SOUTH AFRICA: Kuche Safaris

[Schatzi]

Kuche safari
Hunting in Africa is amazing if you go to the right outfitter, In my life time I have been to Africa 8 times,
This last month I was in South Africa at Kuche safari with my husband,
It was my husband first time, KUCHE SAFARI was the worst outfitter I have been to, THE LODGE WAS DIRTY AND THE FOOD WAS HORRIFIC, ACTUALLY THERE WAS NO FOOD

In the morning we got DRY CEREAL black coffee, DINNER was at 9 pm and the food was chicken
lasagna ,,,,,
THE STAFF ARE AMAZING ,,,,,

The hunting was below standard, hardly any animal, the owner of the Outfitter is not a person you want to deal with cause he is a liar

PLEASE DON'T WAIST YOUR MONEY,

 

[BRICKBURN]

We need some more detail to get some depth to your complaints. First post and it is a complaint calling someone a liar without details, …..

 

[buck wild]

Yes a few more details would be great. It seems a lot of first time safari clients show up here asking about Kuche Safaris as they "won an auction" or it was included in some type if firearm purchase deal. Most reports have been positive on this outfitter. Given you apparently have extensive experience with other outfits, a detailed report on this matter might have more perspective vs a first timer.

 

[HookMeUpII]

We went in early May with Kuche and I have to say, your review is quite the opposite of what we experienced.

I'll wait to hear more but the "hunting was below standard, hardly any animal" is a bit hard to fathom. The only problem we found there was trying to decide which animals to take, as we saw more than we could ever imagine.

 

[Graham Hunter]

I have no problem with someone filing a bad Outfitter report. But if you want any credibility you will have to provide details and FACTS. Too many times a post like this one end up being a BAD HUNTER report. Please elaborate.

 

[SFRanger7GP]

Kuche safari
Hunting in Africa is amazing if you go to the right outfitter, In my life time I have been to Africa 8 times,
This last month I was in South Africa at Kuche safari with my husband,
It was my husband first time, KUCHE SAFARI was the worst outfitter I have been to, THE LODGE WAS DIRTY AND THE FOOD WAS HORRIFIC, ACTUALLY THERE WAS NO FOOD

In the morning we got DRY CEREAL black coffee, DINNER was at 9 pm and the food was chicken
lasagna ,,,,,
THE STAFF ARE AMAZING ,,,,,

The hunting was below standard, hardly any animal, the owner of the Outfitter is not a person you want to deal with cause he is a liar

PLEASE DON'T WAIST YOUR MONEY,

Without a hunting report and facts presented, you are very bold to come on here and make these types of accusations on your first posting. A quick search will bring up numerous hunting reports that state otherwise about Kuche Safaris.

 

[Denvir Tire]

Wow, that's an attention getting first post.
I also just returned from a week at Kuche safari, in fact I was there the day the OP joined this forum. In addition, I've also been to Africa multiple times, 4 to Namibia and 5 to SA. My personal take on the entire Kuche experience was one of frustration, that any first time Safari client would judge the African hunting experience from this safari "factory".
We all know that "you get what you pay for",so if you got a "free safari" for buying a new rifle, or won a safari at a DU dinner, the lodging, food and experience are commensurate with your cost.
I'm guessing the original poster is German and most likely paid for the trip rather than a "free safari".
I went to Kuche with three friends who purchased a rifle and got a "free safari". I did not hunt at all, only went along for the fun of seeing Africa for the first time through others eyes.
Some specifics;

Breakfast and lunch are rudimentary, typically a casserole for both, fresh fruit, juice and coffee, bread for toasting etc. It's not fabulous, but not terrible.... HOWEVER, the lunch/breakfast seating is perhaps 50 yards from the largest skinning warehouse I've ever seen. At times the smell is overwhelming.
Dinner is underwhelming in every aspect. There is seating for 36 clients, yes 36. A genuine mess hall. In addition, all the seats are taken. you will be one of 30 plus clients in camp at any time. This is why I called it a factory.

 

[HookMeUpII]

Without a hunting report and facts presented, you are very bold to come on here and make these types of accusations on your first posting. A quick search will bring up numerous hunting reports that state otherwise about Kuche Safaris.

Yup and add to it the OP has only 1 post, something doesn't smell quite right here.

 

[Denvir Tire]

If you enjoy an adult beverage other than Lion or Black Label beer, you must bring it yourself. Soft drinks and water readily available.
There are rooms in what must be the old lodge and also detached cabins that sleep two. I was in a cabin. It's not luxury and it's also not deluxe. The bathroom was larger than needed, the "bedroom" is smaller than needed. Wardrobe was new and broken, mattress was old and tired.
Plenty of hot water, very little pressure.
A large diesel generator provided during load shedding, however it's central location insured everyone could hear it.
Overall impression not favorable.
If you've enjoyed a safari with nice accommodations, good food and collegial atmosphere in the past, then this is not for you.

 

[buck wild]

Wow, that's an attention getting first post.
I also just returned from a week at Kuche safari, in fact I was there the day the OP joined this forum. In addition, I've also been to Africa multiple times, 4 to Namibia and 5 to SA. My personal take on the entire Kuche experience was one of frustration, that any first time Safari client would judge the African hunting experience from this safari "factory".
We all know that "you get what you pay for",so if you got a "free safari" for buying a new rifle, or won a safari at a DU dinner, the lodging, food and experience are commensurate with your cost.
I'm guessing the original poster is German and most likely paid for the trip rather than a "free safari".
I went to Kuche with three friends who purchased a rifle and got a "free safari". I did not hunt at all, only went along for the fun of seeing Africa for the first time through others eyes.
Some specifics;

Breakfast and lunch are rudimentary, typically a casserole for both, fresh fruit, juice and coffee, bread for toasting etc. It's not fabulous, but not terrible.... HOWEVER, the lunch/breakfast seating is perhaps 50 yards from the largest skinning warehouse I've ever seen. At times the smell is overwhelming.
Dinner is underwhelming in every aspect. There is seating for 36 clients, yes 36. A genuine mess hall. In addition, all the seats are taken. you will be one of 30 plus clients in camp at any time. This is why I called it a factory.

Agreed that a very experienced safari person that has had a chance to visit multiple outfits will likely have a different perspective than a first timer. That was also my rationale for a more detailed report from the OP as they claim experience with multiple other trips.

In camp with 30+ hunting clients? No Thanks !

 

[Rare Breed]

+1 no thanks ever!

 

[Denvir Tire]

Kuche Safari mess hall

 

[375Fox]

Wow, that's an attention getting first post.
I also just returned from a week at Kuche safari, in fact I was there the day the OP joined this forum. In addition, I've also been to Africa multiple times, 4 to Namibia and 5 to SA. My personal take on the entire Kuche experience was one of frustration, that any first time Safari client would judge the African hunting experience from this safari "factory".
We all know that "you get what you pay for",so if you got a "free safari" for buying a new rifle, or won a safari at a DU dinner, the lodging, food and experience are commensurate with your cost.
I'm guessing the original poster is German and most likely paid for the trip rather than a "free safari".
I went to Kuche with three friends who purchased a rifle and got a "free safari". I did not hunt at all, only went along for the fun of seeing Africa for the first time through others eyes.
Some specifics;

Breakfast and lunch are rudimentary, typically a casserole for both, fresh fruit, juice and coffee, bread for toasting etc. It's not fabulous, but not terrible.... HOWEVER, the lunch/breakfast seating is perhaps 50 yards from the largest skinning warehouse I've ever seen. At times the smell is overwhelming.
Dinner is underwhelming in every aspect. There is seating for 36 clients, yes 36. A genuine mess hall. In addition, all the seats are taken. you will be one of 30 plus clients in camp at any time. This is why I called it a factory.

I hope you’ll write a report. I don’t think anything written in this thread carries any credibility for people researching because of how the first post is presented. I can’t understand why people want to subject themselves to this factory hunting when there are personalized operations for the same price.

 

[Rem280]

 

[Mekaniks]

Kuche safari
Hunting in Africa is amazing if you go to the right outfitter, In my life time I have been to Africa 8 times,
This last month I was in South Africa at Kuche safari with my husband,
It was my husband first time, KUCHE SAFARI was the worst outfitter I have been to, THE LODGE WAS DIRTY AND THE FOOD WAS HORRIFIC, ACTUALLY THERE WAS NO FOOD

In the morning we got DRY CEREAL black coffee, DINNER was at 9 pm and the food was chicken
lasagna ,,,,,
THE STAFF ARE AMAZING ,,,,,

The hunting was below standard, hardly any animal, the owner of the Outfitter is not a person you want to deal with cause he is a liar

PLEASE DON'T WAIST YOUR MONEY,

This is your first post. Please elaborate with more details about your hunt. Lots of folks around here have hunted with Kuche with good success, and others may be looking to do so.
Please don't come off with just a "hit piece" and disappear. For all we know you may be just a disgruntled employee....

 

[Deepfork]

Hmmmm. Here is my take.

The person who started this thread did not provide a review of Kuche Safaries, they have some sort of personal axe to grind. I understand what Kuche offers is not every ones cup of tea and that is just fine. But the post makes no sense.

The lodge in Limpopo is not luxurious, it is clean and comfortable. I know they have recently completed construction of a new lodge on the grounds. Work was underway when we were there last year.

The food is very good, breakfast and lunch are kind of on the fly but very antiquate. The evening meal is served a little late because they wait for everyone to return to camp. The evening meal was always amazing! When you are hunting at their main lodge you stay on a working family farm. They are all there over seeing everything going on. I really enjoyed the atmosphere.

"Hardly any animals"! That does not even make sense! I traveled to South Africa with my two sons and another young man that is my younger sons friend. We took 27 animals between the 4 of us in 6 days of hunting with Kuche and all were great trophys. All of us had opportunities at the animals on the top of our target lists. We were amazed at the number, variety and quality of the animals we saw. Feel free to search my posts, I have posted pics of all 9 of my trophies from our hunt with Kuche, they are all impressive.

The entire staff at Kuche was great! All friendly, helpful and hard working. I interacted with everyone. Owners, several PHs, skinners/trackers, houskeeping and the chef. They could not have taken better care of us while we were in South Africa from pick up and drop off at the air port and everything in between. We found on a couple of occasions that some one overheard us talking about something we would like to do, and soon it would happen even though no formal request was made.

I know Koos, the owner and Kobus his son and a PH at Kuche pretty well. We had dinner with them in the States before our hunt. They were at my home in Oklahoma early this year, we discussed many things including our next hunt. They are honest, caring people and good at what they do.

I have 100s of pics and plenty more good things to say about Kuche. If anyone has a hunt planned with them and is feeling uneasy because of what 'Schatzi' who has a grand total of one post here said feel free to message me.

 

[VertigoBE]

Unless the OP provides more context and a full report, I vote this thread gets closed and deleted.

 

[HookMeUpII]

Hmmmm. Here is my take.

The person who started this thread did not provide a review of Kuche Safaries, they have some sort of personal axe to grind. I understand what Kuche offers is not every ones cup of tea and that is just fine. But the post makes no sense.

The lodge in Limpopo is not luxurious, it is clean and comfortable. I know they have recently completed construction of a new lodge on the grounds. Work was underway when we were there last year.

The food is very good, breakfast and lunch are kind of on the fly but very antiquate. The evening meal is served a little late because they wait for everyone to return to camp. The evening meal was always amazing! When you are hunting at their main lodge you stay on a working family farm. They are all there over seeing everything going on. I really enjoyed the atmosphere.

"Hardly any animals"! That does not even make sense! I traveled to South Africa with my two sons and another young man that is my younger sons friend. We took 27 animals between the 4 of us in 6 days of hunting with Kuche and all were great trophys. All of us had opportunities at the animals on the top of our target lists. We were amazed at the number, variety and quality of the animals we saw. Feel free to search my posts, I have posted pics of all 9 of my trophies from our hunt with Kuche, they are all impressive.

The entire staff at Kuche was great! All friendly, helpful and hard working. I interacted with everyone. Owners, several PHs, skinners/trackers, houskeeping and the chef. They could not have taken better care of us while we were in South Africa from pick up and drop off at the air port and everything in between. We found on a couple of occasions that some one overheard us talking about something we would like to do, and soon it would happen even though no formal request was made.

I know Koos, the owner and Kobus his son and a PH at Kuche pretty well. We had dinner with them in the States before our hunt. They were at my home in Oklahoma early this year, we discussed many things including our next hunt. They are honest, caring people and good at what they do.

I have 100s of pics and plenty more good things to say about Kuche. If anyone has a hunt planned with them and is feeling uneasy because of what 'Schatzi' who has a grand total of one post here said feel free to message me.

This echoes everything in my experience. Koos will tell you and anyone who asks: It's a communal camp. I am the most social, anti-social person you will ever meet. I can carry on a convo with anyone but prefer to keep to myself. It was a blast. We shared laughs and jokes with the other hunters. One of the guys there who was a helo pilot for a special forces detachment was a hoot. We were busting chops. He kept joking with the PH's serving beers "Get these NJ boys another Bud Lite" and we were giving it right back to him. There was a group of 4 hunters from Iowa who we shared the van to and from the airport with and they were also a blast. Koos and I talked and from what it seems, there are more private camp options available as they have multiple properties.

Its a brand new lodge. Literally, brand new. They had just wired it for wifi when we arrived. All the cabins, wifi. The breakfast spot is NOT 50 yds from the skinning shed and we never had any "foul smells" during breakfast. Lunch, yes, on the fly. You're hunting. I'm sure if you wanted a spike camp lunch Koos would accommodate. The PH's did whatever they could to accommodate. I personally didn't care. A sandwich, snacks, and water was good for me. I'm hunting, not stuffing my face. The dinner comment made me laugh. Everything we ate was delicious. Kudu, zebra, eland, impala, etc. There was no "chicken." I have no clue why they would go kill a chicken when there is literally a dozen delicious game animals to choose from, shot the day prior. They even accomodated the guest of a hunter who was a vegan...which says a lot.

Once again, as @Deepfork has said, if anyone has any concerns, feel free to message me as well. Koos, Corbus, and the staff were amazing. My report is also in this section which highlights the amazing time we had.

 

[Daisy]

This is my first post. Joined the board a couple of weeks ago.

I “won” a safari with Kuche at a DU event. IM an avid US hunter that hunts over 20 days a year. Deer, upland birds, duck, and turkey. I had never really given thought to an African trip. After winning the trip, I became very excited and took two of my best friends that are also avid hunters.

I’m short, we had as good of a time as you can have on your first safari. I harvested nine animals. They have multiple properties, and my PH Peter owned 30k acres about 15 minutes from camp. The animals at his place were wild to say the least. They would spook easily and required great hunting skill to harvest. I walked about 35 miles stalking during my week there. Granted, this was my choice. I wanted a more authentic hunting experience. My friends got tired of that, and they took them to more shooting galleries. Kobus and Koos we’re very involved, and tailored hunts to exactly what we wanted.

This was not a spa lake atmosphere. Our wives would not have enjoyed it. We actually loved that for our first time. We hunted for daylight to dark that ate a late dinner. All we did in our room asleep. The rooms were perfectly fine for what we needed.

I am now obsessed with African hunting. That is why I joined this board. I’m already building a 375 H&H I’m looking to go back and take a Cape Buffalo as well as continuing to add to my list.

My trip was May 2023.

 

[SFRanger7GP]

Well, one thing we know for sure, "Schatzi" isn't being much of a "sweetie".

Safe hunting