CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
They failed to fulfill the agreement and did not deliver the services that were paid for.
We had booked with natural world in October 2024 before they started receiving these terrible reviews. After seeing them and it being too late to cancel, took extra precautions and reached out a few weeks in advance to confirm that all necessary payments for park fees, gas, and lodge reservations were made. Each time, I was assured that everything was taken care of and that I had nothing to worry about. That was a complete lie.
The ONLY good part of this trip was the guide we had, John. It's a shame such good talent and guides are wasted on this company. He tried his best each and every day to help us and kept calling whoever he could to get things paid for and confirmed. He went out of his way to make the safari experience special and always had a positive attitude that helped lift our spirits.
When I arrived in Nairobi, I discovered that none of the payments had been made and others were being made the day before or day of- which cause significant delays. I was forced to cover park permit fees out of pocket because the company had failed to pay them. Despite multiple attempts to contact them for assistance, they were unresponsive, and even our guide struggled to get a reply.
The issues didn’t stop there. I was promised driver details a few days before arrival, yet I only received them upon landing. My first night’s accommodation was also changed without my consent, even though I had been repeatedly assured that my original lodge was confirmed. On top of that, my final night’s stay, which was supposedly secured, had not been paid for, leaving me with yet another unexpected expense. Luckily my husband and I were able to work things out with the lodge, otherwise, we don't know where we would've gone.
The worst part? The driver ran out of gas on the way back to Nairobi, and because the company refused to respond to his calls, I had to cover the cost of refuelling myself.
This level of negligence is beyond unacceptable and they don't care at all. I have all the documentation proving that the services I fully paid for were not delivered. I have reached out multiple times, getting either a generic chatGPT response (yes, they accidentally copied and pasted the chapGPT login information then quickly deleted). or no response at all. I have contacted KATO and my credit card company as they are not giving me a refund.
If you're considering booking with this company, DON’T. They will take your money, lie to you, and leave you stranded. Look literally anywhere else —don’t make the same mistake I did by booking this terrible company.
CH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unprofessionell
Absolute disgrace and immense disappointment!
You decide on an operator and a safari because you think the route is great and you like the accommodation. And then you arrive and are completely thrown into the deep end. None of the promised accommodation was received. The route has been changed & the travel plan. The safari including accommodation was simply changed without my knowledge. You get a downgrade without being informed about it. Bottomless impudence. At least 10 hours are lost because you have campers in the car and loading and unloading them takes so much time, which you were never informed about in advance. Communication and organization the worst I have ever experienced.
When I complained to the organizer, I was confronted with incorrect figures about the costs and that my safari was more expensive than I would have paid, which is absolute nonsense. I researched all the costs and came out with a nice profit for the organizer. Frank Robert tried to emotionally blackmail me with false charges and police threats.
The next day he offered me gifts to make up for it. Professionalism and honesty look different. Don't book with this organization, you will only be disappointed and hardly be able to enjoy your safari because none of the promised things (accommodation, German-speaking travel guide, travel route + massive unnecessary lost time, soft drinks and so on) will be adhered to and you will only hear lies and excuses as excuses. Believe the negative reviews and book with a more professional company.
None of the safari participants were satisfied with the process and everyone was disappointed.
In the end he gave me gifts that no one could use and $150 to make up for it and wanted to use it to buy a good rating, so to speak. What unprofessional behavior. You can't go on a safari every week, the disappointment and drama is inexcusable.
You cannot simply change the booked safari without informing the customer and without his consent!!!!
A licensed company is worthless without professional work!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Warning – Refund Issues Experienced
I strongly advise against booking with this company. We have been trying to recover our refund through the Tourism Police and Regional Commissioner, but the process has been very difficult. Please exercise caution and thoroughly research before making any payments.
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Terrible
Terrible experience. The Company didn't pay park's entrance fees and didn't answer to our many calls . They just disappeared and we had to pay everything again by our own . drivers told us they were freelance without any bond with the Company. Our guide was not professional and didn't speak good English.
We completely missed 3 days of safari that we paid in advance because we had no accomodations or equipment or meals during the Safari. Also the car was not suitable at all and broke several times. We wasted our money and in the end paid double for everything.
We believe we have been scammed. Don't book with them.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
I strongly advise you avoid Birchill Expeditions!
Warning: Scam Alert – Avoid Birchill Expeditions!
I want to share my terrible experience with Birchill Expeditions to warn others. I paid this company $800 in advance for a gorilla permit, trusting them to handle my tour properly. However, just one day before my scheduled trip, the operator canceled everything.
My tour was supposed to last several days and include multiple activities, but they failed to arrange anything. To make matters worse, they never refunded my money and have ignored my attempts to contact them.
This company is completely untrustworthy—they took my money and provided nothing in return. I strongly advise everyone to stay away from Birchill Expeditions to avoid being scammed like I was.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Poor quality badly maintained
I paid for a 15 day Selfdrive trip about northern Kenya.
I picked up the car in an apartment block in Nairobi and drove out to town.
On the third day of driving to started on the dirty roads 3 hour into the day the breaks and steering failed.
I stopped and saw that the shock absorber had broken. On the front left side.
We managed a lift back to the local police station where we were able to contact kofi travel.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beware! Natural World Kenya Safaris was dishonest with us
I joined a 5-day safari tour in Kenya with Natural World Kenya Safaris, and it turned out to be a nightmare. Despite paying in full, the company failed to cover basic expenses like my safari tickets and hotel accommodations. Instead, they had the audacity to request that I pay for them myself, promising a refund.
That refund never came. I have followed up multiple times, only to be ignored. To make matters worse, the sales representative who initially handled my case left the company and revealed that many other customers have faced the same scam—damaging his own reputation in the process.
This company is completely untrustworthy, and I strongly warn everyone to stay away. Do not fall into their trap. They took our money and left us to deal with the consequences. I advise you avoid Natural World Kenya Safaris at all costs!
JP
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
It’s the worst company from my experience
I cannot recommend this company.
We wanted to visit Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro, and Serengeti, so we booked a 3-night, 4-day private tour. We paid $3,800 in advance for five people, but three days before the tour, we received a phone call saying that their colleague had made a mistake in the quotation. They told us that if we wanted to keep the private tour, we had to pay an additional $1,000. Otherwise, we would have to join a shared tour.
We refused to pay the extra $1,000 and switched to the shared tour, but it was a terrible experience. We had planned a long-awaited family trip to enjoy a private and relaxing safari, but we were seated separately, making it difficult to even have conversations with each other. The itinerary and accommodations were also different from what was originally provided, and it seemed like there was poor communication between the driver and the office staff.
If you are considering booking a private tour, I would advise you should not choose this company. They will demand additional fees at the last minute, even after providing a quotation. I will never choose them again.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Terrible customer communication
I was really hoping that their service was just as good as my previous two travel agencies that used. One was sold to another so that was why I say two. I only used Go2Africa because we met an agent while traveling South Africa.
While you are on vacation, they don’t care about you. They lied about a tour we requested to be changed to afternoon. They never email you back but say we are hear to serve you. They do not give you a detail pdf document of all your times, etc. only flight times are in pdf.
The other agency I used my first and second time, had exceptional customer service. When I asked to change a time for your, they did it. It is called good customer service.
Also, Go2Africa charges more $ but they never email or call you back when you need an urgent request.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
The most disappointing thing I’ve experienced
Where do you even begin…..the park is so run down. When we arrived at the first gate we were only then notified that the gate was closed and had to use an alternative gate , at the second gate staff were extremely unfriendly and it could clearly be felt. There are very few animals on such a large property, the “tarred” roads are in such bad condition that they are basically non-existent and one of the hides we stopped at was boarded up with no note at the top gate and the conservationist that had stopped at the hide as well also didn’t bother to notify us, we later read in reviews that it’s been that way for more than 6 months. With the advertised prices at the lodges found within the park the question begs where the money for maintenance and conservation is going.