50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Hiking in South Africa great nature !
A fantastic trip in the real Africa ! A mix of hikes, walks and swim in mountains, villages and the coast. From Drakensberg to Wild Coast, and through Lesoto.
Very well organised, with good accomodation and food, with some basic nights in small villages. Close to the nature, close to people living there. Far from the cities and usual tourist destinations.
Recommanded !
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Give Top Cream Safari a chance and they'll impress. Trustworthy/great communication, simply the best
Mini Version: We went for a 5 day Safari and the communication, service and friendliness of this tour operator is something you not only need but want when you are checking off this bucket list item. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Now to the long version:
Before arriving in Kenya:
We decided on going to Kenya after I was dragging my feet for several years. I started reaching out to multiple tour operators in both Kenya and Tanzania. We settled on Kenya because of the direct flight from JFK so I narrowed the search down to tour operators in Kenya, and as you know by this point probably there are quite a few of them. What narrowed down my decision to choosing Top Cream tours initially was the price they provided for the same service others were offering however this wasn't the deciding factor. We had the choice narrowed to a few but when you are sitting thousands of miles away and contemplating whether to trust a tour operator with no presence in major travel review sites, it was this tour operators instant and courteous communication that made me pick them and we are so glad we did!
After arrival in Kenya:
Erastus made sure to visit us in the hotel to go over the tour details and provide us a receipt for the payments we did online and in person. He brought the drive with himself so we get aquatinted. John(our driver) is a fantastic tour guide, we are quite people and enjoy our times away from the hustle of NYC and John gave us the quite ride we needed, with his driving we felt safe and had no problem communicating any changes or requests.
Throughout the trip the tour operator made sure to reach out to us to make sure we are all good and don't have any issues, we even decided mid-tour to extend the trip 1 day beyond what we initially planned for and they were so accommodating. We left all the decisions at their mercy and were not disappointed at all.
On our way to airport Erastus made sure to meet us and make sure we have had a good time. They even walked us to the gates. After we returned home, they reached out and made sure we are safe and that we were happy with their services.
One of the concerns I had was deciding between the Jeep and the Van, We chose to go with the latter and I can tel you the quality of the Van they provided was very good and we felt very confident that it won't leave us stranded. I doubt it would be any different for the Jeep so book with confidence.
Disclosure: I have not been paid or compensated in for this review in any way.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Well organized Safari in Kenya !
John and Lucy from Aramati were very skilful to help us for scheduling our trip. They were patient and understanding about what we wanted for the safari, and made their best to plan a journey according to our wishes.
During the safari, everything was conducted correctly. Joseph, the driver, is very knowledgeable therefore we could learn a lot about this beautiful country and its wildlife.
The only negative point was the communication with the driver. At the end the driver seemed tired but didn't tell us about it. He rather lie to us and looked for excuses (that turned out to be false reasons) in order to shorten a game drive. We really didn't appreciate that behaviour, and we would prefer knowing the truth directly.
Except for this last misunderstanding we spent a great time travelling in Kenya and we recommend Aramati for your Safari tour.
SG
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
8-day Victoria Falls to the Okavango Delta: Great guide, wonderful experience!
A BIG THANK YOU to Blessing, Mthokozisi and Pamela! We took a 8-day Safari tour and it was a memorable experience for us. Blessing and Pamela responded very promptly to all our email and queries and everything during the trip was well-organised and planned efficiently. It was a good itinerary and met our expectations. Mthokozisi was our guide and he looked after us extremely well. He was warm, friendly and we had lots of good conversations during the entire tour. He even went the extra step and taught us about the culture, customs, traditions, local knowledge and history of the countries and looked out for animals while driving. I strongly recommend this tour operator for those who are keen on any of their packages. Well done, Africa Zim Travel and Mthokozisi!!
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Top-notch tour with an excellent company
Our tour with Bright African Safaris was excellent. Bright African was very accommodating of our requests to customize their standard trip, including changes in itinerary and lodges. The lodges and camps they recommended for us were without exception quite comfortable. Our guide, Khamis, was always cheerful, knowledgeable and willing to accommodate whatever we wanted to do. Early on, he asked us how long we wanted to stay our each day. Full of enthusiasm, we said "as long as possible." He uncomplainingly kept us out touring every day until there was barely enough time to change and clean up for dinner. It wasn't till halfway through our trip that we realized that he was also cleaning the truck in the evening and getting lunches ready for us the next day while we were relaxing, making for an extremely long day for him, and that we could use a little more downtime too. Also, since this was our second safari, and we had become birders since our first one, we spent a long time watching and identifying birds rather than just focusing on the mammals. Once again, he was completely accommodating, working with us and a couple of bird books as long as needed to help us identify every last one. When we stopped for lunch at popular places, he also was careful to park on the outskirts of the car park and position the truck so our lunchtime view was of nature rather than other trucks. And he frequently was able to obtain pre-cooked meals from the camp chefs for our lunches so we did not eat what seems to have been the country-wide standard boxed lunch every day. Our drive from the Ngorongoro Sopa hoel into the Ngorongoro Crater on the Sopa Road could have been dangerous -- there was thick fog and misting rain, making it difficult to see oncoming traffic until the last second. Khamis was a careful, meticulous driver, navigating situations that would have made me very uncomfortable if I had been driving. He was also quite knowledgeable about the animals we saw. I highly recommend this company.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A Safari is an unforgettable event in your live and a nice Safari team is a part of this experience.
A Safari is an unforgettable event in your live and a nice Safari team is a part of this experience.
We booked a 4-day safari to Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater from Arusha at Godson Adventures and were lucky to travel with Edward our guide and Michael the cook. It was a great experience and we saw many animals and experienced a great landscape. Our guide explained a lot and we could ask many questions.
At night we stayed at campsides and spend great nights in the tent with all the animals around us. Michael our cook prepared delicous african food for us. We had interesting discussions and exchange during the meals that we spend together.
Godson-adventures cared for us perfectly. It was easy to book, we had all the comfort we needed and did not miss anything.
We can absolutely recommend a safari with Godson-Adventures.
Thanks a lot from us to Godson Adventures & our great team!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Can't wait to go again!
I had a wonderful life experience with Afrishare, it exceeded my expectations at every turn!
During the booking process, Ibrahim was always quick to respond, open to specific hotel requests and itinerary changes, while offering a very competitive price. I received quotes from more than a dozen safari operators before selecting Afrishare, and am so glad I did! Our itinerary included tarangire, serengeti with hot air balloon, crater, and lake eyasi with cultural visits to Hadzabe and Datoga tribes, starting and ending the trip at Arusha. Ibrahim patiently reconfirmed each point a week before the trip. It all flowed smoothly during the trip, an entirely hassle free experience with only wonderful surprises.
Both Ibrahim and Freddy were waiting for us as expected at airport arrivals. We then headed on with our guide Freddy. The landcruiser had all the features mentioned including pop up front roof, and was clean and comfortable. Freddy definitely made the trip a fantastic one. Very professional, gave clear directions and answers, and let us know what to expect everyday. Great attitude, very patient with our repeated questions and outrageous animal sighting requests
ES
IT was an incredible experience. Price was also very good.
Breakfast and Dinner was realy good.
Maybe the Lunch was for me little oily. But the quantity ist perfekt. Driver was also very Nice.
And the acomodation was a realy good experience. In Serengeti Like in ngorongoro we sleep in tent. IT was clear, also the bathroom. In Serengeti the water was cold. But that wasn't a Problem. And in ngorongoro the water was warm, we Had also WiFi in the camp.
We Had the oportunuti for Charge the electonik device in the Car.
The Car was also confortable.
We Had Problem for pay the Safari because we book it 3 days before so the Transfer Took 1 week but the company makes it easy.
So for me was an unforgettable experience.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
We didn't get what we paid for or what was outlined in the itinerary
Day 1 - Collection from hotel was fine, on time. No problems with long drive or communication. Itinerary outlined a game drive from 2pm - 6pm, but we only did a game drive for approx 90mins. Lodge was excellent, however that has nothing to do with the tour company.
Day 2 - Full day game drive. Lodge told us to leave as early as possible 7am at latest, driver arranged to start at 8am. We saw everything we wanted to on this day. Lions, Cheetah, Leopard, Giraffe, Elephant, Hippo. However this was more due to the abundance on wildlife and luck than the drivers skill or anything like that. I can't really complain too much about this day, as we saw everything we wanted to.
Day 3 - We were supposed to have a game drive in the morning (leaving the lodge at 8am) before heading straight from the game drive back to Nairobi. However our driver slept in and missed his alarm and we were waiting for him to wake up and were late leaving. Upon arriving at the park entrance our driver welcomed a "park ranger" on board who he said we were "giving him a lift" we then proceeded into the park, where we just drove on the main road until we happened to chance upon a cheetah, who was starting a hunt. The driver stopped the van and we asked him to put up the roof of the van so we could get a better look, he refused saying it would interfere with the hunt, however he was talking and laughing with other guides in other vans and his phone was ringing loudly, so I didn't buy that excuse! We asked him again and he still refused, so we had to take pictures through the window. After a few minutes he drove off, and we left the hunt/stalk while it was still in progress/just about to start. We were so annoyed, especially as countless other vans and 4x4s were heading towards the cheetah, while we were driving away from it. We felt like we couldn't complain too much to the driver as we still needed him to take us back to Nairobi and didn't want him to get angry and leave us in the middle of nowhere! He continued driving on the main road through the park and didn't once go on a different road, he then exited the park. Meaning we did not have our morning game drive, he just drove straight through the park from once entrance to another, without lifting the roof - we just happened to stumble across a cheetah. If we hadn't seen that he would not have stopped once! This is not a game drive. We were basically being a taxi service for his friend/ranger. When we got to Narok, the "park ranger" exited the van and he continued to take us back to Nairobi, which was fine.
Overall absolutely disgusted with the final day and lack of game drive! The fact that he drove away from a Cheetah hunt that was in progress is absolutely indefensible - and also twice refusing to open the roof so we could look at the Cheetah while we were there.
I don't know if this was just our driver or it is the company (as our driver said he was fairly new to Wildebeest) But I wouldn't use them again!!
I will formally complain to Wildebeest about this....
SG
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience in Masai Mara
We were a family of 4 adults on a Safari to Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru.
Our guide, Andrew was excellent. He had great knowledge and hawk eyes to pick animals. We saw all the Big 5 multiple times each during the 3 days. Besides the regular sightings, we saw a family of 4 Cheetahs prowling, a pride of lions making a kill, a prowling leopard, a lion looking for food, a big family of 14 ostriches. We were lucky to see the tail end of the migration of wildebeests and zebras, which was running a littke delayed this year.
Andrew was very flexible and accommodating to all our requests and Noah did a great job for making all the admin arrangements. The drive from Nairobi to Masai Mara was very bumpy (no fault of Wildebeest) but Andrew managed it well.
Would recommend Wildebeest Safaris to anyone making a trip to Kenya.