Two field guide students sitting in the South African savannah, observing the sunset

Guide Course South Africa: African Bush Field Guide

South Africa 55 days From 5,950 €

You are passionate about nature and wildlife and even intend a career within the South African safari industry? Then join our 55-day FGASA endorsed and CATHSSETA accredited Apprentice Field Guide course and receive your entry level qualification for field guiding!

Throughout the course, you and your international team will live and learn amidst the awe-inspiring landscapes of KwaZulu-Natal. Each day, highly experienced instructors take you out into the bush to teach you about the biodiverse elements of your natural environment and show you how to safely conduct game drives in the wild. A broad spectrum of subjects will be covered, including animal behaviour, birding, 4x4 game vehicle skills as well as species identification and tracking. Practical sessions will be complemented by classroom-based lessons back in camp. At the end of your training course, you have the chance to take the national FGASA exam to obtain your FGASA Apprentice Field Guide qualification.

Training, adventure and nature experience all at once, surrounded by Africa’s incomparable landscapes: Experience a once-in-a-lifetime educational wilderness adventure!

Your trip at a glance

Highlights

Receive the entry level qualification for field guiding within 55 days
Experience the spectacular wilderness of South African KwaZulu-Natal
Enjoy daily game drives and walks
Witness South Africa’s fascinating wildlife
Learn from highly experienced guides
Acquire essential field guide knowledge
Receive an official FGASA certificate at the end of the course

Locations

KwaZulu-Natal

Group of students on a game walk in Southern Africa

Apprentice Field Guide in South Africa: Image of a lion head

Field guide students on a game walk in South Africa, standing in a small river

Field Guide students on a game walk in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Apprentice Field Guide course in South Africa: Leopard in a tree

Two Apprentice Field Guide students observing wildlife in the distance

Field Guide training in Africa: Herd of impalas in Southern Africa

Field Guide course in South Africa: group of students on a game drive at sunrise

Outside area of the lodge in KwaZulu-Natal, accommodation for field guide students in South Africa

Apprentice Field Guide in South Africa

Enjoy a 55-day field guide training amidst the breathtaking wilderness of KwaZulu-Natal and obtain the official FGASA Apprentice Field Guide qualification, the entry level qualification for field guiding in big game areas.

Field Guide course in South Africa: team photo of students and instructors

Arrival and orientation in South Africa

You should book a flight to Richards Bay Airport which arrives on the day the course starts. Before your departure to South Africa, we help you organise a transfer service that will pick you up from the airport and take you to your base. Here you can settle in, get to know your team and learn more about the upcoming course and important safety rules.

Apprentice Field Guide course in Africa: herd of elephants in South Africa

Activities during the guide course

To give you an idea of a field guide’s daily routine, the course follows a certain structure. Keep in mind that activities are dependent on weather, seasonal changes and other circumstances that cannot be influenced. The aim is to give students a balance of theoretical units and practical training.

In the early morning hours, your team and your experienced safari guide trainer head out into the bush to explore the local flora and fauna. These practical sessions are typically game drives or bush walks and focus on certain modules like botany, mammals or tracking. You will furthermore be trained in birding, wildlife photography and driving a 4x4 vehicle. After your morning excursion, you walk or drive back to your base to have lunch and get some rest.

In the afternoon, you will either go on another bush excursion or join a theoretical classroom lecture. Theoretical modules that are covered reach from geology, astronomy, weather and climate to ecology, taxology and animal behaviour to safari guiding, guest interaction and conservation management. In the evening, you and your group come together to enjoy a delicious meal and reflect on the day’s activities.

Field guide course in South Africa: close-up of a zebra head

Students will regularly get tested on the modules they have discussed recently. There will also be a mock exam to prepare participants for the final FGASA theory exam. You will be given enough self-study time and even full study days before the exam to get prepared. At the end of the course you will need to pass several theoretical and practical assessments in order to receive
• the FGASA Apprentice Field Guide (formerly Field Guide Level 1),
• the Wilderness First Aid,
• NQF Level 2.

Lodge in KwaZulu-Natal, accommodation for Field Guide studenten in South Africa

Accommodation as a guide student

During your 55-day guide adventure, you will spend half of the training course in a lodge and in a bush camp. The lodge is located within a non-malaria private conservancy covering an area of 30,000 ha. You will share one of the 24 newly renovated rooms which all have access to their own bathroom. In the lodge you can relax in the cosy lounge, have a drink at the bar and enjoy your meals in the beautiful inside and outside dining area.

Field Guide course in Southern Africa: campfire during a Wilderness Sleep-out in South Africa

The bush camp is located under a canopy along a dry riverbed in Bayala Private Game Reserve. Here you will share a dome canvas tent with another participant and use communal bathroom facilities with a simple bucket shower and small ablution. Your tent is equipped with a camping mattress and a pillow. You will need to bring a sleeping bag, though. In the bush camp you will also find a classroom as well as a dining area under trees and canvas. In both lodge and camp, you will receive three meals per day including water, tea and coffee.

Leisure time during your guide training

In general, you will have free time after lunch and in the evening after dinner. You can take a nap, use the time for some extra study or simply spend time with the other participants. When staying in the lodge, you can also jump into the swimming pool. The evenings will usually be spent around the campfire before going to sleep.

Arrival

Arrival in Richards Bay and transfer to camp

We recommend booking a flight to Richards Bay Airport which arrives on the day the course starts. Please make sure to arrive in the morning before 10:00 AM. For an additional fee, a transfer service – which we can help you organise before your departure – will take you from the airport to your base. Here, you can settle into your room and get to know your team and instructors. Depending on how much time is left, you may go on your first afternoon game walk or drive.
Course

Typical day during the field guide course

A typical day in the field guide course starts with the rising sun, usually at 05:00/05:30 AM. After a light breakfast with some coffee and rusks, either classroom hours or hands-on training follow. This means, you and your group sometimes attend a theoretical lecture in camp which serves to teach you valuable knowledge on the current subject. On other days, you and your team head out on either a game drive or a bush walk to explore the animal and plant life of South Africa. Animal sightings, current course topics but also guest interaction and safari leading are discussed and trained.

Around 11:30 AM you return to camp where you are provided with brunch/lunch. From noon until around 03:00 PM you can enjoy some free time or use this siesta for some self-study. In the afternoon, after some tea and coffee, you and your team then get ready for your second activity of the day: either a theoretical lecture or an afternoon bush excursion. After class / getting back to camp, around 07:00 PM, a hot dinner awaits you and your group.
Exams

Tests and final exams

To present your knowledge on a certain subject and to determine if there are any weak areas that need to be picked up, there will be regular small test conducted throughout the course. Furthermore, you are encouraged to take enough time for self-study in order to pass the FGASA theoretical and practical exam. To support you, there will be full study days before the exam. In addition to that, a mock exam takes place to give you an idea of how the final theory exam looks like.

The final three weeks of the Apprentice Field Guide course are characterised by final practical and theoretical assessment(s). These include a classroom test on the subjects you have discussed but also a final game drive. During this drive, you will act as a real field guide, taking your guests into the bush and presenting your guiding skills and knowledge to your instructor. To receive your FGASA certificate you have to succeed during all final tests.
Departure

End of course and departure

Your time as a course participant will end in the morning hours on the last course day. After breakfast, a transfer service – either organised by yourself or booked through Natucate – will take you back to Richards Bay Airport. Please make sure that your departing flight is scheduled for 03:00 PM or later to allow sufficient time for packing, breakfast and transfer.
Notes

Additional notes for the Apprentice Field Guide course

The course is always subject to fluctuations and cannot be precisely determined. Furthermore, lectures and bush excursions as well as additional activities – especially events like night drives or wilderness sleep-outs – always depend on the day/week, the season and weather. Participants must also expect that significantly less activities take place during the final course section (exam period).

Learn what others say about their Natucate adventure.

erfahrungsberichte-suedafrika-rangerausbildung-natucate

erfahrungsberichte-suedafrika-rangerausbildung-zebra-natucate

Review Field Guide Level 1 Africa – Antonia

“When the elephant herd had passed, Alan, our last instructor, said “you cannot describe that experience in words, so let’s not””

erfahrungsberichte-rangerkurse-suedafrika-field-guide-level-1-niklas-weiter-ausblick-natucate

erfahrungsberichte-rangerkurse-suedafrika-field-guide-level-1-niklas-impala-natucate

Review Field Guide Level 1 South Africa – Niklas

“I had the expectation of having an extraordinary experience. This expectation was fulfilled, if not exceeded.”

erfahrungsberichte-suedliches-afrika-field-guide-kurs-loewe-natucate

erfahrungsberichte-suedliches-afrika-field-guide-rangerkurs-gepard-natucate

Review Field Guide Level 1 South Africa – Mel

“Thank you for everything! It was a great time!”

1. KwaZulu-Natal

KwaZulu-Natal is a province in the northeast of South Africa. From the megacity of Durban, situated on the Indian Ocean, to the picturesque Drakensberg Mountains – KwaZulu-Natal is home to many of South Africa's most fascinating sights. Last but not least, there are countless national parks and protected areas in KwaZulu-Natal, all of which are characterized by a diverse flora, a species-rich fauna and varied landscapes.

During your stay in KwaZulu-Natal, you will get a fascinating insight to the wilderness and wildlife of beautiful South Africa.

Learn more

KwaZulu-Natal is a province in the northeast of South Africa. From the megacity of Durban, situated on the Indian Ocean, to the picturesque Drakensberg Mountains – KwaZulu-Natal is home to many of South Africa's most fascinating sights. Last but not least, there are countless national parks and protected areas in KwaZulu-Natal, all of which are characterized by a diverse flora, a species-rich fauna and varied landscapes.

During your stay in KwaZulu-Natal, you will get a fascinating insight to the wilderness and wildlife of beautiful South Africa.

Learn more

Background of the Apprentice Field Guide course

Our 55-day Apprentice Field Guide course will give you the chance to obtain the entry level qualification for field guiding and therefore marks the foundation of further career focus courses. Even if you do not belong to those who plan on taking the first steps towards working in the safari business – in any case, the course will be a beneficial time-out in nature, an unforgettable adventure for those who have a passion for nature and wildlife and are looking for personal development.

Theoretical and practical learning units such as game walks and drives teach course students the knowledge and know-how a field guide must have. They become familiar with the secrets of the African flora and fauna, are able to track and observe wild animals in their natural habitat, learn about conservation issues and an ecofriendly lifestyle and interact with international guest groups. Nature is your classroom – and learning in this awe-inspiring environment is a life-long adventure.