Forche Tours and Travel
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2009)
- Member Of:
- Zimbabwe Tourism Authority
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $130 to $600 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
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Email Victor | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Stole our money- did not pay for anything
Do not book with this company. They robbed my family of 4 of our money and did not provide any services on our itinerary or signed (by both parties) contract. A trip we planned and paid for in February 2022 became a nightmare. Fortune asked for all money paid for in advance to pay deposits on rooms to hold them for us. He never paid any of the places: Moremi Crossing, Chobe Safari Lodge,Hwange Safari Lodge, or Pioneer Lodge. We had to pay for everything out of pocket. In our itinerary food, activities, and guide service was to be included but nothing was arranged or paid for. Once we arrived in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe where he lives and operates Forsche Travels, we went directly to the police and tourism authority. We also contacted the U.S. Embassy. We attended pre-trial with Fortune on charges of Theft of trust of personal property. He is currently awaiting sentencing. If you booked with this company, contact your credit card company ASAP. Be prepared to pay for everything out of pocket and document & save all receipts. I’m so sorry for anyone who has already booked with Fortune. I know the emotional roller coaster you are about to face!
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Email Jennie | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beware- Fortune is a criminal
We booked with Fortune from Forche Travels in Zimbabwe back in February 2022. We paid him over $11,000 for an 11 night/12 day safari to Botswana and Zimbabwe. He sweet talked us up through the very end. When we arrived in Boswana, no one was there to greet us at the Maun airport because Fortune did not pay for our luxury camping excursion to the salt pans; therefore we were unable to go. Then we learned he did not pay Kwando Safaris. Upon arriving at our next destination that we had to pay out of pocket, Fortune showed up at Chobe Safari Lodge and told us our next location was cancelled due to all his mistakes and dishonesty so he “upgraded” us to the Elephant Eye in Hwange. At this time he was assuring us everything would be okay. Obviously a week in without Fortune paying for anything promised in our itinerary and contract, we then called to see if he indeed booked the Elephant Eye, which we learned that we had the booking but no payment. At that point we parted ways with Fortune and continued paying for everything out of pocket, documenting everything, including a recording of Fortune and names/numbers of all witnesses (general managers). It is disheartening and cruel that he took advantage of a family with young children. A police report was made and the tourist authority and the U.S. Embassy notified. Fortune was arrested on charges of Theft of trust of personal property. As I write this, he is due in criminal court for sentencing. We do not want anyone else to get robbed with their money or their once in a lifetime trip to Africa.
Email Belinda | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Thief, liar and conman
We booked with Forche Tours & Travel in Nuly last year. In the beginning, Fortune was accommodating and helpful however, as soon as he received full payment from us, his communications became less frequent and he continually experienced “wifi” or “internet” issues which he used as an excuse to not respond to us.
Upon discovering some bad reviews made after we booked, we followed up
With the hotels and lodges that Fortune had apparently booked for us only to find that they had not been paid for. We asked when the payment was due by and called to speak with Fortune. He “assured” us that payment would be made in full and that we could relax and just look forward to our holiday.
He never paid and with two weeks before we were due to fly out, we had to scramble to not only borrow money to cover this additional unexpected expense, we also had to find new accommodation, tours and transfers as the ones that Fortune had booked for us were way out of our price range now we had to repay for our holiday.
We have asked on numerous occasions now for a refund and of course, we have received nothing.
My advise… STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY!
RS
Email Danko Taborosi | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Diverse and comprehensive tour around all of Zimbabwe
We are a family of four -- my wife, our two kids aged 3 and 9, and myself. We live in Europe and have just returned from a 3.5 week long tour in Zimbabwe. The entire tour was organized by Forche Tours and Travel, specifically Mr. Fortune Ndlovu. I contacted Forche Tours and Travel, as well as 5 other safari/tour companies in Zimbabwe, only about 4 weeks prior to our planned trip and gave them a rough idea of what we're hoping to see and where to do. All companies I communicated with were quite forthcoming and eager to please, so I ended up creating a rough itinerary on my own and sent the same routing/schedule to everyone to get a sense of feasibility and cost. At that point, three companies stopped being responsive, and three provided quotes but two were quite high and required a number of sacrifices to be made in terms of quality and time. Only Mr. Fortune's messages genuinely seem to be focused on our own wishes and budget and I felt that he was the only person I communicated with who really wanted to help us be able to afford the trip and make something special happen, rather than just "plug" us into a tour template and make as much money as possible. So, we ended up going with Mr. Fortune and his Forche tours. We paid a deposit of 10% online through his website and paid the remainder all in cash when we actually arrived in Harare. Mr. Fortune picked us up on arrival and stayed with us for 24 days as he drove us around all of Zimbabwe and organized the trip and activities at every step. Essentially, it was like having a private driver and concierge with us all the time so that we could focus only on enjoyment, new experiences, and learning. The latter was especially important to me and I was extremely pleased to see that Mr. Fortune is very well-spoken, educated, informed, and insightful -- he was able to answer all my questions and discuss complex topics, from animal behaviour to history of different ethnic groups in Zimbabwe to diversity of religions, complexities of politics, environmental and climate change issues -- it was really incredibly informative and interesting. Our routing was roughly Harare--Mana Pools--Imire--Nyanga--Gonarezhou--Great Zimbabwe--Matopos---Hwange--Victoria Falls and we thought it was a really good combination of game drives, village visits, cultural and historical sites, ruins, natural beauty and geological wonders, quite a bit of everything. Our accommodations were great everywhere, food excellent, activities amazing. All in all, we're very happy with our trip and the way it was organized by Forche Tours and Travel and implemented by Mr. Fortune who was with us the whole way. Zimbabwe is a fascinating and an incredibly safe country and we would highly recommend everyone to visit it and when doing so, to feel confident in traveling with Forche Tours and Travel.
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Email SWEET Talking Con Man and Thief | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Sweet talking THIEF and CON MAN
We booked with Fortune over a year ago to travel with our children to Botswana and Zimbwabe. He was a good communicator the entire time, except upon arrival. No one was at the airport to grab us. We quickly learned that Fortune failed to pay for any of the bookings that we were promised in our itinerary and invoice. When we finally reached Fortune, he made on excuse after the other. Although we paid $11,000, we have only had him transfer $300 of that back to us as ordered by the Chief Inspector. My husband and I took time away from our vacation to press charges against. Fortune was prosecuted in Victoria Falls Courthouse and ordered to pay restitution. I am writing another review to warn others. A year later, Fortune continues to let us down despite promising the court to pay restitution to avoid more time in jail. I have photos of Fortune in handcuffs.
Email Kady Moodley | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Well organised
I found Forche Tours from a TripAdvisor post raving about their experience and now we understand why. Everything was arranged via emails and WhatsApp, Fortune organised our helicopter tour and sunset/dinner cruise and communicated every step of the way. Would highly recommend Forche Tours to anyone visiting Zimbabwe
DE
Email Frank Grosse | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Competent and very helpful partner for traveling
We booked an individual tour in and around VicFalls and everything was organized perfectly. The owner Fortune was available 24/7 and took care of my mom and me excellent. It was one of the best personal service I had in my 25 years travel experience and I can highly recommend Forche Tours. Thanks again for your wonderful help and organizing an unforgettable trip for us.
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Email Jane | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent Job
We used Forche Tours in Zimbabwe on the recommendation of a long time trusted friend and guide in Botswana. Fortune was our guide and took care of every detail. We had booked a departing flight ourselves that was cancelled and we had been trying to reschedule for several days. We didn't want to lose our time at Victoria Falls. Fortune took my friend's credit card and was able to get us new flights. We were saved a huge headache and able to enjoy our day in Victoria Falls. Fortune also got us tables at great restaurants, took the shopper in our group shopping - we all had a great time. Our guide also had extensive knowledge and information about Zimbabwe and the City and the wildlife we saw on the trip. Excellent service, honest and trustworthy.
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Email Carmen | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Forche Tours and Travel go an extra mile.
We booked a day trip to Hwange National Park. The services were delivered as expected and flawless. Fortune is very helpful and gets out of his way to help his guests eventhough it is not part of the services he offers. We highly recommend his travel company.
Email Mr & Mrs Campbell | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Extremely Knowledgeable about touring Africa, an excellent tour guide.
Forche's worked in partnership with us from the booking of our tour to the end of the tour. He booked excellent hotels and lodges for us to stay in. The tours were outstanding, we felt safe and at ease with our tour guides. They were good communicators and shared with us the history of South Africa Cape town, Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe. All we can say is thank you to Forche Tours for making our holiday an experience of a life time.