The world’s wealthiest individuals often seek adventures that most people could only dream about, including trips to exotic destinations in far away, remote places. In fact, there is a growing demand among the rich for luxury safaris, and African safaris are often considered bucket list vacations .
James Ward, Chief Exploration Officer at Rewild Safaris, has provided tours for some of the most prominent business leaders, including the former CEO of Coca-Cola, who has taken over 10 safari trips with Ward over the past several decades.
“When I was 15 I traveled with my family to Tanzania,” Ward says. “We saw the great migration in the Serengeti and trekked into the rainforest of Rwanda to see the mountain gorillas. At the time, gorilla trekking was still in its infancy, and Rwanda had not yet experienced the genocide. It was raw, quiet, and humbling. Being so close to such powerful, intelligent animals in their natural world planted a seed in me.”
Ward’s first 25 years in his professional career involved working alongside conservation groups to create alternative income sources for local communities. He says, “These initiatives give people a real stake in protecting their natural heritage. Again and again, it became clear that eco-tourism is the game-changer. It brings funding, creates opportunity and connects travelers to stories that matter.”
Combining two passions – wildlife photography and conservation – he partnered with Tom LaRock and Steve Kanakanui. He explains, “Our goal is not to just run safaris, but to completely reimagine them. As a conservation photographer, I am fortunate to experience wild places in deeply intimate ways, such as tracking rhinos on foot, camping out to photograph brown bears in Alaska and watching lemurs leap through Madagascar’s forests.”
Rewild wants to offer our travelers something similar. Not just great lodges and good guides, but something personal and real, something that stays with them long after they have returned home. Rewild Safaris was born from that desire, to offer safaris that are immersive, grounded in conservation and deeply personal.
Clients range in age, background and even travel experience. Ward says, “What unites them is a desire for something wilder. They may have stayed at the finest hotels in the world, flown first class, done the Amalfi Coast, the Maldives, all of it. But they want to feel something different. They want to Rewild.”
He adds, “What we offer is experiential luxury. The accommodations are fantastic, the food is exceptional and the service is seamless. But what makes this luxury travel different is what you get to experience, including tracking desert-adapted lions with conservationists in Namibia, participating in rewilding efforts in Patagonia or sailing through the islands of Komodo aboard a traditional phinisi.”
Many of Rewild’s travelers are philanthropists or deeply conservation minded. Others are just curious, thoughtful people who want to travel well and travel with purpose. Lately, they have also seen a movement back toward a more classic safari experience. Some clients are craving simplicity again, such as elegant tented camps without some of the extra amenities like plunge pools or 1,500 square foot tents. They want to be immersed in nature, not removed from it. For them, luxury is watching elephants drink at the water hole under moonlight or waking up to hear lion roars in the distance.
Ward says, “They want connection. Our clients want to connect to wildlife, to the land and to the people and communities, to something that feels bigger than themselves. At the same time, our clients expect high service standards and beautiful camps. What they appreciate most is what I call barefoot elegance, luxury that respects the place it is in. Camps that are comfortable, immersive, and authentic, with staff who feel like family. What they want, and get, is to come home changed.”
Ward and his team have built strong partnerships with groups like the International Rhino Foundation, Wildlife Madagascar, Rewilding Chile and Hutan. They design safaris that take travelers into the field, into real conservation work, like joining rhino monitoring teams in Zimbabwe, tracking lemurs across different ecosystems in Madagascar or releasing Darwin’s Rheas in Patagonia.
Some of the pre-planned safaris start at around $10,000 per person and go up from there. Rewild also does custom safaris, so there are virtually endless options. Ward says, “Some of our most-requested destinations are the ones you would expect, places like the Okavango Delta, Serengeti and Maasai Mara, all in Africa. But even in those iconic landscapes, we are crafting something different. We guide our travelers to the quieter corners, wild and remote areas where the experience is more intimate, and the focus is on conservation, not crowds.”
The places that are also capturing attention right now are a bit farther off the map. Namibia is getting more popular. Rewild has partnered with local conservation groups to create tracking experiences with desert-adapted lions and rhinos. It is raw, vast and unforgettable. Madagascar is unlike anywhere else on earth. Ward adds, “With Wildlife Madagascar, we give travelers rare access to different ecosystems, from rainforests to jagged tsingy limestone formations. They can track multiple species of lemurs while supporting vital conservation efforts. Madagascar is quickly becoming one of my favorite destinations. Ninety percent of the wildlife found in Madagascar is only found there. It’s truly amazing.”
They are planning more safaris to visit the new Patagonia National Park exploring the landscapes. Further south, Tierra del Fuego offers places like Karukinka Park and the wilds of Yendegaia, where it’s possible to go days without seeing another traveler. Another favorite journeys links Borneo and Komodo. Travelers start in Borneo’s rainforests, looking for orangutans, proboscis monkeys and pygmy elephants. Safaris include a visit with the conservation group Hutan to learn about the important work they are doing to protect these important rainforests. At the end of the safari, travelers board a luxury, traditional phinisi sailing yacht and cruise through Komodo National Park, spotting Komodo dragons, swimming with manta rays and watching flying foxes cloud the sunset sky.
All and all, Rewild’s mission is to bring travelers closer to the world’s wild places and help ensure these locations thrive for generations.