CN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
They’re just a three-person operation and can’t even pay the driver’s fees. It's infuriating!
The travel agency demanded full payment two weeks before our departure, despite the fact that we had already paid a deposit months earlier. Out of caution and naïve trust, we communicated and retained a small portion of the final payment. However, after arriving in Kenya, the owner, William, came to collect the remaining balance and then disappeared. We later discovered that the subsequent six nights of hotels and park entrance fees had not been paid. They repeatedly deceived us, exploiting our trust and isolating us in a foreign country, forcing us to continuously cover expensive costs. As a result, we have not only lost time but are also facing potential losses exceeding $20,000.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A journey filled with wits and courage, yet also extremely exhausting
The travel agency is really outrageous! For the hotels and tickets we booked for a total of six nights, they didn't make the payment and reservation. We only found out when we arrived at the hotel. They even asked us to pay in advance and then promised to refund us. But now, they have lost contact! Moreover, they arbitrarily changed the agreed hotel in the travel contract without notifying us in advance at all! They replaced the hotel in Nakuru with a substitute hotel that is more than twice as cheap, but they didn't refund the price difference either! They have deceived us by various means many times and delayed time, making our itinerary a total mess. They have greatly wasted our time and caused us to lose one day's itinerary in Masai Mara. What on earth is this?
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
the worst travel experience of my life.
Please be cautious of this company that scammed us; this has been the worst travel experience of my life.
1. We paid the full amount, but the 6 nights of hotel accommodations and park entry fees included in the trip were never paid. We only discovered this upon arriving at the hotels. The travel agency asked us to cover the costs upfront, promising to refund us later, but they have since completely disappeared.
2. The agency unilaterally changed the hotels specified in the contract without prior notice. They replaced the hotel in Nakuru with a substitute that costs more than double, and they did not refund the price difference.
3. The agency has repeatedly deceived us through various means and delayed our plans, which has severely impacted our itinerary. We have lost an entire day in Maasai Mara.
This experience has been a total scam and a nightmare, so I urge everyone to be very careful with this company.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Never choose this travel agency. They took our money and disappeared！！！
Issues with the travel agency:
1. For a total of 6 nights of hotel stays and entrance tickets, there was no prepaid reservation. We only found out when we arrived at the hotel. The travel agency said that we should pay the expenses first and they would refund us later, but now we have lost contact with them.
2. The travel agency unilaterally changed the agreed hotel in the travel contract without prior notice. They changed the hotel in Nakuru to an alternative hotel that is more than half cheaper in price but did not refund the price difference.
3. The travel agency has deceived us in multiple ways and delayed for a long time, causing a great waste of our itinerary. We have already lost one day of the Masai Mara itinerary.
CN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
They are thief!!! We have been victims of a scam during our trip to Kenya. Do not book with them!
We have been victims of a scam during our trip to Kenya, and we need urgent assistance.
Our group of seven people from China arrived in Kenya on October 1st. Prior to our arrival, we booked a local tour with a company called Madukha through Safari.com. Upon our arrival, we paid the tour operator in full, a total of $12,090, as agreed.
However, during our stay in Amboseli and Nakuru, we discovered that the tour operator had not paid for our accommodation or park fees. They claimed it was due to a bank transfer issue that prevented them from making the payments. To continue our trip, we were forced to pay all the expenses ourselves.
Currently, we are in Maasai Mara and facing a similar issue. Although we have paid for the hotel, the park entry fees have not been covered by the tour operator, leaving us unable to enter the park and access our accommodation. We are now stranded with no place to go. We request immediate assistance to resolve this matter and hold the responsible party accountable.
(images removed for privacy reasons)
We were left stranded and never arrived
Do not lose your money, they will not answer calls or emails and leave you stranded at the airport
SG
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Take caution
We took the one day tour to Chobe National Park from Zimbabwe. They came to a restaurant at Victoria Falls to collect the payment while we are having lunch. Basically they sent us to the border and handover us to other tour operator in Botswana. But after the tour they called and said one piece of US$100 we gave them is broken and the driver will go back to office and bring to us to exchange. When the driver came back with 3 x US$100 notes, we told them all the notes we carried are new and crisp. And the other 2 people in our group who are sitting across the couch took video while I handover the money. Then they said it could from someone else. However, the tour is OK.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nightmare experience, never delivered on promises
Update: I previously removed this review because Mataro threatened to withhold the refund of our deposit per his policy if I didn't remove it. We came to an initial agreement about a payment plan for the >$3,000 he owed us over the course of two months. We provided all necessary details to him for payment, but were ultimately not paid when the due date arrived. Instead we were met with additional excuses and a lack of any urgency in resolving the payment owed to us. All I can say is I'm disappointed, disappointed in Mataro and myself for falling for this. We will be working with Trip advisor and other companies to attempt to have his business de-listed as it's evident we are not the first to have had this experience. I'm completely confused as to how he's ever gotten any positive reviews. See my previous review below.
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I wish I could give negative stars. My wife and I, along with our four friends, had the misfortune of dealing with Friends Of Africa Family Safaris Ltd. We originally chose to book with Mataro because he came highly recommended by two of our friends who had previously traveled with him. While they generally had an okay experience and spoke highly of the safari guides, they did share some concerns once our own issues began to surface. For instance, they mentioned that when they arrived, they were put into an enclosed van—not a proper safari vehicle—which then got stuck and had to be pushed. No other reputable tour operators would put guests in such unsuitable conditions.
Despite these warning signs, we moved forward, only to find ourselves entangled in an even worse situation. What started as a promising interaction quickly turned into a nightmare after we paid over $6K in December as a 20% deposit. Mataro, who had been very responsive before payment, suddenly became evasive, offering only vague assurances that everything was ‘under control.’ But as we later discovered, nothing could have been further from the truth.
The Lies and Deception:
Fake Confirmations: Despite numerous requests, Mataro failed to provide actual booking confirmations. When I directly contacted one of the lodges, they had no record of our reservation—even though Mataro insisted everything was booked. He even tried to convince me to stop contacting the hotels, saying I was 'confusing people' and not 'trusting him.'
Manipulative Excuses: When I questioned why we hadn’t received confirmations or why he claimed certain accommodations were booked when they weren’t, he responded with manipulative tactics. He accused me of trying to do his job and insisted I was the problem for not trusting his process. This, despite repeatedly catching him in lies.
Unprofessional Behavior: In one instance, Mataro claimed he had booked three rooms instead of the four we required, blaming my wife for allegedly changing the request—an outright lie that he later backtracked on. He never took responsibility, and instead of fixing his mistakes, he became increasingly difficult to reach, often ignoring my messages or delaying his responses with more excuses.
Failure to Refund: When it became clear that Mataro had no intention of delivering on his promises, we canceled our trip in early May. Despite his own policy stating a refund within 90 days, those 90 days have come and gone with nothing but more excuses. He even tried to claim he needed more time, despite having made no payments to the hotels on our behalf. It’s evident he never planned to return our money and has continued to string us along with empty promises.
Final Warning:
After dealing with months of stress, deception, and outright lies, I can confidently say we believe this company is a complete scam. In our experience, Mataro is a manipulative fraudster who has no qualms about taking your money and offering nothing in return. The level of unprofessionalism and dishonesty is staggering. If you value your money and your peace of mind, stay far away from Friends Of Africa Family Safaris Ltd. This man will take your deposit and leave you with nothing but frustration and broken promises
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Terrible company, old cars with zero mainenance
I want to share our experience with Kofi Travel with you. We rented a Toyota Camper Cruiser for 16 days. Everything went perfectly until we accepted the car at the airport. When booking, I clearly asked if the A/C worked. "Yes, this one works perfect," it was said. I found out 10 minutes after picking up the car that the front windshield wiper wasn't working. I created this in the group app and reported it immediately. The answer was promptly given. However, we didn't have time to wait and started driving towards Amboseli. This ride was a horror. The car bounced enormously. The tires were at more than 4.5 bar. This is more than twice as high. This causes the car to move in a dangerous manner. While braking at +/- 60 km/h, the car pulled enormously to the right. The front brake calipers did not work properly; it was very dangerous. The A/C did not work at all, even though they said it would. To be fair, they made proposals to solve the problems. However, these problems were already present when we received the car. This means to me that the car receives no maintenance at all before they give it to customers.
We soon found out that the Camper Cruiser consumed a lot of fuel—1 liter of petrol for 3 km driving. Extremely high consumption if you visit remote places. There was a jerry can in the back of the car, which is nice, but a loose jerry can full of fuel in the car does not seem safe to me. Another negligence from a rental company that continuously says they consider safety the most important thing for their customers. I found a garage near Amboseli and had the windshield wiper motor repaired. They checked the A/C, but the compressor was broken, so it could not be repaired quickly. I had to pay 20,000 Ksh total. I passed all this on via WhatsApp. "This will all be refunded," they said. So far, all friendly and helpful.
After Amboseli, we had a stopover near Nairobi. I was notified that there was another car for us. We were super happy. The car was delivered to the agreed location on time. I had asked if they wanted to bring the second car with a full tank because we already had the Camper Cruiser filled up with petrol. This had not happened; they siphoned the fuel with a hose. Problem solved, we thought. With the second car, we drove towards Shomphole, a remote area where we had booked two accommodations. This was on an asphalt road. During a stop, I discovered that we had a fuel leak at the tank. They had tried to close it with pieces of rubber from slippers. I reported this and received the response that we had punctured the tank by driving over a rock. They started to lie, and I don't like that. We had power problems on the way to Laikipia. I looked at the air filter; it was full of holes, and we got dust on the airflow meter. The throttle cable was loose and had been tightened amateurishly.
Overtaking trucks was dramatic and dangerous without power. The 4x4 lever was broken off in the car, making shifting difficult. I reported all this. A proposal was made by the management to return the car to Nairobi and get the remaining money back. I wasn't friendly anymore. I did not agree with this proposal. Returning the car to Nairobi would take me two days. We had booked a camp in Laikipia to see the black panther. This costs $2,000 per night for two people. Do you really think I'll just come to Nairobi to return the car? I was later told that I was out to get money from them and that I had lied about the 20,000 Ksh. After a conversation with the owner, we agreed that we would receive a 5-day refund. He suggested 3; I wanted 5. This was verbally agreed upon; he did not give this either and said I was lying. We booked Shomphole Wildersniss, Lentorre Lodge, and Laikipia Wildersniss in Kenya for $18,000. If it was a matter of money, I wouldn't have booked these expensive accommodations. So folks, I could go on and on. Be careful when renting a car from this company.
They are friendly, which is nice. But the cars are terrible, dangerous, without any maintenance, and extremely old. On another review page, the owner responded that we chose the budget car and they suggested the Land Cruiser 78, which was the best option. This never ever happened; he was lying again. And then, this means they offer low-budget cars that are terribly unsafe and with zero maintenance. Think carefully before doing business with these guys.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Mediocre company providing below average service charging extravagant in th.
I wish there was an option to give negative rating. The company charged us extra in the name of luxurious experience and failed on every single occasion to provide basic minimum you would expect from a travel agency. Customer service appalling and they are not affiliate with any travel regulatory body so you cannot take your complaint to resolution. Very frustrating experience in the country where we expected to create life long memories