The short answer
A safari company finds and keeps travel agents by doing three things in order. First, approach the right kinds of partner: specialist Africa agents and tour operators in the UK and Europe, independent advisors and host agencies in the US, and other DMCs who can hand you trip extensions. Second, give them a clear trade pack with net or commission rates, inclusions, dates and payment terms. Third, follow up on a steady rhythm so you stay the operator they think of when a client asks for your destination.
The part most operators get wrong is price. If an agent can see that your own website is cheaper than their quote, they stop sending guests. Build your direct price first (our guide to getting more safari bookings covers that), set the agent rate as a clear step from it, and treat agents as a channel that sits next to your own inquiries and next to whichever marketplaces you already use.
Who to approach in the US, UK and Europe
Agents are not one group. Each type buys differently, so your first message should be different for each.
Independent advisors and host agencies in the US
Many US travel advisors work under a host agency and sell Africa to clients who want one person to plan the trip and one person to call when something changes. They care about three things: a clear product they can explain in a paragraph, replies within a working day, and commission that arrives when you say it will. A first-time Africa advisor does not want to learn your park fees. Give them a finished itinerary with a total.
Specialist Africa agents and tour operators in the UK and Europe
These businesses build their own packages and usually hold their own client lists. They often compare several ground operators for the same route, say gorilla trekking in Uganda or Rwanda, the Maasai Mara in Kenya, the Serengeti in Tanzania or Chobe in Botswana. A fast, clear quote with honest notes on what is and is not included beats a long brochure. Ask which source market they sell to, because guests from the US, UK, Germany and the Netherlands often ask for different things.
Other DMCs and ground handlers
If you are a lodge or camp, a DMC in your country may bundle you into the packages it sells abroad. If you are an operator, DMCs in neighbouring countries can send you guests who want an extension: Uganda gorillas added to a Rwanda trip, a Kenya Mara stay joined to a Tanzania circuit, Chobe paired with a Victoria Falls visit. These partners swap business both ways, so be ready to refer guests back.
Niche sellers
Honeymoon planners, photography tour leaders, birding groups, family travel specialists and school or faith group organisers each buy a small number of trips, repeatedly. One good partner in a niche often outsells ten generic agents.
To build the list, look at who ranks for your destination and trip type in the UK, US and European search results, who appears on the websites of other African operators as a partner, and which agents your past guests booked through. Add the trade events and member lists of the national travel associations in your main source markets. Aim for a short list of agents you can name and research, not a mass email list.
What a trade rate sheet and agent page must include
An agent will not guess what you meant. Anything missing from your rate sheet becomes a question, and every question is a chance for the agent to move on to an operator who answered it already. A good trade pack states the following:
- Net rates or your commission, by product and season, with the currency and the dates the rates are valid.
- What is in and out: park fees, gorilla or other permits, transfers, internal flights, guide, meals, drinks and activities. Say plainly whether fees sit inside the price or on top, because agents quote their client one number.
- Rules for children, single travellers, groups and low season, so the agent can quote the real trip without asking you.
- Deposit, balance and cancellation terms, plus how long you will hold permits, rooms or vehicles before the agent must confirm.
- Payment details: which currency you accept, how money reaches you and when commission is paid.
- Sample itineraries day by day, ready for an agent to copy into a client proposal.
- Photos and logos you have the right to share, so agents do not pull images from your guests' posts.
- A named contact, a WhatsApp number and a response time you can keep.
- Your licence and insurance status, stated as it really is, along with your vehicles, guides and safety practice.
The agent page
Put the same information on one page on your own website, instead of letting old PDFs travel from inbox to inbox. The page should be easy to find for an agent who is already interested and should ask for a name, agency and email before showing net rates. Your public pages must never show net rates. If your website cannot hold a page like this, that is a website problem we can fix, and our safari marketing agency work covers it.
How to avoid undercutting your own direct prices
Undercutting happens by accident. An operator sends a net rate with a generous margin, the agent adds a modest markup, and the agent's retail price ends up below the price on the operator's own website. The next guest who compares the two books direct, and the agent hears about it.
Rules that prevent it
- One public price per trip. The price on your website, the price you quote a direct guest on WhatsApp and the price an agent's client pays should land in the same place or higher for the agent.
- Agent rate as a step down, not a second price list. Take your public price, remove the commission you are willing to pay, and that is your net. If a marketplace costs you a commission already, the free OTA commission calculator shows what each booking costs you, which tells you how much room you really have for agents.
- Never match an agent by discounting direct. If a guest says an agent is cheaper, add value instead, such as a bush dinner or an extra game drive, and fix the rate sheet.
- Keep net rates off open pages. Agent pages should be gated or unlisted, and your agreement should ask agents not to publish net rates.
- One owner for the price list. One named person updates every channel on the same day, so an old rate does not stay in circulation.
- A client-ownership rule. Say in writing that you will not market to an agent's client directly and that you will pay commission on that client's repeat bookings for a period you state.
Direct inquiries are your highest margin, which is why the work on your own website and booking flow comes first. Our direct booking system is built for that, and agents then become extra volume instead of a replacement for it.
Agent-ready versus the usual approach
The table below sets the approach that keeps agents against the one that quietly loses them.
| Area | Agent-ready approach | Usual approach |
|---|---|---|
| Who you contact | A short list of agents who already sell your destination and trip type | A mass email to every agent address you can find |
| First message | Two lines on who you are and what you sell, plus a link to the trade page | A long brochure with no clear ask |
| Rates | Net or commission rates with inclusions, dates and terms written down | A rate typed into each email, different every time |
| Price against direct | Agent retail lands at or above your public price | Net rates that let an agent undercut your own website |
| Agent page | One live page, always current, shown after a short sign-up | Old PDFs forwarded between agents |
| Follow-up | A fixed rhythm and a record of every agent | One email, then silence |
None of this needs expensive software. It needs a decision on price, a page that is kept current and the discipline to reply.
How to follow up without nagging
Agents are busy and sell many destinations. Most will not reply to the first message, and that says little about interest. A simple rhythm works better than a hard chase.
- Day 0: send the short message and the trade page link. Reply to any question within one working day. East Africa is hours ahead of the US, so answer at the end of your day and the agent finds it in the morning.
- Around two weeks later: send one useful note, such as a sample itinerary for a trip type they sell, or a note on which dates are filling.
- Each month or season: send availability news that matters to them, for example when peak permits or rooms are open or closed.
- After every trip: send the agent a thank you, a few photos they can use and a line asking what their client said. Agents remember operators who close the loop.
- Every agent in one sheet: name, agency, source market, last contact, quotes sent, bookings and next step. If you cannot see it, you will not follow it up.
Be honest when you cannot take a request. Telling an agent a date is full the same day keeps their trust, and they will try you again.
Where Karibu and our team fit, and when not to hire us
We build Karibu, an outreach platform that connects African tour operators with agents and DMCs in Europe and the US. It exists because the slow part of this work is finding the right partners and keeping contact organised. A platform does not fix an unclear product, a rate sheet that undercuts your website or a team that answers in three days, so sort those out first.
When you probably do not need us
- You already run a trade desk, have a clean rate sheet and agents are sending you bookings.
- You cannot yet hold a price that works at net. Fix the economics before you add a channel.
- You want agent volume but are not willing to change how fast or how clearly you reply.
When we help
Growth Informer Software Services is a US-based company with remote teams around the world, including a team in Kampala, and a US team member joins client video calls. Our safari growth program has three phases for owners of safari and tour companies, lodges, camps and hotels in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Botswana: fill the funnel with a website, search, Google Business Profile and ads; close it with a reservations and sales process plus training; and keep the guest through support, reviews, repeat and referral. If you start the program with us, the guarantee is "your first new inquiries within 14 days of going live, or we work free until they arrive". Agents are a useful extra channel once your own direct inquiries are working.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find travel agents who sell safaris in the US and UK?
Start with a short list rather than a mass email. Look at who ranks for your destination and trip type in US and UK search results, who is named as a partner on other African operator websites, and which agents your past guests booked through. Then research each one and write a short, specific first message with a link to your trade page.
What should a trade rate sheet for safari agents include?
Net rates or your commission by product and season, validity dates, what is included and excluded (park fees, permits, transfers, flights), rules for children, singles and groups, deposit and cancellation terms, how long you hold permits or rooms, payment details, sample itineraries and a named contact with a response time.
Should agents pay the same price as guests who book direct?
Agents should pay less than the public price through a net rate or a commission, but their clients should pay the same as direct guests or more. The aim is that no one can find a cheaper price for the same trip by comparing an agent with your own website.
What does it cost to get help with agent partnerships?
It depends on the business, so there is no single figure here. The work could be as small as a trade page and rate sheet, or a larger project that includes your website and booking flow. Send your business name, country and what you sell, and we will give you a clear quote or a Karibu demo before any work starts.
How often should I follow up with travel agents?
Reply to questions within one working day, send one useful note around two weeks after your first message, then update agents each month or season with availability news. After every trip, send a thank you and photos. Keep a sheet so that no agent is forgotten.
How much commission should I give a travel agent?
There is no single right figure. Build the agent rate into a trade rate sheet (a price list for travel agents) so the agent price never undercuts your direct price. Check what your lodges and other suppliers allow before you agree anything, write the rate down with a date until which it is valid, and track what each agent actually books. We help operators set up the rate sheet and the agent follow-up.