PL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
BOTSWANA - SURPRISE
I am an experienced traveler, travelled all continents, only in Africa I did 11 countries mainly alone. Travelled difficult and sometimes really dangerous paths, I have never met such bad service as I encountered this August during "6 Days of Moremi Game Reserve" in Botswana. The service was provided by Waterlime Mobile Safaris.
And this is what Waterlime Mobile Safaris can provide:
1. Guides (Frank and Katee) who lie about travel conditions, change the route without your approval, refuse fresh water, shout at and ignore requests and protests of their customers.
2. Guides who are very reluctant to give their telephones to call their agency, and when communicating with their boss speak only their language so that others couldn’t figure out what they talk about.
3. Guide/ driver (Frank) who instead of driving along the paths for vehicles in National Parks, drives across the bush chasing animals, incl. a female elephant with a baby.
4. Guide/driver (Frank) who probably knows nothing about nature and tracing animals and cannot give any information about the area and traces basic animals with big difficulty.
5. Guide/driver (Frank) who is very willing to sleep with you in your tent and offers his service also at night.
Now it all looks a little funny but it was not on the spot.
It was a surprise, and not a pleasant one. I have never expected such a treatment in Africa.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good Company
I am a photographer, and Davis and our guide, Alex, made certain we saw every animal possible. I have some health issues, and both were so kind and patient with my limitations. The sheer volume of birds and other wildlife to photograph was beyond my wildest expectations. I highly recommend!
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Safari experience and memories, the name says it all!
Our guide, Daniel is the best guide you could ever ask for. He was extremely knowledgeable about all wildlife from every animal we came across to the trees and terrain. Any question that we had, he had an answer to! He was an incredibly capable driver both on the roads and off roads. We were able to see all the animals and up close and personal too! He was a great photographer so be sure to ask him for advice and tips on how to get the best wildlife shots! He is funny and easy to talk to and endlessly interesting if you are a curious soul. We learned so much about all the animals, the culture of the country, history, and so much more that we only wished we had booked a longer safari!
It's safe to say that you'll be in the best hands with Daniel as your guide! I highly highly recommend Daniel and Amazing Memories and when we come back they will always stay our first option!
US
50-65 years of age
Our driver, Mudi, was excellent. He was punctual, amiable, and a safe driver.
FMT has been very responsive on e-mail and our driver Mudi speaks English very well. As mentioned, he was on time in picking us up, is a very nice guy - very easy to talk to, and seems very trustworthy. There is a lot of traffic in Dar and the highways are filled with trucks passing a lot. Mudi is a very good driver and I would highly recommend him.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent 8 day Uganda Safari
This tour really surpasses our expectations of Uganda. This country is definitely the pearl of Africa.
Organization:
From the first contact to the drop-off at the airport, every detail was well organized by Elias, the owner of Home To Africa and Karim, our guide. We had a very nice call with Carina, the German Customer relations manager of Home To Africa. All of them did a great job and made our trip truly amazing.
Uganda:
This country is very friendly and safe in our opinion. People were very helpful and grateful, that people come to visit their country. Children waving on the streets. No one tries to scam tourists. We fell in love with Uganda and its natural beauty.
Tour:
Hot savannah in the north. Cold mountain forests in the south. The tour covers almost the whole diversity of Uganda. Our highlights were the gorillas of the mist in Bwindi, the chimpanzees of Kibale and Murchison Falls national park wildlife.
Food and Drinks:
We enjoyed a full board service during our trip – breakfast and dinner in the lodges and lunch as a picnic in the national parks.
Lodges:
We had different standards ranging from comfort to luxury – but all were amazing in their own way. Some convinced with their food, some with exceptional service, others with breathtaking locations. We would return to every single one.
Guide:
Karim was like a father to us. He made us feel comfortably during the whole tour and made us familiar with Uganda´s culture, food, landscapes and wildlife. Karim was the reason, why we fell in love with this country so much. At the end of our trip we, felt like a little family.
Conclusion:
This tour is highly recommendable and perfect to get to know the Pearl of Africa. Home To Africa is an amazing tour operator and showed us, that Uganda has a lot more to offer than only its gorillas.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Incredible experience! Amazing guides and sensational food. 5* treatment!
When me and the boyfriend signed up for the 3 day safari our expectations were low, as we were on a budget but desperately wanted to go to the Serengeti. We were lucky to find Big Five Voyage but didn’t expect much for the price and signing up to budget camping but, man we’re we wrong! Our expectations were completely blown away by the 5* treatment and quality of the tour. Steve our ranger was so friendly, he went above and beyond on our game drives. Matthew the cook made the most incredible dishes, in fact the food he cooked was the best food me and my boyfriend experienced in our whole 2 week trip around Tanzania!. I honestly can’t recommend enough. Don’t be scared of the camping and budgeting it up with these guys because they honestly make it the best experience and you won’t regret it. If I had more money and could do it all again, I’d still go with these guys and wouldn’t change a thing!. Thank you Big Five Voyage, Steve and Matt for the most unforgettable experience!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fraudulent operator
I need to make people aware of a major issue and prevent others being ripped off. I have travelled in 80+ countries, and never had an experience like this.
Initial contact: speedy response by Barack to all queries. I booked a gorilla trek plus volcano climb in DRC, and paid the deposit. It then became difficult to get a response to further messages.This was until asking me for a balance payment 2 months before the tour - he said the national park had started calling them 'asking for the money'. They also asked for a scan of my passport, to arrange my DRC visa directly.
However, Virunga Park closed several months ago, due to safety concerns, plus an ongoing ebola health risk. I contacted the park directly - they confirmed they will be closed for at least another 4 months, have not been and will not be taking payments for permits, and nobody can (legally) enter the park.
This company never told me about the closure, and tried to fraudulently obtain funds from me for permits and a tour that can not exist (in addition I have heard no reply about refunding my deposit - surprise surprise). Also, a DRC visa can not be obtained with a passport scan, other documents/photographs are needed to make an application.
Do not give this company you money under any circumstances!
US
under20 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Kenya trip
In the summer of 2018 I went to Kenya and had a blast! This was my first time in Africa and I would have not had the same experience with out mowgli expeditions. Their knowledge of the different species in Africa really let’s you learn about the wild life that you are witnessing. I would highly recommend anybody who is thinking about going to Africa to go with mowgli expeditions, trust me you will not regret it.
MY
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Met expectations
We booked our toor on a very short notice but all was ready as we wanted it to be, nicely received in the airport, friendly people running our tour , driver, cook,, good vehicle, well managed program until we were sent back to airport on time to catch our flight onwards.
Going back we had no complains, only good memories, and desire to do it again.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great itinerary and lodging with spectacular views
I chose the 5-Day Kibale Chimps & Bwindi Gorilla Trek Uganda Safari for the second leg of my African vacation. Communication during planning was excellent. On the day I arrived in Entebbe, we were going to leave directly from the airport to start the safari. The guide was late. I called him since I had been given the number, and he seemed annoyed, asking me if I had called his boss. He said he had been told that I would arrive at 6:30, when in fact it was 6. Getting through customs was easy, so I had to wait for about 30 minutes. We got on our way in any case. I had just came off a great trip in Kenya, and I found this guide to be a bit closed off. We didn't really talk much, even over lunch.
When we arrived at the first lodge, Isunga, he just dropped me off and said he would see me at breakfast. I guess the guides don't eat with the guests at this place, but I had some of my best moments on the previous safari hanging out with my guides and it would have been nice to spend a little more time with a local resident. The experiences on the treks were incredible. I would only suggest that they remove the "game drive" wording from the description regarding the passage through Ishasha. Passing through the park on the main road to Congo doesn't really constitute a game drive. The scenery in the mountains is simply incredible. My guide was opening up a bit by now (on our 3rd day together) and telling me about the crops, markets, and some of the land owners in the area. The Bakiga Lodge was beautiful, and I appreciated the briefing about their conservation and rainwater harvesting efforts to benefit the community. I was able to have meals with my guide here, and we were able to start having cordial conversations.
We had a couple of misunderstandings, but I think we had everything worked out by the end of my trip.