US
5 day safari Lake Manyara Serengeti Ngorongoro Crater.
Booked safari from USA. paid 50% for deposit so I didn't have to carry as much cash to pay balance. The deposit was a knowledged as soon as it was received. I dealt with Andrew who responded immediately and was easy to work with. He also is just a great guy to deal with and talk to. They also took care of hotel arrangements and airport transport. The safari was exceptional with a great guide who was knowledgeable, spoke great English, and was great to be with. The food was very good and the soup each night was exceptional. I had no problems at all. There were 3 of us on safari and everything was cool.
CH
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The organisation was perfect
Communications, service, living up to expectations... everything was perfect.
FR
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Professional and reliable tour operator in Uganda - highly recommended!
I went to a gorilla trekking tour in Uganda in mid Dec 2016 with three friends. Prior to our trip we looked up infos on internet and contacted five different tour operators in Uganda. Among them Encounter Afirca Safaris was the most efficient and professional. They did not only respond our enquiry immediately but also suggested us a tailor-made itinerary, which includes the main activities/places we are interested.
Besides, they are honest with their price. They gave us the clear breakdown of each parts of the travel cost and allowed us to choose which option (budget, mid-range, luxury) according to our budget.
During the preparation period they provided us sufficient info for visa, vaccination, activities on spot and packing. So we were fully prepared for our trip.
Upon arrival we were greeted by Chris (the organiser) and our English-speaking guide/driver Joseph. Both of them were very friendly and kind so that we felt comfortable with Uganda right away.
During our 10-day trip, we have not only experienced the most amazing and loving gorillas (I consider thie encounter as one of the most moving experience in my life), but also seen the rarely-spotted tree-climbing lions 3 times!
Accommodation condition could be tough in Uganda compared to Kenya. Despite we also experienced incidents such as black-out, lack of hot shower etc. Thanks to Encounter Africa Safaris' prompt reaction and efficient arrangement, all the unforeseen and unpleasant situations were solved right away. At the end we came back home safe with lot of sweat memory.
Therefore, I and my friends would like to recommend this professional and reliable tour operator to all people who are interested in gorilla trekking and tree-climbing lions (only in Uganda!). For me the tour in Uganda was definitely worthy and unforgettable. If you are an animal-lover, it is a MUST destination, and you won't regret it!
PH
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
2017 Mikumi Safari
Communication prior to booking, during and after Safari was beyond expectation. The driver/tour guide worked hard to give us an unforgettable experience. Timing was awesome because we experienced seeing the 3 of the big five specially simba.
We will absolutely recommend Kanuth Adventure Safaris to our friends and will not think twice to book again with this company on our next visit to Tanzania.
Great job.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
They are the reason why you should always choose a local tour opeartor!!
Extremely well organized and informed.
We were two couples from England and had taken plenty of advice already, much of which Safari Lifestyles agreed with and some not agreed with. What they did was to get the "on the ground" details just right... they obviously know all the areas very well and were able to pass on their feelings to us fluently.
I think being on location really does mean they are the most experienced in providing you with simply the best safari. Our lodge experiences were simply spot on.
Seriously good show.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Stress free travel
Motoke tours took care of all the details of our trip which made it a surprise for me too (since normally I organise the trips). Little things that were organised which you would not know to do yourself (dinner under the stars) made it truly special. When I sent my itinerary requests to other companies they couldn't do them but Motoke tours managed to. Our driver (Alfred) went above and beyond and was lovely to have on our trip with us.
I highly recommend this company.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best safari experience ever!
This safari tour company was the best trip ever, went with a group of 6, we all had a wonderful time. The guides were so knowledgable, professional and fun. The accommodations were wonderful, we can't wait to come back again! I highly recommend this tour company., have recommended them to friends and Family, will book with them again in the near future.
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great sleep out safari
I did did a sleep out safari and it was great. Chris was an excellent guide on the walking safari and really made the trip for me, sleeping outside under the stars was fantastic too. I'd highly recommend it.
MX
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent service
Everything went on as planned, and they are always looking forward to check that anything is missing. Very good service and attention.
US
Great safari, terrible administration
The experience was great and I loved the wildlife, the accommodations and our guide. However, the way that the company handles the business is incredibly unprofessional. First, after I wired a large amount of money to the company I got an email saying that the bank had changed routing number and to please wire the money again since "most likely" it would get rejected. After I went to the bank and emailed back I was told that the bank did get the money and that everything was all right but what if I had re wired the money like they asked me to?
After that, I repeatedly asked the owner to confirm that we would be picked up at a certain time on a certain day and he did confirm multiple times but when we arrived to the airport no one was waiting for us! I had to borrow a phone -and tip the guy who lent it- in order to get the a hold of the owner. He sent somebody right after but it does not fix how unsettling it was to arrive and not having someone ready (we were considering it might had been a scam.) When we got to Arusha the owner met us there and his excuse was that "since all their guests arrive at night he just assumed that we were going to do that as well." I confirmed with him multiple times about the time we wanted to be picked up and he just assumed???
We still rolled with it and didn't complain trying to make the vacation a fun time. Our guide was great, friendly, knowledgeable and seemed to be very into the wildlife, not just as a job but to have a true appreciation for the animals. So we headed up for a 7 day safari..., except it wasn't 7 days. We did not review our itinerary everyday because the company should know exactly what you paid for and should provide that for you but when on day 5 the guide told us that we would be ending the next day I went and checked the exact itinerary and it turns out that we were shorted 1 morning at the Serengeti. When I told the guide he said that he was going to talk to the owner and then came back saying that he would meet us in Arusha the next day to exchange ideas about what we could do to make up for that day but on the next day, of course, he did not show up. Instead he told our guide to offer solutions for us but the best one was a walking tour in Arusha which we did not care about. I paid to be at the Serengeti, not to walk in a city with nothing to see.
In the end we were fed up with the owner and his unprofessional attitude so we decided to just stay put at the hotel and lose that one day at the Serengeti except that the check-out was at 10 am and our flight was at 6 pm. Being that the owner wasn't there he couldn't handle the situation and our guide had to do his best. They allowed us to stay and use the pool but we had to give the room at 11 am which should not have happened. We should have been able to do late check-out but since the owner wasn't there to negotiate, we weren't.
We again said fine and just asked our guide to pass the information of our flight to Henry, the owner, to be picked up at 3 pm. But, you guessed it, the owner didn't show up to pick us up and the driver that he sent was over half an hour late! We requested to be picked up at a certain time because we have a plane to catch and things to do and they don't even respect that. Our driver was rude, acted like it was an inconvenience to drop us at the airport and was texting on his phone the whole ride.
You would think that after not being there to pick us up the company would do everything in their hands to make up for it but instead they were consistently careless. My wife and I had been in Africa for a while before the safari so we understand that things are not smooth and that people work differently there but when you pay the kind of money that we paid they should at least be there to pick you up.
Oh, and I asked for a receipt of payment at least 5 times which the owner kept saying "I'll send it tomorrow" but I'm still waiting. All I can think of is that he doesn't want to report the tour and pay taxes on it which I get but when your guest is constantly requesting it the company should take care of it.
Like I said, I loved the safari and the overall experience but I would absolutely not recommend this company solely based on the owner. And if you think that there are multiple great reviews that don't agree with mine, well, a lot of those come from Canada even if the listed country of the reviewer is a different one so I would not be surprised if they are fake reviews written to build up the company's profile.