20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Organizing a Holiday with AVO Orange
Organizing a Holiday with AVO Orange was to put it simply the easiest holiday I have ever book. Erica was incredibly responsive on E-mail which in this day and age is so much less hassle than a phone call. She was very helpful, Enthusiastic, flexible and informative. We got all the information we required about location, seasons, wildlife and accommodation to make a well-informed decision about our holiday.
We are extremely excited, Would definitely recommend AVO Orange to anyone looking for an Adventure holiday!
BR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Spectacular Botswana Safari - Tailor-made to Interests and Budget
We followed SafariBookings suggestion to seek five proposals in choosing an operator for a trip of a lifetime. Our pick was Compass Odyssey for their comprehensive and prompt reply to every query and their willingness to adapt and adjust itineraries to fit my family's specific interests and budget constraints. Our safari vacation surpassed all expectations in every respect! Their pre-safari information packet prepared us for what to expect and take along, all the way down to recommended tipping guide. The selected lodges were clean, comfortable and provided many personal touches to make our trip special. The professionals who worked with Compass Odyssey were qualified and knowledgeable. In every aspect, it was an excellent experience. I rate Compass Odyssey 6 stars!
SE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Owner cancelled the trip 4 days before arrival!
I will do my absolute best to hereby share my experience with African Sunset Safaris in the most objective way.
Note: This review do only cover their services in regards of booking accommodation and their general way of working and communicating, since Mr. Haron (the owner) decided to cancel the trip only 4 days before arrival!
Mr. Haron is a well-spoken person. The problem is that he lies a lot!
He lied about the condition of the tents at our confirmed accommodation, and therefore asked us to pay more to move us to another hotel.
He lied about the cost of our accommodation when calculating on our refund.
He lied about the Kenyan tourism levy rate (6% instead of 2%).
He told me it is against the Kenyan law to share the receipt of his payment to the hotel (I have not confirmed this, but I find it very hard to believe).
All in all, his last-minute cancellation made us find another agent in very short notice, in peak season.
It cost us 300 USD more than initial agreement, for the exact same itinerary due to out-sourced jeep rental.
I would never recommend African Sunset Safaris to anyone.
Full time line:
October 10th: We agree on booking of 2 nights at Mara Leisure Camp + game drive in jeep + transport from/to Nairobi at 1400 USD for 2 persons.
October 16th: I transfer 945 USD (~70 % of total amount) to Haron as deposit.
October 24th: Haron confirms payment is received and "hotel is cleared".
Dec 18th: Haron emails: "I had to move you from Mara leisure to Sarova Mara due to unavoidable reason being at Leisure the were affected by the short rains two weeks ago and currently most of there tents are under Maintenance." ... "I kindly advice we shall have a small hick on the price by USD 250."
Dec 19th: I find Haron's message suspicious and contacts Mara Leisure Camp directly to verify that their tents actually are under maintenance. Their sales manager dismisses this false facts and personally guarantees there are no problems with their facilities. They also say "your booking is still on tentative status awaiting for payment to confirm". (meaning my pre-payment had not yet been received by the hotel!)
Dec 21st: I get back to Haron: "We believe we will be very satisfied with Mara Leisure Camp, even though the tents are in bad condition.
I want you confirm the booking of a Nyati tent at Mara Leisure Camp ASAP and send them the money to confirm the reservation before it gets lost to any other client."
Dec 21st: Mr. Haron now seems to feel neglected and decides to cancel both the safari game drive and transport! However, he promises to pay the money to Mara Leisure and refund us the remaining amount of 200 USD.
Dec 22nd: I asked Mr. Haron about a reciept for his payment to Mara Leisure to confirm that 200 USD is the correct amount to refund. He now refers to their listing rates instead (which is higher that his agent rates) and concludes that I actually owe him additional 35 USD, but in the same e-mail he also states that he is willing to refund 200 USD anyway as a Christmas gift (?!).
Dec 22nd: Still without showing any receipt of his payment to Mara Leisure, I at least get the 200 USD in refund.
Jan 10th: After a number of emails to Haron and Mara Leisure Camp, I finally received a copy of Haron's payment of 716 USD, i.e. 264 USD less that what he tried to tell us when referring to their public listing rates + Christmas supplement.
SE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable safari in Masai Mara!
Due to trouble with our first tour operator (another company), I took contact with Alfred at Bencia just 3 days before our arrival in peak season. We were desperate to find a tour company that were able to help us with such short notice, and they really did everything to assist us!
All of their own Landcruisers was already booked, so they used their connections and found another car and driver/guide from a third party company, which worked great. Our driver/guide was Bernard, an very experienced guide who took very good care of us.
We spent 2 nights in Mara Leisure Camp, which was excellent! Clean and roomy tents, with a terrace viewing over a small lake and the park.
Once back in Nairobi, Ben from their office joined us to the airport to make sure everything worked out for us. This is a really nice and helpful team!
SE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best safari!
We are incredibly happy with our safari tour. Everything was much better than we could imagined. Jimmy has been very helpful all the time. Our guide Samuel was amazing. We can warmly recommend this company. We've got memories for life. Thanks!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
8 day safari
From first contact with Henry, who patiently worked with us on an itinerary that suited our budget and preferences, to the excellent service and experience of our guide, Loy, Flash Safaris met all our expectations, and more. Our only regret is that we didn't include two more days in our itinerary to enjoy the facilities at the lodges recommended in Arusha and Karatu. It somehow seemed a waste of very inviting and comfortable accomodation to arrive as the sun was setting, and leave again as the sun was rising! Pole Pole (slowly slowly) ...is how we would do it again. Many thanks to Edward and his team for a very special experience, worth every dollar spent.
IT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
everything arranged in a perfect way, following our preferences
everything was perfect, we felt very safe during all the time driving across the country, wich is a very important thing since you must travel a lot along roads not so easy beacouse of many people walking aside, animals crossing, uphills, downhills, unpaved roads, mud roads after raining, ecc...
we felt very confortable in all the accomodation chosen, that we've required as basic as possible. They were perfect, simple, nice and safe.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nervous traveller felt welcome
To be honest after hitting 40 I always wanted a big adventure but felt time was slipping away. I have a number of health problems so to put it bluntly I am a nervous traveller and this was my time to go so far.
When I decided on Uganda I looked at a number of websites and called the companies. I was concerned about using my credit card and such like. Then a friend recommended Gorilla Link Tours, I gave them a call and spoke to a lovely lady called Caroline.
She asked me a few questions and said she would get back to me in an hour. Two hours later she called back apologising for the delay and said she had made a tour for me and provisionally book the hotels and events (Trekking, quad biking, zip lining etc).
I asked about payment and 20% was required by bank transfer which I was please about and the rest in cash when I arrive. Once in Uganda I was collected at the airport, lots of smiles and champaign all round.
The whole experience was amazing and I was also given a free upgrade and city tour. Carol you were great thanks very much and see you again in December.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing trip with incredible Khanga Safari team !
This was our first time in Africa and my boyfriend and I wanted to choose the right safari company to make the most of our 7 days in Kenya.
I chose Khanga Safari and I can only say that we had an amazing trip. We chose the 7 days safari trip and had the most amazing time, thanks to Khanga Safari teams.
From before the trip: with Lawrence & Bernard fully available and responsive within a few hours (dedicated WhatsApp number for "live" questions)
To during the trip: everything was really well organized wit no hic-cups along the way, Christopher our driver was amazing: he knew so much about the wildlife and had incredible eyes spotting all incredible animals. Chris taught us a lot about the animals there and he also took tons of pictures of us (great photos by the way, thanks for the souvenirs!). Also, the trip is done as a private tour so we had the van to ourselves with my boyfriend and I can only recommend to do so as this will make your experience so much more exclusive and fully aligned with your own wishes.
In our trip, we got to see the Big 5 and so much more ! Incredible diversity of animals, jaw-dropping landscapes, very good accommodation & food. I can only recommend Khanga: you will have the most amazing time !
FR
Experience level: first safari
great adventures!
It was a very good safari. John (manager in ACZ) was very responsive, always provided quick feedback at the stage of booking. Safari itself was organized very well. Our driver/guide (Charles if I am not mistaken) was great - special thanks to him for his great job. We have seen dozens of animals. I think we have seen everything except for rhinos.