IT
Unprofessional
My experience with Tegu Tours and Safari could be sum up as follows.
My girlfriend and I booked a tour with:
- afternoon game drive the first day: didn’t happen;
- a Jeep: there wasn’t, there was a van
- 2 full days in Mara, we spend half of the second stuck into a savana because of the van;
- in the morning of the second day we started at 9am safari and not a 7am;
- the second Mara day we were with a new first group and we did the same things of the first day, wasting our money and time;
- the second day at Mara they put us in danger because the driver didn’t call the ranger to rescue us and we were on the grass after the park was closed (illegal) and we got split up without knowing when we were going to see each other again (very worried) because we were in Africa and we had to rely on people who were not transparent at all;
- the second night we booked Lenchada Camp, we were forced to go to a different accomodation because our reserved tend was given to other clients;
- they weren’t able to switch us in a Jeep although there was availability;
- we were treated disrespectfully and unprofessionally by the staff of this company during all the vacation.
After 4 days with these disrespectful people we changed company and we kept going our trip perfectly, enjoying the beauty of this magic country.
Don’t compromise your holiday, don’t book with Tegu Tours.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
So disorganized, terrible communicators
Once you get to game driving, it’s hard to have a bad time. But I would not trust this company with booking anything more than a day trip. The day before our trip, they changed the entire itinerary, and it was clear from that point that they were only booking things one day at a time. Drivers weren’t showing up on time, we weren’t in the right vehicles, it just took so much away from a once in a lifetime trip. There were things in the itinerary we missed out on, and when we try to ask for a refund, the operator stops responding. There’s so many companies, don’t book with this one.
DK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Rushed and impersonal safari
Went on an evening game drive with a bush dinner. It started off promising and good. However, we then spend over half an hour having a snack-stop and the driver seemed in no rush to continue the game drive. After the snack-stop it were finally beginning to be dark, so that the evening game drive could begin. However, the driver where rushing forward to get to the bush dinner so that we nor he could have any chance to spot any animals. We then ate and the same story continued after. A driver that rushed through the park where no one had any chance to spot any animals. Very rushing and impersonal experience. Would definitely not recommend.
HK
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Bring a very bad experience to us!
1. After we confirmed the itinerary and paid the deposit, we received an email on the day of our arrival to change three hotels, among which Lake Naivasha Sopa Resort, the most expensive hotel, was changed to Lake Naivasha Resort. You can check the price difference online.This was the hotel with the largest difference in price, and two nights were also changed to cheaper hotels and the difference was not refunded
2.Two times early morning safari and last day's lunch all be cancelled,The guide said never be informed of the early morning safari.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
False promises, Bad communication, Wasted time
Do not book with this Operator!
From home we booked a 5 days Safari with 2 Nights in Serengeti. We were told that the tour is almost sold out and we will get the last two seats.
When we got there, the tour with two nights in Serengeti was not available and they just put us on another tour which we did not want. It was only with half a day in the Serengeti instead of two. Instead we went to much smaller and cheaper park on our last day with less Animales.
Furthermore, it was a joined tour. We did not know that. It means that you have to wait all the time for other travellers joining the tour on different days and therefore, always leave late to got to the parks. Hence, you have less time to find Animals.
Our driver always had to ask for money and the permits which should have been in order before the tour. So even more time was wasted.
So, nothing that was promised in our quote was met. Every day there und was a new problem we had to face.
At least we got a small discount, but it was nothing compared to all the trouble. After the tour we talked to our hotel Manager and he said that they already know the operator is a cutthroat.
ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
No interest , no lunch , awful operator
They didn’t come to pick up to the AirPort the first day.
The last day was awful , we are super dissappointed. The driver didn’t tell us to take the lunch , we have eaten at the end of safari (3.00pm) awful street food , we are worried to have some illness of that food. But the whole 3 days the general attitude of the driver has been awful, he didn’t explain nothing about animals and Park, tired , showing 0 interest in his Job and looking foward to go back home every day as sooner as possible . We are completely dissapointed with this driver. We really missed to have one guide. But I could tell more things , half of the Park of lake manyara is covered by water , so we could’t see most of the Park , knowing this the company should have offered to us another option.
So taken into account that the duration of safaris has been súper short every day , the attitude of the driver of looking foward to finish , we didn’t have any explanations, the lunch of today was forgotten and we ate hard uneateable chicken in the middle of the street, and we were forgotten to pick up us first day at the AirPort , we are extremely dissapointed with this company .
Starving in the middle of a safari paying 1760 dolars is inadmisible
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unreliable organization!
The worst company I ever dealt with in my life! My boyfriend and I decided to organize our safari tour across the Masai Mara, Nakuru/Naivasha and Amboseli with Tegu Tours and it was a total mess. We booked a group tour with a Land Cruiser, but in the exact moment we arrived at the office to finalize the payment we were informed that due to a strike our car was not available anymore… We were forced to go with a minivan which made our experience totally different! Most of the schedule and the accommodations were not respected (loosing also money of parks entrance fees without compensation of any kind) and we faced a dangerous situation being stuck with the van in the mud for 4 hrs at nighttime inside the park!
We went on a tour without being informed at least of the company name the drivers were working for and we felt treated disrespectfully and unprofessionally by the staff of this company during all the vacation.
For these reasons we at half of our journey we changed the organization, losing more money and having nothing paid back.
Avoid dealing with Tegu Tours and look for serious and reliable company, they are not trustworthy!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Poor communication, contractual issues
As a board member of a non-profit organization and a recent donor who secured a Wild African Safaris package through a charitable auction, I feel compelled to document the challenges we have encountered with Run Wild African Safaris.
We purchased a Run Wild African Safari package through the auction, looking forward to this trip as my third journey to Africa, albeit with a new tour company.
Approximately nine months before our trip (January 2024), we reached out to Run Wild African Safaris to finalize our booking. After paying several thousand dollars in unexpected additional fees, we signed the contract and secured our reservation.
Since then, we have faced considerable difficulties with communication from Run Wild. They have been unresponsive, failing to provide itinerary details promptly, not returning phone calls, and taking between one to two weeks to respond to emails.
Two months before our scheduled departure (Summer 2024), my partner was diagnosed with a medical condition that complicated our travel plans. I contacted Run Wild to explore options for transferring the reservation or adjusting the travel dates. I was informed that transferring the reservation would incur a fee of $1,750, and changing the dates would cost $4,800. Run Wild did not ask for any information about the medical condition.
Before committing to these additional expenses, I requested the itinerary to make an informed decision. It was only then that I discovered Run Wild had canceled our booking, citing a "failure to report a pre-existing medical condition" clause in the contract. This condition was newly diagnosed and did not exist at the time of our initial contract.
This cancellation was not communicated to us until we specifically requested the itinerary. When we inquired about the itinerary and other details, Run Wild requested confirmation of our need for a change. After informing them that we could not confirm, they notified us that the booking had already been canceled. If we had not followed up, we might have been left without a reservation or explanation while in Southern Africa.
Run Wild subsequently indicated that reinstating our booking would require disclosing the medical condition in the contract. However, they did not provide a new contract or facilitate the exchange of information, nor did they supply any itinerary details.
Given these experiences, it will be difficult for us to trust this company with future travel arrangements to Africa. Such issues can adversely affect donor perceptions and impact the reputation and effectiveness of non-profit organizations. We will continue to seek resolution through appropriate channels and share any relevant findings to assist others who may encounter similar difficulties.
IT
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
namibia tour
We booked a trip to Namibia with the Travel Wild Africa agency, but once we were in Namibia, we realized that our trip was actually organized by Wild Wind Safari. Of course, we left a review for our agency, but our dissatisfaction with the kind of trip organized by Wild Wind Safari still stands. The lodges were subpar and pretty dirty, and the services were lacking, especially their availability to accommodate small changes in our plans, while they made changes to the itinerary without even telling us.
I should mention that we've traveled to other African countries and had great experiences. Unfortunately, this time we encountered a whole series of problems that we pointed out, but none of them were resolved by the agency. The trip cost us over $5,000 per person (excluding flights), but the treatment we received wasn't worth even half that. I hope the owner doesn’t respond to this review since they ignored our complaints throughout the trip, which we reported promptly.
(automatic translation from Italian)
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Tour Operator lack basic safety precautions
We booked a 12 day tour through Kenya and tanzania. Our driver was Moses in Kenya. Moses was a very unsafe driver, in his phone 90% of the time including while we needed to be quiet on the game drive. He repeatedly harassed animals including driving too close (within 3 feet of a sleeping make lion) and then to get the lion to look up he opened and slammed the car door. He repeatedly chased down animals getting disregarding park ranger rules and disturbing the animals.
Worst of all I was lost in a city and he never came to look for me. My husband went to go look for me and was missing too and when I told him of this emergency where were lost, he refused to help by driving around to look for him.
I called the company to inform them of this issues and Moses lied to the company and made up a whole new story to protect himself. My safety was never his concern. The tour operator didn't care in the slightest and were completely unhelpful in remedying this major violation of our safety.
If you value your safety and you care for the wellbeing of the wildlife, do not book with Safariline Defender.