US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Safari Soles was excellent, highly recommended
On Safari, we went out with Isaac. Andrew drove us locally, to our hotel, and he was incredibly engaging and sunny. Isaac was dedicated, cheery, and knowledgeable. His dedication to making sure we really saw things, but comfortably was very apparent--he kept in regular contact with other drivers about the status of the great migration and recommended our starting times, on one hand, but if he had to suggest an early time he was almost apologetic.....i felt bad, and told him we were good for it, we had a week in Tanzania to see as much as we could, and months to catch up on our sleep later. Isaac always made us comfortable, and we truly enjoyed his company.
As for Safari Soles, we also had the opportunity to meet Bryson...and I am sure I sent him way more questions than he really needed (he's gotta be a busy guy) but he always answered--from recommending an itinerary when we were just starting to plan to making changes as needed, to answering stupid American questions like "what do we wear?" he was patient, detailed, and excellent.
Safari Soles does multiple tours, multiple places....in discussion w Bryson of what we'd most like to see, how long we had, lodging preferences, and time of year, we did 3 days in the Serengetti and 1 day in Ngorongoro crater, all from Arusha. That wasn't even a direct tour offering, it just matched the places we wanted to see, the animals, and a desire to hit the great migration.
What you see will depend on time of year, luck, etc., but as a running total we saw: Leopard (very far away but you could see the head up in a pile of rocks)
Lions: dozens, including males, females, and even babies
2 cheetahs
1 serval cat
Maribou storks
secretary birds
tons of flamingoes and vultures
various eagles
ostriches
warthogs
wildebeest
zebra
multiple antelope species
crocodiles
hippoes
elephants
cape buffalo
hyena (also heard at night--solitary hyenas make a really cool "awwwww...ooop!" call that was really surprising)
jackals
giraffes
and i am sure I forgot a few, but the safari is really incredible--you'll see more animals than you'd ever guess from being someplace as developed and fragmented as America, and the scale of size is hard to imagine--elephants are big in a circus, but elephants that are clearly taller than your safari jeep are something else entirely.....
Safari Soles seems to be a somewhat mid-sized, mid-priced outfitter, and I have not worked with a bunch of other players, but I really, truly liked working with everyone at Safari Soles, and if I were to get back to Tanzania, I would book them again, in a heartbeat. I honestly couldn't have been happier with them.
We don't review a lot, we're lazy. But we try to believe in Karma, and giving credit where credit is due--we put out feelers with several outfitters and chose Safari Soles for price and reviews, and as I said, I could not be happier with that choice--they totally earned the high marks they have in tripadvisor. And as a side note, Isaac and Bryson both have standing invites if they ever need a place to hang in the US, which we do for even fewer people. Again, they really were the best....
KR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent and professionals
A must recommended tour company, we went to Uganda to visit one of the charity organization which we decided to go on a tour with my friends after we had finished all the activities which took us there, one of our team leader contacted Bright safaris Uganda and booked for a 5 days tour. We started this tour as clients but we ended up becoming a family of bright safaris Uganda after having owesom trip with Moses the guide who was very knowledgeable about about Uganda knew every thing and he was so friendly and helpful to us.
Therefore whoever is planning to visit Uganda Bright safaris Uganda is the best tour company for you.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Outstanding quality for price
My wife and I traveled to Kenya and Tanzania for a 10 day safari with 1 day spent in Nairobi. After extensive research and getting different quotes from other tour agencies, Right Choice provided the best price while maintaining quality accommodation. From start to finish George was always available to answer any and all of my many questions, as well as helping us plan our anniversary trip to our liking. We were able to select the tour we wanted and change some of the accommodations to fit what we were looking for. We were able to see and experience Masai Mara, Serengeti, Amboseli, Tarangire, and so much more. What an incredible experience! George went above and beyond to ensure our travels were special and memorable. Highly recommend Right Choice Safaris for your upcoming travels to east Africa.
DK
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Highly recommended
Very respectable company with outstanding service level. Susan is your go-to-person. She was always available and delivered everything we were promised. We spoke to many companies but selected Sunstrip due to price and service and we are very happy we did. After returning home to Denmark we definitely recommend this company to others. You are in safe hands.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great 3-days Safari at Serengeti National Park
My 3-days Safari tour, to Serengeti Park in Tanzania with SHETER TOURS was excellent, a life memorable and am looking forward to tour with them again. The charge was very worth for the tour/service. They were very reliable, and had a very great customer service and were ready for any support needed.. I can recommend any one touring Kenya to tour/safari with them.
CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing Safari
The safari experience was amazing. Our guide Peter was very patient and showed us all of the big 5 and the ugly 5. We were able to get close enough to get videos and pictures.
Things to know, if you're getting the tent. You are basically camping. There is an indoor washroom, hot water and beds but it's not fancy. There was no wifi at our camp lenchada so get a sim card. Also bring your powerbank and more than one charger as generator was only available during peak hours. Food was ok, bring snacks if you eat regularly. Overall all amazing 10 out of 10!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Sadly Disappointed.
I’ve been on mobile safari before, many times. This is the first time I’ve ever had so much anxiety on a safari and been so disappointed.
We paid for 6 nights safari, 2 nights hotel in Maun, 3 hour Mokoro ride and transport to and from the airport. We paid 7 months in advance.
3 days before leaving, we reminded them of our arrival. They asked us who was picking us up and where we were staying. That was their job. We sent them the invoice they sent to us where this was covered and they said they had it under control.
The day we were supposed to leave, our flights were cancelled (not their fault) but I tried to call and let them know of the updated flight. All calls went unanswered. They finally responded to an email saying they got the updated information and we wouldn’t get our money back for the hotel on arrival night (fine, last minute change) but that the hotel wasn’t available for the final night either because of “renovations” which was odd, the last night was never impacted. Why was it suddenly unavailable? I think it’s because they completely forgot.
We start our safari and the car is unreliable. I’m not talking old, refurbished or dusty. The car wouldn’t start half the time, there would be smoke coming out from under the hood, burning smells, random wheels stopped turning mid-drive and the passenger door would randomly open mid-ride. The guide was constantly having to put in motor oil, jump the car, be under the hood and working on the tires to get them moving again. He even had go tie the passenger door so it would stop opening while we were moving.
The guide had zero knowledge of our Mokoro ride and where we were staying in Maun. He called numerous times at each gate we passed - calls went unanswered for days. He even went to the gates while we took an afternoon naps to try to resolve everything but said no one answered or no one called him back. The Mokoro ride eventually happened, but only because we armed the guide with proof we paid for it.
The guide also said he’s worked for many mobile safaris. They usually give a print out with all the details but he didn’t get one for us. He said he was called 2 days before (conveniently around the time we reminded them of the safari) and everything was instructed over the phone.
The crew was fine, the food was good though we ate cold cuts everyday for lunch, and the guide showed us all we came to see but it felt like our safari was completely forgotten by Unlimited, then slapped together last minute. If we hadn’t reminded them, I bet we would have been stranded at the airport. How can you pay a company thousands of dollars and have to remind them you paid for a safari?
When I thought it was all over and we just go to the airport now, Unlimited had one last surprise. They didn’t pick us up from the hotel to the airport. They didn’t bother to tell us there was a problem with the car until we called, and they weren’t going to pick us up until 1 hour before the flight - leaving us no time to get through passport control, baggage, security and board. The hotel called a taxi. Thankfully we did, we arrived with only 5 minutes to spare before boarding.
When I got home, I saw they had taken a high profile client out based on their social media posts, so I guess that took priority over us. It was upsetting considering we saved up for 2 years for a mother-daughter safari and we should have just gone with someone else we knew and trusted.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful experience! Booked through them for our gorilla tracking experience in Uganda
We had a great experience booking our recent trip to Uganda for gorilla trekking with Matoke Tours. We opted for a fly-in tour from Entebbe. I got in touch with Pleunie via safaribooking.com in January 2022. We just finished our trip last month. Miss Pleunie was very responsive and accommodating with our request and she made sure that everything was in order from the initial deposit all the way up to the end of our unforgettable trip. Our flight coming into Entebbe was delayed for 2 hours and although I wasn't able to reach Miss Pleunie via Whatsapp to give her an update (she didn't have power in her house that night and her phone had apparently died); our wonderful guide John who was waiting to pick us up in Entebbe airport on arrival tracked our flight and waited for us past midnight. It was such a relief to see him at the arrivals area holding a sign with our names after such a stressful journey. He then took us to our hotel for the night and helped us get settled in. The flight to Kisoro the next day went smoothly without any hitch. Our guide met us a Kisoro with their 4x4 SUV to take us to this beautiful hotel at a remote peninsula about 45 minutes to the airport. Valance was helpful in getting us registered for the gorilla tracking experience the next day and he waited for us for 4 hours to take us back to our hotel once the tracking was done. Overall, for our last trip, we had utilized the services of 5 tour companies across 5 different countries and Matoke Tours probably planned and coordinated one of the most complex legs of our trip and did they a wonderful job! We highly recommend this tour company for your gorilla tracking adventure!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Very determined to ensure that we had a great time
The tour company made sure that we had an excellent time and took steps to make sure that our guides were top notch. They were very attentive and responsive to our questions and concerns. They came up with the idea of doing the walking Safari for our last day and it was excellent
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
EXCELLENT service. 5 STARS ALL THE WAY! Do not hesitate, book with this company!
THE BEST TOUR COMPANY! We went with 5 different tour companies on our recent vacation. From Kenya all the way to the Netherlands and we came into our conclusion: LION KING ADVENTURES is second to none. From the communication with Ms. Pendo all the way to them working with our other tour company in Kenya to help us get our luggage across the border late at night right at the doorstep of our hotel, TOP NOTCH SERVICE. We recently went on their 6 day private luxury safari visiting Tarangire, Serengeti, Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro in July 2022. Bright met us at the Namanga border and waited for us patiently as we went through customs and immigration. He then dropped us off at our hotel in Arusha. The next day, Ozzie picked us up at our hotel in Arusha in time, bringing with him his wonderful personality and warm Tanzanian hospitality. He spent the next 5 days with us being our guide, our driver, and our friend. He made sure we were comfortable, had enough drinks during our game drive, cleaned the vehicle every day and made sure that we would spot the Big 5 (and the Ugly 5). He also briefed us daily regarding our agenda for the day and with some background regarding each of the parks we were visiting. He also asked us for our expectations on our first day. The accommodations that were selected by them were amazing- we didn't want to leave! From Kitela Lodge to Lake Manyara Kilimamoja, all were fantastic! If you need a trustworthy, reliable and exceptional tour company for your East Africa adventure, look no further than Lion King Adventures! 5 stars all the way!