35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Incredible experience
I was travelling on my own and I was made feel welcome and safe. The long drive was broken by street food stops and fruit shopping which allowed me to get to know more of local living style. Gorillas were incredible and I will never forget those moments. Accommodation and meals were great, hope to come back one day.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic Trip!
Lucy was amazing to coordinate the trip with and was so accommodating of a few changes we made during the process. My four friends and I planned for a six day safari and ended up adding on a three day Diani Beach extension and it was so worth it. The trip was pretty much seamless. Lucy picked us up from the airport and we were with our wonderful driver Simon or at one of the camps/hotel the rest of the time. The game drives were wonderful (we saw every kind of animal out there besides a leopard) and all but one of the accommodations wildly exceeded our expectations. The food was fantastic but do be warned at if you order any drink (including water) at a restaurant, it is not covered in the sum you pay to Serene East Africa Safaris. If you want a wonderful experience in Kenya you will not be disappointed with this company.
IT
excellent safari
First would like to thank Eric for helping us book our holiday safari. We opted for the luxury safari and all lodges were luxury and comfortable. We were able to see many animals in one park called masai mara. The driving distance was about 6 hours or so.
I would recommend this agency to other travelers.
NZ
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
So we'll organised and a treat around every corner. Loved how they supported the local communities.
We chose Transtrek firstly because Daniel was so great to deal with. He was the only one I contacted which called me. He really understood what we wanted and tailored a package that surpassed all our expectations.
Tony, our driver, is such a nice guy and we talked about everything and anything while on the road. He is an exceptional driver and made sure we had the best ever experience.
Tony looked after us from the beginning, picking us up at the airport and taking us to our accommodation. We started at Wilderbeest lodge with a day to recover from our trip (very long from New Zealand). The next day was the elephant sanctuary and the giraffes. Wonderful. The next day lake Naivasha with a boat trip to Crescent island and viewing hippos. Sopa lodge was a stand out accommodation with wildlife in the sorrounding gardens (we had to call reception to get a guide to take us to dinner in case we ran into a Hippo on the lawn
NZ
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Six awesome days to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro (Machame Route)
During my stay in Tanzania, I got to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro through Godfrey and his company, African Traits.
I had not prepared much gear, and I must thank Godfrey for helping me. He was able to organise for me to borrow the gear without any hassle, and soon I was at the entrance to the Machame route for Mt. Kilimanjaro, ready to go.
We were introduced to the team and the guides, and during the hike the guides John and Anderson kept us entertained with lots of useful information about Mt. Kilimanjaro, and Tanzania in general. They really know how to control the pace and decide when to stop for breaks, etc. to maximise your chances of a successful hike.
At the camps at the end of each day, the porters had already brought our luggage and set up the tents for us to rest. The foods that were cooked (breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner) were absolutely outstanding - from all sorts of soups to chicken and sausages, every meal was different and unique which kept us excited and there was always plenty of food for us to eat. One of my friends on this trip was vegetarian and the cook was able to accommodate for that too. Generous servings and full stomach go a long way during the hikes!
I had a bit of difficulty along the way with some altitude sickness for a day, and it was amazing how much care they put into checking my health. The guides frequently checked how I was doing, and was willing to adapt to ensure my optimal recovery before my hike to the summit.
On the fifth day (the day of the summit), I was fully recovered and prepared for the 6-hour hike to the top. Along this enduring hike, the guides (who each have experience of climbing Mt. Kili over 100 times) help you pace yourself and provide mental support that you need to reach the summit - which we all did!
In addition, the songs the team sing for you during the trip and the pictures of the beautiful scenery you take during the hike are absolutely priceless and worthwhile. With the vegetation and the terrain that change with the altitude, we were in awe most of the time admiring the views, and taking pictures. From day 3 onwards (when you are above ~3000m altitude), it's a crazy awesome feeling to be looking down at the clouds.
I have previously done a Marangu village cultural tour with the African Traits (I have also wrote a review for this trip), and I was again appreciative of the quality experience I got out of it. I strongly recommend all future travelers to consider organising their tours with African Traits.
NL
It was an experience we will never forget and want to share with all the people interested in Uganda
The trip was beyond our expectations in all aspects. Besides the beautiful country-sights of Uganda, Matoke had arranged excellent lodges for us and a good variety of game drives, river safaris , walking safaris and of course the Gorilla track. We had a very good and experienced driver / guide, able to tell us a lot about the country, history and nature. We are looking forward to let Matoke Tours arrange our next trip to Africa.
Great host, all are helpful and encouraging
All in all it was great. Although there are still rooms for improvements but hey this is africa.. as they say it hakuna matata! You don't have to worry everything will run smoothly! Thanks guys! We had so much fun!
PH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing Experience!
Climbing Kilimanjaro was tough, beautiful and overwhelmingly exciting! The Kili Serengeti Guides were superbly helpful, accomodating, well mannered and speaks English fluently. They are kindhearted and happy people. I will definitely contact Imma and co. when I go to Tanzania again, even recommends my experience with them to my family and friends.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent customised service
We worked with Martin at Kingfisher to plan and book our customised tour /itinerary and then on the ground in Botswana, Pilot Manga was our tour leader and safari guide. Martin is very knowledgeable about Botswana having spent several years there and was able to hit just the right spot for us in terms of both luxury and adventure. He was always responsive and worked through all of our questions patiently and gave us good information and advice throughout.
On the ground, Pilot was absolutely brilliant. He one of Botswana's great guides (Every camp we were at, the staff in the camp knew/had heard about Pilot.) He was able to make our trip an absolute delight with his incredible intuition and tracking skills in the bush. We had fantastic sightings and opportunities to watch the behaviours of several of the Big 5 at close quarters and a lot of this we owe to Pilot's great skills. But more critically, Pilot is a humble individual despite his enormous abilities and his sense of humor and storytelling kept us regaled throughout our 13 day trip.
As and when we plan our next Botswana trip , we will reach out to Kingfisher Safaris again.
Perfect in All aspects
Recently returned from a sensational safari in the serengeti and crater area, from the start the the information and professional approach from Earthlife expeditions was second to none, my contact Caudence was fantastic,as I had previously been on a safari ,we worked through my itinerary to fill in the areas I had not been before and also the animals that I had not seen before,combined with the guide Jeffery I can only speak highly of my wonderful experience that Earthlife arranged , from the communication to the accommodation to the vehicle and to my guide Jeff thank you very much I will have lasting memories of a sensationally arranged Safari For all who read this I thoroughly recommend this company and would be happy to answer any questions you may have Thanks again earthlife