerous clients wishing to capture that perfect shot!

 Tanya believes in tailor making every itinerary according to every client's specific needs.  Most people travel a very long way to get to Africa, and she believes in giving priority to your specific needs and interests, to ensure that your vacation is the best it could possibly be!  Contact Tanya today, so that she can start tailor making your vacation of a lifetime!

OUR REPRESENTATIVE IN GERMANY

Nicole Justus is heads up the European Agency of Africa Direct. After finishing her degree on Landscape Architecture and adding a business specialist degree she moved with her family to the USA. During her years in the U.S.A she made numerous self organized trips through the U.S.A and Canada.
As the next step, she and her husband, Markus, moved to South Africa and lived there for several years. During this time, Nicole continued to organize different trips, partly already dealing with Africa Direct, to discover South Africa and Botswana. After those trips she got infected with the ‘Virus’ called Africa and now truly loves the country and its’ people! Nicole has also become an enthusiastic amateur photographer.

The experiences in the African bush were unique and the endless variety of animals and birds in Africa continue to amaze her.  In Europe most of the animals are only known to Europeans from watching wildlife documentaries or visiting the zoo. How different is the experience if a lion or an elephant approaches without a fence in-between! Sitting on an open off-road game viewing vehicle, one gets such a huge adrenaline rush when looking into the eyes of a lion or the car nearly gets touched by the trunk of an elephant. It is a very unique experience and we hope to enable as many people as possible to share in this amazing experience!

Based on the very positive experiences with Africa Direct in organizing her private trips through Africa, Nicole decided to open an European Agency of Africa Direct after her return to Germany, where she continues to utilise the full back up service of the offices in South Africa!

We have found the secret recipe for making the most unforgettable safari experience and we would love to share it with you by trusting in us to look after all your planning and safari requirements!