Great team work, end result is great success
African Sunset Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Tour Types:
- Customizable private tours and fixed group tours
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $50 to $600 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
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Email Jay | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our 15-day Kenya/Tanzania experience was thrilling and exceeded our expectations.
I read through a few guidebooks and screened several operators listed on safaribookings.com before selecting African Sunset Safaris, owned and operated by Haron Gashao. Their "15-day Best Program for Photography" Itinerary (Amboseli, Sweetwaters/Ol Pejeta, Samburu, Nakuru, Naivasha, Maasai Mara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire) was near-perfect for what we wanted. Haron is an excellent, personable (even droll at times), professional and knowledgeable guide, familiar with the animals and their habits and therefore an excellent spotter. He can and does go off-road where permitted -- all the better to spot such amazing sights as 3 roving rhinos, a mother cheetah with 4 playful cubs, a pair of mating ostriches, and yet another cheetah in tall Mara grasses lunching on a gazelle. Along the way, you will view every animal possible -- the "Big 5" almost certainly. We saw 4 different leopards along the way, and they can be very elusive. Parades of elephants and giraffes, every antelope-like creature from the tiny dikdiks to the enormous elands. Sure, many lions and hippos. A stampede of thousands of wildebeests. A zillion zebras. Crested cranes and many many other birds. Hyenas, wild dog, jackal, pointy-eared African foxes, mongoose...we even spotted a rarely seen small cat, the serval. Haron is also a very skillful driver of his large Land Cruiser -- important for the often very bumpy and sometimes flooded dirt roads that you will inevitably encounter. We stayed in wonderful lodges with outstanding food, accommodations, and views (e.g. Serena and Sarova properties) and also in a few very comfortable if only slightly spartan tented camps. Haron was good about communicating and answering questions up-front, and adjusted and added to our trip plans per our interests and requests. He seems to have good relationships with the lodges and camps that enable him to get very good value . . . much better pricing than booking through a US company (that would only subcontract with an African operator anyway) and even better than many other African operators that I looked into. Be on notice that Kenyan and Tanzanian guides, per local rules, can only work in their own countries... so that you will have a different guide for part of a 2-country safari. In our case, Haron had promised the highly-praised Gideon for our Tanzania portion, but his Land Cruiser broke down and couldn't be repaired in time. The replacement was a capable and personable young guide, Erick, but the vehicle was somewhat older and smaller. Hey, stuff happens. It also rained a lot the week before we arrived (a month before the annual rainy season). That caused some challenges with huge ponding puddles and mud, and some concern about possible itinerary adjustments, but it all worked out. We had a wonderful and amazing experience. Keep your sense of adventure and sense of humor, and go with the flow . . . with African Sunset.
Email Josephine | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Haron was very patient and professional and displayed vast knowledge of the area.
The service was above and beyond our expectations and we couldn't be happier.
The tour was exceptional. The vehicle was spacious and water was provided. They thought of everything
CL
Wonderful experience in Kenya and Tanzania. We recommend this company 100%
With 3 friends we hired 10 days of safari with this company and from the first minute they took care of us. In Kenya we pass through the Nakuru National Park and Masai Mara Reserve, then cross to Tanzania through the Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Tarangire National Park. The experience was magnificent. Haron, our tour operator took care of every detail and was flexible to our needs. The accommodations in each park were magical, each with its seal. We had two guides - drivers (one in Kenya – Patrick, and one in Tanzania - Gideon), who showed all their experience and willingness with the group. We were lucky to witness the migration of zebras and wildebeest from Serengeti to Masai Mara! ... simply wonderful. African Sunset Safari exceeded all our expectations. We highly recommend this company. In addition, it is a good way to favor local entrepreneurship because this company is from Nairobi.
Con 3 amigos contratamos 10 días de safari con esta compañía y desde el primer minuto se preocuparon de nosotros. En Kenia pasamos por el Parque Nacional Nakuru y Reserva Masai Mara, luego cruzamos a Tanzania pasando por el Parque Nacional Serengeti, Ngorongoro y Tarangire. La experiencia fue magnífica. Haron, nuestro operador turístico se preocupó de cada detalle y fue flexible ante nuestras necesidades. Los alojamientos en cada parque fueron mágicos, cada cual con su sello. Tuvimos dos guias – conductores (uno en Kenia – Patrick, y otro en Tanzania - Gideon), quienes mostraron toda su experiencia y disposición con el grupo. Cada cual se esmeró para cumplir con nuestras expectativas. Tuvimos la suerte de presenciar la migración de cebras y ñus desde Serengeti a Masai Mara!... sencillamente maravilloso. African Sunset Safari superó todas nuestras expectativas. Recomendamos esta empresa totalmente. Además, es una buena forma de favorecer el emprendimiento local ya que esta empresa es de Nairobi.
Exceeded our Expectations! Fantastic Tour of Kenya/Tanzania
I highly recommend African Sunset Safaris, a fabulous tour outfit that far exceeded our expectations. Owner & Manager Haron was excellent with communications and very helpful during the tour. He customized for us a 13 day safari in Kenya/Tanzania during the Great Migration. The lodging was tremendous, and our guides -- Julius and Lazaro -- were incredibly experienced, professional, and knowledgeable. We so enjoyed our conversations with them over (exceptional) meals about life in East Africa and the region's many natural splendors. We saw the Big 5. We saw gorgeous birds, baobob trees in Tarangire, stunning sunsets, watering holes of crocodiles and hippos, and huge herds of elephants. Julius and Lazaro were respectful of the wildlife, mostly avoiding the big scrums of tour vehicles while still getting us up close and personal with the animals -- resulting in incredible photographs. If you want to see lions stalking their prey on the foothills of Kilamanjaro, rare rhinos in Nakuru, leopards, cheetahs, vibrant flocks of flamingos, and humongous herds of wildebeest, go with African Sunset Safaris!
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Email Janet Bartol | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Absolutely wonderful to work with
My son and I recently enjoyed a 2-week safari through African Sunset Safaris. We had an absolutely amazing experience from start to finish. Haron was extremely responsive to all of my emails and the multitude of questions I peppered him with. He made sure that everything was just right for us and even went out of his way to accommodate our every wish. The animal sightings in both countries were wonderful. We had Gidion in Tanzania and he was such a fun guide to have. I would definitely travel with African Sunset safaris again.
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Email Mr Jai Mitra | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic African Safari .. memories for a lifetime
We just wrapped up a fantastic 14day safari through Kenya and Tanzania, with a side trip to Victoria Falls (Zambia and Zimbabwe). Lifetime of memories and a truly amazing experience, thanks to African Sunset Safaris.
Simply put, you can’t go wrong with Haron Gashao, owner of African Sunset Safaris. I contacted a lot of tour operators and researched heavily over a couple of months before picking Haron to organize the trip for our group of 10 (three families). We wanted a customized itinerary with a circular routing .. Nairobi, Masai Mara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Amboseli, Tsavo West (Salt Lick) .. which meant crossing the border at Isabenia (into Tanzania) and Namanga (into Kenya). Haron worked with me patiently through multiple iterations of the itinerary revisions and made thoughtful suggestions that made this trip so much more enjoyable. We experienced western parts of Mara and Serengeti that tourists normally don’t see. To reduce our journey time from Mara to Serengeti (through Isabenia), Haron arranged for us to stay a night each at Mara Engai and Zebra K Bush Camp .. fabulous experiences!
We had Patrick in Nairobi, Nick and Julius in Mara, Peter and Rogers in Serengeti, Joe and Ben in Amboseli/Salt Lick .. all fabulous guide-cum-drivers. Even though the dirt roads can be challenging, the Landcruiser 4x4 vehicles were very comfortable .. you get a vigorous African massage. The game viewing was terrific and the guides were quick to find the hot spots for us to see game up-close .. we saw Big 5 and a whole lot more. They regaled us with stories about the Masai and the local culture, mixed in with funny anecdotes about wildlife. The properties we stayed at were all top-notch .. Windsor Hotel (Nairobi), Zambezi Waterfront (Livingstone), Sarova Game Lodge (Mara), Mara Engai (Mara), Zebra K Bush Camp (Serengeti), Serena Safari Lodge (Serengeti), Serena Ngorongoro Crater Rim Lodge, Serena Amboseli Lodge, Sarova Salt Lick Lodge. We had 5 vegetarians in our group of 10 .. the chefs at each property went out of the way to prepare special meals for us. The warm Jambos and Karibus from the folks we met in Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe made this trip so memorable.
This trip has been memorable for the beautiful scenery, unbelievable game viewing, generous and friendly people we met along the way, elegant and comfortable lodges, variety of experiences and pleasant weather. But most of all, it was Haron's personal attention right from the planning phase to our arrival and throughout our trip that made the biggest difference for us. He met each of the arriving parties at the airport, was there at the border crossings and was is constant touch with us over WhatsApp .. note sure when the man sleeps! When we had a minor hiccup with Kenya Airways on the return flight from Livingstone, Haron was quick to roll with it and made alternate arrangements for us to be picked up at Nairobi from the red-eye flight and head out to Mara to begin our Safari.
If you are looking for personal attention, a worry-free vacation and the best value there is, get in touch with Haron and you’re in for a real treat! He tells me his website is getting a fresh update so it should be even easier to research and custom design your own dream African Safari.
Thank you Haron and the team at African Sunset Safaris for a truly remarkable vacation!
Our custom-designed itinerary ..
Day 1 - Arrive in Nairobi, Stay at Windsor Golf & Country Club
Day 2 - Sheldrick's Elephant orphanage, Karen Blixon Museum, 9 holes of golf at Windsor
Day 3 - Early morning flight to Livingstone (Zambia), visit to Zambian side of Victoria Falls
Day 4 - Crossed the border to Zimbabwe on foot over Victoria Falls Bridge, Zambezi Helicopter tour over falls, visit the Zimbabwean side of Falls
Day 5 - Return to Nairobi, drive to Masai Mara, late afternoon game drive, overnight at Sarova Mara Game Lodge
Day 6 - Early morning Balloon Ride over Masai Mara, bush breakfast, morning game drive, bush lunch, head to Mara Engai for overnight halt
Day 7 - Head to Isabenia for border crossing into Tanzania, late afternoon arrival at Zebra K Bush Camp, nature walk, camp fire dinner
Day 8 - Game drive in Serengeti NP, arrive for lunch at Serena Safari Lodge, afternoon game drive, overnight at lodge
Day 9 - Morning game drive, head out to Ngorongoro crater for game drive, overnight at Serena Ngorongoro Crater Rim lodge
Day 10 - Head out to Amboseli, souvenir shopping near Arusha, border crossing at Namanga, overnight at Serena Amboseli Lodge
Day 11 - Morning and afternoon game drives in Amboseli National Park
Day 12 - Head out to Tsavo West for Sarova Salt Lick Lodge, night game drive
Day 13 - Wildlife viewing at Salt Lick Lodge, morning and evening game drives in Taita Hills Sanctuary
Day 14 - Catch the morning Madaraka express train from Voi to Nairobi, lunch, Nairobi National Park game drive, depart Nairobi
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Email Jay & Carol Smith | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Exceeded our lofty expectations and hopes for the trip BY FAR!!!
Why we're glad we trusted our safari to African Sunset Safaris (the short of it - *Click READ MORE below for "the long of it"*):
• Small, local business, with personalized service and a genuine desire (and ability) to deliver the trip of a lifetime.
• Hard-working, expert guides with experience and passion, who are amazing at spotting animals, and who you will come to love so much that you won't want to leave.
• Excellent value for the price; less than what the big-name operators were quoting without losing any of the benefits.
• Top-rated parks and preserves.
• Top-rated, beautiful hotels with friendly staff and delicious food.
• Manageable, flexible, well-rounded itinerary for getting up close to the best animals in the most beautiful locations.
• Photographer-friendly, comfortable, stylish, and well-maintained Toyota Land Cruisers with pop-up tops, electrical chargers, and mini-fridge full of water, local beer and wine.
Why we're glad we trusted our safari to African Sunset Safaris (the long of it):
I should begin this review by saying that I obsessively researched safaris and safari companies for several months prior to deciding to entrust our trip to African Sunset Safaris, and my husband and I could not have been happier with them. In fact, they exceeded our lofty expectations and hopes for the trip by far! We went to Africa to see the wildlife, and not only did we see everything we wanted to see and more, but we returned from a much more fulfilling trip than we could have imagined, having made several life-long friends, Haron, the owner of African Sunset Safaris, being one of them.
Haron was born and raised and currently resides in Kenya, and running African Sunset Safaris is his full-time job (not a side-gig a few days a week from the UK like many safari travel agents/companies). He's an incredibly hard worker, he's licensed, he's been in business for over 10 years, and he is highly regarded among his peers (a hotel manager described him to an employee as "the experienced one"). Haron responds quickly to emails and WhatsApp (even with the time difference with us being in the US), which made us feel comfortable sending him money ahead of time for the deposit.
While on safari with Haron, we always felt completely safe, secure and well cared for; he has a very fatherly air about him. In the same sense, it was his sincerest desire to make all of our safari dreams come true (which he did and then some). He has eyes like an eagle (even while driving), and we were constantly blown away by his skill not only in spotting and identifying animals, but also in getting the Land Cruiser so close to them with such speed. There are a ton of dirt roads through the parks and preserves, and in our 7 days (and 5 destinations) with him, he never once had to pull out a map, including in the cities and on the road to and from the different areas we visited. Haron is the best of the best, and we feel completely honored, privileged, and spoiled to have had him as one of our guides.
On the way from Nairobi to Amboseli, we picked up Charles, one of Haron's newest guides, and within 24 hours we had a new best friend for life (no exaggeration). Haron has a knack for "match-making" friends in a safari vehicle, and he hit the nail on the head by adding Charles to the mix. Over the course of a week, we made so many unbelievable memories with Haron and Charles, sharing in deep, fruitful conversation, immense laughter (and immense tears when it came time to say goodbye)...so much so that we came to a point where we were no longer preoccupied with wanting to see more animals; we just wanted to hang out with Haron and Charles. All that being said...Charles is a first-class, top-rate guide, with a particular talent for identifying birds. Within just a day or two of our arrival, they had already found four out of five of the "big five," lacking only the elusive leopard. We also saw a cheetah, a ton of giraffe, zebra, and countless other animals.
After our time with Haron and Charles, we spent three days in the Masai Mara with Johnson, resident
guide, historian, botanist, animal behaviorist, and language instructor. His breadth and depth of knowledge about Kenya and everything in it was truly amazing. I don't think we had one single question he wasn't able to answer, and he made seemingly uninteresting animals interesting by teaching us about their specific traits and behaviors. We saw the first wave of the wildebeest migration, which was incredible, as well as several cheetah, lions, hippo, crocodiles, hyena (cubs!!!), and some beautiful Mara sunrises and sunsets. Perhaps the highlight of our time in the Mara was visiting a Maasai village on our 10 year wedding anniversary. We got to watch them perform several tribal dances/songs, see them make a friction fire, tour a Maasai house, play with the kids, and have the chief's son give us an anniversary blessing.
Upon our transfer from Kenya to Tanzania, Haron and our new guide, Gideon, were waiting for us at the border station when we arrived with Johnson. They helped us get through the immigration process with ease, and transferred all our luggage to Gideon's Land Cruiser so we'd be ready to roll after the border check.
Gideon, our guide in Tanzania, was Mr. Personality, and we thoroughly enjoyed the five days we got to spend with him. His other qualifications include studying an additional two years to become a certified birding guide, comedic relief, rocking a pith helmet, and having eyes in the back of his head. It is literally unbelievable how good Gideon is at spotting animals, and Serengeti National Park is the perfect place for doing so. Within three hours of entering the park, we had already seen several elephants and hippos, 4 lions, and 4 leopards (including a cub). Since it was nearing the end of our trip and the early morning were getting more difficult for us, Gideon gave us different options for game drive times, which helped us enjoy the time we had remaining.
Transfer to the JRO airport was easy. We stopped in Arusha for a delicious lunch at a local restaurant, and then picked up Peter, Gideon's friend and fellow guide, who rode with us to the airport. We had a laughter-filled drive to the airport, which was really nice since it took our minds off of being sad about leaving Africa and all the life-long friends we had made during our stay.
We never in a million years could have asked for or imagined a more perfect time on safari or speak highly enough about African Sunset Safaris and the "trip of a lifetime" they put together for us. We felt completely spoiled by Haron, who arranged several detours and surprises along the way for us, including getting to feed and pet Baraka, a blind black rhino (which was unreal), picking up a bike for us to ride around the various hotel grounds, arranging for us to get to spend an extra day with Charles (who we missed tremendously after we had to drop him off after the first week), and his and hers African Sunset Safaris sweatshirts that will forever remind us of our (first) trip to Africa. We already cannot wait to visit again and to see all our friends at African Sunset Safaris.
About Our Trip: "15 Day Best Program for Photography" Tour (May 21st - June 5th)
• Day 1 - Nairobi to Amboseli National Park
• Day 2 - Amboseli National Park
• Day 3 - Sweetwaters, Ol Pejeta, Kenya
• Day 4 - Samburu National Reserve
• Day 5 - Samburu National Reserve
• Day 6 - Lake Nakuru National Park
• Day 7 - Lake Naivasha
• Day 8 - Masai Mara National Reserve
• Day 9 - Masai Mara National Reserve
• Day 10 - Masai Mara National Reserve
• Day 11 - Serengeti National Park
• Day 12 - Serengeti National Park
• Day 13 - Ngorongora Crater
• Day 14 - Tarangire National Park
• Day 15 - Arusha
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Email Zheng | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nice！Amazing！Excelllent！Pretty good！
All is good！The guide haron is a good person.He arranged everything very well.The car is also very comfortable, there is a lot of soda and water every day!In short，thank you，haron！I look forward to seeing you next time.
Email caroline | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great overnight trip to Nakuru
We had a great overnight trip from Nairobi to Nakuru thanks to African Sunset Safaris. Our guide was very knowledgeable and gave us lots of insights along the way up to Nakuru. The drive itself is quite long but the car is comfortable enough (and we even had a car seat for our two year old!).
Nakuru is a great place to see the flamingoes and also the rhinos - we were very privileged to see both of them from very close - as well as a surprise sighting of a leopard! There’s also lots of other wildlife. Staying in the park also meant that we were very close to the action. :)
Big thanks again to the whole team for making this happen!
Email Marco Di Addezio | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
very friendly and experienced guide! we always felt in good hands
With our guide Haron we managed to see the Big 5 in the first two days at masai Mara! We got really good spots for our photos and truly enjoy the game driving. He also had an ipad handy with all the pictures and key infor of each animal we were seing. If you want to be in the company of a mature, friendly and experienced guide you should definitely consider him!