Friends of Africa Family Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2009)
- Member Of:
- Tanzania Association of Tour Operators
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $195 to $1,000 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
US
Email Rachel | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Stole our money :-(
In December 2023, my friends and I requested a quote and itinerary from Mataro. He was very responsive then and immediately gave us a custom itinerary for a safari to Tanzania and Kenya. He answered all our questions quickly and told us that if we wanted to go in August to see the Great Migration, we should book quickly and make a deposit. So we paid our 20% deposit for 6 of us early in December (more than $6K)... but then things turned south. As soon as we paid, he completely turned on us. First, I received no receipt of my deposit (only a WhatsApp text saying he received it). When I asked him about it, he scolded me and told me he had a medical accident. I felt bad so I left him alone for 6 weeks, even though I was worried about wiring so much money and never getting a receipt. He finally reappeared in March, and then said "everything with our trip was fine and he was working on it". But when I asked him if the 4 rooms at all our accommodations were booked, he lied and said that I had asked for only 3 rooms even though I had emails and texts saying I requested 4 rooms. He kept saying "he was working on it" and told us to basically to not worry, and to "let him do his job". Meaning he didn't want us asking questions. By the time, May came around, we found out he had not booked any of the hotel reservations and he didn't do his job at all. Pretty much all of the accommodations we selected by then were all full and could not accommodate us. It was such a stressful experience and Mataro was completely unprofessional about it - lying to us saying that everything was okay and booked. We only found out after calling the accommodations that he in fact did not book any of the accommodations and instead just took our $$$. After months of back and forth, my friends and I decided he was untrustworthy, unprofessional, and a scammer. So we cancelled our trip and booked a different operator at the last minute.
US
Email Jordan | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nightmare experience, never delivered on promises
Update: I previously removed this review because Mataro threatened to withhold the refund of our deposit per his policy if I didn't remove it. We came to an initial agreement about a payment plan for the >$3,000 he owed us over the course of two months. We provided all necessary details to him for payment, but were ultimately not paid when the due date arrived. Instead we were met with additional excuses and a lack of any urgency in resolving the payment owed to us. All I can say is I'm disappointed, disappointed in Mataro and myself for falling for this. We will be working with Trip advisor and other companies to attempt to have his business de-listed as it's evident we are not the first to have had this experience. I'm completely confused as to how he's ever gotten any positive reviews. See my previous review below.
------------------
I wish I could give negative stars. My wife and I, along with our four friends, had the misfortune of dealing with Friends Of Africa Family Safaris Ltd. We originally chose to book with Mataro because he came highly recommended by two of our friends who had previously traveled with him. While they generally had an okay experience and spoke highly of the safari guides, they did share some concerns once our own issues began to surface. For instance, they mentioned that when they arrived, they were put into an enclosed van—not a proper safari vehicle—which then got stuck and had to be pushed. No other reputable tour operators would put guests in such unsuitable conditions.
Despite these warning signs, we moved forward, only to find ourselves entangled in an even worse situation. What started as a promising interaction quickly turned into a nightmare after we paid over $6K in December as a 20% deposit. Mataro, who had been very responsive before payment, suddenly became evasive, offering only vague assurances that everything was ‘under control.’ But as we later discovered, nothing could have been further from the truth.
The Lies and Deception:
Fake Confirmations: Despite numerous requests, Mataro failed to provide actual booking confirmations. When I directly contacted one of the lodges, they had no record of our reservation—even though Mataro insisted everything was booked. He even tried to convince me to stop contacting the hotels, saying I was 'confusing people' and not 'trusting him.'
Manipulative Excuses: When I questioned why we hadn’t received confirmations or why he claimed certain accommodations were booked when they weren’t, he responded with manipulative tactics. He accused me of trying to do his job and insisted I was the problem for not trusting his process. This, despite repeatedly catching him in lies.
Unprofessional Behavior: In one instance, Mataro claimed he had booked three rooms instead of the four we required, blaming my wife for allegedly changing the request—an outright lie that he later backtracked on. He never took responsibility, and instead of fixing his mistakes, he became increasingly difficult to reach, often ignoring my messages or delaying his responses with more excuses.
Failure to Refund: When it became clear that Mataro had no intention of delivering on his promises, we canceled our trip in early May. Despite his own policy stating a refund within 90 days, those 90 days have come and gone with nothing but more excuses. He even tried to claim he needed more time, despite having made no payments to the hotels on our behalf. It’s evident he never planned to return our money and has continued to string us along with empty promises.
Final Warning:
After dealing with months of stress, deception, and outright lies, I can confidently say we believe this company is a complete scam. In our experience, Mataro is a manipulative fraudster who has no qualms about taking your money and offering nothing in return. The level of unprofessionalism and dishonesty is staggering. If you value your money and your peace of mind, stay far away from Friends Of Africa Family Safaris Ltd. This man will take your deposit and leave you with nothing but frustration and broken promises