ABOUT US

Hello, wonderful travellers – I am Ellen Lagus, owner of Babuka Africa and your Southern African Travel Specialist.

I originally hail from Troisdorf, Germany and moved to Cape Town in 1993 after falling in love with South Africa on first meeting.

The natural beauty, magnificent landscapes and lifestyle quality all captured my heart and imagination and I have dedicated my passion to learning all I can about the country as a tour guide. And I bring to you this same enthusiasm and commitment.

Having worked as a tour guiding expert since 1997, I have accumulated the in-depth knowledge, network and resources to curate high quality itineraries. You are always assured of the best advice to help plan your trip to Southern Africa as well as to receive expert care on your arrival.

As you navigate my website, you will discover my popular and specialist tours which offer travellers many ways to live their best holiday.

And I look forward to making your Southern African trip, your best journey yet!

Warm regards,

Ellen

My name is Anke Swart.

I was born and raised in Germany and have lived in Cape Town, South Africa since the end of 1995.

In 2018 I completed my training as a tour guide for the Western Cape and have since then led smaller tour groups in the Cape region and on the Garden Route as far as Port Elizabeth.

I grew up mostly in the south of Germany (Munich, Neuburg a.d. Donau, Swabian Alb and later also Stuttgart, Leonberg). Because of my father’s job, I moved around a lot in Germany as a child.

A thirst for adventure and curiosity about South Africa brought me to South Africa for 6 months in 1992 and I quickly learned to love the country and the people.

I came back every year for a whole month to travel and started my job as a ‘Research Assistant’ in the Biochemistry Department at the University of Cape Town in early 1996. I was employed at the University of Cape Town for 7 years. During this time, I met my husband there. My son Liam was born in 1999 and my daughter Ella in 2002.

We have lived on the peninsula of Cape Town for 24 years in a small village by the sea, where our children also went to school. Both children are currently studying in Europe.

When I’m not traveling on the Garden Route, I enjoy my free time with friends, go jogging with our dog, windsurf or go camping in the mountains.

There is still so much to discover in South Africa 🙂