Kanyezi Africa Safari
- Located In:
-
United States
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 1983)
- Tour Types:
- Mid-range & luxury tours with set start dates and a fixed itinerary
- Destinations:
Reviews
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Email Heather | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Kanyezi NAILED IT!! Magnificent!!
My Africa trip was very short notice, I had some unexpected time off and this was a bucket list trip I was to take with my daughter, who unexpectedly passed away. Kanyezi worked it out on very short notice and got me all booked to be able to use this time to go on what was a much-anticipated trip together. This was a very special trip for me and given the circumstances a very emotional trip. My flights were a bit all over the place and not the best most direct, but that was due to the last-minute booking by me, and I was just very happy to be able to go. Everything, I mean everything was top notch!! From my arrival in Cape town and Manie greeting me with his big smile and flowers everything was wonderful!! I stayed at an amazing wine estate, Lanzerac, and the staff was wonderful, rooms were comfortable. Manie was awesome and made my trip to Capetown just that much better!! He was knowledgeable, friendly, kind and even went out of his way to get me booked on an excursion that was not on the itinerary. We saw as much as possible in the short time I was there, and I felt like I made a new friend in Manie. Then it was off to the Safari portion of the trip and OH MY GOODNESS!! Amazing, life changing, beautiful, magnificent.... I could go on and on. From my pickup at the airport by my Ranger to the gorgeous Dulini resort and awe-inspiring game drives 5 STARS all the way! If I could give more stars I would! Dulini is a very special place, so beautiful, amazing food, wonderful staff and the GAME DRIVES, WOWEE!!!
Kanyezi arranged a most perfect trip and there was not a glitch or hiccup one, everything and everybody was on time and where they were supposed to be to greet me at every destination. This was important as I was traveling alone. There really are no accurate words to describe the safari, it was life changing and I can't wait to bring my family back someday!! THANK YOU KANYEZI!!
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Email Tom W | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic!!
We're just back from our safari, and on a scale of 1-10, it was a 12! The animals, lodgings, and staff were all much better than expected. We were on the 17-day safari (Cape Town, Dulini, and Victoria Falls), which I highly recommend. Nothing was planned for our first two days at Lanzerac Hotel in Stellenbosch which was great as it allowed us to adjust to the time difference from California and recover from our 30-hour flight. Lanzerac is five-star, and is located about 45 minutes from Cape Town. It's smarter to dine in Stellenbosch (a charming university-town) than to drive all the way into Cape Town to eat. Note: you will tour Cape Town one day and can dine there (try Pot Luck, it was excellent), and the hotel will pick you up for a fee. The Dulini Lodges are also five-star. We stayed in Mora and our suite backed-up to a creek with a lushly covered hill behind it so it was very private. There are no windows on the front of the suite (60 feet wide, with inside and outside showers, living room, and heated plunge-pool) but the rear is all glass so it's like living outside but you are inside in an air-conditioned environment. The Dining Room is open-air, and we even ate a dinner on the lawn--no bugs. If it's dark, you are escorted to your room for safety. We saw every type of animal imaginable as game is very abundant. We did 30 hours of Drives, and saw leopards and lions several times, elephants were often encountered as were giraffes and zebras. We were fortunate enough to see some rare ones, including wild dogs, and a pangolin. We also sat among a herd of cape buffalos that stretched a quarter-mile. We sometimes got within three feet of a lion or leopard, which is very exciting--as long as we remained seated in the safari-vehicle, we were ignored by them. At Victoria Falls, we stayed at the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge, which is perched on a hillside and has a magnificent view of the Bush below. The Falls were roaring, so were dramatic, but you will get wet despite wearing a poncho. The staff everywhere we went could not have been nicer or more accommodating. In sum, it was one of the best vacations we've ever had.
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Email Bernie & Jody | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Magnificent!!
In March 2023 my wife and I enjoyed a 16 - Day Luxury Safari with Kanyezi Safaris - our best travel experience ever!! The team of Michael, Chip and Manny were excellent from the start as they planned an amazing itinerary including a very informative and historical tour of Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Wine Country and then onto Dulini Lodge in the Sabi Sands Private Game Reserve near Kruger National Park for 6 days of Safari and closed with a wonderful visit to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. Amazing is all I can say!
The professionalism and knowledge of Michael, Chip and Manny were on full display as they were able to effectively team together and provide a wonderful experience for all, including catering to individual requests.
While all was wonderful, I cannot say enough about our time at Dulini. Observing the animals in their natural habitat was made possible by the expertise and experience of our guide and tracker - these folks are amazing. We were awestruck by mother nature and all she has to offer in the Sabi Sands Game Reserve. In between Safaris we were able to enjoy the 5-star accommodation of Dulini and all its comforts. The staff at Dulini is second to none.
I highly recommend a South African journey with Kanyezi, in fact, I am planning my second trip in October 2024 as I want my children and their spouses to experience this once in a lifetime opportunity.
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Email Sharon | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Truly a Life Time Dream Comes True
Many words come to mind when describing the Kanyezi Safaris trip to Southern Africa - Amazing, Fantastic, Rewarding, Educational, Stunning, Luxurious, wonderfully planned and coordinated - just perfect. Our hosts, Michael and Chip took care of us from the minute we landed in Johannesburg until we departed 14 days later.
Our first destination for four overnights was Lanzerac Resort located not far from Cape Town. The accommodations were luxurious and wonderfully appointed. The food at the breakfast buffet, two onsite restaurants and the winery was excellent. The winery gives most enjoyable tastings and the prices are enticing for purchasing a case to ship home. From the resort we took scenic and well designed day trips to the Indian and Atlantic oceans, Simon’s town to see the hundreds of penguins, a tour of Cape Town where there are many attractions, a visit to Victoria Wharf, the Cheetah Outreach, shopping and dining in the lovely town of Stellenbosch and a wine tasting at Groene Rivier. This area of Africa is at the time of our trip in March lush and green at quite lovely.
Our second destination was Dulini Safari Lodge Resort near Krueger National Park in Sabi Sand Game Reserve. It’s not easy to get there as just two flights a day are offered. But it was more than worth the travel to get to this fantastic part of South Africa.
Dulini consists of three beautifully designed, modern and luxurious lodges. The theme is African Safari and every bit of it lived up to our expectations. The location of the lodge on the Sand River offers wonderful views of the bush area along with a variety of animal visitors that roam right on the grounds. The food was tantalizingly prepared and delicious. But the best part was yet to come.
The safari rides were utterly amazing. Twice a day we went out early in the morning and late afternoon for 3 hour all terrain vehicle rides to see dozens if not hundreds of wildlife during our five day stay. The guides and drivers are skilled in driving and locating all varieties of wildlife including: lions, elephants, cape buffalos, hippos, leopards, zebras, giraffes, rhinos, jackals, impalas, kudus. Bushbucks, wildebeests, hyena’s, dozens of birds and much, much more. We were able to get close up to really see these magnificent animals living naturally in the wild.
There is no way a review can really fully describe this amazing trip of a life time. All so perfectly planned, coordinated and executed. Kanyezi Safaris can custom plan a trip for you or offer you options on already planned trips such as ours. There were 22 in our group that joined together to experience and amazing trip in a lovely and remote part of the world. I highly recommend Michael and Chris to you to help you have an experience of a life time.
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Email Susan | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Michael van Herk was a great tour guide.
I recently joined Kanyezi Safaris on a 16-day trip to South Africa. Each day was planned carefully with so much attention to the details of the days' activities and the beautiful accommodations. The Kanyezi staff and staff at the lodges helped to truly make this trip a trip of a lifetime.
The days on safari exceeded my very high expectations. Thank you, Michael van Herk and staff, for all the wonderful and amazing memories!!
Susan Fischer.
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Email Scott B | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Outstanding and memorable travel experience!
After a 3 year wait for the pandemic to pass, we finally found ourselves on our way to the trip of a lifetime. Celebrating the culmination of a 40 year working career, our South African safari was carefully curated by the experts at Kanyezi, with our individual interests and requirements considered. From the moment we landed in Capetown, to our final escort to the departing gate, every detail was executed perfectly. The guides, the accommodations, restaurants, the safari itself, were flawless. Throughout the experience, everyone was extremely helpful and knowledgeable. We highly recommend this company and this travel experience.
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Email Dominick | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Extremely knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and readily available.
My wife and I have been married for 47 years and have discussed going on a safari to South Africa even when we were dating. After being shut out by COVID in 2020, we began to think that our dream vacation would never materialize. However, with the help of Chip Allen and the Kanyezi team, our recent trip to Capetown, Kruger National Park, and Victoria Falls exceeded our wildest expectations. We were greeted warmly wherever we went, provided with all the information we needed, fantastic service, great value, and exposed to the wonderful elements of nature and wildlife that all of us dream about, and few will ever see. The staff was accommodating to all travelers' needs, and safety was always a top priority. As a world traveler, I would honestly say that this was truly the experience of a lifetime.
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Email Heather | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Not the "luxury" we were expecting (Capetown)
This is my experience and my opinion of my latest trip booked with Kanyezi. This is my 2nd time I booked through Kanyezi. The first was a last minute trip (2-3 weeks notice) my flights were my only gripe and I take partial blame for that due to my last-minute booking, so this time I booked my flights myself to solve that issue.
I was expecting luxury or at least upper end accommodations based on their sales of a "luxury" trip, their contract and my previous experience. Our accommodations in Cape town were changed the last few days prior to us leaving on this trip, they were changed from a wine estate to a golf resort? This was not what we had been planning, we don't play golf but we were to go with this change as we were told the other accommodation (Spier or Lanzerac) were not available. The resort, which I will call a "motel" was def not upper end/luxury. We did not even have a/c one night as it didn't work, mold in bathrooms, hairs in the bathrooms, a kitchenette (like an inn suites) also there were private residences on this property, so dogs were barking constantly, laundry hung out to dry all over the place, dust an inch thick on the plastic plants, you get the drift. When I called Chris to express my discontentment he really didn't care and said when he stayed here (10 years ago) it was a nice place. He would rather argue with me than try to sort out our stay somewhere else that was more of what we felt we paid for and were expecting. He was NOT customer service oriented and had a lot of excuses, some were just downright untruths.
There actually was room at the other resorts as we checked, and another couple booked also through Kanyezi actually moved to one of the "unavailable" resorts, however our funds were paid to Kanyezi and we simply didn't have extra funds to make the move to the nicer and what was expected accommodations.
The way were treated by Chris was unacceptable and honestly shocking! This was 4 nights (33%) of our 12 night trip spent in unacceptable accommodations.
Also, I will also say their communication was poor and often took days to respond to emails and most often didn't answer my questions I had asked in my emails. The lists of restaurants to book for dinners given by Kanyezi had not been updated and most of them I called were now permanently closed, because they had not even bothered to check to update their recommendations. Our contract was not updated throughout after they changed our accommodations in Capetown still saying the original "Spier Wine Estate" throughout. Chris is very "contract" driven and mentions his contract regularly.
Given the response and treatment to our situation I would never use Kanyezi again and would not recommend!
I will say Dulini, the safari resort, and The Palms in Zimbabwe were both excellent! I will book direct next time and save myself the hassle of being treated like crap not to mention the anger and frustration I experienced the first days of our long awaited and expensive trip to South Africa. Never again KANYEZI!!
