Together with the SouthAfrica-Experience team, you will see South Africa through the eyes of locals. We have travelled to every corner of this land, wandered along its shores, hiked along its trails, studied its history and cultures, admired its wildlife, and enjoyed its cuisine. South Africa is our home and we fall in love with it again and again.
At our office in Somerset West in the Western Cape, we work hand in hand to make your South Africa travel dreams come true.
We want to share with you what we love, because we know you will love it too.
Sonja heads our team of travel experts in the pursuit of creating meaningful travel experiences for our guests. Born in Southern Sudan, Sonja grew up in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi and travelled extensively across East Africa, Namibia, South Africa, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. After completing her Master’s degree in Performance Psychology in Scotland and working in Germany for a few years, Sonja put her career’s focus on working with international teams to work towards a common goal. She would love for our guests to experience the magic of travelling across Africa at least once in their lives – whether it’s a trip to her home country of Kenya, the impressive Okavango Delta in Botswana, or another beautiful corner of the continent.
Key Account Manager
Alexandra Lindinger
Alexandra has been part of the team since 2011. Equipped with meticulous attention to detail and many years of experience, she stays on top of things even in the busiest times. She has travelled around Tanzania, Kenya, Namibia, and South Africa, visiting many lodges and camps. When climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, Alexandra learned to respect the demanding trek up the highest mountain in Africa and is proud to have made it to Stella Point. As an animal lover and resolute advocate of animals’ rights, she cares deeply about Africa’s wildlife and promotes the values of sustainable tourism.
Product Manager Southern Africa
Marlene Tritschler
Marlene started working in the tourism industry in 2005 as a trainee for a small tour operator, specialising in trips to Southern and East Africa. Over the years she worked as a Sales and Product Manager, organising self-drive trips in Namibia, South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique as well as safaris in Botswana and Tanzania. On her visits to these countries she got to know the places, as well as the people, and is now one of our very experienced team members.
South Africa Travel Expert
Mia Hald
As a tour guide for a Danish tour operator, Mia spent 10 years exploring South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, Europe, and China. After many years on the road, she is now an integral part of our office team of travel experts; her experience as a guide has taught her how important it is to communicate a clear picture of each trip to her guests. Passing on the joy of travel comes naturally to Mia as she loves spending time out and about in nature. She is a passionate photographer and will bring her camera wherever she goes.
South Africa Travel Expert
Elisabeth Kaiser
Working in travel and tourism brings Elisabeth closer to what she loves the most: exploring new countries and cultures. Eli grew up in Germany but has been living in South Africa since 2008. Before joining Africa-Experience, she completed her studies in tourism management and worked for an international airline while always making time to explore the region of southern Africa: from all over South Africa to southern and northern Namibia, coastal Mozambique as well as Tanzania and Zanzibar. Eli loves to travel and looks forward to sharing this love and passion with her guests, making you aware of how beautiful, different, and interesting the world can really be.
South Africa Travel Expert
Vana Lingham
Vana was born and raised in Cape Town and has explored many areas of Southern and Eastern Africa from here: From the Garden Route to Kruger National Park and Madikwe in South Africa, from Swakopmund, to Etosha, the Damaraland, and the Namib Desert in Namibia; from eSwatini to Zimbabwe, to Zambia, Botswana, and Malawi. She went on safaris in northern and southern Tanzania and met the mountain gorillas of Rwanda. When planning a trip with her guests, she relives the experiences of her own travels, sharing many tips and favourite places. Vana has always worked in travel and tourism, but still enjoys the challenge of learning about new destinations and activities – always looking for the perfect dream trip for her guests.
South Africa Travel Expert
Dirk Reiche
Dirk joined our team in 2023 after a diverse career as a chef, guide, marketing manager, and driving instructor. Born in Johannesburg, Dirk lived in Umhlanga near Durban in South Africa, Windhoek in Namibia, and Winterberg in Germany. His passion for Africa led him to travel through East Africa and Congo. Naturally, his path led him to become a guide for self-drive tours, travelling extensively throughout Namibia, Botswana, and Zambia, gaining proficiency as a level two off-roading instructor. His favourite places to recommend include the Skeleton Coast National Park for its allure of adventure and the Savuti in the Chobe National Park for incredible wildlife and stunning scenery. He is a natural people person, relishing the opportunity to share his knowledge of Africa with others, which will shine through when you contact Dirk. Dirk speaks English, German, Afrikaans and Funi-galore.
Marketing Manager
Evelyn Kürz
Evelyn has one of the best jobs of them all: as Marketing Manager, she gets to tell the whole world about the beauty of South Africa and the excitement when travelling the vast landscapes. She finds this no trouble as she has travelled the country extensively herself, being impressed by its diversity of safari adventures, hiking trips, and idyllic winelands. Evelyn has been in the tourism industry since 2004 and joined the team in 2010. With her vast knowledge of Southern Africa and understanding of the industry she is a passionate ambassador for South Africa travel.
Daniel’s job as our General Manager is almost as diverse as his background. Growing up in Turkey and Germany, he moved to England before settling in South Africa. He studied Psychology at the University of Constance and completed his MBA at the University of Cape Town, worked in the film industry, as director of an NGO and Global HR manager at an international airline. Today, Daniel pulls the strings behind the scenes, aligning strategy with reality and translating it into our day-to-day business. Whenever he gets the chance, he escapes to Cape Town’s beaches and mountains or the remote Wild Coast.
Reservations Manager
Manon Hartman
Since the early 2000s Manon has been part of the travel industry and still enjoys every day. Doing her bit to make our guests dream of travel in Africa come true, makes it a rewarding experience. As Reservations Manager, she leads our reservations team, staying on top of things even during the busiest of seasons. Originally Dutch but having lived most of her life in South Africa, she appreciates the country’s natural beauty and diversity. Whenever she can, she gets out to the beach to spend time by the ocean or exploring Cape Town.
Reservations Agent
Linda Opande
Exceptional communication skills and destination knowledge make Linda an integral member of our reservations team since 2013. Born Kenyan she has lived in and travelled South Africa for many years. With a background in project management she handles ad-hoc changes in bookings with ease. Linda enjoys expanding her knowledge about properties in southern Africa to even better assist her guests in creating the trip they have always wanted.
Reservations Agent
Amy Ohlson
Being part of a fun and supportive team and working together to create wonderful memories for our guests is what Amy loves about her work at Africa-Experience. Born and raised in Cape Town, she enjoys learning new things about her home region of Southern Africa as part of her job. Amy has worked in different administration roles as well as a car rental agency at Cape Town International Airport. One of her favourite places is standing on top of Table Mountain, enjoying a 360-degree view of her home town, the Mother City.
