Who We Are

Finlay went on his first ever holiday to Africa where he visited his aunt and uncle who live there and went to Kruger National Park for his first safari. He was lucky to be able to travel on several family holidays from then on as a child and into his teens.

Favourite Experiences: Exploring the bush and fulfilling his childhood ambitions to learn about all of the African wildlife. Being able to experience safari holidays with his siblings, parents, grandparents, aunt and uncle and make memories for life.

Finlay spent 5 days trekking in Tanzania to summit Africa’s highest and most famous mountain with his brother, dad and uncle in celebration of his dad’s 50th birthday.

Favourite Experience: Summiting the iconic Mount Kilimanjaro & experiencing an incredible activity beyond safari.

Finlay and Wendy had a brief glimpse into the culture of this small West African country when they visited on a holiday. Trekking through forests with monkeys and exploring the wild coast introduced them to a lesser visited and beautiful part of the continent.

Favourite Experiences: Walking with monkeys in the beautiful sanctuary & visiting the local, vibrant markets.

As part of training for leading an expedition to Ghana, Wendy spent time in Morocco and the Atlas mountain range training in wilderness first aid and summiting Toubkal, the highest peak in the Atlas range.

Favourite Experiences: Exploring the Marrakech markets, making it through the overnight fresh snowfall on the summit day to reach the top of Mount Toubkal & experiencing the local hospitality from the people we met during our trek to the summit.

Whilst still in her teaching career, Wendy led an expedition for 13 teenagers to Ghana where they spent a month immersed in the beautiful country. A combination of voluntary work, cultural experiences and trekking meant that she and the pupils lived in remote local villages, stayed in tree houses and tents in the jungle and learned about the history of the coastal fort towns all from the incredible local Ghanaian people. 

Favourite Experiences: Introducing Glaswegian teenagers to the beautiful continent… some of whom had never had a passport or been on a plane before! Spending the night in a treetop shelter in the jungle.

Wendy’s first introduction to safari was on a trip to South Africa with Finlay where they experienced the beauty of Cape town and the winelands around Stellenbosch and Franschhoek before heading on a self-drive safari in Kruger National Park.

Favourite Experiences: Hiking from Cape town to the top of Table Mountain, Bungee jumping off Bloukrans bridge & the thrill of spotting wild animals for the first time for Wendy.

It was always going to be a safari for their honeymoon, so Finlay and Wendy combined a tented safari in Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe with a visit to Victoria Falls and a house boat safari on the Chobe river for a once-in-a lifetime adventure. Combining this safari with a beach escape in Mauritius was the ultimate way for them to spend their unforgettable honeymoon.

Favourite Experiences: Tiger fishing on the Chobe river, walking safaris in Hwange National Park & being surrounded by a herd of swimming elephants in their private speedboat.

Taking a leap of faith, Finlay and Wendy moved from Glasgow to the South Luangwa Valley in Zambia to become the managers of the country’s newest and most luxurious safari lodge. It was here that their intimate knowledge of the safari industry started and where Africa truly got under their skin. 

Favourite Experiences: Guiding clients across the hippo filled Luangwa river, creating unforgettable safari experiences for the guests & becoming immersed in bush life in general… watching out for wandering lions, hippos and elephants on a daily basis.

After working to help establish the new lodge in Zambia, Finlay and Wendy went on the manage Rwanda’s premier safari lodge in Volcanoes National Park, catering to clients who had been on many safaris before and also to those who had saved for a lifetime to experience the incredible beauty of the mountain gorillas. This incredible encounter is described by Wendy as one of the biggest privileges and best experiences of her life. 

Favourite Experiences: The absolute privilege of getting to visit the mountain gorillas many times & even better, being able to ensure that our incredible local team at the lodge all got to visit them too; all of whom were born in Rwanda and had not yet been able to experience it for themselves.

Living in Rwanda meant that they had the perfect base from which to explore other African countries during their leave and so safari’s to the Maasai Mara, beach trips to Zanzibar and active holidays in South Africa meant they could continue to explore this incredible continent and all it has to offer. 

Favourite Experiences: Spotting wildlife from a hot air balloon ride over the Maasai Mara, swimming in the crystal clear Zanzibar waters & visiting the lovely orphaned elephants at the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.

Having been headhunted from their position in Rwanda, Finlay and Wendy moved to a private concession in the Serengeti to become the managers of an exclusive safari lodge, catering to the most bespoke requests and high net worth clientele. 

Favourite Experiences: Being able to provide guests with truly unique experiences on their holiday, gaining a deep knowledge of the Tanzanian culture and people & getting to witness the great migration.

Having recently left Tanzania to move to the French Alps and start their own luxury chalet company, Hunter Chalets, the pull of Africa was never far away and travelling with their one year old daughter to Tsavo East National Park and the Kenyan coast was the first of many safari holidays that now included their children. 

Favourite Experiences: Watching their one year old daughter feed an orphaned elephant, seeing the delight in their daughter’s eyes as she experience safari for the first time & sunset Dhow sailing on the tropical Kenyan coast.

Travelling to Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa with a large family group whilst Wendy was seven months pregnant and with a one-year-old was another unforgettable holiday for Finlay and Wendy. They were able to experience the Okavango Delta and Victoria Falls with ease and can offer advice based on first-hand experience of travelling with children and large groups in a safe safari environment. 

Favourite Experiences: Navigating the Okavango water ways in mokoro canoes, seeing Victoria falls from a helicopter & being on safari with their extended, multigenerational family, some of whom had never been to Africa before.

A coastal stay in tropical Watamu followed by a privately guided safari in the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti with their children’s grandparents, a two-year-old and a ten-month-old baby was the perfect way to spend a holiday that had something for everyone to enjoy. 

Favourite Experiences: Playing with the children in the warm, tropical waters of Watamu, watching a Hadzabe tribesman make bows and arrows for their children from scratch by the campfire, being privately guided by Peter who worked with them at their previous position in Tanzania & introducing their young family to all of the team that they worked with in Tanzania.

Now with three children in tow; aged eleven months, three and five years old, Finlay and Wendy took the children on a self-drive safari in Kruger National Park whilst having a base in the nearby town of Hoedspruit. They also brought friends from home along for their first holiday in Africa. The level of engagement shown by all ages of children whilst on safari was incredible to see and their love of Africa grows each year! 

Favourite Experiences: Daily visits at their villa from a friendly Nyala, celebrating their son’s first birthday on top of a koppie in Kruger National Park as well as seeing how much their friends enjoyed the trip.

A second time to Kruger and Hoedspruit but this time with family joining at various stages meant that they could share their love for safari with family who had never been to Africa before. It is the Hunter’s passion for introducing others to Africa that sparked the idea for The Safari Edit. 

Favourite Experiences: Self driving safari with the children with no plan of where to go until it unfolded, watching wildlife from horseback for the first time & celebrating their son’s second birthday at the same koppie in Kruger with lots of elephant dung throwing competitions!

Revisiting Cape Town with their young children highlighted just how incredible this city is for catering to families. A stay in the Cape Winelands also showed how many vineyards exist that truly welcome families and offer activities beyond the obvious wine tasting. There were so many to choose from with play parks, horse riding and so much more to entertain children whilst adults could enjoy incredible dining and wine-tasting experiences. 

Favourite Experiences: Enjoying the activities of the V&A Waterfront with their kids such as the Aquarium and Scratch Patch, dining in the many outsanding restaurants in the Cape area & discovering how child friendly the cape winelands are.

Lured back by the ease of no time difference from their home in France and the love of this area, once again the family used Hoedspruit as a base to explore the Limpopo Region. With their youngest child now well and truly running around, they were able to explore the Blyde River Canyon area and many of its local hikes and activities. Not to mention, self-driving in the Kruger – which has become an absolute favourite for all of the kids. 

Favourite Experiences: Celebrating their son’s third birthday once again in the bush, watching their children play in the mud with sticks and stones using their imagination to have fun & sitting under the stars by the campfire each evening.