AE
Perfect from the start, esp for the ethical tourist
Right from my first contact with Jessica by email, we were treated exceptionally well. Jessica responded promptly and in detail to all my information requests, as well as offering a very reasonably priced 8 day safari. And importantly, through the company they support an orphanage for Kony victims in Kampala. This ethical philosophy of supporting and giving to others at community level is very strong within the company and a massive drawcard for us.
Martin was a fantastic guide throughout our time. From picking us up at the airport to the final goodbye we cannot fault his professionalism, knowledge, caring nature and patience to find us the best experience. And through his guidance we saw everything and more that we wanted to see - from lions in the trees and elephants at the gate, to mongoose under the van and leopards at the window, just amazing. I have dreamed of this since a young boy and can only say my dream has been realised.
Uganda is a beautiful place and was not voted by the BBC as the friendliest country in Africa for nothing. Every day was like being somewhere different - from grassland savannah to lakes to rainforest jungle. We stayed in mid-range accommodation and were blessed with exceptional service and wonderful food. I have to mention Agnes at the Simba Safari Camp and all the people at the Buhoma Community Rest Camp , the stunning views at the Acacia Lodge looking down onto Lake Bunyonyi (http://www.arcadialodges.com/lake-bunyonyi.html - think I would love to retire there!!) and the impala herd outside our window at the Acacia Cottages at Lake Mburo.
We did two gorilla treks in Bwindi and I would have to recommend doing two rather than one. Each was unique and gave us plenty of time to pick up and put down the cameras, to look through the lens or just sit and absorb where we were.
When you go make sure you take some school supplies for St Matthews School while doing the Community Walk in Bwindi. This school and its staff are doing an incredible job with dirt floors, 60 kids to a class, so few resources but a spirit that lifts your heart. They also have a number of orphans and Batwa children who would benefit from your support. We'll be back again to do what we can - and also to experience Rwanda with our friends at Arrive Africa Safaris.
I utterly recommend Arrive Africa Safaris and Uganda - people, places and smiles you will never forget.
AE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Super duper
Excellent service, very caring owner Pamela, very experienced & helpful driver Peter. Had a great time at Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru & Lake Naivasha. Cheers
SE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
South Africa - Cape Town trip for the books
I hade a great experience with Ben as my guide in Cape Town and the Garden Route. We went all around CT, we went to Table Mountain, Boulders Beach, Constantia Valley and more. We hade a super nice time and it was a great to see SA with africa-customised and Ben as our guide. Hope to do one more trip with them soon.
US
about this company
I went to Tanzania one month ago , and i must say it was the best time of my life , I saw so many beautiful things , the Sfhub staff was really nice ,and our driver Julio was the most friendly man i know . Thank you for this beautiful trip !
NO
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great safaris
Malaika Tours is greatcompany we enjoy our Tanzania and Kenya safaris.We spend 14 days in luxury safaris.
Munene our driver guide was fantastic,our landcruiser was new with radio communication and fridge.If you want luxury safaris in Africa then Malaika Tours is the best option.We saw great migration in Serengeti and lot of wilds animals,we will tell everyone about this company.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent experience!
I was in contact with Patti, who was very helpful and prompt in her responses to my requests and she was able to tailor my itinerary, while also offering additional alternatives. I traveled solo and stayed three nights at Tremisana Lodge and the rooms were clean, spacious, and there was actually hot water, and the food was great. I've been on plenty of safaris and I'm fairly simple when it comes to amenities, but there were more than enough at Tremisana Lodge. Maybe the wi-fi could have been a bit more reliable, but then again I wasn't there for that in the first place, so it was a plus it was available at all.
I can't say enough about all of the staff, they were all very welcoming and helpful throughout my stay. From the chefs, to the guides, and lodge staff (Rex, Eva, Robin, Elias, Pretty, and anyone else I may have missed, a big thank you! You all made my experience an incredible one!) Each guide worked very hard to find a wide array of wildlife, so that was much appreciated. Although, I have been to South Africa before, it was my first time to Kruger National Park and the surrounding areas.
For reference, I did the four day safari and my itinerary included game drives, a bush walk, and bush braai in Balule Game Reserve, with one full day in Kruger National Park, which is open-attached to Balule, so the animals can roam freely between each. We were able to find lions (lioness & cubs), black/white rhino, zebra, giraffe, hippo, hyena, waterbuck, jackal, cape buffalo, wildebeest, elephants, and even a verreaux's eagle owl (very rare), to name a few. All in all, the experience was just what I was looking for, time out and away from the daily grind while also enjoying the beautiful landscape and it did not disappoint.
In addition, Viva Safaris pick up and drop off in Jo'burg so that was a huge perk. On my return to Jo'Burg, my itinerary included a short stop-off at Blyde River Canyon, which was absolutely amazing! The views were incredible and definitely capped off a great trip to ZAR.
Again, I just want to send a warm thank you to all of the staff and guides who made my stay an incredible one!
I appreciate your hospitality, flexibility, and hard work to provide a great experience during my stay and I would highly recommend Viva Safaris.
Hope to see you again soon!
-Rye
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Four night package to Amboselli, Tsavo West and Tsavo East.
We booked our trip within 45 days of departing. While Vincent (the operator) was difficult to understand, he made up for with a stellar trip. I'm from America and I speak no other foreign language, and admire those that to. While not fluent in English, we decided emailing and texting would be best for both parties.
The company demanded only a wire transfer for a deposit. I think that in this day and age of credit cards, spending $80 wire fees is ridiculous, but I wanted to support a small business and begrudgingly wired the money and paid the fee. During our conversation, I clearly communicated that I will not be carrying $4,000 in cash and that my party would pay the balance with credit cards upon arrival. Upon arrival, this was met with reluctance by Vincent and mandated a trip back to Nairobi (out of the way by two hours with traffic) to meet his office manager that had a mobile unit for authorizing credit cards. Vincent could have had that with him when he met us, saving all of us two hours of our lives and more importantly, our vacation.
Once we got that out of the way, we met our driver and our guide, Lawi and we were on our way Amboseli. Lawi is a wonderful man and we enjoyed him immensely. After we checked into our accommodations at Amboseli, we went out on our first outing into the park. The first night we experienced an entire family of elephants near a small lake, that had a mother and baby hippo. We were delighted seeing that. We also experienced giraffe, impalas, gazelles, baboons and other exotic creatures. L
Lawi wanted to get us back to the lodge prior to dark, so we could eat dinner. Our group couldn't care less about eating timely or at all for that matter, if it meant sacrificing time looking for animals. That was met with resistance from Lawi. That issue also came up in the morning. We stayed 2o minutes from the park entrance and wanted to meet at 6:00. Lawi insisted we not leave prior to 6:30, but we settled on 6:15. The sun rose at 6:30 and by the time we got to the animals, the sun had been up for 30 minutes and we missed the best light of the day for our photography. However, once there we found a pride of lions coming across the savannah. Shortly after getting there, the lions continued coming directly toward us and we got amazing photographs of these magnificent animals. They crossed the road thirty feet in front of us and settle in a shadow with Mount Kilimanjaro directly behind them. It made an incredible photograph, when a lioness turned her head and looked directly at us with zebra and gazelles in the background.
Shortly after the lions went out of view, we saw a family of elephants again coming right at us. Lawi’s lack of understanding of photography became evident. While we could have easily stopped before the elephant and on the sunny side of them, Lawi continued past them and stopped the truck on the dark side of the animals. I was furious! Poor Lawi did not understand what he had done and after calming down, I conveyed the importance of being on the bright side of the animal, if at all possible, especially in hours immediately after dawn and before dusk. I’m not certain he understood why that was important, but he became vigilant at asking where he would like us to stop and that forged a great relationship with him for the rest of the trip.
After the magic of the morning resided, we went back to the lodge, cleaned up, ate breakfast and traveled on to Tsavo West. The drive there was remarkable with the scenery. It was hilly and heavily vegetated and while very scenic, it made seeing animals very difficult. We stayed at a phenomenal lodge at Tsavo West and it had a watering hole right of the back patio with a back drop of gorgeous landscapes. When we first arrived, an elephant was drinking water there along with many gazelles, waterbucks and zebra. We headed out that afternoon to view animals with little luck. The vegetation was just too thick to catch a glimpse of very many animals. Another outing in the morning yielded similar results, but it was breathtaking scenery. Then, it was on to Tsavo East after the morning drive.
Tsavo East is near the town of Voi and one must navigate its streets to arrive at the entrance to the national park. Voi was an interesting town where trash was simply thrown out and would land on public streets. It didn’t seem unusual at all to the people that lived there. Hundreds, maybe thousands of goats roamed the town and seemed to sanitize the trash as evidence of the fat goats, but I digress.
On our way to our lodge, there was no shortage of wildlife, we saw many bull elephants by themselves, many giraffes (twiga in Swahili). The accommodations were first rate again and we checked-in and then started our next drive. This time we went along a river where we witnessed many elephant families and all got great shots of them. We also experienced vervet monkies, baboons, along with many other species and witness babies as well.
After leaving Tsavo East, we took the highway to Mombasa where we said our goodbyes to Lawi and checked into a hotel there.
Overall, I thought Trip Advisor Africa Safaris served us well and I would book with them again.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wild at Heart Journeys offers a personalized Safari experience that I could find no where else!
I have been on two different Safari Trips with Wild at Heart Journeys and I couldn't recommend them more. Robin puts together incredible, personalized, experiences not just itineraries. She has many connections in Africa which allows access to places and experiences tourists don't usually get to see. Her trips greatly exceeded every expectation that I had (and I am very picky)!!
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
It's was lovely,we had great time .the game drive was awesome
Communications was good,the service was great. The Tourist camp we checked in was ok..the food was great ,only the Tent they gave was horrible ,i called the Triumph offices and complained and after some hours we were changed us to better Tent.I would recommend that you inform the person incharge of Majimingi Tourist Eco Camp should try see that the Tents are kept clean especially the Washrooms .
The game drive was Awesome the drivers were very kind and friendly we had alot of fun .Abig thanks to the drivers Godfrey (fred) and Raymond you did a good job keep it up.hoping that the next safari you will drive us again.
KY
Really well organized, but also allows flexibility
Jeff was incredibly responsive to all my queries. His flexibility allowed me to make my own plans, at the same time as he facilitated wider group excursions etc.