Freedom Africa
- Located In:
-
United Kingdom
- Size:
- 10-20 employees
- Member Of:
- ATOL & ABTA
- Destinations:
- Website:
- www.freedomafrica.co.uk
Reviews
Email Anne | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Luxury prices, economy experience
I had been to Kenya before with a high-end travel company and thought I knew what to expect. The price from Freedom Africa was a bit of a shock at over £14k but included Giraffe Manor in Nairobi. I was therefore expecting a high standard of accommodation and safari guides.
I had arranged to go to the Nairobi Elephant Nursery on the first morning before we were taken to Giraffe Manor. There was absolutely no flexibility in transportation so we had to pay an extra £140 for what amounted to a 20 minute taxi ride. After Giraffe Manor we went to Sweetwaters with what we thought was going to be our safari guide for the holiday. He was excellent and the accommodation on our first stop was quite good.
After Sweetwaters we went back to Nairobi and were put on a train to Amboseli (fare: £5 for first class). That was the last we saw of our guide until the final hotel when we bumped into him driving another party.
From then on the quality of the trip deteriorated with every stop. We did not have our own guides, we had hotel drivers who in our opinion are not safari guides. We spotted lions before they did, we heard the story of elephants' teeth from every one of them. Some didn't speak English very well. We were booked on a walking safari and they tried to charge extra. Every time we entered a national park we were asked for the entry fees which we had already paid.
Lodges were variable but none are what I would call luxury standard, and some are in fact described as basic. The worst lodge was Salt Lick at Taita HIlls - it was overcrowded and we had to wait for a table at dinner time. The drivers were silent and the cars were full, with people talking on their phones. We went to a rock which had a lone lioness and I counted 35 cars jostling for position to see an ear. The lodge is in two parts, the accommodation block with a restaurant and another block which has the pool and spa. On our second day we didn't leave the accommodation block or go on any drives because we couldn't bear the noise. It was the best day there. We couldn't wait to leave,
When I got back I complained to Freedom Africa. They said they were "surprised" to hear I wasn't entirely happy with my holiday. Further emails went unanswered. They didn't want to listen to any of my comments and insisted Salt Lick was one of their most popular lodges.
I had also booked a holiday with Freedom Asia which is part of the same group and had even worse problems with them.
