US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Avoid at all costs
As the previous reviewer said Charles was the highlight of the trip Define itinerary was not followed hotels were canceled at the last minute balloon trip was canceled at the last minute for no reason which I actually rebooked at 10 o’clock at night as it was a surprise for the family on my own and paid for it
We were scammed with our covert test supposed to come to Our hotel intensive and do the test paid an extra thousand dollars for this And they never showed up and told us they were going to take the Antigen test it was taken three days prior at the border coming into Tanzania and turn it into a PCR test which is medically impossible
I don’t know who they paid off at the border to get us through but I know it was illegal
I have it in writing in a credit memo that they were supposed to come and give me cash the night we left but never showed It’s been four months since we left and back-and-forth they were supposed to send me a wire transfer but it never came and now they are ghosting me
Avoid them at all costs
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
untrustworthy
I booked this 3 day tour, clearly stating that because I was alone I wanted to join a group. I received my itinerary in advance, 1 day: drive to the National park followed by a driving safari from afternoon to the evening. Day 2 driving all day, day 3 return.
2 days before the start of the safari, I got a message saying that the plan had changed, the people I was supposed to be with had changed their mind, and therefore I would go on a walking safari on the first day as "it would be great and I would be closer to the animals".
On arrival, the ranger laughed at me as I was in trainers. What I did not know was that due to the rain season the terrain was muddy and I would need boots, which I did not have. I managed to borrow a pair that were 2 sizes too small and we went off anyway. Again due to the rain season the grass was very high and almost impossible to walk, suffice to say I saw absolutely nothing.
Jimmy the organiser knew this and when I told him this was not ok, the reaction was that as I was alone I was costing him too much and what I had paid for did not cover his expenses. This should not have been my concern. Thankfully day 2 was very good but only due to a great guide Amir. Also any local will tell you that safari is either early morning or evening, not all day. Jimmy is not honest and you should chose another tour.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
They turned the jeep into a matatu for profit
I was hoping that the good reviews are real, but I was a fool to think so. Karibu Safaris put us 9 people in a jeep when the maximum is always 7 people. They breach their specific promise since we asked multiple times to make sure that no more than 7 people will be in the jeep. They simply surprised us in the morning and we couldn't do anything about it.
It should be 6 in the back and one next to the driver maximum, but they decided to make extra money on our back and had 8 people (one sat in the back with no window view) and also a small kid ( so 9 people in total ). Moreover, they tried to lodge two of us in a single room where we clearly booked private rooms.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Give them a miss
I booked a 12 day tour through Kenya and Tanzania. Seven wonders managed the Tanzanian side and I couldn't have been happier with them. The Kenyan side( Nakuru, Masai, Amboeseli) was managed by Baboon budget who the booking was made through. It started of badly with being collected late at the airport and having to run around in trying to find a person, who wasn't there. The accommodations throughout were poor esp the Eco camp in Masai with very poor quality food. The worst was the lack of personal attention, we were passed like luggage from one driver and group to another depending on their schedules, groups, etc. one traveler had been with 5 different drivers/guides in 5 days! The quality of drivers was potluck. Michael our initial guide tried really hard, but was with us for only one day. Another driver/guide, Jackson, (apparently quite senior )who had previously been haring around at ridiculous speeds , all of a sudden started going at a crawl in circles for more than an hour and included a pitstop an hour into the trip "to stretch our legs". We later determined that a vehicle transporting a traveler who was due to join our group after a balloon ride got stuck in some mud and teh driver was unable to provide co ordinates so we drove in circles trying to connect with them. Jackson initially tried to deny this but i had my GPS on so showed it to him. His response was that the tour hadn't stopped as we were "moving". The point of this trip was to observe a river crossing. It was clear to all that the second day this may happen. Approximately 20 othre vehicles waited patiently along the Mara for this to start. Jackson in his wisdom decided it wouldn't happen and drove off. Needless to say he was connected on radio to say it had started and we raced back . already an eighth of the herd of thousands of wildebeest had crossed. WE all thought we wre in for a treat as so many more had to make their way across. Again Jackson surprised us, we observed for about 5mins( I filmed it, so it was actually less) and he started driving off. We though this was to secure a better vantage point. But no, he drove out the park! Then proceeded to dump us outside the accommodation to await another person to conduct the tour to the Masai village. Clearly he had another pressing appointment!
Things just went downhill...
There's many other companies available , however it seems that they operate differently from other countries group tours. Schedules and people interconnect throughout, with no personalised service or accountability.
They should take some tips from Seven Wonders on how to operate...
MX
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Poor experience
We didn’t have a good experience with this tourist operator.
First they offer a guide Spanish spoken and it wasn’t true, the guide just know some words in Spanish so our communication was so complicated.
We bought the safari 5 day, in the service description they include two days safari at the Masai Mara (including some hours at the 5th day) and our guide said, no the last day is just for go back to Nairobi, we had to show him the description of the service to had the complete service.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Not a reliable tour operator. They will try their best to over-charge you.
I received different accommodation than what I originally ordered.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
No professionalism
The points given are only for the itinerary. I thoroughly enjoyed the activities planned and the company of fellow travellers who organised themselves and kept themselves in high spirits throughout the trip. The management team lacked the basics of professionalism organisation and customer care. Their ability to handle crisis situations was abysmal given how many obstacles we faced. No mention of complimentary anything or compensation for things going wrong. As a first time client, I was greatly disappointed. I would try them again in a few years when they are more focused and organised because I believe they have great potential.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Avoid at all costs
The one (and only) good part of the safari was the driver Charles. He was incredibly knowledgeable, charismatic, talented wildlife spotter, and a safe driver.
Everything else about the safari was a scam - one lie after another. I was told we'd have 4 nights of lodges, but ended up with 1 night in a lodge and the rest in cheap camps/hotels. I was told the lodges were closed, but I called the lodge and confirmed they were open. I was told we couldn't visit a lake due to the weather forecast, but the forecast was perfect. The other tour members were told that we were skipping the lake because I didn't want to go there (outright lies). The itinerary was changed multiple times before we departed, with many destinations removed. To top it off, the owner told me he would meet me at the end of the tour to refund me, and unsurprisingly he never showed up.
Avoid this tour company at all costs. It's not worth ruining your Kenya experience.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Disappointing so far...
We have had to postpone our trip to 2022 due to Covid and because the price was increased by several thousand dollars, we elected to reduce the number of days from 17 to 12 (basically eliminating a post safari trip to the beach); however, Mahlatini is stating that the moneys paid can not be refunded despite the fact that the hotel has stated that they would cancel the stay without any penalty and refund the money. We also had some trouble ensuring that the trip was child-friendly - Very disappointing so far..