20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
good customer service but could improve facilities and itinerary.
Always quick email responses to any queries; game drive was great, even though shorter than promised. Bastian camp is amazing. However the car did not have seat-belts so we were risking when driving. The car is not new and we wasted 3 hours while waiting for the car fix. Also, not worth going to Udzungwa National park - expensive entrance, requires 2 hour travel one way via gravel road, you will not reach the top of the mountain since hike reaches only the mid way. The only good thing is that you will see very poor African areas whilst traveling to the national park. Also on the last day we did not get lunch as promised. Instead were taken to the restaurant where driver gets bonus if we buy any food (that was really overpriced, poor quality and we did not have any options to choose except meat heavy buffet).
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Custom Tour in Kilimanjaro Area
We had a series of day trips including one to Arusha National Park and one to Tarangire NP. The other two days involved more local activities, one in the Marangu area and one in the Lawate - Sanya Juu area. The weather curtailed a few of our anticipated activities, but what we did get to do was very enjoyable. The food was plentiful and delicious. Norbert was a great driver/guide to the two national parks.
Communications could have been a little better at times. That may have been partly due to our somewhat last-minute arrangement of our itinerary, or due to the fact that we were staying at the lodge of a friend of a friend, so we coordinated more often with that friend than with Brian himself.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The River View Lodge was perfect. Our tour guide, Mathews, was excellent!!!
I was not involved in making the reservation. The overall experience while at the River View Lodge was fantastic. I highly recommend and hope to return.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Well organised especially given late booking
From first contact communication was clear and efficient. I had contacted 3 companies as recommended and Tekko stood out on price point and accommodation. They were also the only company I contacted which differentiated on low and high season price and type of vehicle used which meant planning was easier. Maggie responded quickly and efficiently. She also was helpful in answering all my questions. I gave Tekko very little notice of travel but a well balanced personal itinerary was proposed and excellent accommodation was booked throughout. Much better than I anticipated in very nice lodges given the cost, which was very reasonable for 8 nights, especially as private vehicle and all meals were included in the cost. All lodges had pools bar The Ark ( if you go there you will understand why), outside seating and service and food at each was good. The transfer to the hotel in Nairobi was very long due to a local public transport strike but our driver , who had no control over this, was proactive in finding alternative routes and arranged for us to be met en route so we could get help
With our luggage and walk to the hotel. Had he not done this we would have been stuck in traffic for many more hours. The standard of driving throughout was excellent especially leaving Masai Mara after very heavy rains. The road was awful and I heard later that many cars got stuck but my driver got me through with what was clearly a very difficult road ( road being a generous description). He was excellent at finding the animals and I had some very special sightings often the only vehicle there. Also very helpful with shopping and getting medication for a very bad cold. I have been on safari before so have comparisons and I would have liked the driver, who is described as a guide, to have told more about the animals other than just their name. The driver was quite taciturn and it was quite hard to extract information. Also I fedback to him direct that he needs to know more bird names as a safari is about the big and small. He was good at suggesting changes to itinerary. As I had had plenty of game drives during the week this worked well for me but others might not like the loss of the last afternoon game drive , for which there would have been time, so be clear what the changes mean but bearing in mind driving on safari is a tough job. Also on the last day home he presumed we did not want to go to Carnivore as had had boxed lunch en route. This did mean we were at the airport very early with a substantial wait even before we could check in. I appreciate the traffic back to the city was building up badly and this would affect his journey home but we should have been asked. Overall a great safari but the guiding side of what was an excellent driver needs working on. I would recommend Tekko tours.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A great and easy going trip, relaxed and flexible to meet needs.
Th Amboseli 3 day safari was good, I think it suits those who don't want a super controlled schedule and are flexible to other options within the time frame. Food etc was reasonable, good company and I would use the guides again no problem. For photography purposes, I would recommend some small changes, mostly going out a bit earlier for sunrise game drive and Kilimanjaro views.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Budget doesn't mean bad quality! We had an amazing time, but be prepared to sit in a car for a long
I will separate the reviews in two since Karibu is just a booking service and doesn't actually operate the tours themselves. For Karibu, Robert was always responsive to my emails, however seemed to answer my questions with minimal effort and detail so that was a bit disappointing but went with them anyways since they have good reviews. The airport pickup they provided went smoothly and the payment in the office as well.
For the tour itself, we did the 6 day Masai Mara, Nakuru and Amboseli safari and had an amazing time thanks to our driver Gibson and the other 6 people in our van. The tour itself beat my expectations due to our driver and that the overall quality was better than I expected. We were worried 6 days might be a bit too long at first, but each park was so different that it was perfect. My only warning to people is that you should be prepared to spend A TON of time in the car (10-12 hours per day i'd say). If you don't like long car rides, or uncomfortable bumpy roads for hours on end, then this tour is not for you. But your only alternative is flying between places and that gets expensive, so no budget tour is for you in that case.
Driving - Our driver Gibson was very knowledgable, funny and an excellent driver. Usually on the game drives we were one of the first vans to discover an animal before the rest flocked over. We saw the big 5 and more, Gibson made sure to give us the best experience and he clearly knew his way around each park. The van was comfortable enough and we all had a proper viewing spot with the pop up top. As reiterated before, we were surprised at how much time is spent in the car and also how terrible the roads are...so just something to keep in mind, but nothing the company did wrong here.
Accommodations - This was originally what I was most worried about doing a budget tour, but actually ended up being totally fine. The first camp in Masai Mara there was no hot water and the electricity was quite hit and miss. The hotel in Nakuru was a nice step up from the camps, and the final camp in Amboseli was actually quite nice even if basic.
Food - Also a major worry of mine before, but was a big surprise that it was actually quite decent. We are vegetarians and had a good selection of things to eat and they fed us plenty every day. Also everyone is given 1 liter of water per day which was nice, with the option to buy more.
Optional tours - We did the morning nature walk with the Masai guides in Amboseli and the boat ride in Lake Nakuru which I would definitely recommend both! I can't comment much on the Masai village tour since we didn't do it, but as far as I heard they just try to sell you all their arts and crafts aggressively which we hate those type of tourist trap things.
Overall, i'd totally recommend this tour to anyone who is looking to do an affordable safari trip...we feel like we got our money's worth and more. This tour is not for anyone expecting comfort and luxury, but if your goal is just to see some amazing animals at an affordable price then don't hesitate and do the tour!
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience, our guide Mandela was fantastic! And also the chef
The guide Mandela was fantastic, he spelled it all perfectly and he payd attention to every our request. All accommodation was beautiful but in particular was Amazing the overnight inside the Serengeti, in seronera campsite, into the wild. I suggest that in our life all we should make a safari experience.
Madagascar: An island of stark contrasts, with many unique animals and birds that make it special.
Madagascar is a land of enormous contrasts. It has some of the most beautiful locations, such as Nosy Be and the surrounding islands, but it also has stark poverty and ravaged land, as we experienced when driving through the interior of the island. Our main focus was to bird watching, as there are hundreds of species, of which about 120 are endemic (only found in Madagascar). In many ways the animals are similar, with many endemic species, especially lemurs.
We hired a guide for our two week trip, which was necessary, as directions are not easy to follow, driving can be hazardous, language is a barrier and accommodation difficult to find, especially in rural areas . Our guide solved all these potential problems for us. He was also a source of amazing information about the country and people, helping to answer all the questions we had as we drove through a diversity of landscapes and habitations.
Madagascar has a lot of poverty, quite an eye-opener for someone coming from the first world. Finding good quality accommodation was a challenge when going anywhere off the beaten track, as is the case when visiting remote National Parks, as we did, to see some of the wonderful birdlife. We had to rely on the services of regional experts, who did us proud.
Even in Antananarivo, which is a huge, sprawling city with limited infrastructure, good hotels were few and far between. Once arrived at a hotel, there was little desire to go out and walk around, we used the city as a link to go from one side of the country to the other. Having said that, the hotels we stayed at in Tanna were excellent.
We spent a couple of weeks seeking out a number of widespread National Parks which had wide-ranging habitats for animals. These included Maevatanana, Akarafantsika, Anasibe and Mantadia National Parks, which were wonderful. One jewel, in Antananarivo itself, the Tsarasaotra Private Park, was quite amazing, with thousands of different birds.
After having driven around the country for two weeks, we then flew from Tanna to a different world at Nosy Be, right on the north coast of the country, where we found the most picturesque and modern holiday world. The coastline, the islands, the sea and the animals were stunning. We stayed a few nights on the island of Nosy Komba, just 30 minutes boatride from Nosy Be. We felt totally spoilt at our accommodation at 293 Nosy Komba, a small villa. I'd go back there in a heartbeat, it was so beautiful. One can snorkel from the beach, or take a boat to various other spots nearby.
I believe that some airlines have flights directly to Nosy Be from Europe, it is such a magical spot, far away from everything.
For something completely different, go to Madagascar. Our trip was arranged by regional specialists, something I would recommend.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Enjoyable budget safari
The communication was punctual and booking was easy, safari was good for a budget one, the driver was kind, the tent accomodation was fine, be aware that the visit to the Masai Mara camp will result with them asking you for money. Overall happy for a budget 3 day safari.
LK
Almost perfect but....
I saw a decent number of animals, however I was informed that I had not chosen the best time to visit the park (in june). At that time trophy hunters were operating in private concessions close to the national park. Apparently that made some animals more elusive and thus harder to spot from the safari roads inside the national parks. I was assured that this was only a temporary issue and that animals would come out into the open more when the hunting season ended.
I was also informed that i visited the park during a dry spell, so some animals had migrated into Botswana. But that they would return with the rains. I saw plenty of evidence of lions in the park but they stayed out of sight. No sign of any leopards. But did see cheetahs which was nice. There were plenty of birds, elephants, antelope, hippos, crocodiles and even a honey badger. We stayed at a campsite inside the park which was one of the best i have ever camped at anywhere in Africa. The camp faced a watering hole, where we enjoyed the sunset and watched various animals enjoy a drink and bath. Then at night we had clear starry skies, the sound of night insects and various animals, including hyenas, to enjoy as we ate dinner.
Overall i can say from experience, having visited all the top wildlife parks across southern and east africa, that Hwange can be among the best of them when the conditions are right.