50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Honest, reliable and an excellent service.
The company offered a Safari package that was suitable for my need. I was a little worried when I had to pay them by Bank Transfer (not possible to do a Credit Card payment) but it was ok, all was well. We had Santaely as our driver and guide and he was excellent, well worth the recommended tips at the end. I would certainly engage Mega Adventures again next year when I next visit.
My only disappointment was our visit to the 'Maasai Village' - where the villagers were very demanding for tips for everything, including cleaning our shoes after the visit. This was even after we had given a recommended donation of $10 per tourist visiting. They sell commercially available products at 5x the price, making it difficult for us to support them in their home environment (if it was their home environment!) We were not well prepared for that.
We also had a Waterfall and Coffee tour in Moshi and that was a great experience. Mega Adventures just serves as an agent and transportation to the village guides. Our Driver expected the same level of Tips as was had given to Santaely even when he did very little 'guiding', and ignored us on the way back to our hotel because he was trying to chat up a girl he had offered transport to in our vehicle.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Rescued our holiday and gave us the experiences we always dreamed of.
This company gets good reviews for a reason, although small they are very very good
Robert and his team came to the rescue when we were badly let down by another operator. I was a little nervous about rebooking our trip following our very bad experience but I need not have worried everything went really really smoothly and everything fully met our expectations. Robert went above and beyond when our luggage was delayed in Frankfurt by 24 hours. We went onto Samburu whilst Robert arranged to collect our luggage and reunite us with it at Nakuru a couple of days into the trip.He also arranged our transfer from Wilson to Jomo Kenyatta when we flew back into Nairobi after spending a few days on the coast after our safari. We would have been happy to get a taxi but the transfer was a kind and generous offer.
Eric our driver and guide was excellent throughout. We saw all of the animals we hoped to see with superb views and photos of everything. We also identified almost 200 species of birds!. Eric was extremely patient with us every time we asked to stop to look at and identify a bird although I suspect he did run up a big phone bill!. In the parks Eric always knew where to take us and in the Mara particularly was in his element when the cry went out on the CB that a cat had been sighted. Like a good hunter he thoroughly enjoyed the thrill of the chase!
Just a word of advice based on our experience. You are often advised to travel with US dollars. As residents of the UK we lose some money when we change from GBP into dollars. In Kenya many people will take dollars but always convert to Kenyan Shillings. The exchange rate varied from 85 - 100 Shillings to the dollar. You will likely lose out again when you pay in dollars. If we were visiting again we would just take Kenyan Shillings.
Robert arranged a 12 day safari visiting Samburu, Nakuru, the Masai Mara, Naivasha, and Amboseli. He also arranged and booked 5 days of R&R at Diani beach at the end of the trip. The animals, the birds, the accommodation, the food and the company were all excellent throughout. based on our experience we would recommend that you give Beacon Safaris the chance to make your dream come true
SE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Do not themself drive in Tanzania
Communication with Simon prior booking was good, clear and fast. We booked a small group midrange safari 6 days Tarangire, lake manyara, ngorgoro and Serengeti national parks starting from Arusha.
While on site, we could not find their Arusha office. (The hotel listed on their website had never heard of the company.) The night befor the start of the safari a man from another safari company met us at the hotel, said he talked with Simon and would operate our trip. Overall we got what was agreed on in the itinerary, but days and accomodanditon was shifted with out any prior notice until the very last minute everyday. We would have appreciated to get a new updated itinerary befor we left. The driver/guide was really just a driver and did not tell us much about the parks or animals.
We are overall happy with the trip! Saw a lot of animals really close, an experience of a life time!!
It is hard to give a fare review of Wild Race Africa cause we have not met any of them.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good organisation and beautiful tours with a lot of information
We booked the full day safari including pick up and drop off. We were lucky and had the full day game drive alone together with the guide Kyo. He grew up in this area and gave us a lot of information about the parc as well as the animals and nature. We really enjoyed it. On the second day we booked a sunset tour which was operated by the Kruger Nationalparc which was also an amazing adventure.
Keep going guys!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing trip of a life time.
I have been planning a trip to Kenya for years, and John and Corrina did not disappoint. They treated us like kings and we never wanted for anything. We spent 11 days with them. Every detail was planned out perfectly. We saw countless animals and the big 5 twice before 11:00 am. We were fortunate enough to see a pride of lions kill a wildebeest. We were lucky enough to stay in the village with John and Corinna, and humbled by thier hospitality. We did a walking tour of crescent island and multiple game drives. This safari met my wildest dreams.
DE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing African Experience with Top Notch Service!
Compass Odyssey did a superb job developing, coordinating, and supporting our group during our recent tours of Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Botswana. I will definitely be a repeat customer and wholeheartedly recommend them for anyone planning a trip to Africa.
Darren put together a package that was not only within our planning budget, but it also greatly exceeded everyone’s expectations. His proactive communications and detailed explanations didn’t just reduce the element of surprise, it eliminated it. We knew where we were going, when we were going, who was leading/meeting us, and what expect along the way. No surprises, but more importantly, no disappointments.
The tour guides who worked with us locally were among the best I’ve ever worked with. They possessed an in-depth knowledge of the areas we toured and enriched the experience with their detailed anecdotes.
The lodges Darren chose were top notch. Each lodge was large enough to completely satisfy all of our needs, yet small enough to make us feel at home. All the lodge staffs were professional and extremely friendly. While I’m sure we had some unique requests, we never once felt like we were asking for anything out of the ordinary. It was all in a day’s work and still we felt totally spoiled.
The individual safaris booked for us were truly first rate. We all realized that we might not get to see all the animals we hoped to (after all the animals do get a vote), but we saw everything we wanted and then some. The guides seemed to instinctively know where the animals were hiding. In many cases we got up close and personal with the animals. Despite the closeness and excitement of the encounters, our guides ensured we never felt unsafe, uncomfortable, or in danger. Special shout out to Ruth, Mortimer, and Tiro. Outstanding efforts all around.
Not sure when I’ll get back to Africa, but the first call I’ll make will be to Compass Odyssey. For value, service, and all around experience, there is none better.
AE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Bespoke Service Second to None.
Andy was an amazing travel consultant. Everything I needed to know, he was happy to provide. He was extremely knowledgeable about the lodges, the wild life, transfers into and out of Kruger NP, etc. Not only Andy simplified the selection process. Once I reached the game reserve, the safari, experience exceeded my expectations. Kudos to Andy and Sabi Sands Lodges on getting me the perfect Safari experience from the first time around.
IT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful, safe, great availability and professionalism, great knoledge of place, park, animals
We dealt with Aileen she was so kind and patient during the planning, I wanted to spend 5 days arriving in Nairobi and going through Amboseli, Masai Mara and Lake Naivasha on the route, other agencies were not able to ensure me this plan, instead Aileen managed it without any issue. No bad surprise and also the little issue to the jeep, leaving the Amboseli that you understand could happen, has been managed very quickly. The tour and the timetable has been greatly respected with no rush. We have always felt safe, the driver showed good knowledge of the place, people and parks. We had the possibility to see all the big 5, and I realized my dream to be surmounted by Kilimingiaro, a myth for italian people due a typical tv travel programme, and to join animals in the huge and spectacular landscape of Masai Mara. We had an unforgettable picnic on the bush in Masai Mara. At lake Naivasha we had a great surprise, I thought It was just a place to stop to get in Masai Mara, instead we had an amazing experience on the walk safari at Crescent Island, we were very excited about that and giraffes were so graceful in their moving among us. All the lodges (Ol Tukai, Lake Naivasha Sopa Resort, Mara Serena) have completed this wonderful tour thanks to their immersion in the nature with respect of the nature itslef. The visit at the Masai Village is a must, it has not been only interesting, it has been emotional and touching the deep of our heart and sensibility visiting the little school full of tender and wonderful children. In Kenya you will have the possibility to improve your negotiation skill for each purchase, it is a ritual for them and it's amazing, they are very social and kind. Only one suggestion, the continous noise and conversation at the radio, sometimes breaks the silence and the sound of the surrounding nature so ask the driver to mute it in order to feel the sound of the surrounding nature. Thanks to Aileen, Tamasha and Sylas the driver for this great adventure. I really recommend Tamasha, they are local, they are professional, they are prepared, they wait for you
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
excellent
Margaret has been an Amazing tour operator and she tried her best to accomodate all our requests.
CZ
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely great achievement
We had a great time in Masai Mara with our experience and nice guide Sammy and Alex. We saw big 5 and many others animals. Accommodation in Sopa Lodge was excellent in AA Lodge should be better service and food. We were satisfied. Thank Sammy for show us the real wildlife.