Joseph,Our seniorguide always ready to welcome you
Crystal Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 1996)
- Member Of:
- ATTA, ASTA, APTA, AUTO, SKAL, UTB & UTO
- Tour Types:
- Customizable private tours and fixed group tours
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $77 to $800 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
US
Email Angela R. | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An awesome adventure in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest gorilla trekking and interacting with the l.
Uganda is not only the “pearl” of Africa, but the “diamond!” Had 4 wonderful days at the Gorilla Safari Lodge with host and owner Christine. Beautiful views, flowers, impeccable service as well as delicious food! Our tour guide was Hannington from Crystal Safari who was a terrific and informative guide! He took care of all the logistics seamlessly and was fun to hang out with. We saw the Gorillas and did the community walk, visiting the local school, women’s group (taught us to basket weave) and met with the pgymies (the eldest was 101). I definitely will be back soon!!! An epic adventure!!!
IT
Email ANGELINA PAGLIOTTA | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A SURPRISING UGANDA, ORGANIZED BY AN EXELLENT TRAVEL AGENCY
I came back from a beautiful 14 days (27th May to 9th June) to Uganda with friends two weeks ago, impeccably organized by the Crystal Safaris agency. Great hotel accomodations and food.
Thanks to our guide Joseph a 28-year-old driver of great experience with an eagle view, we were able to spot during the morning safaris many animals, including many lions in the Queen Elisabeth Park and in the Murchison Falls Park and a leopard in the Lake Mburo Park with his little puppy in the jaws. Kind and patient he has made our trip unforgettable. Also the meeting of a gorillas' family in Bwindi impenetrable Forest was just as exciting and touching.
Thank you Joseph, thank you Barbara and thank you Crystal Safarys for allowing all this.
Angelina Pagliotta
Italy
US
Email Abby | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Absolutely fantastic experience!
We just got back from a 7-day tour to Kibale National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, and Bwindi. The tour was wonderful and action-packed!
Highlights: the full-day habituation experience with chimpanzees in Kibale, seeing the tree lions (multiple times!) in Ishasha, elephants wandering through our camp during lunch one day in Ishasha, and, of course, seeing gorillas in Bwindi.
Our guide, Hannington, was with us for the full week and took exceptional care of us. He was a wonderful guide, checking in with us throughout the week to make sure we were happy and that everything was going well. He was friendly, knowledgeable, and a true pleasure to spend the week with! We were well-prepped each evening on what to expect the next day. It was great to have a single guide with us for the whole experience.
The Crystal Safaris team was also fantastic in helping arrange for transportation, transfers, and providing various options for what to do so we could create the exact tour that best fit what we wanted to do and stay within budget. I appreciated having a few options to pick from, although they all looked wonderful, and we had a hard time deciding exactly what to do! Barbara and team were very easy to work with. I received very quick responses to my email inquiries.
Of the places where we stayed, Crystal Safari's Gorilla Safari Lodge and the Ishasha Wilderness Camp were stand-outs -- the food, the accommodations, and the people were all so lovely.
I very much hope that I'll be able to visit Uganda again in the future -- there's so much more to see and do. If I'm able to return, I'll definitely use Crystal Safaris again and will request Hannington!
It was such an incredible and special experience -- I'd go back again tomorrow if I could!
US
Email Anne | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great Staff & Excellent Service
Our Crystal Safaris guide and driver, Hannington, was absolutely brilliant. His bravery and skill behind the wheel were instrumental to the success of our gorilla trek in Uganda.
Our stay at Crystal Safari's Gorilla Safari Lodge, on the edge of Bwindi Impenetrable Park was everything we'd hoped for and more. We've never encountered a more friendly, welcoming and helpful staff. They made everything a pleasure and their attention to detail was second to none. Every touch was perfection, down to the fires in the fireplaces, flowers and candles on the dining table, and excellent wines with our delicious meals.
We highly recommend this safari service and lodge.
NL
Email Reg and Roel | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wild life in Uganda.
Wild life in Uganda.
The last years we travelled in several countries in Central America. We drove from place to place, seeing so many beautiful spots and attractions. We also visited National Parcs with their own wildlife.
This year we decided to do something completely different. We wanted to see the great wildlife of Africa, and the best country to discover this all should be Uganda! And it did!!!
Because hiring and driving a car ourselves wasn’t an option, we ended up by agency of our dutch safari specialist Mambulu Safaris with Crystal Safaris. They made a program for us which satisfied our wishes. We didn’t want to travel in a group, so we knew that the two of us should be together with our guide and driver for the upcoming 11 days, which made it a little exciting upfront.
Joseph Chiwa turned out to be a very save driver and an excellent guide, we had a very fine click with him. Together we cruised to the following National Parcs; Murchison Falls, Kibale Forest Reserve, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Lake Bunyonyi and Lake Mburo National Park. In between we did a lot of game drives, we made a few hikings, a boat trip on the White Nile to see Murchison Falls and a canoe trip on Lake Bunyoni.
We saw so incredible many beautiful wild animals. We saw the big five, even the leopard (wich is very exceptional). We did see a lot more, like different sort of bucks and monkeys (like the chimp), hippos, giraffes, crocs, zebras and totaly unexpected the very dangerous puff adder. But biggest sensation of all was meeting the big silverback gorilla .... breathtaking ... never to forget...!
All the locations, all the trips with all their bookings and paperwork were pre-arranged. This made the travelling extra comfortable. We made so many pictures of all the beauty we saw, but more important, we stored all the beauty in our heads.
Our holiday in Uganda in one word: Incredible!
US
Email Ryan | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Honeymoon Gorilla Trek
My wife and I went on our honeymoon hoping for an amazing experience. Not only was it great but it exceeded our expectations. The service at Crystal Safari was top notch and our driver/guide Hannington was amazing! We felt safe and cared for the entire time. Hannington's big heart and knowledge about everything made our trip. You should ask for him! We consider him a friend for life. The Gorilla Safari Lodge is perfect for anyone wanting to see the gorillas. You would be a fool not to. My wife and I will never forget this!
RU
Email Alexander | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
13 days in Uganda, wild life and gorillas safari
I think, that your company and travel guide Hannington was made good service and very interesting all activities.
I will to recomend your company and our guide for my friend and other peoples for trips to Uganda.
US
Email Sheila | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Incredible Safari in Uganda and Kenya
We booked a one night gorilla safari to Bwindi National Park from Uganda with Crystal Safaris. Absolutely incredible. Barbara was very responsive in communication. Everything was exactly as promised. Ivan picked us up on time in Kigali, he was a very safe driver and very knowledgeable guide. The Gorilla Safari Lodge was beautiful with excellent food. Cottage was very nice, clean, and comfortable beds. Good internet in reception area. Great massage, interesting visit to the village. The trek to see the gorillas was incredible!!! Wish we could have stayed longer.
We also booked a 7 night safari in Kenya on very short notice after our safari with another company had been cancelled. I did not realize when I made original booking that Crystal Safaris also would organize a safari in Kenya. I contacted Barbara and she responded immediately and worked very hard to put together a safari at the last minute within our budget. Our guide, Johnson, was waiting for us at the airport upon our late arrival and drove us to our hotel in Nairobi for our first night. Johnson was an incredible guide. He was a safe driver, extremely knowledgeable, always on time and very flexible to make sure that we were happy with our safari. He made sure that we saw the "Big Five" along with much more wildlife and the Wildebeest migration. We visited Amboseli, Lake Nakuru, Masai Mara, and Lake Naivasha. Two of the lodges were incredible - AA Lodge Amboseli and Naivasha Kongoni Lodge. Absolutely beautiful. The other two were average - Jarika County Lodge and Mara-Aardvark Lodge but we were on a limited budget. We were actually pleasantly surprised with our upscale accommodations at Amboseli and Naivasha. I would highly recommend this company and also feel confident that no one would be disappointed with Ivan or Johnson. An excellent guide is the key to a great safari and both Ivan and Johnson went above and beyond!
Email D/M Leadbeater | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The BEST Ugandan honeymoon with the BEST Safari Guide!
The number one most important thing about any safari is your safari guide - when my husband and I booked our honeymoon to Uganda with Crystal Safaris we did not realise just how lucky we would get - Hannington - our safari guide went above and beyond to make our honeymoon the most special time of our lives! He was extremely knowledgeable, professional and as a well respected tour guide - he had great connections - meaning we were able to see even the most rarest of animals during our game drives. Crystal Safaris and Hannington ensured each lodge we stayed in were aware it was our honeymoon and we were never disappointed - we had cakes made especially for us at each lodge, a traditional Ugandan song dedicated and sang for us by the staff at Gorilla Safari Lodge in Bwindi (also owned by Crystal Safaris!) and a private candlelit dinner outside our lodge overlooking the lake at Crater Safari Lodge (also owned by Crystal Safaris!). In terms of our safari, we saw all the animals we could have wished for - Elephants, Giraffes, Lions, Leopards, Buffalo (many types), Antelopes (many types) and a huge variety of incredible birds (including the rare national bird of Uganda!!). In addition to all of this, Crystal Safari organised our Chimpanzee and Gorilla trekking experiences - both of which were once in a life time experiences. We really were very happy with our safari and most of all with meeting Hannington and having him as our tour guide and driver as we feel we have a safari guide for life! Hannington is an exceptional tour guide and I would highly recommend asking for him specifically when booking through Crystal Safaris - he is always high spirited (even after an 8+ hour drive!), makes great conversation ensuring you learn not only about the animals but also about what life is really like in Uganda and really cares for you during your holiday, we were very lucky to have had him as our guide for our honeymoon!!
MX
Email Sabina | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excelent Guiding true Beautifull Uganda
We had a great time on our Gorila experience, you can not get wrong with this company, make sure you request a Joseph Chiwa as your guide and you will have a terrific time!