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Hekima Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2006)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $210 to $1,200 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
MT
Email Kim | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A tour operator that turned a dream holiday into a stressful experience due to poor service, unsafe
Avoid Hekima Safari if you value your safety and holiday experience.
Our experience with Hekima Safari was extremely disappointing. After paying in full, we were pressured during the trip to pay an additional $5,000, with the threat of changes to our itinerary. We eventually paid $1,000 in good faith after a promise from the director, Moppo, that it would be refunded, but we are still waiting.
The safari vehicle was the biggest issue. It was unreliable and, in our experience, unsafe. It broke down repeatedly in remote areas, causing us to lose valuable game-drive time, especially in the Serengeti. Some journeys took up to five hours instead of one due to constant problems.
The vehicle was in poor condition, with no air conditioning, faulty windows, heavy dust and exhaust entering the car, and parts even falling off during the trip. At times, we genuinely feared for our safety.
Other excursions arranged by Hekima Safari were also below expectations, with poor standards compared with what was advertised and what other groups received.
A trip that should have been a once-in-a-lifetime experience became stressful and disappointing. Based on our experience, we cannot recommend Hekima Safari.
MT
Email Val | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Avoid Hekima Safari if you value your safety and your holiday.
Avoid Hekima Safari if you value your safety and your holiday.
Our experience with Hekima Safari was extremely disappointing and, at times, genuinely frightening.
We paid for our safari in full before the trip, yet during our holiday we were pressured to pay an additional $5,000. We were told that if we did not pay, our safari itinerary would be changed. No customer should be put under this kind of pressure after they have already paid for their holiday.
After a long dispute, we agreed to pay $1,000 purely out of our own goodwill, based on a promise from the director, Moppo, that the money would be returned. Despite repeated promises, we have still not received that refund.
The biggest issue was the safari vehicle. It was constantly breaking down and, in our experience, was not fit for purpose. We repeatedly stopped in the middle of remote areas while repairs were attempted, causing us to lose many hours of our game drives. As a result, we missed opportunities to see wildlife, particularly in the Serengeti, which was the part of the trip we had been looking forward to the most.
Journeys that should have taken around one hour regularly took up to five hours because the vehicle kept breaking down or getting stuck. On several occasions, we genuinely feared for our safety. While driving on steep terrain, the vehicle leaned heavily to one side after dropping into large holes, and it felt as though it could tip over. Instead of enjoying the safari, we were worried about whether we would safely reach our destination.
The condition of the vehicle was unacceptable. The windows barely opened or closed, there was no functioning air conditioning, and the amount of dust and exhaust entering the vehicle left everyone coughing and feeling unwell. At one point, part of the underside of the vehicle fell off completely. We had to stop again while oil poured from underneath the vehicle. The broken parts had to be loaded into our own van, and oil leaked throughout it, ruining some of our branded bags. The damage was so severe that we had no choice but to throw them away.
Unfortunately, the poor standards extended beyond the safari itself. Other excursions booked through Moppo at Hekima Safari were also far below what was advertised and what we saw other groups receiving. For example, on the Nakupenda excursion, lunch was advertised as being included. The lunch we received consisted of a burnt fish that was inedible, along with fruit including rotten watermelon and bananas. Meanwhile, other tour groups were being served fresh, well-presented seafood platters and a much higher standard of food. The difference in quality was obvious and extremely disappointing.
Overall, this holiday was nothing like what was promised or what we paid for. Between the pressure to pay additional money during our trip, the unsafe and constantly breaking-down vehicle, the loss of valuable safari time, the poor quality of the other excursions, and the unfulfilled promise to refund the $1,000, this experience was deeply upsetting. What should have been the trip of a lifetime became a stressful and traumatic experience that we would not wish on anyone.
PT
Email Daniela Caixinha | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Possible fraud alert
Hekima Safaris required us to pay the full cost of our safari one month before our trip, despite our contract stating that the final instalment would be paid upon arrival. Hekima insisted they needed the full money before the trip to pay for the national park fees and secure the hotel reservations. However, our problems began immediately. On the first day, our guide had not been given money for fuel from HEKIMA and we had to advance USD 230 so the safari could even begin. We were accommodated in some hotels that were not those agreed in our contract, and at one lodge in the middle of Serengeti National Park we were required to pay USD 716 ourselves because, although Hekima Safaris had made the reservation, they had not paid the hotel. When we contacted the company, they claimed they were experiencing banking problems, leaving us with no alternative but to pay if we wanted somewhere to sleep that night.
The same pattern continued with the park fees. We were delayed entering Serengeti because the reservation was not valid, and later we were stranded for around five hours at the exit towards Ngorongoro because the required payments had not been made. During this time, the Hekima company stopped answering our calls and became unreachable. We lost the final day of our safari, because the guide abandoned us at another accomodation not payed by HEKIMA, instead spent it at the Tourist Police in Arusha filing a formal complaint. We are now taking legal action to recover the full cost of the safari, together with the additional expenses we were forced to pay because of the company’s failures! SEE YOU ON COURT, MOPOO!