One Day Trip to Mkomzi National Park from Zanzibar
Shelter Tours
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 1999)
- Tour Types:
- Budget & mid-range tours with set start dates and a fixed itinerary
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $95 to $500 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Erald | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Exhilarating
The tour was very nice, it provided an in depth insight into the sights and sounds of Kenya which I probably
would not have experienced if I travelled by air. The tour guide was absolutely amazing ,he was constantly
assisting to capture some breathtaking pictures
of the scenery.He deserves a 5 star applause. He was also very knowledgeable about where to find the animals
because I managed to see lions,elephants,giraffes and hyenas on the first day of my tour.
The hotel accommodation was simple and adequate with the lovely sights of the hippos and crocodiles.
It was a wonderful experience and I hope to do it again soon.
Stay away from this company. I would give 0 stars if the site allowed
First I want to state the good:
- Lucy, the owner will respond to all e-mail inquiries very promptly before you book (remember this later, all immediate responses only come before you book and for anything after you make payment you are on your own).
- The driver Cyrus in Maasai Mara is excellent. He is really friendly and will go out of the way so you have a good game drive.
- Remember we are in Africa here. It is just beautiful and like no other place you will see. With or without a bad safari tour, you can't miss the beauty and wildlife all around.
The bad:
- Pretty much everything else.
- We paid $1000 extra to fly from Maasai Mara to Serengeti to avoid a long drive and wasting time on our short trip. Not only did Lucy screw up the flight and we still had to do extremely long drives, but she waited to tell us after we had started the trip and had paid in full in cash. Had she told us beforehand, we would have canceled and gone with another alternative. She's either dishonest or incompetent and neither is a good reason to waste your money on this tour company.
- The trip is not quite 8 days as promised. Obviously we wasted a lot of time driving to make up for the lost flight from Kenya to Tanzania, but by day 6 you are pretty much done.
- The safari driver in Tanzania was really reluctant. We were mostly done with game drives after lunch and would go back by 2:30 or 3 when other people were still out on their game drives and late afternoon is the best time to see animals. The Tanzania part is not run by Shelter tours, they just get a local company to take you around.
- After the trip was unexpectedly changed on us, we repeatedly asked Lucy for the new itinerary and didn't get one until the trip was almost finished. We were basically at the mercy of the Tanzania driver.
- The worst part was that we had paid for Sopa and Serena lodges (3-4 star equivalent) throughout the trip, and because Lucy changed the itinerary, we ended up staying in a simply terrible place in Lake Manyara on the last day. In the original trip there was going to be no stay in Lake Manyara and this was Lucy's pleasant surprise for us. It looked like a rundown dilapidated building, we were the only guests there and the food was bad as in did not taste bad but spoiled. They do not seem to have any guests so they must keep refrigeration and stuff off. simply disgusting considering how much we had paid. Any decent tour operator would have refunded us for the flight ticket and the terrible Lake Manyara hotel that we never agreed to but not Lucy. She stopped answering our desperate e-mails on about day 4 and we just gave up. Someone needs to shut her down. No conscientious person would charge for a luxury tour and give you this kind of experience. I strongly suspect the one review on this site that says they are excellent was written by Lucy herself. We really felt cheated by the whole experience.
Reply from Shelter Tours
Posted on Nov 7, 2019This was indeed an unfortunate situation. We did our best as a company to calm the situation to best of our ability, We value each client and having given us the opportunity to serve you was appreciated. We had together sighted the danger of last minute booking. We were in conversation for a long time then at a point client went silent. Only 3 weeks before departure time did they communicated confirming the booking. Both accommodation and transport were arranged. One way flight from Masai Mara to Serengeti was booked. However, no deposit was credited to our bank account. Client opted to pay for all services upon arrival.
The morning before departure, all money was paid but when we went to pay for the flight, the seats had already been fully booked. We informed client about it and the only option we had was to book them baack to nairobi after the masai Mara tour then fly to Tanzania from Nairobi and not Masai Mara. This was the only alternative route with available flight.
July is normally a busy season and we had already advised the client of importance to pay deposits to secure all bookings which didn't happen.
We remain commited to excellent service to all our clients. The flight money from Mara to Serengeti route was covered by Nairobi Kilimanjaro route and hence no refund was done.
Reading this review was regretable. We hope to continue with serving every other clients in the best way to make sure the have value for each coin spent.
Once again, we regret the whole incident and looking forward to serving you again in future
DE
Email Tama | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Competently and friendly
The whole process was well organized and we had lots of fun .
I’d recommended this to all visitors you’ll not regret anything.
Awesome
US
Email Anne | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great 3-days Safari at Serengeti National Park
My 3-days Safari tour, to Serengeti Park in Tanzania with SHETER TOURS was excellent, a life memorable and am looking forward to tour with them again. The charge was very worth for the tour/service. They were very reliable, and had a very great customer service and were ready for any support needed.. I can recommend any one touring Kenya to tour/safari with them.
FR
Email Rose | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful
We did a really nice safari all the organization was perfect we booked everything from distance Lucy was reactive and explicit very nice moment we felt her accompaniement, I recommend and I sure will request her service next time again
Thank you !
PL
Email Elisa | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Professional and caring
All of the staff we dealt with was very professional and friendly. The tour was well organized and Lucy made sure to fit it to our needs.
We had great time in the park, saw plenty animals, including lions and even lion cubs!
Our guide was very knowledgeable and got us in the right spots at the right time, allowing us to take fantastic pictures.
Definitely worth taking this tour, especially if is your first safari and let them arrange this awesome experience for you!
RO
Email Adrian | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience
We booked a day safari in Mikumi Park.
An amazing experience!
All the staff were friendly and very responsive.
The guide in Mikumi park, Isaac, was the best surprise, it's clear that he knows the park very well and thanks to him we saw all the animals present there.
We had a small problem with the taxi driver not coming on time, but we called Lucy at 4:30 AM and within 10 minutes she solved the problem.
After the trip Lucy wait for us at the airport, we shared the experience with her and received also a small gift :)
Definitely recommend for experience and promptness.
US
Email Dr. Paul C. | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
First class personal touch!
If you want authentic African Safari, this is the place to Book! My time with Moses was outstanding I got to see most of the big five and several other animals. The lunch provided was exquisite. Can’t say enough good things about the whole process. Communication was great professionalism and was on point. The vehicle used was authentic gave me the sense of a real Safari, not riding through the desert in a Range Rover.
