The Perfect Host!

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We have just launched a new and exciting concept for those of you wanting a guided safari – The Private Journey Host. We currently have two experts, Jon Morgan and Tim Carr.

So, what can a Private Journey Host do for you?

An &Beyond Private Journey Host will accompany you throughout your tailormade journey in South Africa, Namibia or Tanzania — making it a hosted adventure with a difference!  These expert guides, who are former &Beyond rangers, exude charm and wit and offer a wealth of knowledge,as well as little known gems that promise to delight.

Your Private Journey host will help you tailormake an unforgettable adventure and not only will they be waiting for you at the airport as you step off your plane,but they will also drive you from destination to destination, sharing stories and expertise along the way.

The Private Journey Hosts can also book restaurants and specialist activities and will ensure that your travel arrangements (think transfers and scheduled flights) run seamlessly — perfect for families, first-time visitors and repeat guests!

Read a little more about Jon and Tim below.

JOHN MORGAN – A BOY SCOUT AT HEART
Having worked for seven years in the bush as an &Beyond ranger, I am now a 33 year old safari specialist and my main goal is to reveal Africa’s beauty to my guests. For two years, I was the Head Ranger at Londolozi (when it was operated by &Beyond). I was involved in the training of other guides and I am also a fully certified walking guide. I spent two years as a travel planner at &Beyond, helping to tailormake unique
and exciting safari adventures for my guests, and now I am thrilled to be returning to my roots as a Private Journey Host. From families seeking adventure to couples looking for a hosted adventure with a difference, I love crafting journeys to suit my guests’ specific needs. To say that travelling is my passion in life would be an understatement. I have explored Europe, East Africa, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia,
Vietnam, Laos and Indonesia. Closer to home, which is just outside Nelspruit, South Africa, I have travelled extensively around South and Southern Africa. If I had to describe myself in one or two words, it would be ‘Boy Scout’. In high school I was Chairman of the Outdoor Club. Later, at Rhodes University, where I completed my Bachelor of Science, I was the Chairman of the Mountain Club. I will forever be a Boy Scout at heart. I live on a farm with my partner Melissa, our deaf cat Boomfloos, and our two dogs Shanti and Dexter.

My friend and colleague, Melissa Adey, is Jon’s partner.  She has a great article on her blog about Jon’s first trip.  Click here to read her article, but remember to come back to my blog if you want to continue reading.

TIM CARR – A NATURE LOVER FROM THE START
My earliest memories are of living in Oranjemund, Namibia. I can still remember my first “night drive” in search of oryx that would often come into town at night to feed on the gardens. This could well have been the experience that made me want to become a naturalist guide. I was not the most dedicated of students, spending most of my time either engrossed in a book or wandering (in my overactive imagination) some far
flung exotic corner of the continent. Upon graduating from the Navy as an officer, I was offered a job as camp assistant at &Beyond Phinda Private Game Reserve. I had wanted to work at &Beyond Phinda since the age of 15, when I first read about how &Beyond was rewriting the rules for community-based sustainable conservation development. I ran the Mzinene River cruises at Phinda and spent as much time as humanly possibly learning from the rangers before officially becoming a guide. I spent five years guiding at Phinda and the Sabi Sand Game Reserve, followed by a season in the Okavango Delta working as an assistant lodge manager with my partner. We then jetted off to Namibia to set up a mobile camping safari. Once it was up and running, we managed the Uplands Homestead safari villa at &Beyond Kwandwe Private Game Reserve for five years. I now live on the breathtaking Garden Route in South Africa with my wife Angelique and our two children Aiden and Tyla. We run our own self-catering lodge where we are busy rehabilitating 29 hectares of land that was previously used for a pineapple plantation.