One of our experienced guide and staffs
Bienvenido Kenya Tours and Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 1992)
- Member Of:
- American Society of Travel Agents
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $50 to $110 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 Kara | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A get what you pay for Safari…
We just finished the six day Masai Mara, Nakuru, Amboseli tour. We booked the budget tour with upgraded accommodation. The views and the animals were incredible, and we saw so much even though it was the off-season! Animals were our focus and this was achieved. However, the “custom Safari minivan“ was terrible! It had no suspension, no four-wheel-drive, no air conditioning, and no power. We spent hours on teeth rattling, bone jarring, hot bumpy dusty roads! This is not the option to choose if you have neck back or hip problems, or any breathing issues. Our guide provided facemasks at the beginning of the journey to protect somewhat from the dust. We got stuck a total of four times on our game drives, and had to help push the van. The last time we were stuck, it was approximately two hours before we were finally able to be towed out! The drives from Lodge to lodge took hours longer than other companies. Partly due to multiple stops picking people up or dropping people off and partly because the minivan just couldn’t keep up. Part of a reason for upgrading the accommodation was to have some relaxation and pool time. The first day we did not arrive at Jambo Mara until 245pm and they stopped serving lunch at three. The two nights at AAmboseli, we were originally dropped off at the camp instead of the lodge And it took some time to sort that out, not arriving at the correct lodge until 8:45 PM. The second night was also late because of the van getting stuck. Our luggage had to ride in the backseat because the back door of the van wouldn’t latch. We spent an hour prior to the game drive one morning while the locals repaired that. The roof top barely opened and closed that by the end of the trip we weren’t sure we would be able to get it up and then weren’t sure we would able to put it down.
We intermittently traveled with three other people that booked through this company. Each of them had their tour altered in someway mid tour. Thankfully that did not happen to us. So many things, but overall we did see a lot of amazing animals, but I would not book this trip again because of the minivan. The ride was just to rough, hot, bumpy, dusty, and miserable..
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Email Nicolette | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Bumpy start but great execution
The trip started as planned. I received help straightening out my flight and required documents for 30 dollars a person. The transfer ride was on time but cost 15 dollars coming from a few minutes outside of Nairobi (a rip off). When we arrived at the bus, it was filled completely and somewhat squished but as expected. Before leaving, the tour group notified me that I had an unpaid balance and when going to pay my 75 dollar balance (flight help for two people and a transfer fee), I was told that I owed an additional 50 dollars because they forgot to add a surcharge on the credit card I originally paid with. Arguing over this delayed the start of the trip by about an hour and left everyone frustrated. After leaving, everything was smooth again. The guide was friendly, made sure we were comfortable and had everything we needed. We stopped for self serve lunch at restaurants and were provided food but not drinks. When arriving at the park everyone’s passports were collected and taken out of sight for over ten minutes for check in. That was alarming, but worked out. Our tented cabin was double layered and did surprisingly very well keeping out bugs and rain. The room had a full sized bed and a twin bed, both canopy styled with netting to also keep out bugs. We had a bathroom with a flushing toilet, but the shower nozzle didn’t work. Also coming during a rainy season meant black outs and inconsistent WiFi access. Our things seemed to be left untouched when leaving for the safari run. The guide was enthusiastic and dedicated to finding all the interesting scenes. He made sure to get as close as possible and made sure we had the best angle to see everything and get good pictures. He gave brief synopses on the animals and answered all our questions. He was a fantastic driver and knew his way around the park and how to get through the muddy patches without getting stuck. I would definitely go again but I would pack tons of my own snacks and liquids, and I would pay for everything in cash and refuse any additional services.
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Email Megan | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Chaotic and not according to plan
Would absolutely not recommend doing a shared tour with this company or its sister companies.
Whatever company you book with (there’s a large number of them under the same umbrella), it doesn’t seem to matter, they all send you off with drivers where you’ll be flip flopped to different groups and drivers every day based on where they can fit you. Everyone in the groups were given different itineraries that were never followed. Usually you picture joining a shared tour where you and the other few passengers all get on the bus doing the same itinerary, for the most part. But no. I felt bad for the drivers having to juggle so many ppl with different plans and most ppl were frustrated as they didn’t get to do the itinerary they were given, and the drivers have to deal with all the frustrations when it’s not them who planned everything so poorly. And it got annoying being moved constantly to different vehicles and groups, sometimes twice a day, or waiting so long in roadside stop places to meet with other vehicles to switch passengers.
Your itinerary will change from what they tell you, and when you inquire about it they just say too bad you’re on a shared tour, no flexibility. Also they just seem to put random things in the itinerary that they must know are untrue. Like a few times writing “you will arrive at your next hotel in time for lunch”, yet the drive is double that time and lunch is on the road and we don’t arrive till evening. Unless the driver takes much longer routes than needed due to dropping different passengers off places etc. either way, receiving accurate info in the itinerary should be made a priority. Itinerary said arriving in Nakuru hotel in time for lunch then evening game drive. We didn’t even make it in time for game drive, and arrived at hotel at 7:30pm. No possible way with the route we took would we have made it in time for lunch at hotel. We left Masai around 8am. It also says this about amboseli but we didn’t leave till late morning and arrived at 7pm. And it said game drive in amboseli in afternoon yet we got no drive. Just drop to hotel. When I asked they said we’d make up for it by doing drive on last morning, since we paid $60 park fee, yet the “drive” was just racing from gate to gate lasting an hour and barely stopping for animals we briefly saw in our speedy exit.
They pack the vans to the max, despite website saying max 7 pax. It’s so cramped and sweaty, there’s not enough room for everyone to see out at the same time to see the animal sightings. So some will sit while others sweaty armpits are pushing into your face. One will sit in front with driver so not even having the option of standing to see out the pop up roof. The only way I’d do a shared tour again would be if the company guaranteed max 6 passengers.
The 12 hour days in the van are not ideal. Most lodges and everywhere I went in SA was sunrise, and sundowner drives. Leaving you some nice time at the lodge to rest and enjoy lunch. Even if your itinerary says different (like mine did), you will be doing 12 hour drive and not returning to lodge mid day. Mid day is so hot so it’s sweaty in that van with 8 ppl and the animals are often not out in the open when it’s that hot mid day.
There were a small amount of ppl I talked to on the trips that were happy with the way they organized. Well maybe not happy but they just were chill and didn’t mind. So if you’re very easy going and don’t really care about sticking to the itinerary provided, and don’t mind the constant change ups, and aren’t picky about personal space in the van and better viewings, then it would be fine for you! I know some backpackers and travellers who aren’t fussy and it would work out great for. I’m just not one of those people, as were many ppl on the trips. In one of the instances where we had to leave our vehicle to join another group as ours had to drive half the group elsewhere, we got into a Jeep. That was a much more comfortable vehicle, so I’d definitely recommend spending the extra to go in one of those.
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Email Nick | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Overall, I give you 3 stars as customer service wasn't the best. Our safari driver was very good!
Last month our travels in Kenya were to Masai Mara (2 days/2 nights), followed by a hotel resort stay in Diani Beach (2 day/2 nights). Leading up to this booking with Purity and Bienvenido, I researched several different companies, some of which were not on safaribookings.com, etc. One of these companies had great customer service, and I was nearly ready to commit and book, however, given the fact he didn't take credit card payments, I backed out of it completely. I explained this to Bienvenido and was looking for good service and more convenient payment options. Despite the fact I mentioned this, I found it difficult to book since I was 2 continents away (and there was a 9 hour time difference). I had higher expectations with Purity, and customer service is so very important to me, I found the process of things very strange and just different. We were asked to send different information and documents later on and it just wasn't as organized as it should've been. The service was kind and courteous all along, but there was too much of a delay in getting back to me about what we needed. Perhaps it's due to experience and it's a newer company, but I don't know why for sure. However, I did appreciate (eventually) having our transfers all set up, but again it was very last minute that we received the info. We would ask Purity for the details, but then sometimes there was no response. Delayed again. However, she would always get back to us, told us to relax and be patient. I'm not sure why if I paid in advance and was on top of things and diligent, why we had to wait sometimes days after she originally said she'd get back to us. This was my first safari, and the actual safari was spectacular. The wildlife was out of this world! The tent in Miti Mingi was just okay, with some electrical problems at times and there was NO hot water. That definitely lowered the score. On the flip side, what did raise the overall score was our safari driver, Boniface (I hope I have this correct)! He was such a great driver, very personable, patient, and went out of his way for us. It was excellent customer service. Good job!
The second leg of our travels took us to Diani Beach. However, before we got to the beach, we had to travel 5.5-6 hours from Masai to Nairobi. Due to the hard rains the evening before, we had to take a detour, so this ended up delaying us far too long. Some of the safari group members were forced to leave early with us instead of staying one more day (one group member was not too pleased). It made me feel a bit uncomfortable, but I tried to ease the situation for him. Whether he complained to management or not, I do not know. He became a friend to me however. :) Great members on the trip made for a fun time also! Anyway, Boniface dropped all of us off, somewhere about 2 hours from Nairobi (where each person picked up their transfers). I was getting nervous and he reassured me you guys will make your flight to Ukunda (Diani Beach). It turned out everyone else in both safari vans had been picked up for their transfers before us. That left us all alone still waiting! We had a 3:20 flight and it was not until about 1pm I believe before our driver picked us up (with our luggage). Imagine that. Not what either of us wanted for sure. He drove like a madman and obviously knew he was under pressure and stress. It was like the Daytona 500 (which is today as I write this), and he somehow got us to the airport about 2:45. At this point we still had to go through security and pass through the other one after being dropped off. We raced to the gate, said we were in a hurry, and somehow...with all of this craziness and stress of thinking we would miss our flight for sure...I asked the woman behind the check in counter if the gate was still open...and she said, "Yes!" Amazing. It was way too close for comfort, but we made it. It was a miracle that we made it. However, this could have been avoided with much better planning on the company's part. That's why it is best to get to the airport 2-3 hours beforehand, esp. when you hire a company to plan everything for you. I think I'd go with another company next time, however, the trip as a whole was priceless. My first trip to Kenya was incredible! Thanks for reading. I hope you publish this, because Bienvenido Kenya Tours can learn a lot from our experience, as well as others. I am appreciative for some of your efforts, we were just disappointed in some of the service as a whole. I had higher expectations than what we received.