Guy

Who? Guy Lawrence

Where did it start? I was born into the safari lifestyle, toddling through the earliest tented camps set up by my father. I took a brief sabbatical from safaris to read Engineering at Edinburgh and travelled all over West Africa and Central Aisa with the oil industry for a while, but I couldn’t wait to get back to the wild. When my father died in 2007, the company was my legacy so I fuelled it with my energy and enthusiasm for the bush and its wildlife.

What makes it all worthwhile? I’ve travelled to twenty countries on this vast continent and have seen some incredible natural wonders. On one of my most recent memorable trips, we were flying in a helicopter through a hidden gorge, completely inaccessible to humans, and at the bottom of the ravine 150 elephants were trundling along, completely hidden from the outside world. It’s breathtaking moments like that, and the knowledge that I am contributing to the conservation of these wild habitats and ways of life, that really make me feel excited about being a guide.

How far have you ventured? I have this passion to get beyond the traveled safari routes out into unchartered wilderness. The remotest places I’ve been to are probably the Bayuda Desert in northern Sudan, dense rainforest deep in the heart of Gabon, the dunes of the Namib Desert and way out to sea on the Atlantic Ocean in a very small sailing boat.

Why Westminster Safaris? We’re creative in our quest for adventure and we cover so much diverse ground in southern and east Africa. But as well as this, we run at least two ground-breaking expeditions a year which really go beyond anyone’s expectations of a safari holiday. We’re also one of the few safari companies that cater for guests with disabilities and we’re hoping to be the foremost provider of special mobility safaris in east Africa in the future.

When the campfire’s burning low? I’m always fascinated to know how my guests have ended up out in the wilds under the stars chatting to me of an evening, I love sharing stories about the unpredictable road of life. My anecdotes of some of the hairier moments and crazy experiences… well, those are reserved for the circle of guests and the secrecy of the embers.