Exportable Trophy Elephant Hunt in Namibia Caprivi Strip
Booking Season: 2026
Hunt Difficulty: Difficult
Designed by Hunters, for Hunters
Hunting Africa's Big Five means pursuing Cape buffalo, elephant, lion, leopard and rhinoceros. For hunters considering African hunting safaris, the ambition may begin with a first buffalo hunt or involve finding the last animal needed to complete the five. A hunter booking buffalo in South Africa has considerably more choice of shorter safari packages than someone looking for a wild lion hunt in Tanzania or a conventional rhino trophy hunt.
A Big Five hunting safari does not necessarily mean hunting all five animals on one trip. Buffalo and leopard may be available in the same concession, while adding elephant or lion can require additional quota, hunting days or access to another area. What matters is which of the five animals can actually be hunted under the arrangements being offered.
The practical starting point is to establish which species you want to pursue, whether you intend to combine hunts and how much time you can commit. A safari built around one particular animal is different from an extended hunt involving several members of the Big Five.
Cape buffalo, elephant, lion, leopard and rhinoceros make up Africa's traditional Big Five, but hunting one tells you little about what to expect from the others. A buffalo hunt may involve hours of tracking before getting close enough to judge an old bull. Leopard hunting can mean days spent preparing and checking baits, with no guarantee that the right male will ever present an opportunity. Lion hunting brings its own demands, particularly when pursuing a mature wild male in a large concession.
Elephant hunting is different again. Finding a suitable bull is only part of the challenge; judging age, tusk development and the animal itself requires experience, and the decision to take a particular elephant should never be rushed. Rhino is the most difficult of the five to arrange as a conventional trophy hunt. Availability is limited, and hunters need to establish what type of rhino hunt is actually being offered before committing to a safari.
Experience with one member of the Big Five does not automatically prepare you for the others. A hunter comfortable following buffalo spoor through thick cover may find that spending days waiting for a particular leopard requires an entirely different kind of patience. That difference is worth considering before choosing which animal to hunt next.
Cape buffalo is often a practical first dangerous-game hunt because hunters can choose between shorter South African packages and longer tracking safaris in remote concessions across several African countries. Buffalo hunts can also be considerably less expensive than pursuing lion or elephant.
A free-ranging buffalo hunt teaches lessons that carry into other dangerous-game hunts. Following fresh spoor, working with trackers, understanding the wind and making a deliberate shot when an opportunity finally develops are all part of the experience. But buffalo hunting is not necessarily easier or less demanding. An old bull in thick cover can provide a difficult hunt, and the skills gained on buffalo do not automatically prepare someone for the different demands of leopard or lion.
If leopard is the animal that interests you most, there is little sense booking buffalo simply because someone considers it the traditional starting point.
The order can also be influenced by what is actually available. A hunter hoping to pursue lion or elephant may have to work around specific quota, hunting seasons and available concessions, whereas buffalo opportunities can offer greater flexibility. If your ambition is eventually to hunt all five, it makes sense to consider those constraints early rather than assume each animal will be equally easy to arrange later.
Start with the Big Five animals you want to hunt, then consider which countries offer a realistic opportunity to pursue them on the same safari.
Hunting in Zimbabwe remains one of the strongest choices for hunters interested in combining Cape buffalo with elephant, lion or leopard. Traditional tracking safaris and established dangerous-game hunting areas make Zimbabwe particularly attractive, although the species available on any particular hunt depend on the concession, quota and safari arrangements.
Tanzania hunting safaris can offer buffalo, lion, leopard and elephant opportunities in suitable hunting areas. These are often longer safaris, and a hunter considering more than one species needs to establish what is actually available under the relevant quota and whether sufficient hunting days have been allowed.
Hunting in Mozambique is appealing to hunters interested in Cape buffalo and leopard. Buffalo hunting in the open floodplains of Marromeu is a very different experience from tracking buffalo through thicker woodland, while leopard hunting can involve a separate commitment to establishing and monitoring baits. Hunters considering both animals should establish whether the same concession offers suitable hunting opportunities for each.
Hunting in South Africa offers a broad selection of Cape buffalo packages, but lion and rhino hunting require closer examination of what is being sold. Hunters should establish whether they are considering a conventional trophy hunt, a managed-property hunt or a wildlife-management experience, rather than assuming all three represent the same thing.
Hunting in Zambia can also be relevant to hunters pursuing Cape buffalo, elephant or leopard, depending on the hunting area and current authorisations. Hunting in Namibia offers more specialised opportunities, particularly for leopard, with buffalo hunting limited to suitable areas in the country's northeast.
Yes, but combining two Big Five animals on one safari is not the same as having enough time to hunt both properly. A buffalo and leopard combination can work particularly well in suitable areas. While the PH and trackers establish leopard activity and prepare baits, there may be opportunities to spend time tracking buffalo. However, once a suitable leopard begins feeding regularly, the priorities can change quickly. The hunter needs to understand that one hunt may take precedence over the other.
Buffalo and elephant can also be combined, but an elephant hunt may require several days of travelling and tracking before a suitable bull is located and assessed. If buffalo is also on the itinerary, the available hunting days must be sufficient to pursue both animals rather than assuming buffalo can be fitted into whatever time remains. Adding lion introduces another set of considerations, particularly where baiting and the movements of a suitable mature male influence how the safari unfolds.
Before booking a combined Big Five safari, establish which animal is the primary objective and which is secondary. Ask what happens if the first species takes most of the available hunting days, whether both animals are authorised in the same hunting area, and whether additional hunting days or transfers between concessions would be necessary. A package advertising two Big Five animals is only worthwhile if the hunting arrangements give you a realistic opportunity to pursue both.
A safari advertised as offering Cape buffalo, elephant and leopard does not necessarily mean all three animals are included in the quoted price. The outfitter may be offering a daily rate with separate trophy fees, a package including one animal, or the opportunity to add other species at an additional cost. Before paying a deposit, establish exactly which animals are included, which carry additional trophy fees and whether the advertised price covers the permits required for the intended hunt.
A South African buffalo package may specify a trophy category, while a free-ranging elephant safari may offer no guarantee of a particular tusk weight. Lion hunting presents another distinction: a managed-property lion hunt and a wild lion hunt in a large concession are not the same hunting product. Those differences should be understood before comparing quotations, rather than discovered after the safari has been booked.
Rhino requires particular care. A conventional trophy hunt, a darting experience and participation in a wildlife-management programme are different activities. Hunters pursuing the traditional Big Five should establish exactly what is being offered, what authorisations are in place and whether the experience meets their personal objectives or any formal recognition requirements.
For American hunters, trophy exportability deserves particular attention before booking lion, elephant or rhino. An animal may be legally hunted in Africa without its trophy being eligible for export or import into the United States. Some safaris are specifically advertised as non-exportable hunts, meaning the hunter should not expect to bring the trophy home. Even where export documents can be issued by the hunting country, U.S. import requirements must be checked separately. Before paying a deposit, confirm the trophy's export status, the applicable permits and whether it can legally enter your home country.
Finally, establish what happens financially if an animal is not taken. Daily rates, unused trophy fees, additional hunting days and the possibility of moving between hunting areas should be understood before the safari begins. This becomes particularly important when substantial amounts have been committed to pursuing more than one member of the Big Five.
There is no single price for hunting Africa's Big Five, largely because very few safaris are sold as packages containing all five animals. A hunter pursuing buffalo in South Africa may book a shorter package with a trophy fee included, while someone planning elephant, lion or leopard in a remote concession may be paying daily rates, separate trophy fees and other charges associated with a much longer safari.
Combining species can make good financial sense when the animals are available in the same hunting area. A buffalo and leopard safari, for example, may share the cost of accommodation, professional hunters, trackers and travel to camp. That doesn't necessarily mean the second animal comes cheaply. Trophy fees, additional hunting days and permit costs can still make a considerable difference to the final bill. A combined safari should be compared against the cost of booking the same animals separately, not simply against the advertised daily rate.
Hunters working towards all five often spread the expense over several trips, sometimes over many years. Rather than adding together advertised trophy fees, consider the cost of returning to Africa for separate hunts, including additional flights, transfers, daily rates and time away from work. A combined safari may reduce some of those costs, but only when the hunting days and available species make the combination worthwhile.
Actual advertised prices demonstrate how widely these hunts can differ. South African lion packages on Game Hunting Safaris have been advertised from approximately $9,500 to $19,950, while longer free-ranging lion safaris have been listed at approximately $50,000 to $100,000. Elephant hunting offers another contrast, with certain non-exportable Namibian hunts advertised around $16,500 to $21,600, while longer multi-species safaris involving elephant can cost considerably more. These are examples of advertised safari prices, not guaranteed current quotations, and hunters should confirm which trophy fees, permits and other expenses are included.
Our African hunting safari prices guide explains how daily rates, packages and trophy fees are structured. The individual Big Five hunting listings provide a better starting point for comparing actual advertised prices.
Hunters interested in species beyond the traditional Big Five can explore our big game hunting opportunities, including hippopotamus, crocodile and large antelope. For a broader selection of safari packages across Africa, see our African hunting trips.
At Game Hunting Safaris, we've hunted Cape buffalo in Mozambique's Marromeu region, pursued lion on a South African Kalahari concession and hunted elephant in Namibia's Bushmanland. These were three very different hunts. The lion was hunted on foot in a managed concession, while the elephant hunt formed part of a drought-relief programme in which the trophy could not be exported.
Our expedition accounts describe what actually happened in the field, including the decisions, difficulties and conditions encountered along the way. They're also an opportunity for hunters considering their own Big Five safaris to see the experience behind some of the advice we offer.
A collection of some of our most unforgettable moments in the wild. From the sweeping plains to the dense forests, these photos showcase the landscapes, wildlife, and experiences that have defined our hunting expeditions.
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