Eco Safari Specialist of the Year – Southern Africa

NYANJA SAFARIS is a UK registered Tour Operator where we have our main booking office for our international clients. We are also registered in Zambia where we have our regional booking office in Lusaka. Having our own ‘on the ground’ support & ground handling facilities we believe that this ensures that we can provide a superior level of customer service & care.

Nyanja Safaris is owned and run by David Bland who is based in Zambian and is directly involved with designing & arranging itineraries, client bookings & ‘ground handling’.

We pride ourselves in our knowledge & expertise and provide an invaluable, competitive, professional and personal service to our clients. As leading Independent Agents Nyanja Safaris endeavor to find the most suitable destinations and high standards of accommodations with Established Professional Safari Operators to create our clients ‘dream Safari’.

You can rest assured that when you book with Nyanja Safaris you can enjoy ‘the real Africa’ with the confidence that we will provided the best itinerary to fulfil your dream safari and be comforted in the knowledge that your Safari holiday will also benefit the local conservation and community projects of the areas that you visit.


Meet the team

David Bland

"David is a experienced guide and has a deep knowledge of Zambia & Southern Africa. His love for Africa's wildlife, people and passionate commitment for the conservation of Africa's unique environment is obvious to all who meet him". (Travel Africa Magazine)

David was born in Lusaka, Zambia in 1963. He was raised on a farm near Lusaka and his love for the 'Bush' began at an early age. Being raised in Africa he was more fortunate than most and took every opportunity to go out into the bush and learn from the Africans about the wildlife and 'ways' of the bush. He has a deep love and understanding for the people of Zambia and was was brought up as a 'Zambian' speaking their language and embracing their culture. He still lives in Zambia and is very proud to be a ZAMBIAN.

David's professional guiding experience began in 1982 in the Kafue National Park in the West of Zambia. He has traveled Zambia extensively and provide specialist Safaris throughout Zambia, taking clients to the 'Best' Zambian Game Lodges and the more remote Bush Camps giving them a 'genuine' African Experience. His aim is to share with every client his enthusiasm for his 'home', it's wildlife and people. David is a keen wildlife photographer. He has traveled Southern Africa extensively.

Deborah Bland

Deborah Collins is new to the world of Safaris but her travel experience is proving invaluable. Deborah is a director of the BLUE LAGOON TRUST, a UK and Zambian registered Charity working with conservation and community projects in and around the Blue Lagoon National Park, Zambia.

Laura Sinnema

Laura Sinnema obtained her Bachelor’s degree Hotel Management and worked for 10 years as a sales manager for a large insurance companies in the healthcare and occupational health services divisions. Since 2010 she changed her career and studied for a few years an became complimentary health processional and run her own clinic since 2010. In addition to this career, she is very fond of traveling and photography.

She fell in love with Africa in 2004, since then she traveled through Africa, always fascinated by Nature, Wildlife and Culture. She has visited 18 African countries, drove 350.000km on African roads in my Cruiser, crossed land borders more than 75 times. I have travelled through Africa living in a car for 1,5 years and have visited almost 80% of all the National parks in Eastern and Southern Africa.
In between she lived, worked and studied in different parts of Africa. I worked at a ground handlers office in Tanzania, studies in South Africa and managed a bush camp in Zambia.

In 2018 my life also took an unexpected turn. I fell in love with the funniest and most gentle safari guide in Zambia and decided that my place was in Zambia. I am very fortunate that I am in the position of sharing my travel knowledge with everybody who wants to discover the beauty of Africa, specifically Zambia.

Simonga Maleya

Simonga Maleya grew up partly in Lusana, in a village in the Lower Zambezi and in Livingstone. He is a qualified Wildlife Safari guide with over more than 14 years of experience in different National parks in Zambia.

He started his career as a driver in the Lower Zambezi, that is where his fascination for nature started. After this he got the opportunity to spend a few years exploring every corner of the most fantastic and magical Zambezi river in our country as a canoe guide. Then it was time to start exploring the mainland and he became a trainee guide and eventually a qualified Wildlife Safari Guide. He was lucky enough to have worked in all the prime National Parks in Zambia which gave him a lot of knowledge about Zambia’s different habitats. During his travels to Europe, he was fortunate enough to contribute as a volunteer to a Bison conservation project in The Netherlands.

Now is responsible for our Mobile Safaris through Zambia and our Lusaka City Safaris.