ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Experience!!!
Really good experience overall. Everything was well organized, communication was easy and our guide was friendly and helpful. We saw plenty of wildlife and the whole trip felt worth the money. Would definitely recommend Spencer Safari.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Belinda was extremely helpful and engaged—she created an amazing safari experience for us
I was so pleased with Belinda and Robevin Safaris. Belinda scheduled and carefully customized visits to Ol Pejeta and Masai Mara for my wife and me and our big family with five kids. We looked at many safari options with her and I was very impressed with the possibilities she presented and her flexibility to make revisions and make the itinerary just perfect for us. I was delighted to have Belinda meet us at the airport in person at midnight when we arrived. Her service was very personal and friendly. The whole itinerary went off smoothly and exactly as planned; and we had the time of our lives. I would love to work with Belinda again!
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Exceptional service!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ An unforgettable Masai Mara experience!
My husband and I recently did a 2-night, 3-day safari in Masai Mara with Sunny Creek Safari, and the entire experience was flawless—from booking to drop-off in Nairobi.
James was the first person we spoke to and helped us plan and book the entire trip. He was incredibly helpful, guided us on what would work best, helped customize our package, and was always friendly and responsive.
And then there was Rahim, our guide for the entire safari—and an absolute rockstar! 🦁 He picked us up in Nairobi, stayed with us throughout the safari and Masai village visit, and dropped us back in Nairobi. With around 15 years of experience, he knows Masai Mara inside out. He knows the routes, the animals, and somehow spots wildlife from distances we couldn’t even comprehend! 😄
We were fortunate enough to spot the Big Five and so much more, and several times we were the first vehicle to spot an animal before all the others followed. Rahim went the extra mile—taking different routes and giving us additional time to make sure we got the best possible experience.
Beyond being an exceptional guide, he’s knowledgeable, witty, sensible and genuinely wonderful company. We had some great conversations, plenty of laughs, and even came away with some unexpected life lessons.
10/10 for Sunny Creek Safari, and 100/10 for Rahim! ❤️
If you get Rahim as your guide, just sit back, relax and enjoy—you’re in excellent hands! 🐘🦁🐆
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The best one-day safari experience!
I had THE best time on the safari! Martin was knowledgeable, friendly, funny, and a great guide! He rushed us to see some unique sightings, including a huge herd of elephants swimming and then crossing the road right in front of us. The lunch was really good, with a fantastic view of the water and the valley. I highly recommend this tour, it’s truly a once in a lifetime experience!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Skip Aye-Aye Camp, skip Madagascar Natural Tours, and book directly with Dounia Lodge
Speaking as to the 8 day Masoala Safari Adventure - just skip the agent entirely. Aye-Aye Camp suffers from severe deferred maintenance - the toilet seat was broken to the point where I was sitting on sharp plastic bits which bit into my arse, and there was no replacement available although there were only two occupied huts; the wood in the front steps to my hut was so badly rotted that it broke under my weight; and the pillows were moldy. Dounia Lodge, and the manager of Dounia Lodge, Maya, were exceptional. The lodge was clean, the food was well prepared (although the portions were small for the amount of walking we were doing each day), and there is both beer and alcohol available for purchase. If seeing the elusive Aye-aye is high on your list, I suggest an overnight on Nosy Mangabe in place of Aye-aye camp. The manager of Aye-aye camp was the only location that requested and worked around our food restrictions.
Please be aware that you will need to rely on Madagascar Airlines and my flight to Maroantsetra was delayed 4 hours, eliminating any activities on the night of arrival, and my flight back to Tana was cancelled and didn't fly until 27 hour later. Do not plan a Masoala adventure around Madagascar Air being on time or even the same day as scheduled.
As for the remainder of my tour that I arranged with Harilala - it was a disaster featuring a hotel in Bekopaka that I wouldn't have stayed in when I was in my 20s and doing budget travel with the boys. Strong smell of urine, stained sheets, and a shower with no shower head - just a hose. The other lodging places secured for the second half of my stay each smelled of old, musty, mildewy linens. I find this to be unnecessary, as the linens at Dounia, in Masoala, the wettest place on the island of Madagascar, smelled fine.
The guides that were provided for Aye-Aye Camp and Dounia Lodge were not good. Neither of them wanted to be there, and other vacationers staying in the same locations and doing forest walks at the same time with different guides, all saw more animals than we did - every day. I do not know who arranges the individual guides, but they were evidently the cheapest available, and either marginally skilled, or uninterested in being there.
Andisibe and the surrounding area - I don't understand why anyone would pay to go here. Harilala squeezed this in between Maroantsetra and Morandava due to a purported flight cancellation by Madagascar Air, leaving us with a gap between our days on the wet side of the island and the dry side of the island. The road is horrific - and if you are going to drive it for 5 hours each way, you should be planning at least 3 days at Andisibe to justify the ride. I wouldn't though. Not worth it. This part of the trip is not what we contracted for, and wasn't anything we wanted to do, but it was thrust upon us by Harilala. We agreed to go, but in retrospect, the time could have been better spent doing nearly anything else.
Morandava - the guide assigned to us for the dry side of the island, Marina, was a delight. She worked really hard to fix the shortcomings of the tour that Harilala booked, was attentive to our needs and desires, and did get us to see and do what we really wanted to do on the dry side of the island. Even though Harilala's schedule forced us to hike Tsingy des Bemaraha at the hottest part of the day - which I really advise against.
As to me, this is my prior experience with African safari travel and safari lodges. I have done game drives in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Tanzania previously, participated in a walking safari in Zambia, and in a boat safari in Chobe, Botswana; summited Kilimanjaro; and gone on a 5-day whitewater trip on the Zambezi.
Overall, the island is wonderful, don't plan on doing anything the same day as you travel on Madagascar Air, and maybe take a pass on Madagascar Natural Tours.
IT
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
The best trip in Tanzania
An excellent tour of Northern Tanzania featuring good accommodations.
Enock was the perfect guide, thanks to his knowledge of Tanzania's flora, fauna, and culture.
Kindu was a safe and tireless driver.
(automatic translation from Italian)
IT
It is easy to communicate via email, even in Italian. They are precise in their responses and pricing. Highly recommended.
Tour Operator: Excellent.
Guide: Enock. Good command of Italian. Good explanations regarding the environment. Helpful.
Driver: Kindu. Skilled, competent, and cautious driver. No safety issues.
(automatic translation from Italian)
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Deceptive marketing, systemic bait & switch, and fraudulent bank reporting: A Safari Nightmare
Do not book with Mountain Warriors in a shared safari ever. We had booked a 5 days 4 nights safari for 2 people (including Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Manyara and Tarangire) by contacting them through SafariBookings.com. We paid $1,840 USD + undisclosed credit card fees for a 2-person budget safari explicitly guaranteeing 7 game drives (full day Tarangire (2) + half day Manyara (1) + 2 game drives Serengeti + 2 in Ngorongoro). They failed to deliver on multiple game drives for the most expensive segments of the trip: the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater. They run a calculated operation designed to promise high-end premium itineraries compared to their competitors, cut the services short once you have paid in full, and you end up with a half-baked tour.
To start with, after full payment on Day 0, we were told within 4 hours that our itinerary was changed but will cover every parks as advertised. But I insisted on Mary sending me the revised itinerary, which ofcourse came after the safari had started on Day 1. Guess what: game drives previously advertised were omitted from the "new one".
Next, on Day 1 they suffered internal logistical breakdowns that left us entirely missing a scheduled 3.5-hour afternoon game drive at Serengeti (They tried to pack the vehicle with 7 people by getting people from other companies, leading to long waits to pick them up; further their sales person Mary messed up and we ended up picking the wrong person and then exchanging him for the correct person; basically long delays and waits). Thanks to all that, we missed the dusk game drive, when especially predators come out to hunt!!
Second, they explicitly advertised a dual "morning and evening crater drive" in Ngorongoro in the itinerary we paid for. We chose Mountain Warriors specifically for this reason over their competitors. Anyone familiar with Tanzanian park rules knows that NCAA permits are single-entry. Providing an evening drive requires the operator to buy a second $295 USD vehicle descent permit. They cut our morning drive short to only 4.5 hours to get 1 person out of the crater for her flight, and to avoid paying this fee twice, canceled the evening drive entirely, and probably pocketed the rest.
When confronted with all of these at the conclusion of our vacation, they admitted fault by sending a partial refund of $190 USD. However, this was way below even the amount for 2 people, we had estimated, considering the amount of government fees they had saved by not delivering the evening game drive for Ngorongoro alone.
To protect their cash, they lied to our credit card processor during the dispute process (the card company shared this evidence), claiming we "only lost one total hour of safari" because "we had to catch a flight". They falsely claimed to the bank that our tour was cut short due to a flight delay caused by my party. My official flight tickets prove we landed exactly on time, and departed Arusha days after the safari; the delay they cited belonged to a completely separate, third passenger who had no connection to our booking party. They submitted the secondary, unapproved, modified itinerary to the bank rather than the original contract we actually paid for, attempting to retroactively shrink the scope of their unfulfilled obligations. They selectively deleted the entire message thread from their representative, Mary, which explicitly documented their internal stalling and operational delays.
Upon looking at this fabrication, I was extremely appalled, disgusted, and I will leave people to make a decision for themselves.
Finally, upon confronting Gasto & Mary about this deception, they promised (around August 28) to send an official bank resolution (refund another $110, which we accepted to end the dispute) and contact us on September 24, 2026. That date has now passed with no further response.
Book elsewhere with an honest company that doesn't shortchange your vacation hours to inflate their profit margins and ensures a smoother experience. Note, we booked tours and safaris at other places as well before & after, and never experienced this kind of behavior.
However, I will be fair and give a shout out for Victor, our guide. He is a remarkable guide, very knowledgeable and knows details about animals to the letter. He ensured our drive experience was atleast smooth and our once in a life experience has bright spots to remember.