Reviews

Sort By: Date Most Helpful Rating 61-70 of 129 Reviews
ElaineH   –  
United States US
Visited: June 2018 Reviewed: Jul 28, 2019

Email ElaineH  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Top Notch Travel Services
5/5

I engaged Sarah Morris and her team at Ker & Downey Africa to plan a fairly complex adventure that included a safari in Kenya, the pyramids in Cairo and a Nile cruise. I can't say enough about the attention to detail during the planning phase and the genuine focus on making sure our final vacation itinerary would fulfill our travel goals. Once we were on the ground, the K&D team was with us every step of the way - morning, noon and night - should anything need adjustment. I highly recommend Ker & Downey Africa should you be interested in luxury travel in Africa. You won't be disappointed.

Ming   –  
Singapore SG
Visited: June 2019 Reviewed: Jul 22, 2019

Email Ming  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: 2-5 safaris

Epic and memorable for our entire family
5/5

Emma Perrin was passionate about making this an amazing adventure, and always available for consultations. I changed my mind many times, and each time she patiently walked me through the considerations. Her advice proved to be excellent in terms of the choice of lodges, duration of stay, pacing etc. She was so good I felt completely comfortable booking our Cape Town leg with the company too.

All the service staff we met were TOP notch. This is not an exaggeration. They had asked for food preferences, but what really impressed me what that they made huge efforts on a daily basis to cater to our needs. Frankly, we did not dare to expect such quality on safari.
The game drives were led by superb guides. We saw a lot and had a hard (but very enjoyable) time curating our photo album. In many ways, this experience surpassed every trip we’d made as a family.

I must also add that Ker & Downey has used technology to great effect. Tour iteranaries can be downloaded on an app. But even before that, the proposals were backed up by so much material available through a few clicks. The presentation was thoughtful and very attractive. They are way ahead of most tour Operators.

Finally, Alex Cloete gave excellent restaurant recommendations in Cape Town. We wished we had more meals to enjoy:)

Michael   –  
United States US
Visited: July 2019 Reviewed: Jul 17, 2019

Email Michael  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: 2-5 safaris

Smooth seamless transaction with knowledgeable advice
5/5

The communication with K&D was informative and accurate. We stayed at the Kampala River Lodge and the travel to and from Hoedspruit (organized by K&D flying from Cape Town and then back to Joburg) was very easy. Kampala was fantastic - I highly recommend it.

Nuala Riordan   –  
Ireland IE
Visited: May 2019 Reviewed: Jun 27, 2019

Email Nuala Riordan  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: over 5 safaris

Super to deal with, always no problem to change things.
5/5

The guesthouse in Windhoek Villa Vista was great, we stayed there coming and going.
Private light aircraft flight up to Etosha, great. We were not impressed with Etosha, the accommodation and the food. We had upgraded quite expensively to have a waterhole lodges, but despite this expense, not all waterhole lodges were adjacent to the waterhole, even those that were adjacent there was no vantage point to see the animals if the throng of others in the camp were there with their cameras - very disappointing. We had been placed on the back row and after vocalising our disappointment, we were transferred on the second day to a cabin closer to the actual waterhole. Me-Gusto our super guide did everything he could to sort it for us. The lodges/cabins were very small and if you are a vegetarian, as we were (and they knew in advance of our dietary requirements), having a diet of soggy Butternut squash, shrivelled carrots and Greek salad for lunch and dinner were no fun for 3 days.. As it was a national reserve there was no off-roading and we had to stick to the roads. I would not ever re-visit this reserve, nor would I recommend it.
The next resort we went to was Mt Etjo, the food was divine as was the setting, the game drive was great, but as we belatedly learnt about the confinement of the lions, it didn't reach our ultimate. Our heartfelt disappointment that caused us to curtail our four night stay here to 2 nights was the fact that the lions were confined in a separate reserve adjacent and were not free to hunt for themselves and were fed by the reserve. This curtailment meant we squeezed our visit to Waterberg into our guide's trip up the mountain climb, but we didn't know it was only a mountain climb and not a visit to see the animals on top of the plateau, we were disappointed over this as we didn't come to Namibia to climb mountains, we would have been happy to have been advised this and we would have opted for an afternoon at the camp enjoying the sun and a game drive.
As a result we moved to Erindi nearby. This was a larger camp and had fantastic rooms/cabins overlooking the bush and a super pool. The food was good and the game drives were great - enhanced by the sun uppers and sun downers.

Bruce S   –  
United States US
Visited: June 2019 Reviewed: Jun 27, 2019

Email Bruce S  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Success is in the details!
5/5

For my wife's 50th Birthday, she wanted to do an African Safari. I've always booked our vacations in the past, but for this 20 hour flight from the United States to Cape Town I reached out to many Travel agents to support this trip for us and another couple. From initial contact to final decision, Ker and Downey (Sarah and KayLeigh) stood out as proud South African's who wanted to show off their Amazing Country. The Vacation and the sights were great, but what made it amazing was the detail and care in which Ker and Downey planned our Trip. Our first room was perfectly chosen to face the sunrise the next morning. And since we arrived so late, Sarah ensured there was a plate of snacks left in our room since all the local restaurants were closed. The next morning our new driver and Tour Expert (Wayne from Island Tours) arrived on-time and ushered us down Route 62 to Sanbona Private Reserve. The ride was amazing and Wayne spoke excellent English so there were no communication problems. Sanbona was off the charts. Based on my description of what we wanted, Sarah recommended the Tilney Manor Lodge. (Combination of Luxury and convenience and an awesome view of the Sunset - PERFECT).
I not going to describe our entire 11 day trip in detail, but what I must convey is that every step of this vacation was meticulously planned. All the transports showed up on time with specific plans for the day and when those plans did not match the weather for that day, they were willing to change them based on our needs. South Africa was amazing, but I must also sincerely thank Sarah, Kayleigh and Pippa for guiding us through our DREAM VACATION (HOLIDAY)!!
Thank you for everything

Bonnie   –  
United States US
Visited: April 2019 Reviewed: Jun 22, 2019

Email Bonnie  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

The trip of our lives!
5/5

I chose Ker & Downey to help us plan our African safari after hours of online research comparing the different safari outfits and reviewing their tours. I absolutely chose the right company and Kayleigh, our "Adventurist" who helped us, was amazing in her attention to detail to ensure we had the trip of our lives. Nothing was overlooked, from the airport transfers to the suggestions of what we should be sure to do at each location and lodge. She presented us with three options in different price ranges and then changed things as requested. My husband told her this was our honeymoon - after 29 years of marriage - and she passed this on to each lodge where we stayed. One lodge had a bubble bath set up for us with candles lit when we returned from an evening game drive, and another one had a lovely candlelight dinner away from camp and under the stars of the Milky Way. These experiences were wonderful and meaningful beyond belief and added immeasurably to our enjoyment of this trip. I cannot recommend Ker & Downey and especially Kayleigh enough, they will help you plan the safari of your dreams. One thing we did was have a balance between actual safari and site-seeing. We were in Cape Town for four days where we saw Table Mountain, the winelands, and the cape area; then Lion Sands Narina Lodge where we saw Sabi Sands Game Preserve and part of Kruger National Park; then the Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe; and finally, two areas in Botswana, the Savute and the Okavango Delta. This was utterly perfect for us, a stellar blend of game drives to see the wildlife and the tours to see incredible natural wonders. Kayleigh at Ker & Downey did a masterful job coordinating all of the transfers between countries - we were so glad to have people meet us and usher us through Customs and Immigration. Trust me, Ker & Downey will help you plan a memorable trip and will see that every last detail is covered so that you can remain worry-free. We are in love with Africa now and I know we will return. We will not hesitate to use Ker & Downey and Kayleigh again in our future travels.

Reply from Ker & Downey Africa
Reply from Ker & Downey Africa
Posted on Jun 25, 2019

Hi Bonnie

Thank you so much for the lovely review! We are thrilled you had an amazing time! I know Kayleigh was just as excited as you planning this trip. We hope to see you back in the near future!

Brian   –  
United States US
Visited: May 2019 Reviewed: Jun 14, 2019

Email Brian  |  20-35 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

5 star service, top notch accommodations, and stress free end to end!
5/5

We can't thank Ker & Downey enough. From start to finish, it was such an easy process to work with them. Starting with our initial conversations, to booking, and staying in contact with us throughout the trip, everything was 5 star. Most importantly, the places booked for us were absolutely incredible. Every place we stayed at exceeded our expectations! We have already told our friends and family that if they are considering South Africa, go through Ker & Downey and ask for Emma and Alex!

Reply from Ker & Downey Africa
Reply from Ker & Downey Africa
Posted on Jun 25, 2019

Hi Brian

Thank you for the lovely review! We are glad you had an amazing time!

Thank you for referring your friends and family! They are in good hands.

Matt   –  
United Kingdom UK
Visited: May 2019 Reviewed: May 30, 2019

Email Matt  |  20-35 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Went out of their way to make sure we had the trip of a lifetime
5/5

Ker & Downey Africa organised our honeymoon in South Africa. They were recommended by a family member and we have no regrets in getting them to organise our trip. Emma designed our honeymoon after understanding what we were after. Our communication was all over email which worked well and she replied quickly throughout. Nothing was too much trouble, however big or small.
Emma suggested Narina Lodge in Lions Sands game reserve (Kruger). What a great place. The staff were amazing and we had the time of our lives. The guide made sure we saw everything we wanted to (despite us knowing there are no guarantees).
During our trip we kept Emma and her colleague Alex up to date via whatsapp and they seemed to show a real interest in how we were getting on and making sure we were happy.

In short, I would recommend Ker & Downey to anybody wanting to go on safari or in fact any trip.

Reply from Ker & Downey Africa
Reply from Ker & Downey Africa
Posted on Jun 25, 2019

Hi Matt

We are glad you had an amazing honeymoon! Thank you for the lovely review.

Richard fisher   –  
United States US
Visited: May 2019 Reviewed: May 20, 2019

Email Richard fisher  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Did all the right things
5/5

They were spot on and left out no detail. Sarah and her team were great and responsive on the whole trip. Highly recommend

Grant & Bekah   –  
United States US
Visited: March 2019 Reviewed: Apr 18, 2019

Email Grant & Bekah  |  20-35 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

The most amazing trip of my entire life.
5/5

Words can't really describe how wonderful our trip to Africa was with Ker and Downey. Not only did we have the most memorable experience with excellent game viewings and excursions, but our lodgings were second to none, and all needs were taken care of so thoroughly. I've traveled extensively around the world and without a doubt this was the best trip I've taken and also the smoothest. I credit a lot of it to Emma Perrin, our travel agent with Ker and Downey. She kept us so informed before, during, and after the trip and made sure things went seamlessly and organized. I can't thank her enough for opening our eyes to the natural beauty and wonderful people of Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. There's no doubt that I will use Ker and Downey again for future African adventures and would request them to everyone I know thinking about venturing to Africa- and I already have. Thank you SO much! -Grant and Bekah; Memphis, TN, USA

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