Guide Ken with one of our 4x4 Land Cruisers
Spirit of Kenya
- Office In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2014)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $150 to $300 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
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Email Stephanie | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Safari with Professionals
Spirit of Kenya is the only company you should consider for your travels! The level of professionalism offered by this company sets a high bar for future trips abroad. Communication was outstanding from the first email to trip follow up. We opted for the '9 Days Big Kenya' package with an additional day in Maasai Mara.
I truly appreciate that the company gives you price options based on standard, comfort, exclusive, and premium level accommodations. We stayed at a mix of standard, comfort, and exclusive hotels - There is a great deal of custom options offered by Spirit of Kenya, so ask! All of the hotels were incredible and offered unique experiences. The service provided by these hotels, especially Sarova Lion Hill and Mara Basecamp, was beyond expectations. For example, we arrived late at Sarova Lion Hill but they held lunch for us. This was coordinated through our guide, Charles, and Spirit of Kenya as he kept the main office informed of our location and expected arrival time.
We are still dreaming about our time spent on safari. Our guide, Charles, was incredible at spotting predators from a massive distance. The 'five brothers' in Mara are a good example. We saw incredibly active lion cubs (two separate sets), cheetahs, white rhinos, elephants, giraffes, zebras, etc! It was so neat watching and listening to baby elephants attempt to eat grass and drink water. We also had a very inquisitive baby giraffe that came to investigate the vehicle. He was also a fantastic driver and managed the rainy season roads really well (shout out also to Vanessa for recommending the upgrade to the Land Cruiser during the rainy season). Charles was also very helpful and professional with ensuring COVID testing and screening practices.
Spirit of Kenya opened up the African continent to us for future travel. Charles offered many recommendations for a return trip! We honestly can't wait to return to Kenya for a tour of the central highlands (and possibly a hike up Mt Kenya or a marathon through Lewa). We also feel very comfortable bringing our parents on a future trip (and maybe even kids!). We will be dreaming about our experiences indefinitely!
Email Debasmita | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable safari experience, best camping experiences and the guide/driver was amazing.
Excellent safari experience. Vanessa curated a beautiful safari plan with some of the best camping/glamping experiences. Every stay and game drive was amazing. The food served throughout was very good and I would recommend them for Kenyan safaris to all my friends and family. Shuma was an excellent driver and guide and played a big role in ensuring our comfort and has very good knowledge about the terrain, flora and fauna. The game drives were extremely fruitful as we saw all animals we had on our bucketlist
AE
Email Narges | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent management, well organized
Everything arranged perfectly, our lead was super responsible.
We had one of our best experiences.
DE
Email Mariia and Andrii | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Magic amidst a pandemic
There are vacations, there are amazing vacations, and then there is an African safari! Exciting, beautiful, colorful, versatile - those are some of many adjectives to describe the experience and the mood. And Spirit of Kenya (SoK) was responsible for the fairy-tale every step of the way. But let's start at the beginning.
1. Planning and booking.
Planning this trip was exhausting... for our sales manager Vanessa :) The number of change requests from our side was enormous, but Vanessa patiently stuck with us till the end and the resulting trip itinerary was all we could ever wish for! Thank you Vanessa so much!
The actual booking was pretty straight forward: there are plenty of payment options and even the final documents have been adjusted according to our requirements.
2. Arrival.
Upon our arrival at the Nairobi airport, we were picked up and transferred to our first hotel by a very nice guy Moses who was very friendly (in fact, it is remarkable how friendly and lovely people of Kenya are) and helpful. Everything went fast and smooth.
3. Safari.
A.W.E.S.O.M.E. Our expectations were fulfilled by 200%! We've seen the Big Five, Cheetahs, Lions' hunt, White Rhinos, Flamingos, Wild Dogs (a spices on a brink of extinction which, we were told, had not been seen for the last four years!), beautiful scenery, amazing skylight and so much more! It was magical!
4. Guide/Driver and organization.
Our guide's name is Nesta. He was our friend, our driver, our spotter. It is remarkable how skillful he is in spotting wildlife on great distance, how much exciting trivia he told us about what we've seen, how friendly, helpful and patient he was with us. We were difficult passengers, but Nesta was able to fulfill our every request and even more. Next time we're travelling through Africa, we will do it only with Nesta. Thank you so much my friend!
5. Kenya.
It's such a beautiful and versatile country! The political and economical situation there is far from ideal, but people stay optimistic, open, and friendly. Interesting fact: they seem to be coping with COVID far better than some European countries - we could learn a thing or two from them. The nature is beyond beautiful - it's breathtaking! And Kenyan government does a lot to keep it that way - the measures for protection of the national parks, reservations etc. are impressive! Same goes for the ban on plastic packaging.
6. Summary for SoK:
- Organization - Vanessa - excellent!
- Logistics and communication in Nairobi - Moses - excellent!
- Safari and everything around it - Nesta - excellent! excellent! excellent!
Thank you so much guys! We could not have wished for more!
Love,
Mariia and Andrii
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Email John R | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Awesome Safari with an awesome company!
I cannot say enough about the spirit of Kenya. They were wonderful to work with during the entire planning process. They tailored the perfect safari for me. Responses from the travel planner were extremely quick and very informative.
Our guide Franco, was very professional, courteous And prompt. He was a wealth of knowledge and enhanced our trip with information about Kenya, the reserves and the many different animals that we had seen. I am hoping to return next fall and will definitely be requesting Franco once again.
Due to the COVID-19 situation we had to postpone our trip from early September until October. We rebooked very shortly before our actual travel dates. The spirit of Kenya made sure that everything was handled very smoothly. The only small complication that we encountered was that we somehow missed our Airport pickup and transfer to our hotel. After traveling for 24 hours I am sure that some of the fault rested with us being extremely tired. We never did see our pickup person. We took a taxi to the hotel. Shortly after checking to the room our driver did call us and apologized for our missed connections. He assured us that he was at the airport, and I believe him because the next morning when he picked this up for a another transfer he recognized me immediately. Obviously he had seen me but I did not see him with his sign.
The only suggestion that I can make, Is that when arranging for an airport pickup that the actual pickup point be somewhat better defined. In particular at what point after customs ( inside the terminal outside the terminal etc.) perhaps the phone number for the driver would be helpful as well. He spent the next morning with our driver Moses Who also was an off some guy.
Keep up the good work. After travel with you again soon.
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Email Shweta Agarwal | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Once in a lifetime experience
The safari tour was amazing. We had missed our flight into the country and yet they managed the schedule very well. The airport pickup and drop off was very convenient. They were very flexible in accomodating all our asks and customized the trip based on our dietary requirements and budget before we flew into Kenya.
The drivers were very helpful, knowledgeable and addressed any concern and answered any questions we had. During the safari tour too, they worked with us to get what we wanted while we made changes to add some more places, answering any questions we had. The jeep for safari was well maintained. The guide cleaned it up every morning, were always on time and patiently waited if we were late. Driver was knowledgeable to know which route to take to escape other safari jeeps and allow us to get the best views. Always tried to find the best spots to capture nice pictures, friendly with kids too. Would definitely recommend them.
Email Thalia and Matt | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A truly wonderful safari.
We have just returned home from our first ever safari and cannot recommend Spirit of Kenya enough. We came across Spirit of Kenya online and were impressed by all of their positive reviews. Right from the first email, communication, organisation, planning and tailoring our trip were second to none. Special thanks to Vanessa for her incredibly prompt responses, clear communication (fluent in English), professionalism and excellent level of detail. The planning process was easy, efficient and personalised to our every need - thank you very much Vanessa.
We went for the Taste of Kenya Safari which comprised of one night at Lake Nakuru and two nights in the Maasai Mara. This duration of trip was perfect for us and we were lucky enough to see all of the animals we had hoped to see in the wild. The pride of lions, the elephant, rhino and giraffe families and the hippo pools were special highlights for us. Simon, our personal guide for the whole trip, was a star - excellent at spotting all of the wildlife, from small birds to big game, and navigating the sometimes challenging routes through the Maasai Mara (recent rains had made things tougher than usual). Thank you for your expertise and for looking after us so well, Simon.
We stayed at Sarova Lion Hill Lodge and Amani Mara Camp, both of which we would highly recommend.
Thank you very much Spirit of Kenya, a well deserved 5 star rating from us, would highly recommend and would definitely use again.
FR
Email Jean-Michel | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Perfect Safari with Spirit Of Kenya
We discovered Spirit Of Kenya by chance by looking at ratings on Tripadvisor. We did not regret our choice !!!
First of all, before departure, the responsiveness and precision of the answers provided by André were essential for our preparation. The possibility of easily choosing our course and the accommodation was very significant.
Once in Kenya everything went wonderfully. Great punctuality at the meetings, our driver and our guide were absolutely incredible, very friendly, careful on the road and knew the places very well.
We are French and left at 4 for a week with a private Land Cruiser and made the park of Samburu, Aberdare, Lake Nakuru and the Masai Mara.
We absolutely recommend Spirit Of Kenya for your trips to Kenya.
CA
Email Matthew | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing Safari Experience
My teenage son and I had a great experience courtesy of Spirit of Kenya. John was our tour guide, and he was friendly, courteous, knowledgeable and obviously very experienced, overall an excellent guide. We saw an amazing amount of animals in a short time, definitely more than expected or compared to what I have seen on other safaris. The accommodation at Julia's Camp was excellent, with very friendly and helpful staff. The food was also very good, including some local dishes. The booking process and pickup arrangements were also very professionally done. I would definitely recommend Spirit of Kenya to anyone traveling to Kenya.
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Email Olivia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Spirit of Kenya is reliable and accommodating for a perfect adventure.
Vanessa helped plan our entire safari vacation. She responded to every email within 24 hours. We had many questions, requests, and customizations for this trip and Spirit of Kenya delivered. All activities and accommodations we wanted for our safari were included making for a full itinerary of all experiences we sought after. Communication and organization is top notch. I would highly recommend Spirit of Kenya because all of the thinking and planning was taken care of so we could focus in the upcoming trip.