Andrew will take you to remote places
Wildebeest Safaris
- Located In:
-
China
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 1997)
- Member Of:
- ETT & TRA
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $100 to $450 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
CN
Email Jessie Xu | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The arrangement is thoughtful and adaptable to different situations.
Overall the experience is good. We got prompt feedback in most of cases. The arrangement of hotels and safari trips are very thoughtful and meet our expectations. There was a same issue happened before we went to Amboseli as the vehicle was not the one we expected. We understood the reason but it would be better if we could be communicated earlier rather than knew it when it happened. Still it was a good trip and experience. Thanks!
US
Email Karl | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
good lodging
We had a 11-day safaris. Booking was easy. Easy to communicate with the company owner Noah over email. Good lodging arrangement. In Masai Mara, there was a 3-hour drive one way to the river from the hotel, but the hotel was good. The hotel at Ngorongoro provided a spectacular view that's one of the very best we have ever had in our trips around the world. We made a scheduling mistake and as a result we had to book, through the company, one extra day at Masai Mara at a different hotel. It was an expensive booking and the quality of the lodging that day was SO BAD that it got me sick and was not able to do much the next day. The lesson: don't change schedule in the middle of it.
I have mixed reviews on our guides. Our first guide, Geoffrey, was an experienced guide and an excellent driver. Boy, he knows how to drive on the rough roads! He was assertive, a little hard to negotiate - we were totally inexperienced with Safari so we basically took what he offered, and he indeed, most time, tried his best in searching for things for us to see. In Samburu, at one point he was driving like crazy in order to get us to the spot to see a lion. It was a beautiful seeing. Another day he was trying really hard in searching for cheetahs in Masai Mara - although it was not successful in the end we were happy with his effort. His English was good and we had many good conversations. He was a caring and responsible guy - insisting that we call him back after he handed us to our next guide to assure him we were okay all the way. We did and had a good good-bye conversation. That's professional.
Our next guide, Hans, was less qualified to be a good guide. He was inexperienced as a safari driver and he messed up with some documentation things - as a result, we basically wasted our only day at Serengeti. Serengeti has been always a dream land for us. It was a disappointment. I am not sure whether this had anything to do with the location of the hotel. Hans was basically driving us back and forth on the only road near the hotel area. The Serengeti hotel itself, for the lodging quality, was very good. We had our best dinner of the whole trip there. During our Serengeti trip, we met a guide of another safari company, who was with a couple of guests who obviously were of hard-to-please type and who spoke very little English, and we talked with both the guide and his guests. He was such a wonderful guide (enthusiastic about and in doing his job, super friendly, easy to talk and very accommodating) that made us feel that we should have done a better job in researching and getting good guides for our safari.
Our third guide, Nicolas, was okay until at the end at the airport, when, perhaps due to inexperience and a long, tiring drive, he dropped us off in the middle of somewhere in the area and let us find the departure terminal ourselves. We were not thrilled about that, especially after we gave him good tips for the drive. We had to ask several people for directions in a long walk to the terminal. On Safari, though, he was mostly patient, willing to oblige our requests on the way. He took us up to the Observation Hill in Amboseli. We appreciate that.
Overall, that's a wonderful and unforgettable trip to East Africa.
Email Holly | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Safari
Dealing with Wildebeest safaris was an easy experience. I booked my 2 night 3 day safari last minute (the day before I went safari!). I negotiated a good lodge and price with Noah. I was nervous about doing a joining safari as you can't guarantee the other people or driver will be good. However all worked out well. The Driver (I forget his name) was excellent and got us close to the animals. Sadly only 3 of 5 of the big 5 were spotted. Overall it was an incredible experience!
IE
Email Brian | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our guide was very nice guy.
Very expensive.. 3days average - accommodation 1450 USD
CA
Email Guy | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A nice 6 days safari that went over our expectations
There were very few communication in the preparation of this safari and I think is the only negative aspect. Wildebeest should provide more info from the moment the payment for safari is made (maps, infos on the the different parks, etc.). Once the safari began everything went well, we had to ask where we were going to go but the answer were clear. We saw all the places we wanted to see and the lodging was more than we had expected.
We would recommend Wildebeest.
Thank You
Email David Knight | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Professional and very knowledgable guide
Apart from being one hour late for pick up at hotel, it was a marvelous experience. We were well looked after.
US
Email Will Sherman | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Overall--A Few Issues
Positive: Noah works with you to customize and he does it all at a very, very good price. I asked for Luxury hotels/lodges and all were wonderful, including a few we requested specially. Our driver was smart and well-informed and affable. We saw all the same stuff everyone else saw, possibly even a little more as Mike was pretty in the know and has been doing this 10 years.
The initial (and all) Communication with Noah was great--he is very responsive and willing to take a lot of time. The downside was that maybe I didn't ask all the right questions or get across to him that I wanted to spend the least amount of time in the car. As such, our route involved a bit of backtracking and as one is in those cars on bad roads enough as it is, the backtracking sucks. In the future I would fly to Serengeti and go one way to Arusha (or vice versa) if you have the money, hitting all the parks on the way. Also, spend 2 nights at each hotel if you can afford it. Hotels are nice with good food and it makes the trip less rushed and more relaxing--just my preference.
A few Downsides: The vehicle is old and sort of a POS. When it rained, our stuff got soaked--even in the suitcases. And when it rained or was cold, since neither the air or blower or wipers worked, it was sort of a disaster. As it is an old model, the windows are shorter so it is tougher to see out comfortably. I think it may be time for a vehicle upgrade and I would pay more for a company with a better vehicle and one cleaned a little more often.
Driver/guide Downside: Again, Mike was overall very good, however he talked loudly a lot on his cell phone both during game drives and even in our hotels. Was really, really annoying. I think in the future I would also request a non-smoking guide, but I really liked Mike and probably would go with him again anyway.
Other Downside: They were not waiting to pick us up when we arrived at the airport to start the safari. No big deal, but when I called I felt the reason they gave--too much traffic in Arusha (??)--was not credible. They were 45 mins late and everybody else seemed there on time. Not very apologetic about it either. I think they forgot we were coming on that flight.
But overall, a good experience at a good price and I would recommend Wildebeest (with a few modifications (car and routing) next time).
You spend a whole lot of time in the car on rough roads in these safaris, so I was hoping to minimize that. We ended up doing a lot of backtracking and as I had no idea of the area, I think they could have helped me avoid that. (Tip: Fly to Serengett if you have the $ and then backtrack to Arusha (or vice versa) and fly out from there. The round trip is too much driving.
In general very happy with the service
Everything was very good specially the driver-guide and cook.
The only issue we had is when we were entering Serengeti we had to pay the fees of the park which was about 600 USD. Everything was supposed to be included and payed in advance. However, Noah return the amount payed the day after through Paypal.
However, as I said before, apart from this issue, everything was very good.
AE
Email Suzana & Lutz | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
It was a great experience and Iwould recommend it to my friends with pleasure.
Everything was great.
We managed to see 3 out of 5, but it was a great fun and excellent time all in all.
US
Email Mohammed A | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful, fun experience!
We booked a 5 day Kenya safari via Wildebeest, and had a wonderful experience! Noah was very professional, was patient with our many questions, and provided the best price among all operators we've reached out to. Esty, our tour guide, was always on time, friendly, and very knowledgeable of the animals and parks. The jeep was in good shape, and had no issues during the tour. The only hiccup was at the hike of Mount Longonot. The hike (including going around the carter) took us 6 hours, and due to the lack of preparation we had no food, very little water, and when we got back to the car there were no lunch boxes either. It would have been a more enjoyable hike if we were better prepared.
Overall, we loved our vacation, took many many pics, and really enjoyed our time. Thank you Noah and Esty!