US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a lifetime. Served all our needs beyond expectations and tour guide was best ever!
Blue Crane was a pleasure to work with arranging a tour that fit our needs, they were very accommodating. We were a family of 5 on a tight schedule over the Christmas holiday and luckily starting booking in April. We did the six night tour (2 nights in the desert, 2 Swakopmund and 2 in Etosha.) The desert lodge, was wonderful, an oasis in the desert with lovely warm and welcoming staff and great food.(we had 2 vegetarians and a vegan and they were plenty of options) We upgraded to the Strand hotel in Swakopmund, which was a real treat and worth the splurge. Traudy (Blue Crane)was wonderful and even made our dinner reservations in Swakopmund at Jetty 1904 and The Tug, both were amazing. The Etosha park lodges, were clean and nicer than I expected. I must say the best part of the trip was our tour guide, Sammy. Sammy is an amazing person, who exudes kindness, it felt like he was part of our family. He picked us up at the airport with a huge smile and was with us to the end, never missing a thing. He was so knowledgeable about everything; the history, the animals, the birds, the fauna and flora, the mountains and the stars (we received a great astronomy lesson in the desert). He knew all the great spots to go to and when to go to avoid crowds and the heat. He really made this a trip of a lifetime for our family. My only regret was that we did not have more time to spend. I would have enjoyed an extra day in each spot. I guess we will have to visit again. We saw loads of animals and birds. The landscapes were also breath taking. Blue Crane didn't miss a beat. Highly recommend this company and Sammy!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful tour that saw the Big 5!
We overall had a wonderful safari with African Celebrity Tours. I contacted many tour guides but ultimately went with African Celebrity Tours due to their good reviews and they are KATO certified. The communication was timely and clear and they allowed me to customize one of their tours to fit in Amboseli in the same amount of time.
We did a private safari in a Jeep which si the way to go in my opinion. Our guide Joseph was wonderful - he had 20 years of experience and knew how to track the animals himself so we were often the first car to arrive at sightings. We went to Amboseli, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha and Masai Mara and managed to see the Big 5 up close and also saw a cheetah, numerous hippos and lots of babies (because it was December).
For the price, this was an extremely good safari and I would definitely book with them again.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Working with Spirit of Kenya made this unbelievable experience a reality.
Our safari in Kenya surpassed all my expectations. If we had questions Susanna from Spirit of Kenya promptly returned our emails and gave us the answers we needed, made it easy for us to submit our payment and arranged our transportation from the airport to our hotel and scheduled our itinerary to meet our needs. We stayed in Tsavo West at the Salt Lick Game Lodge and Serena Safari Lodge in Amboseli. The food and accommodations were excellent and the people were all very nice. Our tour guides Charles and Moses made this special trip even better by their knowledge of the land and the animals. We were a group of eight and divided our driving time between the two of them. They spotted animals before any of us did, stopped for us to take pictures and seemed to enjoy us as much as we enjoyed them! We saw a vast array of animals...zebras, elephants, giraffes, lions, a leopard!...and many, many more. Every day we saw something new and exciting. I suggest wearing very comfortable clothing, you’ll be in a Jeep for a lot of fun filled hours! Just an incredible experience!!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great operators with superb communication throughout the process! Amazing trip.
Planning a safari can be a daunting task, especially for the first time. Darren and Compass Odyssey made this an easy process. Communication was fantastic throughout the whole process. We were able to make changes simply as our schedule changed. I'm a hands on person and like to plan each detail, so for me, leaving this up to someone else was a bit tough. I couldn't have been happier with the results and would recommend them to any traveler looking to go on safari. We can't wait to come back!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing tour, great service and an exceptional guide
We explored several tour operators before we picked Lion King. It is hard to understand what goes into the cost of a safari from overseas while comparing itineraries and cost. Lion king did a phenomenal job of keeping us informed, tailoring the trip to our requirements and providing excellent stay wherever we went. Saleh our guide was amazing, I cannot talk enough about how exceptional he was. There was a day in our tour when it had rained heavily with mud everywhere and the car may have had a battery issue. He made sure it did not deter any of our plans and our day still went as planned. The food and stay were amazing as well. We stayed at a place in Ndutu where we heard lions roar at night and zebras outside our campsite. We were very safe with security to and from our campsite. The tented camp in Ndutu specifically had amazing food. We traveled with a 3 year old who needed more stops and more flexibility. Saleh was amazing with our kid and with all the changes. Thank you Saleh, Anna and Wilbard for making this trip amazing.
We see that every tour company has glowing reviews. Our experience is only with Lion king so it is hard to say what sets them apart. I highly recommend comparing quotes and stays from different operators and going by them (this is what we did). I also recommend going with a Tanzanian company, I think the experience was more authentic.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Epic Summit Experience on Mount Kilimanjaro
The owner, Chance and his entire team made this adventure a once-in-a-lifetime experience. A group of 9 friend all successfully reach the summit. The guides and porters were simply amazing and know their craft of getting people to the top and back safely. I give this group my highest recommendation.
DK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic tour with the best guide
The Garden route tour was an absolute success. Our guide really made sure we had the best experience in everything we did, whether it was safari driving, bungy jumping, finding great food or having a laugh. We couldn’t be more satisfied with our Garden route tour.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
My family enjoyed all our African experiences because Pembury Tours had taken care of every detail!
I had reached out to a number of African tour operators advising them of this being my family's first experience to Africa - wanting educational highlights and safari. I'm a detail person so when Heidi Bedford responded to my request with questions for me and not a pre-set itinerary as other operators did, I knew Heidi would provide me with a wonderful experience. And she did! Heidi promptly and happily responded to all my emails:) She put together a well-paced itinerary, including hotels and safari lodges, that were perfect for us! Upon arrival, every member in my family received a lovely cross bag with the detailed itinerary with extra pages of useful information on side trips and animals and maps. The two safaris we experienced were different and more than I had hoped for! I had a most exhilarating African experience and at the same time, the most relaxing because Heidi and Pembury Tours had taken care of every detail. Thank you, Heidi:)
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful attention to detail and a trip that was crafted with our family's best interests in mind
The thing that impressed me most about Paul Tickner was that we felt he was truly creating an experience for us. He didn't have a package A, package B, package C, etc. that he was trying to fit us into. He took the time to ask what we wanted out of our Tanzania experience, and offered ideas and suggestions. We went back and forth a number of times, and Paul was very patient with us. As a true "once in a lifetime trip", we obviously wanted to make sure we planned the trip we have always dreamed of -- being from the States, it wasn't practical for us to say "too bad this didn't work out, we'll just come back next time", because there may not be a next time. We explained to Paul what it was we wanted, and he was a wealth of information. He encouraged us to see Southern Tanzania, which was a terrific recommendation as we loved Ruaha and Selous so much. We stayed at amazing lodges/facilities, and some of the other guests (who had also used Paul) and many of the staff at the lodges (who were familiar with Paul) had nothing but good things to say. If (or when) we do make it back to Tanzania -- we'd definitely use Paul again to plan our safari.
As a bit of a background, we did come from the States. We were a family of five with three children (19,16,14). Paul did an outstanding job.
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
An unforgettable experience
This was our seventh visit to the African continent and it was the best by far. Our driver/guide Nelson was fantastic. His bird spotting ability was second to none. All the lodges that we stayed at were of the highest standard and all the meals were excellent.
we would certainly recommend our itinerary with you to any interested party
