The team
Karibu Safaris In Kenya
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 1986)
- Member Of:
- KATO, Tourism Regulatory Authority & Eco Toursm Kenya
- Tour Types:
- Small & medium group tours (Mid-range & luxury)
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $80 to $280 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
US
Email Jared | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Budget doesn't mean bad quality! We had an amazing time, but be prepared to sit in a car for a long
I will separate the reviews in two since Karibu is just a booking service and doesn't actually operate the tours themselves. For Karibu, Robert was always responsive to my emails, however seemed to answer my questions with minimal effort and detail so that was a bit disappointing but went with them anyways since they have good reviews. The airport pickup they provided went smoothly and the payment in the office as well.
For the tour itself, we did the 6 day Masai Mara, Nakuru and Amboseli safari and had an amazing time thanks to our driver Gibson and the other 6 people in our van. The tour itself beat my expectations due to our driver and that the overall quality was better than I expected. We were worried 6 days might be a bit too long at first, but each park was so different that it was perfect. My only warning to people is that you should be prepared to spend A TON of time in the car (10-12 hours per day i'd say). If you don't like long car rides, or uncomfortable bumpy roads for hours on end, then this tour is not for you. But your only alternative is flying between places and that gets expensive, so no budget tour is for you in that case.
Driving - Our driver Gibson was very knowledgable, funny and an excellent driver. Usually on the game drives we were one of the first vans to discover an animal before the rest flocked over. We saw the big 5 and more, Gibson made sure to give us the best experience and he clearly knew his way around each park. The van was comfortable enough and we all had a proper viewing spot with the pop up top. As reiterated before, we were surprised at how much time is spent in the car and also how terrible the roads are...so just something to keep in mind, but nothing the company did wrong here.
Accommodations - This was originally what I was most worried about doing a budget tour, but actually ended up being totally fine. The first camp in Masai Mara there was no hot water and the electricity was quite hit and miss. The hotel in Nakuru was a nice step up from the camps, and the final camp in Amboseli was actually quite nice even if basic.
Food - Also a major worry of mine before, but was a big surprise that it was actually quite decent. We are vegetarians and had a good selection of things to eat and they fed us plenty every day. Also everyone is given 1 liter of water per day which was nice, with the option to buy more.
Optional tours - We did the morning nature walk with the Masai guides in Amboseli and the boat ride in Lake Nakuru which I would definitely recommend both! I can't comment much on the Masai village tour since we didn't do it, but as far as I heard they just try to sell you all their arts and crafts aggressively which we hate those type of tourist trap things.
Overall, i'd totally recommend this tour to anyone who is looking to do an affordable safari trip...we feel like we got our money's worth and more. This tour is not for anyone expecting comfort and luxury, but if your goal is just to see some amazing animals at an affordable price then don't hesitate and do the tour!
SE
Email Johnny | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely amazing with a very kind and professional tour guide
The tour itself was wonderful, beautiful and just the right length. At times there were long car rides, but the experience was absolutely worth it in the end. Our tour guide, Raymond, had extensive knowledge of the different animals, was very kind and an excellent driver in the harsh terrain. 10/10 would recommend the tour and especially Raymond again.
SE
Email Asa | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent 6 day safari tour
Everything was great. From booking and communicating with Robert to our excellent guide and driver Raymond. a superb driver who made us feel safe at all times
Email Heath Holden | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A great and easy going trip, relaxed and flexible to meet needs.
Th Amboseli 3 day safari was good, I think it suits those who don't want a super controlled schedule and are flexible to other options within the time frame. Food etc was reasonable, good company and I would use the guides again no problem. For photography purposes, I would recommend some small changes, mostly going out a bit earlier for sunrise game drive and Kilimanjaro views.
CN
Email lee | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely,awesome ,enjoyable tour company have ever seen
it was such a great experience in a safari with karibu safari in kenya , we were 5paxs in the van for 5days safari with our guide Raymond , very experience and well knowledgeable about animals , and can’t forget my Nairobi guide Castro “bling bling “ and would recommend Robert and his team , much thanks to entire karibu safaris in kenya pick and drop off well taken care off .
IT
Email Kate Perez | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The best African Safari company ever
Thank you so much Karibu Safaris for the wonderful experience, my friends and I really enjoyed your services,your hospitality is the best ever. We really had great fun in the Mara and Hell's gate. Can't wait to experience another amazing safaris with you guys
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Email Mena | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Was amazing
First of all, we were lucky we got the BEST DRIVER ever , RAYMOND "everyone loves Raymond.
He was really clever , polite and could answer all our questions about the Safari, and he drove us all over the field,
We were able to see all the 5 big animals of the Safari, I really enjoyed it a lot.
FR
Email Andoni | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Plan not respected, lies, never been to Masai Triangle, not real Masai Mara Park.
Absolute joke:
- We’ve been asked to pay cash.
- The manager asked us to give a good review afterward, before the Safari even started.
- The driver in “Masai Mara” spent his all time on the phone and gave us very very very few information
- He also drove very dangerously because the Rangers were “chasing us”. We were on a restricted area
- We also spent an entire day in the car transferring to Masai Mara to Lake Nakuru (the driver refused to do a morning or evening game drive, and on top of that he dared to say I “asked for more time to sleep in the morning”)
- We discovered during dinner with other tourists that are used to Safaris, that the Masai Mara site we visited was actually a very very small part of the park. We had actually never been inside the Masai Triangle.
I can see that I’m not the only tourist to complain about this agency. Other customers complained on TripAdvisor.
I honestly think that this is a scam.
Thanks to Alex, the “new” guide that we had to make the overall experience slightly better.
Reply from Karibu Safaris In Kenya
Posted on Dec 18, 2018
Hi,
Am so sorry to hear that.....that must have been really frustrating - That was not the plan.
You were booked for the 4Days 3nights Masai Mara and on the 2nd night you choosed to go to lake nakuru with the other group which were leaving masai mara early to lake nakuru, i wish you could have stuck with the old plan of you staying in Masai Mara for 3nights we could not have this problem.
I had of your complain earlier when you reached lake nakuru and offered you boat in lake naivasha which you agreed as compensation for you departing early in Masai Mara.
About the driver talking on phone he has explained that his Radio call was not working hence he had to use his mobile to communicate with the other driver guides in the park in regards to the wild animals locations...but we have fixed in now.
We have learnt from the mistakes and it will not happen again.
Thanks for bringing this to may attention.
Regards
Mary
Safari coodinator
Email Elena | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great safari Experience! And eeeveryone loves Raymond! :)
Raymond is a great safari driver with 5 year experience, so he knows how to spot animals and how to get out of mud ( when it rains in Masaai Mara, it can be difficult to go through some parts) We always got through like superstars! - "Everyone loves Raymond!" ;) He is a real professional! In terms of the character he is very chilled - he easily managed billion of our questions, singing and dancing. :)
Not only that - he was helping his less qualified colleges, which tells a lot about him as a human being.
I would definitely recommend Karibu Safaris and Raymond in particular.
Asante :)
NL
Email Lise | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
We had a great time, and it was well organized!
Communication upfront and during the trip was smooth, and Castro was very helpful throughout. The trip and activities were great. Would highly recommend Karibu safaris!