JOCKY TOURS TEAM
Jocky Tours and Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2002)
- Member Of:
- AMREF & KWS
- 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)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
Email AP | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Decent
We recently returned from a 7-day safari in Kenya and had a great experience overall, thanks in large part to our guide, David. From the moment we met him, he was incredibly friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful. He made sure we were comfortable, answered all our questions, and had a great eye for spotting wildlife.
David went above and beyond to make our days enjoyable – from early morning game drives to sharing insights about the local culture and environment.
The only reason I’m giving 4 stars instead of 5 is not because of David, but due to some of the accommodations along the way. While we understood some might have been 3-star lodges/camps, a few were below what we expected in terms of cleanliness and comfort.
That said, the last accommodation – Manjaro Tented Camp – was absolutely amazing. It was clean, comfortable, and had a very warm and welcoming atmosphere. A perfect way to end the trip- 100% recommend!
If you’re planning a safari in Kenya and have the chance to request David as your guide, do it – you’ll be in good hands!
BE
Email Magali | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Game Drive in Maasai Mara
I had a good times with Jocky Tours and really enjoyed our game drives. We could have a full day + one evening visiting the Maasai Mara park and saw lots of animals specially lions, cheetahs and leopards which we got lucky to see. Our guide, James Gichina, was really great helping to find animals and there if we needed him through our stay. The camp was as expected with good food.
The only down is the organization at the beginning of our trip as we have to enter Nairobi CBD for administration and lost lots of time there for nothing. Once we were picked up by our guide James (in a good car), everything went smoothly.
BE
Email Jerome | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Professional organisation offering expected game drive in Masai Mara
The pick up at Nairobi is always a bit chaotic. Indeed, no matter where do you stay, a cab has to take you in the cbd where you will pay the activity (we paid in US dollars). Then, you directly go to Masai Mara in a nice 4x4 vehicle driven by your guide. For us, it was James Gichina who was really good during the game drive to bring us close to the animals and especially the big 5. Regarding the hotel, it fits the expectations, the food was good. To resume, it was a great experience to discover the wild world of Masai Mara,
ES
Email Alberto Gómez y Maria Ruiz | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing
Very resolutive, they make you an affordable route of safaris with the best guides, the experience was really incredible, and we were very satisfied.
Honour mention to our wonderful guides, Francis and Brian, who came with us in every moment. They located the animals in the wild really quick, even if they were far or almost impossible to see. They carried us to the animals as near as permited, and they explained us a lot of interesting data about the the animals too. Also they were really nice and helpful, specially with some managements as the check in in the hotels, changing money to dollars in Nairobi or buying a sim card for having internet in the tour.
We loved all the parks and reserves, they all have incredible views and a lot of animals living their lifes and in general very easy to see. It was amazing. Specially the reserved we enjoyed the most was the Masai Mara, it was absolutely stunning, and we loved every moment we stay and every animal we saw.
In the other hand, we accorded some hotels to complement our stay in the several parks, and they changed us all but one the 4 hotels, in general the changes were not so bad but in one case it was a camp hotel wich we didnt like as much as the one we have accorded with the company; said that, the hotels were in general amazing, with all the facilities needed, and the guides helped us a lot with the incidence previously commented.
In conclusion, an incredible experience. Dont hesitate about taking Francis and Brian for guiding you, because they transformed a very good experience in the best tour that you can experience.
Email Adrian | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good
We saw lions, giraffes, leopards, elephants, zebra, buffalo, cheetahs, warthogs, Guinea fowl, huge pelican scavenger type birds, hippopotamus, crocodiles, gazelle, many types of antelope species, all within the first day and half. Driver/ guide (John Mwangi) was skilled, efficient, friendly and knowledgeable, and hard working - thanks John. A little organisation niggle was soon worked out. I think it was value for money.
IE
Email Ruth | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Private 5 Day Safari! But read notes below :)
Had a 5 day safari with Jocky Tours, private tour with 3 nights Masai Mara and 1 night in Lake Nakuru.
Picked up by our guide and driver James.
Headed to Masai stopping at the Great Rift Valley viewpoint along the way. The trip took 6 to 7 hours, the jeep was quite old with seatbelts not working very well, seats not super comfortable for a trip that long. Arriving at Lenchada Camp we were greeted by the owners and brought for lunch. The food for the 3 days was good, rice, beans, veg. Happy to have Vegetarian option everyday.
We headed on an evening game drive & then had 2 full days of game drives. Then we left for Buraha at Lake Nakuru. We arrived at 3pm and had the evening free. I had thought we had a game drive that evening (my mistake upon re-reading the schedule info from Jocky Tours), but again we felt that this should have been communicated by our guide, a simple "today we are driving here, we will stop here and here, let me know if you need additional breaks, upon arriving you will have the evening free to rest for the game drive the next morning".
After our morning game drive at Lake Nakuru we headed back towards Nairobi stopping along the way for lunch at one of the Curio shops.
Safely back to Nairobi around 3pm.
Positives:
- Saw the big 5 + a plethora of animals, birds, lizards, was truly fantastic.
- James was a safe driver, was great for spotting animals and he was a chill guide for people who want a calm atmosphere.
- Lenchada camp had everything we needed, hot water, plenty of time to charge phones / cameras, amazing wifi, mosquito net (definitely needed).
- Buraha Zeoni resort at Lake Nakuru was great to stay.
- In all places staff were very friendly, helpful + accommodating.
Room for improvement:
- The jeep was old & unclean even when we were first picked up, seats extremely dusty since day 1, seatbelts not tightening properly, seats like rocks, very uncomfortable for a 7 hour drive.
- When we were picked up we headed to the Jocky Tours offices in the city centre, this was not communicated when booking and it felt a bit odd leaving the jeep open with many people around, with all our luggage inside as we headed to the offices, this needs to be communicated to your customers as I was not expecting this and created some apprehension.
- Really felt that information was limited from the guide in terms of schedules, plans for the day, info on animals was very basic. Would have been nice to hear more about the animals, their migration patterns, why certain animals graze together, who is nocturnal v not.
- Would also have been nice if we had been told about the Masai people, their culture, why they wear red etc found ourselves googling a lot as we were not being told by our guide.
- Buffet food at Lenchada camp is not kept covered and is left open for hours in the morning and at dinner. Many flies and insects landing on food.
- Despite communicating that we were vegetarian, our packed lunches on 1 of the 2 days were meat and we couldn't have our lunch that day, which was not great considering it's a 12 hour day out.
- On the second day of our full game drive, we returned to camp earlier than the previous day (2 hours earlier) this was not communicated to us, we just began the journey back to camp and it was disappointing as we had planned to take some pictures of the sunset on our last day in the Maasai.
MY
Email YF | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
All good
Smooth journey with the Jocky Tours during the 8 days Maasai Mara-Nakuru-Naivasha-Amboseli tour in Kenya. I like that there is minimal deposit required and email communication with the office is smooth.
Our mid range accommodations are fantastic though it depends on luck on the animal sightings. First guide Wickcliff is great but second guide James can explain more i find.
Pickups are punctual.
Nice & Humble
Amazing safari tour to see the big 5, just a bit shame we didn't get to see the wildebeest crossing & leopard. Luckily we ended in a good note, able to see the Mt Kilimanjaro in clear view.
IT
Email Gianni | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing
It was an amazing safari week with my wife, exploring Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha, Hells Gate and Amboseli. We spotted all big five, including a leopard killing a gazelle, extremely rare: this was possible thanks to the skills of our driver, always connected with other drivers, which shared info and positions of animals.
Lenchada Tented Camp was not in good condition, our tent had broken bathroom, so we were moved to the nearby camp.
The communication with the driver could be better; for instance, a more detailed briefing at the beginning of the day, or at the night before, so that all car passengers could organize the time in a more efficient way, avoiding wasting time in some minor activities, dedicating more time in others.
ES
Email Gerard | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An Unforgettable Safari
We did the 4D/3N safari in the Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru with our guide, Samuel Chege. An absolute 10 as a person, guide, and driver. He was very friendly and attentive, and gave us information about the animals we saw. He made sure we were comfortable and well taken care of at all times. We really appreciate the sense of safety he gave us.
As for the organization, the third day of the tour was the weakest. You spend most of the day on the road heading to Lake Nakuru. However, in the morning we were able to visit a Maasai village ($20 per person). Also, due to rain and muddy roads, we couldn’t make the optional stop at Lake Naivasha. When we arrived in Nakuru, the hotel we were supposed to stay in was full, so we had to be relocated to another hotel of a lower category.
All in all, the experience was unforgettable, and we would definitely do it again because of its great value for money.