Experience the magic of Africa with Safarihub
Safarihub
- Located In:
-
United Kingdom
United States
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 1993)
- Member Of:
- ATOL, TATO, TTB, ABTA & KPAP
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $100 to $2,000 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
CA
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Well organised Safari
This was our first Safari and it was a nerve wrecking experience to book something suitable within our budget. The booking procedure by Safarihub was very straight forward and their assistance in tailor making a Safari was second to none. Our tour driver was very friendly and we thoroughly enjoyed what the Tanzanian National parks have to offer. We look forward to booking our second Safari in the not so distant future.
US
Email Katie McMahon | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Do not book with Safarihub
I do not recommend this company for many reasons.
1) They are not very good at responding to emails (this should have been my first sign to go with another company).
2) My safari experience (6-Day Kili Safari) guaranteed a 4x4 Land Cruiser. Instead, for my 6 day safari I was in different dilapidated, falling apart 4x4 vans.
3) I was given hardly ANY information on my safari. So little information that when I actually arrived in Kenya, instead of going to Amboseli, then Naivasha, and then Masai Mara, they reversed the itinerary. Not a big deal except I sent my detailed itinerary to my employer (for security) and my family so they knew how to contact me. I did not realize the change until I was literally in the van on Sunday morning driving to Masai Mara. Although I was picked up at my hotel early Sunday morning for the start of my safari, I was never, ever given any information on the safari, the itinerary, the drive times, lunch plans, etc. I can't iterate enough how in the dark was at all times. I would attempt to ask the guide but he always seemed clueless as to what was happening.
4) Although I booked with Safarihub, a Kenya subcontractor actually handled my safari. Although they weren't terrible, they weren't great either. On one day I was shuffled between 3 different vans and 3 different companies to try to get me from Masai Mara to Naivasha. When I booked this safari for a good amount of money, I assumed I would be dealing with one company and one guide the whole time. I was very mistaken. Had I been given a heads up, I would have been better prepared. But on one of the days, I kept being shuttled between different people and different vans and it made me very uncomfortable, especially as a solo traveler. The guide could not even tell me how I was getting to Masai Mara to Naivasha the day before I was supposed to go there because he said his boss hadn't figured it out yet!
5) The morning I was picked up to begin my safari adventure, I was told we would all meet at Somak Lounge. Wrong! Instead I was taken to a street in downtown Nairobi and put in another van. No briefing, no food, no drinks, no lounge, just straight into a random van to start our journey. I was already pretty apprehensive due to the recent terrorist threats. Having me driven to a random street in downtown Nairobi without any check-in or anything was pretty scary. Basically, everything that was promised to me did not happen, except the lodging and parks (which were all amazing!!!).
6) I had been provided a detailed itinerary with the plans each day. That was complete BS. We never once followed the itinerary - in fact, the sub contracting company said they were never provided with my itinerary so had no idea I had been promised certain things. For instance, I was supposed to make it to Amboseli in time for an evening game drive - never happened. I was supposed to have early morning game drives followed by breakfast back at the lodging - never happened, not once. In their defense, two of the 6 days we had 10 hour game days so didn't have time to come back for breakfast or lunch but it would have been nice to know that was the plan beforehand. Communication is key. Why promise me something if you don't intent to honor it?
7) My contract specifically states "We also take pride in our safari vehicle fleet, which is young (less than 3 years old) and well maintained; consequently, breakdowns and other mechanical complications while you are on safari will be rare." This is a complete lie. The vans we were in were extremely old and falling apart. On the drive from Naivasha to Amboseli, our van broke down and we were stuck on the side of the road for over an hour. It would have been longer but a nice driver from another safari company (Jockey - the guests in that van recommended their company) gave me a ride to Amboseli Sopa Lodge (2 hrs away). Also, while on safari in Masai Mara our van broke down but I think they may have had something to do with stopping so much to look at animals so I can't fault them for that.
8) Each morning (except for the last 2 mornings) the guides were at least 25 mins late to pick me up. As mentioned above, I had so many different guides and van drivers that it was hard to keep them straight. However, my last guide/driver (Francis) was AWESOME and the highlight of my whole trip! The rest were not good at all.
9) In conclusion, I do not recommend Safarihub. I spent about $1,500 on this 6 day, 5 night Kili safari for a single traveler but it was such a logistical nightmare and communication was so bad with Safarihub, I do not recommend them. I do realize if I had paid more money, I probably would have gotten a better company, so if you are short cash, then I will say that nothing takes away from the animals and the Sopa Lodges - they both were fantastic. But you might want to think about looking at other companies if you can.
We asked for refunds, but they ignored us
We are a family from China,In April 2017, I found Safarihub as an operator through safaribookings and helped me book my trip to Tanzania in August,but due to the change of itinerary, we had to inform Safarihub to cancel the itinerary in July 14th,Safarihub promised to actively deal with our refund problem, and we have been communicating smoothly,however, after September 16th, Safarihub never replied to my email again,I emailed them three times in October 16th, October 9th, and September, but nobody answered me,I think we were treated unfairly, even being cheated,We can't get in touch with Safarihub at the moment
Reply from Safarihub
Posted on Dec 13, 2017The client cancelled at the last moment and per our terms and conditions on our website it clearly states our cancellation policy. We have therefore given the client a credit note which will go towards their Safari next year.
We are ATOL and ABTA members and have not and never will use any sort of deception to obtain funds from clients, our clear track record with these governing bodies proves this.
It is important for clients to read our terms & conditions before booking with us.
Email Disappointed | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Complete rip off - terrible guide, horrible experience and now they won't respond to or refund us
Before we arrived in the country Safarihub were very attentive, but once we arrived in country the airport pick up was the only thing that met our expectations (or the promises made on their website). I have no idea how they have any good reviews as all the information about their 'fleet' of cars was untrue - we were in an old, noisy, uncomfortable vehicle with another company's logo on it. We also had the worst safari guide I have ever come across. I've been on about 9 safaris now in 5 different countries (including previously in Tanzania) and I have never had such a terrible experience - this guide couldn't even see! I actually think he was losing his sight. He wasn't able to spot any animals. The animals we spotted he scared away by driving fast straight at them. (Ironic as the majority of the time he drove unbelievably slowly so we didn't cover much ground). He had no radio contact with anyone so had no colleagues giving him information on where the leopords etc. were. I was apalled. When I confronted safarihub about it they admitted that he worked for another company (not their driver) and they'd never done any check of whether he was a good guide or not. Despite being very apologetic at first though, Safarihub stopped replying to us and now we are desperately trying to get any of our money back having spent thousands of pounds on a really disappointing safari. This was supposed to be the trip of a lifetime for us, but ended up full of stress and anger because of Safarihub. Steer well clear of these thieves.
Reply from Safarihub
Posted on Dec 13, 2017Find below a point by point analysis:
- Safarihub is a registered tour operator in Tanzania, in order to qualify for a TALA license you require a minimum number of vehicles in your fleet. However since you booked one of our cheaper budget group safaris you were allocated a less superior vehicles from our sister company being a 2011 model Nissan Patrol with a pop up roof and all standard safari accessories. To date you are the first person to find this vehicle uncomfortable.
- Guzzo your first guide is one of the most experienced tour guides in Arusha with a wealth of knowledge and experience, his vision is perfectly fine as all employees require a yearly eye check as per Tanzania law. In the Serengeti there is a speed limit and you can expect him to break the law. He mentioned that you wanted him to go off road to get closer to the animals, again this is not allowed in Tanzania national parks and as he claims this is when you became abusive towards him with some racist slurs involved, not nice at all! Anyway we than sent you another vehicle and driver for the remainder of the trip and again you complained that the driver could not spot animals for you, the national parks in Tanzania are huge and it sometimes takes a combined effort to spot the game, you cannot be fully dependent on the driver - Its not a zoo.
- You are the first client we have come across that has been disappointed with everything on safari from not seeing a leopard to having a bumpy chair.
We do not appreciate the way you mistreated our hard working staff and especially asking them to break the rules in the national park for your pleasure. If you want to go for a luxury experience don't book a budget group Safari and expect wonders. We have a 5 star track record with ABTA and ATOL and we will keep it that way. So no you can not con us for a refund or a free safari as those are you clear intentions.