Interest in South Africa exploded in the 70’s and for the next 38 years the safari company grew from strength to strength with Charles at the helm surrounding himself with a team of people sharing his passion for Africa and cementing Bench’s reputation for being the “Africa Experts”. When Charles retired in 2007, the company was sold to his ground operator in East Africa – Southern Cross Safaris – a Kenya based company with an even longer history of taking clients on quality safaris. Since then, Bench Africa has gone again from strength to strength, increasing their portfolio of destinations and variety of experiences offered throughout Africa and the Indian Ocean.

Charles’ principles of ‘an in-depth knowledge and passion for Africa’ will never change at Bench, so you will always find an enthusiastic and knowledgeable reservations team to assist with any enquiry.

The Bench Team

We believe we have the best team of Africa experts in the industry who are passionate about the destination and specialise solely in holidays to Africa. With their knowledge and personal experiences, they will happily assist in planning your ideal safari holiday. There are also several other behind-the-scenes members of the Bench staff that assist with marketing, operations and accounts, and are vital in the success of the company. Please read more about our fantastic team of experts in the right hand section of the page

The story began when Charles Bench initially arrived in Australia the best part of 50 years ago to play tennis from one continent to the other, while taking a break from his duties as Sales Manager for South African Airways in London. Making many friends along the way, he discovered that holidays to South Africa from Australia were almost non-existent. What a golden opportunity! With his love of the safari life and encouraged at being a pioneer, Charles migrated to Australia in March 1969 and opened his doors for business. Bench Africa was established.