EE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Every day was special!
We had 7-Day The Best of Botswana tour. First days was our guide Jacob. He was really good about the nature, wildlife and history. Other days was our guide Dylos. He is the best! We had some bad surprises, but he really did his best that we still could see all the animals. You are so lucky if Dylos will be your guide. He knows the local languages and has good contacts as well, good humor. It all is important if you are stuck together with the guide 80% of your day inside the car. In our trip, first days we were on wetlands and without a car .So no charging from car. You need to take your battery to charge your phone and camera. But if you have all days with camp car, then you can charge from car. Also be aware during bushwalks. Me and my husband hurt ourselves stepping on the thorns. They came though the camping boots! For ladies- washing your hair can be tricky. It is Africa, so there is not so great opportunities for shower. There is not so much wildlife as you see from the commercials. Lions, elephants, hippos and giraffes can see every day, but cheetah, leopard, wild dogs, hyenas you maybe cant see at all. It is all about luck and how good guide you will have.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience
MamaSavana handled the Tanzania leg of our safari covering lake mayanara, ngorogoro crater, and the Serengeti. We had a great time, and our driver Harun went out of his way to make sure we got the most out of this once in a lifetime trip.
IN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Really good, reliable tour operator
Bison safaris communicated really fast on both email and their website chatbot. I booked the 3 days Masai Mara safari with the Jambo Mara lodge and for sure got value for money. Our driver was Anthony, he was always on time and got us to see a lot of animals. He knew what to do and where to go. He took good care of our group. Overall a great experience of a lifetime and will for sure come back!
FI
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
An experience of a lifetime
My wife and I booked the 7-Day Taste of Kenya tour with Beacon Safaris and the experience was wonderful. Truly. We flew into Nairobi and met Daniel, our guide and driver for the week. He is a knowledgeable and very professional guide -- friendly, informative, easy to be with for extended periods, accommodating to specific needs, and highly experienced. He knew the parks we visited like the back of his hand and was masterful in positioning us time after time at just the right spot to capture great photos. The tour package included visits at Amboseli, Naivashu, Nakuru, and Mara. There are somewhat lengthy drives between locations in some instances, e.g. from Nairobi to Amboseli was about 5 hours and from Amboseli to Naivashu about 6. But that is largely due to the road system in Kenya which doesn't have many connecting routes without returning to Nairobi and can be narrow and in some places rough because the counties have a lot to do with the road conditions, we were told, and different counties have more or less capital to maintain them. But the travel was interesting and not a burden in any sense. There is nothing much to see or visit along the way. And we skipped Nairobi entirely because it doesn't have much to offer international tourists. But the national parks are world treasures and really worthwhile to visit. Don't rush it. It takes time and the time is well spent.
On our tour we saw so many and such an amazing assortment of animals and birds. Amboseli has an astonishing number of elephants at all stages of the lifecycle, from enormous bulls to charming calfs. We saw hippos, giraffes, wildebeest, zebras, gazelles, and much more, as well as a variety of beautiful birds. At the lakes we visited we saw even more birds, enormous flocks of pelicans and flamingos, cranes, herons, maribou, sandpipers, gulls of various types, and much more. Masai Mara is a very large territory and was amazing. We saw hyena feeding on a zebra, several lion prides with some huge males, hippos in the Mara as well as crocs, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, topi, eland, and much more. We saw playful Vervet monkeys, troops of baboons, and even a rare Columbus monkey. The experience is transformative, really -- one gets a sense of what the world was like, and could be like again, if humans stop screwing it up.
One one exception, we were booked for stays in Sopa Lodges. The best was the lodge at Lake Naivashu. There your accommodations are in the middle of a park-like area with animals roaming the grounds (nothing dangerous). The view was wonderful at Lake Nakuru because we had a balcony overlooking the lake. At the lodge in Amboseli we could see Mount Kilimanjaro! The staff are friendly and helpful everywhere, providing warm hospitality and service. Our luggage was always taken for us and we had no problems of any kind. The downside is poor WiFi at the lodge near Amboseli and limited hot water there. I took one cold shower. There are too few electrical outlets in some rooms, which makes charging technology something of a timing challenge if you need to charge multiple phones, computers, cameras, etc.
The one exception was the stay at Masai Mara. The Sopa Lodge was part of the package proposal we accepted and paid for, but it was apparently fully booked and we were instead booked into the Pride Inn. It was fine but not in the same category. Whereas Sopa is 4-star level, in some cases perhaps even 5-star, Pride Inn would be 3-star in my opinion. I felt a little let down by this only because we paid for better and got less. But in fairness, Pride Inn has unique charms as well and there was a 'family feeling' to the place that we liked a lot. No WiFi in the rooms, however, and a weak signal overall even in the main lodge area.
The food is okay. Nothing exceptional anywhere, except for the fruits. We have only had pineapple this good when visiting Hawaii. Kenyan cuisine has evident influences from Indian cookery, which we like. Lots of stews and vegetable dishes, as well. We always found several things we liked at each meal, but it's all served buffet style which can be hit or miss. I should add that the fried fish was the best dish just about every time. The cooks really know how to make good fried fish dishes. I recommend avoiding boiled eggs, however. I had one at the Amboseli lodge that was off and consequently suffered for a couple of days with stomach issues. We realized the source of the illness when we saw a cook at a different lodge checking the eggs they fry or scramble before cooking them by breaking them into a bowl first. We saw that cook toss four eggs out of a dozen as bad. No one can check a boiled egg, so skip that to be on the safe side. And only drink bottled water, including for brushing teeth.
But the focal reason for visiting Kenya is to experience a safari adventure and in that regard Beacon Safaris was a great fit for us. We are an older couple and have some issues that were taken into consideration and accommodated kindly. Daniel was excellent, as noted earlier. I tipped him extra at the end because he was so good, kind and helpful. It felt like saying goodbye to a friend when we left. Robert took care of the booking and payment issues and everything went smoothly, with good communications as well.
Be aware that the roads inside the parks are unpaved very rugged dirt roads, and very dusty in the dry season. We chose the 4WD option instead of a van and were glad of it. They use Land Cruisers that are built like tanks. The tops can be raised so you stand inside the vehicle to view from a good vantage point and in safety. I found I could rest the zoom lens on the side of the top when standing and did not need a tripod. But the ride can be bone-shaking and there are plenty of places where the driver must navigate carefully. When I returned home I needed to take my camera and lenses to a service center for deep cleaning. It was that dusty. But the photographing was a joy and I look forward to processing the 1,336 digital photos I returned with!
On the whole, our experience was excellent. I was only disappointed with the last accommodation, which is not to say I was disappointed by the Pride Inn but rather that we thought we agreed to and paid for was not delivered in that case. But this is small potatoes and even feels a little mean to say. The food isn't excellent, but we are foodies so our expectations are higher and our reviews more critical than for many people who aren't. The meals were fine and we enjoyed the dining experience in every location.
We would recommend Beacon Safaris to anyone planning a visit to Kenya to tour the national parks.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfection in every way. Recommend 100%
We did 2 day trips with this tour operator, and both of them were perfect. A big thank you to Samuel for the organisation and to our guide Jeen, everything was perfect.
The first one was the bike safari to Hell's gate with the naivasha visit, you have to do it ! Lunch was great as well. And the second one was a day trip to the Aberdare and its amazing landscape. Thanks again for everything.
ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Puntual, quick in respond, resposible
We booked a safari blue exprience and loved how smooth it went! Good car with air conditioning for transfer, attentive and friendly guides, tasty lunch. Reliable and recommended
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unacceptable.
We have recently returned from your classic wonders of Kenya, Tanzania, and Zanzibar safari, our honeymoon. We in fact left for home before the end of the booking due to the poor quality of the holiday. Up to this point we have reframed from leaving any reviews about Classic Journeys on your website or on any other platform as I feel it only fair to give you an opportunity to explain why the service was so poor first.
We originally had to delay our safari due to covid (no fault of yours). However, once we had changed the dates to ensure we would be able to go, your communication was terrible, waiting days for confirmation of payment and to get questions answered.
We were informed in an email that as we arrived in Nairobi our transfer to our hotel would be waiting for us at the airport with a sign with our name on it. This was the not the case and our driver was not there. I was unable to reach the driver on the number given to me for him via email. Thankfully a local taxi driver offered to use his phone to call and when we did get though our driver was in bed. We spoke to the office of the company as well and they said that they would get a driver to us in an hour, meaning we would have been left stranded at the airport for over two hours. This is extremely poor service! Our first impression of your company and the start of our holiday ruined, and our first time in Kenya an already stressful situation made extensively worse by Classic Journeys’ awful organisation.
Eventually we arrived at Longview Suites hotel. The hotel was not up to standard in the slightest and did not look like the photo on your website. Our room was metres from a building site (which was the view from our window) and the shower did not work. We were also only provided breakfast in our package on the day of arrival bearing in mind we stayed there for 24 hours and needed four meals during this time. We therefore had to pay more for this. We paid nearly 7000 euro for this holiday and it had become outrageously disappointing at this stage. I appreciate that building work and so on needs to happen but you as a company need to be aware of where you are sending people to stay and change locations accordingly as this was not acceptable. I can send photos as proof of this.
Day one in the bush, again let down. After a long drive we arranged with out guide to go on a nature walk once we had settled in. We arrived at the meeting point but our guide did not, Classic Journeys making a habit of not showing up to where they should be. Nearly half an hour after the time agreed, our guide arrived, and then told us there was no point going for a walk because of the weather even though other walks were going out. This information could have been sent to us and saved us the trouble of getting ready to go out. At this point plans for the next day were sorted as we had become increasingly stressed about meeting drivers at agreed times (note that we had to ask the timings of the next day instead of being told in advance). This as well was very difficult to sort despite being face to face. Again, not good enough and let down.
After one game drive in Kenya with a very mediocre guide who often gave us the wrong information (this information was confirmed incorrect by our second driver), we moved onto Tanzania. Once we arrived at the border, we needed to obtain visas. The link you sent us to obtain visas before arrival did not work and no guidance on this was given. When we were applying for our visas, we were told we had to pay a fee in cash which we didn’t have (again causing more unwanted stress). We were not informed at any point that we needed to take a lot of cash to cover the time away. Cash was needed for almost everything as well as tipping every member of staff we encountered (we were not prepared for this). We were told credit cards were excessively used and they were not and that included some of the camps we were staying on.
After crossing the border and changing cars we settled in for the long drive. We were aware it was a long drive and we needed to get to our lodge for the night, however on a holiday that as previously stated cost nearly 7000 euro, the last place I thought I would be eating lunch was in a petrol station. Completely unacceptable.
When we completed the safari part of our trip. We were given tickets for our flight to Zanzibar only to find that Hannah’s ticket still had her maiden name and did not match her passport. We made it clear that this was our honeymoon a name change cannot have come as a surprise. Furthermore, you confirmed receipt of Hannah’s updated passport information on the 16th of March 2023 which gave plenty of time to change the tickets, however this never occurred. This again caused undue stress on a holiday that should have been simple and stress free.
As we arrived in Zanzibar, Classic Journeys doing their usual and not being at the airport to pick us up. Two transfers and two transfers not there. When we eventually did meet our driver, the Classic Journeys office felt the need to message me and explain how it wasn’t their fault and that the plane had arrived early which it did by a few minutes. However, this is irrelevant and it is up to you and your drivers to be tracking the flight to ensure this does not happen. If the flight was cancelled would the driver be aware of it or would he wait outside the airport for hours on end? This is yet again unacceptable and poor service. Ensuring you are at the airport on time for a transfer is one of the most basic tasks and yet Classic Journeys repeatedly failed at it.
Uroa Bay hotel. We were sold a relaxing few days on ivory sands and clear waters in a lovely hotel. What we received was an extremely bad day (only one day as we were far to annoyed at this point and we flew home early) on a filthy beach in a hotel where everything was at an extra charge including water a basic human necessity. You as a company need to go to the hotels where you send people to stay and ensure that what you are advertising matches what you are delivering as this did not. The photo of the Zanzibar beach on your web site is clearly not at Uroa Bay. Nowhere in your emails or website did it say we would have to pay extra tax on arrival to the hotel, this was not listed in the ‘not included’ section. Photos again can be sent as proof. I cannot believe how this hotel was selected for this holiday an unacceptable choice. Also, on the so-called ‘private’ beach which had a security guard, locals approached to try to sell us drugs. That is not the kind of thing I expect on a holiday resort that has cost me so much. We felt that after the safari part of the holiday, Classic Journeys no longer were responsible and we were left at a bad hotel to fend for ourselves – this is different to the expectation of a relaxing few days in a luxury hotel.
This information on your website and that which was sent to us was not good enough and in some cases just plain incorrect. A standard day on safari as described by your company was, ‘up before dawn for coffee and a drive before returning for breakfast and then to take part in other activities. All this before another game drive in the afternoon evening time.’ This was not the case, early mornings but not in time for sunrise, leave the lodge do not return till around 1600 with no time to take part in other activities. What you are advertising is not what we received.
The itinerary that was sent to us was the only information we received before the trip and this was before we even booked it (which was two years ago due to postponing). There were no updates to the itinerary to fit to the actual timetable of the week and we were not even sent any information to prepare for our trip, for example, a kit list would have been useful. This, bearing in mind, being our first time to Africa and not knowing what to expect. When we asked via email what was needed for the trip, Classic Journeys replied with ‘just luggage’. I’m sure we are not the only customers you have that haven’t been to Africa before either.
This was our honeymoon, it cost us nearly 7000 euros for your package, excluding flights.
Communication was poor.
We were left at the airport twice.
Stayed in a hotel with a not working shower and was practically on a building site.
Were left waiting for our guide only to be told our walk would not go ahead.
Were treated to a lunch in a petrol station.
Were provided tickets for a flight with an incorrect name.
Stayed in an awful hotel that was not anything like the description or photos you sent.
Paid taxes we were not informed of and that were not listed in the excluded cost list.
Were offered drugs in our resort by locals.This is awful on your part and something needs to be done. The price you charge for the standard to deliver is unacceptable.
Thankfully the one time your driver showed up on time was to get us to the air port so we could leave the horrendous holiday earlier than planned.
Also apon return to the UK I have repeatedly tried to contact you about these issues through email, WhatsApp and phone call only to have all of them ignored.
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The complete Africa experience
We (me and a friend) booked a 10 day tour with Bushman going past all the highlights of the country with Joseph our personal driver. The program was well thought off - a good variety between safaris and other activities, despite the fact we love animals spending more than 2 days in a row driving through savannah landscape becomes boring - Bushman knows this and therefore makes sure that the program is diverse. We saw the big 5 and leopards in all national parks. We had an encounter with 50 chimpansees and saw a gorilla family with 3 babys. Bushman knows who to contact to give you the best experience. Furthermore the accommodation was amazing, the driving was safe and sound and Joseph became our companion - perfect experience! Extra point was the service: we were picked up from the airport the day before our tour actually started and they were flexible in dropping us off on any location we wanted.
IT
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Very professional
Everything was perfectly organized , from the airport pick up to the last day, not even a minor problem.
Great driver ( only car without a problem in 7 days) with a lot of expertise and knowledge if animals and nature, very clean and nice tented camp ( mid range) .
Hily recommended!
Special thanks to Monica Marani for the wonderful assistance!
SG
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience
My tour had a great mix of activities and brought me to some of the most beautiful places in Rwanda. My guide, Abu was knowledgeable, super friendly and was able to accommodate all my specific requests even at short notice - This made my tour feel special and customized to my liking.