IE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
When I go back to Tanzania again, it will be only with TANZANIA HORIZON SAFARIS
We had a four day safari that took us to Lake Manyara, Tarangire and Ngorongoro. The safari was amazing and there were so many unforgettable moments. Our safari guide picked us up from the airport in Kilimanjaro and dropped us off when we departed. From the moment we landed, we felt very well looked after and experienced the wonderful Tanzanian hospitality. Our guide was very knowledgeable, courteous, funny and made us feel really comfortable. He seemed to have a sixth sense when in the National Parks and clearly knew a great deal about animal behavior.
Everything ran smoothly and the accommodation lived up to our expectations.
If you are thinking of booking a safari, I can definitely reccomend Tanzania Horizon Safaris. Our time was definitely a once in a lifetime experience.
US
It was amazing.
I have been to Africa five times. This trip was amazing the service was wonderful. The guide was so knowledgeable and friendly. It was a pleasure. It was all we expected and more.
FR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Pretty good guide but better cook needed
Everything was ok but the meals. I'm a vegetarian and I've been a bit disappointed with the dishes served.
CH
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Wonderful honeymoon with The Safari Source
We booked our honeymoon with The Safari Source and could not be happier. Together with Monika we agreed on a tailor-made itinerary that was just perfect for us. Monika send us recommended lodges based on our ideas and wishes and organized all the lodges, transports and extra activities.
We visited three camps in Botswana, the Victoria Falls and Hwange National Park. The camps were amazing and all the flight and bus transfers were well organized.
We had an amazing time and would highly recommend The Safari Source!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Safari in Addo, then self drive on Garden Route to Cape Town
We were a family of 5 adults, visiting SA for the first time. We drove between Port Elizabeth and Cape Town via The Garden Route. Our first destination was Schotia Private Game Reserve, were we stayed in lodges within the park for 2 nights. We had several game drives and saw plenty. The accommodation was very comfortable, our guides very knowledgeable and the food was tasty, but simple, however, they were not really geared up for catering for vegetarians!
Our next stop was Jeffrey’s Bay, which was great for surfing, but that was about all! We stayed at The Savoy, which was dated and in need of some re-decoration.
Tsitsikamma next, where we thoroughly enjoyed our Treetop Canopy Tour. We stayed at Swallows Nest, where we had a small cottage, which was well equipped and very comfortable. We ate at Rafters restaurant, which was walking distance, good food and very friendly staff.
Then on to Knysna, where we stayed for 2 nights over Christmas. We stayed in Moncrief Manor, lovely accommodation with stunning views, but a bit too far out of town and sleepy. The walls between rooms were very thin, which meant that you could overhear conversations and snoring! The breakfast was delicious and our host, Kevin, very friendly.
We had Christmas lunch at Simola Hotel and Golf complex which had stunning views and a Christmasy vibe. The food was buffet style, with plenty of choice and the wines were great. Thankfully, our Tour operator Elaine, had pre-booked a transfer there and back, so that we could indulge ourselves!
On Boxing Day we drove back along the coast, went for lunch at Cornuti Al Mare in Plettenberg Bay. The service was terrible, we waited for an hour and a half for our food, which when it arrived, was cold. This made us late for our visit to Monkeyland and meant that we didn’t have time to see Birds of Eden. In the evening we drove quite a way to eat at Butterfly Blu in Brenton-on-Sea, which was a beautiful location, but the food was average.
Next day we drove to Oudtshoorn, where we stayed in Gumtree Guest House. Our host Phil and his wife were extremely friendly, helpful and entertaining. The accommodation was lovely. We visited Cango Caves and an Ostrich farm....both well worth a visit.
A long drive the next day to the stunning Franschhoek! This place was the highlight of our trip. It is a place where we wished we had stayed for longer. Our accommodation in Cape Vue Country House was luxurious and the scenery was out of this world. We went on the Wine Tram, stopping at three different wineries, Rickety Bridge, Holden Manz and Chamonix. We ate at French Connection, where we had a fantastic dinner. We will definitely return to Franschhoek in the future, there are lots of lovely restaurants and wineries to visit and more!
We drove to St Helena Bay via Stellenbosch, stopping at Kannonkop winery and then had lunch at Delhiem winery, which was really good.
We arrived quite late in the day to St Helena Bay, but had a stroll along the vast beach. We got the impression that this is a place to chill out! Our host at Absolute Beach was very friendly and hospitable.
The final leg of our trip was 3 nights in Cape Town. We stayed centrally in Cloud 9 Boutique hotel. The rooms were very comfortable and the roof top bar had stunning views of Table Mountain and surroundings. There was a great choice at breakfast, which was served at the adjacent bistro.
We visited Table Mountain, some of us via the cable car, for which we queued for 2 hours in the heat and others walked up.....a strenuous climb taking about 2 and a half hours. Amazing views at the top. We avoided the 2 hour queue for the cable car and chose to walk down.
We had New Year’s Eve on the V &A waterfront, which we had Pre-booked. The fireworks were amazing and the whole ambience was lively.
Our trip was organised by Go Self-Drive Tours. We were very pleased with the itinerary, car, restaurant recommendations and accommodation. The communication was excellent and the trip was a great eye opener to see what SA has to offer and has left us keen to return to some of the places we visited.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A memorable trip on Rovos Rail to Victoria Falls followed by 6 nights safari in Botswana
We were delighted with the tailor made itinerary Clyde arranged to fulfil our long held wish to combine a journey on the Rovos Rail to Victoria Falls with a safari experience in Botswana. The ground arrangements were excellent and the tour ran smoothly throughout. We were impressed with the knowledge & attention to detail in the planning particularly the safari element. Although the dry season the choice of two contrasting camps ensured we experienced many game & wildlife sightings. Everything added up to a most memorable & enjoyable holiday.
CL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing fun and safe experience
In few words, our safari was MUCH better than expected. The scenic views, the wildlife and the way every animal was found in nature was a unique experience. The accommodations were also better that we have imagined when we booked a 'budget safari', everything seemed very safe and well maintained.
Our preferred park was Masai Mara, very beautiful and full of wildlife. Seeing rhinos at Lake Nakuru was also a marvelous experience. On the other hand was Amboseli park, which, because of rain seasons, was not as amazing as it is supposed to be on dry seasons. Nevertheless, we spotted mating lions and a huge pack of elephants from very close, which was very exciting.
If I had to name a downside for the whole safari it would be the food. It was very delicious and abundant everywhere, but there was a specific place where we had lunch 2 days in a row that gave my wife and I stomach issues for 4-5 days.
All this was briefly opaqued by the miscommunication problem when transferring from Amboseli to Arusha, where we were left stranded at the bus station, but Diana (from Sterling travel) responded very well after we could communicate, offering a fair solution.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Spontaneous safari
We came to Uganda a bit unprepared so that we booked it (8 days through Uganda, 1999 US$) only fife days before the tour started.
All in all it worked out pretty well. We had the most amazing experiences visiting the Gorillas and having all the other experiences.
The accommodations and the food that was provided three times a day were very good. Being two university students we most likely would have booked less comfortable lodges and hotels and eaten less often and in less expensive restaurants.
The transport was mostly good. We had a very kind and caring driver who even picked us up from Jinja which was an extra two hour drive for him. Unfortunately, the car broke down twice within the eight days which caused some irritation and made us wonder about the State of our car .
Even though they handled both breakdowns pretty good we would have enjoyed a better communication about how it might affect our plans for the day.
In addition to that we would recommend to read the program carefully. At two occasions the guides forgot about smaller activities mentioned on the program.
The payment has been quite stressful for us as we did not bring that much cash to Uganda an the ATMs wouldn’t let us withdraw more than two million a day (of course this a problem that occurred due to our spontaneous booking). Nevertheless, we would have enjoyed to be able to pay with either credit card or by money transfer.
All in all it was a good experience and we would mostly recommend it.
Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Orange adventures is simply amazing, its services are out of this world
Orange adventures is one tour company that's doing the unimaginable to make their guests feel at home and enjoy their safari. All communications are done in time and in a polite and friendly way, the customer care is great! From neat tour guides to comfortable tour vans and great discounts. Orange adventures takes you to new places, amazing destinations you never knew existed! Indeed, thank you so much for the experience.
I'm planning another trip soon, can't wait. Orange adventures is my choice always
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect tours to Maasai Mara and Mount Kenya
In March 2017 I booked a Safari on Maasai Mara Train with Wilson. I went to Maasai Mara, Lake Naivasha and Lake Nakuru and I really enjoyed it. I was the only one who booked with him so I was in a group with people from another agency and everything went well. Only on the first day we had a little car problem and missed the evening game drive but the next day we did a longer drive instead. Unfortunately I didn't see rhinos and leopards but many other beautiful animals such as lions, elephants, giraffes, cheetahs, buffalos, hippos, crocodiles, monkeys, ... And I liked the landscape around the two lakes a lot.
Because I had such a good time on the Safari I also booked a Mount Kenya trip with Wilson in April 2017. We were 2 tourists, Wilson as a guide and his brother as a cook and went up to the Lenana peak. There was a list what to take with me but Wilson provided everything that I didn't have including walking boots, sleeping bag, gloves and a flashlight. The last night before the summit at 4200m was quite cold and we had to wake up around 3 the next morning but seeing the sunrise on Mount Kenya was totally worth it. And on the way down where it was getting warmer again breakfast was already waiting for us. By the way the food was much better than I expected it to be on a mountain. We had chicken one day and fish the other day and always a lot of Chapati.
I had 2 really good tours with Maasai Mara Train and can highly recommend them.
Thank you Wilson!