Elevate Your Escapes
Splendid Vacations
- Office In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2023)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $120 to $900 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
CN
Email Jenny Zhang | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable safari trip with the best guide
We had the best time with Splendid Vacations in Kenya. The team is responsive, accommodative and patient with our questions when we were discussing the itinerary. Everything during the trip was very smooth. Special thanks to our amazing guide/driver /zoologist/comedian/ photographer/Jack-of-all-trades James. He is an excellent driver able to navigate all sorts of terrains. His knowledge about animals and when/where to spot them is incomparable—we are always among the first batches to arrive at the scene of elephant crossing, leopard in the bushes, or even the hunting scene! James takes marvellous photos, and I learnt that he takes a special interest in photography. On the last day, we were stuck in traffic because of a protest. Just as we started to get worried about missing the flight, amazing James found a countryside road to get us out of the traffic! James is indeed full of surprises.
TW
Email Wei | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A Splendid and Unforgettable Safari Tour!
Splendid Vacations is a truly outstanding travel agency that I highly recommend. Our agent, Rachael, was incredibly responsive and patient, always answering my questions quickly and thoroughly. She paid close attention to every detail—for example, knowing that our flight out of Kenya was scheduled in the afternoon on our last day, she thoughtfully advised us to end our itinerary in Amboseli instead of Masai Mara, which only has one road in and out, in case of any unexpected delays.
The accommodations arranged by Splendid Vacations were all excellent! For example our group of six stayed three nights at Mara Enkaji Lodge, which has extremely beautiful surroundings, a very comfortable atmosphere, and a warm, welcoming staff. We were absolutely thrilled with our stay there and appreciate the arrangements!
Our guide, Rono, was exceptionally experienced and made the trip truly enriching! He shared numerous fascinating animal facts and navigated challenging terrain with great skill. After a heavy rain in Masai Mara, the roads became muddy and slippery, but Rono's expert driving made us feel really safe. He even managed to spot a leopard in an totally unexpected location and brought us right to the action—we got to witness the iconic river crossing and even a thrilling hunting scene as well!!
What impressed me the most was Rono’s extraordinary ability to predict animal movements and position us in the perfect spots for capturing unforgettable footage. His deep understanding of animal behavior and sharp photographic instincts allowed us to take some truly amazing videos from ideal angles.
All in all, I wholeheartedly recommend Splendid Vacations for creating such a splendid and unforgettable safari experience for us!
RU
Email Alex | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfectly splendid
Splendid Vacations managed not only to help us out when another firm had gone under right before our booked safari, but also make our vacation totally splendid. Originally we booked our safari with another firm that went out of business without any notice and left us stranded in Nairobi with no idea what to do next, but contacting Splendid Vacations changed everything. Not only did they take over our safari, but they managed to organize it so fast that just a few hours after first contacting them we were already on our way to Amboseli. We couldn't believe it, but the day we were totally sure would be lost ended up being one of the best days of our new safari adventure. I just cannot thank Rachael Mulee, a safari consultant from Splendid Vacations, enough for saving our vacation and organizing everything on such a short notice. And of course our driver and guide David Muteti played the biggest role in making our trip absolutely unforgettable. We saw everything we hoped we would and much, much more. Herds of elephants, a full pride of lions, hundreds of zebras, pink flamingos and even a resting cheetah, it was amazing. This vacation has been one of the best experiences of my life and I thank Splendid Vacations for making it possible. Great job!
Email Luma | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Maryann was incredible!
The whole process was quick and simple. Maryann had sent over quotes with everything I wanted included the same day I requested them. The package was incredible value for money. We had very limited time but everything went seamlessly and we had the incredible experience. Our driver James was very knowledgable and helped us make the most out of our short time. I would highly recommend.
Email Fernando | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely AMAZING
Me and my girlfriend did a 5 day 4 night safari tour with Splendid Vacations and it was absolutely amazing. Best week of our lives seeing the big 5, staying in great accommodations and having the best service. Our tour guide was Augustine and he was the best person we could ask for showing us around these places and we miss him already. Couldn’t recommend Splendid Vacations enough and we just wish we could do it all over again already.
Email Daisy | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Super experienced driver John and excellent planner James.
Very good communication and good value of money. They plan according to our preference and made changes quickly. James is super helpful along the way. And the driver John is very nice and spotted animals right away. A lot to see in safaris and very happy to travel with Splendid Vacation! Definitely recommend!
US
Email Archita Chatterjee | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Splendid Vacations always recommended, absolutely amazing experience
Hi,
We just visited Kenya and Tanzania last month, under the guidance of Splendid Vacations, from New Jersey, United States.
The trip went through, as promised, thanks a ton to Rachael, our tour coordinator, you did amazing job.
All our guides who drove us for 10 days were amazing too. Very significantly Joseph, covered, Lake Naivasha, Masai Mara and dropped us off to Tanzania. He was very knowledgeable and helpful even to other rides sometimes.
The 2nd guide was George, amazing young man and very patiently showed us all of Tanzania, Serengeti and Ngorongoro areas, and Lake Manyara, before dropping off back to Kenya. Also helped us with shopping at nice Indian place, where we bought Tanzanide.
Our 3rd guide was very knowledgeable as well, and patiently showed us Amboseli National park and Mt Kilimanjaro.
Overall, the hotels were nice and we loved our trip. Some wonderful hotel examples are Enkorok Mara camp, Sopa lodge, Mara Serena( we only stayed at Masai, but it has more locations at al parks), Seronera lodge, Olituku, Oilepo lodge etc
I definitely recommend Splendid and will look forward for future trips.
Email Colin | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect organising and booking of an unforgettable holiday
After looking at a few safari holiday companies I settled on Splendid Vacations. My wife and I wanted a safari holiday with a few days beach holiday at the end. The initial package was more safari than beach holiday so I asked Rachael at Splendid Vacations to adjust, which she did perfectly. Rachael was very quick and helpful in all requests and communications. When making the final accommodation bookings for us there was an issue with no availability at one camp but Rachael researched and provided us with detailed information about alternatives when letting us know. This made it easy to immediately choose an alternative.
Once arriving in Nairobi we were met at the airport by Rachael and a driver and taken to our very grand hotel. Next morning we were collected by Willy, our driver for the next few days of the safari. Having Willy as our driver was the best bit of luck for us as he was excellent. Due to his knowledge and skills we saw some unforgettable sights. Lionesses with their cubs, Leopards, Cheetahs (including seeing a Cheetah make a kill of a young Impala), Elephants, Giraffes, Zebras, Wildebeests, Warthogs, Hyenas, Baboons and various other monkeys, Hippos, Crocodiles, Buffalo, Jackals etc. The only one of the big 5 we didn't see was the Rhino. I think the highlight of our safari was an incredible close up encounter with Craig, the oldest super tusker elephant in Kenya.
All travelling during the safari was done in our own private vehicle, a comfortable Toyota Landcruiser. Travelling between national parts and camps was sometimes quite long but was very interesting seeing the country from the remote parts of the Masai Mara to the centre of Nairobi. Willy was perfectly accommodating with rest stops etc.
The accommodation on the safari was perfect. Zebra Plains Mara Camp was great with its restaurant and bar over looking the Masai Mara and its very comfortable glamping tents. Zebra Plains Mara Camp set a very high standard for accommodation. I would highly recommend the evening nature walk with the Masai tribesman. This was absolutely beautiful and a very informative end to the day. Please tip generously for this; some of the other guests on the walk didn't tip at all which I felt was very remiss after such a great couple of hours.
After a couple of days there we headed to Lake Naivasha and had a wonderful couple of hours on Crescent Island walking with Zebras, Giraffes etc. There we stayed at Great Rift Valley Lodge & Golf Resort which was very comfortable. Next day we headed to Amboseli National park and Oilepo Amboseli, another great camp. Here the restaurant and bar over looks a watering hole so you can watch visiting elephants, Zebras, Baboons etc while eating your evening meal. After a couple of days here we were driven to Emali train station where we were dropped off and said goodbye to Willy. Here we caught the train to Mombasa. The train journey was quite long, about 5 hours, but the train was more than comfortable with good food and drink services with clean, looked after toilets.
In Mombasa we were met by a driver who took us into central Mombasa for lunch. We only stayed in Mombasa for lunch but it looked like a city worth spending more time in to explore. After lunch our driver took us to our next stop, The Baobab Beach Resort and Spa in Diani, where we spent the next few days. This resort is deservedly award winning. It's a very beautiful, well designed and maintained resort staffed by extremely helpful and friendly people. Plenty of pools, including one that was a no kids allowed pool, great spa, an amphitheatre with entertainment each evening, a good selection of restaurants and bars and straight on access to a perfect white sands for miles in each direction beach. And who can forget the entertaining monkeys roaming the grounds getting up to mischief. Most of the restaurants were all inclusive and the food quality and selection was excellent. We also dined in one of the premium restaurants which was extremely good with the chefs coming out to speak with the guests and the occasional visit in the roof area by Bush Babies!
During our stay at The Baobab Beach Resort Rachael had also organised a day trip out snorkelling in Kisite Mpunguti Marine Park where we saw dolphins and had a great time snorkelling in the reefs. The day included a Swahili lunch on Wasini Island which, after the food was presented to us with traditional song, was served by Swahili women . My only regret is that the food was kind of disappointing. But a minor point in an otherwise wonderful day.
At the end of our stay we were picked up by a driver and taken to Diani airfield where we caught an internal flight back to Nairobi where we caught our flight home.
Everything was perfectly arranged by Rachael with all trips, lunches, train and internal flight tickets all sorted. We didn't need to pay additional fees or fares; just tipping as we saw fit. And Rachael answered all questions promptly. This was an unforgettable holiday. Many thanks to Rachael and Willy.
TR
Email Ahmet | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Attentive and reliable
Splendid Vacations planned and executed a week-long tour for my family. We had a rough plan in mind as an experienced traveler friend engaged Splendid and explained what we wanted to do and when. Splendid executed very well. The communications were very quick and responsive as they engaged with us through WhatsApp. Our guide and driver was always on time, and very responsive to our wishes. He had good friends among other guides and was always updated on the recent animal sightings.
FR
Email Flavia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect vacations in Kenya!
I had a wonderful experience with Splendid Vacations in my safari trip to Kenya. From the organization and planning with Alice, who was always very responsive and happy to discuss the best itinerary and hotels for us, to the trip itself with Joshua, our wonderful guide! He was always taking us to the best spots in the parks and very knowledgeable about the wildlife and life in Kenya. In our next safari trip we will definitely book with Splendid again!
