Kitawa African Safaris

The trip that was planned for us was amazing. What happened leading up to the trip was awful...

I have such mixed feelings writing this review, because the experience when we got there was a 10/10, but the execution/communication leading up to/during/after the trip was a 2/10. Although the beginning of the trip was an absolute disaster and we lost thousands of dollars, I am glad we went and trying to focus on the good. But, I do want to warn others.

Also, Kitawa agreed to pay us at least $500 for the visas we paid to expedite. They asked for our bank information and we have yet to see any money.... They DID upgrade some of our hotels, rooms, and added a free excursion for us (they said it was a cost of just over 3k). But that required a fight and lots of pushing from us.

Pros: The hotels picked for us were stunning. Hard to pick a favorite because they all had their individual charm. The staff at each hotel was so pleasant, warm, and kind. The staff/tour companies selected for our excursions were so nice and did an excellent job. And the tour guides provided to us were so fabulous. I highly recommend Cuthbert if you are in TZ. He was so funny, knowledgeable, and went above and beyond for us.

Cons:
After we booked our trip there was little to no communication. I found this to be a little odd as I have used other tour companies and they check in quite a bit leading up to the trip regarding how to prepare, sending FAQ, asking if you have questions, etc. Days before the trip we were like, “hellooooo. Anyone home? We are leaving in a few days…. What happens when we land!?” They also had no website all of the sudden, so I had a giant pit in my stomach that something was wrong.
I did research on my own on what type of shots and Visas were needed prior to travel (because I saw that visas are required for both countries online). We then confirmed with Kitawa as well to ensure we were getting and doing the right things. Because I know Visas can change from year to year. We were told that the only visas we need, we would get when we land in Africa. Fast forward to when we arrive at the airport and were denied boarding our flight because we were missing our VISA that is required for travel. We ended up paying $500 to expedite the visas at the airport to try to still make our flight. They were not approved in time so we missed our flights and lost $15,000 (mostly booked on points. Thank goodness!) on our airfare. Once our Visas got approved at midnight, we were able to book the last seats on a new flight that cost us an additional $7,000. When we communicated this disaster to the agent, he was in shock that we needed a Visa and was still telling us they are not required in advance for Kenya, and he doesn’t know why we couldn’t get on our flight.
Now, I am fully aware that some of this was on us. And I have learned a major lesson. I should have NEVER taken his word that a visa wasn’t required. I should have followed what I read and confirmed with the embassy and the airline (and will do this moving forward). I just have never had a tour company give me such incorrect information and then double down on it. If you are paying a company over $20,000 to plan a luxury trip for you, then you would THINK that they would be doing their own research and setting their customers up for success and not failure.