Esther Ndegwa - Travel Consultant
Kenya Budget Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 2005)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $120 to $400 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Narayan | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent- hassle-free.
KBS (headed by Esther) gave us a wonderful safari experience over 11 days. We selected 4 NPs (and accommodation) in Kenya and 2 in Tanzania and Esther handled all arrangements with great care and professionalism. She was prompt with replies/ clarifications. She even upgraded our accommodation in one place, to our pleasant surprise. Our drivers cum guide - John (for Kenya) and Henry (for Tanzania)- were both very competent, personable and went out of the way to spot the animals for us. John deserves a special mention here- it was great to be with him. We saw the Big 5 in Kenya within the first 3 days and saw the Big 4 in Tanzania. Lots of animals/birds were sighted. KBS exceeded our expectations. A great team to go with. ASANTE KBS.
SA
Email Evan | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great price! Amazing experience!
Esther, owner, was extremely prompt and honest during email correspondence. She lined us up with a private 6 day safari in Masi Mara, Lake Nakuru, and Amboseli which was absolutely amazing even though it was the dry season. We checked off every major animal including the hard to find ones like lions, cheetahs, leopards, and rhinos thanks to our driver and guide, John. There was a bit of a mix up with our final hotel reservation in Nairobi before our departure, but Esther made a point to fix the problem so that her customers would walk away happy. Thanks so much to Esther, John (driver/guide) and Kenya Budget Safari!
Email Matias Wibowo | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Budget, short, but a complete safari experience
I took the 3 Days Masai Mara Camping Joining Safari. Esther was very attentive and responsive to emails. Kenya Budget Safaris work with experienced driver/ guide. Our driver/ guide, Patrick, has been leading safari tours for 10 years hence is very skilful in navigating the park and packaging a complete game drive. We not only saw wild animals but also witnessed their stories as they are developing in front of our eyes.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A trip to remember !
Kenya budget safaris were the perfect company for me. Our booking went quick and easy. We were met at the airport and taken to meet our safari-people.
The wonderful Esther was the lady fixing everything for us. It all went quick and smooth. A truly sweet and lovely lady. Our driver Stanley was such great fun! He has a lot of knowlage and founde a lot of animals. We learnd a lot about Kenyan wildlife, and had a blast. The tents were a good sulution for people on a budget. Simple, but good. The food was nice. All in all we had a very good trip thanks to our safari-people :)
NL
Email Lyette & Tim | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
3 days and 2 nights Masai Mara
Although the beginning of the safari was not as we had discussed (more people in the 4x4 van than was promised), the overall experience was good. The driver knew what he was doing and the itinerary was as discussed. After the safari Esther from the office was waiting for us at the drop off point and apologized for the problems at the start of the safari. She explained that it was due to the high season that there were too many bookings and not enough van so some groups had to be combined. We really appreciated that she took the time to hear our complaints and explained her side of the story in person.
Email Steph & Dean | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great budget option
Of course it's always daunting arranging a safari from your home country. There are so many options and then there's the worry about scams but we had a good feeling about KBS, mainly due to Esther's friendly, informative and prompt correspondences. We weren't required to pay up front either. For us, we prioritised having a private tour over luxury because of past experiences on group tours where we couldn't see or had to compromise our ideals to accommodate other guests. KBS offered one of the cheapest private options around. Our guide, David, was lovely, considerate, punctual, informative and - importantly - a very safe, responsible driver. The vehicle was fine, not new but in reasonable condition. It did break a fanbelt which David got repaired at our next stop thus not really impacting upon us.
We did 3 nights/4days Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru tour. Masai Mara accom (Sidai camp) was ok in terms of comfort (bed, ensuite hot shower) but not too clean. Breakfast and dinner buffets were good given the remote location but the packed lunches they provided were very poor and didn't cater for vegetarians (bring snacks!). Game drives here were great. David didn’t point out much we couldn't see for ourselves but did use the radio system effectively to find lots of the rarer sightings like lions and cheetahs with kill. A walk around the village (the campsite is not in the park) was interesting but with hindsight we'd have paid a few shillings to get a tour from a local to get a bit more out of the experience. You get plenty of offers and it's cheaper than paying for it as an official activity on your tour.
Lake Nakuru accom was in Chester Hotel which far exceeded our budget expectations. Buffet dinner and breakfast with a great packed lunch. Lake was a good contrast to Mara in terms of scenery. Lots of birdlife, white rhinos, a few flamingos, buffalos, baboons.
Overall we were very content with our experience. Thank you Esther and David!
Here's my blog post on the trip: http://wp.me/p3H1j4-Xz
AE
Email Tasso Magalhaes | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Safari!!!
The safari was amazing from start to end. Esther (Kenya Budget Safaris Travel Consultant) was very kind and attentive all the time. She provided with detailed information and got us a very good deal for the hot air balloon safari. The driver/guide (Robinson) was very professional, kind and responsible. In addition, he was extremely knowledgeable about the Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru parks. To summarize, my wife and I had a lot of fun and an amazing time. We are looking forward to our next visit to Kenya.
BR
Email Adair Zanatto Jr | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
After a LOT of research we found the perfect agent for our safari.
Trying to decide which budget safari to choose was not and easy task. There are so many options and it is hard to find in the Internet references to them all, that is why we hope that our review helps other travelers to make their decision in which company to choose . There are thousands of options and for us the best thing to do was to go personally visit the offices of different companies to help us on the decision. We exchanged emails with at least 15 companies and pre selected 6 budget safari companies to talk face to face. Kenya Budget Safari was not the company with most reviews by far but I must say that Esther was surely the best in customer relations. She told us step by step how things should happen, she was very sweet and helpful and we felt really comfortable dealing with her. They delivered exactly what was promised and beyond.
Me and my wife surely recommend Esther services and we can say that we had one of the most amazing experiences on our 2 year travel around the world. Thank you Esther, thank you Kenya Budget Safaris.
US
Email Elise | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Safari with 2 young children - easy planning, great service and amazing trip
We had a fantastic experience with Kenya Budget Safaris and would recommend them to anyone looking to book an affordable safari. We spent 3 nights at the Sopa Lodge in the Masi and then one night just outside of Lake Nakuru. Planning the safari was easy - Esther was always available by email and then by phone once we were in country. She responded to all of our questions and provided all the details we asked for. She helped us compare costs and benefits of camping v. lodge safari and made the recommendation that we pay extra for a "private" (i.e., just our family) safari, which was fantastic advice. Last minute changes were easy, and we felt great about the price we paid and the services we received.
Because we were traveling with our 7 and 9 year old it made a huge difference to have our own vehicle, make stops when we wanted, leave and return from game drives when we wanted, etc. Our driver, David, was a father himself and struck the perfect balance between kind, helpful, full of information and not intrusive.
I recommend Kanya Budget Safari without reservation!
US
Email Matt | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Nairobi National Park
After emailing the company last-minute, I got a prompt response on a Friday night from Esther. After accommodating a number of requests and questions I had, she set me up with Judge, an *outstanding* driver/tour guide who joined her to pick me up from my hotel, took me on safari, then to Carnivore, and finally to the airport to head out.
I cannot imagine a more seamless experience. From the pickup to the various animals on the safari to the meats of Carnivore to the final drop off at the airport, I felt like this crew really took great care of me.
I would highly recommend the package, and would also personally recommend that you get out as early as possible to see the animals. I left at 7am from my hotel and was lucky enough to catch several white rhinos and a couple of lions munching on a zebra before the rain came down around noontime. The animals were certainly more active while we were driving around, and only slowed down when we started leaving for lunch. Perfect timing.