The Pyramids of Giza — forget the alien theories. This is a story about human brilliance, effort, and belief.
Read MoreExploring Africa—
expertly, accessibly, and beyond
Expedition leadership • Accessible travel planning & companioning • Travel photography • Talks & workshops
30+ Years of experience
MY BLOGS
SHARE THE THRILLS! Tales of travel, light, and humanity — shared from a lifetime on the road.
I share what I’ve learned arriving in Cairo — not as a first-timer, but as a traveller who knows to observe before moving.
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I’m honoured to be featured on the cover of Glow Talks Magazine (November 2025 issue). This feature traces my journey from Cape Town to Cairo — through photography, people, and places that leave their mark long after monuments fade. The story is about courage, curiosity, and moving forward with a camera in hand.
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A boy-king, not a legend in gold. Travel writer Vivie unpacks Tutankhamun’s real story – inbreeding, pain, politics and power – from GEM to the Valley of the Kings.
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Travelling light is more than a packing list – it’s a mindset. Somewhere between Africa, India and Europe I traded bulky suitcases for one 42L backpack that carries everything I need for two months on the road. In this blog I share exactly what I pack, how I stay comfortable and presentable, and why “less” has quietly become “more than enough”.
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Explore with me, the history of Alexandria, Egypt — from its founding by Alexander the Great to Cleopatra’s reign, Roman rule, and the city’s layered rebirth through time.
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Arriving in Cairo can feel overwhelming yet magical — here’s everything you need to know about visas, first impressions, airport tips, and navigating Egypt with confidence.
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Egypt — the anticipation of a new journey. A journey through Egypt — from Cairo’s streets to the White Desert and Alexandria’s coast — capturing light, shadow, and stories through my lens. A photographer’s search for light, texture, and the chaos of human presence.
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In a world full of chaos, I choose awe. This October I travel to Egypt — not for instant vlogs, but for stories that linger. From the Pyramids to the silence of Siwa Oasis, join me as my words and camera capture moments that amaze
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MalaMala is where Africa’s wild heart still beats — a reserve where the Sand River draws life in abundance, where the Rattray family pioneered the shift from hunting to photographic safaris, and where community, conservation, and unforgettable wildlife encounters come together in timeless harmony.
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A personal reflection into Africa’s lion strongholds and silent spaces, exploring what the next 10 years could mean for the king of beasts. The roar still echoes… but for how long?
Read MoreABOUT
I’ve never been one for the easy route.
Welcome to VivienneGunning.com
Expedition leader. Story-seeker. Photographer of the quiet and the wild.
To travel is not to escape life but for life not escaping us!
I am Vivienne Gunning — senior expedition leader, artist, and observer of the human spirit.
Experience that runs deep
My professional life has unfolded in the field:
on expedition routes, in remote lodges, on airstrips far from infrastructure, and in situations where calm judgement matters more than bravado.
Over the years, my work has included expedition leadership, hospitality and lodge management, aviation-related operational support, crisis coordination, and guest care at a high level of responsibility. These experiences have shaped the way I travel — and the way I guide others.
I don’t rush Africa.
I understand its rhythms, its unpredictability, and the quiet signals that only experience teaches you to read.
Accessible & assisted travel
Alongside expedition work, I specialise in accessible and assisted travel planning and accompaniment, particularly for solo travellers, senior guests, and those with mobility considerations.
This work is grounded in realism, empathy, and experience — not promises or assumptions. With thoughtful pacing, honest assessments, and calm on-the-ground support, travel becomes both dignified and deeply rewarding.
Accessible travel, when done properly, is not about limitation.
It is about possibility, presence, and care.
A digital campfire
This website is my digital campfire.
You won’t find glossy perfection here.
But you will find stories shaped by dust, silence, colour, chaos, heartbreak, and wonder — shared through photographs and words gathered over a lifetime in motion.
Through my work, I explore the quiet dignity of a market vendor in Ethiopia, the wild pulse of a leopard in the Thuli Block, or the stillness of a grounded aircraft on a remote airstrip. Life, unscripted — but deeply felt.
This space is not about travel tips.
It is about what travel does to you.
On photography
Photography is how I pause the world long enough to truly see it.
My photographic work brings together images I’m most proud of — technically, emotionally, and artistically. They reflect professional photographic training, yes, but also instinct, patience, and an emotional response to light and form.
Please note that these images are protected works and may not be downloaded or shared without permission.
On painting
Long before the lens, there was the brush.
Painting is where I first learned to see — not only with my eyes, but with breath, skin, and instinct. These works are not photorealistic; they are interpretations. Emotional translations of places, faces, and moments that stayed with me long after I left.
Some paintings are layered and bold, others spare and still. All are deeply personal. Each brushstroke says: this is how it felt.
Original works and prints are available on request. Commissions are welcomed by conversation.
Thank you for being here
Thank you for stepping into this curated visual journey.
If something resonates, I’d love to hear from you.
📷 You can follow my current work on Instagram:
@VivieGunning | @VNGwild
Facebook: Vivienne Gunning | Vivie Gunning Explorer
Expedition leader. Story-seeker. Photographer of the quiet and the wild.
To travel is not to escape life but for life not escaping us!
I am Vivienne Gunning — senior expedition leader, artist, and observer of the human spirit.
Experience that runs deep
My professional life has unfolded in the field:
on expedition routes, in remote lodges, on airstrips far from infrastructure, and in situations where calm judgement matters more than bravado.
Over the years, my work has included expedition leadership, hospitality and lodge management, aviation-related operational support, crisis coordination, and guest care at a high level of responsibility. These experiences have shaped the way I travel — and the way I guide others.
I don’t rush Africa.
I understand its rhythms, its unpredictability, and the quiet signals that only experience teaches you to read.
Accessible & assisted travel
Alongside expedition work, I specialise in accessible and assisted travel planning and accompaniment, particularly for solo travellers, senior guests, and those with mobility considerations.
This work is grounded in realism, empathy, and experience — not promises or assumptions. With thoughtful pacing, honest assessments, and calm on-the-ground support, travel becomes both dignified and deeply rewarding.
Accessible travel, when done properly, is not about limitation.
It is about possibility, presence, and care.
A digital campfire
This website is my digital campfire.
You won’t find glossy perfection here.
But you will find stories shaped by dust, silence, colour, chaos, heartbreak, and wonder — shared through photographs and words gathered over a lifetime in motion.
Through my work, I explore the quiet dignity of a market vendor in Ethiopia, the wild pulse of a leopard in the Thuli Block, or the stillness of a grounded aircraft on a remote airstrip. Life, unscripted — but deeply felt.
This space is not about travel tips.
It is about what travel does to you.
On photography
Photography is how I pause the world long enough to truly see it.
My photographic work brings together images I’m most proud of — technically, emotionally, and artistically. They reflect professional photographic training, yes, but also instinct, patience, and an emotional response to light and form.
Please note that these images are protected works and may not be downloaded or shared without permission.
On painting
Long before the lens, there was the brush.
Painting is where I first learned to see — not only with my eyes, but with breath, skin, and instinct. These works are not photorealistic; they are interpretations. Emotional translations of places, faces, and moments that stayed with me long after I left.
Some paintings are layered and bold, others spare and still. All are deeply personal. Each brushstroke says: this is how it felt.
Original works and prints are available on request. Commissions are welcomed by conversation.
Thank you for being here
Thank you for stepping into this curated visual journey.
If something resonates, I’d love to hear from you.
📷 You can follow my current work on Instagram:
@VivieGunning | @VNGwild
Facebook: Vivienne Gunning | Vivie Gunning Explorer
SERVICES
Senior Expedition Leadership (Africa)
With over 30 years of experience across 33 African countries, I bring unmatched depth of knowledge, cultural understanding, and on-the-ground expertise to every journey.
Accessible & Assisted Travel Companion
Private, realistic itineraries — and optional personal accompaniment — for travellers who need more time, assistance, or reassurance. Travel at your pace, with calm support and on-the-ground experience. Message me on WhatsApp to start.
Bespoke African Journeys | Vivienne Gunning
Every journey should tell a story — yours. Whether you seek stillness or thrill, solitude or celebration, I design journeys that mirror your rhythm — handcrafted, considered, and deeply personal. Each itinerary blends discovery with detail, art with logistics, and authenticity with comfort — because travel should feel like it was made for you.
Photography, Talks & Storytelling
Alongside expedition and travel work, I offer travel and wildlife photography, speaking engagements, and field-based storytelling, shaped by decades of lived experience across Africa and beyond. My talks are motivational and experience-led, with a particular focus on encouraging women to discover their own strength, confidence, and independence through travel and life exploration. Drawing on real journeys, challenges, reinvention, and resilience, I speak honestly about fear, courage, self-trust, and the quiet power of stepping beyond what feels familiar. These sessions are not theoretical or scripted. They are grounded in real situations — navigating unfamiliar cultures, remote environments, personal transitions, and the moments that test self-belief. Talks and presentations are suited to: • Women’s groups and clubs • Travel and cultural forums • Corporate or organisational events • Educational institutions and workshops Photography and storytelling elements can be woven into presentations, creating a visual and emotional narrative that connects experience with insight.
ACCESSIBLE & ASSISTED TRAVEL
Accessible & Assisted Travel in Africa
Trusted on-the-ground leadership for travellers who need more than a booking
I design and personally accompany accessible and assisted journeys across Africa for tour operators, travel organisations, and private clients.
My work supports guests who require mobility assistance, medical awareness, slower pacing, or calm, experienced leadership on the ground.
25+ years. 34 African countries. Real-world, field-tested.
Trusted on-the-ground leadership for travellers who need more than a booking
I design and personally accompany accessible and assisted journeys across Africa for tour operators, travel organisations, and private clients.
My work supports guests who require mobility assistance, medical awareness, slower pacing, or calm, experienced leadership on the ground.
25+ years. 34 African countries. Real-world, field-tested.
CONTACT
Let’s Connect. I’d love to hear from you.
TESTIMONIALS
TRAVEL EXPERT!
Esther Murray: Bbakamemaw@aol.com
Accessible Egypt & Africa itineraries (Age 86)Vivienne has been Godsend to me. She has helped me accomplish things that I never could have done without her and her expert help. She worked a miracle when it came to me going to Egypt to see the pyramids. That was the last thing on my bucket list and at 86 years old, I thought it was impossible. Not so. Vivi made it possible and in the most wonderful way. She organized and planned every single detail to perfection. Her company and cherry uplifting spirit made it a trip of a lifetime. I have been around the world and in all seven continents and traveled with many people, but if I had my choice to do it over again, Vivi is the one I’d want to do it with. She never lets anything stop her. If something went wrong, I never knew about it. She handled it with grace and knowledge. I’ve taken three trips with her and there was never one minute I felt worried or concerned. Just knowing her has enriched my life.
Suzette Nieuwoudt
Former Interim Executive Director, SADC Aviation Safety Oversight Organisation / Project Coordinator ICAO COSCAP-SADCVivienne is a specialist in her field with decades of experience in aviation ranging from finding the best-suited aircraft for “flying safaris”, leading expeditions and managing logistics. Tending to every detail of the tour group’s needs in an artistic manner comes naturally, whilst topping it by sharing her positive energy to round off every expedition and every adventure as a “once in a lifetime experience”! Bravo Vivienne, you lead by example!
David Tett
President, Bushtracks Expeditions2 February, 2014 Dear Sir, Madam, This reference letter outlines the loyal and exceptional performance Vivienne Gunning has delivered to Bushtracks Expeditions and our international travelers for over 15 years. Vivienne has demonstrated an ability to learn and develop management skills for a variety of functions and projects required by Bushtracks. Initially she assisted us with significant, complex, ACMI, long haul, multi-stop airliner charters across Africa, from Johannesburg to Addis, from Cape Town to Casablanca, and on our circumnavigation of North Africa and the Sahara by private 737 jet. Her role included planning flight routes, arranging overflight and landing permissions, negotiating and contracting with airport ground handlers, supplying and managing the on board catering and cabin crew, monitoring passenger service quality, setting up of fueling stops and logistics, and more. From her successful management of our aviation charter function, she grew into our most experienced Expedition Leader with more trips, guests, and destinations to her name than any of our other leaders. Alongside this role she also developed project management skills that helped us set up and deliver a 50 bed Caidel tented camp in the Sahara desert in Niger, where she also set up and managed a very successful and remote field kitchen that delivered high quality meals to our private jet guests. A second project she managed for us was our contract with Doli Lodge in the CAR, and again she proved her project management skills. Here she was tasked with planning and sourcing fittings and soft furnishings in South Africa and the CAR, shipping them to a remote part of the CAR rainforest where she was required to install and creatively refurbish the lodge and its landscaping on a very tight budget, to train the staff and get them into uniform, and to train the chef and his kitchen staff and install a weekly menu system. In short I can recommend Vivienne for a position in the tourism industry and vouch for her dedication to hard work and delivering results in an accountable fashion. President Bushtracks Expeditions
MY LENS
Photography Portfolio. This is my heart in frames — a handpicked collection of photographs that moved me deeply. Each image carries a story, a silence, or a spark that made me pause. They are not just pictures — they are moments I couldn’t walk away from. © Vivienne Gunning. All rights reserved. Images may not be reproduced or used without permission.
ART
Through paint, I translate the emotions that travel leaves behind.
PUBLIC SPEAKING
Women Empowerment (Fort Kochi, Kerala – 2019) In 2019 I volunteered with a Women’s Empowerment Programme in Fort Kochi, Kerala. I supported skills development, confidence-building, and practical entrepreneurship basics. That experience shaped how I approach travel today: with respect, cultural sensitivity, and a commitment to people-first journeys.
