CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
An Average Safari Experience
My wife and I embarked on a short safari in Hwange National Park as part of our Rovos Rail journey from Pretoria to Victoria Falls. The train stopped and we all were placed on various safari vehicles. My wife and I were with Frogs Safari Tours with "Innocent" as our guide. This is not our first safari, we have travelled to Africa on three previous occasions (2010 and 2013) visiting Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Botswana.
The overall safari experience would be described as average. While this may sound somewhat negative, it simply reflects a rather uninspired experience. The interaction between the guide and guests was limited. I got the impression that the guide was "going through the motions" as perhaps they are used to the Rovos group and thought that perhaps most would be satisfied with simple safari and a few animal sightings. There seemed to be an inordinate amount of driving including a long stretch near the end where the guide Innocent was driving at a higher speed from one end to another in the hopes of getting a glimpse of a lion that other safari guests had observed. We were following another vehicle and the dust spray was getting into everyone's eyes and we had to tell him to slow down. It was fine for him as he was behind a windscreen. A definite lack of thought regarding his paying guests.
Overall, nothing glaringly wrong with the safari, it's just that having been on over 60 safaris previously in various countries, this experience rates average, at best.
CA
Great time in Masaai Mara with a few flaws
Overall, Our visit to Masaai Mara has been incredibly enjoyable. But a few things just got a bit annoying after a while:
- Robert told us there would be 7 people in the van, however there were 8. It was a VERY crowded van and during game drives, it got quite hectic
- We were told by the operators that seeing the great migration was a guarantee. We almost cancelled because we saw online that great migration already passed, but he assured us that great migration was happening. Sure enough, there were no wilder beasts... We could've saved it for Tanzania. I highly encourage everyone to do their own independent research... because at the end of the day, its a business for these tour operators.
- The Masaai village tour is NOT free. Its 1000 shillings to enter, which was not clearly communicated by the tour operators. There were a few shocked faces in our group when this was communicated.
However, overall, the people in our group made it worth while. We've met some great friends during the trip and don't regret the decision to visit masaai mara :)
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good safari but unfriendly guide
Safari Right now had good communication before my trip, we had emailed each other a few times to work out an itinerary. They had been personally recommended by a friend living in Tanzania and felt very trustworthy from the start, important as I was travelling as a lone female. The safari itself was amazing and thoroughly recommended, I saw so many incredible animals very close up. I chose a 1:1 personal safari to Manyara
and Ngorongoro crater and the price was competitive.
There were a few criticisms though:
1) The day before the safari I was supposed to have a briefing with the guide, but that didn't happen. This meant I didn't really know what to pack and didn't have a chance to discuss any dietary preferences for the lunchbox/dinner.
2) There was also a last minute swap of guide, that I didn't know about until the new guide (Chale) turned up to collect me. Unfortunately Chale was quite unfriendly and made me feel a bit awkward during the drive and dinner, although he did have a good knowledge of the animals.
3) I recommend double checking exactly what is provided. I had decided to camp and the tent/bedding was supposed to be provided but there were no sheets, pillows or sleeping bag. Take a torch, the campsite is very dark at night and inside the tent!
4) The itinerary said there would be a full day’s game drive on the second day, but the driver actually left at about 1.30 shortly after lunch to visit tourist shops, which was disappointing.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
A Good Camping Experience
The communication we had with Denver was excellent. He was always quick to respond to emails and provided accurate information. He had great knowledge of national parks and attractions in Zambia and provided good recommendations when requested. We had a great team for our camping trip: driver, cook and company representative. The latter was always very concerned for our safety and made sure to make our trip as comfortable as possible. The crew was very friendly and made us feel welcome. While on the trip, my husband developed an infection in his leg and the staff, concerned for his health, took us to the hospital where he was treated, upon our return to Lusaka. They stayed with us the whole time while he waited at the clinic. Members of the team did call us on several occasions to check up on him while we were in Zambia. I would make a few recommendations, however, It would be an improvement to have cots, as sleeping on the hard ground was hard on the back. Also, carry extra blankets as on some evenings it got chilly. Understandably, they already had a fully loaded van; they were talking about adding trailers to their fleet for added storage. One area of concern was security of our luggage and backpacks. We initially stored our things in the van, but then the driver had to leave for another engagement and we had to leave our things in our tent. Unfortunately, upon returning to Lusaka I found that my unopened bottle of Jack Daniels that I bought at the airport duty free shop was missing. When I told the representative, he was very apologetic; but still not a good way to end the trip for me. Overall, we were satisfied with our experience with Densafaris.
Experience level: first safari
Best safari ever with yala safaris.They gave us more than we expected,more than we deserved.
That last night at home.You think about how your safari is gonna be like.There are some experiences that are unforgettable.We wanted that safari at the highest ..When we started planning our trip,we looked and asked many places but we chose Yala safaris because of the positive and competent answers we got.Despite our budget,the owner/our guide Godwin still managed to fix us comfort full board accommodation in all the places we travelled.Because of his flexability,connection and good character with people everything was nice and easy.He is so friendly towards clients and always willing to help in any way he can.Our trip to murchison falls and Queen elizabeth will forever be the trip of our life time.If we ever have to tell our story,we will say we once travelled with Yala safaris the best,we lived in the time of Godwin the expert!!
ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Nice safari, old and broken vehicles and poor staff
Although Safari was amazing and we get to see all animals, there's a huge room to improve in staff/drivers and vehicles. Our vehicle was broken two times, we've change to another vehicle, and this was broken again. Drivers due not explain many things, and they drive looking all the time the mobile phone, so the trip was not safe. They don't provide you waters even it's included on the price, you have to request them all the time. On a stop to a restaurant, the driver and vehicle has disappear without saying nothing with all our bags, because they have to repair the vehicle, a bad experience. Price is good.
ES
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Normal company.
In general, we loved the experience; however, we didn't like that the program changed 5 minutes before getting on the car. Visiting Lake Manyara after the Ngorongoro was a failure, and I wouldn't recomend to any
Body a 5 days safari. We paid the same amount for the last day and we didn't do much. And we were told that we will pay less if the group was bigger and when two more people came, there wasn't any difference.
The company is serious and I would recommend it, but only for 4 days. Please clean the pillows and the sleepbags.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Charges 200 Dollar more when you are on the way to the safari
Not a serious company. The Guide wanted you to pay 200 Dollar more per person when you enter the bus. Changes in safari program.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Overall OK, but as this was a very expensive trip we expected better than OK
Overall the trip was good. But this is a very expensive tour company, so we expected meticulous attention to detail and 'opulent' conditions. So although we enjoyed the trip it fell short of the expectations we had given how expensive this was.
DK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Masai mara in a day
We had a nice tour, and on our way to Masai mara our guide stoped several places so we could look at souvenirs, that was really nice.
On our day in Masai mara, we saw a lot of animals and we felt really lucky. But we were a bit Disapointet about our guide, because we had to ask him to stop several places to take pictures, because he did not stop by himself, and we had expected to be told a lot more about Masai mara and the animales, but our guide did not tell us much without us asking him.
But nice camp and nice people