US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Kind and well organized tour operator
Not only Dickson, ceo of Hooves of Africa Safari, but also Stuart, driver of the whole tour, they took care of me from the beginning to the end with professional manner.
My emails were replied right away and all the questions about the trip were answered quickly by Dickson.
Stuart drove the jeep as smooth as he could and guided me all the places with kind introduction.
I was very satisfied with thi trip.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Professional, thorough, safe, and gave us the holiday of a lifetime.
Very impressed with the service we received from Ant in advance of the trip. Organising an itinerary that suited our timescales and requirements over WhatsApp, email, phone and facetime was all done with a minimum of fuss.
Upon arrival in Harare, we received a detailed briefing from him and Beaven in advance of departure. Because one of our party had been held up due to a cancelled flight, we had to re-jig the schedule and, again, this was done in a heartbeat and without any anxiety.
The trip itself was fantastic. Beaven was magnificent and negotiated the dreadful Zim roads like the pro that he is. At the sites we stayed, erecting the tents and sorting out the facilities became second nature and we were made to feel like family. The food was great (including one of our number who was vegan) and nothing was too much trouble. We visited Mana Pools, Chitake and Chizarira national parks - all of which had their own differing appeal which meant that we all had different favourites! There's not enough space to talk of the amazing experiences at each of the camps and sailing on Lake Kariba. All magnificent!
At every stage, Beaven's expertise and knowledge shone through. He looked after us and we felt we made a friend for life. There were some early starts and by the end, some of the teenagers were less than enamoured with getting up at 0600, but we saw it through and came back to the UK with memories that will last a lifetime, all thanks to the Mane Pools Tourism Services. 10 out out 10, guys!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent
Great experience with very knowledgeable, friendly and taking care of us people! Great communication at all the time of our staying! Great price for the unbeatable service we received! This safari experience was very enjoyable and full with memories and wonderful moments! Moses and Terry were fantastic. Highly recommend!
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Chloe was the most cooperative and efficient tour operator we encountered; no request was too much.
Catherine and I booked a week in Botswana, book-ended by a week in Thula Thula (South Africa) and a week in Uganda.
Logistics and timing appeared to be a hurdle too high but Chloe managed it with aplomb, the result being a very memorable experience topped off with the most wonderful experiences in Chobe Game Lodge and the Stanley and Livingstone Boutique Hotel.
Full marks Chloe and a huge thanks from Catherine and I for an unforgettable experience.
We wouldn’t hesitate recommending Off 2 Africa to anyone.
Thank you
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great animals/accommodations/food but poor organization for our safari
I'm writing to review our safari with Samson's Safaris. We were a family group of mothers and daughters from the United States. Overall, we had a disappointing experience due to poor organization by our guide and the company.
Our experience with Samson's Safaris started well -- they were enthusiastic about our addition of some experiences (a Maasai-run eco-camp and Mau Mau history) and were communicative during the planning process. However, our bad experiences started the first day when we got up early for the 7 a.m. departure time given to us by Samson's, but our driver was 30 minutes late. His vehicle had awesome wifi, but two broken seatbelts in the two prime seats, meaning we had to sit in the back of the vehicle to remain safe while driving on highways. The guide backed into a parked car at the beginning of the day, and later took a wrong turn and had to stop for directions and then backtrack.
The second day, our guide failed to game out the breakfast options at our lodge, which conflicted with his initial proposed 7 a.m. departure time, so he moved departure to 8 a.m. without discussing options with us. When the morning's local guide took longer than expected with a hike, so we didn't get to lunch until 3:30 p.m. and missed the rest of the day's planned activities. Rather than offer us options for what to cut or how to adjust the schedule, our guide simply moved it to the next day, creating an unrealistic schedule for the next day (we would learn) that required starting at 6 a.m.
The third day, the guide was then a half hour late for our 6 a.m. start, which was explained later in the day as a flat tire, though when we called, it sounded as if we woke him up. We had a good morning, but then our guide got the vehicle stuck in the mud for over an hour. We realized after being pulled out by a similar Toyota Land Cruiser that our vehicle's tires were nearly bald, and on several occasions later in the trip we were nervous about anything involving water or mud where we might get stuck again as the wheels just spun. On the way to lunch, the guide took another wrong turn, but by this point we had started tracking logistics through Google Maps, so we alerted him and helped him get to the restaurant. Again, the times presented for the day were not realistic, so we started managing the plan, cutting a hike short ourselves and missing our first glimpse of the Rift Valley before dark. Our guide took us to the wrong hotel, which had closed but had the same name (in his defense it was in the wrong place on Google Maps, but still made for a long and frustrating day.).
Each of these issues individually would have been understandable and excusable -- one late arrival, a broken seatbelt, one messed up schedule, these things happen. The fact that they kept happening was representative of the fact that neither the guide nor the company was communicative about problems or opened up a dialog with us. We would have preferred that the company let us know when the schedule changed, or the guide sought our feedback about how we wanted to prioritize limited time and activities -- but these changes were made without our involvement and without realistic estimates of time/distances.
When we sat down with our guide at the end of the third day, we requested three items for the rest of the trip: that he be on time for morning departures, that he brief us about the timeline for the next day's activities (there were no daily briefings like you'd expect for this type of trip), and that he discuss changes to the schedule with us before making them. We then shared those requests with Samson's management, who again were very responsive and re-assuring that those issues would be addressed. After a fantastic fourth day with all problems addressed, we were surprised upon returning to the hotel that Samson's management drove all the way from Nairobi to Nakuru to join us for dinner and that they'd arranged a boat ride on Lake Naivasha the next day to make it up to us -- both of which were changes to the schedule that hadn't been discussed with us, which was specifically one of the things we'd asked. More frustrating, the new plan was completely unrealistic -- described as the "same drive time" but actually adding another hour in the car that combined with the boat ride would have made it impossible to join the afternoon cultural activities at our next lodging. Again, this was presented as a done deal (we have changed your schedule to add more activities to make you happy) rather than as a discussion about what would address our concerns, which is what we would have preferred. We politely declined the offer of the free boat ride and requested to keep the original schedule.
Our worst experience was our final two days in Maasai Mara. At the end of the trip, we planned to be dropped off at the Tanzanian border at Isibania to continue with a different company in Tanzania. We learned from Samson's on day five that what was listed as an "optional game drive" on our last day was in fact an $800 four-hour shortcut through the park for what would otherwise be a six- or seven-hour drive on the road. The "optional game drive" price was not listed in any of the preparatory materials. After talking as a family, we decided we would take the short cut and pay the extra fee. However, on day six when we arrived at the Maasai Mara entrance for the game drive included in the safari price, we were asked to make the next day's $800 payment that day because it would save time for both of us to buy tickets at the gate at the same time. Our guide waited for the line with his uncle -- letting other people go first for the other line -- in what we came to suspect was a plan to have us pay the $800 fee for the first full day and then the next day he could pay just $200 for a transit ticket -- since we were transiting the park -- and save/pocket $600. We paid for one day via credit card, but then were told that he wouldn't buy the tickets for the other day that day, he would pay the following day.
The following day (our last of seven days), our guide ended up being a few dollors short to pay the park entrance fee, so we had to pay the extra. The guide said the company had not given him enough money to pay the expected fee. We texted the company, who said they would send the funds to the guide by Mpesa, which we could pick up at a roadside stand, but we didn't want to spend any more time with Samson's and just wanted to be done.
There were some highlights: the wifi in vehicle was a nice surprise, the accommodations and food were great, and we did see the Big Five and many more animals. However, we cannot recommend this company to other travelers at this price point. If you're a student or trying to save money, this could be a great fix if you don't really care about time and schedule. For us, we paid $2500 each for a seven-day trip ($10k total), and the experience did not meet our expectations for guided trips with our parents.
GR
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Magnificent Nature and wildlife
The parks the animals the camps are amazing! We were so lucky and the weather was amazing! The most important point for Tanzania is the nature and the wild animals! But the most downsize thing are the street and beach hawkers all over areas where tourists are! They do not let people enjoy their vacation as they permanently asking for money and want to give them their services which are non existent. I was in Namibia and this was lasting hawkers there were 90% less there!
CN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The dream land should visit at least once in lifetime
Everything is perfect. to visit Africa is the dream of mine,
AT
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
friendly people, many animals and scenic beauty
best Safari we ever did with Topy Tours through Serengeti, Arusha, Ngorogoro and other parks. Icredible experience to sleep in a tent in the middle of Serengeti and watching Zebras next to our tent. All people, whom we met were very friendly and helpful, it was just amazing. The guide through the parks could answer all questions and we could see the BIG FIVE.
August was a good time to travel there as the weather was very nice, we had 25 to 29 degrees Celsius every day.
IT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
amazing
tanzania is an amazing trips we met a lot of people very kindly we saw a lot of animals and the food is terrific.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Masai Mara National Reserve by Robert P Seiden
Breathtaking beauty and got to see the big five and way more