50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing time at amazing places with amazing people
A week after my safari I can write for this amazing time. For me it will be alive experience. Caribu organized everithing perfect. Our drivers were not ordinery drivers. They were excellent guides who knew where and when to see all animals in Massai Mara Nakuru and Amboseli national parks. They find and whow us everithing which we were coming in Kenya for-lions chitas leopards elephands rinos jursfas zebras antilopas and many moore. We sow sunrise and dunset in savanah and they are so beautiful. Caribu staff are very kind helofull and nice biys. Thank you Karibu!If you want to make a very nice and unforgetable safari use Karibu! You can trust this company that they will make your dreams became an amazing unforgetable adventure!
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wildebeest Safaris exceeded our expectations
We booked a weeklong safari at Wildebeest Safaris for our honeymoon. We deliberately decided to book directly in Kenya and not with a German tour operator to support a local provider and then save the commission of the German provider, who ultimately buys the service on site.
Our entire trip was very well organized, all transfers worked flawlessly, the Landcruisers were in good condition and our guides were really knowledgeable and fun.
From Nairobi we started in the Masai Mara and our guide Andrew gave us two unforgettable days with special impressions. Afterwards, we were handed over to Hamza on the border with Tanzania and visited the Ngorongoro after two days in the Serengeti. He too was competent and happy to be at work. Finally, we saw all the big animals and collected unforgettable impressions, including African massage ;-)
The booking of the luxury accommodations (Mara Eden Camp, Serengeti Tortilis Camp, Ngorongoro Serena Lodge) was easy and we were also well looked after there. Finally we were handed over again on the border with Kenya and taken to the airport Nairobi. The changes at the border took place without any problems and without waiting times.
Overall, our safari was very well organized, with the two guides we had a lot of fun and therefore we can recommend Wildebeest Safaris with a clear conscience.
CA
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Very poor organzation with outright cheating as we didn't get th promised game drives and hotels
We went on a tour with Vincent Seth from Trip Advisor African Safaris(from the 7-24th of Sept 2018) and I would like to make the following comments.
We paid the money in 3 installments - First about 4 months ago, 2nd about a month ago and the last installment when we arrived in Nairobi (this is the way he asked).
Tour - Group = 12 to be accommodated in 2 vehicles as a private tour with an English speaking Driver/Guide. Tour 11days in Kenya/Tanzania with 5 of us doing an optional 4 day tour at the beginning in Zanzibar.
Day 1 - Zanzibar : Driver who picked us up spoke practically no English(acceptable for this part bout not later when touring). We were to have 3 singles and 1 double but when we got there the hotel stated we were booked as a triple and 1 double. Had to contact Vincent (while sharing a room for the initial hours by 2 of us - 3rd arrived later) who corrected the problem. Excellent Hotel (Blue Bay Resort). The day we arrived we were to on a Spice Tour in the afternoon - Driver who dropped as well as his Zanzibar contact(Willie) didn't inform us that somebody would be arriving to at 2PM to pick us up (when we have gone on tours the driver before leaving gives clear cut instructions a to the next pick up time-but this didn't happen). We were in the restaurant but whoever arrived at 2PM didn't bother to look for us but left after a while(if he told the front desk they would have had no difficulty locating us as we were only 30 metres away).
Day 2 : We went on the missed Spice Tour followed by the Old Town Tour - Guides very knowledgeable and overall very good tour; Suggestion - We were taken for lunch to a restaurant stating it is local food although the food was essentially Indian Food (which I know has a big influence on the local cuisine). There were other tourists there with the lunch acceptable. After the lunch during the tour we were taken to a colonial hotel with a nice restaurant overlooking the bay - It would have been better to give an option to the tourists to go to the usual place vs this restaurant (for an additional charge) as we anyway stopped there for tea, thus spending time.
Day 3: All problems commenced. On our schedule we were to be taken for a boat tour to see Dolphins followed by lunch and a tour to local sanctuary for a visit including a Colobus Monkey viewing. We had a 2hr drive to go to the Dolphin site (+ 2hrs back). The driver spoke no English at all. When we reached the beach there wasn't a single other tourist there (thus I am not sure whom they sub-contracted to do the tour). The motor boat was fine but the life jackets provided were old and frayed with the zips not functional. There was only one additional straps on the jacket (usually has 2-3) with the no clips to latch. Thus we tied the 2 frayed ends with an hand done knot. This in my opinion is gross negligence and dangerous. As you are aware a large number of people died in a Ferry accident in Tanzania a few days ago. The boat driver again spoke very little English. After the boat ride the car driver stated that he was asked to take us back to the hotel and that he wasn't told about lunch/Colobus monkey tour. After our insistence he had a back and forth discussion with Willlie with the phone handed to us to argue with him with regards to provision of the remaining portion of the trip. After wasting nearly 1hr the driver was told to take us back to the boat area to a restaurant - When we taken to this beach side restaurant there was not a single customer in the restaurant and there was not a single staff person to be seen either. We certainly weren't prepared to have lunch there and asked the driver to take us back to the hotel. We were not expecting a fancy restaurant(I have eaten at many beachside cafes in the Caribbean) but this place wasn't suitable to have a meal. The only people in the restaurant were 4 young kids seated and playing cards.
Day 4: Arrived in Nairobi. Taken to Sarova Stanley hotel- An excellent hotel. Vincent Seth was there. It took nearly 2hrs to get the rooms as Vincent had not made the bookings according to what we paid for ( 5 double/twin rooms and 2 singles). However we took this in good stride but informed Vincent that he needs to make a list citing the names and the room allocations and fax it to all the other hotels in advance to expedite the check in. Vincent spent a lot of time asking us to write all the names in detail citing the room requirements (all this info was already sent to him beforehand). However the next day he brought a sheet written by him many names misspelt and handing over to us. I explained to him that he needs to fax this the hotels and there was no need to give each of us copies. The list was ultimately not faxed to any of the hotels except possibly one.
Day 5 (Tour Of Nairobi): Vincent arrived late and stated that another person from England was going to joining us in our tour. This was a total surprise as we were to have a private tour. Although the person was quite nice having the 7th person in the van resulted in limitations for space to carry luggage as well as inconvenience when trying to jockey for position during game viewing(especially in Tanzaniawhere the truck had only 7 Tour of Nairobi -although identified we were not taken to the Nairobi Natl park, Blixen Museum etc - Vincent had too many things on the schedule and the drivers didn't have copies of the schedules with them (This was an issue throughout the tour where not a single driver/guide had the schedule given to us. Evening - Dinner at Carnivoro Restaurant - Nice
Day 6 : Told by Vincent that we would reach Lake Nakuru in 2-3hrs (and we would have a full game drive there) with his drivers insisting that it would take 4-5hrs (the latter turned out to be correct). Nice Hotel
Day 7/8 : Masai Mara - No issues although game drive on last day not done as road issues forcing a detour.
Day 9/10 : Serengeti Serena Lodge - Excellent hotel and good game drives. When we went to check out of the hotel after staying 2 nights the Manager told us that we cannot leave as the hotel has not been paid for the 2 nights with only a deposit made. He wanted us to pay US$ 5100.00. We obviously refused but were held hostage at this hotel until 1145AM. We had to make dozens of phone calls to get hold of Vincent and his Tanzania agent (Ibrahim) to arrange for the payment. Ibrahim stated that Vincent hadn't paid him and Vincent stated that Ibrahim had played him out. In addition to the mental anguish we missed the morning game drive. If anybody disbelieves this please feel free to phone the Mgr at the Serengeti Serena - his name was Vincent as well
Day 10 -we were to be taken to the Ngorongoro Serena Lodge for the night(as per our schedule) but the drivers stated that we should go to Lake Manyara Serena to allow for proper game drives at Ngorongoro as well as Tarangerie. Ultimately we had totally inadequate game drive at Ngorongoro and never got any worthwhile game drive at Tarangerie either(see reasons below). We were unfortunately naïve to believe this with Vince stating later that the Ngorongoro Serena and the Lake Manyara Serena are similarly priced - however when I checked on the Serena website a few days ago the Ngorongora Serena was listed at US$480 and the Lake Manyara Serena at US$ 280.00 (thus we were cheated again).
Day 11- We were driven to Tarangarie Natl Park(90 minutec drive) to be accommodated at the Sopa Lodge in Tarangerie for the night (as per original schedule). Throughout the day we had no confirmation from Vincent or Ibrahim as to where we are going (we repeatedly asked the drivers who stated that they were also not told). After doing a very short game drive(less than 2hrs) we were told that we are to be housed in Arusha (and not in the Tarngarie Park). We drove another 2 1/2 hrs and were taken to the Impala Hotel in Arusha - A very run down hotel with bare electrical wires hanging from the wall.
Day 12 - Amboseli - Good hotel but again as per schedule we were to be taken to the Amboseli Serena within the park for lunch - Instead box lunch given cutting their costs.
All in all the organization was terrible and I wouldn't recommend anybody to book with this company. I have been to numerous countries in the world in many continents but have never seen a person as disorganized as this. I simply do not believe some of the comments on the website stating Vincent was well organized unless we are referring to a different person. A prime example of his lack of understanding is illustrated by the following. My friend texted Vincent from Zanzibar asking him whether he could arrange a late check out as his flight was in the late afternoon (we left in the morning). The reply from Vincent was Jambo - "I would be more than happy to arrange an early checkout for you with the hotel"! As everybody is aware the cost for the tour at this site is substantially less than if you booked through an agent in North America. However this discount is essentially based on avoiding the commission charged by the agent in America - As ultimately they book though agents in the developing countries sometimes even go though other agents in UK etc (with everybody keeping a cut). We have booked though local agents and visited Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and recently Myanmar. We have never had this type of experience. In fact this was my 2nd visit to Kenya/Tanzania. When we went 15yrs ago we used an agent in Nairobi where the price charged was about $2000.00 less than the price asked by North American travel agents. We had absolutely no issues at that time with all hotels provided as per schedule with each driver having a copy of the schedule given to us. Having said all this the only redeeming feature was that we saw loads of wildlife during this tour with the experience exceeding our expectations. This as you know is partly luck and partly the efforts of the drivers. If by chance we didn't see much the trip would have been considered as one of the most terrible tours that I have had. The drivers/guides were quite good with a lot of knowledge on the animals including birds. However I felt that the drivers in Tanzania played us out working in conjunction with the agent - Missing 3-4 game drives, switching to cheaper hotels etc
Mano
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent budget safari
Overall the safari was great. Our guide was friendly and knowledgeable and we saw so many animals. We were picked up from our Airbnb outside of Nairobi and driven to the office the morning we departed. The amenities at the camps outside the parks were not luxurious, but certainly adequate. The food was substantive and lunch was provided each day, as promised, while on game drives or driving between parks. Communicating with Robert was very easy as he was very responsive. One thing to be aware of is that if you’re doing a multi-day safari visiting different parks then one day may not include a game drive, but just driving between parks. We did a 5 day safari to Masai Mara and Amboseli, which actually was 1.5 day drives in each park. The morning of first (6 HRs) and all day of third day was driving (11.5 hrs). That’s inevitable because of the distance - but whereas some safaris may fly you into the parks, this safari route is all driving. Also, with these types of safaris you may be picking up and dropping off group members as not everyone is on the same schedule. We did encounter one miscommunication where our transportation to Mombasa wasn’t as we expected. We actually had to backtrack a few hours and pick up an intercity bus for 8 hours to get to our destination, where as we thought the Safari van or transport associated with the safari would bring us there. It was a bit of an added stressor and if we had known it was a public bus we may have arranged other transportation for that last day. All in all it was a great adventure, and a great deal for what you get, but just make sure to be clear on transportation and your agenda!
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
JP
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent Tour! Safe and Efficient!
I could see so many precious scenes such as lions eating a wildebeest and cheetahs eating an antelope. My family and friends don't believe that I took those pictures, but I really took them! :D I really enjoyed the tour of Tanzania Roadside Expeditions.
Before I went to Tanzania, I had sent a lot of emails to Paul to ask about the itinerary, hotel and the price. He patiently answered them and arranged the itinerary for me. Also he came to pick me up at the airport on the first day, and I felt relieved to see him because I traveled alone and I concerned about the safety of Arusha. During the tour I felt no danger.
James, the driver, knew where to find animals and I could see many precious scenes as I wrote above. Also his driving skill was nice. He carefully drove not to shake the car, and when we found animals, he always took the best position to observe them. Thanks to him I took so many nice pictures. Also he took me to the local market in Arusha on the last day and he explained to me the local lives in Arusha. Those were so interesting, too! :)
Also, the members of the company were so friendly and they took me to a local restaurant on the first day and final day. I really felt at home and forgot that I was traveling alone. :)
Thank you very much for all of the staffs of Tanzania Roadside Expedition! I can't believe I experienced such precious moments!
If I could go Tanzania again, I must choose same company! ;)
CH
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
reliable, experienced and friendly
We had a great journey throughout Uganda, completely fulfilling our expectations, accompanied by two welcoming guides who remain our friends. Communication was very quick and obliging, services were reliable and tailored to our wishes and interests. Thank you very much! We definitely recommend Karumuna Safaris as a tour operator.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Safari
Beacon Safaris did a great job. Robert was very responsive, answering all my e-mails and questions very promptly. We were sent a detailed itinerary and instructions about pick-up the morning our safari started. Our guide/driver, Antony, was right on time. He was very knowledgeable and went out of his way to make sure that our safari to the Maasai Mara was what we wanted. No one can guarantee what animals you can see, but Antony kept his ears open to the chatter and was able to show us the entire big-5 within 24 hours of our arrival at the Mara. He showed respect for the animals and did an excellent job telling us about them. We had a choice of lodging and the one we picked was great, more than living up to expectations. All in all, our experience with Beacon Safaris was excellent.
BR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great White Water Rafting in Uganda
We had a 1-day white water Rafting tour from Kampala to Jinja prepared by Speedway Safaris. Thanks to the excellent arrangement. Transport and lunch were fine as well as the activity itself which was memorable. We got this company from Google while at our hotel room in Kampala. We called and talked to one Kiganda who sent us an itinerary immediately and we approved it out rightly. He later came to Sheraton Hotel for payment so that the trip be done on following day. We were picked up the next day by our driver one Robert and we reached Jinja in time. We spent morning and afternoon hours on the up-roaring River Nile waters. Thanks speedway for making such a short day tour a great one. Any person can use their services for tours in Uganda.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing experience
Thank you both so much for arranging our trip, everything went very smoothly and all as planned, not one problem at all.
The safari at Spekes Camp was just out of this world! The guides were just brilliant, we saw everything and I mean everything! Including cheetah, leopard, black rhino, elephants, many lions, the list goes on! We were lucky enough to see the migration and saw zebra crossing the Mara river trying to get past 11 crocodiles and 7 lions!
It really was very special to see and as for Spekes Camp well we can not wait to go back!
We renewed our new vows in Zanzibar which was amazing the staff went above and beyond what we expected, I was walked to the ceremony with dancing and drums....slightly embarrassed but really was a great traditional service.
We would 100% recommend Safari Club services, in fact I have already given someone their details and we will be booking again!
Thanks to Ellie and Paul at Safari Club for organising the most amazing experience we have had to date, excellent service.
