A fraction of our Team.
Big Apes Africa
- Office In:
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 2019)
- Member Of:
- USAGA, UTB & UWA
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $200 to $1,000 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
Email Jim | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Went above and beyond to make our trip great!
Big Apes, Peter the owner, and Ben our guide, all made our trip great. We chose Big Apes because Peter was the only one out of the companies we contacted who understood the somewhat difficult set of requirements for our trip. Not only did he create a plan to fit our needs, he personally stepped in to make it work. My wife and I wanted to make our gorilla trek on a specific date so our daughter, who working there as a visiting doctor, could join us. But she had to work the day before, and it is very long drive from Kampala to Bwindi. To solve the problem, Peter kindly volunteered to drive her himself, way into the early morning hours, to allow her to join us on the trek. As it worked out, she was able to leave earlier and Peter adjusted their trip to add in an extra safari park visit on the drive down. After our return to Kampala, when we had a couple of unplanned days, Peter made Ben and a Land Cruiser available to allow us to visit the places we chose on those days. It was very gracious of him and it made our stay easy from beginning to end.
Ben was a great guide. Our itinerary involved going a lot of places, all very far from one another, in a short amount of time. That meant Ben spent the week driving and driving more everyday on unpaved roads in terrible traffic. Nevertheless, he was always a pleasure to be with and he was always attentive to our comfort. On our first safari day, we had the good fortune of seeing a couple of lions along with the elephants, water buffalo and many other animals. It was a good day by any measure, but Ben wanted us to see a leopard. He worked his connections with other guides for current information and, after racing to chase various leads though some muddy obstacles, he got us a great up-close leopard viewing at the end of the day. Then, leaving from that location, we happened to encounter another one! Every day Ben was where he said he'd be when he said he'd be there.
I believe our trip fell somewhere in the mid-tier and was perfectly comfortable for us. Amazingly, we had no mosquitoes, but all the accommodations were well equipped with bug nets and had good food and helpful service. Our Land Cruiser was pretty well used and had a minor issue or two along the way, but given amount of driving we did and some of the places we went, that was just part of the adventure for us. Overall, our somewhat compressed trip delivered more than we hoped for, and we owe most of that to Big Apes.
DE
Email Claudia | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
10/10 stars! It was epic!
Wow – what an experience.
We would book again immediately!! Our guide was Andrew. He is fantastic: friendly, helpful, communicative, and always punctual.
The evening before departure, I received a WhatsApp message from Andrew confirming the pickup time and location. We approached the upcoming four days feeling completely relaxed and full of anticipation. We were absolutely not disappointed. Thanks to Peter, Peace, and especially Andrew for this incredible experience.
Thank you!
We hope to return to Rwanda and Uganda someday and travel with you again.
Best regards from Germany,
Claudia and Dennis (35, 34 years)
CA
Email Katharine S | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent tour through Rwanda and Uganda
Our family of four had a great time with our guide Ronaldo. He was incredibly knowledgeable about the animals and added a lot of context to our trip. In Africa, things go sideways with mechanical issues, muddy roads, etc…it’s all part of the adventure and Big Apes found solutions when they were needed. The tour was as planned and the trip of a lifetime!
IT
Email Loredana Setti | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Just adequate. Not up to the description on the web. Just adeguate
The company contacted us by email before departure, but then they never contacted us again. The driver/guide was very good, but he was a freelancer, not a member of the company.
The hotels were very mediocre (except in Bwindi), especially the lodge in the Queen Elizabeth, with inadequate staff and terrible food.
CN
Email Marc | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Very Diverse Uganda-Rwanda Experience
Really appreciated Peter’s willingness to work with me on customizing our 13-day Uganda-Rwanda adventure. I can’t overemphasize how great it was to do the trekking experiences for the gorillas, golden monkeys, chimpanzees, and rhinos. I had been to Kenya and Tanzania previously, and these trekking experiences were really unique. While the game drives in Uganda were great, I also really enjoyed the water activities in Kazinga Channel, Murchison Falls, and Mabamba Swamp. Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary was another surprise with all of its different monkeys and birds.
Don was our driver/guide for the entire experience and he was great! Very accommodating and helpful.
BE
Email Alana Verrept | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The trip of our lives so far
We traveled to Uganda with Big Apes Africa for 11 days at the beginning of February.
At first, we were in contact with Peter, who helped us put together our trip. He listened carefully to our wishes and together we decided on the hotels where we would stay. Peter recommended some real hidden gems. Later on, Bella took over and helped us with the finishing touches. Since this was our very first safari experience, the pre-trip information could perhaps have been a bit more detailed. However, whenever I had a question or concern, Bella was always available and happy to help.
Our guide throughout the entire trip was Don and we truly couldn’t have imagined a better guide. He is an incredibly kind man, very punctual and his knowledge of the local fauna and flora is simply exceptional. Thanks to him, we were able to live our dream. We will always be grateful to him for that.
NO
Email Kristoffer | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great and responsive company with excellent itinerary
We were very happy with the program Big Apes Africa was able to put together for our five-day trip to Rwanda and Uganda. They were responsive and easy to talk with when looking at different pricing options and itineraries, and were able to put together a package that made us very comfortable in choosing Big Apes Africa instead of other operators.
The trip itself went smoothly, as our guide met us at the airport in Kigali, was friendly and knowledgeable, and went with us for the duration of the trip. Big Apes Africa had to provide us with different bookings than in the original quote due to availability issues, but we felt that they handled the issue well and were able to find alternatives that were just as good or better than the original places.
Over five days we visited a cultural village, saw golden monkeys, gorillas and chimpanzees, and went on game drives and a boat trip. The program was varied, and we couldn't be more satisfied. As we spent a lot of time on the road, I think the only thing I missed in the itinerary was an estimate for transport times.
All in all I can absolutely recommend Big Apes Africa!
LU
Email Nuhamin | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable 8-Day Safari Experience – Highly Recommended
I booked an 8-day budget safari with this agency. The organization was handled very well the team followed up with me before departure, during the trip, and even after it ended to make sure everything went smoothly. The experience was absolutely incredible, and I truly recommend them.My driver, Ben, made the trip even more special. He was attentive, patient, and shared so much information about the itinerary, the country, and the wildlife. I highly recommend this agency, and I hope you’re lucky enough to have Ben as your driver too!
NL
Email Saskia | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Extraordinary experience
It was easy to correspond with Big Apes Africa. It was a well organised and they have given answers to all our questions, with a lot of patience. The trip was well prepared, with all the handy tips Big Apes had given us before departure. We have visited one big apes family and it was a once in a lifetime experience.
CH
Email Bill | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
I recommend You Do Not Use This Company — Our Tour was Unsafe, Disorganized, and they had Zero Accountability!!!
Our four day trip was plagued by serious safety issues, poor planning and zero professionalism . Day 1 STARTED 5.5 HOURS LATE with no explanation, costing us half the day or 1/8 of our trip. When we brought this up Big Apes told us we were brought to our destination, so they fulfilled their obligation, ignoring the fact that instead of enjoying the resort for 5.5 hours, we sat in the hotel lobby waiting for our ride that kept telling us he would be there any minute. The vehicle was VERY unsafe. Many seats lacked seatbelts and one seat literally CAME OFF THE FLOOR WHEN THE VEHICLE BRAKED. The driver admitted extreme fatigue even telling us HE “FELT DRUNK”, drove recklessly, nearly caused an accident, and even planned to drive until the vehicle ran out of gas on remote roads. Yep, he told us he intentionally planned to drive as far as he could down a remote road to get as close to the gas station as possible. Thank goodness we rolled in on fumes.
Water was not adequately provided as promised, the last hotel was AWFUL and not even close to the standard of the first two hotels (which surprisingly were actually nice) and at a border crossing the driver Walked Away From Me, Saying Nothing, Leaving Me Standing Alone In The Middle Of The Street At An International Border Alone
with no guidance. The “guide” provided no guiding at all, he just drove, was rude, and completely disengaged.
When these issues were formally raised, management refused accountability, dismissed the safety concerns, and offered to refund only the guide’s $40/day pay as compensation for a $4,000 trip.
This company omitted the most basic safety standards, organization, and professionalism. This should be a no-brainer, just go with another company and stay far away from Big Apes.
Reply from Big Apes Africa
Posted on Feb 26, 2026We regretted the behavior of our guide and we thought it fit to refund his pay but it is unfortunate that it was insufficient. Not being able to lock the seat manually for you to avoid moving back and forth makes it irresponsible of him and we are truly sorry. Of the total cost of the tour which is $3.956, about $3.000 was for activities and accommodation plus administration fees. The rest was for all the logistics (Vehicle, fuel, related insurances and more) involved in making the tour possible plus the credit card charges. The decision to refund the guide's pay was based on the premise that all activities were done properly and accommodation utilized. Whenever you are ready to have this refund, please get in touch with us!