Africa Joy Tours ( A sense of Adventure)
Africa Joy Tours
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2007)
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $150 to $1,250 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
LA
Email Avyaan Conor | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
They disappointed me a lot.
I went on a 15 day tour with Africa joy tours. They disappointed me a lot. They misbehaved me they made me travel to only three places in 15 days and charged me a lot of money. I paid them $4000 first. Later they took another 3000$ from me. They charged me a total of $7000, but our deal was $4000. They are really a dishonest company in my opinion.
SG
Email stayawayfromthisoperator | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
the worst operator ever, irresponsible and never solve the issues, only want to earn Chinese money
After a 30-hour flight, we discovered that our hotel rooms were not booked. I want to make it clear from the start that I don't want private messages asking for post deletion, nor do I need money to delete posts. I'm not lacking money.
We've just finished a 2-week trip to East Africa, where the natural beauty and adorable animals were stunning. However, the local tour agency, Africa Joy Tours, was a disappointment, greatly diminishing our experience.
In February of this year, our group of 8 people booked a customized 10-day trip to Kenya and Tanzania through Africa Joy Tours, starting in mid-July. We finalized the itinerary and paid the deposit in March. Subsequently, the agency's responses became increasingly slow, but due to numerous positive reviews on platforms like Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), we attributed it to the laid-back African style and didn't raise concerns.
The first issue arose when, just before departure, we were informed that three of the hotels we were supposed to stay at had no available rooms (we needed 4 rooms for 8 people). Despite having paid the deposit in March, the hotels were not confirmed before our departure. Moreover, some of the replacement hotels were virtually unknown, and we couldn't find much information about them on various platforms, leading to concerns about our accommodation experience.
The second issue was with the unreliable drivers. Our first interaction with the tour agency was when we were picked up from Nairobi to head to Masai Mara. As per our agreement, the driver was supposed to pick us up at 6 am. However, one driver arrived an hour late, and we had to wait in the cold hotel lobby for him. During the journey, this driver stopped for coffee, making us wait for more than 30 minutes while he indulged himself. He also had a heated phone argument with the tour agency's owner while on the road. The journey that was supposed to take 5 hours ended up taking 8 hours. Both drivers seemed completely lost throughout the trip, not knowing where to go or what to do, relying on us to recognize our own group members. They repeatedly asked us what our next steps were, which was frustrating since we expected them to lead as paid guides. They even had us get off the vehicle to arrange our own lunch instead of taking us to the contracted hotel as planned.
The third and most significant issue: after an 8-hour journey, we arrived at our Masai Mara hotel at around 2 pm, only to find out that our rooms were not available. We were tired, hungry, and frustrated. We contacted the tour agency repeatedly, but they were slow to respond and kept telling us to wait while they were supposedly confirming. Eventually, they informed us that they had booked the rooms for the same dates in August, effectively leaving us without accommodation for that day and the next. We were left in disbelief and shock. We couldn't even have lunch at the hotel because we didn't have a confirmation. After a lengthy ordeal, three of us shared a room that night, and the agency arranged alternative accommodation for the next day. We kept requesting confirmation for the remaining hotels, but the agency was unresponsive and lacked an apologetic attitude. We managed to squeeze through the first night.
The fourth issue: the replacement hotel didn't have our reservation either. The next day, we were told that two rooms were arranged in a nearby hotel, which turned out to be over 30 kilometers away, taking over an hour to reach. After our game drive, we rushed to the new hotel, only to find out that our rooms were once again not booked. Despite our repeated requests for hotel confirmation documents, the agency never provided them. Two consecutive days of such problems left us infuriated, prompting us to threaten with negative reviews online. Suddenly, the agency's representative, Thompson, became more attentive, and communication improved, with promises of actively resolving the issues. After much back and forth, we learned that the hotels were not booked under the agency's name (which they failed to communicate), making it difficult for us to verify our reservations. After prolonged discussions, they finally managed to sort out our check-in. The agency finally apologized and mentioned considering a refund for the first day's accommodation that we couldn't use. I firmly insisted that they must refund rather than just considering it. We agreed to meet in person in Arusha to discuss further.
The fifth issue: pushing for a refund for the unused hotel room and an additional $100 as compensation. In total, the refund amounted to $480 for our group of 8 people, translating to $60 per person (out of a total tour cost of $3400 per person). As agreed, the refund was supposed to be provided in cash on a specific day. However, Thompson, the agency's representative, disappeared and didn't show up. We repeatedly tried to contact him, but he never responded. We then had to contact Clinton, the agency's owner. He claimed they didn't have enough cash for the refund and hadn't prepared it yet. This was unacceptable since they had promised to provide the refund on that particular day. Their attitude towards resolving the issue was disheartening. We had to press Clinton to come and provide a partial refund in the evening, and he promised to complete the rest the next day. He was supposed to arrive at 10 am the next day but ended up arriving close to 12 pm. With this, our ordeal with Africa Joy Tours finally concluded. As an additional note, the agency initially claimed that lunch on the final day was included, but the hotel demanded $25 per person. We had to contact Clinton again to resolve this issue before we could have the lunch that should have been provided for free.
All the above incidents are documented through chat records. This is not an attempt to defame the tour agency. One peculiar aspect of Africa Joy Tours is their eagerness to attract Chinese tourists and promote their services, even repeatedly asking us to help them with promotion. Are we being treated as naive tourists, especially considering the experience we had? Not to mention the instances of sexual harassment by a driver in Tanzania who consistently made inappropriate comments and even shared his home address with female members of our group.
If the agency wishes to profit from Chinese tourists, they must enhance their services and improve their attitude. East Africa is stunning, but the tour agency's poor service greatly detracted from our experience. We spent days on end dealing with communication issues and disappointment, resulting in frustration and discontent.
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Oct 23, 2023Dear Client,
Thank you so much for your review,
We are so sorry for any Inconvenience that you had faced during your trip,
We had planned 10 days safari with your group leader Ms. Jennifer, and we have been in touch with Her all the time when she need our consultation through WhatsApp and emails, before and after her confirm the booking to us,
We would like to share with you the below information,
The Key areas of any Tour to be provided are Agreed Accommodation, Meals, Transportations and Park Fees, followed by supportive elements like personal issue especially for Driver Guide to add values to that Tour.
- For Accommodation especially for the bookings of PEAK SEASONS (July - August), availability is very shortage due to high demands, so after sending proposed Itinerary to Clients, even clients have to take sometimes to discuss with his/her team like you guys to get one agreement for all team,
The Time you guys take time for discussing, the accommodation availability change time after time, and when you come back to us for booking confirmation, we should check with the hotels is availability is still on, and if not yet, we get back to you (Clients) and advise the available options,
This is what we Tour Operators do and agreed together with clients before they start their Tour to avoid any surprises,
On this accommodation Segment we agreed that you had faced a problem only at Maasai Mara Sekenani Camp, whereby the CAMP RESERVATION MISTAKEN BOOKING MONTH instead of write Check in date on 29th July, she wrote 29th August, as per service Voucher we had sent to you for Kenya VISA application, But even you and your team did not notice that as it is human Error, that after noticing that we had done quickly solution and REFUND back the money to you for the missing room, even though we had already PAID for the full amount to the Camp.
After that for all remaining accommodation there is NO ANY OTHER ACCOMMODATION that you faced BOOKING PROBLEM,
-For the National Park Fees
Your booking was including visitation at Maasai Mara Game Reserve, Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire National Park as well as Mount Kilimanjaro National Park, and we had PAID all your booking PARK FEES, and there is no any National Park you had visited and being informed that you can not enter because we did not Pay for you.
If we were irresponsible we hope we can fail to manage your group to enjoy game drive inside all national parks due to the failure for paying the park fees,
- About Transportation
We offered you all the transportation services as per your Tour booking, for the safari you had use 2 safari cars, and for Airport transfer and Mount Kilimanjaro transfer we offered you Min-Bus transportation and there is no any day you had failed to do game drive or any activities by missing a car.
So you can see we had done 95% of your Tour Perfect except only the challenge of Masai Mara Sekenani Camp, whereby the CAMP RESERVATION had mistaken, booking date and we are VERY SORRY for that, and we had been responsible for that too.
If you had faced the challenges on all accommodation, Park Fees and missing Transportation, the Title of "the worst operator ever, irresponsible and never solve the issues, only want to earn Chinese money" will be fine to us, but otherwise maybe there something PERSONAL for you to our company apart from the Tour.
Other issues you have mentioned such as delaying to reach to the park because you have waited for a driver to finish his cup of coffee while you are on the way, seems to be personal problem for the driver that why when you informed us, in quick way our office called the driver to insist him to not to stop anywhere as you were not interested, and he did that.
For the Driver guide Sexual Harassments, you should have informed to our office instantly after he tried to seduce you, because you had our phone number as well as company email and we would take instant Measure and replace him with another driver on the same day, but you were silent until you write on the review, Please share with us his name.
After the challenge you faced at Sekenani Camp, at Maasai Mara, our office had done the best for Refund you cash and complimentary Grain Coffee at Mount Meru Hotel at Arusha, to show that we feel bad for what happened.
Once again, very sorry for any inconvenience you had faced,
Kind Regards
Africa Joy Tours Team
BN
Email Samuel Ruiz | under20 years of age | Experience level: first safari
I would recommend everyone
My friends and I went on a four-day safari tour with them. Their drivers were very efficient in taking us to the sightseeing spots. They were kind and very efficient. I would recommend everyone to go on safari with them
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Oct 23, 2024"Thank you for your kind review! We’re so glad to hear that you and your friends enjoyed the four-day safari with us. Our drivers take pride in making sure guests have an efficient and comfortable experience, so it’s wonderful to know they made a positive impact on your trip. We truly appreciate your recommendation and hope to welcome you back for another adventure soon!"
DE
Email Colleen Ankunding | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Best travel agency
We took a seven-day hike from Machama to Mount Kilimanjaro with guides Bryson and Emmanuel and Augustine. Their group was quite well-educated and noble. They ensured our safety beforehand. and successfully enabled the ascension. They helped us navigate through difficult terrain with sound advice. They set up tents for us to stay safe. And we were enjoying the African tour a lot.Thanks to them.🙂
DZ
Email Patrick Borer | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Highly recommend
We were lucky enough to have a very enjoyable time on the Africa Joy Tour. And the two best guides there are Rama and Imanwell. Created a very inspiring and very safe environment. And the places there were very interesting for me to visit, so thanks to the team we brought to the top. And the entire hike was very safe and comfortable. The entire trip was organized smoothly. I highly recommend going together.
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Nov 6, 2024Thank you so much for your kind words and for taking the time to share your experience with us. We are thrilled to hear that you had such an enjoyable time on your Africa Joy Tour!
Rama and Imanwell are truly exceptional guides, and we are so pleased to know that their expertise and care helped create an inspiring and safe environment for your journey. We're also glad to hear that you found the destinations and the entire hike to be both fascinating and comfortable.
Our team works hard to ensure every aspect of the trip is organized smoothly, and it's wonderful to hear that this contributed to your positive experience. Your recommendation means a great deal to us, and we would be honored to welcome you on another adventure in the future.
Thank you again for choosing us, and we wish you many more memorable travels!
Warm regards,
KR
Email Sherman Hermiston | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing tours.
With Africa Joy Tours, we had an amazing five-day safari in Tanzania. Our guide, James, was very considerate of us and our needs. He was very calm and friendly, knew a lot about the animals, and cared about the tourists' well-being, even though we arrived during the rainy season. He picked us up from the airport, waited for us when we needed a break, was always on time, and wanted to make sure we had a wonderful day.
Many thanks to Clinton, the proprietor of Africa Joy Tours, and James.
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Oct 23, 2024Thank you so much for your kind and detailed review! We're delighted to hear that you had an amazing five-day safari with us, even during the rainy season. It’s wonderful that James was able to make your experience comfortable, informative, and enjoyable. We take great pride in ensuring our guests feel well taken care of, and it’s heartwarming to hear that James met your needs with such calmness and professionalism. We will be sure to pass along your thanks to both James and Clinton. We hope to welcome you back to Tanzania for another adventure soon!"
AL
Email Vickie Ondricka | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The guides were excellent and knowledgeable
The guides were excellent and knowledgeable - with their help, we tallied 79 different species of animals and birds, including all of the big five at close range (OK, the one rhino was a bit far away) except leopards. Lots of hippos wallowing, giraffes grazing. In the Maasai Mara, we dramatically saw a hyena single-handedly catch a topi (an antelope three times its size), bring it down, and share it with its colleagues - not pleasant, but compulsive viewing - after 15mins, it was left to the vultures.
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Oct 23, 2024"Thank you so much for your wonderful and detailed review! We're thrilled to hear that you had such a memorable experience with our knowledgeable guides and were able to spot 79 different species, including the Big Five. It sounds like you had some truly incredible wildlife encounters, especially that dramatic hyena and topi scene in the Maasai Mara—nature at its rawest, indeed! We appreciate your kind words about the guides and are glad they helped enhance your safari. We hope you'll return someday, maybe next time with a chance to see the elusive leopard!"
CO
Email juan | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
reliable, kind, knowledge, good vibe, the best experience.
You will not regreate. This guys know what they are doing, and they are very cool people. Everybody is very nice, acomodations, food, transportation, everything according of what they offer. We get surprised for what we get. It was better than expected.
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Oct 23, 2024Thank you so much for your fantastic review! We’re thrilled to hear that your experience exceeded expectations and that you were happy with the accommodations, food, and transportation. It’s great to know that our team made a lasting impression and delivered on everything we promised. We always aim to provide an unforgettable safari experience, and your kind words mean a lot to us. We hope to welcome you back for another adventure in the future!"
RS
Email Natasa | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing expirience
My little tribute!
A Very big thank you goes to Africa Joy Tours for an amazing and unforgettable adventure. All our guides, porters, and cooks did everything they could for us to enjoy through the journey as efficiently as possible.
I want to give a special shoutout to our main guide Ibrahim Mashaka who is extremely professional, knowledgeable, a very good leader, confident and with no doubt a Very good person with a beautiful mindset.
Him and his team paced all of the hikers as best as possible to ensure proper acclimatization and made our dreams come true. All 21 climbers summited the Uhuru peak and came back happy and sound.
Long story short. With all my heart, I recommend Ibrahim Mashaka as a guide.
I recommend Africa Joy Tours.
Cheers
Natasa
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Aug 5, 2024Hi Natasa,
Thank you so much for your heartfelt tribute! We're delighted to hear about your amazing and unforgettable adventure with Africa Joy Tours. We're thrilled that Ibrahim Mashaka and his team provided such a wonderful experience for you and all the climbers. Congratulations on summiting Uhuru Peak!
Your kind words and recommendation mean a lot to us. We hope to see you again for another adventure.
Precise and Professional
We had really a wonderful experience climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro with the team of Mr. Steven, and I can only suggest his crew for all the other climbers.
Mr. Steven and Mr. Godfrey delivered an experienced guidance and a passionate commitment throughout the whole ascent, and the rest of team was simply incredible in supporting us in all our needs and make the climb feel very easy.
Managamenet organized by Mr. Christian was always very precise and punctual.
Top experience!
Reply from Africa Joy Tours
Posted on Aug 5, 2024Hi Niccolò,
Thank you for sharing your experience! We're thrilled to hear that you had a wonderful time climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro with Mr. Steven, Mr. Godfrey, and their incredible team. Your kind words about their guidance and commitment, as well as the precise and punctual management by Mr. Christian, mean a lot to us. We're glad you had a top experience and appreciate your recommendation.