Peter Amanya and our guide in the safari van
Buyaga Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2017)
- Member Of:
- UTB & AUTO MEMBER
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $450 to $1,000 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
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for a custom tour
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Reviews
NL
Email Sarah | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Good value for money
Safari
Initially me and my friend wanted to do a gorilla trekking only in Uganda but later on decided to extend our trip with a safari. We knew the price of a weekend gorilla trekking would be at least $1000, because the permits are expensive and since we were gonna be in the country anyway, we decided to extend the trip with other activities as well.
We chose this operator because it included all the activities we wanted to do at the lowest price. Other operators were at least $500-$1000 more expensive. The value for money is good. The accommodation you will be staying in will not be luxury, but that’s also not what you payed for. You are able alter the itinerary yourself and we did so with one of the accommodations. We felt as though our guide did not like the accommodation we chose as much as his initial pick, but we were very pleased with our change. It’s therefore good to know you can alter it, but the guide may have a few bad comments regarding your pick.
Peter is a very friendly guide. Especially in the preparation phase, he would respond to messages very quickly. My friend celebrated her birthday during the trip and Peter made sure a (gluten free) birthday cake was prepared and even bought a few gifts for her, which was very thoughtful.
The safari itself was great. We did not expect we had to wake up at 5-6 am so many times, so that was a bit of a shock and resulted in us being exhausted by the end of the trip. That’s why we do recommend to alter the itinerary slightly and have a few more relaxing mornings or afternoons in the schedule, because it’s currently fully packed with activities. We did not expect it to be this tiring, otherwise we would have put a few relaxing moments in beforehand. Additionally otherwise you are together with your tour guide 24/7 (all the activities + meals) and you feel as though you have no quality time with your travel partner able to relax.
The only disappointment activity wise were the lions at Ishasha sector of Queen Elizabeth National Park. One of the reasons why we chose this operator (besides the price) was because it included the famous tree climbing lions where others didn’t. Well during the trip we found out there was a reason other operators did not include the lions, it’s because they are no longer alive unfortunately. We were very shocked to hear this news and even more so because we did not think it was fair that it was included in our itinerary, when they are no longer there. When we expressed this disappointment to our guide, he did not understand. So be prepared that the famous tree climbing lions are no longer there. The park you visit to supposedly look for them, is great to visit anyway! They should however write down in the itinerary that the famous lions are no longer there.
Overall it definitely was a once in a lifetime trip and we were very happy we traveled with Buyaga. The tour it private so you don’t have to share your bus/car with anybody else, which means you always have the best seat to spot animals. Peter made sure he always hired rangers to join us in the car, who were very knowledgable on the area and the animal whereabouts. They even made us go off track sometimes to see lions up close, which was great.
Would definitely recommend this tour and operator!
Easy to deal with, always available
From the very first moment communication with Peter was easy and always available to answer my many questions. I always felt confident in my decision of booking with him and paying in advance. I am a solo traveller and ended up having a 9 day private safari, just me and the driver-guide (friend!).
All accommodations were superb, much more than I expected.
I feel very lucky to have Derrick as my driver and guide. He is a young man very passionate about his job and country, always sharing his knowledge, punctual, making sure all was ok, polite, always accommodating to my needs and wants, and nice to have as company, especially when traveling alone.
I felt very welcomed and had an incredible time in Uganda. Hopefully will return one day! Thank you!!
IT
Email Sabino Giarnetti | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience! Absolutely recommended!
We chose a 10 days private tour including Ziwa Rhino sanctuary, Machinson Falls NP, Kibale NP (Chimps tracking), Queen Elizabeth NP, Bwindi Impenetrable (Gorilla tracking), Lake Bunyoni and Lake Mburo NP. The proposed program was well balanced for our expectations: a lot of activities and some relaxing moments just to recover our energy. Moreover, compared with proposals received by other tour operators, the Buyaga Safaris proposal included more activities and the Chimps tracking in Kibale (the most expensive with the highest chance to see the Chimps up close) at a similar price. We considered this as a good value for our money.
In the preparation phase we easily communicated with Peter (the owner of the company) which proposed us several accommodation solutions (August is very busy and not all the lodges were available).
We were accompanied on the journey by Peter and he’s a very special guide. During the traveling between a stage and the following one (the trips could be quite long), he gave us a lot of interesting information about Uganda, the traditions and food (we asked him to try local food and we did it!). Talk to Peter is very easy and enjoyable. Despite some long journeys, the time was pleasantly spent thanks to Peter's company and the comfort of the van.
The lodges we stayed in were of good standard (a couple of them were great!).
All the activities organized by Peter were fine. Each of them added something new to our travel. Peter also spent himself to maximize the chances to see the animals, changing, if necessary, the scheduling of the activities depending on the weather. In Kibale forest he also rearranged the activities in order to do Chimps tracking in the afternoon instead of the morning avoiding the crowds. It was great! We saw many Chimps very close and with an acceptable number of visitors!
Finally, we absolutely recommend to travel with Buyaga Safaris!
Email Dante Matellini | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Friendly and attentive to our wishes
Amazing safari and gorilla trekking experience. Our guide Alex provided us with a really great experience and was genuinely interested that we had a nice time. We spent four days on this trip, it was just about enough to view the main places, but I would recommend staying longer. For example, viewing lions is not guaranteed, however, if you have 2 or 3 days to spend at the park, then the chances are greater.
The accomodation and food during our journey were great.
The communication with Peter from Buyaga before our trip was excellent. He replied quickly to all our questions and provided us with the necessary information. I would however recommend improving the payment process as sending large sums of money abroad can be unsettling given all the scams that occur these days.
DE
Email Christian | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
10 days in Uganda
It was not our first trip to Africa, but definitely the best. This is due the great planning by Peter our guide. He managed all the activities so we didn’t have to worry about anything and we could completely relax. Every day he was always eager to read our wishes from our lips and to include our excursion destinations in the plan. During our whole trip we never felt uncomfortable or unsafe. The hotels he choose were all excellent. He was able to answer any question we had and was always informed about everything. All in all, Peter from Buyaga did a perfect job and gave us one of the best holidays of our lives. With an incredible number of wonderful moments that we will never forget
DE
Email Leonie | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
It’s was a really lovely trip with the most matching Tourguide we could think of!
We were in Uganda for an internship and decided really spontaneously to do a safari. We found the Safari on SafariBookings and texted Peter. He was really kind and managed our trip, so we could start within three days! It was really awesome and we were really thankful, that it worked out so well. He also fulfilled our wishes we verbalized. Although we had some problems with the credit card and the bank back home, he stayed friendly and helpful until we managed everything.
Our tour itself we did with Noah, a really funny, young and chatty guy, who always listend to our wishes and was the whole time reliable. We had a really great time chatting, listening to music during the car rides and enjoyed listening to his story’s and knowledge of the country. He always managed our tours in the best way, even if we had troubles with the time/with the too bumpy roads/with the car/…
The route we did was great and I think the right amount of days, activities and National Parks and we got the chance to get in love with the country, the animals, the sceneries and also the kindness of the people.
It was a pleasure doing the tour with Noah and becoming friends with him!
One advice I want to give: look for a proper car! Even if it’s funny to get some „African massage“ like Noah called it at the beginning, the roads are bumpy everywhere and within the time, especially on the long rides it’s exhausting.
UA
Email Vira | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An amazing experience as a solo female traveler. Absolutely perfect!
I went on a 4 day tour with Peter (gorilla tracking at Bwindi + Queen Elizabeth park). The program is perfectly elaborated, I had lots of activities every day and also enough of time to rest. The lodges chosen by Peter were beautiful (I def want to go back). He’s a respectful and easygoing person and he genuinely cares about his clients. As a female solo traveler I felt safe and taken care of. I recommend Buyaga Safaris and definitely would go on a trip with then again!
Email Colin Jones | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Peter was a fantastic guide Felt like he was a good friend
I travel around the world This was one of the best tours I’ve been on Each day there was a new experience to enjoy I saw so much wildlife the highlights being chimpanzees tracking and gorilla tracking The lodges I stayed at were excellent Peter was such a great guide and I felt that we were great friends by the end of the tour I highly recommend this company
DE
Email Florian Sperber | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Outstanding experience
The trip i took with buyaga safaris was just outstanding. Peter as a guide is so fun to have around and he really does everything he can to make your experience the best it could get. From the selection of the lodges to the trips we did make there was never anything that was not perfect. Thank you very much for the grest time you did provide!
ES
Email Joan Guzman | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Professional tailored service, high-quality price-balace and amazing personal
What an amazing 10-day Road trip around the western part of Uganda!!
Buyaga provided a high-quality service : they proposed us a tailored and detailed program based on our wishes.
We did an incredible travel through bwindi national park (with an unforgettable meeting with the gorillas), Lake Mburo, Lake Bunyonyi, Queen Elizabeth, Kibale, and Murchinson National parks, and Ziwa rhinos sanctuary.
The program looks pretty crowded but the enterprise made it really easy. We enjoyed diverse activities : gorillas track, chimpanzees track, a plenty of game drives, cruises along the kazinga channel (Queen Elizabeth NP) and the Victoria Nile (Murchinson), and several walk excursions.
This trip was definitely worth it and we will keep it in mind for a while.
We chose Buyaga because of a friend recommendation. And we definitely recommend it based on several points :
1- Easy communication with the enterprise to plan the road trip. Peter, the boss of this local enterprise, answered friendly and quickly to our emails
2- Quality of the local guide/driver. We had the chance to spend the 10-day trip with Derick and made our experience incredible. We could not figure out a better guide for this trip! Extremely polite and kind at every moment, he gave us lot of information about Uganda and the places we visited. A really good professional but a better person that helped us at any time.
3- The quality-price balance. Buyaga is a local agency and the service they gave us was great regarding the price we paid. All the lodges were better than expected, great food, and again diverse and great activities. For the same 10-day road trip, we saved 50% compared to the price proposed by European operators.
We strongly recommend Buyaga and we definitely recommend Derick as a guide to do this wonderful trip!