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20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Awesome time with Regional Tours!!
Wonderful Trip with Regional Tours
I and 7 of my friends had the most fantastic 4 days Ngorongoro and Serengeti glamping safari with Regional Tours under the guidance of guides Joseph who was the guide in our vehicles and Novatus in the other truck. I found Joseph as a patient, considerate and extremely professional guide extensive knowledge of the parks, animals and extraordinary spotting skills as he would discover animals that we had not yet seen while he was still driving. We had two new vehicles at our disposal for our group and they have been modified with pop up roof for safe game viewing, with a fridge, WIFI, and charging points. Each day was unfolded a different experience in different areas of Serengeti. We saw wildlife up close in their natural habitat, all the Big 5 and most special 2 black rhinos and a young.
Our group travels a lot to different parts of the world but I must confess that this was one of the most memorable experiences which were facilitated by Regional Tours. The lodgings were on point including the pool in the middle of Serengeti which served as winding down and sundowner point after the action-packed days.
If you want to get value for your time and money then Regional Tours is the company to talk to.
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35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best travel experience of our lives!
Our 12 day trip with Home to Africa was the best travel experience we have ever had. The trip planning with Elias was extremely efficient and he was quick and helpful with his responses. We were able to tailor our trip exactly as we wanted, including varying times of arrival and adding in a fishing trip for a couple of us. We originally planned a trip for 7 but 2 people had to cancel 30 days before and they were refunded appropriately according to the refund policy. The accommodations were fantastic but I should note that we upgraded them from the base accommodations (for a very reasonable price difference). In particular we really enjoyed the Marafiki Lodge, Arcadia Lodge, Isunga Lodge, and the 2 Friends Beach Hotel. We used a pop-up van which was very comfortable for 5 guests plus our driver and made it through some pretty rough roads without difficulty. Our guide, Derrick, was absolutely awesome. He fit in great with our group and we always wanted him to join us for meals and drinks so we could hang out more. He went above and beyond to help us try foods and pick up souvenirs that weren't readily available. When we stopped in crowded areas or were shopping he was always there acting in our best interest and looking out for us. Can't recommend him enough. The wildlife was fantastic. We had great experiences with the chimp trekking, where they sat on the ground with us for the entire hour, the gorilla trekking, and with the shoebill stork sighting. We also were able to get much closer to much of the wildlife than we expected and got some awesome photos. Our only disappointment was not seeing the tree-climbing lions of Ishasha but they had just done some burning there and the lions probably moved away for a short period of time. Certainly not the fault of the company. The food on the trip was way beyond what we expected. Every meal was fantastic, usually with multiple courses for dinner, and reasonably priced alcohol at the lodges. Considering how remote the lodges were, we were very surprised by how good and varied the food choices were. Staff at the lodges were all fantastic and with a much higher level of service than just about anywhere else we have traveled. One last piece of advice- make sure you stay at Arcadia Lodge on Lake Bunyonyi. I did not think there would be much of interest at the lake and almost wanted to cut it out of the itinerary but it ended up being one of the most mesmerizing views I have ever seen. But the beauty of the lake can only really be appreciated from the top of the mountain where Arcadia Lodge is located. Definitely worth the upgrade. I really can't say enough about our experience with Home to Africa. Everything was way beyond our expectations and for a very reasonable price compared to what many companies are offering.
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20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Flexible, friendly and fun, KWSS helped us get such a great first impression of the country!
January 2019 started out tough for Kenya, especially in Nairobi which was the target of a terrorist attack early in the year. About one week before our tour the attack happened which made us worried. We contacted Otieno (KWSS Manager) who helped rearrange the itinerary to keep us closer to the big city in case we needed to leave in an emergency and graciously moved us to hotels he knew had better security. This little hiccup aside, the entire trip was a breeze and extremely enjoyable. Our itinerary brought us to Amboseli, Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha, and Samburu.
Accommodations: Overall very good. Each park presented clean and well kept accommodations. Staff and attendants were all very friendly and helpful throughout the short stays we had. Unfortunately when you are further out (i.e. Amboseli, Masai Mara, Samburu) the parks do not have electricity full time and depend on solar power for energy through most of the night. This wasn't much of an issue other than having to wash up in the dark sometimes, but just something to keep in mind while packing and budgeting time.
Food: We never missed a meal and always were provided with three meals per day. It actually became tough because many of us don't normally eat a breakfast! Food was exceptional, albeit probably catered to our American taste. None of the members in our party got sick from any of the food, and still felt great when returning home. Don't drink the tap water, but bottled and boiled water all was fine.
Game Drives: KWSS provides 7 passenger vans, each with a pop-up top for better visualization of the animals. We talked to our tour guides about why certain groups prefer land cruisers and why some prefer the van, and mainly it is maintenance and cost. Our ride was comfortable nonetheless, and did not hinder our viewing of the animals. We were still able to get up close to lions and cheetahs without them even batting an eye! Our vans did get stuck in the sand, but just another bonus to the adventure as we tried to un-stuck them. The guides are very flexible and willing to move game drive times to better fit your preferences. We tended to do early morning and late afternoon to avoid the mid-day sun, though the weather was never really too hot or humid in January. The guides are also very knowledgeable and skilled in their identification and detection of animals on the drives. They even said they take classes and continuing education to keep up to date on animal knowledge so they can better answer your questions.
Miscellaneous: make sure you use permethrin on your clothes beforehand! Our entire group treated our clothes with permethrin and no one got more than 3 mosquito bites. Weather is pretty ideal in January, feeling dry and hot in the day (90F max while we were there) and dropping to cooler temps in the evening (50F low). Safety was never an issue and our guides did a good job of tipping us off if they felt we needed to leave an area.
Overall a very smooth and fun trip! Definitely a once in a lifetime experience, though it left such a good impression on us that we may go back someday!
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Tarangire National Park by Carolyn
It was fascinating and thrilling to see so many herds of black and grey elephants, some with the very long straight tusks of the females and others with broken or damaged tusks of the older fighting males. The Park was green and provided a range of trees and hills in which the elephants roamed. There were huge pools of water where large numbers of elephants would cool down and splash one another with their trunks.
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Serengeti National Park by Carolyn
The expanse of the Serengeti is similar to an ocean, something we appreciated better with each day of the Safari seeing herds of Wildebeest stretching across the flat grassy plains into the horizon! We were close to sleeping lions and watched prowling hyenas as well as the clever zebras constantly on the look out. Staying in a Migratory Lodge overnight drew us in closer to the impact of the migration on giraffes, lions and vultures as this lodge is temporary and moves every few weeks with the migration of the wildebeest.
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Ngorongoro Crater by Carolyn
A Safari of a few days would give greater justice to the Crater and its wide range of wild animals. The Crater itself is an amazing sight in its enormity. The animals were roaming freely and were not perturbed by the jeeps present. It was a thrill to see the black Rhino and hope the Crater sustains the futures of all the animals and their varied habitats.
The Rhino Lodge was historically informative and well run giving a wide range of freshly cooked dinners and breakfasts.
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Carolyn
Excellent sightings of elephants in their family groups, splashing and rolling in the large pools, sibling brothers fighting each other by locking their tusks with one another, walking in single file to shadier trees and always checking on the younger elephants. A Park that was green, hilly and well wooded with Acacia trees that gave plenty of shade and opportunities for elephants to scratch themselves against.
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Well organized and comfortable.
We chose Wild Wings Safari for our Kruger National Park visit because of reviews we had read on line. We were very happy with this choice.
The organization of the entire trip was as advertised. Our guide, Simon, was knowledgeable about the wildlife, as well as an excellent cook.
We did manage to see most of the wildlife we wanted to see- some quite close!
The accommodations were simple, comfortable, and clean.
We opted for the Panorama tour on Day 3. We did not have great weather to see all the sights, but out guide was flexible to allow us longer times where the visibility was good. We were glad to have seen this part of South Africa.
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
A privilege to see wild animals in their habitats, to be so close yet be safe in a jeep, a thrill
We saw more than the Big Five and understood how the wilderbeast migration involves predators and weather changes across 2 countries, Tanzania and Kenya. Over 6 days the Northern Circuit was covered as our Guide communicated with other Guides to locate in the Serengeti the lions, sleeping leopards in trees, zebras, gazelles, ostriches, vultures at a kill, hyenas, elephants splashing in large pools, giraffes as well as flamingoes and two black rhinos in the Ngorogoro Crater. Each evening, after our welcoming fruit drinks and moist, rolled flannels to wipe away the dust of the day we enjoyed a shower and freshly cooked evening meal at the tented lodges. Our Guide was well informed and experienced with driving safely in the National Parks. Our Safari organiser gave us excellent service in that he arranged our transportation to the airport a day after our Safari had finished, which was not included in the price. Overall the Safari experience is a genuine one and good value for money.
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent Experience All-Around with Discover Africa
We are very seasoned travelers. We travel all around the world and the vast majority of the time, we organize and book our own travel. A safari, though, is a different matter, as far as we see it. We didn't know where to begin and we only had three months to get it all squared away, so we decided an agent would make the most sense. We used SafariBookings.com and had several agents respond, all with very tempting itineraries. However, the professionalism and expertise of Discover Africa's agent, Matthys, was head and shoulders above the rest of the pack. We worked with Matthys over several days to fine tune the itinerary and we ended up with an itinerary that seemed like it was going to provide an amazing experience for us on our first time to S. Africa and first safari experience.
Each day on safari we would mention to each other how finely tuned the planning Matthys at Discover Africa was. Transfers, food allergies, special needs ... everything was all taken care of. Not only that but the safari lodges we stayed at fit us perfectly. It was as if a close friend, who knows us well, had booked these for us. The fact that Matthys is on the other side of the planet in Cape Town, has never met us before, and we only communicated via email ... well, we were definitely impressed. I doubt it was just luck, either. We stayed at three different lodges. Each was typical "us" and when we looked at other lodges online, we saw that Matthys definitely pointed us in the right direction.
A safari is a must-do experience, for sure. And I can't imagine ever going on another one without using Discover Africa as our booking and planning agency. Bravo!