NO
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent for the price
We had a wonderful 10 days Kenya and Tanzania Safari! We chose mid range package and most places were really good! I was very surprised by the communication from start to finish with Daisy! She was replying really fast to all our questions and doubts. The logistics of the whole trip was well planned even tho there’s so much driving every day (this is inevitable). All breakfast and dinners were excellent! Lunches in Tanzania were delicious, lunches in Kenya were packed boxes with the same every day so we were a bit bored at the end. Our first guide Bryan was the BOMB! He made us see every kind of animals in the park, he was a good driver and a good person in general so we loved our time with him! We also managed to see all animals in Tanzania so if you had to choose only 1 country, don’t be afraid as you will most likely see all of them in any you choose! We preferred the Kenya bit but this is our own opinion! Also we noticed that the budget accommodations were way better in Kenya than in Tanzania! We were so happy we chose mid range in Tanzania but in Kenya we could have chosen budget and it would have been good enough I think (as a couple).
All in all, for the price you pay, I would highly recommend this safari even if there were things we didn’t like, they were not too bad…
Here are the down points: AA Lodge in Amboseli had horribly hard beds and we woke up a few times during the night because of it and the packed lunches were all the same in the Kenya portion so could change a bit. we got the charity hotel in Arusha which is a budget hotel (all the people we met there were on budget tours) so we felt a bit let down on this one. The guides you get really make or break your experience so if you’re not happy with one don’t hesitate to mention it… we had 1 of 3 that knew good things about the park but wasn’t the nicest so we have a little worst memory of those days… Last thing but that’s inevitable: budget midrange and luxury packages share the same car so even if you have different hotels you are in the same tour, which means you need to pick up and drop off everyone at different places sometimes waking up way earlier if you’re picked up first and sometimes adding 10-30mins to your day if you’re dropped off last. This is ok but could be annoying for some.
Here is a review of all lodges:
-Jambo Mara in Masai Mara: excellent huts with good food. Only detail was that any beverage was super overpriced so we ended up not leaving any tips because of this.
-Sarova Woodlands in Nakuru: very good hotel and excellent food at the restaurant.
-AA Lodge in amboseli. Great food but horrible beds and pillows. So bad that we couldn’t sleep properly for 2 days.
-Charity hotel in Arusha: we asked for mid range but this is budget so be careful to review the hotels they give you in the offer on google. We should have done because speaking with all the people in this hotel they said they were in the budget tours so they def didn’t put us on the mid range we paid for.
- Shushudia tents in Serengeti: really good tents with very comfortable beds and great food.
-Hhando lodge in Ngorongo: the best hotel we stayed at with excellent huts and great food. However this is 40 mins outside of the crater so it was too much to go there, come back to the park the next day…
MAKE SURE YOU BRING BINOCULARS!!!
AR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Personalized Experience
Excellent service, superb food and atention. The whole safari was well organized and with very good hotel, guide and picnic food (one of the best we saw). William did a great job and was always ready to do what ever we need.
Just to mention jeep should be a little bit updated ( nothing important just to mention it)
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic place for a safari, with a frindly guide!
We have been on a 6 days, 5 nights safari and saw all the animals we wished for! We booked our safari months in advance. The initial communication was fast and smooth. After the first payment is was a bit difficult to get a confirmation. All in all the communication before the safari was ok, but it was not always fast and clear.
About our guide I can only be very positive: Bonny was professional, helpful and listened to our wishes, even when we didn't explicitly told him. Two friends of ours decided to join our safari and were avid bird-watchers. Bonny catered to their wishes as well. The driving he did was solid and safe.
About the car: it brought us everywhere, but compared to most of the other vehicles around us this seemed to be an older model. Apart from a cracked windhield and a window that could be barely opened, it was also not possible to use the charging stations in the car itsself. The armrests were not functioning at its best as well. So for the four of us (reasonable fit people in their thirties) these were not big issues.
I have material for comparison since the other couple did another safari in the South right after this and also my parents were on a safari a week later. It's best to ask questions about the vehicle beforehand.
About the lodges: most of them were good. The Kankari lodge on the first day stood out, this was luxureous. The same goes for the Ngorongoro forest tented lodge. The Tukaone Serengeti Camps has two campsites, our guide told us that in the park you get assigned a place. What we did not like was that we had to wait an hour at the entrance of the Serengeti because something was wrong with our permit. It was all resolved, but when you pay this amount of money you expect this to be arranged accordingly. We missed an opportunity for a sunset because of it. The octagon Lodge was our least favorite, it didn't live up to our expectations considering the first two lodges.
All in all we've had a great time in all the national parks, and I would totally reccomend doing a 6 day safari! And if you decide to go with Migration Venture Africa it will be a delight to go with Bonny!
DK
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent value, mixed feelings
Booked 3-day Masai Mara tour with JungleRoam, stayed at Sankale Camp. Saw a load of animals, but there are some downsides.
Pros:
• Value for price is excellent.
• Our driver James was very experienced (over 20 years) and had a great network with other drivers, so he knew where the animals were. He spotted a rhino in the afternoon when we were all asleep!
• Chesi works incredibly hard and will support you through your booking with everything.
• Staff at Sankale Camp is so friendly. They taught me some Kikuyu and Masai words, and I was able to take a walk in the valley with a guide.
• Masai Mara is gorgeous.
• We saw everything: lion, rhino, giraffe, cheetah, elephant, hippo, alligator, antelope, Impala, warthogs, baboons, monkeys, EVERYTHING.
Cons:
• Shower wasn't actually warm, but tbh I didn't expect that.
• Driver James was not always communicative about what was happening. But if I asked him, he explained anything I wanted to know.
Important notes:
• Almost all Masai Mara tour operators drive aggressively close to animals (off-road) if rangers are not around. If you are into animal welfare, consider volunteering at a conservancy instead. Or hire a private safari and bring a telephoto lens.
• I believe Jocky tours, Jungle Roam, and Sunnycreek are all part of the same company. You will probably share a Jeep with people from another operator.
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Botswana has wonderful wildlife and friendly people - great place for a holiday
The Kalahari was a wonderful place with different animals to what we had seen on previous safaris, such as the wonderful bat eared foxes and wild cat. Not the best time to visit as the rains stopped us going to many areas due to the mud. We did get stuck once for an hour before being rescued, all part of the experience as were the scorpions. From the Kalahari our well laid plans went to pot as hotel Baobab had a big fire in November so was closed for renovation. Our guide changed the itinerary and took us to Khwai and into the Savuti part of the Chobe reserve. The areas were lovely but it was a lot of travelling on dirt roads and not what we had planned. We did see more animals in these areas mostly ones we had seen previously. Our best experience was spending 25 minutes with beautiful male Leopard. He was walking at the side of the road coming towards us and was not bothered at all about the car, we got some wonderful photographs and even managed to turn the car around and follow him as he scent marked along his territory. It had been raining and our guide said that, he is staying near the road as he does not want to get his fur wet in the long grass. Eventually as he walked away from the road he was spotted by the Impala, a great noise they all made warning of his presence. We were doing luxury camping, it was very comfortable but often very hot and washing water was in short supply. Our guide was very enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the wildlife and fauna but sometimes he over egged the pudding.
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Friendly, knowledgeable, responsive, attentative
My husband and I did the 10 day Kenya & Tanzania safari. We truly enjoyed the Kenya portion of the safari. The accommodations and the food were all very good, although the boxes lunches can get a little old after a while. 2 out of 6 being hot lunches. The guide was friendly, knowledgeable, & quick to the animals.
We knew going into the Tanzania portion that accommodations would be budget (meaning tent camping). We had no issue with that. The food was also very good. The new guide was friendly & could spot the animals from afar. A little bit of a language barrier so made conversation a little difficult.
The only thing we would complain about is the condition of the safari vehicle. It almost felt unreliable. Gages didn’t work, roof leaked, seats were very uncomfortable, windows were hard to open. Just seemed very aged compared to the almost new vehicle in the Kenya portion of safari. With most of your time spent driving you felt fairly uncomfortable by the end of the day. Not sure if it was a super eagles vehicle as it had no Super Eagles logos.
Over all would recommend for midrange safari.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
She offered us a brilliant service and was very patient with us while explaining animal life
We had a lovely game drive and our tour guide really wanted us to see all the animals we wished to see. Lions and giraffe were yop of the list and we managed to see them. Thank you for that exceptional service.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
good，comsiderate and careful.
The reply was fast and the reception was very warm. Our guide and driver Nuruel Peter is very nice. He introduced us to a lot of animals and saw a lot of lions. It was a great trip!
Very customer friendly and willing to accommodate special requests and tailor the experience.
Berlinda is focussed on the customer and accommodating individual schedules and interests. She is also great at keeping you up to date as you plan the itinerary and finalise the trip.
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Botswana is for the nature lover!! Will go back for the 3rd time soon
This time was a quick self organized tour to Moremi and south west only but again a highlight for us