AMS Directors and Tour Guides
Amazing Memories Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2012)
- Member Of:
- ASTA, KATO, AMREF & Eco Tourism
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $130 to $500 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
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Email Zack | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Very exciting 12-day, 2-person private safari in Kenya and Tanzania
We booked with Amazing Memories for our trip to east Africa. Our 12-day itinerary was: Nairobi, Nakuru, Maasai Mara, Serengeti, Ngorngoro Crater, then Amboseli. Dennis from the company was waiting for us when we arrived at night in Nairobi and led us to Daniel, who was our driver the whole time we were in Kenya. Daniel was a good driver/guide and had a good eye for photography, which I appreciated since I wanted to take a lot of pictures. Examples would be him positioning us so that we had a good angle on the animals, instead of just getting us as close as possible. Or when there was water, stopping in a place where we could get a cool reflection. In Kenya we were in a large van with a popup roof, which worked well. There was plenty of room for the two of us to stand on the game drives. The van came stocked with a lot of bottled water.
Our driver in Tanzania was Donald, who was also very nice and did a great job of finding a lot of animals in Serengeti. We were in a pop-top Land Cruiser, which was more comfortable to sit in and drive around in, but not as good to stand in while moving because the top opening was narrower than the van. The seats were also higher, so it was harder to look out the windows. But the vehicle was still perfectly good for game drives; we'd just sit until we got to the animals instead of standing the whole time.
Communication was all via email with Anne and was a little delayed at times, but overall was fine. She did a good job answering all my emails and sent an informative PDF with details about east Africa, like the money and climate and things like that.
One (very minor) negative from the trip was that the border crossings were confused. They still worked out fine and ended up being quick (30 mins for one and maybe 60 for the other), but especially when we went from Tanzania back into Kenya through Namanga no one seemed to know what the process was or where we should go. But they got it figured out in 30 minutes or so and then it all worked out fine. It sounds like the process is ever-changing, so some of this is to be expected, but it was still a little weird to just sit in the car while our driver tracked someone down to figure out where we needed to go.
One other general comment: The roads in east Africa are not good. A lot of them are dirt and very bumpy (especially the drive into Maasai Mara, which is at least in the process of getting paved), so if you get carsick, you might want to take some medicine. It's also very dusty, so everything you take will get covered in a layer of dirt.
The parks:
We're glad we went to all the parks that we did. At Nakuru we saw 9 rhinos and only saw 1 the rest of the trip, and from far away. We also stopped by Lake Naivasha on the drive to Maasai Mara to go on a boat ride, which was pretty cool since it was different than the drives. In the Mara we didn't see much one day, but the other day, saw at cheetah and least a dozen lion, four of them in a tree. Serengeti was the best park for us. We saw multiple trees with lions in them, including one tree with seven. We also saw a few huge herds (1000+) of zebras and wildebeest and a couple cheetahs. The landscape was huge, wide, and open, which was good to see large groups of animals. In Ngorongoro there were lots of animals everywhere and we saw a few lions as well as a black rhino. We didn't see many animals in Amboseli (though still did see a family of lions), but did have a good (but brief) view of Kilimanjaro, which was only out of the clouds for about 45 minutes right after sunrise.
The camps:
We enjoyed all the camps in which we stayed. Nairobi: Sarova Stanley, very nice hotel and room and very good breakfast. Nakuru: Flamingo Hill, nice tent room, could walk along the fence and see zebra, baboons, and buffalo. Maasai Mara: Ashnil Mara, very big grounds, but really nice tent room with a nice shower and toilet, room was right by the river so we could hear the hippos, buffet-style meals; also had a great souvenir shop with great prices. Serengeti: Kati Kati, small tented camp right in the Serengeti (no fences) which was really cool to be so close to the animals and nature, saw some giraffes and heard hyenas at night, very nice staff. Ngorongoro: Serena Ngorongoro, nice hotel with great views of the crater, very refreshing to have an actual hotel instead of a tented camp for a night, good food. Amboseli: Ol Tukai Lodge, great location right in the middle of the park, nice bungalows with good bathroom, fun to watch animals just outside the fence; would recommend the elephant view rooms because Kilimanjaro was in the clouds 23 out of 24 hours of the day, but mountain rooms could be good if you know it will be clear; also had a very good gift shop.
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Email Tom | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A well organized safari with many highlights
After an earlier safari trip I wanted to show my daughters (19 and 21) the wild animals of Africa.
Amazing Memories Safaris was an excellent choice for the tour! We have 8 days and 7 nights and Anne put together a good itinerary with advise on parks and lodges. Due to heavy traffic on the roads the transport between parks took longer than expected and was a bit exhausting. But that was soon forgotten when we had a lot of wildlife including all Big 5 close up to our car. We had chosen to have a private Landcruiser to ourselves and that was a well spent luxury.
Favorite park: Amboseli National Park.
Favorite lodge: Naivasha Sopa Lodge.
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Email Wendy | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great team that will do their best to make your safari amazing!
If you’re reading this, don’t hesitate, go ahead and book with Amazing Memories. The team did, in fact, help us make some amazing memories.
Throughout booking I dealt with one person, Anne. She answered any and all questions I had and didn’t make me feel like I was asking too many questions (most of my questions were through email, but they can also communicate through WhatsApp (like free text messaging)).
They look to have set safari packages, but I wrote to Anne with particular path and lodges in mind. Anne assisted in making sure we got what we wanted. You can definitely tailor your trip to the things/places you want to stay, do, and see. That being said, two or three of my picks were full (my fault for booking so late), but she suggested other options that ended up being good.
We paid 30% down when booking and paid the rest upon arrival. You can pay by wire transfer, credit card, or cash. Cash was impossible for the down payment because I was in another country. So, I wired money through my bank (no fee on their part, but my bank had a small fee, which was still better than the credit card fee). Credit card came with a 4% transaction fee.
Because of other reviews, I requested Daniel. I’m am a fledgling photographer and I had noticed that another review had mentioned he loved taking photos, which he did and even gave me tips on how to get better photos. He would try to get us in the best possible positions for some fantastic photos - and he was successful many times!
Daniel was super friendly and extremely knowledgeable. At the time of this writing, he told us he had 10 years experience being a safari guide and it really showed because he could tell us about each and every animal we saw and gave facts with what we were seeing. He knew many of the other safari guides and could communicate through radio and just by stopping when they saw each other - this is very important because the parks are so big and unless someone tells you that they just saw XXX animal over by XXX area, we wouldn’t have encountered as much as we actually saw.
Traveling with Daniel felt like you were traveling with a friend. He was very friendly and would welcome any and all questions about Kenya, animals, the different tribe culture, and even about himself. I felt like he looked out for us and felt very safe and taken care of with him. And lastly, his communication skills are great. He would tell us the itinerary was, the time we were going to go here or there, the time he was going to pick us up....and he would repeat it at another time to be sure we were on the same page. Before we visited a village or went into a shop he would let us know what to expect, which was so invaluable. He was great with time management and we were able to see everything we wanted to see and do what we wanted to do.
Our trip was made to go to: Masai Mara, Samburu, Aberdare, Lake Nukuru, Nairobi - I won’t talk about specifics of the places since this review is about the company. I’ll just say that, those are the places I planned out with Anne and since some of the drives between these areas were quite long, Daniel planned, on his own, some things to stop at to break up the drive for us - it was much appreciated because we wouldn’t have known it was something we could have done/fit in to the drive.
We had 9 days with Daniel and we feel confident in our opinion about him. Without a doubt, I would request him when I am back in Kenya and would be super disappointed if he wasn’t available. He went above and beyond to make sure we had a great time.
Some tips: It is dusty! On game drives, the roof is up and windows open so that when you see an animal you can quickly capture the shot. Most of the roads are not paved and when other trucks/vans pass by a whole cloud of dust accompanies them. Bring sunglasses to protect your eyes from dust & I found it helpful to have a handkerchief to cover my mouth. We also brought some wet wipes to use before lunch.
Morning game drives can be chilly, but the afternoons can get a little warm - dress in layers.
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Email Christine | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Caution to travelers considering Amazing Memories Safaris
Our 15 day safari tour was met with 3 days of frustration when the upgraded hotel accommodations we had contracted were not paid for in a timely manner. We contracted for all services in January 2018, made the $4K deposit and paid the balance prior to our departure from the USA as the Contract required.
It was not until the night before we were to arrive at the Mara Serena that we were told by AMS that the hotel had over-booked and our reservation was not available. We did find out from the hotel manager that AMS had been contacted for payment due, and when it was not received they released our reservation. The same situation for our reservation at the Ngorongoro Serena.
We feel AMS broke our Contract by not paying for our hotel reservations in a timely manner and not providing the accommodations in our Contract.
FYI - these tour companies must pay upfront for hotel reservations. Our advice if you plan to use this tour group, demand that before you leave home you have Vouchers for all hotels in your possession. This is your guarantee the reservations have been paid for and will be there when you arrive.
We also coordinated a visit to Zanzibar for 3 days to relax at the beach, following the safari. AMS did a good job scheduling the airlines and driver for pick up. AMS recommended The Sands on the east side of the island. There is a floor of coral and sea urchins at the shoreline, so this is not a beach you can run out in bare feet and swim. It is a good choice if you just want to relax at a quiet location with lounge chairs and covers from the sun provided on the beach at no additional cost.
DE
Email Matthias | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
10 days private safari Kenya
We have undertaken a 10-day private safari through Kenya with Amazing Memories Safaris in September and can recommend the provider without reservation! The planning and preparation from Germany went very well via email, Anne always responded very quickly and courteously. Also during the stay in Kenya everything went very well and shows the professionalism of the provider. We were always picked up punctually by our lodges and everything agreed upon was kept. Our driver Daniel did a great job, he is a really nice person, who told us a lot about the country, the people, the nature and also about his private life. He is also a very good driver and drove us with the small bus through wildest terrain, impressive!
We chose most of our lodges ourselves, but Anne's recommended resort at Lake Naivasha was also very good.
After 10 days we were dropped off at our beach hotel in Mombasa as agreed.
Thank you Amazing Memories Safaris for this great trip with you!
If we should come to Kenya or Tanzania again, we will book again with you!
DE
Email LESSER | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
9 day amazing Kenya safari
Thank you so much to our guide Steve for our amazing safari experience!
We had looked at different safari providers and after asking for quotes, we felt that Anne was the person who understood our wishes the best, and could incorporate some individual touches to our safari, e.g. we had planned to bring a friend to Amboseli Park with us and wanted to add Lake Naivasha into the itinerary including a boat tour. During the planning via email we discussed the choice of minivan vs landcruiser and lodges to stay at.
Our safari started at 6.30 am mid December on a rainy day, however Steve and Anne picked us up from Nairobi Airport and our trip to Amboseli National Park with Steve started well, as we started to wake up and get to know Steve and vice versa. By the time we had arrived, the rain had stopped and we had already seen and stopped to see couple of giraffes and zebras outside the park on our way.
The choice of lodges suggested to us by Amazing Safari were great, always a kind welcome by the staff, very nice and clean tent lodges including mosquito nets, good food, either buffet or by menu. At the Flamingo Hill Camp at Lake Nakuru, at that time of year, we were the only guests by chance and they went out of the way and we had lunch close to the pool and a romantic dinner near the bar. The camp also had several bird species in their trees which I could observe and take photos off. Osero Camp in Masaii Mara had the best food and on our last evening at 6pm, we were lucky enough that a bushbuck stopped and looked at us while we were sitting outside the tent!
Out of all the places we visited, there was just one place, the Ark in Aberdare, that was slightly disappointing. It had rained the past days and rained in the evening, therefore buffalos, hyenas, birds, warthogs were at the salt water hole, however, no elephants or lion. Furthermore, one group was very noisy and smoked on the lower balcony and used a drone in the morning. We were glad that the staff actually told the smoker about the camp rules, however even though it was forbidden to use the drone, they still used it anyway.
Steve is a wonderful guide, he drove us safely from the airport to Amboseli, to Aberdare, to Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha to Masaii Mara and back to Nairobi. We had interesting discussions with him about Kenya, the world, the wildlife, any topic we came up with during our drives, inspired by what we saw or heard. He introduced us to the different kind of animals, and was able to find animals, that were hiding high up in the trees or almost hiding in a hole. We had a lot of fun engaging in searching for sometimes more difficult to find animals such as lions, cheetahs and leopards. Steve knew which animals we were particularly interested and managed to find ways in the different locations to get close to observe for example the flamingos in Amboseli (!),and hippos and crocodiles in the Mara river! We felt very safe in the landcruiser with Steve, even when the terrain become slightly muddier in some cases, as we occasionally had rainy nights and took some of the less travelled paths.
Thanks to Steve, we were able to take many great pictures and he managed to exceed our expectations of the safari! We take so many impressions home and highly recommend Amazing Safari and Steve!
Email Huma | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Holidaying in Kenya/Tanzania made easy by the professionalism & dedication shown by Amazing Memories
I'm so glad I found Amazing Memories Safaris after reading reviews on TripAdvisor. From the moment I contacted Anne and told her about the kind of holiday I wanted, she looked after my every request with the utmost attention to detail. As a solo female traveller who wanted a private tour of Kenya and Tanzania, and someone who was interested in photography, Anne made sure all my needs were met. I had a 25 day tour which covered Nairobi and 12 national parks and reserves across Kenya and Tanzania. With this much time on the road and covering so many national parks, you'd expect that some things might not go according to plan, especially as you get close to the peak Christmas period. However Anne's careful planning and excellent recommendations meant that I had an almost problem free tour around Kenya/Tanzania. All my hotels were amazing with the exception of one, Voi Wildlife Lodge. I cannot blame the shortcoming of this hotel and the hotel management on Amazing memories as it was the most recommended hotel in East Tsavo, but unfortunately it was just no good and I was glad to be out of there after one night. I passed my feedback about Voi back to Anne who took the matter up with the hotel.
The best part about choosing Amazing Memories was their superb team of guides and partners in Kenya and Tanzania. I spent the bulk of my time with Daniel as my guide in Kenya. After reading reviews from others, Daniel came highly recommended as he was also a photographer. He certainly did not disappoint. Daniel is just the kind of guide you want on a tour like this. He's so easy to get along with and goes out of his way to ensure all your needs are met .. and his photography skills are phenomenal! My other guides; Joseph and Wilson for the Nairobi city and National Park tours, Donald for the Tanzanian part of the tour and another Joseph for the last leg of my Kenyan tour were also amazing. I felt truly fortunate to have such a wonderful team of people looking after me while I was there. It's all a testament to the professionalism and dedication that Amazing Memories Safari's has to ensuring their guests have the best experience possible.
All in all, I had the trip of a life time and it was made possible by the wonderful team at Amazing Memories. I would have no trouble in recommending them to everyone for any tour they wish to take in Kenya or Tanzania. You will not be disappointed.
MX
Email Javier Gomez | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect Honeymoon! (7 day Safari)
The Airport reception was great, we had trouble with our luggage with Precision Air (DON'T FLY WITH THEM!) but Amazing Memories did everything to solved our problem and we got our bags back.
My correspondence with Anne was always very professional and helpful, I received several quotes but Anne's work was the best by far, as well as her recommendations. We worked out a perfect itinerary with great hotels. Loved all my hotels but FS Serengeti was out of this world.(Maramboi, Manyara, FS Serengeti and Neptune).
I would definitely recommend choosing Amazing Memories. I have already recommended them to all of my friends and family.
Thank you!
CA
Email Marija | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An incredible safari, they live up to their name! Amazing !!
My husband and I were on a 5 day private safari in Amboseli and Masai Mara. Prior to reaching out to Amazing Memories we already read so many incredible thing about them on TripAdvisor. Anne was incredible to communicate with, we changed our dates and general plans a few times before finalizing the trip. We spent 2 days in Amboseli with Daniel( we read a lot about him here and how amazing his photography skills are and he truly is such a talent you will want to follow him on social media). We loved it!! In Masai Mara we spent 3 days with Daniel who met us at the Keekorok Airport. He was amazing!! We saw the Big 5 and learned so much from both of our drivers. I cannot say enough good things about them! Our accommodation was great, Kibo was really nice and Sarova Mara was incredible. Overall we were incredibly fascinated with the Masai Mara and cannot wait to go back there one day. We will for sure be reaching out to Amazing memories safaris again! Thank you to the whole team for making this an unforgettable 5th wedding anniversary. At Kibo they surprised us by throwing us a mini party with cake and incredible songs! We will never forget that and it was all thanks to Amazing memories and their team!
DK
Email Katerina | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
It really was an Amazing memory
Thank you for a great safari and a great time together with Steve, our driver. We have been very happy with everything, from the first contact everything has been done very professionally and everything has been as agreed. Even when I misunderstood a detail regarding airport transfers AMS fixed it and gave it to us complementary. We are very impressed with the service and will recommend you to anyone. Steve was a great guide and would spot all the animals and tells us all about them. He is also great company and we have truly enjoyed our time together. Thanks to all of you from the whole family, we will be back.
