Monkey Adventures
- Located In:
-
United States
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2017)
- Member Of:
- Kilimanjaro Association of Tour Operators
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $150 to $1,350 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
CH
Email Alireza | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic Experience in Kenya
---Short version---
We did a nine-day private safari in Kenya and a one-day Nairobi tour organized by Monkey Adventures. We enjoyed every second of it and we are as satisfied as we can be. We totally recommend Monkey Adventures for their kind and professional staff, their flexibility, their punctuality, and their good prices.
---Long Version---
Planning Phase:
After sending the first inquiry, we received a reply very quickly from Arvind. He was a tour consultant at Monkey Adventures who helped us to plan the tour. The whole process took place via emails. The response time was low and some days we exchanged several emails. The planning was exactly as I wanted to be. The itinerary was flexible and up to us and Arvind provided us with the necessary recommendations regarding the order, the number of nights at each national park, etc. For choosing the accommodations, they provided us with several options. We were also free to choose any other camps, lodges, and hotels that we wanted. Generally, it was a smooth process and I was very satisfied with the resulting plan.
After finalizing the itinerary, we were communicating with Nyani. We paid the initial 30% and were about to pay the rest one month before the tour starts. Our tour was half in Kenya and half in Tanzania but unfortunately, our Tanzanian visa got rejected due to a new rule which we were not aware of. Monkey Adventures provided us with invitation letters and also tried to help us with our visa application from their Tanzanian office. Nothing worked out. Less than a week before our tour starts we had to cancel the Tanzanian part of our tour. Again Monkey Adventures helped us to extend our Kenyan part with three more days.
Safari Phase:
We met Fauziah from Monkey Adventures office and Richard our safari guide on the morning of the first day of our tour at the hotel we were staying in Nairobi. After finalizing the payment and having a short briefing session we hit the road with Richard. Richard was very experienced. He was very cool and patient and easy to communicate with and passionate about what he was doing and knowledgable about the wildlife of Kenya. We enjoyed the entire nine days that we were with Richard going to Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Amboseli, Tsavo east and Tsavo west.
Beach Phase:
Richard dropped us at our hotel in Mombasa on the last day of safari. We planned the beach phase ourself without Monkey Adventures but if I would do that again I would ask them to plan this part too. We only asked Fauziah to plan our trip from Mombasa to Nairobi. She and also Richard recommended us to take the train. We accepted and we are happy with this decision. Fauziah arranged a ride from our hotel to the train station in Mombasa. She bought us the train tickets and arranged a ride from the train station in Nairobi to our hotel. Everything went as planned. The cars were nice and the train was as comfortable as they already told us. Fauziah was so caring that she called the drivers to check if everything was fine.
Nairobi day-tour:
The next day Sami (sorry if the spelling is not correct!) from Monkey Adventures came to our hotel and picked us up for the Nairobi day tour. He was a very calm and nice guy. He helped us to plan the day based on our limited time. We enjoyed the day and he dropped us at the airport in the end. Fauziah called us to get a feedback of the whole experience. We flew back home with lots of awesome memories of Kenya, friendly and kind Kenyan people, and their amazing wildlife.
Thank you Arvind, Nyani, Fauziah, Richard, Sami and the rest of the Monkey Adventures team that made this possible!
Email Milo Owen | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The best week of our lives!
The week we spent with our guide Ashley was absolutely phenomenal. He was an amazing guide, great company, and spotted animals everywhere! We saw the big 5 and had the best week of our lives. Cannot recommend Monkey Adventures enough!
Email P&M | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A flawless, 5-star experience
We did a week-long safari in Masai Mara, Nakuru, Naivasha and Amboseli with our guide, Denis Lekina. Denis is a Maasai, knows everything about local traditions, and knows the Kenyan parks like the back of his hand. His accomplishments speak for themselves – among others, he was hired by a camera crew to film Melania Trump’s safari visit, and worked for 6 months as a guide for the crew researching the lions of Masai Mara and filing the “African Cats” documentary. As a result, he knows all of the lions in Masai Mara by name, knows their territory, where to search for them.
Denis ensured we were always amongst the first cars to arrive to any rare animal sighting and always had the best view. In a single afternoon, we saw 4 of the big 5, in addition to the wildebeest river crossing and a crocodile kill.
The office team of Monkey Adventures were flexible, very responsive, and had good knowledge of the various parks. They took time to understand what we were really after and tailored the trip accordingly. For example (following a standard itinerary) we initially wanted to spend two nights in Amboseli, but the team advised us we should instead spend more time in Masai Mara given that we wanted to focus on seeing as many different animals as possible. Similarly, we wanted to allocate most of the budget to staying in the best locations in Masai Mara, and were fine with staying in budget accommodations in other areas we visited in order to reduce the overall cost. Monkey Adventures were fully flexible, and tailored our trip to meet our wishes. In addition, they also followed-up immediately after the trip to ensure everything was in order and we were satisfied with everything.
I am sure we will be coming back, booking with Monkey Adventures and asking for Denis as our guide. I would highly recommend anyone thinking of a safari to do the same.
CA
Email Mukul Raj | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
High Five with the Big Five of Kenya in Five Days !!!!
We had one of our best trips in recent times with Monkey Adventures!
We booked the 5 days Kenya safari, and Nyani helped us with the booking and shared information regarding all the preparation necessary. Upon arrival at Nairobi, Yvonne met us at the airport for a briefing and we were informed of the plan for the next 5 days.
Joseph was our driver and guide, and he was fantastic. Thanks to his expertise and our luck(as he says), we were able to spot each of the Big Five in the trip. He kept us entertained with his immense knowledge of the place and the witty jokes. We had a nice relaxed day at Naivasha, with the boating and the walk in the island, before heading to Nakuru. We had missed sighting the Rhino in Masai Mara, but we were delighted to see a couple of them in Nakuru National park.
The camps that were recommended to us were good, and as we expected our stay to be. Nyani had ensured that they know of my wife’s allergy to peanuts, and they had cooked dishes separately for her, without using peanuts. That was a great gesture.
We thank Monkey Adventures for a wonderful experience. Highly recommended for those who wish to have a great time in Africa!
NL
Email Milda & Filipe | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A magical week in Kenya thanks to our wonderful guide Alex!
Communication with Monkey Adventures was very smooth: quick replies and simple booking process. Monkey Adventures offered several options for accommodation and helped us in choosing the most convenient hotels for the route we wanted.
Service was better than we could have imaged: we were greeted at the airport by a representative from Monkey Adventures and presented to our guide Alex, who joined us for a 6 days safari. Alex did a wonderful job: he is very knowledgeable, friendly and one of the most interesting persons that we met from all our trips. That is a very important characteristics when you think that you are going to spend so much time with the guide. For this reason we highly recommend to do your trips with Alex!
Last but not least, Alex had a wonderful knowledge of the birds of Kenya. This really turns your Big 5 into Big colourful 500!
US
Email Mark Measeck | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Monkey Adventures is a very professional and value for the money outfit
We arrived at JRO airport in Arusha and were picked up immediately upon leaving arrivals hall. Our guide was Frank and he was very professional and a veteran guide of 15 years in the Serengeti. Our itinerary was 10 days over 4 camps and two days in Arusha. We drive out for the 10 days and flew back to Arusha from the central serengeti. We were very thankful that Frank was such a good driver of the Land cruiser because it was very wet and muddy in many places. I have a whole new appreciation for a Land cruiser after this trip. Our camps were superb! Everything went a smooth as silk on the whole trip. I would highly recommend Monkey and our rep Benson. As soon as this virus thing is over, I plan to contact Monkey for another trip to N. Serengeti to see the migration.
IN
Email Swaroop | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Memorable experience in Kenya with Monkey Adventures
I started to get in touch with Monkey Adventures in Dec 2019 and Nyani used to handle my safari plan. He was patient and kind enough to answer all my queries. Provided that I had only 2 months to plan my safari in Kenya, I should appreciate his help towards clarifying all my queries, and the whole process booking and payment was smooth. Finally I booked 5 days Masai Mara, Nakuru, and Lake Naivasha safari. I was flexible with the accommodation options and hence I found no issues there.
Once I landed in the Nairobi airport, Yvonne picked me up from the airport and I went to my Nairobi accommodation. She briefed about the tour in the evening. It was a warm welcome from them and I felt home and relaxed for the night. My tour started the very next day and I'm still as excited I was on that day.
On the safari starting day morning, the guide Joseph accompanied me throughout the tour. I had booked the Land Cruiser and it's truly a beast in that terrain! I was made aware that the last few kms towards Mara wouldn't be a pleasant drive. This vehicle manoeuvred through that road and the drive was manageable.
As a wildlife enthusiast, I know that the sightings are based on luck and it was definitely a lucky day for me. I spotted 4 of the big 5 animals (except rhinos) on the very first day. There was a leopard that was about to hunt a Gazelle but it missed the target somehow. Lucky day for the Gazelle but sad for the leopard. The endless Savannah would make even the giant elephants look tiny. Joseph was a knowledgeable and calm person. He spotted many species and explained about the rare species briefly. The next day when I was on safari, he contacted some others over the radio and we spotted a group of cheetahs. I was very happy about Masai mara as it was a dream visit there. Lake Nakuru and Naivasha didn't fail to surprise me either! I spotted many Rhinos, flamingoes, baboons, and Giraffes in Nakuru. And plenty of birds in both lakes.
It was truly a great experience and I would definitely visit Kenya many times again! Got to know that Monkey does safari in Tanzania and Uganda also. I've planned for Tanzania safai in Oct 2020 with them and hope everything goes as planned!
I'm already excited about my second safari and I would certainly recommend Monkey Adventures to my friends. Thank you everyone who were involved in making my safari experience special.
BE
Email Anna | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Everything was great
John our travel planer, was very helpful, quickly answered all our questions and tailored the perfect safari for us.
Basecamp in Maasai Mara was awesome. Personals was lovely, very comfortable accommodation with great food. Highly recommended!
We spent un unforgettable week with our guide Letoloi. He was friendly, he knew a lot about animals and he was sharing the information about Kenya. He knew where to go to see all the animals without to be surrounded by another tourist cars. He has a lot of respect for animals, we saw all the animals so close but without feeling that we disturb them by our presence. Every day we had fantastic breakfast or lunch in savanna. Road from Masai Mara to Amboseli was so dangerous, we have seen many car accident, but Letoloi drive so carefully that we felt safe.
If we will be back to Africa for safari in future we will not hesitate to choose Monkey adventures. And if we will back to Kenya we would like to have Letoloi as our guide again
US
Email Mari Forbes | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
This company deserves no less than a 5 star rating. Trustworthy and reliable!
We had a great time on our first safari in Kenya with Monkey Adventures! From the moment I got in touch with them through Safari Bookings, John was very responsive to my emails and answered all my questions about our safari. He helped us plan our 3 day private safari in Amboseli National Park. We were picked up at our hotel in Nairobi on time by our wonderful guide in a 4x4 Land Cruiser. We absolutely enjoyed the convenience of being in the center of everything by staying at Ol Tukai Lodge! Yvonne and Robert from the main office were also very helpful and responsive when we communicated with them regarding our delayed baggage on Whatsapp. They went above and beyond in making sure our luggages got delivered to us, even though we were already across the border in Tanzania! I cannot emphasize how helpful they are during this crazy time of travel. We had a similar experience in the UK which was the next leg of our trip where our luggage was delayed once again in Amsterdam. Our tour operator or anybody really was not able to help us recover them while we were still in the UK.
Over all, we thoroughly enjoyed our trip because of this company and it certainly was money well spent. Do not hesitate to book your East African with this company! 5 stars all the way! Thank you John, Faizah, Yvonne and Robert!
NL
Email Gabbi | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Exceptional
Monkey Adventures were professional from start to finish. Their service and advice during enquiries and booking was very quick and helpful during the safari itself our driver was extremely knowledgeable and friendly, this really made the trip memorable for us. The accomodation and vehicle were all to a high standard and we were very comfortable throughout the whole trip.
With so many companies out there it is hard to decide on what one to go for. I would highly recommend monkey to anyone planning a safari.