US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
My family of 4 had a very good experience in the 6 day Royal safri with Tukio.
Tukio was very prompt and responsive to all questions I had and provided multiple options. My family is vegetarian and they made sure that good vegetarian food was available throughout the trip. Paul who was our guide was wonderful and made sure that we got to see the big 5 within the first 2 days itself. He was also very thoughtful and considerate about the needs of my old parents in the 80s. Paul was also always on time and ensured toilet breaks within a reasonable time of our request during the long drives between Nairobi and Maara, Nkuru and Amboseli & Amboseli and Nkuru. If it was just Paul I was rating, my rating would be a 5.
I would have provided a 5 star rating but for the fact that we were not told about one piece of information. I had specifically inquired if air conditioning was available. I was told quite accurately that the hotels we lived in did not have electricity and operated on a generator. What I was not told is that some of the hotels had a blackout period of almost 8 hours in the night and did not have hot water (lukewarm water is what we got). These were not the low end options. This made it difficult to keep our phones fully charged. It also made it difficult for my parents when they wanted to go to the bathroom in the night since they had to go in pitch dark.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very trustworthy and dependable. Easy to talk with and try to ensure safety comes first.
It was a well organized tour.. the Agent Rose was very helpful in getting everything organized and ready by the time i landed in Nairobi. I do recommend that you make it be know what sort of accommodation you want and they will organize accordingly.
Overall was very satisfied with the service. Ask for Rose she'll get everything sorted and ready by the time you arrive.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Aquila is not a safari. It is a game park. As long as you understand that...
I am in South Africa for just a short time. I didn't want to schlep up to the Kruger for a safari. This seemed ideal. 2 hours from cape town and reasonably priced. The pluses - food was good and plentiful. The staff were nice. John the safari guide was funny and knowledgeable. The minuses- the luxury cottages are not really luxury. The paint was peeling. There was graffiti on the door , the outside shower was very badly put together and it was dirty outside especially the table.
The camp is basically a very large zoo so you are guaranteed to see lions. To be fair to the camp the lions are rescued canned lions and are unable to fend for themselves.
So my advice is just go for the night. You will get two games drives which will basically be the same. Don't bother with the horseback safari unless you really like just strolling around.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Make sure who you are booked with
The scenery and wildlife were all I could have asked for. Weather was great, u fortunately my tour agent sub let the provision of the safari to a third party who left a great deal to desire, uninsured vehicle, faults on vehicle meaning engine couldn't be turned off, door flew open during safari and had to be held shut with a seat belt for 2 days, non provision of tents and sleeping bags at campsites and so it went on, luckily we were a group of 4 who bonded and turned the adversity into an adventure.
My tour agent was really helpful at resolving the issues at the end of the safari and he was certainly let down by the provider and I can't fault my tour agent. I continued on to zanzibar and that was as fantastic. In terms of wildlife and scenery and my agent certainly pulled out the stops showing me the best of the island with some really good trips around the island.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
One the best experiences, I will remember the sunrise at 6.30am thanks ‘ Diggy diggy amazing trip
We chose this safari for value for money and chose the basic accommodation 2 nights with 4 park drives. The tent was clean but in need of some improvements in the toilet and shower room, the hot water takes at least 20mins to start coming through but this wasn’t a problem. The bed was comfy but make sure you keep the zip down on your tent as monkeys can get in and rummage through your stuff, take a padlock for security. Torches are a must. The meals were very tasty, make sure you get an extra sausage at breakfast they were georgeous. The ritz it isn’t so make sure you are happy with basic because that’s what it is. We were very happy as we were there for the animals and thanks to our driver ‘Diggy’ we saw nearly all.... we decided to skip the last morning drive and stay out longer the day before which meant we could go further.... brilliant choice. I would definitely use skywide again but may upgrade the accommodation next time, the prices are reasonable so remember you get what you pay, if you what nicer accommodation pay more and choose a better one. Thoroughly enjoyed it
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Hospitality is the first key,we never had any issues or problems
I booked with the company for our second Africa safari tour, he had Good game drives and cultural interaction.the worth our money.. Tshepho Ngwako in Germany.
SG
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Well organised
Safarihub handled my booking and coordination very well. All my booking, payments, itenary finalization etc were done sitting in Singapore coordinating with Safarihub staff in Tanzania. Victoria was super supportive and helpful in the whole process. she was available and responsive at every stage and for every single query and clarifications. she came and met me on the day I landed in Arusha and briefed me and also met on the day of departure to take feedback. Since I wanted a group safari, I was put onto another safari operator ( simba safari) but the entire process was seamless and I was kept out of any logistics hassle they had between the two tour operators.
their selection of lodges/tents were outstanding and enjoyed the stay at each of the places and enjoyed the food.
overall a good trip and will definitely reach out to safari hub for my next safari!
SG
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
wonderful experience
My first time with Simba Safaris. I had booked my tour through Safari Hub who finally put me through Simba Safaris.
The driver cum guide - Mathew was an excellent guy. He knew the way around and drove really well. Not sure if there is an improvement needed around his wildlife knowledge.. i guess yes. But his overall attitude and behaviour kind of made up for any lack of knowledge that he had on wildlfe.
Vehicle was good and in good condition. Interios were maintained well.
Choice of lodges/tents were really nice. enjoyed every place and food in all locations.
Simba represetative - Mark was there at Arusha to see us off on the first day of the safari and was available to take feedback on the last day was aswell. Which was a good gestrure and felt that there are people available to take care of us incase of any emergency.
The only negative about the whole trip was the delay in pick up from my arusha hotel on the first day... i still dont have an explanation to it .but overall i had a good trip
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Very responsive to the type of camps we wanted and exposure to game.
We did a "five camp" safari over 12 days in Zambia and Zimbabwe. This was our fifth trip to Africa, and we had not spent an appreciable amount of time in either country. The terrain was dry, as expected. We are willing to trade off the beauty of green flora for the absence of mosquitoes,
so always travel to Africa in September.
Our camps ranged from older bush camps to newer contemporary camps. The bush camps are due for a "refresh", but the food and staff were both excellent as were the game sightings. This was our first trip that included walking safaris. They lasted about an hour each, and were excellent, giving the guides an opportunity to share their extensive knowledge of tracking with us. We learned a great deal, and highly recommend them when offered.
We also did a canoe trip at Chiawa. Majestic scenery and interesting wildlife. I am older, and the guide did the paddling...I never touched one, so it was an easy, peaceful journey.
At the first three camps in Zambia we had pleasant surprises with meals, ranging from lunch being served at tables in the river (only about 6 inches of water in September), a lunch on a boat and a BBQ dinner in the bush. While these are surprises, we have come to expect them over the years, and were somewhat disappointed that our two stops in Zimbabwe did not provide that experience.
We had hoped to do a bit of fishing, but mother nature delivered some rather strong winds, so we were not able to experience that.
I won't go into any detail about game sightings but suffice to say they were plentiful and exciting (especially the cheetah chase down and the hyenas running around with a zebra leg).
The logistics on this trip were a bit complicated, and I would pay closer attention to them on future trips. It was my error that we did not spend a night in a hotel when we arrived in Africa, and ended up going on two in country flights and a long drive to the first camp, making the journey about 48 hours. Also, moving from Zambia to Zimbabwe was cumbersome and time consuming. I will definitely take a closer look at that aspect next time.
All in all, another wonderful trip to Africa!
CH
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful
We had an amazing adventure. Lots of animals, birds, fish and even wonderful people