Reviews

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Kevin and Megan   –  
United States US
Visited: September 2021 Reviewed: Sep 13, 2021

Email Kevin and Megan  |  Experience level: first safari

Incredible detail and planning of customized Safari
5/5

If you are planning an African Safari, you will want to work with Compass Odyssey (Darren and Kate). Our trip included South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Botswana. They were great to work with, always very responsive, and very reasonably priced. We were able to customize our safari to choose which locations we visited and how long we stayed at those locations. They were even able to accommodate some changes we wanted to make within a month of our safari. Darren and Kate provided us with so much helpful information prior to our trip that took a lot of the stress out of trying to research everything for ourselves.

The trip was very well planned and our itinerary was very detailed. During this time of traveling during Covid, Compass Odyssey made sure all of our Covid testing was scheduled and that we would get results back in time before we had to travel to the next country. This was a huge relief as we would not have known where to go to get the tests completed or the contacts to ensure we got the results back. In addition, our drivers/guides helped with navigating through the land border crossings, which was important with the added complication of providing the negative Covid results to health officials prior to going through customs. Compass Odyssey provided us with detailed instructions on what to expect with each of the airport border crossings. It was nice to not have any surprises with those.

When we added a couple of extra days, Compass Odyssey scheduled us to go on the Rhino Walk and go to the Elephant Cafe in Livingstone, Zambia. We were all so thankful they did as these were experiences we will never forget.

All of the accommodations were incredible. We stayed at the Senalala Safari Lodge on a nature preserve in South Africa, Camp Nkwazi on the banks of the Zambezi River in Zambia, Batonka Lodge in downtown Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, and the Chobe River Lodge on the banks of the Chobe River in Botswana. All of them had great rooms, wonderful food, and extremely nice people.

The guides and drivers we met along the way were all so friendly and knowledgeable. Our guide at the Senalala Lodge was James. He did an incredible job tracking the animals for us on our game drives. He had really good information about the animals and you could tell he enjoyed finding the animals for us to see. In Zambia, we had a different James as our driver/guide. He was very friendly and shared a lot of very interesting information about Zambia and Victoria Falls. Mortimer was our driver/guide in Zimbabwe. He was always willing to help us out when we needed and was a wealth of knowledge. We really enjoyed talking with him. We had a boat guide (Leo) and a game drive guide (Tifl) in Botswana. Both were great guides and were able to get us close to the animals. They too had a lot of information and you could really feel their passion for the animals.

Overall, I would not hesitate for one second to recommend Compass Odyssey to anyone looking to do an African Safari. They made sure that our experience was one that we will treasure for a long time.

ken   –  
United States US
Visited: September 2021 Reviewed: Sep 12, 2021

Email ken  |  65+ years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

nothing was left to chance; every detail was carefully laid out in an easy to understand fashion.
5/5

Compass Odyssey delivered a truly memorable and outstanding tour of 4 countries in Africa. The tour was laid out in an easy to understand series of documents. Nothing was left to chance. Every day of the tour was delineated from covid testing, airline flights, lodging, meals, etc....the people that were responsible for all our daily activities were introduced to us in the documents. These individuals that provided all the services were top tier.....from the animal guides to the camp hosts you got the best. Darren from Compass Odyssey checked in with us frequently to insure that all was going as planned. Kate and Darren had to make last minute tour changes due to unforeseen circumstances. If you want the best tour custom designed for you, then Kate and Darren from Compass Odyssey should be your choice. Thanks Compass Odyssey for designing a tour that exceeded our expectations....

Debbie Baskin   –  
United States US
Visited: September 2021 Reviewed: Sep 12, 2021

Email Debbie Baskin  |  65+ years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

The BEST...provides the most detailed itinerary and customizes specifically to your wishes.
5/5

Compass Odyssey provided the absolute best trip I have ever been on. They listened to what we specifically wanted in an African Safari and put together an itinerary that gave us a wide variety of activities to truly experience South Africa and surrounding countries. The itinerary was so detailed and left nothing to chance. The accommodations were excellent, and our guides, drivers, and lodge managers treated us like family. This is the first trip I have ever had where I would not change one thing. Everything was so well planned and so much fun that I have a difficult time saying what was my favorite part of the tour. Communication with Compass Odyssey was also excellent. We requested some last minute changes, and they did not hesitate to do them and were completed and back to us very quickly! I cannot say enough good things about Compass Odyssey. I highly recommend them for the absolute best and worry-free Safari!

Paul and Audrey Stanton   –  
United States US
Visited: July 2021 Reviewed: Aug 1, 2021

Email Paul and Audrey Stanton  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Amazing service. Very responsive.
5/5

Had the pleasure of working with compass odyssey for my wife’s 50th present trip. The trip was amazing. Darren took the time to have a zoom chat with us to learn about our interests. Then customized a trip just for us.

When SA informed some stricter covid rules that precluded us staying in Jo’burg Darren was able to quickly rearrange our travel plans we end up staying longer in the Okavango delta longer.

I would absolutely use them again and strongly recommend Compass odyssey.

Kyle Roche & Sarah Biehn   –  
United States US
Visited: June 2021 Reviewed: Jul 30, 2021

Email Kyle Roche & Sarah Biehn  |  20-35 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Darren and Kate are extreme thorough and thoughtful as they help you plan your adventure
5/5

Overall, Sarah and I had an incredible time on our safari. Traveling right now is not easy to say the least, but I assure you that you are in good hands with Compass Odyssey. From the day we arrived, to the day we left everything went smoothly. Compass even went as far as to arrange a place for us to rest after our international flight as we waited to start our adventure. As complicated as traveling can be right with testing, all of this went smoothly and was pre-booked to reduce stress and concern. I would highly recommend using Compass Odyssey for your safari needs.

Doug and Sandy Furdock   –  
United States US
Visited: June 2021 Reviewed: Jun 20, 2021

Email Doug and Sandy Furdock  |  65+ years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Darren and Kate are owner operators who give 110% to providing exceptional S. African tour services.
5/5

First, I want to say that I chose Compass Odyssey for our 15 night Southern African tour based on stellar reviews. Fantastic choice. Compass Odyssey provided in depth written communication regarding all aspects of our journey that started off in Cape Town for 4 nights at Tintagel House, then off to Greater Kruger at Bateleur Safari Camp for 3 nights. My wife Sandy and I then flew from Nelspruit to Livingston Zambia where we stayed at Thorntree River Lodge for 2 nights viewing Victoria Falls and a true off the grid African village. We were then transported by vehicle across the new Botswana border bridge to Chobe River Lodge for 1 night and the next day were flown by Safari air to the Okavango delta where we stayed 3 nights at Kanana Safari Camp. For our final 2 nights in South Africa we returned by air to Cape Town and the Tintagel House in the Gardens District. The trip vastly exceeded any expectations that I had regarding the beauty of Cape Town, the Safari camps with up close and intimate game drives, (participated in 12), the on the ground teams that Compass Odyssey has assembled and the fact that Darren followed our daily progress making sure everything went off as planned. That is over the top 5 star service. The tragedy of Covid is providing vaccinated travelers with a once in a lifetime opportunity to experience world class Africa without busses full of tourists and long cues. If you have an interest in seeing Africa, just do it. Quality, service, value, 5 star venues, Compass Odyssey has all of the boxes checked.

John and Emily   –  
United States US
Visited: June 2021 Reviewed: Jun 15, 2021

Email John and Emily  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

We could not be happier about selecting Compass Odyssey for our safari vacation with our grandson.
5/5

Darren and Kate were absolutely outstanding. In spite of all the crazy goings-on with COVID, and the constant changes in governmental regulations, testing requirements, border closures and other related obstacles, our trip went off without a problem. Having never traveled to Africa before, such a trip can be fairly daunting, but Darren was always available to answer all the questions we had, no matter how small or insignificant. Every concern or problem we had was immediately addressed and resolved, and the trip was magnificent. While in Zambia, we asked our grandson what he thought of the trip so far, and his response summed up our overall impression of the trip as a whole: "Best day ever!" My wife and I would both highly recommend Compass Odyssey and would not hesitate to use them again for our next trip to Africa.

Anat and Beni Padani   –  
Israel IL
Visited: May 2021 Reviewed: Jun 4, 2021

Email Anat and Beni Padani  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: over 5 safaris

Compass Odyssey is an excellent agent: professional, kind and for you any moment of the day.
5/5

Darren and Kate are so professional, very kind and understand exactly what you want and what are your needs.
There are for your need for all Covid-19 tests, that is so important in our dayd.
They understood exactly our demands from the lodges, kind of safari we were interested in and in case of a problem came always with the right solution.
we will use for sure Compass Odyssey for our next trip!

Holly Romo   –  
United States US
Visited: June 2020 Reviewed: Apr 9, 2021

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

I would give then 100 stars if I could!!
5/5

We actually didn't get to go in June 2020 but I needed to write this review anyway!!

In 2019, I began planning an Africa trip with Darren at Compass Odyssey for 7 people in June 2020. He was amazing from the very beginning. Always available to answer any questions we had, patient with us when we changed our minds about exactly what we wanted to do, and planning a great trip that would fit into our budget. Over the planning time, we had people drop out, people who wanted to extend their trip, concerns about what "shots" we might need and a myriad of other concerns. Through all of that, Darren was a champ. He handled every change we wanted made, answered all of our questions and allayed all of our concerns.

Then comes COVID! We had to postpone our trip, which Darren handled brilliantly. He made sure that all of our deposits would hold until June 2021 and took care of all the legwork involved in moving our trip out a year.

Here we are approaching June, 2021, and we are now having to postpone again, as some of our travelers are still uncomfortable with going. I assumed we were going to have to just cancel and try to get reimbursed by our travel insurance for nonrefundable expenses already paid.

Well, that didn't happen. Darren stepped up to the plate and all of our deposits, etc, have been extended until at least the end of 2022. So our trip of a lifetime isn't gone, just on hold!

I'm pretty positive that we will go in 2022, but I know for a fact that if we can't, Darren will make it right for us. I'm sure that, eventually, I will be back here writing another glowing review after we get back from our trip.

If you ever want to go to Africa, you could not find a better company than Compass Odyssey or a better person than Darren, to plan YOUR trip of a lifetime!!

Deb and James Macias   –  
United States US
Visited: September 2019 Reviewed: Jan 28, 2021

Email Deb and James Macias  |  50-65 years of age  |  Experience level: first safari

Amazing Experience
5/5

Compass Odyssey was wonderful! They worked with us on an itinerary ensuring we had an exclusive adventure.

From the moment of our arrival until departure everything was top notch. Our accommodations were beautiful, our guide Mortimer was spectacular.

We went with another couple and we were all impressed with entire organization. We have traveled together to numerous countries and by far our best experience.

Compass Odyssey will not disappoint, we are looking forward to returning.

Average User Rating
5.0/5
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