IN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Memorable Kenya Safaris with Excellent Guide but Room Coordination Needs Improvement
We had a wonderful safari experience with Axis Africa Expeditions & Safaris. The communication during booking was smooth and their driver-guide, Livingston, was simply outstanding—very knowledgeable about wildlife and birds, and made our game drives in Masai Mara, Nakuru, and Amboseli truly memorable. The value for money and service during the safari were excellent.
However, we faced an issue with the hotel room in Amboseli. Despite confirming a Mt. Kilimanjaro view room in advance, we were initially given a different room and had to put in extra effort to get what was promised. After a long 8–9 hour road journey, this was quite inconvenient.
Overall, the safari itself was exceptional and I would highly recommend Livingston and Axis Africa for game drives, but better coordination on hotel arrangements would make the experience completely hassle-free.
Shelton was a very pleasant and informative . Tour of Vic Falls very enjoyable.
We really enjoyed this tour but wonder if the Zambian brief visit is necessary as have to go through customs again etc.
The Tour we did was overall fantastic and would recommend it .
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Tatenda was very knowledgable and enjoyed the time we had with him travelling through Botswana.
We really enjoyed our time in Botswana. Elephant Sands being the highlight but generally an interesting time travelling from Chobe to Maun. Tatenda made the trip special with his knowledge overall of the country and is a very safe driver.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
We had an amazing time and Lizzy was extremely helpful
We really enjoyed our safari - our safari guide, Martin, was very knowledgeable and ensured we got amazing views of all the wildlife. Lizzy was also prompt at responding to us and even helped us organise our plans in Nairobi after we finished the safari. Just to note that all the accomodation during the safari was different from what was advertised online (although the standard of accomodation seemed similar). This didn't bother us but I can imagine it would be upsetting if you had booked the trip based on this information.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
7 days Masai Mara/Nakuru/Navisha/Amboseli
We had a fantastic experience overall and a big part of that was thanks to our incredible tour guide, David. He was extremely knowledgeable, patient and kind throughout the entire trip. He went out of his way to make sure all eight of us were comfortable and happy, constantly checking in and doing his best to accommodate everyone’s needs. We had some challenging individuals in our tour group and he remained professional and upbeat. His enthusiasm and attention to detail made the safari memorable and I would absolutely recommend David as a guide.
The tour itself was exceptional value for money and very reasonably priced, especially considering the range of experiences included.
That said, I do feel that some aspects of the tour organisation could be improved. A hotel I had booked and paid a deposit for was changed at the last minute due to an office error, which was disappointing. On our first morning, we were collected at 7:30 a.m. but then spent nearly two hours at the booking office waiting for other clients which wasn’t and an ideal start to the trip.
We also found that a significant amount of our time was spent waiting around for other people. While it’s understandable that travellers have different interests, our group included people with very different itineraries, lengths of stay and destinations. This meant frequent detours to pick up or drop off other guests, which slowed everything down and wasted lots of time.
I would humbly suggest that the company consider grouping travellers with similar itineraries and durations together, or perhaps introducing fixed departure days. This would make the tours run more smoothly and ensure that guests make the most of their time and illuminate logistical errors. For example, we arrived at Nakuru National Park at 6:30 a.m. but had to wait nearly two hours before entry because the office had booked the tickets for the wrong day. These kinds of organisational errors really added up and I genuinely believe that with better planning, the entire itinerary could have been done comfortably in 6 days and 5 nights rather than the 7 days we spent.
Overall, we had a great trip and David was absolutely outstanding. With some improvements to the logistics and scheduling, this tour could easily go from good to exceptional.
FR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Peaceful
We were with Moloko and it was a beautiful day.
Thank you for the visit
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The tour was good, and we enjoyed it.
The transportation, accommodations, food, and guides were all great. We enjoyed the tour very much.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The adventure started from the airport
We had two drivers on account of one shuttle breaking down. Theodore our second driver rescued us and made up some of that lost time. Ride was generally comfortable and the free wifi is a plus
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
An unforgettable adventure of a life time
My wife and I just finished a 10-day private safari in Kenya - and were stunned by the amazing diversity of the animals and beauty of the various national parks. Dennis was our tour consultant and we selected Morningstar based upon the prompt and detailed price quotations he provided and the ratings on SafariBookings. He adjusted the itinerary based upon our selected parks, Nairobi - Amboseli - Naivasha - Ol Pejeta - Samburu - Nakuru - Masai Mara. Overall, the itinerary was organized very well, good accommodations and included airport transfers. Thanks Dennis.
As to the parks themselves, they were even better than our expectations. From the views of Mt Kilimanjaro, elephant herds of Amboseli, the beauty of Naivasha, special 5 of Samburu, flamingos of Nakuru to the unique vistas of Masai Mara with the big 5 - unforgettable moments.
James was our guide for the trip. He is very knowledgeable about all the parks and wildlife, highly skilled in spotting different animals, and turned out to be a photography enthusiast who offered to take photos with the long lens from driver seat. He surely has an eye for taking great photos and certainly helped capture some moments that otherwise would not have been possible. Thank you James.
We ended up giving 4 stars instead of 5 due to certain aspects that Dennis and James could have done better. Given the road conditions and traffic, anticipated transit times between parks was too optimistic, would have appreciated advice to reduce some parks. James should have checked that the Land Cruiser sliding windows could be easily opened and showed us how to operate them on day 1 so that photos could have been taken easily without having to climb up on seats and take from the open top only. He should also have been punctual on pickups, not spend inordinate amount of time on phone during game drives and should have gotten our agreement to any changes to daily activities specified in the itinerary with us.
Overall, we had an unforgettable experience and would recommend Morningstar.
PL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good safari experience - with room for improvements
Overall, the safari was good, the staff were friendly, and the company is trustworthy. What surprised us was that no guide was included, even though we expected one based on information from others who had traveled with this company. Shortly before the trip, we asked whether a dedicated guide would travel with us and were assured that the driver alone would be sufficient. In my opinion, it wasn't. Don't get me wrong: our driver was excellent—agile, well-oriented, always getting us to the right spot at the right time—but since he was focused on driving, we had to look up information about the animals, nature, and parks ourselves.
That said, we still had plenty of breathtaking moments. The vehicle was reliable and did the job, even if not the most modern we saw during our safari. I would also suggest ensuring that the safari plan is prepared in detail and closely followed, as this helps to avoid missing important landmarks.
In general, I can recommend the company.