CA
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
African Big Five Safaris - a superlative Ugandan tour company!
This was my second African safari, and I wanted to use a local tour company rather than a global one that subcontracted to local ones. My rationale was that this would cut costs without compromising quality and give our money directly to the African country. The four of us (2 couples) had selected Uganda as a place to see chimps and gorillas, in addition to all the other better-known African wildlife (elephants being my personal favourite). We found African Big Five (ABF) Safari company by searching internet, then emailing their office in Kampala. The prompt and amazingly detailed service we got from Geoffrey, one of the company owners, convinced us we were on the right track. Working with Geoffrey, we designed an extensive 24-day tour with a moderate budget (more comfort than camping, but not luxury), a dedicated driver/guide and pop-up-top vehicle. We wanted a trip that included visiting villages to meet various tribal groups such as the Karamojong, Acholi and Batwa, and learn about their culture (history, economy, dancing, food, crafts) and the itinerary kept changing in the nine months of planning. We also wanted to visit several schools for disadvantaged children (orphans, HIV+, or just very poor) to learn about their efforts and how we might be able to help. Three of us are retired "educators" and firmly believe that education is the key to improving conditions in developing countries. I can now say, after just returning home, that the ABF Safari company is A+, 5/5! Our driver Musa was excellent, combining professionalism and promptness with a relaxed attitude, funny stories and extensive knowledge, especially of birds -- his personal passion. In addition, he is just a very nice kind person. Thank you, Musa! Our trip encompassed travelling far north from Kampala to Kidepo National Park at the top of Uganda (a wonderful wilderness with few tourists), then down the west border through a series of national parks: Murchison's Falls, Kibale Forest (chimp trekking), Q.Elizabeth, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest (gorilla trekking....a feat since 2 of us are over 70!), Lake Bonyonyi and Lake M'Buro. Each park had a different terrain and wildlife -- one of the incredible things about Uganda is its vast DIVERSITY of geography and fauna/flora, from grassland savannah plains to mountainous dense jungle. We saw many elephants, giraffes, buffalo, lions, antelope, hippos. In fact, since we visited the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, we did succeed in seeing the famous "big five" of rhino, buffalo, elephant, lion and leopard. We had some very close adrenaline-producing encounters with lions and elephants! And we watched our closest relatives, gorillas and chimps, from a few feet away. I encourage everyone to trek not only the gorillas, but also the chimps, whose behaviour is much more interesting and raucous than the generally peaceful gorilla. Although, we were entertained by a 2 year old gorilla who twice grabbed our hand and tried to take us back to his family! The accommodations, a mixture of lodges, cabins and tents organized by Geoffrey, were all very good to excellent with attentive staff. We especially appreciated that most lodges (forewarned by Geoffrey that we were vegetarians) prepared imaginative food beyond the usual veggie curry. In summary, our Uganda tour with ABF Safari company SURPASSED all our expectations! We got incredible personalized service from the office, a fantastic guide, comfortable accommodations with scenic views, and experienced the warm friendly people of Uganda as well as the natural beauty of the land and wildlife. Go to Uganda, and go with this company -- you will not be disappointed! And thanks again to Geoffrey, Maria and Musa for "unveiling" your country to us.
Jackie was responsive and helpful with logistics and arrangements - Richard was a fantastic guide!
We did a 5 day trip with Katona from Kampala to Bwindi for a gorilla trek, followed by a visit to Queen Elizabelth Park. Arranging everything with Jackie was easy and very smooth and our experience certainly lived up to and exceeded expectations. This was in large part due to our excellent guide Richard. He was extremely professional and attended to our needs and did the best he could to make our trip the best that he possibly could. He was also a very good driver and knowledgeable guide which facilitated our understanding and enjoyment of the trip. Highly recommended!
AT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
3 days selous safari
We did the 3 days selous safari. The organisation was perfect, from picking us up at the hotel until the end. Our guide and cook were pretty amazing -> very good knowledge on animals, culture, history... and perfect food from breakfast, lunch and dinner. Every $ spent for the tour was worth to do it. Well done guys :-)
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a lifetime in very good and capable hands
Me and my wife booked our Safari in Tanzania for two weeks planning to see as much wildlife as possible.
We looked at over 15 different operators but chose Gosheni for the following reasons:
1. Responsiveness: Peter was very quick to respond to our question
2. Flexibility: Peter tailored the tour to our wishes which is not trivial as some companies do not
3. Price: Gosheni was very affordable compared to other companies
4. Amenities: Unlimited drinks (including sodas), No mileage limit for game drives, Experienced drivers, and New vehicles
Peter picked us up from the airport and took us to our first lodge. He sat with us after and informed us that this year the migration is not happening due to excessive rain and suggested we change the Serengeti plan to stay only in the central region. Once we agreed he changed that with no price difference and it was seamless for us. This enabled us to see many more animals as the western corridor was empty at this time.
Thanks to our driver Zadock we were able to see all big 5 and much more, We saw Cheetahs hunt, lion pride hunting, leopards, Rhinos and many more animals. If you do not have an experienced driver that knows the park and the other drivers that may not be possible so we are very thankful for those qualities. Zadock also knows the bird species around for the bird lovers among us.
Last very nice surprise was on the last day , we were scheduled to leave in the evening and had a lunch box from the hotel. Peter arranged a hot lunch in a restaurant for us...This was a very nice surprise.
Overall I would highly recommend Gosheni for your tour , We have met plenty of other groups that missed the rhinos since their driver was not as experienced or did not see Cheetahs at all when we saw cheetahs at multiple occasions.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great time on safari
Our guide had great wildlife knowledge and very patient to explain to us about the animals! We saw all big 5 and more...we had a lot of fun during those few days! Thanks Matoke! Only downside being jeep was old and bumpy.
ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A true defination of travel beyond possibility.
I am quite happy with the choice that I have done. The Blue Ocean Safaris team is very professional, friendly and cooperative. Everything was arranger perfectly and smoothly for the very reasonable price. There was nothing to be disappointed about.
So for anybody I highly recommend to travel with Blue Ocean Safaris as you will never be disappointed with arrangement and service.
BE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A wonderful safari in the realm of the man-eater lions!
We came to Mombasa more or less by accident. Moureen from Kay Adventure Tours made it all worthwhile. We asked to visit the Tsavo railway bridge and arrange a two day trip around it.
We had a wonderful driver/guide, Robert, who showed us around the park explaining about all the animals and how they live. He showed enormous patience, as one of us doesn't see very well, he took his time to make sure we saw every animal he spotted for us. Even if it took us ten minutes or more. If necessary, he even drove to a better spot to see them better.
Finding the big cats can be difficult on a short Safari. But we did manage to find a small family of lions, who were posing for some very nice pictures.
Lastly, we even spotted a striped hyena, something you don't easily find in Tsavo-east.
In short, a very good Safari for a very good price. Booked only one day in advance!
Good work!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic experience
Have just returned from safari to our lodge in lake Duluti and having already reviewed on trip advisor, wanted to write a review here too. Can honestly say the 10 days here have been wonderful. The relaxing few days at lake Duluti lodge were wonderful and we felt so welcomed by all the staff. We went on a 6 day big five safari around Taranguire, Serengeti and Ngorogoro crater and our excellent guide Richard made a great deal of effort to ensure we had the best experience and was very friendly and chatty, feeling like part of the family. Natasa was excellent and came to greet us at the beginning to brief us of our trip. She was always very efficient with communication to make sure we had the best experience. There was only one issue with our accommodation for our last 2 days in Arusha before travelling home (due to new management). The minute Natasa was told of the problem she came straight over to see us, sorting out alternative accommodation and we were moved within an hour of talking to her. The whole holiday has been a wonderful, memorable experience and I have many fantastic close up photos of when we managed to get very close to the animals in their natural habitat. All over an excellent holiday and I thoroughly recommend shadows of Africa.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Amazing Holiday
Debbie helped us plan and book our holiday and did an amazing job. We took on all her recommendations and every one was an awesome experience that exceeded our expectations. We are so grateful for all her planning and communication with us and the effort she took to look after us and ensure we had a truly wonderful holiday.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
In good and responsive hands
I went through Vayeni for a trip with friends to Zimbabwe, involving Harare and Victoria Falls. They were very responsive to our questions and comments, and offered alternative options according to our taste, budget, and changing number of people. They corrected quickly a situation that happened in Victoria Falls with our accommodation when we arrived late one night, and were afraid we would be missing a room and the micro light tour over the falls we had booked. Overnight, everything was settled and the stay went smoothly, in a very nice B&B, and we enjoyed all of our activities. I would hire them again!