US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
5th Safari with Roho Ya Chui and service provided is 5* as always!
This was our fifth trip with Ute's help, but the first time we have booked a safari in Kenya with her, as we had previously used a Kenyan operator. Given our extremely positive experience with her during the past years for safaris in South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe, we decided to use their services for our trip which combined Kenya with Zimbabwe and everything went smoothly. Given the unexpected rains in Kenya, the camp we had originally booked in the Masai Mara was damaged, but Ute immediately worked to rebook us in another camp which ended up being a much better option since it was in a conservancy rather than in the Mara Reserve. What I love about Ute is that she responds immediately. When I have an inquiry, there is nothing more disappointing than having to wait for a response or in some cases, I've had companies even ignore my inquiries when they think it may not be enough business and don't even bother to respond, but Ute will always respond promptly. She is also very straight forward with her advice and when she thinks something is not ideal, she will also let you know. That's when her expertise is really appreciated. She's a great professional and I wouldn't hesitate one instant in recommending her company to anyone wanting a great safari experience anywhere in Africa. She will always aim to get the most reasonable price and is very detail-oriented in presenting her itineraries and quotes. I hope to be able to book a new safari with Ute as soon as possible!
DE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
life time expierience, I will never forget
In March 2020 we drove with Claws of Africa for 5 days with the guide Emanuel to Tarangire, the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro crater. It was fantastic. Everything was just wonderful. We had really impressive days. Emanuel is a very good and experienced guide. He showed us all the animals, he always had a good nose where the animals sit. The rainy season started and sometimes it was really not easy to drive through the muddy paths, but Emanuel did everything with patience and safety. At breakfast, lunchtime and in the evening we were always cooked by Tespo with a three-course menu. It was a mystery to me where he always took food from, after all, we always had it with us in the car, but he cooked it delicious in no time and we were served like royalty. We decided on a cheap tour with simple accommodation and mostly in a self-made tent. But that was also very comfortable, soft mattresses on camp beds and at night we heard the lions or the buffalos smacking grass next to us. I wasn't aware of how beautiful the landscape with the thousands of animals is, sometimes I had to pinch myself to realize that everything I saw with my eyes was really true. Everyone should go on a trip like this once in a lifetime. You will never forget it. A thousand thanks to Claws of Africa
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
FlashMc delivers 6-star FOUR SEASONS HOTEL customer service!
Peter Macharia will be the guy answering your phone calls and emails from start to finish. He's DA MAN as Africa Flash McTours and Travel is his baby! He delivers 6-star FOUR SEASONS HOTEL customer service! Seriously, they should hire him! If you want to go directly to the source and not have a bunch of middlemen in between, then look no further! Before I settled on FlashMC (which I kept mistakenly seeing as McFlash) I did research on a dozen companies in Kenya & Tanzania, 6 companies in Europe & another dozen companies in the USA. If you've read until now then STOP YOUR RESEARCH and look no further - you're welcome!
So Peter delivers on speedy communication that is easy to understand. He delivers on obstacles; if you have one he can help you get around it. He's KATO-bonded. He delivers on helping you do a turn key solution from the time you land until you take-off! But can he deliver on the safari? YOU BETCHA!
I met him after his guide, Anthony Kimondo picked us up and brought us to a quick snack station and to meet Peter (see photo). All the lodges and tented camps were as advertised. FlashMC's website is transparent about choices of accommodations, upcharges, travel times, etc. Many other websites were "contact us for pricing" or some such malarkey (never used that term but trying to bring it back - LOL).
We did a 10 day Kenya & Tanzania LUXURY tent & lodge experience. The title says "11Day Best of Kenya and Tanzania Group Camping Safari" because I could no longer find this option. You may see it listed as "Great African Rift Valley Safari" on his FlashMcTours dot com web site. We chose the "Luxury Package" over the "Standard Package."
Anthony, our guide, smiles from ear to ear and with his eyes. He's 45 and has a wife and kids at home; it was nice to gain some insight into Nairobi living from him. He's genuinely happy and laid back enough to make sure this is all about you! You want to start at 6:30 am? No problem! You want to start at 9:30 am? Hakuna Matata! At breakfast, all the other private guides wanted to sit with happy Anthony! On safari, all the other private guides wanted to say hello to Anthony and share with him what they saw. He's like the MAYOR of the Maasai Mara! Oh, and he knows his stuff! He has eagle-eyes, his head is on a swivel but yet safety first!
When we got to the Kenya-Tanzania border at Isibania, Kenya, the crossing was pretty simple. They were already protecting against CoronaVirus (CoViD-19) even tho, at the time it was rampant in the rest of the world but for Africa! Each country protects its own tourism so there are arrangements for a hand-off to another outfit. Peter uses Emanuel at Tanzania Joy and his guide was PrayGod (not misspelled). PrayGod is 31 and has a wife and new (adorable) baby son at home in Moshi. PrayGod was a thinking-man's guide! You wanted superficial knowledge about an animal; he got that! You wanted to go deep about the eco-system? Just sit back and listen to the professor! He was college-educated in this area and it showed. He used his radio for information but also used his all his senses to search for evidence so instead of looking for the lion, he listened for the baboon in the tree. He once spotted a black rhino in Ngorongoro that must have been 5 km away. PrayGod was also flexible and patient!
Thank YOU Anthony & PrayGod!
What would I change? Well we saw 28 of the 30 animals that were on the check list (attached). 93% seems like you don't need to change anything but here's my take:
LODGING:
1) The hotel chain SAROVA is INCREDIBLE! They make you feel like family. Like genuine family you love and not faking it. We stayed in 2 locations and any chance I would to stay in more would be my choice. The Mara Sarova Game (LUXURY TENTED) Camp may have been one of our highlights!
2) The hotel chain Serena is very good. A blend of African welcoming hospitality and American service efficiency.
3) In Amboselli, we stayed at Oltukai Lodge though Peter's 1st choice was Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge; Oltukai was not bad and the scenery was magnificent as were the velvet monkeys but it seemed a bit 'rookie' compared to Sarova and Serena. In retrospect, we should have stayed in the Serena property.
ITINERARY:
1) Amboselli to Lake Nakuru National Park was a LONG day filled with a lot of peripheral Nairobi traffic so not so interesting. We saw much there including the White/Wide Rhino but not sure it was worth THIS drive.
2) Maasai Mara to Serengeti was also a LONG DAY. We had to drive hours North West to the crossing and then hours South West to the Serengeti and then much further to get to our lodging. We were warned that this was the longest day and to consider a flight from Maasai Mara airstrip to the Serengeti. Peter would have arranged it and maybe we should have considered it more closely. NO REGRETS tho!
3) Ngorongoro: We were there for one night - I would have made that 2! If we had to 'steal' from somewhere else, it would have been to ditch Lake Nakuru (1-day) or to poach (okay, bad word) one of the 3 days from Maasai Mara.
CAR/TRUCK:
Your cheapest option is a safari-modified mini-van. As soon as we heard that the Toyota Landcruiser had more comfortable seat/ride, we chose the up-charge. Here's a minor thing we did not know: There are 2 styles of Landcruiser - The standard 3-row & the extended cab 4-row. In Kenya we had the 4 row and in Tanzania we had the 3 (you can see one of the attached pictures side by side). Well we were 2 people so space was not an issue but I will just mention that the 4-row has windows that are larger and 'portrait-mode' vertical rectangles to better see out of whereas the 3-row windows are more square or 'landscape-mode' horizontal. In comparison to the mini-vans both our Landcruisers had much better visibility!
The book with the best stories should be your passport and FlashMc Peter delivered! Thank YOU Peter!
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Un safari incroyable
A amazing safari
Bartho is the best, the communication with him was perfect
We see a lot of animal (lion, girafe, éléphant, rhinocéros...)
He was very hepfull to book our transfert
The safari driver was very kind too
I recommand
AE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent company with passion to provide wonderful experiences.
We had a very good guide who knew where to find the big five, and the company was swift in response whenever we had a request. I will definitely use the company again. Thank you Nature Exploration Safaris for offering a memorable safari.
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
100% satisfaction guarantee, excellent services and fantastic holiday
Mangi Empire Safaris did a fantastic job arranging a safari for my family and me.
Right from the beginning the communications on email was outstanding. I ordered a quote on a safari (3 day trip) to Ngorongoro and Serengeti and they understood my needs right away. They suggested alternatives and it was easy to talk details and get the planning finalized.
We were picked up in Kilimanjaro Airport as planned and on time. We had a night in Arusha before going on safari in Serengeti and Ngorongoro. All the way we stayed at nice hotels (Serena Lodges), and they were even better than I had imagined. The view over Ngorongoro from over room was spectacular and so was staying in the middle of Serengeti in our own big bungalow.
Our safari driver, Baraka, was very professional, considerate and nice to be around. We travelled with our 4 year old and he was very good at driving slowly giving her time to see everything. His knowledge about the wildlife was impressing and he could answer all our questions about animals’ etc.
We saw all the interesting animals on our trip - a lot of lions, Zebra, Cheetah, elephants - and even rhinos from a distance in Ngorongoro.
All in all we feel that we have gotten a superb product and service from MangiEmpire Tours - and for a really reasonable price. We feel we got excellent value for our money.
If you are looking for a place to buy your safari in Tanzania - don't hesitate to use this Company. They have my warmest recommendations.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Surpassed all of our expectations!
I don't even know where to begin. This trip was the most amazing experience my husband and I have ever had and I could not recommend it enough.
We knew we wanted to go on Safari for our honeymoon, but we didn't know where to start. I found a number of companies on Safari Bookings, but Lion King stood out to us. From initial contact they were friendly, sent a detailed itinerary and guidance for Tanzania and were quick to respond to any questions we had big or small. At every stage of the planning (and we booked within 6 weeks of our visit) Wilbard and Pendo responded to us within 24 hours and arranged extra tours at our requests. We couldn't wait to arrive.
When we landed in Arusha it was 8pm and took us over an hour to get through security. I was concerned by this, but we were met by Emmanuel at the airport and he was instantly welcoming. He loaded our luggage, gave us bottled water and explained to us about Tanzania and where we were going. Emmanuel was also our tour guide for our final day in Arusha, where we went coffee making and to a hot spring. He couldn't have done enough for us - he guarded our belongings whilst we swam, kept checking to see if Kilimanjaro was out from the clouds and offered us local food and drinks. All of these things may seem small, but they made us feel very comfortable and welcomed. We cannot thank him enough!
Now, onto the safari. Ozzie was our driver and guide and we were so lucky to have got him. He was friendly, funny and exceptionally hard working (he even managed to teach us some Swahili, which we really enjoyed learning)! On day one we saw 3 of the big 5 and thought that was lucky, but he surpassed himself over the next 2 days. When we went to the Ngorongoro Crater & the Serengeti he found us the big 5 in one day - it was truly one of the best days of our lives! The leopard was found right at sunset in the Serengeti and although other tour guides (from other companies) decided it was too far to drive Ozzie got us there in time to see her asleep in the tree and then jump down and walk right next to us!
The next day we were in the Serengeti and Ozzie asked us what we would like to see - we said hyenas and cheetahs, if possible. Ozzie went out of his way to find them for us, and although others considered it too far a drive, he took us to see 2 family of cheetah (one had 5 cubs) and where the hyenas were gathering (which happened to be next to some lions and over 10,000 zebra). We were honestly so lucky with Ozzie's humour, knowledge and tenacity and cannot thank him enough for his work.
From the initial contact to our Arusha and Safari guide, Lion King exceeded all of our expectations and ensured we would never forget Tanzania (especially with the 6000 photos taken)! Thank you all so much!
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Outstanding Safari Tour
We had a excellent and outstanding Safari organized and carried by Mega Adventures.
Starting with the pick up from the airport and all over the whole safari we are really thankfull and
could recommend Mega Adventures. The most importent thing was our guide Yassin, if you are planning
a tour with Mega Adventures, you should take Yassin as your guide. Everything was well prepared and
Yassin is a funny,lovely person, he knows his business and the animals very well. With Yassin you have the
chance to see the big five. Thank you for this amazing tour!!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
3 Days Safari to Aberdare National Park & Ol Pejeta Conservancy
Our tour planning manager Abel was super fast to accommodate us and keep us informed all the time. The driver, Phillip, was amazing very professional and training excellent driver.
The experience at both Aberdare and Olpejeta was amazing. The Ark at Aberdare has balconies facing a pond were animals gather at night. We saw a pack of hyenas trying to hunt several animals. An incredible experience.
Olpejeta Conservacy was also a wonderful place with a lot of animals (elephants, rhinos, hyenas, impalas, zebras et al)
I will definitely recommend Natural World Kenya Safaris.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A wonderful trip to Africa!
Very exciting journey. The schedule is very reasonable and the pace is not slow or slow. The entire itinerary is in the southern hemisphere and only one day passes the equator. Ordinary travelers will worry about the safety of African tourism. In fact, security is not a problem. African tourism can experience completely different scenery and get a completely new experience. It is highly recommended that the itinerary formulated by the China-Africa travel agency! We will come again!
(automatic translation from Chinese)