The Team Behind Kenya Walking Survivors Safaris
Kenya Walking Survivors Safaris Ltd
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2003)
- Member Of:
- Eco Tourism & Kenya Wildlife Services
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $64 to $490 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
US
Email Tim | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great trip despite difficult circumstances for KWSS.
We arrived 9/5 and after very long flights and a 90 minute wait for our visa were so pleased that our driver from KWSS was still waiting to take us to the EKA hotel at 11p.m. We had booked a 12 night mid-range package that included Masai Mara, Samburu, Elsemere and a flight to Entebbe where we went to trek with gorillas. I must admit, I was a bit apprehensive, but the outstanding reviews for KWSS eased my mind so we followed through and went with KWSS. We had the trip of a lifetime. Our experiences, the lodges, and the food were all outstanding. Gorillas by far the best for us! The only down side, being in our 60’s, the drives were much longer than we anticipated so it made it challenging for us, but then we would have missed the countryside and cultural experiences if we had not driven. When we were on our way back to Nairobi on the 14th we were told OT had been in a serious auto accident. This had us very concerned, but our driver took us to the airport for our flight to Uganda, and everything went as planned. More long drives, but beautiful countryside and the gorillas were worth every minute. On our return flight to Nairobi on the 17th our driver was there to meet us at 9:30 at night. He told us more about OT’s auto accident and that he was in a coma. We were concerned for him since we had met him and found him to be a very nice man. We also realized that we had been extremely fortunate that this did not happen before or at the beginning of our trip. I have read the nightmare stories from others since our return, and we know those stories could have been us. We believe OT and KWSS were a very good company before OT’s accident. I understand how this situation created nightmares for others, but am so grateful that because of the timing ours was so wonderful.
AE
Email Paul | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The services and personal touch provided by Kenya Walking was outstanding.
Due to a serious medical matter in our family prior to travel, I had to make last minute changes. Kenya Walking were amazingly understanding, flexible and cooperative in assisting me. It has been a pleasure to know this company, their personal touch and kindness. It is refreshing to have associated with such genuine and nice people, from myself and family. I will be certainly recommending them to all my friends should they wish to travel to Kenya.
TH
Email Sutatip | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Honest and professional
We chose Kenya Walking Survivors Safaris for our upcoming Christmas & New Year trip because Mr.Otieno had always been very responsive to all my requests, even called us a few times with international calls to make sure we receive his emails and everything were arranged according to our needs. Their prices are the most reasonable and we saw good reviews both in Safaribookings and Tripadvisor. Unfortunately, we could not go on a safari with the company due to Mr. Otieno's car accident and the company needs to close temporary. I was a bit worry of what was going to happen to the money that i paid in full for my 13-days Safari plus Zanzibar for a group of 6 people. That is a lot of money that we had paid in full amount. Luckily, they have been treating us with honesty and professionalism. They sent an email with sincere apology to explain what was happen with the company and why the trip got cancelled. And they gave us FULL REFUND on Oct 4th to my visa card. And today my credit card company just called me to confirm that the refund was done and money is returning to my credit card successfully.
I am very appreciated their honestly. And very sorry to the unfortunate accident of Mr. Otieno. Wish him a full recovery soon. Also wish all employees all the best. I read from TripAdvisor that many people have loss their jobs because the company is closing down. Hope everything is going back to normal soon.
Now I need to search for a new tour operator but all companies that I contacted offer me at much higher price for the same itinerary. I and my friends will consider Kenya Walking Survivors Safari again if the company resume their business for our next Safari trip.
CH
Email Paul | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Honest, Professional, Good Communication
We booked a Tour to Maasai Mara, Lake Naivasha, Crater Lake, at the beginning of August with this Company.
I found it via Safaribookings.com and double checked them with tripadvisor.
It was absolutely the right choice to pick this company.
The drivers were always on time, very friendly, reliable ad flexible.
The food was always clean and tasty and the camps safe and comfortable.
Besides that, Mr. Otieno responded on every email of me and answered every single question in a polite and understandable way.
If you go on a Maasai Mara safari with this company, ask for REUBEN NDOLO as your guide in there. He is a real expert who is able to show you basically everything the park can offer.
He works with a lot of patience and endurance and he treats his costumers always friendly, with a bright smile, even after 12! hours of driving.
We are going to choose this company a second time for sure, as soon as we come back to Kenya.
NL
Email Saskia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Wonderfull trip!!!
The communication with Mr. O.T. was very quick. He really listen to our wishes. We were warmly received when we went to the office before the trip. The trip was as we expected: good accomodations, good van, a good guide. We've travelled before with Mr. O.T and again it was wonderfull! I can reccomend his service!
Email Deepak | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Otieno was great in all the tours he organised for us.
Otieno understood all we asked of him and communicated via email and phone with ease. He also give me confidence with the company i was dealing with overseas.
His drivers were very good especially David, he looked after us very well too.
The accommodations were all clean and good.
The only thing we had issues with was the Masai Mara Camp did not cater for the amount of people and did run out of food.
But this was very small for the travelling we did.
Thumbs up for Kenya Walking Survivors Safari.
Fantastic experience, unbeatable service, great lodges, excelled in every aspect
Having only seen the reviews on safaribookings of a company I had never heard of I was stunned by the speed of responses to any query by Mr Otienio, I felt as if I was really valued. I asked if a safari could be modified expecting an extra day at the start or end yet I was given possibilities for during the safari where we could make the most of our time. Once on safari we found we were spending more time on game drives than with previous companies in fact we doubled the time. Our driver Rewer (Stanley) was great, we could spend as little or as long time as we wanted with each animal or bird whilst he considered where to get the best photos from. He listened to what we wanted from our safari - spending time with good views of animals rather than a quick view to tick a box and moving on, so not waiting for hours next to a bush waiting for a sleeping leopard to come out when all you could see was the size of a postage stamp and instead viewing heards of topi and zebra. The quality of our lodges was excellent - Tsavo East Voi Wildlife lodge fantastic lodge and location with loads of elephants visiting the waterhole, Tsavo West Negulia Lodge - dated but fantastic views and plenty of elephants and evening leopard, Amboseli Kibo camp - fantastic tent full of character with great views of Kilimanjaro, Naivasha Elsamere - beautiful surroundings, Nakuru Sopa Lodge - stunning quality, Baringo Soi Safari lodge - dated with fantastic views and very helpful chef, Masai Mara Sekanani Camp - fantastic tent in very private surroundings. Every lodge and tent was excellent each with their own character although because of the amount of time spent on game drives we did not spend as much time in the lodges. Please be aware that some of the drives between lodges can be very lengthy but this allows you experience the most variety of animals and views. The journey between masai mara and nairobe can be particularly problematic as there can be frequent massive traffic jams at the rift valley escarpment which can entail a 2 hour detour to avoid. Overall I was thoroughly impressed with the standard of service and especially considering the excellent price exceeded all my expectations.
ES
Email Alejandro | under20 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfectly complete tour through incredible natural sites where we saw a huge variety of wildlife
From the beginning it was clear that it was a very organized trip. Any small inconvenience was resolved fast and effitiently. We had a meeting with Mr Otieno where he explained our trip, and then we left with our drivers David and Paul. We had a wonderful time with them, they made sure that we could see as many animals as we could; they also provided interesting explanations along the whole journey. When we crossed to Tanzania we switched to drivers Richard and Godlove, who easily met the very high expectations that had been established by the previous drivers. They helped us in anything we did and definitely improved our experience. When we returned to Kenya we met again with David and Kent, and we ended our experience at the same great level as we started it.
The lodges and campsites where we stayed were incredible, providing full services and lots of good surprises. The food all along the trip was great, with a mix of local and European cuisine.
Overall it was a wonderfull experience.
FI
Email Erkki and Aulikki | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Very nice trip and excellent service 14 days in Kenya and tanzania
Communication was good and accurate, Safari to Masai-mara-Naivasha-Amboseli- Ngorongoro-Manyara-Tarrangire- Zanzibar was well planned, accoommodation was great (full board) and cars and drivers very good. Many thanks!
ES
Email Angel M | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excelent choice for our travel to Kenia and Tanzania.
What to say. Fantastic experience. These guys are ready to manage all your travel, acomodations, transfers, fights, meals, at a very good price (no european travel agencies charging additional margins). We have been 18 days in august and have enjoyed very much, lot of fun.
