US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
I really liked the kindness of Moran Tours
We had a very good time with Moses new company, and that he is having success with more vans and employees. We went on a two night tour to Masai Mara which allows one afternoon drive on the arrival day, and full long day experiencing the animals and the magnificent scenery, and sometimes endless scenery, lastly, on the last day, a short visit to a Masai village. Wow! Can those guys jump! We took the budget option, with community meals and vans. The people we met were very interesting. I recommend the cheaper safaris, unless you enjoy private cars and fancy lodges. We shared a van with a Dutch couple coming back from Masai Mara who went the excusive (expensive) route. It sounded like us budget folk had more fun than they did. Comparing the day's adventure is easier at community meals and non private safari vans. Our group had five people in the van; plenty of room for all. It's fun to watch the excitement of fellow travelers. We saw Lions, Elephants, rhinos, giraffes and, more. Perhaps best of all, we saw the the wildebeest migration! Amazing.
AE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
incredible experience
Vaneshree from Safari bookings designed our family holiday with perfection. Following a short brief from my wife and I she designed a two-lodge safari, Cape town adventures and exquisite dining experiences, Whale watching in Hermanus, and wine stay and tour in Franchuk. This was the easiest, most professional holiday proposal we have had; every detail was covered from drivers to flights and dinner.
South Africa didn't disappoint. From arrival in Johannesburg to departure from Cape Town the welcoming people and mesmerizing countryside will be a long-lasting memory.
Our Safari in Sabi sands started at Nkorho Lodge the Idubi Lodge. Both completely different but both brilliant. Lodge, Guides, cuisine and the animals could not be improved. Cape Town was magical, we stayed at table Bay on the waterfront, again the staff were incredible. Table Mountain is a must and easy to get around. We used a private driver who also doubled as a tour guide which was brilliant. Hermanus was good, the whales were spectacular. Franchuk was too short, when we go back, I would like to stay two extra days to enjoy the mountains and more vineyards.
The country is fabulous, but our biggest thanks go to Vanashree who arranged everything within a few days, she was always on hand for advice if we fancied a change to the Interary or extra place to visit. We look forward to our next visit to South Africa
IT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A wonderful experience
We are a family of 6 people (4 children) and we went to Kenya for 15 days. The Safari was wonderful thanks to Best Memory Safari and above all thanks to out driver Muli: a wonderful person. Then Mombasa and Nairobi were wonderful cities to explore. Also The experience at Diani beach was good
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A country with some amazing wildlife and landscapes such as beaches but also savanna
Tanzania is a country that my friends and I enjoyed to visit. We liked the diversity of landscapes that we were able to see.
The wildlife’s wealth of this country is unbelievable and we have to advise you to go there!
Thanks to Joagro Safari who enable us to discover their amazing country!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The best tour operator we've ever dealt with
Just returned from 3 weeks safari in Botswana & Zimbabwe arranged by Off2Africa. I can't begin to explain what a perfect experience our trip was. We stayed at 4 camps in Botswana & 3 in Zimbabwe including Victoria Falls. After contacting Chloe from Off2Africa about the type of trip we were looking for she put together a proposal via a link which was very detailed but also visually exciting as it showed the accommodation we were to be staying, the wildlife expected to be seen as well as a detailed itinerary. All but one of our transfers was by light plane which saves so much time but also gives a great view of the countryside as you are only flying at 5,500 ft. The logistics of the transfers was seamless. The beauty of this was that it wasn't a "group tour" as it was just my wife & I but we met some great people, who have become friends, at each of the places we stayed. This was an early 40th wedding anniversary trip & Chloe had arranged something at every place we stayed, from bottles of champagne to a private candlelight dinner on a pontoon in a lagoon with waiter & chef in the Okavango Delta. Do not miss the "doors off" helicopter experience over the Okavango Delta. After Covid put a halt to a previously organised trip there I started looking at tour operators in Africa rather than in Australia. The reviews for Off2Africa were universally excellent. I can only add to those reviews as I couldn't recommend Off2Africa more highly with special mention to Chloe whose assistance was patient, helpful and professionally friendly. Thanks again guys.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very helpful agency and excellent tour
We communicated with Jane for around three months before settling on a final itinerary, and then at the last minute, brought everything forward one month. All our questions and requests were handled promptly and professionally. On the morning of our departure for our safari, Jane met us at our hotel to confirm the final details, ensuring we had no outstanding queries or concerns, and introduced us to our driver Paul.
We visited Massai Mara (Sopa Lodge), Lake Nakuru (Lake Nakuru Lodge) and Amboseli (Amboseli Sopa Lodge). All the accommodations were satisfactory, although Amboseli Sopa was our least favorite. The buffet meals at each location were diverse and would cater to almost any cuisine or diet. With our busy schedule, we never had time to enjoy the other facilities such as pools etc at each location.
On request, Jane also included a hot air balloon ride in the Maasai Mara, which was another incredible experience for us. We had a mini safari with our driver from the pickup point back to the amazing breakfast on the open plains which again, was an unforgettable experience.
Our driver/guide Paul was friendly and helpful and provided a great commentary including different facts about the many birds and animals we were seeing, and constantly reminded us of the names of everything we were seeing.
Although the traffic and roads in Kenya are hectic, from the city to the Parks, we always felt Paul was a safe and skillful driver amongst the chaos.
I have no hesitation in recommending Kenan Travel and Tours based on my experience.
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Experience of a lifetime
I was invited to a conference in Kampala, so I thought it would be nice to spend some time doing tourist activities in Uganda while I am in the area (after all, who knows when I will have an opportunity to come back!). I was initially very nervous about traveling alone -- I tried very hard to find a group tour, but there weren't any leaving at times that lined up with my conference. After reading excellent reviews of Bamboo Ecotours on several websites, I decided to inquire about tours with this company. In my mind, one of the main advantages of this tour was that this one started in Kigali, which is closer to the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest than Kampala. This means less time riding in a car and more time with wildlife! Also, it gave me an opportunity to visit Kigali, which turned out to be a very cool city.
Edison, the head of Bamboo Ecotours (and the main contact person), helped to assuage all of my fears. He was very responsive to my WhatsApp messages. When I mentioned that I'm a female solo traveler and that my family was worried about me riding alone in a van with an unknown man for 4 days, he set me up with two guides: a seasoned male guide with four years of experience (Charles) and a female trainee guide (Emilly). This way, I felt more comfortable and Emilly got some hands-on experience.
Both Charles and Emilly immediately made me feel very comfortable on the tour. In fact, they became like family over the four days! I was a bit sad to say goodbye to them at the end. They are both from the region of Uganda where the gorilla tours take place, so they are extremely knowledgeable about the area. As we passed various crops/animals/landmarks/etc, they had interesting facts to tell me about each of them. They also helped me with navigating various things in Uganda, like helping me get a Ugandan SIM card after we crossed the border from Rwanda (it turned out that my Rwandan SIM card did not work in Uganda).
The hotels that I stayed at (Ichumbi Gorilla Lodge and Buffalo Safari Lodge) were supposed to be mid-range hotels but honestly they were some of the nicest and most luxurious hotels that I have ever stayed it. From the moment I arrived until the moment that I checked-out, the staff at these places did everything possible to make me comfortable. In both places, I had my own little cabin, with nice interior decor and excellent views of nature. I was able to get delicious vegetarian meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner at both hotels. Buffalo Safari Lodge even had a swimming pool with views of grazing buffalo!
The animal experiences were even better than I had imagined. I saw a whole family of gorillas at Bwindi, and I was able to get very close to them. Charles put me on one of the shorter hikes and I was very grateful for that, as it gave me time to meet the Batwa people in the afternoon. I had read some mixed reviews of the Batwa experiences online, but I think it's very important to meet them. They were removed from the forest so that the gorillas would have protected land, and they still feel the repercussions of that act today. The Ugandan government did not compensate them in any way when taking their land. I really appreciated having a chance to meet with some of the people to talk about their experiences and see how they live with my own eyes. If I can find ways to help them in the future, I will. For others reading this review before booking a trip, I would recommend bringing clothes in your suitcase to donate if you have extra space. I wish that I had done this.
The Queen Elizabeth National Park was also a highlight of my trip. We saw two lionesses and a female leopard in a tree during the safari drive. Then we took a cruise on the Kazinga Channel and we saw so many hippos, buffalo, birds, crocodiles, and even some elephants. There were also plenty of monkeys and elephants that we encountered just by driving around the park. On the last morning, I did a chimpanzee trek in the Kalinzu Forest. Although we only saw two chimpanzees, we saw plenty of colobus monkeys and baboons. At the end of the trip, we had a delicious African buffet lunch and then we stopped by the equator sign for some photos on the way back to Entebbe.
I want to end by saying that I cannot recommend Bamboo Ecotours enough. They will make sure that you see everything that you want to see, and they will do it very safely. Charles was an absolute master at navigating the winding narrow dirt roads near the Bwindi Forest. Emilly sat with me through every meal so that I wouldn't have to eat alone, which was very sweet. They both went above and beyond what I expected from a guide. At the end of the trip, I realised that I had left my swim suit at my last hotel, and Edison contacted another driver from his company and arranged for them to bring my swim suit to Entebbe.
If I ever come back to Uganda, I will absolutely use Bamboo Ecotours again. In the meantime, I will tell all of my friends who are considering booking trips to Uganda to hire this company!
AE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Trip of memories in Uganda
I surely enjoyed my trip in Uganda being able to truck gorillas , game drives in queen Elizabeth national park and Murchison.
It was so interesting. Thanks JM jungle tours.
IT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great experience in Serengeti and Ngorongoro
We booked a budget safari with Lasi tour directly from Arusha. The owner David is very professional and explained very well the tour and offered different options, with pros and cons, to start the day after as we need. We looked for other “more famous” agencies, but we did not find the same professional approach, so we choose him. We decided for doing 2 parks, Serengeti and Ngorongoro, because we wanted to have the right time to explore them well. For us the right choice! We decided for a shared tour, my husband, my 6 years old child and I.
The driver was an experienced guide, with more than 8 years in Serengeti. He was able to forecast the movement of animals to let us see them in action. We saw lions attack antilopes 3 times, lions eating zebra, leopard eating and 4 of 5 of the big five. On the other hand, our talented cook has prepared delicious hot breakfasts, as well as a variety of lunches and dinners every day.
Our nights in the park were exciting, you can’t go out of your tent in the night because of the animals. 8 lions walked in front of our tents before hunting! And the morning after they were around the camping.
The night in Ngorongoro is cold but very hot sleeping bags were provided.
Great and adventurous experience. It was not my first safari but definitely the best!
Thanks for everything!
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful experience
Really good staff and all the things on ground were as per the shared information. Really happy to choose trip advisor.
