20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari, bad timing
I want to first say that our guide, Rodger, was excellent. He was very knowledgeable and helped us find all the ‘Big 5’ and many other beautiful animals. The accommodations were lovely- the campsite was great to connect with nature, and the hotel was comfortable and clean with tasty meals. The game drives were fantastic.
The reason I gave this safari a 3/5 is not the fault of the guide. On May 18th, the 3rd day of the safari, there were massive protests over gas prices all over Kenya, which turned into rioting, blocking roads and stopping cars. This is not the fault of Axis. The issue was the way the company handled the situation (this does not include Rodger- he was calm under pressure and kept us as safe as possible). Part of the issue here is that Axis combines travelers who are on different tours without clarifying it. There were people on the tour that were only there for 3 days, while others booked for 4 or more. This means that our third day involved bringing the people who had to go back to the office to a drop off point near Nairobi. This is where we got stranded for multiple hours with very little communication or assistance from the office. We spent the whole morning driving, leaving at 6 am, arriving midday and then staying in place. When asked about a refund of some sort for the day that really only included 2 hours of activity, we were told ‘well, day 3 is always a travel day’. The itinerary does not disclose that. They make it look as if there’s multiple activities that happen on day 3. On top of that, guests on our safari had to pay to change flights, without help from the office or clarification on what would happen to help them. Two of the people who were split from the group eventually to go to the airport were hit with a bag of rocks through the window of the car they were put in, leading to them being covered in glass. Again, this isn’t something the company can necessarily control, but the things they can control were handled poorly in my opinion.
Again, this would’ve been a great safari. The issues I had were partially the situation but mostly the office’s handling of it. Rodger was an excellent guide.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Set and forget (Vic Falls Safari Lodge did it)
While the lodge staff and the experiences werefantastic, Safari.com provided no itinerary, luxury deck on cruise not honoured.
It was like a set and forget.
Once we had booked and paid there was little or no communication from them.
Hence we arived at Lodge not having an itinerary!
We had to take a photo of our itinerary from lodge to find out what it was!!
After I booked, did not communicate what she should have.
I had a good experience booking my trip, but after I paid, communication was lacking. When I was looking to book, the agent got back to me very quickly. Once I paid, it could be days before I heard from her. I've never used a travel agent before, but I expected to be told more. I was not given a detailed itinerary until a day into our trip by someone else on the ground, who was supposed to be available to me. Also had no idea we were flying into Zimbabwe (supposed to go to Zambia and Botswana). We needed a Declaration and $100 US dollars to enter the country. This was not communicated to me at all!!, and we almost didn't make it in. I assumed a travel agent would let know. Am I wrong?? Then I got very sick (got insurance with booking) and asked the person I was to contact on the ground what to do, and crickets. The actual places and things that were booked were wonderful and exactly what I wanted. It would have been nice to have the communication, especially since I was't sure we could continue in Zimbabwe and would have to return to South Africa.
RU
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Too few activities
The overall experience is nice, you are welcomed, you get safari experience , you have breakfast and (if in tents) dinner, but you don’t have too much activities during the day, usually only half a day is busy, the rest you’re by yourself. You cannot go 100m from the tents, the coordinator will follow you even in walks and safaris (even though you’ve got a guide), which felt weird.. The mokoro safari actually means just a transfer from the shore to the tented camp.. Honestly speaking you’d see much more if you rent a car and travel by yourself, it will cost the same, but your days will be full. Anyway great thanks to our guides : Hipo, Tomly (despite frightening experience on hippos lake) , chef Gift who is really gifted to serve food made on fire better than in all restaurants visited. It was unforgettable experience. But next time we’ll take a car))
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Review about Serengeti National Park by Sara Silvestri
The park is hugely overcrowded, safari vehicles are everywhere speeding at 50 miles an hour across the park, it is impossible to have any close sightings without going off the road and pay a bribe for it due to the noise from all the cars. The whole park is completely natural with no concrete roads which some people might consider positive but that also means that you will eat dirt all day due to the cars shooting across the park. Also you will barely do a drive a day cause you will be put together with people who booked a different tier than you so you will spend 2 hours a day driving around to drop on and off all the others cause everyone stays at different sites, often over an hour away from each other. I had chosen to stay at a resort and they put me in a place an hour away from the entrance so I only slept one night at the park and was mostly on the road to be dropped on and off. I have seen the campsites where the others were staying and the state of them was absolutely shameful. Charging foreign visitors $100 a day so shower in cold water in dirty shared facilities. Unbelievable.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Sara Silvestri
The only highlight was the accomodation overlooking the lake, the wildlife was extremely poor and we drove there in the middle of the day when it was probably too hot to spot lions.
NO
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Definitely not mid-range standard
I did the 21-day accomdated Cape to Vic Falls tour.
Guides: were polite, nice and knowledgeable. Really the best part of what Sunway provided is them. And the only reason I have given 3 stars on this review.
Food: was good, better than expected often. Breakfast was ok, camping style most days, so not great. Dinner was always good and lunch varied more. Though the food was good, some days it was too little/light and we were quite hungry by the time dinner came.
Truck: The truck is good, well designed. But I do believe the space is a bit too small for full occupation. When it’s not full occupation is good.
Group composition: I was told the average is around 50 years old (which I thought was a bit high already), but in reality it was 70 years old average - definitely not fun to end up in a senior group if you are in your 30s or early 40s.
Accommodation: for the most absolutely horrible. Budget level and below (even though the tour is advertised as mid-range in safaribookings). Maybe 2 out of all the places we stayed for 21 days could potentially be considered mid-range. I was so disgusted at some of the places that I could not sleep. I expressed this concern in the booking process (done directly with Sunways, no third party), and the indirect response was to check out the lodges websites, which obviously I did (several times), but pictures were with no exceptions better than the reality. I would definitely not have traveled with Sunways had I known that, and this is the reason why I will no longer travel with them and cannot recommend.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Initial reasonable price comes at a cost - an uncomfortable experience
Pre-trip communication was top notch from Tracy.
As expected on any and all safaris in the Masai Mara / Serengeti - we saw everything we expected to (except Rhino) - but that's a given, that's why people travel from all over the globe to this place. So I'll not focus on what we saw but the rest of our experience.
The cost of the safari which included a one night stay in a camp site near the Masai Mara was about $1560 for 3 people.
I initially thought the price was reasonable, but the quality of the vehicle was really poor (super uncomfortable, poor leg room, leaked / poured water when raining in multiple places simultaneously) and the camp site was awful (food, bed comfort, service - all of it).
Whilst the driver / guide was friendly and somewhat knowledgeable, we did have to hold him to account a few times. E.g. he told us to have breakfast in the campsite at 0530 ready to leave at 0630 (service is very slow so you do need to leave an hour for a greasy omelette). Half asleep we were there at 0530 and ready to leave 0625, which is when he strolls in and sits down to order his breakfast. We had to tell him "We're ready to leave, we were up at 0430 packing and here for breakfast an hour ago ordering and eating like you told us, but now you want us to wait an hour for you to order and eat? No, not happening sorry, let's go". This kind of attitude just sours the experience, although he took this well without complaint / attitude, it's just unnecessary. Be professional and remember this is a once in a life time experience for most.
Given how affordable both accommodation and vehicle hire is in Kenya (especially in low season when we went), I think $1500+ for a one night trip is too pricey. Had a more appropriate vehicle been provided, and had the accommodation felt less one star and more three star, I think it'd make a vast difference.
In a nutshell, I would not recommend this experience.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Could do better
I recently used Kaitech Travel for my trip planning and overall, their service was okay and the trip was well arranged. However, there are a few areas where they need to improve, especially communication.
The most significant issue I experienced was poor communication regarding flight changes. I arrived at the airport only to be informed that my flight had been cancelled, yet the agent had not communicated this to me in advance. This caused a lot of inconvenience and stress that could have been avoided with timely updates.
Additionally, I paid for E-visa application services for three people, but I ended up applying for two of the E-visas myself. This was disappointing as I had already paid for the service.
Kaitech Travel is a good company with potential, but they need to improve their communication with clients, especially concerning flight changes and services paid for. Better coordination and timely updates would greatly improve the customer experience.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Pleasant
Thomas, our driver was pleasant enough. Driving is a little aggressive, however road conditions may play a role.