Makgadikgadi Pans, Botswana
Shipungo Safari & Tours
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2015)
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $200 to $360 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Carolyn Scotton | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Game / guide great, food did not meet quoted standard
We undertook a 6-day five-night Safari for three adults and three children opting for package B out of three choices. The difference between A and B was the provision of toilet/shower enclosure behind the tents and an enhanced meal package. Although the food provided was good, it fell well short of that outlined in the itinerary. Cereal and scrambled egg for breakfast, no brunch, a cooked lunch, no afternoon tea and only a one course evening meal not the three advertised i.e soup, main and sweet . Only on one evening we did had a sweet.
Particularly disappointing was the absence from the package of the night drive.
When I raised this with Mark on our return, he " express(ed) our sincere apologies for the mix-up- it was our mistake and we are completely responsible for it" .
He stated that our guide Voice, who was absolutely great, had said we were not keen to do the night drive. In fact I had asked about it and was told it had not been arranged.
"For meals we will refund you $350."
I pointed out that the difference between the two packages amounted to around $1,600 and that in fact our meal package did not even meet the standard set out in package A, but did include the toilet/shower enclosure which surely didn't amount to $1,600?
Mark's final response was " the camping standard was the one you booked and you were not happy about the standard of the food which was breakfast" despite his earlier acknowledgement and apology.
The game drives themselves were excellent but that would have been the case whoever we had booked as the area itself was fantastic.
Reply from Shipungo Safari & Tours
Posted on Dec 3, 2024Dear Carolyn
Thanks, for the review first of all we are sorry for not meeting your requirements, the issue regarding the food everything was communicated with our professional chef, and the level of camping accommodation was provided as per your request. From now on, we will work hand in hand with the chef to make everything go well.
Thanks
Mark
IL
Email Shlomit | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
NIce people but really poor equipment
We took a 3 day Central Kalahari Game Reserve trip with Shipungo. The three people that came with us, Kem the guide, Kem the chef and slo, were very nice and helpful. The food was excellent, and the tent/camping was fine.
However, the vehicle was old and bad un condition. The roof rattled horribly the whole time. It was not suited to pull the trailer, so we got stuck in the sand, and then the trailer kept falling off. On the way back the main tank ran out of petrol and the driver could not switch to the second one, so we waited 2 hours for them to bring petrol.
Since the team was really nice, if you are considering them, ask about the vehicle. They may/should have replaced it.
Email Fernando Pegado | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Traditional Grassroots Safari Experience
If you’re looking to rough it out on a Safari, Shipungo Safari and Tours is the company for you. Tough to beat from a cost benefit perspective, but there are still opportunities to improve the overall service. They provided a great support team for photo Safari, with experienced guide. The vehicle is fine, although demonstrating some age. The food prepared met expectations. The purpose of the trip was wildlife photography, the mission was accomplished. Strongly recommend that they install radio in the vehicle to communicate within the local guide network, this would go a long way to finding animals, but above for safety concerns, in the event of an emergency situation in an isolated or remote location
US
Email Colleen | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Mark was very kind to arrange a last-minute tour for us.
Overall we had a good experience. The safari vehicle certainly felt every bump! Kem, our guide for the day, took good care of us and showed us a lot of animals. We are unused to the constant radio contact between drivers and converging on the same spots, but it did mean having close-up views of a cheetah and many lions. We had value for our money.
Email Katharina von Maltzan | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent communication upfront, timely pick up.
Shipungo Travels wa a very reliable partner as we had to plan our trip from Kenya. Their offer was fair and they kept it valid until short notice (we wanted to wait and see how the weather in Ocavago was at the planned days). The communication upfront was excellent. We were picked up very punctually, the vehicle was in excellent condition. All was well planned. Some minor improvements in the equipment - and staff (The main guide was extremeley knowledgeable and experienced but his English language skills basic so that we could not understand a lot of the information provided. Pity!
IT
Email Luca Manghi | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
reliable and professional
The holder Marc , was very professional and reliable , he was always present both for departures and arrivals , and his driver too.
FI
Email Mauri | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Professional, reliable and knowledgeful.
Our guide Kem knew area, fauna and flora very well. He was doing huge efforts to show us as much as possible, but he also lessened our wishes - did not only drive after big 5. We saw 3/5 (lions several times, plenty of elephants and big herd of buffalos) and also several times cheetah, hippos, lot of giraffes etc. We have 11 & 15 old kids with us and Kem did have good communication with them also. Shine (the cook) did prepare very tasty meals - even kids did strongly agree.
In hindsight we should have booked 3 nights instead of two. Moving to Moremi and back consumed time in first and last day.
It looked like, Kem had not our correspondence with office available. He did check us what was included and did organize everything included and more wonderfully "on run". Huge thanks for that.
One improvement suggestion: We moved from Maun to Moremi (and back) in open safari car through gravel roads. Because wind and sand irritate eyes, cheap plastic construction safety glasses would be nice to be available.
We highly recommend Shipungo Safari & Tours and thank Kem, Shine & rest of team for wonderful experience!
PL
Email Rafal Woda | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Perfectl safari (6D5N Northern Botswana)
Absolutely top company, in all aspects. Starting from communication point of view - all our questions were quickly responded too and through whole process we felt welcome. Even made suggestions to our plans that made us rearrange the trip and worked out perfectly.
Safari itself was amazing. Our guide - Voice - had an incredible knowledge about all wildlife and nature around us, on top of that was an amazing driver, greatly contributing to comfort of viewing scenes in front of us.
It was a budget tented safari and I could be praising this for hours - being this close to nature, right in the middle of it, yet eating amazing food cooked by staff on fire, and staying in very nice tent. 10/10.
Overall, the trip was perfect value for money, and if really don't need to look for your safari anywhere else.
Email Amanda Overy | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Tailored budget safari done well.
If you would prefer to spend your money on a longer safari experience instead of high end luxury glamping, this company may tick your boxes!
The company - quick to respond. Flexible arrangements. Tailored to our needs with no fuss.
The camping - Basic, clean, comfortable, well maintained, everything you need, with great service from the set up/pack up crew. Hot showers, comfortable bed. Simple camping done well.
The food - Shein, chef extrodinare! Home style cooking over fire done to perfection. Fresh bread, cake, stews, stir fry’s and more. We could never have complained of hunger as we were very well fed!
The guide - Kem. If you were considering a self drive safari, forget about it. We saw so many self drive tourists miss out on seeing extraordinary moments as they weren’t with an experienced tracker. Kem was able to put us into positions to capture the moments we came to see, and we saw it all.
Our overall experience was exactly what we were looking for. They delivered it all and more, and we would not hesitate to use them again.
DE
Email Elke | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Unforgettable Camp Safari Adventure and Wildlife Experience
Our 6-days safari experience was truly extraordinary! Our guide, Voice, made it very special; his knowledge of and enthusiasm for wildlife and nature left us very impressed and we always felt safe and well cared for under his guidance.
The camp accommodation was very comfortable, and the camp team was awesome. They took excellent care of us and the camp, ensuring we always stayed in scenic locations. Evalino amazed us every day with delicious meals prepared in the camp kitchen. Thanks Oarabile for the excellent communication; everything went smoothly from the booking process to our arrival in Livingstone. A big thank you to the entire team!
We highly recommend Shipungo Safari to anyone looking for an unforgettable safari adventure.