THE A TEAM
Axis Africa Expedition & Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2016)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $100 to $280 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
TN
Email Hiba | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing safari experience with our guide Dennis
We did a six-day safari tour with Dennis as our guide:
Days 1 - 3 we were in Masai Mara, staying at Mara Lenchada camp.
Day 4 we went to Lake Nakuru, staying at Lanet Matfam Resort
Days 5 and 6 were spent in Amboselli national park. As there weren't enough people interested in this portion of the tour, it ended up being a private safari. We stayed in Amboselli AA lodge.
Planning and communication with Lennox by e-mail and Whatsapp were smooth and timely. We booked at the last minute, but it was reassuring that Lennox was highly responsive to our questions, requests for modification, and concerns.
We arrived in Nairobi and although we had planned to take an Uber to the tour meeting place (far more affordable), Lennox insisted that we go with his driver who would avoid the congested main airport road. He promised that we can pay the same price that we saw on Uber; however, upon arrival, the airport driver demanded far more - $25 USD - which is definitely overpriced. If you do some straight from the airport, I definitely recommend using Uber or Bolt, which are closer to $11 or $13 USD.
Now for the safari itself. Although our original safari was supposed to be in a van, Lennox informed us on the day of that he gave us a free upgrade to a Land Cruiser. Even if you don't get a free upgrade, having seen both vehicles I DEFINITELY recommend going for a Land Cruiser. The experience would be completely different as you can really go offroad and see more animals that way. We were very glad that we ended up in the 4x4.
Dennis, our guide throughout the six days was knowledgeable, friendly, accommodating, and eagle-eyed with the animal sightings. He ensured that we saw the "big 5", and also listened to our requests for specific animals that we were hoping to see. We got lucky to see some cheetahs playing with a gazelle before eating it, birds feeding on an animal, a sleeping leopard, and other cool sightings. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see a migration across the Mara River even though this is supposed to be the season for it. Dennis informed us that the migrations don't happen every day; they can occur sporadically at unknown times, and it is hard to anticipate them. We found out that there was a big migration the day after we left Maasai Mara.
On the way to Lake Nakuru, we had a quick stop at Lake Naivasha, where we did the "boat safari" to Crescent island at extra cost ($20 per person). This was totally worth it, as we got to see more hippos up close at Naivasha, along with so many birds and other wildlife.
Lake Nakuru National Park is beautiful. The landscape is lush and varied, and we had a long morning game drive there, which still felt far too short. We missed the rhinos in Maasai Mara, but we did see one here. If you have the time, I really recommend spending a full day in Nakuru. It's totally worth it.
Amboselli Park was also so nice. During our full day there, it was too cloudy to see Kilimanjaro. However, we got to see plenty of elephants and giraffes, along with various other wildlife. Lunch at observation hill was lovely. The following morning we set out for a sunrise game drive, which was totally worth it, as we caught a glimpse of Kilimanjaro during the brief half hour when the sky cleared up, and we got to see a family of lions feasting on a wildebeest. It was an incredible sighting, and one only possible in the early morning I would imagine.
Now some notes about the planning of the safari:
1. The "3 days in Maasai Mara" thing is misleading. The first day is spent nearly entirely on the road. There is time for a two-hour game drive in the evening, but given the vastness of the reserve, this meant that we couldn't go too far in, and didn't get a chance to see much. Likewise for the third day, where we just had two hours in the reserve in the early morning before hitting the road to Lake Nakuru. One full day in Maasai Mara was nice in that we saw a lot; however, because our accommodation was so far, we didn't have time to make it to the Mara Triangle, which is arguably THE place to be during migration season. In fact, we spent very little time by the river. I recommend that you emphasize this as a priority from the start.
2. Mara Lenchada camp was very basic. Our tent didn't have hot water at first; after we reported it to management, they fixed it and instead we got brown murky hot water. The tents were clean, food was acceptable, and there was enough time with electricity running for us to charge our devices. However, it is about 20 minutes away from Maasai Mara gate, and the road is absolutely terrible in between. Be prepared for a very, very bumpty ride
3. Lanet Matfam was an adequate resort. They did not inform us of this ahead of time, but they cut the electricity at 9pm, so ensure you charge your devices beforehand. The food wasn't too bad, and they did have hot water; however, I am not sure how safe it is. When I had the shower running, I felt electric shocks every time I tried turning the faucets. In the end I used a towel to turn them on and off. Be careful. Also, there were far more mosquitos here than in Maasai Mara.
4. AA Amboselli Lodge was very nice. It is close to Amboselli gate, the rooms are spacious, clean and very comfortable, and the food is varied and delicious. This accommodation was midrange and we thought it was excellent value for money. We had a great time here.
Overall, the safari was good value for money. Communication and service were excellent, nearly everything went as originally planned, and the guide made it all worth it. I highly recommend Axis (and definitely Dennis) if you're looking for a budget tour and want to maximize your safari experience!
SE
Email Sebastian | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great driver and game drives. Not that great planning.
We took the six day safari with Masai Mara-Naruk-Amboseli. We ordered our safari via Axis, in our car we were 7 people. We were the only ones from Axis. So it’s hard to rate Axis on our trip.
We suffered a bit due to this since all travel groups had different itinerary and accommodations. We spent hours waiting on people and driving to different lodges/tent camps. This made that our tour didn’t followed our itinerary and we had to argue to get what we paid for.
You should be aware of this or demand to be in a car with a group with 100% same itinerary/accommodation if you plan to order this trip.
With that said we had a great safari. We saw the big five on our first full day game drive. Richard, our driver should have the Nobel peace prize for handeling one of our co-travelers that was very demanding. He handled our van with great skills!
Richard and animal-viewing was five stars, the planning with different itineraries in one car was one star!
KR
Email Sonia | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Safari... not what I expected... maybe...
First of all, I don't blame Axis Africa if my safari was less than ideal. I think for the price, I got a great deal. I saw lions, cheetahs. leopards, lots of elephants. giraffes, zebras. Pic-up, drop-off, camps and game drives were exactly as promised. I guess I really came with little experience and expectations. I was in a (nice) pop-up van with a bunch of foreigners (like me). The guide spent most of the time on a radio with other guides. We could guess when he spoke a lot and we say all the vans heading in one direction it was a lion or something "big". It did kind of feel we were harassing the animals, even caging them in with vans. Only once did our driver seem to participate in this (on the last day, he gunned the van to try to get a rise out of a cheetah, who did not respond-- and several of us let him know we didn't think it cool to do this-- but we did notice other vans harassing animals, shouting at them and trying to provoke them. I did get the feeling that the guides on these "budget" safaris would do "whatever" they thought made the guest happy and earn more tips. We clearly went off-road when it was marked. I also had a bad experience at the camp when a driver from another safari made sexual comments and reached into his pants and (well whatever) while speaking to me. (He asked it I was in a tent alone --I wans't) and then I just left.. I probably should have taken his name or photo-- but I was in shock! Anyway, this was not the fault of my company, but it did mar my experience.
In my further travels in Africa, I did another game drive in Botswana that was actually cheaper and more professional. We didn't drive as close to the animals but that actually felt better,
I did feel Axis Africa gave me what they promised in a budget safari. That said, I am not sure what i got what what I anticipated. I did see a lot of animals. They were mostly wild and free, except that we caged them in with our vehicles (and they did seem OK with this). Our guide, while not particularly knowledgeable ("there ix a big elephant and a little elephant") was pleasant enough. I hope this post alerts other women who may be harasssed to take a photo and report it as I wish I had.
VN
Email Ngoc Nguyen | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable moments
A true adventure, an incredible experience with lots of unforgettbale memories. A childhood dream came true when you see the animals roaming on endless prairies. especially when you get near the Big 5 which we managed to spot during the safari... all that within only 4 days with Axis. Lennox was helpful from the very first moment, he patiently replied every question I had. The Safari was very professionally organised.
Our driver Richard seems quite experienced despite his young age. He always did his best to create a good atmosphere in the group and to give us the best possible angle to take photos of the animals. He speaks Russian pretty well too which was a really nice surprise. We - a Vietnamese and a Kenyan talked in Russian with each other which was really something else lol.
My roommate or my tentmate to be exact from Japan was very nice and pleasant too. Overall an unforgettable experience I had there. Thanks Axis and огромное спасибо, Ричард!
SG
Email Jeannie | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome and Wowed
I was looking around for quotes for safari and the parks they visit but felt that Axis offered what I wanted. Lennox was super prompt in replies and all was well-planned for my 5D Mara-Lake Naivasha-Amboseli mixed camp and lodges with a land cruiser.
Our guide Peter is super experienced and knowledgeable. I kind of think there’s probably not much he didn’t know. Haha. His driving is superb with great manoeuvring skills and also always managed to help us find a good spot for photo taking. On top of that he helped us spot many animals along the way. Super friendly and approachable and one whom you can trust.
The places we stayed at were Lenchata Lodge Camp - its like glamping with bathroom at the back. Hot water is available. Jacinta was very hospitable and friendly. Food tasted good as well!
Lake Naivasha Sopa Lodge-we love this place because the animals were free to roam around the area, they can be just right behind your backyard.
AA Lodge-in AA they have decent cottage rooms and buffets so we tried quite varied stays at different places.
We saw 4/5 of the big five but it doesn’t disappoint because the 7 of us in the group was just wowed by the whole experience.
I highly recommend Axis as your tour company and Peter as your guide. Throughout the whole safari experience we were all well taken care of and has numerous pictures that wowed our friends and family. Will come back again!
IR
Email Hamed | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect operator
Our safari including masai mara, nakuro and naivasha done perfectly by this operator and their experienced tour guide and driver, Khalifa, who showed us big 5 and a lot of amazing wildelife objects. He had well knoeledge about nature and culture of kenya and explain interesting facts about masai people , wildelife and nature.
UA
Email Anna | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect safari
We are very grateful for the Safari we had. Everything was Perfect from the beggining till the end!
The food was tasty, the hotels were clean, they even washed the car every day for us!
Before we came Lenox was in touch all the time, answeared all our questions about entering Kenya or covid certificates. He helped a lot!
Our guide John made a Perfect Safari expearance for us, he did his Best to show all the animals for us. He helped with any question we had. All the organization was a high level!
We are very grateful to John and Axis African Safaris. It is a good safari company, you can be sure everything is gonna be cool
US
Email Gina | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent, amazing and unforgettable experience from the best Safari tour guides
Short summary: amazing experience, amazing company, super responsive, very experienced tour guides, saw all the animals we wanted, exceeded all expectations.
Longer review: I have never left the U.S. before and was a bit hesitant but my husband really wanted to go on a safari for our anniversary so I agreed. Unfortunately, due to work, we weren’t able to plan this super well in advance and had a short time frame we could be in Kenya. We reached out to Axis Africa Safaris among other companies via safaribookings and received a really quick reply from Lennox, who was very responsive with us throughout the whole process (before and during our stay). He was the first one to respond to us actually, while the others took a few days. The email said we should hear from him in 3 days but we heard back from himthat day actually. We wanted a private tour guide for just us two for about 5 days and that’s exactly what we got. He sent us a very detailed itinerary tailored to us and booked all the accommodations needed. My husband also got to choose between lodges. This was just the preparation in advance. It was because of Lennox’s kindness, responsiveness and willingness to work with us that we chose Axis Africa but once we got here- it was even better than we expected!!
We were picked up from the airport and Harun (?) helped us get a SIM card. The next day Lennox and Moses greeted us with a sweet unexpected anniversary gift and we headed off to Hell’s Gate. Moses was our tour guide and he knew every location we visited like the back of his hand. He knows all the ins and outs of each place as he’s been doing this for a while. Moses is very friendly and would explain to us facts about Kenya, its culture, the animals, the history, etc. as we were driving. The boat ride was super fun, and the game drives were amazing. We chose not to go on the hot balloon ride as we wanted to be closer to the animals. We visited Lake Naivasha, Hell’s Gate National park, Lake Nakuru and Maasai Mara National Reserve. Throughout the game drives, Moses encouraged us to ask questions about the animals but also would tell us facts about each animal that we would see. We really wanted to witness the migration so we waited for a bit to see the Wildebeest cross the Mara river. When they didn’t cross, he took us somewhere else in hopes of catching another herd crossing there. Moses knew of alternative places to go to see particular animals and migrations. He knows of a few particular cheetahs, for example, and where to look for them. He went out of his way so that we could get really good photos of the animals. He is an excellent driver and quick thinker. He knows of the good food spots, he gave us tips when we were trying to look for gifts to buy too. The land cruiser was very comfortable and clean. We saw SO many animals - Moses knew when and where to find them. We also had enough time to make a quick stop at a village and learn about their customs. Moses was very flexible and I would highly recommend him as a tour guide and Axis Africa Safaris to anyone hoping to have a fun and memorable experience. If you have any questions (especially if you’ve never really travelled before), please feel free to message me. We had such a great time and really loved the camps we stayed at! I will definitely be recommending Axis Africa Safaris to my friends and family. Excellent service, excellent value for your money, super reliable staff, amazing tour and tour guide.
US
Email MJ | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Value!
I (a solo traveler) dealt with Lennox and his communication was pretty good. There were some miscommunications though. I took a 2 day Safari and was unaware that I would be with a different group each day. Though it did not impact the trip, it would have been nice to know. After the first game drive, my driver gave me an itinerary for the following day with a different group. I was told not to eat breakfast before the drive and that breakfast would be provided after the drive. The camp staff members were not aware of this, and the breakfast food was gone when we returned from the morning drive, so I had to waif until lunch to eat. Not a problem for me, but may be a problem for others.
The lodging (Lenchada Tourist Camp) was pretty good! The staff members were warm, and the bed was comfortable. The camp allowed us to charge our gear for a few hours at night and had power strips, but no adapters, so bring your own.
I took two game drives; one the evening of the first night, and another in the early morning of day two. The first game drive was awesome and we saw a ton of animals. The second drive was the complete opposite. Not the fault of the drivers or company at all though.
The drive itself is long at six hours including stops, but the company does a good job at giving enough breaks. The lunch stop was also a bit lackluster, but I didn't expect much at the price point. Overall, this trip was a great value and I would recommend it to other budget and/or solo travelers.
CN
Email Alicia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful experience, Cynthia and our guider Khalifa are very experienced and patient.
Wonderful experience!!!! Our driver Khalifa knows very well of Masa Mara, we were always the first one to find lions. 5 stars 🌟 travelling
