DK
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Serviceminded
I absolutely enjoyed travelling My friend and the guide John from afritrek. We saw Akagera, lake buyoni, bwindi, kisoro, nyungwe. I Akagera John made sure we saw everything.
John is optimistic. He makes sure we will do everything and more. He is flexible and will listen to suggestions on the way.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Organised
I booked our day safari with Dallas Safaris, there are many operators offering the trips, because of the reviews read and value for money; not the cheapest and not the most expensive.
The trip was arranged and organised before leaving the UK, Dallas Africa Safaris kept me updated on the booking via email and booked the necessary flights across to the mainland for the day safari - all very efficient and reliable. Confirmation of pickup time was sent the day before, the driver was friendly and helpful; he was there to greet and drive us back to our hotel on return to Zanzibar airport. We were fortunate to see a variety of wildlife: lion, elephant, giraffe, baboons, hippos and crocodile to name a few.
All in all, a great once in a lifetime experience!!
Hakuna matata!
CO
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Please do not take this safari.
We booked and paid completely our 12-days safari with this company. We are going to travel tomorrow. They did not answer our questions after we paid
Today-some minutes ago- Haron wrote us sayin that they can not take us to the safari. Also say that they will try to refund our money. It was a lot of money. We were save for years to do a safari in Kenia. It was going to be the trip of our lives.
Right now ewe don't have any place to stay the day we will arrive (Saturday at night). I feel we lose our money after reading some comments people wrote in September. When we see the comments this company was well ranked.
Be aware. Please do to take this safari withe Sunset African salaries. Advise to your friends.
Now I am very sad. We do not have any money to take a safari and we will spend 12 days in Kenia.
Our plan was to go to the safari and then attend an international congress. We have already write to people in Kenia organizing the event: universities, professors, administrative people. They will contact the policy and the tourism office in Kenia. However I feel we will lose our money.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
beware!
1 week before our tour should start we received a message that the safari is canceled! we paid an amount of 3500 $
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Experienced, kind, gentlemen, knowledge full
Booked a private 5 day adventure through Peris and James as our driver. Peris custom made our trip and made it all magically work with our requests being fulfilled, can’t thank her enough! The day to day planning was perfect and everyday was packed full on adventure.
James knew all the spots to see the big 5, and we would always be the first few to spot animals before the crowd comes, allowing us to get really awesome photos and footage of the animals. James is a friendly gentlemen with connections and friends like no other so if you have a good or gift items you are looking for James is the man, he can take care of you!
As for the payments, it was 30% down payment, and complete payment prior to the adventure. Also if there was any issues getting into country you can request a refund. Please be sure to check country requirements 👍🏼
CA
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Small, but reliable, and professional amazing company!
It is amazing life-time experience on this 8-day safari trip with Serengeti Smile. We are a retired couple from Vancouver, Canada. After comparing a few travel companies, we decided to go with Serengeti Smile, based on its professional advice, quick response, honest information, flexible payment plan etc. Erick is great agent to customize each day trip based on our demand. He input a lot of very useful information to help us to schedule the trip in detail. Our guide Deo was incredibly wonderful, his experience and knowledge not only about wildlife animal/birds/plants and the area, but many others about Tanzania's culture, heritage, history and Kilimanjaro where he grow up. In addition, his driving skills is great and his efforts in order for us to view "Big Five", Great migration, Leopard finding and Flamingo watching etc.. is very impressive, Deo also is a warm heart person to respect animals up-mostly and like to help other drivers on the road when need help. We saw almost every day, he drop some lunch box to Maasai kids in the side of the road. He made us feel safe, comfortable, and happy in the whole trip. Serengeti Smile arranged the great accommodations for us to experience great lodge and "luxury camps" that we felt really merged to Serengeti and wild animals environment. at last, Food is great and lunch box is more than we need, according to Tanzanian's standard. We strongly recommended this Safari company to people who like to experience life-time wild animal Safari.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
They are very professional, reliable and take care of their business with pride!
It was such an amazing experience in Kenya with our tour guide James! He was professional, patient and very easy to talk with, we were able to see all the Big Fives during our trip thanks to his great knowledge and connections everywhere! The schedule waa smooth and well timed, we also enjoyed the vehicle very much, it was so reliable and comfortable, and of course James driving was great!
Peris also helped a lot during our booking process, due to our late book some of our hotels not available but she recommended good replacement and it was great experience!
I would definitely recommend the agency, hopefully we could come back again in the future with more family members!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great tour operator
We had a wonderful safari experience with the help of Spirit of Kenya. Our tour designer Jorge was very responsive and attentive to details. Our Tanzania driver Maleo, was very considerate, knowledgeable, and patient. In addition to enjoying the wonder of nature, we had a great time experiencing the cultural and hospitality of Tanzania and Kenya!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nihapa is incredibly professional and curates the perfect trip with amazing attention to detail.
Nihapa Tours was one of the most incredible tour companies I have ever used. Their communication, attention to detail and knowledge was perfect. They were personable and make you feel so welcome. We were able to completely relax knowing that everything was taken care of. Our guide Fadhili was so knowledgable and created unique opportunities for us with his deep understanding of the wildlife and parks. Our meals each day in the parks on Safari were delicious and beautiful, not just a bagged lunch. We opted for a private car and it was worth every penny! There is not one thing I would change about our tour with Nihapa and I can't recommend them enough.
MX
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Outstanding experience
Overview
My family and I (3 people) completed a 7 day mobile safari that included the Moremi Game Reserve, Kwai Concession, the Savuti Marsh and Chobi National Park/river front. We had a fabulous experience. Our team of Kem, KG and Shine took exceptional care of us. The game drives were amazing, the food was plentiful and excellent and the camping (dome tents with en-suite camping facility that consists private shower and toilet) was very comfortable.
Game drives
Kem was our driver and game guide. He really knew his task and seemed to always put us in a position to see many and varied animals. While there is no guarantee of what you will see, we were fortunate to see many harder to find animals such as painted dogs, leopards (3), hyena and sable antelope as well as a multitude of elephants, lions, zebras, giraffes, hippopotamus among others. Khem was very knowledgeable providing information on the animals, habits etc. He was very patient answering our multitude of questions, and even taught us some Setswana.
Food
The food was amazing. I didn’t think I could gain weight on safari, but I assure you it’s possible. Shine turned out the most delicious food cooking over a campfire, including freshly made bread. We had a variety of meals including steak, pasta, lamb chops and chicken. Every dinner included fresh vegetables. I recall one meal while we were eating delicious lamb and hearing lions in the bush. It was unbelievable. KG also made meals feel special by announcing dinner and presenting the food.
Camp
KG made sure we had everything we needed. The camp was well thought out and very comfortable. I was a bit unsure how I would fare sleeping on cots for a week, but the cots were sturdy, the mattresses comfortable and the blankets cozy to keep us warm on cold nights.
Each morning we woke up to a basin of warm water to clean up before breakfast. The shower and toilet are attached to the tent, so you have direct access by the back zipper. The showers were fine for camping, hot water with a hanging shower head. The toilet was better than I expected. It was normal height and easy to manage.
KG and Shine were experts at setting up and breaking down camp as we moved sites.
Final thoughts
This was my first safari so I can’t compare Shipungo to other companies. I can say that there was not a single aspect that left me wanting more. Our entire family was highly satisfied and if we have the good fortune to return to Botswana for a safari I would use Shipongo and request Kem and his team again. I recommend them without hesitation.