Reliable safari packages for international market
Africa Flash Mc Tours & Travel
- Office In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2008)
- Member Of:
- KATO, Ecotourism Kenya & Travelife
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $100 to $500 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
FR
Email Fabien | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great discovery of the wonders of Kenya in a 6 days / 5 nights budget safari
Reactive and reliable communication with Peter, a great help to organize our safari.
Go to Peter!
Recently, I went to Kenya to take a vacation. The highlights are of course to see those wild animals in Africa.
I took a "6 days 5 nights safari" with a company called "Africa Flash McTours & Travel". The manager, Mr. Peter Macharia, did a great job, looking after his customers, although there are circumstances that are a bit beyond his control.
A convincing example is that all the tour companies appear to have a system that tourists are told to hop on different buses at a set of places where they stop for lunch. This system initially confused me a lot as I thought that I would be always staying with one group, once a group has been arranged by a particular company prior to the beginning of your program. But, that was not the case. So, to me what Peter did most impressively was that one day, when he could not organize any other driver to pick me up from Nairobi to Amboseli, he sent in a car to just take me there. Of course, a single passenger would cost his company slightly more than letting his customers sharing with others. But, to me this is the convincing moment that his is a trustable manager.
I also want to mention in passing that a young driver in his own company, John, has done a great job! His English is excellent and he appeared to try to do his job properly, rather than trying to "cut corners".
SG
Email Joel | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Experience on 3D2N Safari in Maasai Mara
Prior to booking with African McFlash, I had contacted several other agents but none were as attentive and clear in their explanations as Peter from African McFlash. It is no wonder why they managed to secure my booking within a few hours of my initial enquiry. Peter arranged everything and set up my tour very efficiently, thank you for your time and help.
On the tour, I was lucky to have great tourmates, and 2 most entertaining drivers, Richard and Dennis. They were attentive and helpful and I couldn't have asked for more.
Will definitely be recommending them more when I am back at home.
Take care guys and Asante! See you soon!
US
Email Marissa | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent!
Fabulous experience! Went on a safari in Kenya followed by chilling on a beach resort in Zanzibar, Tanzania, and visiting an orphanage back in Nairobi. Definitely first class service from planning stage, meeting with Peter, the proprietor, to the actual travel trip and especially Edward -- the best safari guide and game driver in Kenya! I cannot say enough good things about our experience with this company -- totally professional, efficient, service was phenomenal, and the added bonus of reasonable cost compared to other tour companies we looked at! Recommend this company very highly!
HT
Email Ronald | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari experience
This 3 days and 2 nights tour in the Maasai Mara was such a great trip. From the planning to the entire experience Peter went above and beyond to make sure this was an enjoyable Safari.
Though faced with some unforeseeable delays once on site (weather conditions not allowing the arrival day afternoon game drive, vehicle breakdown...) our guide and driver John also went above and beyond to make sure that we had an excellent trip. We got our BIG 5 within a few hours (we were lucky with that one) and got to see so much more of the wildlife in the Mara along with a very interesting visit in a Masai village.
Overall great experience. Hats off to to Peter and the team at Africa Flash Mc Tours
Email Swetha | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent Safari with Africa Flash McTours
We did the 6 days and 5 nights Luxury safari of Maasai Mara, Lake Nakuru and Amboseli. Right from the start Peter provided us with excellent communication and guidance about the details of the safari and how to go about booking it. He's very professional yet personable, and did his absolute best to accommodate our requests. As we booked the safari quite late, there weren't enough rooms available at one particular campsite, but Peter and his company covered the additional costs to book us elsewhere in a more luxurious one! All the accommodations, meals and services were fantastic. Our guide Leonard was terrific, very knowledgable about the wildlife and parks, and excellent at driving us for hours on end during the game drives. We got to see all of the Big Five. This was our first time in Africa and my family and I couldn't have had a better time! I highly recommend Africa Flash McTours and thank you Peter for everything!
Email Shane White | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Professional, great price and perfectly executed trip
Peter helped plan a busy trip (Kenya safari, visiting orphanage and a wedding proposal) with great care and quickly. The trip was wonderful from beginning to end. We particularly liked the care taken for the various ages of those in our group. Edward our driver was very personable, caring and made our experiences that much better. Would highly recommend.
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Email Taylor | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
6 Day Joining Safari (Masai Mara, Nakuru, Amboseli)
Our trip itinerary included 6 days and covered Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, and Amboseli parks. First off, I want to say what a pleasure it was dealing with Peter, the manager. He not only responded promptly to all of my emails but was able to answer all of my questions and made me feel very secure in my decision to book with him. There are literally thousands of booking companies, many of which that will overcharge you for essentially the same things as budget safaris. Our $950/person budget safari came to about $160/day/person which is standard and fair when you factor in qualified drivers, 3 meals a day, and good accommodation. You can always stay somewhere nicer but I feel like the budget tented camps are all you need, you are on a safari after all!
Our guides were Peter (different gentleman than the manager) and John. We spent the first few days with Peter who was quite knowledgeable and the second part with John. What you may not realize about Group Joining Safaris is that you'll likely be with different people at different times of your trip, the booking companies do this to maximize the amount of people in the fewest cars, and like air traffic control, make sure everyone has a ride to the next part of their itinerary. Peter was able to make all of this happen seamlessly and even helped ferry people to different parks himself in his personal car. He really wants you to have a great time and it shows.
I won't comment on the different parks, just assume they are amazing because they are.
I only have two small critiques. First, on the Africa Flash MC website (which is one of the more organized websites I looked at), the explanation of which camps you would be staying in for which price was a little off. We thought that we would be spending our Amboseli nights at Kibu luxury camp as it was listed under the "budget" safari we chose. We were a little disappointed to find out that once we had paid and Peter sent us the itinerary that Kibu was not listed and another place was. However, halfway through the safari Peter called us to tell us that we were going to be "upgraded" to Kibu for our final two nights as a way to make our trip special, which was very nice of him because it really did. Whether this is a sales tactic for getting a good review or just an honest mistake on one of our parts really doesn't matter, although the website could be clearer Peter still made the experience memorable and magical. Perhaps they could update the site to be a bit clearer, or, just clarify your accommodation with Peter via email so you don't leave somewhere you want to stay up to chance. He'll get back to you right away.
The second critique were the vans. Most companies in Kenya seem to run these converted minivans with the standard safari car pop-top. These are different from the Toyota Landrovers you see more often in Tanzania. While you can still operate well enough in them they are cramped when full, especially when they have a three-seater row which some do. That makes it harder to stand because the aisle is occupied by an extra seat. The first van we were in had this and it was rough, especially because in Masai Mara you go off-road and it was VERY bumpy. That same van had a lot of sharp edges in it that tore at my clothes and left me wondering if I should put on my gloves to not cut my hands. Finally, as a 6'1" man this van's roof was too short for me to stand in, not so with other vans I have been in on safari. Bumped my head A LOT. The second van was much better, it didn't have the middle seat in the front row so there was more room to stand and the padding was better. No sharp edges, and a higher head clearance. And yet, not perfect, half of the windows were stuck closed. If I were Peter I would retire that first van or at least give it an interior overhaul.
That's it! A long winded way to say how much I enjoyed this safari with Peter. He's trustworthy, fair, honest, and very easy to work with. The company operates smoothly and he makes sure everyone gets to where they are going and has the best experience possible. Highly recommend, can't go wrong with Africa Flash MC.
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Email Sherrie Cronin | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A well-run and friendly company
We did the six day Maasai Mara-Lake Nakuru-Amboseli safari, and an honest review is complicated. (1) The company itself is five star. They are reliable, honest and easy to deal with and I cannot recommend them more highly. It is a little scary making arrangements with people half-way around the world in a place you've never been, so please let me assure you that if you use Flash McTours you are in good hands. (2) The Guide. He (I think they are all hes) is the most important part of your trip. Ours was top-notch. Leonard was knowledgeable and friendly, and he made our safety and enjoyment his priority, often going out of his way to make things right. He is undoubtedly a five-star guide and is probably a five-star human being as well. (3) The equipment. Here we didn't fare so well as two out of our six days were marred by car trouble. This happens. However, we spent two hours standing by the side of a dirt road on our first day due to electrical problems, and finally had to be sent on to our camp in two other vans kind enough to stop and give us rides. At the end of our game drive the second day, the problems resurfaced and although we wanted to go back to camp, we had to join another group willing to take us and spent hours more crowded in with them before we could get home. Leonard did his best under the circumstances and he deserves to be commended. Owner Peter apologized for the inconveniences, but of course it did detract from the trip. (4) Itinerary. It's hard to hold the tour company accountable for travel difficulties, but not offering more options and information is my one complaint. I do have suggestions to help others. You need to ask a lot more questions than I did! (4a) Travel time. Maps and tour descriptions gave me the idea that driving between game reserves would be a 3 to 4 hour process. This is NOT TRUE. Four out of the six days we spent 8 or more hours just traveling from place to place. Not game viewing. This is the time (not mileage) equivalent of deciding to drive from New York City to Salt Lake during a six day vacation meant for other sight seeing. The time on the road itself is exhausting. (4b) Road conditions are worse than you imagine. In particular going to Maasai Mara involves over four hours BOTH ways on a highly rutted single lane dirt road. I live off of highly rutted single lane dirt road in the mountains of North Carolina, so I'm pretty comfortable with one, and I thought the drive was brutal. (4c) Lodging. We all want to travel cheap but it isn't always wise. We paid $90 apiece to upgrade lodging for our single night in Lake Nakuru after reading reviews about the budget alternative, and we are so glad we did. The standard lodging in Amboseli was wonderful. But for our two nights in a budget camp outside of Maasai Mara, we got a substitute for the Rhino camp called Lenchada and we found it to be awful. (Read my review for the many reasons why.) I don't know what options existed for upgrading there, but I highly encourage prospective travelers to ask about them, or at the least to insist on the Rhino camp ahead of time.
Suggestions. Mitigate the driving situation. I wished we had cut out Lake Nakuru completely. While it was lush and pretty, we saw no flamingos and few rhinos and it had nothing else unique to offer. Cutting it would have eliminated 2 entire long days of driving, and another day in the massive Maasai Mara reserve, and one just relaxing in the beautiful Amboseli resort, would have been so much better. Also, consider flying either into or out of Maasai Mara. We were told it is about $300 per person and it would have eliminated one brutal 8 hour drive. Or consider upgrading to one of the jeeps. We thought about it, but it was about $300 more per person and according to Peter, just provided a little better suspension system. Trust me, a better suspension system would have done us a world of good in retrospect.
In summary, Flash McTours is a highly capable company dedicated to showing you as many animals as possible in a short time at a reasonable cost. You need to take responsibility to turn that into an enjoyable vacation. I found Peter to be quite flexible in making modifications that I asked for. I just didn't know what all I needed to modify. I highly encourage others to work with them to design an itinerary that is right for you.
IT
Email Elia & Ilaria | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable wild Kenya experience!!!
The safari trip has been really awesome!
We admired fantastic scenarios, and watching animals was really exciting.
Peter organized for us an unbelievable experience, providing a fantastic organization of the tour and accommodations as well. We had the opportunity to interact with local people and local fauna in a unique way.
We strongly recommend this tour operator as it allowed us to visit and fooling in love with Kenya