Sales Manager.
Pedaso Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 2020)
- Tour Types:
- Customizable private tours and fixed group tours
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $120 to $850 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
CN
Email Shuyu | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Pedaso Safari / David – My personal experience of a 14-day Safari in Kenya and Tanzania; I strongly advise future travelers to choose this option care
I don't usually write such long negative reviews. I can completely understand minor problems during a trip, especially in Africa, where there are many uncontrollable factors such as roads, weather, wildlife, and local suppliers. However, this approximately 14-day Kenya + Tanzania Safari made me increasingly feel that the problem is not just "an occasional minor mistake," but rather that the travel company's organizational skills, communication skills, accommodation arrangements, local ground handling capabilities, and how they handle problems are all seriously flawed. So I decided to write down the whole process in detail, hoping that future travelers planning safari trips to Kenya and Tanzania can understand what we actually experienced before choosing a travel company.
First, the conclusion: **The animals did not disappoint me at all.** The Great Migration, the Serengeti, Amboseli, and the wildlife we saw along the way were all well worth it; this should have been a truly unforgettable trip. What truly disappointed me was Pedaso Safari and its manager, David. The following is all based on our personal experience during this trip.
## 1. Accommodation Arrangements: What Did We Actually Pay For?
First, let's address the most basic issue: accommodation. Our payment/booking information clearly stated **"2 × Double Room"**. Before departure, I specifically asked David if we could get a lower price since we could share a room, but he clearly stated no. We accepted this and confirmed again on WeChat that we would be accommodated in two double rooms.
However, later, especially on the day we arrived in Nairobi, David's stance changed. He suggested that if we insisted on two rooms, my sister and his son would share, while I might have to share a room with a stranger. This arrangement completely deviated from the initially confirmed "2 × Double Room" and made us realize for the first time that the actual accommodations weren't following the initial booking.
Throughout the safari, we actually only had one room. Later, during the camping phase, it became even more absurd that the three of us were put in one tent. The problem wasn't just "crowded" or "uncomfortable," because there simply wasn't enough space in the tent; we didn't even have a proper place to put our luggage, and eventually, ants even crawled into our suitcases.
I believe there's a very basic principle regarding travel accommodations: if a travel company is prepared to have customers share rooms, tents, or three people share one tent, that's fine, but they should inform customers in advance so they can decide whether to accept it, rather than having customers pay and depart only to find out on-site that the actual accommodation arrangements are completely different from what they expected. Especially since this was a 14-day safari, accommodation isn't a trivial detail; it's a service we paid for.
## 2. The Guide Incident: We don't object to carpooling, but we object to last-minute changes to confirmed arrangements.
Here I must specifically state: **Carpooling on the Safari itself is perfectly normal; this is not the reason for our complaint.** We were never unhappy because other tourists joined the car. The real issue is that before departure, we clearly confirmed that Daniel would be our guide for the next few days, and we accepted this arrangement and began our trip accordingly.
However, during the trip, a white male tourist joined the car. This in itself was not a problem, but after boarding, this tourist continuously criticized Daniel's work and contacted his travel agency, demanding that Daniel be reassigned to his Amboseli itinerary.
What truly made us uncomfortable was the way the whole situation was handled. As Asian tourists, we clearly felt throughout the process that our needs and the arrangements confirmed before departure were not given the same level of importance as this white tourist. I don't want to directly accuse anyone of racial discrimination because I can't know their true motives. I can only describe our feelings as customers at the time: Why could our pre-confirmed guide arrangements be suddenly changed because of a last-minute request from another tourist? If the travel company needed to adjust the guide for operational reasons, I could completely understand, but they should at least have informed us beforehand, explained what happened, discussed it with us, and let us know what options were available, instead of having Daniel leading us one second and then telling us he was leaving the next.
We also had a 6-year-old child and a lot of luggage. This wasn't a simple "change of driver," but a major change to our confirmed travel arrangements. I believe that regardless of the other party's nationality or skin color, if it involves a confirmed customer itinerary, the travel company should communicate in advance, instead of demanding immediate acceptance after the fact.
So we contacted David. David told us, "15 minutes, I will call you back." A little while later, he said in the group chat, "Problem solved." Seeing this, we naturally assumed the problem was resolved, meaning our original arrangements with Daniel wouldn't change. So we told Daniel, "It's okay, we'll stick with you." But Daniel told us he hadn't received any notification.
So I called David again. This time, David explained that they had a large team and needed to coordinate different tourists. But this only confused me more: **If things were still being coordinated, why tell us "Problem solved"?** If it wasn't truly resolved, they should have told the client, "We're still coordinating," instead of letting the client believe everything was back to normal.
In the end, the problem wasn't actually solved. To avoid further disruption to the entire group's itinerary, we had to sacrifice our planned Hell's Gate trip and go to Amboseli earlier. In other words, we didn't request a change of itinerary for our own reasons; rather, we bore the consequences because the travel company hadn't properly coordinated the arrangements between different tourists.
What I found even more incomprehensible was that David then demanded additional fees. I was speechless because we didn't actively request a change of itinerary; we were forced to change it because of this problem. The final result was: **we lost our own itinerary and had to pay extra fees.** **
## 3. Upon Arrival in Tanzania, Things Became a Massive "On-the-Spot Itinerary"
After entering Tanzania, the situation became even more chaotic. We went through seven different people before finally arranging the rest of the itinerary. From our experience, this frequent changing of liaisons wasn't normal internal team coordination, but rather suggested that David himself lacked local ground handling capabilities in Tanzania; he was simply constantly transferring our itinerary to different local companies. Therefore, our Tanzanian portion was likely temporarily "split" and assigned to other teams.
More importantly, during this process, we were actually directly "inserted" into another tour group to perform the same itinerary, and this group's itinerary had already started before we joined. In other words, we didn't start with a complete itinerary, but rather joined a group that was already in progress. This directly led to the misalignment of parts of our original itinerary—for example, the national park that was supposed to be our first day's itinerary had already been visited by members of this other group before we joined. When we joined the group, this stop had already been "skipped" and moved to the back as a make-up stop.
We didn't initially have much of a problem with this. Adjustments to the itinerary during a trip are normal, and we were willing to cooperate as long as the trip could ultimately be completed. However, the problem was that since the itinerary order had changed, had the travel company reconfirmed the new hotels, drivers, and subsequent itinerary? What happened later told us that they hadn't.
## 4. Fig Tree: You told me it was "all arranged," but it wasn't booked at all.
On the morning of the day the previous leg of the trip was about to end, I proactively contacted David to confirm the next steps, where we would stay, and what the next leg of the trip would be. David's replies were consistently very clear, giving the impression that everything was arranged without worry. So, of course, we believed him.
But in the afternoon, when the driver dropped us off, he suddenly told us: **David hadn't booked Fig Tree for us at all.** More importantly, Fig Tree was fully booked for that day.
Here I must emphasize that this wasn't a last-minute change of plans, a last-minute request to change hotels, or us being late; it was that the travel company told us the hotel was arranged, but in reality, it wasn't booked at all.
We kept trying to contact David with the driver, but he was unreachable. He finally appeared over an hour later, explaining that he was taking an exam and couldn't bring his phone in.
I completely understand that everyone has their own things to do, and it's normal not to bring a phone during an exam. However, the problem is that our trip didn't suddenly happen while he was taking an exam. He could have easily arranged the hotel beforehand. If he knew he wouldn't be able to handle client affairs for a certain period, he should have confirmed everything in advance. What I can't accept isn't "David is taking an exam today," but rather: **because you're taking an exam today, we don't have a hotel tonight.**
## 5. Even more confusing is the different explanations that followed for the same thing.
The explanations we received later regarding why Fig Tree wasn't booked also left me very confused. David initially said he was told we were too tired to go; but this explanation itself is hard to believe—if we were really too tired to go, why did I repeatedly confirm the arrangements with him early in the morning? Later, he changed his story, saying the driver had the wrong hotel. Throughout the whole process, his explanations kept changing, more like constantly finding different reasons to explain the problem than directly stating what actually happened. The problem is, we'd stayed at this hotel before, and the driver had taken us countless times, so I find it hard to understand why it ended up being a "driver mistake." If the hotel was truly booked, the simplest solution would have been to produce a booking confirmation, which wasn't available at the time.
For consumers, what truly matters isn't how many explanations the travel company can offer later, but rather: **Was the hotel actually booked?** If it was, they should provide confirmation; if not, they should admit it wasn't, instead of giving different explanations at different times and constantly shifting the blame onto the driver or us.
## 6. So we had no choice but to return to Arusha with the driver.
Since Fig Tree was full, David was unreachable, and there were other passengers in the car, we had no choice but to return to Arusha with the driver. On the way, we confirmed again: "Where are we staying tonight?" David replied "Charity." Based on our previous communication, we chose to continue trusting this arrangement.
But when we arrived at Charity, we discovered that the hotel was hosting a wedding event and was fully booked, unable to accommodate us.
So the problem returned to square one: we were once again taken to a hotel that was actually unavailable.
We then contacted David again, and his response was still: "Let me make a call."
At this point, the essence of the problem was very clear: this wasn't a single booking error, but a series of systemic issues—**failure to confirm hotels in advance → last-minute change of plans → new hotels also unavailable → further last-minute failure**.
For a travel company responsible for arranging the entire 14-day safari itinerary, this level of accommodation mismanagement was no longer a simple communication problem, but a very serious issue of itinerary management and execution capabilities.
## 7. We later gradually discovered that Pedaso seemed to lack sufficient local ground handling capabilities in Tanzania.
It was also during the process of resolving these issues that we gradually learned that David/Pedaso Safari's itinerary arrangements in Tanzania seemed to require the involvement of other intermediaries. Based on the information we gathered, it seemed that David contacted Deo, who then contacted the local agency.
I don't know the specific business relationship between them, so I won't speculate here. But for tourists, the truly important question is: **When we're in Tanzania, haven't booked a hotel, and the driver is unsure of the arrangements, is there someone who can immediately take responsibility and resolve the issue?**
From our experience, no.
Every time a problem arose, we contacted David, who then contacted someone else, and we waited. But for someone traveling in Africa, you're not sitting in an office waiting for emails. You're changing hotels and national parks every day, traveling with luggage and children, and often without stable internet access. In this situation, the most crucial element for a travel company is its local ground handling capabilities.
And this is something we clearly didn't experience on this trip.
## 8. From Arusha to Nairobi: The Driver Didn't Even Know Who He Was to Pick Up
Finally, we finished our Tanzania trip and needed to return to Nairobi from Arusha. A driver was supposed to pick us up, but he didn't show up for ages.
We contacted David, and his first question was: "Which hotel are you staying at?"
I really didn't know what to say, because this meant the driver hadn't even received the complete pick-up information beforehand.
The driver eventually showed up, but we later realized the problem was more serious than "incomplete information": the driver hadn't actually received our pick-up information in the first place. He had been dropping off other passengers and had already driven for about half an hour before finally showing up.
(automatic translation from Chinese)
Reply from Pedaso Safaris
Posted on Aug 18, 2026Management Response
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We respect every guest’s right to express their experience, and we take all reviews seriously. However, after reviewing the details of this safari and our operational records, we believe several statements in this review require clarification, as they do not accurately reflect what was arranged or what occurred.
This was a 14-day Kenya and Tanzania safari involving the reviewer, her sister and her child. The safari was operated as a coordinated itinerary, with the clients travelling together in the same vehicle and group. During the Tanzania portion, communication between our management, drivers, guides, accommodation teams and local operational partners was part of the normal coordination required for a cross-border safari. It does not mean that the clients were being moved between seven different tour companies, as suggested in the review.
Accommodation in Arusha was also arranged. The property mentioned in the review operates under the same management as a separate accommodation property located approximately 200 metres away. When accommodation is provided through the same management at an alternative property, this should not be represented as the guests being left without accommodation or as a hotel simply not having been booked.
We also cannot agree with the account concerning the clients’ alleged return to Nairobi. The movements and arrangements recorded by our team do not correspond with the version presented in this review. We therefore believe it is important that future travellers understand that this particular part of the review does not accurately represent the actual itinerary.
We would also like to address the suggestion that our decisions were influenced by nationality or that one guest received preferential treatment because of being a white traveller. We categorically reject this implication. Our responsibility is to coordinate the safari safely and efficiently for every guest, regardless of nationality, background or origin. Changes or coordination involving guides and vehicles can occur during multi-country safaris because of park logistics, vehicle movements, border procedures, accommodation arrangements and the schedules of different guests.
There is also an important piece of context that we believe future travellers should be aware of: another member of the same travelling party, who travelled on the same itinerary, for the same number of days and in the same vehicle, independently posted a five-star review of her safari experience. We do not present this to invalidate the reviewer’s personal opinion, but to demonstrate that the account presented here is not the only firsthand experience of this safari from the travelling party.
We are not claiming that every safari will be completely free of logistical adjustments. Kenya and Tanzania are dynamic destinations, and professional safari operations require constant coordination between multiple teams. What matters to us is that our guests remain safe, their itinerary is managed, and the services they have booked are delivered.
We welcome constructive feedback and will always investigate legitimate concerns. At the same time, we cannot allow normal safari coordination or arrangements that were in fact made to be portrayed as operational failures when they are not supported by our records.
To future travellers considering Pedaso Safari, we invite you to look at the full picture. Our team has extensive experience coordinating Kenya and Tanzania safaris, and we remain committed to providing reliable logistics, experienced guides, quality accommodation and, above all, memorable and safe wildlife experiences.
The wildlife, landscapes and Great Migration experiences of Kenya and Tanzania speak for themselves—and we look forward to giving future guests the positive safari experience that we work hard to deliver every day.
Pedaso Safari Management.
Worst
I booked my safari tour with this company. Even before the trip, I discussed with the manager to coordinate my flight tickets and schedule so that everything would fit well.
On the first day, our car broke down and we had to wait for over an hour in the middle of the road. After finally completing the game drive, we arrived at the lodge only to find out it was overbooked — four of us had no room and had to be moved elsewhere. When I asked the manager, he said he heard anything. Dinner and breakfast were not going to be provided either, so we had to argue just to get them.
The next morning, instead of resting at the same place for another night, we had to pack all our luggage again and move back to the originally scheduled lodge. The day after that, we were told our accommodation had changed again due to some “unexpected” issue.
The following day, we thought we were heading to the campsite where we were supposed to stay for two nights. But one of the group members asked the guide if we were really going there — and only then did we find out it had been changed again. The driver didn’t even bother to tell us until we asked. The manager who I've been talking to didn’t even know the situation again. Everyone had to complain to their respective managers before we were finally allowed to go to the place we had been originally told about.
When we arrived, there was yet another overbooking issue — instead of the double rooms we were promised, we were placed in 6-bed rooms, and non-couples were told to share. When I asked the manager, once again he had no idea about the situation and just said, “At least you’re not sharing your bed”
On the day we were supposed to cross into Tanzania, there was no game drive. The car broke down again, so we had to wait on the roadside for a long time and then transfer to another vehicle. After crossing the border, we waited for several more hours before finally getting on the bus. When we arrived at the hotel, my name wasn’t even on the reservation list — I was told there was no room and had to stay separately from the rest of the group. We arrived later than expected so I couldn't go to the market for shopping bc it was already almost closed after check-in.
The next morning, I was told to meet at 6:30 a.m. to join another group for the Tanzania safari. The bus only arrived after 8 a.m., and I waited more than two hours before finally departing around 10:30 a.m. We had to pick up other people along the way, which caused even more delays. When we finally reached Serengeti, I thought we would start our game drive — but the car broke down again, and we ended up waiting in the rain for over two hours at the park entrance. We didn’t do any game drive that day.
The driver promised to make it up to us by starting early the next morning at 6:30, but he only showed up after 8:30 a.m. Because of that, we were the last to leave and had much less time for game driving, even though Serengeti park fees are extremely expensive.
The following day was the same — we were ready on time, but the driver came hours late again so we departed late again. The campsite was cold, the tent zipper was broken, cold wind blew all night, and I eventually caught a cold.
On the last day, we were supposed to do a game drive in Ngorongoro Crater and then head to the airport for my flight. The driver arrived late again. As soon as I saw him, I told him about my flight time and location, and he said he was aware. After dropping off another person and stopping somewhere for lunch, we started driving toward Arusha, but it was getting late. I kept reminding the driver and the manager that my time was tight. The manager reassured me that as long as I had checked in online, I would be fine.
However, after dropping others off in Arusha, they transferred me to a different car — and that new driver told me I wouldn’t make it to the airport in time! I was shocked and begged him to hurry, but he didn’t drive any faster. Despite my prior warnings that I would likely be late, the manager only told the driver to speed up at that point.
We arrived at the airport only after my plane had already departed. I had to change flight with my own money. While waiting, another guide came ti help and after listening to the situation, he promised I would get a full refund for the missed flight. I also saw him talking through the phone with the “assistant” of the manager in front of me even though I couldn't understand their language. The manager also told me via WhatsApp that he would help me get compensation. I had no choice but to believe them at the time. Because of this delay, I also had to rebook my next connecting flight.
The next day, the manager suddenly changed his words and said he could only offer a small partial refund, claiming he knew nothing about the conversation from the day before. Later he insisted it wasn’t his fault because transportation wasn’t under his control and offered only $30 “as a gift” — which he never even sent. Keep in mind, he was the one who helped arrange my outbound flight from Tanzania in the first place!
As everyone knows, safari tours are not cheap. People spend a lot of money and travel all the way here to see wildlife, but the lack of organization, constant car breakdowns, and endless time wasted picking up and dropping off other guests meant our actual game drive time was far too short.
Most disappointing of all was the whole process that led to me missing my flight, which completely ruined my following plans and cost me much more money — and the way they handled the situation afterward was utterly unprofessional.
I strongly recommend that anyone planning a safari choose a more established and reputable company. Don’t make the same mistake I did.
Reply from Pedaso Safaris
Posted on Oct 8, 2025Dear Dudgk,
Thank you for taking the time to share such a detailed account of your experience. We’re genuinely sorry to hear that your safari did not meet the expectations you had. At Pedaso Safaris, we take all feedback seriously, as it helps us identify areas for improvement and continue refining the quality of our operations.
That said, we would like to provide some clarification for the benefit of future travelers reading this. Your tour was booked as a budget group safari package — a shared program coordinated among several partner operators. While this model allows guests to enjoy an affordable safari experience, it can sometimes involve shared logistics such as group transfers, mixed lodges, and coordination among multiple operators. These dynamics can occasionally lead to last-minute changes beyond our direct control (for example, accommodation overbookings or vehicle substitutions). Nevertheless, our team always does its best to communicate updates promptly and to minimize any disruption to guests’ comfort or experience.
Regarding the vehicle mechanical issues you mentioned, our fleet undergoes regular maintenance, but in rare cases, the demanding road conditions in remote safari areas can cause unexpected breakdowns. We sincerely regret that this happened during your trip. In each case, our team acted immediately to provide replacements and ensure your itinerary continued.
As for the flight connection concern, our records show that our operations team worked closely with you to arrange and monitor your travel schedule. While we regret the unfortunate missed connection, transportation delays on shared group safaris — especially those involving cross-border coordination between Kenya and Tanzania — can sometimes be affected by factors such as road conditions, border traffic, or unforeseen park delays. Even so, our staff remained in contact with you throughout and offered support to the best of our ability under the circumstances.
We truly regret that these issues overshadowed what should have been a memorable wildlife experience. The vast majority of our guests complete their tours successfully and leave excellent reviews about the professionalism of our guides, vehicles, and overall organization. We recognize, however, that no safari is without challenges, and we continuously work to ensure smoother communication and coordination across all departments.
We sincerely appreciate your feedback and wish you all the best in your future travels.
Warm regards,
Operations Manager – Pedaso Safaris
📧 [email protected]
| 🌍 www.pedasosafaris.com