How to Succeed with an African Wildlife Tour Business

In this interview, we delve into the world of Augustine Tours, a distinguished tour company founded by Augustin Ndikuriyo, specializing in tailor-made, culturally immersive experiences in East Africa. Augustin shares his journey of starting the company, the unique approach Augustine Tours takes in the tourism sector, and the impact it has on local communities.

You can expect to gain valuable insights into the challenges and triumphs of running a successful tourism business, strategies for navigating through difficult times like the COVID-19 pandemic, and the importance of cultural and educational experiences in travel.

Inspiration Behind Augustine Tours

SBS – What inspired you to start Augustine Tours, and how did your previous experiences contribute to its inception?

Augustin – Thanks for the question. I started Augustine Tours in 2010 after spending five years in the hospitality industry as a front-office manager in Bujumbura, Burundi. It is never easy to tell with precision when and how the passion becomes evident. Well, the passion was born from my first job, from meeting and talking to people from different backgrounds and corners of the planet. Working in a hotel opened my eyes to see the world from another angle. I loved my job. Putting a smile on our guests’ faces served as a great motivation to invest myself in the tourism industry. I thought that there could be something beyond accommodation services, so I founded Augustine Tours to show the beauty of Burundi and East Africa beyond just the rooms lol. 

Unique Selling Proposition

SBS – How does Augustine Tours’ approach to tailor-made, culturally immersive tours differentiate from other offerings in the East African tourism market?

Augustin – The notion that tourism is about people and by people is something that I think should motivate every tourist to fly and see the world. The idea behind our tailor-made tours is simple. People have different tastes and needs when traveling. Some are interested in wildlife, culture, and history. We don’t want to book tourists into pre-packaged tours. I prefer listening to their needs so I can design an itinerary that aligns with their wishes and doable activities. 

Understanding the Audience

SBS – Who are your typical clients, and how do their interests shape the tours you offer?

Augustin – Most tourists traveling to East Africa are limited to booking wildlife game drives and gorilla trekking safaris because that is what almost every travel magazine talks about. But Africa is a 54-country continent with rich and diverse cultures and traditions. 

Our typical client is the traveler who wants to see Africa beyond the image that mainstream media shows, which unfortunately doesn’t always reflect the reality on the ground. The typical itinerary includes three items: wildlife, culture, and history. 

Early Challenges

SBS – Can you share some of the initial challenges you faced when starting Augustine Tours and how you overcame them?

Augustin – Starting a business is not an easy game, particularly in a competitive industry like the tourism sector. I didn’t have a lot of resources or digital marketing skills to run robust campaigns. I decided to invest my time in learning web development and digital marketing skills to make sure Augustine Tours survives. 

Another big challenge has been the perception of the destinations I was offering. You know, it is really hard to market tourist destinations that most foreign travel advisories discourage their nationals from visiting. 

Pandemic Response Strategies

SBS – How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect your business, and what strategies did you employ to navigate through this period?

Augustin – It is no secret that most travel businesses were hit hard by the pandemic. Thankfully, Augustine Tours was doing well before the pandemic, and this helped us to stay in the game. All bookings we had in 2020 were postponed for 2021/22 and we managed to honor our promises. All of them were completed in 2022. 

We never stopped connecting with our audiences. Through blog and social media posts, we kept in touch with our audience, and this paid off when the tourism sector resumed in 2022. 

Educational and Cultural Integration

SBS – How do you integrate educational and cultural experiences into your tours to enhance the visitors’ understanding of East Africa?

Augustin – In every country where we take our clients, we have skilled local guides who share our tourism vision and values, connecting tourists and locals in meaningful ways. There are cultural community activities that tourists join to understand the traditions and cultural aspects from first-hand experience. 

Community Benefits

SBS – In what ways do Augustine Tours’ activities benefit the local communities in East Africa?

Augustin – The local communities our clients visit are well-organized cultural and traditional clubs that generate income from tourism. For instance, if we take our clients to the Gishora Drum Sanctuary, the drum fee is directly paid to the communities. The same applies to visits to cultural villages in other East African destinations. 

Signature Tour Experiences

SBS – Can you describe some of the most unique and memorable experiences that Augustine Tours offers its clients?

Augustin – Our job is to serve as a bridge between tourists, locals, and destinations. 

Nothing makes us happier than when our clients say that they are leaving with positive impressions about our destinations.

Vision and Expansion Plans

SBS – What are your future plans for Augustine Tours, and do you have any intentions to expand to other regions or offer new types of tours?

Augustin – Sure, we have plans to add new destinations in 2025. We plan to add four southern African destinations (Botswana, Zambia, Namibia, and Zimbabwe). 

Leveraging Digital Marketing

SBS – As a digital marketing expert, how do you utilize these skills to promote Augustine Tours, and what impact has this had on your business?

Augustin – SEO and social media marketing play a crucial role in reaching our target audience and building a trusted brand. The impact is measurable on the brand positioning and profitability. 

Success Metrics for Leadership

SBS – How do you measure success in your role as the CEO of Augustine Tours?

Augustin – What could Augustine Tours do better today than yesterday? This means where the brand stands, what has worked, and what hasn’t. 

Entrepreneurial Guidance

SBS – What advice would you give to someone looking to start a business in the tourism sector, especially in the current global climate?

Augustin – What problem do you want to solve, whom do you serve, and how different do you plan to serve your target market? I have built Digital Travel Expert, a marketing blog where I share strategies and practical tips to run a successful travel business. 

Lessons Learned

SBS – Reflecting on your journey, what is one thing you know now that you wish you had known when you started Augustine Tours?

Augustin – The power of digital marketing.