Guides & Their Toys
Go Touch Down Travel & Tours
- Offices In:
-
United States
Canada
Australia - Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Tour Types:
- Small & medium group tours (Mid-range & luxury)
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $300 to $800 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
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Email Christy | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Presentation, contract, itinerary, and actual experience never matched up, and no resolution.
We booked a safari in South Africa at a travel show in Dallas. We received an itinerary 2 weeks before the trip. On the trip our experiences were not what was communicated at the travel show, nor on our contract, nor on the itinerary. The contract says they can change anything they want at their leisure and as a customer there is no recourse. Many of our safari guides exceeded the 6 passengers, so that small group feel...gone, forget it. They only allow you to stay at their resorts so there is EXTENSIVE driving to and from every activity. Our itinerary said we would be on a jeep safari in Kruger, but once we arrived we were told we had to pay an additional 130 for the jeep. Our trip to Kruger took 3.5 hours to arrive, only got 3 hours on the jeep, then a 5 hour drive back to the resort (Hamala). It was a miserable day in the van and not worth the drive for such a short safari. Hamala is a nice resort but dinner is what they choose, not what the customer would like. They served a steak one night that was too tough to eat. I told the host the steak was too tough and his response was "your welcome", so needless to say I went to bed hungry that night (there were NO other food options provided). The safari's at Hamala were at 7 am, wake up call at 5:30, coffee at 6:30 and safari from 7-10, then breakfast is at 10am. I struggled with my blood sugar being up for 5 hours without any food. I finally had to buy snack cakes at the gas station during an outing. Persons on the Cape Town tour are flown into JBurg and they say a free night at Seasons resorts to recover from the travel, but all it is, is a sales pitch to buy into the resort, as they then have to fly from JBurg to Cape Town the next day. We also booked a shark dive with Go Touch Down, they charged us 350 per person. When we arrived at the shark dive operator we found out the cost is 186 per person. I assumed there would be a small up charge for Go Touch down to book it, but seriously, double the cost. Save your money and book your own shark cage dive directly with Apex Shark Encounters in Simon's Town, your cost will be cut in HALF. I will never recommend this company. I wrote 6 emails during my travels of my negative experience and received NO assistance, many emails I didn't even get a response. I wasted so much money with the company and want to ensure other people don't get scammed like I did.
Reply from Go Touch Down Travel & Tours
Posted on Aug 11, 2020Dear Christy
It is with sadness that I read your review. Our clients travel far and the trip to South Africa is often a trip of a lifetime. We pride ourselves on our success rate and social media reviews.
You wrote to us 5 times during your tour in South Africa. I replied to you every time that you did. My replies were detailed and lengthy, even thou you were in destination. Four of your emails were about the same subject. I replied with extracts from your agreement and the itinerary you agreed on.
There is no point in going over each point you raised, as we have done so in detail in writing to you after this review. Your detailed itinerary you received prior covered the times, breakfasts, and driving. Instead, I want to say I am sorry that we do not agree on all the points you raised, as the other 3 people on tour with you enjoyed the experience. All the constructive remarks have been shared with the resorts/camps and they have taken your review to heart.
Please note that after much feedback, including yours, we no longer drive to Kruger Park as it is a long day, and instead now visit Pilanesberg that's only 70 min away. The reviews are fantastic.
Again, I am sorry to hear that you did not enjoy our 8-day Safari and would like to offer you a travel voucher for $500 to use towards one of our other Exclusive Tours.
Sincerely,
the COO
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Email Patricia Grech | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Go Touch Down is a first class act!
Go Touch Down communicated regularly & always replied promptly to our questions. My friends and I, immediately recognized the professionalism and were impressed with Marie and the group in Sarasota, Florida. The tour guides, Jonathan, Bakkis, and Bastion were the ultimate professionals, each fun in their own way; and very knowledgeable. Without a doubt, on my/our return to South Africa, I/we will go through Go Touch Down.
Cape Town was more than I/we had ever imagined. It is truly an impressive city with the most majestic sceneries one can ever experience. The dining experiences were beyond our expectations. Jonathan, our tour guide and was kind and patient, but more importantly, we learned so much from him about the South African people, history, and its cultures. He is a class act for sure!
Bakkis, our tour guide for the second leg of our trip, was a very "happy chappie" and always made sure we were all taken care of and safe. Bakkis was fun and we enjoyed his great expressions. He is unforgettable!
Bastion, our tour guide for the safari/game drives, appears serious, but has a great sense of humor. We shall never forget his keen eye for detail and loved that he knew exactly where to stop to capture the ultimate sunrise or sunset experience. These are treasured moments for the rest of our lives!
Thank you a million times! My long life dream came true and it would not have been so perfect withour your entire team at Go Touch Down. Look forward to seeing you all again!
Affectionately,
Pat Grech
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Email Bruce Murphy | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Big Five--And Much More!
I had booked my photo safari in 2019 for the following year but the COVID-19 pandemic pushed my plans back and back and back. My wife was killed in January 2023 and I was going to cancel my trip--Go Touchdown was very understanding. But friends told me to go ahead and take the trip in my wife's memory. I had lots of questions and apprehensions about the trip and the Go Touchdown folks (mainly Lucia) patiently addressed all of them.
The trip itself was wonderful. I wanted to take photos of the African animals and was not disappointed. Of course, I had a focus on the “Big Five” and I was able to get outstanding photos of all of them. Even though it was not "bird season" there was sufficient quantities and variety of birds to photograph. The free-roaming animals were almost close enough to touch from the safety of our jeeps. The guides were phenomenal--very knowledgeable without being "academic." I thought I knew a lot about animals before the trip but I learned so much more on the safari. (Do you know that hyena poop is white because of their diet of bones?) Accommodations were very good everywhere we went and the food was fantastic.
Our small group (9 guests plus drivers/guides in 2 vans) was perfect--great personalities, interesting people, funny, friendly. One couple had visited Chobe National Park before the start of our trip and recommended it highly because of the large variety and numbers of animals. Thanks to the flexibility and responsiveness of the Go Touchdown team I was able to change my tour to include Chobe and still go to Victoria Falls. Overall, I couldn't have been more pleased with the Go Touchdown Safari experience.
CA
Email Craig and Carolyn | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
OUTSTANDING, Trip of a lifetime, HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
We are very experienced travellers having travelled all over the world with various tour companies like Trafalgar, Colette, Globus, Scenic cruises etc. Our experience in Africa was second to none and it created special and fantastic memories that will last a life time. In travel the phrase "trip of a lifetime" is often overused but this truly was a trip of a lifetime! The experiences and memories are unforgettable!
Marie Brivik was wonderful and always went the extra mile to ensure our trip was unforgettable and all the many details for us were looked after. She even gave us her What's App contact info in case a problem was to occur. She was professional, thorough and always willing to listen.
We started in Cape Town and had wonderful experiences with the highlights being Buffelsfontein, Langa township tour and lunch with a local lady, Boulders penguins, Robben Island,Table mountain, the wineries, the Gold African dinner and show. These wonderful experiences can simply not be matched and would be impossible to do on our own. Absolutely awesome! Shark Bay and Belle Maroc were amazing properties!
Our second week was the 7 night safari tour at Humala and Tshukudu game lodges. The differences between the two properties gave us the opportunity to see and experience two completely different types of safaris. The swazi dancers at Humala were outstanding! The day spent in Kruger was an amazing experience and can't be missed. The sunset river cruise on the African Princess was superb, relaxing, with wonderful appetizers and drinks!
The staff was most helpful and did whatever they could to ensure our every need was met, simply speaking they spoiled us! More specifically Trevor at Buffelsfontein was awesome, Joseph who drove us to Humala and then on to Tshukudu always greeted us with a smile and went above and beyond to make our trip the best, Lyle at Humala was always eager to help and give us the best experience possible and finally Michael our guide at Tshukudu whose professionalism, knowledge and sense of humour was the best, always ensuring our safari was unforgettable by answering our many questions. Thanks to all.
The food we had was delicious, well prepared and added to our African experience!!!! Special mention must go to Pancake Harry's for their bobotie, San interpretative center restaurant for their Eland burger, Kruger lunch stop for their snails and finally Mariner's wharf. I have had lobster at many places over the world and theirs was simply the best!!
Thank you Go Touch down for a truly amazing experience that cannot be matched.
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Email Christine | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Best!
The GoTouchdown tour was fabulous! The tour guides were always on time and full of information about everything from the animals to the terrain to the history and people of the region and culture of the area. And they were incredibly friendly, nice and unbelievably helpful getting you whatever you needed.
The Seasons hotel was ok but the Hamala and Dunkeld accommodations were fabulous! Dunkeld Estates was a total surprise - it was like Scotland in the middle of Africa with stone buildings and beautiful horses and trees - and with incredible accommodations, definitely 5-star.
The Safari guides were so knowledgeable both at Hamala and Pilanesburg that they made the experience even better. I had tears of joy seeing the giraffes, zebras, hippos, and elephants so close. The park were the lions, cheetahs, etc were was just ok but I was happy to see the big cats, and they had fabulous gift stores. I must say the Hamala Safari ride is not for people with back or neck problems but I thoroughly enjoyed the bumpy ride. Visiting the local terrain and parks showed me how vast and mountainous and diverse South Africa was.
I loved the Safari week so much that I thought the 2nd week which was in Cape Town would be a letdown but I could not have been more wrong! Our fantastic guide, JP, picked us up every morning at 7:30 or 8:00 from the Stillness Manor and we were on the go all day long seeing everything from the Most Southern tip of Africa, botanical gardens, penguins, beautiful villages like Hermanes, a cable car ride with incredible views, a bird zoo where squirrel monkeys crawled all over you ( I could have stayed there for hours), various shopping venues that had primitive local art to others with upscale African designers, and a tour of the history of diamond mining ending with an opportunity to purchase some beautiful gems.
And the restaurants! Lots of incredible food and beautiful places. My favorite was Gold where everyone got their face painted, played native drums, was entertained with various vignettes of native singing and dancing, all while dining on 14 courses (tapas size) of native foods! This place is not to be missed! There was also the restaurant at the edge of the rocky shore in Hermanes which was gorgeous. And there were lots more all included in the tour price.
The Township Tour explained how apartheid affected the people, showed how some of the poorest people still live, and showed the continuing struggle in neighborhoods today. It ended with lunch in a lovely lady’s home. It was truly an education that enhanced my understanding of South Africa and should not be missed.
I honestly didn’t want to leave. By the way, I was traveling alone and had a wonderful time meeting new people and felt safe and secure the whole trip.
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Email Jonni Bondarenko | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
All of the Go Touch Down staff are extremely dedicated to providing the best experience.
On the day we were leaving to come home, we were already discussing when we should go back. And I would absolutely reach out to Go Touch Down again to help us set up our next adventure. All of the agents who helped us were from South Africa, and therefore incredibly knowledgeable. They all hung in there with us throughout the Covid pandemic and assisted with a couple different rescheduled bookings. Ultimately, they ended up creating three separate bookings for us due to all the government shutdowns that caused us to reschedule. Agents were always prompt in their responses to us and always eased my anxiety over all the unknowns created by the pandemic. They created a level of trust that is so important for a big tour so far from home. Ultimately, we were able to finally enjoy our tour and it was the most epic journey of a lifetime. The food and the accommodations were all incredible. And we LOVED all of our local guides! These guys felt like instant family and we had so much fun driving to and from our activities with them.
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Email Laz | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great staff & experience!
I truly enjoyed my African travel experience! The trip was simply amazing! I thoroughly enjoyed the entire itinerary and team, but I want to specifically highlight James and Humala River Lodge for being my favorite experiences! I can't say enough about the entire experience and will definitely use Touch Down again when I return to Africa!
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Email Glenna | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
This was an AMAZING trip.
Every aspect of the trip that was planned by Go Touch Down was the best it could have possibly been. The places were stunning. The knowledge of our guides exceeded our expectations. The people who cared for us became our friends. They were genuinely looking out for our best interest and our best experience. The accommodations were first rate. When British Air shut down, "our" representatives at Go Touch Down swooped into action and rescued us. Even the animals cooperated to give us a stunning look at their everyday lives. We have already raved about this once in a lifetime trip and recommended Go Touch Down to friends.
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Email DON | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a lifetime, WOW!
Our ten day Signature tour of South Africa was amazing. Every detail was full and complete: service, accommodations, food, sight-seeing, game drives, information about local people and customs, tours in Johannesburg and Cape Town, cable car rides, local restaurants, and one dinner theater with inter-active entertainment. We felt very safe because Go Touch Down owned each of the three hotels/resorts that we stayed in, as well as all of the staff were employees of the tour company. This included guides, rangers, drivers, cooks, and servers. There were five in our tour group and we were treated like royalty!!
The tour company also went above and beyond expectation when our return flights were grounded in Cape Town due to grounding by the South African authority. Our guide, Jonathon, was in constant contact with the GTD South African Operations Manager and another airline to get us rebooked to fly to the USA. We couldn't have done this ourselves, and thanks to them we arrived home on the original day. This tour company is the best!!
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Email EH | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Relax and enjoy the sights, sounds, tastes and friendly people of South Africa and Zimbabwe
Such a wonderful trip to Southern Africa that exceeded all of our expectations. Starting in Cape Town, we thoroughly enjoyed exploring this wonderful coastal city at the southern tip of the African continent. It all began with our top-notch greeting from Tony, our guide, at the airport upon arrival through customs. We were very pleased upon our arrival at the boutique hotel, Belle Maroc. These accommodations located in Blouberg were well-appointed and located right on the beach. The food and drink during our stay in Cape Town was delectable every single day. We were splendidly surprised by the quality and taste of the delicious seafood selections throughout the region. We will return for the food. Some of our favorite spots in and around Cape Town were Table Mountain, Neethlingshof Estate Wine, and Hermanus by the sea. Tony was one of the best guides that we've met in our travels. He ensured that each and every day of the tour was perfect. Baie dankie to the wonderful staff at Belle Maroc in Cape Town. We will return for the people.
After wrapping up our tour in Cape Town, we headed north to Johannesburg for an amazing tour of safaris and exploration. Our favorite spot during safari was the stay at Humala River Lodge in Songimvelo Game Reserve. This is an amazing place to enjoy safari and relax in paradise. The staff provide excellent service and ensured that our stay was pleasant at all times. Lindo was one of the best rangers that we've met in our travels. He knew where to find the game animals for viewing and ensured that we saw them on every trail ride. Our guide throughout our safaris was Thabo. He was also one of the best guides we've met in our travels. He made sure that everything was pleasant and safe during our stay.
When we finished our safari adventure in and around Johannesburg, we jetted off to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. The two most amazing sights to see are the Falls and the Zambezi river. The stay at Ilala Lodge is truly a one-of-a-kind experience where you are whisked back in time to imagine what it would have been like to travel to Africa in a simpler time. Our guide, Taffe, was also one of the best guides we've met in our travels.
Our entire trip in Southern Africa was especially pleasant because of the wonderful people that we met every day. Southern Africa is truly a special place in the world. We will return.