Reviews
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Email Ashley L. | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The highly professional Penfam team made our dream trip to Africa come to life and unforgettable!
We booked an African trip of a lifetime through Penfam Tours & Travel and we cannot say enough how highly we recommend them. We are in our late 40’s and traveled with our 18-year-old twins, and 75-year-old parents. My husband lived in Nairobi 30 years ago, so we knew we wanted to take a tour around the city and also visit some old friends. We also wanted to go on safari in the Nairobi National Park and the Masai Mara, with a side trip to the Turkana region to check on a non-profit we were involved with, finishing the trip with a beach vacation in Zanzibar Tanzania. Peter Gichina (owner of Penfam tours) was instrumental in helping us plan the trip and providing recommendations along the way.
We began the travel planning process with a zoom call with Peter, to discuss the logistics of a custom travel plan, confirming which legs of the trip we needed Peter’s help with and which portions we would book ourselves. We proceeded through the travel plans via email with Peter, going over accommodation recommendations (based on budget and availability), activity reservations, flight bookings/information, driver bookings and safety information. Once we were ready to finalize booking, Peter gave us instructions to wire the down payment (and later the final payment) in US dollars (this was a learning curve for us as one of our banks would wire in USD and the other would not, but we got it done!).
Throughout the planning process and leading up to our arrival, Peter Gichina happily provided any and all information and services that we needed to make our trip perfect and more! Peter welcomed us at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport – our flight didn’t arrive at the usual gate, so it took us a few minutes to find each other, but we understood there could be travel glitches like that. You can rest assured that Peter and his team will be there to pick you up. Peter set us up with a wonderful driver (also named Peter) for our trip, who drove us in a 6-seater safari land cruiser that was impeccably clean, well-maintained, complete with phone charging capability and more.
At the start of our trip, Peter (driver) drove us through Nairobi to the Nairobi National Park, the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (baby elephant orphanage), the Giraffe Centre (to see and feed giraffes), the Karen Blixen Museum (Out of Africa author and setting), the Kazuri Beads Factory (a charity that provides employment for African women), and to various other stops we wanted to make.
We stayed at the historical Norfolk Hotel while we were in Nairobi and loved it. The Norfolk has a buffet breakfast, a steak restaurant, and bar menu. The food was great.
Every trip has its glitches and ours was that our daughter fell quite ill the night before we were planning to drive to the Masai Mara. Peter drove us to the Nairobi Hospital the following morning, where he assured us she would receive excellent care and she did! We left the hospital and drove to the Masai Mara, where we stayed in the Saruni Base Camp luxury tents. Peter took us on several safaris, where we saw Lion, Cheetah, Elephant, Buffalo, Rhino, Giraffe, and much more. The highlight was watching a Leopard take down a Bushbuck….We were in the Mara during the great migration, so there were many other safari drivers and tourists. We were shocked to find that many of the drivers were not behaving themselves – they were boxing in animals and racing into the action, frightening the animals and cutting off other driver’s views. Peter was the utmost professional – he took great care to position the safari vehicle in just the right place for the perfect view and photo, while also making sure the animals were respected, and advising us on safety protocols. He also found us a lovely spot, where he laid out a blanket for us to have a picnic lunch under an acacia tree. As a side note, Penfam provided chilled bottles of water during our Nairobi tour days and a 5-gallon bottle of water with an electric pump in the Mara, to fill personalized reusable stainless steel water bottles which Penfam provided us with. Peter also thoroughly cleaned the vehicle between safaris, since it can get quite dusty at times. After a few days in the Mara, Peter drove us back to Nairobi, taking another route with a beautiful view of some tea farms. One piece of advice; if you want to see the migration you should book your trip at least a year in advance because this is the peak season for travel in Kenya. The best accommodations fill up fast. We booked ours 8 months in advance and we were very lucky to get the Saruni Base Camp.
During the next few days, Peter would deliver us to (or pick us up from) the airport as we continued the other legs of our journey, always advising us on when we should be ready to leave for the airport and collecting us right on time. He taught us how to negotiate at the curio shops along the way to the Mara (starting the negotiations at 50% and not settling for anything less than 75%) and had a good chuckle at our failures in negotiations. He always had interesting facts and stories, never lost his patience with all of our questions and needs. I must add that we fell in love with Peter – he took such excellent care of us and we were all sad to leave him at the end of our trip. For the last leg of our trip, we stayed at the Bluebay Resort in Zanzibar, per Peter Gachina’s recommendation, and it was the perfect and most relaxing ending to our travels. I must say that we greatly appreciate the professionalism of Peter Guchina and his Penfam team. They took great care in making our travels more than we could have ever asked for. We would not hesitate to recommend Penfam as you plan your custom dream vacation in Africa!
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Email Lillian Jones | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Peter G. was very helpful and thorough in coordinating our entire trip from airport pu to safaris.
Our tour driver Peter Mbutha is a wonderful gentleman who is very knowledgeable about the cities, countryside and townships all over Kenya.
He was very kind and thoughtful with our entire family while on tour over the course of several safaris. He is a great driver who knew the surroundings very well and we always felt safe and secure. He really is a delightful man who helped make our experience quite memorable.
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Email Andrew Jones | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Peter was very knowledgeable about the area and the animals and made everything feel safe.
The tours were fantastic. We had a great experience seeing the different parks and all of the wildlife and natural beauty. Our guide, Peter, knew all of the park trails very well and was well prepared for each day and knew the best ways to get around in each location. We always felt very confident in his abilities and he was great to talk with. The lunches provided during the tour were fantastic as well.
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Email Michael Jones | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Both Peters, the tour coordinator and our driver were outstanding, offering personalized experience!
Penfam gave us a great and unforgettable tour! Both Peter the coordinator and Peter our driver were excellent in planning and executing all the details of our trip. The schedule and accommodations were expertly planned and every detail was well thought out. Our driver Peter M
was very knowledgeable, professional and made sure we had the ultimate experience for every day of our safari!
Personal, professional and well thought out in every way! I will enthusiastically recommend them to any of my friends travelling to Africa , and will certainly have Penfam take care of my family and me on all future trips!
Simply excellent !
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Email Don | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
They desire to give us the best possible tour, providing safety to us in every way.
We only had two days for Safari available to us. PenFam made those two days very fun and memorable. I couldn’t believe the number of animals that we saw, but they seem to know exactly where to look. They also arranged for excellent lodging for our team at a very reasonable cost. Everyone in our team was thrilled with the adventure; going home to share stories and pictures with families and friends.
I have been taking small groups over from our church in the U.S. since 2003. We have always hired the professionals at PenFam to guide us on our tours. They are the best!!
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Email Keith Ham | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
We felt completely safe and exceptionally well cared for during the entire experience.
Our Kenyan safari tour operator, Peter, provided a smooth, affordable experience with excellent communication. We experienced uncomplicated transport from start to finish, and the reception at the destination lodge was efficient and welcoming. Throughout our stay, we felt completely safe and exceptionally well taken care of. I strongly recommend Penfam Tours for your next safari in East Africa.
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Email Bob Kraus | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Trip of a Lifetime!
Without a doubt, our PENFAM safari was an experience of a lifetime! While we have traveled widely, this was our first adventure to Africa. PENFAM and the people of Kenya made the trip among the two or three best travel experiences in our lives! We traveled with close friends which made the trip especially meaningful for us. PENFAM provided a truly outstanding driver and tour guide. Our driver was extraordinarily attentive to our interests and desires. He listened to our discussions and tailored his driving and destinations to suit often unspoken wishes. He was experienced and was skilled at spotting wildlife near and far: one instant he was pointing out a roller (bird) 3m from the vehicle and the next a white rhino 200m across the savannah. We were also extremely pleased with the lodges at which Penfam had arranged for us to stay. The accommodations were absolutely outstanding but the pièce de résistance was the attentive, skilled and, above all, friendly staff.
Of course, the reason for the trip was to see wildlife and exceptional scenery. Penfam delivered and more. We traveled to several parks and preserves including Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara, Amboselli. We returned with literally thousands of photographs that were so amazing it was the most difficult editing job!
“A trip of a lifetime” is, if anything, an understatement!
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Email Charlie Laird | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Friendly, lots of Knowledge, helpful, and respectful.
The hole trip was amazing from the start, we loved the safari lodges where we stayed, they exceeded our expectations. Our driver was so considerate and always aware of our needs. The safari’s were full of exciting moments. A pride of lions will always be a memory 9 in total
5 cheetahs, herds of elephants, as well as May birds, We went to Masai Mara lake Nakuru, Amboselli to mention a few. Altogether it was a trip we are not likely to forget. My son and his family are going their in August 2025 with Penfam.
