Beacon Safaris Team in Masai Mara
Beacon Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $50 to $200 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
IE
Email Michael Lynch | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Short April Safari
Everything went well from the pick-up to the drop-off and all in between. The service and lodge were both excellent and we got to see many amazing animals thanks to our top-class guide Anthony who really tried his best throughout the trip. The Mara itself looked great and it was a privilege to spend even a short time there. I would certainly love to see it again in the not too distant future.
Great experience
Just came back from a 3-day safari in Masai Mara with our friendly guide Anthony. It was an awesome time; saw lots of animals (no leopards or rhinos, though) and had a great experience. Robert was professional, quick to respond to changes in our itinerary and quick to respond to our inquiries. Anthony was friendly, always smiling and knowlegeable about the park, the animals and Kenya in general. Sad to see that so many animals seem to have disappeared compared to 20 yrs ago, but would definitely recommend safari to anyone, especially with Beacon. We stayed at the Sopa lodge, which was luxurious, had great food and drinks! Relaxing to come back to after a day of driving on rough terrain :)
AE
Email Philippe | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Well organised and good follow up.
After an initial glitch where our contact had our dates mixed up, the recovery plan worked well as we stayed in two different lodges in stead of one and were able to see more animals in two different locations.
Having said that the second lodge ( Ashnil Game Camp, our initial plan) was much nicer than the first one (Sarova Mara Game Camp). Ashnil is positioned on the edge of the Mara river and is a great location to view the Migration crossing.
CA
Email Vinay Sarin | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent experience (with couple of exceptions)
I had booked on behalf of a party of 7 (3 couples and an adult child). Pre-trip communications were good. The safari was mostly as expected and our driver/guide, Antony, was excellent. He was especially good at finding out about places where things were happening and getting us there quickly, and into a good viewing spot - most of the things that make up a good safari tour. Sadly, but through no fault of his, we did not sight a leopard but did run into the other big 5, and plenty of zebras and wildebeest, including a river crossing by a herd of the latter - a spectacular sight.
I would note two exceptions, both of which relate to the central office and not to our driver/Guide, but which led me to rate less than "Excellent":
- When our itinerary had us setting out in the morning to arrive at our destination for lunch, we did not expect the ride to be almost 7 hours, i.e. a very late lunch. This was entirely the result of the fact that the road into and out of Masai Mara turned from paved to a dirt road (very bumpy) well before the reserve, which was the only thing in the itinerary that surprised us. It would be helpful to note the major transit times in the itinerary. If this had been our only gripe, I would have given the excellent rating.
- More serious was our baggage situation. Prior to arriving for the tour, the group had visited Cape Town and Victoria Falls. I had advised the tour office that we would be travelling with one checked bag and one carry-on each and could consider leaving some bags in Nairobi to be picked up on our way to departure from Nairobi airport, but was assured that the LandCruiser had ample room to accommodate that. And that is precisely what we arrived with. Unfortunately, there was not sufficient space for all the luggage nor sufficient time to rearrange our packing (we arrived Nairobi very late night preparatory to a 7 a.m. departure). The matter appeared to be resolved by the fact that a smaller group was undertaking a similar tour with what we were told were two minor differences - at Lake Nakuru they were staying in a different place but not far and they were leaving from Nairobi on a different flight, but in a similar timeframe. Seemed like a simple solution for them to transport some of our bags. In reality, further differences emerged - the other group had some other excursions also planned so our departure/arrival times were not perfectly coordinated. It also appeared that they were unhappy having to carry our bags and having to make some timing accommodations for that. Finally, we learnt that they were not in fact flying out of Nairobi the same day as us. As a result, we spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to arrange for the bags to arrive at the airport with us, without risk of any delay. This preyed on our minds and the time spent on this detracted from our enjoyment of the tour. On the last day, we agreed that we would take with us the bags of 5 of us who were leaving on an earlier flight and that the remaining 2 of us leaving on a later flight would pick up our bags from the other vehicle once it arrived to the other group's hotel in Nairobi. Well, even that plan got changed as we were advised, at the eleventh hour, that the other driver had some other engagement as a result of which we met on the roadside somewhere and transferred our other bags into our vehicle - making our last hour pretty uncomfortable. It seems that the other group's itinerary and the other driver's schedule should have been known by the tour company in advance and that we were misled as to what the true situation was. It also seemed to us that any solutions they proposed were to their convenience and not ours. Hence, the reduced rating.
Antony, thanks for your service. Despite the issues noted, we did enjoy.
NZ
Email Ross McMillan | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Company very flexible and accommodating to make a very enjoyable trip.
The company responded promptly to inquiries and organised a very good safari for us.
Honest and reliable safari operator
Communications with Robert over emails were fast. He patiently answered our many queries and prepared a few detailed itineraries for our selection. As for deposit, he assured us that it was usual practice to place deposit via bank transfer. We attempted with a token amount first, and when it was successfully transferred we made the remaining deposit. The remainig amount was paid in cash to Robert, who personally met us on the morning of our safari trip. The guide assigned to us, Josh, is knowledgeable about animals and has a keen eye to help us spot the animals. We felt comfortable with him throughout the whole 4-day trip.
SA
Email Santosh | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
tour was successful due to Robert professionalism & David as very good guide making all efforts
Communications - Robert was prompt though occasionally had to remind about changed itinerary & dates.
Commercial Dealing - Professional & fair .
Accommodation - All accommodations were as per commitment as per expectations . For Arc lodge ; rooms could have been close to observation deck .
Vehicle - Could have been more comfortable with adjustable seats & good upholstery.
Guide - David is good driver . Makes all efforts . Disciplined. Has knowledge about animals , birds .
Overall Safari tour was up to expectation except that we did not get chance to see a leopard though David made efforts .
While planning tour to Kenya ; one may avoid going Lake Nakaru . One must take tour at Lake Naivasha .
QA
Email AJI | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome Kenyan safari experience
We had a private customized 9-day Kenyan safari starting in the last week of June . Visited Samburu, Ol Pajeta, Aberdares, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha and Masai Mara. Accomodation (in tented camps & lodges) and vehicle (4 x 4 with hatch top) were good.(excepting some minor house-keeping issues at Ashnil Mara). We are deeply appreciative of Mr. Robert(who communicated and co-ordinated the itinerary efficiently) and especially to our guide cum-driver-- Mr. Anthony Gitau (who was knowledgeable, lively, cheerful, prompt, adaptive and skillful) for giving us an awesome , safe and enjoyable trip and helping us to see the beauty of Africa at it's best. We were fortunate to witness the wilderbeest migration and crossing of the Mara river, the Big Five and a host of other birds and animals thanks to Anthony's sharp and swift tracking skills. We highly recommend Beacon safaris.
US
Email Ka | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Safe and Competent Guide
The safari company answered our questions before arrival quickly and throughly. Our guide Ken was extremely knowledgable and an expert on the area. He asked us our expectations and was able to deliver a great safari experience.
Email Simon | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
2 day tour in Amboseli
We had a 2 days tour in amboseli from Nairobi. the tour was really nice and everything that was promised when we booked. we managed to see a lot of animals and our driver was very knowledgeable (John).
Don't underestimate the drive when you go there from Nairobi, it's pretty long especially if you arrive back in Nairobi around 5-6pm when the trafic is crazy. The Lodge where we stayed was amazing, Kibo Safari Camp (we enjoyed a lot the staff and the swimming pool).