About YOU (It’s not actually about us)

Sean’s our CVO, or Chief Vision Officer – the reading glasses are purely coincidental. He’s the big picture guy and it’s his passion for travel that fans the flames of what we do at Hidden Africa.

Sean first dipped his toe into the travel industry over thirty years ago, and he never looked back. Sean says; “I’ve been fortunate, I've had the greatest opportunities and enjoyed a fun and rewarding career. My passion for travel (and a string of good luck) took me from sales rep. to CEO.”

Of all the great survival skills, like making fire, fixing things, hanging pictures or dancing at weddings, Sean drew the ‘organising stuff’ straw. (Though it should be noted he once boarded the wrong flight and lived to tell the tale.) It’s why we call him ‘The Ruler’, not because he’s the boss or anything, he finds inner peace in straight lines and order.

From the winding waterways of the Okavango Delta to the summit of Kilimanjaro, and all the bustling cities and deserted beaches in-between, Sean’s seen it all. And few are more qualified than him to share it with you.

In addition to heading up our sales team, Chad’s the artistic genie who makes our aesthetic dreams come true; the go-to guy on all things design-related. Surprisingly, for such a high functioning creative, he’s a real ‘people person’. Then again, nothing about him is average – except maybe his Padel ranking.

Together with an appreciation for a well-rounded chardonnay, travel is encoded in Chad’s DNA. It’s where he always knew he’d end up. As a boy, he was a prolific letter-writer. He wrote to every embassy in the phone book requesting glossy travel brochures for fictitious school projects. Not even the Queen escaped his charms.

His foundation in branding and advertising has stood him in good stead. Over the years, Chad’s brought travel, hospitality, décor and design brands to life with his own stylish brand of creativity (and devastating good looks).

He’s an unapologetic foodie who loves crosswords and the smell of rain in the bush. His affinity for trashy thrillers aside, Chad comes alive at the back of a Landcruiser, binoculars in hand. His game spotting skills are legendary – just one of the many things that make him utterly indispensable around here.

Roxy is our Brand Storyteller — the perfect job for a creative who can’t help but romanticise absolutely everything. Our full-time fantasist with a flair for adjectives and a healthy disregard for reality. She’s living proof that if you dream hard enough, someone will pay you to write about elephants, treehouses, and sundowners in the bush. She spends her days bringing the Hidden Africa story to life, serenading camps into the spotlight, and (hopefully) convincing you to throw your phone out the window and go on safari.

Roxy’s fate as a travel copywriter was as surprising as it was inevitable. Like most good travellers, she took the scenic route to get here. The height of her creative career wasn’t her Fine Art degree or even landing this gig, but her teenage plot to overthrow Anna Wintour at the helm of Vogue. Or, how she managed to turn a ski season into a fashion merchandising career (hi there, Ralph). Some fashion detours, an almost one-way surf trip to Lombok, and some pretty solid travel writing practice later, and she eventually found her way to us. Call it serendipity, or the noble pursuit of work that feels like play.

As a lifelong subscriber to the idea that travel might just solve everything, and a strict believer in dreaming big or not at all, she fits in pretty well around here. When she’s not conjuring up brand magic or writing poetic odes to the bush, she’s most probably in the ocean. Or, at the very least, fantasising about it. Otherwise, you'll find her on a mountain, hitting something with a racket, taking photos of anything in her vicinity, or googling how to free up space on her phone (go figure).

Our resident twitcher! Geraldine is the one who turns your safari dreams into actual plans. She started out in travel — top of her class at travel college (of course) — and then went off track into a serious sales career in the financial industry.

The last place you’d expect to find a passionate birder is the finance world, but that’s exactly where Geraldine started. With 20 years in business development and fintech, she built (and sold) startups before swapping spreadsheets for safari maps.

The heart wants what it wants! And what Geraldine’s heart wants is to keep adding to her list of lifers. 527 bird species already ticked off (and counting).

Sure, she loves animals and long walks on moonlit beaches, but apart from that and birds, she is uncompromising about delivering a great experience (our overachiever). She loves bringing complex itineraries to life (she makes hard simple), doesn’t mind a bit of last-minute pressure, and wow — does she create ridiculously fun safaris!

Geraldine’s idea of balance? One hand on her binoculars, the other holding a camera.

Her mission? Spot the elusive African Pitta and single-handedly save the world from safari mediocrity!

Prince walks with an assured waddle that makes you think he thinks quite highly of himself. Pure low-key cool. Not that he’s overly fond of walking.

His actual job description is a bit vague. Most days, he’s snoring at our feet while we work, or pretending to be on security duty at the door - more of a lover than a fighter. He does have a special talent for being exactly where he’s needed.

Something of a foodie, he (like us) takes food breaks and treats very seriously.

Prince Jamal (his full name) is a typical boy dog, fond of relieving himself on car tyres, actively hostile toward cats, and in the park always in hot pursuit of rapidly fleeing hadedas (common ibis), whose raucous bird noise thrills him.

Epiphany is his soulmate — a love story for the ages, growing up together, sharing sun patches (never food) and adventures to the beach or mountain. They were hardly ever apart.

Independent. Stubborn. Outdoorsy on his terms (like… vibes-based). He loves the beach but not the water. An accomplished couch surfer and cuddler, in winter he can usually be found under a blanket by the fire. Or, if any human sits still for long enough, on their lap.

To take a peek inside Epiphany's mind is not for the timid — because Epiphany is not a timid dog. On a scale of Lassie to Cujo, well… let’s just say she is a giant among dogs (well, in her eyes).

Epiphany, or Piffy for short, is no 20-pound weakling. The thing we love most? She punches above her weight.

We are not given to sexist stereotypes, but this complex queen rules the place. As one would expect, she is highly vocal and bangs with her paw to open doors. Smacks her water bowl across the office if it’s empty. And often screams at us for snacks.

Like her dad, she likes structure. It’s not for nothing she’s nicknamed Routina Turner. Left alone for 20 minutes equals complete and utter ABANDONMENT.

Our Piffy has a heart as big as her self-perceived size, and once you’re in the inner circle, you’ll only ever be greeted with loud yelps and airborne enthusiasm.

Her passions include rolling in hadeda droppings (which gets her banned from the bed). A highly social girl, she prefers dogs to most humans — yikes, a bit like us! She’s obsessed with the Cricket Club, where she holds a special dog-walking membership.

She’s an "ideas girl". And we’re never happier than when we have an epiphany. We’re a team driven by passion and fuelled by creativity, and she’s our small but mighty reminder that only great love will do.