US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
I would advise you don't book
I have been to Kenya and Tanzania a number of times. This trip that I booked with Safari360 was my worst experience ever. I almost lost my life because Petro runs a business that uses totally filthy, substandard and unsafe vehicles, and crowns it with unprofessional drivers to take unsuspecting travelers for a ride. The first jeep that I was sent did not have any working windows or doors. They did not open from the inside, and had to be pried open from the outside by the Driver, whenever needed. That 2 seater jeep was filthy, smelled, and had one "functional" seat, but no seat belts. The driver had the switch to open and close the windows as the switches by the windows were inoperable. He smashed my fingers in the window a total of 4 times as he could not control the switch. When I asked for a replacement vehicle, I was sent a 6 seater Toyota Range Rover. At first I was relieved when I saw it from the outside. However, very soon I learned that it was no different from the first vehicle. I was basically made to jump from the frying pan into the fire. This vehicle had totally broken seats, no seat belts on any of the seats, and again doors and windows that were not operable from the inside, The vehicle appeared never to have been cleaned from the inside, but worst of all, various parts of this poorly maintained jeep kept breaking down. We had a total of 4 breakdowns with issues ranging from the rear axle, to the shock absorbers and followed by the struts. The final blow was when the brakes failed. The driver had to pull into mechanic shops at remote villages where we spent between 2 to 4 hours getting the repair work done. Petro, and his partner, who provides the transport, did not approve any fuel purchase along the way. As per his calculations he had provided enough fuel for the entire journey. At no point had he taken into consideration the lousy and treacherous road conditions and other factors that could and did affect the "mpg or kpl." I had to pay for the gas out of pocket as it was either that or be stuck in the middle of nowhere. The height of indifference and couldn't careless attitude on the part of Petro and his partner towards the safety of the Driver and me was reached when the brakes of the Range Rover failed as we were descending towards a valley on a very steep hill with a 7% grade, as the posted signs showed. We would have ended in a head-on collision with a truck that was going the opposite direction because the bus behind the truck decided to pass him without bothering to see if it was safe to do so. The road was very narrow in both directions. How we did not have a fatal collision with failed brakes is still a mystery to me, and gives me the creeps till today. Your entire life truly flashes before your eyes at that moment. After this incident we drove downhill to the very next village at 5kpl. We were fortunate to find a mechanic who spent 3 hours fixing the brakes. I have never had such a harrowing trip anywhere in the world since I have been traveling. Please, I advise you do not use Safari360. Petro's only objective is to make money. Period! He is an unscrupulous, unethical and unprofessional Safari Tour operator. Your safety is never his concern. I wonder if the Tanzanian Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism that issues Safari Operator licenses are even aware of how businesses are run once they issue the licenses. Does that department even have any checks and balances or monitor these businesses. Since Tourism is a major income generator for the government I am sure they would be interested in hearing about some of these horribly and unsafe practices by some tour operators. That is something worth looking into. Buyer Beware.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
They are a dishonest company based on our experience
I used this company for a Kenya family safari in 2017 and we had a great experience. Based on this, we booked a new 5 day luxury Safari with them. I had every expectation that - based on my prior experience from 2017 - we could expect another great experience. This was not the case. Something has clearly happened and this company has gone totally downhill.
In summary - we were assured that our private Safari trip was completely lined up and on track. However the moment we paid them the money ($12k for a family of 5) - the problems immediately began. Firstly we were lied to about the hotel we had chosen somehow not having availability and we were rebooked into a different hotel of a much lower caliber (and told that the price was the same). I later confirmed that there was NO lack of availability at our originally selected lodge - rather the company had never made the reservation and had just pocketed the money. Secondly the company never paid the Safari park fees (despite us having paid them IN FULL prior to our arrival). We were left stranded at the park entrance for over an hour and were constantly being pressured to just pay the park entry fees in "cash" and told we would get refunded later. I refused.
This company ruined our family vacation. They took our money upfront and assured us our trip is all paid for. Then left us stranded in a foreign country and told us to just pay in "cash" to cover ongoing costs. Our attempts to get a refund are met with a combination of them ignoring emails/phone calls and them sending us generic emails.
The people we dealt with are Fred and Humphrey. I would advise you don't use them and do not make the mistake we did.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review
Very terrible service, we weren’t given Locks for our camp site and got robbed. The food was also terrible and didn’t cater to any dietary needs.
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
From my experience they're untrustworthy company
From my experience, I would not recommend trusting this company. They kept our money!
We found ourselves in Africa, a whole family thrown away and abandoned because they had not paid for anything for our trip.. It seems they spent our money on other things....
He says he's going to give it back to us... always excuses and problems...
$5000 lost!
It's disappointing to see companies that we believe may not prioritize the well-being of their customers. We hope this serves as a warning to fellow travelers.
IT
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Very careful. Do not book with Nali Safaris
Our trip was a real nightmare.
We booked a tour of 4 people with car and driver with Nali Safaris for 17 days in September 2024 at a total cost of 9,000 euros which, as per the contract, were paid in advance.
All contacts were made through Pendy Masule, the owner of the agency.
After 4 nights from arrival in Namibia, we discovered that from that moment on all the subsequent hotels booked were not paid for and we had to make our own arrangements. You can imagine the dismay, amazement and trauma of all of us when we discovered this. The entrance fees to the parks, fuel, excursions and everything else provided for in the contract were no longer paid for; we were left with only the car with the driver and a thousand problems to face in order to continue the trip. A terrible experience.
I am writing after 3 months of returning because Pendy continued to claim that he had financial problems that were being resolved and that he would soon reimburse the 2400 euros that we had to pay to complete the trip.
As soon as we returned from the trip, all the documentation relating to the expenses incurred was sent to Nali Safaris and Pendy always assured that the reimbursement would be made shortly.
I do not know if we will ever get our money back or if Pendy has stolen from us but I certainly had a terrible experience with Nali Safaris and so that other people can avoid finding themselves in similar situations, I will report everything to the competent bodies and associations of the tourism sector in Namibia.
ES
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Attention, our money was stolen !!!!!!
Attention!!!!
Company of dishonest people from our experience!!!!
They have stolen all the money we paid for the safari, and we have had to pay it all again.....
I am writing this information so that what happened to us does not happen to another family!!!
It was very unpleasant to find yourself with children in Africa, and that nothing was paid for and all the problems!!!
They have been saying for over a month that they are going to give us back our money.....
Always false promises and the money does not appear....
ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Look for another company
I don't even know where to start commenting. We booked a day safari with Sylwia. We paid everything a month in advance and they confirmed that everything was OK. The day before leaving on safari, having asked several times if anything was missing and they told us that everything was fine, they told us 12 hours before leaving on safari that they had made a mistake booking the plane tickets and that there were no spaces left on the plane. After much negotiation, they sent us to a worse park for the same price and the same day we had to return to Spain. They tell us that they will reserve a hotel for us so that we can take a shower before the flight, but when we arrive at the hotel it has not been paid for and we have to pay for it ourselves. I do not recommend it, they are very unprofessional and will leave you without the safari.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Big warning! They stole our money and left us without any Safari
We booked a 15 days Safari with them for Christmas and new year. When we arrived they told us to book a new Safari and our own cost, they can not do anything for us. Than they blocked us. Kept all the money and didn’t give us the Safari so we had high prices on flights and hotels to spend Christmas, organizing to get back home somehow instead of having a Safari.
Just starting a trial against them.
Don’t ever book with them.
Wilson and Samuel work together to steal your money.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
I would caution you not to book with this company
CAUTION - DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS COMPANY!
Natural World Kenya Safaris, operated by Humphrey N. Ndara, could not be more of a scam and disappointment. This is a safari company that prioritizes taking your money upfront and providing disappointment on the back end. The customer service and pretend caring stop once they have your money. We learned the hard way that the company’s business practices are at best dishonest and possibly fraudulent. If your intent is to experience all that Kenyan’s National Parks can offer, to receive the services for which you paid; to follow the itinerary to which was agreed and paid for; to be treated with honesty, common courtesy and respect; and/or to enjoy equipment that works, then we strongly suggest that you ignore any positive reviews this company may have and research other safari companies. Their positive reviews might have been deserved once upon a time, but clearly that time is in the past. DO NOT fall into the same trap we did. Kenya and the Kenyan people are too special to mar your visit by using this company. For more details, read below.
None of the equipment, including the “Off-road 4x4 Land Cruiser Jeep”, was as advertised. The vehicle did NOT have working electricity meaning that none of our phones or cameras could be recharged. The vehicle’s advertised WiFi was nonexistent. The portable fridge was broken so there was no cold water providing needed refreshment while in the heat of the Kenyan sun. The advertised sandbags for stability while picture taking were also nonexistent. The vehicle itself was old, busted in various places, and had abnormally inferior shocks (even for a safari vehicle). The poor condition of the vehicle ultimately resulted in an injury to one of us.
Although extremely disappointing, the poor (or lack of) functioning equipment could have been overlooked had the company not continued to ruin its questionable reputation through its misleading and underhanded business dealings. Despite having paid for all of our lodgings prior arriving in Kenya, we learned that it is Mr. Ndara’s business practice not to pay the lodging owners until the very last possible moment, and in some cases, not at all. Upon arriving early in the day at one of our lodging sites, we were unable to check in as the hotel/camp staff informed us that our lodging had not yet been paid by Natural World (Mr. Ndara). The hotel/camp staff suggested that we go ahead and spend our day in the park on safari under the assumption that all would be resolved before coming back at the end of our day. Unfortunately, when we arrived back at our lodging at the end of the day nothing had been resolved. In fact, the hotel/camp staff had been unable to contact anyone at Natural World all day. After an additional several hours waiting at the check-in desk, we were advised that we should (re)pay out-of-pocket and attempt reimbursement later. Our driver confirmed that this predicament is not an uncommon happening where Mr. Ndara is concerned. He often uses customer prepayments for other purposes.
Adding insult to injury, our driver (Jeff) was rude and condescending throughout our 9-day safari. He ignored asked questions, rushed us every time we stopped to take pictures, and repeatedly dropped us off at our camp earlier than scheduled (and much earlier than other safari groups that were staying at the same camp) causing us to miss the dusk hours when animals are most active. He did this without any explanation and got angry when we questioned him why he was returning to camp so early. Multiple times he skipped destinations listed on the itinerary that was agreed to when we submitted our safari down payment. One of the better examples of our driver’s rudeness is when he told us, “Why bother telling you what these animals are called since you can’t seem to remember them?”
On our last day of the safari, Mr. Humphrey Ndara verbally promised his commitment to addressing our negative safari experience and poor treatment. Unfortunately, true to form and never responding to our emails, this was just one more false and broken promise and another item to be added to the long list of extreme disappointments we suffered at the hands of Natural World, Mr. Humphrey and our driver Jeff.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Not Recommended
Unfortunately I have to write this to warn other people as we had a bad experience with Africa Marvel Tours.
We went in August but it took several months to recoup some money from them and have only just got around to writing this report.
I had high hopes for this trip and spent almost a year planning the trip of a lifetime for my 40th birthday with my family. I had decided years earlier that I wanted to do an African safari in style for this milestone.
When I contacted Perminus, I was very specific with what I wanted and we went back and forth a lot fine tuning our itinerary (10 nights Kenya and Tanzania) and I spent a lot of time researching and selecting specific accommodation based on the effect each would have on the total cost of the trip. I wanted to stay in some more luxury lodges but mix it with some mid range lodges so that it wasn't as expensive in total.
Perminus was very helpful in the planning process and I felt confident that this was going to be the trip of the lifetime I'd dreamed of. We were able to secure all but 2 (out of 6) of the lodges I'd selected but we booked into good alternatives for those 2 that we couldn't get.
Between paying the deposit and the final balance our group had gone from 6 people in 3 rooms to 4 people in 3 rooms. We paid extra to have 2 people in their own rooms.
Fast forward to 3 days before the tour began. I contacted Perminus on arrival in Nairobi (our tour started from a hotel we had booked ourselves in Nairobi) to ask what time we would be collected on Day 1. At this point, he informed me that 3 of the lodges that we have confirmed had been changed. All 3 were the best, most luxurious properties that we had paid a hefty premium for. I was furious. The alternatives were significant downgrades from what we had been told was confirmed prior to paying our final balance.
On arrival at the first alternative property, the reception staff handed us 2 keys instead of 3. They informed us that the booking requested was only for 2 rooms. In fact, they had more rooms available but had just sold them to a family who just arrived and were still there in the reception at the same time as us. So this first lodge was not only quite a lot cheaper than the one we paid for, but we only got 2 rooms instead of 3. We were there for 2 nights.
The same thing happened at our third stop. Exact same story except a bigger downgrade. The poor hotel staff having to be the one to break the news to us because despite our driver confirming with Perminus that we had 3 rooms for the rest of the trip, he lied and said we did, when we didn't.
The 4th stop (the third changed lodge), we had our 3 rooms but this was the biggest downgrade of all. We'd booked a really nice luxury property in Serengeti with a pool and sweeping views over the plains. We were put into a perfectly fine tented camp with no view or pool and it was baking hot there when we were trying to rest in the afternoon. It was worth significantly less than what we'd paid for.
There was no effort to warn us about these things or provide an explanation. I had to call Perminus to demand an explanation during the trip. The explanation given was that his colleague had accidentally cancelled all our bookings instead of amending the number of people from 6 to 4 (this would have been several months earlier and still we weren't told). They were able to get back all the accommodations except the best ones.
Unfortunately I don't believe that is what happened. I believe that this was intentional to make a bigger profit or perhaps, to survive another few months if the company is in trouble. The reason I think this is because I have read reviews of other companies in Kenya doing this, so it seems to be common practice. In addition, a family who went the week after us with Africa Marvel had an even worse time. You can read their review on SafariBookings (Li, Sep 12 2024).
I had to chase and chase them to organise some kind of refund. It was incredibly frustrating. I did my own research and based on published rates, the DIFFERENCE in what we paid and what we got in terms of accommodation was about USD5600. But these safari companies access agent rates which can be 20-30% cheaper. Even so, that would mean that we overpaid by about USD4000. After 3 months of chasing, I finally received USD1600 back. Better than nothing, but we were totally and utterly ripped off and I would hate the same to happen to anyone else.
The places we visited and the lodges were all good and the wildlife was truly amazing. But this experience made what was meant to be the trip of a lifetime, an unpleasant experience where I was having to ignore this stuff in the moment in order to try an enjoy myself. I would be wary of any Kenyan tour company after this and would rather book my own accommodation and fly to each place than risk being ripped off again.
That said, both our drivers in Kenya (Joe) and Tanzania (Medy) were great and I feel sorry for them that they have to be the face of this unprofessional and dodgy company.
Book at your own risk. If you do, go for the cheaper accommodation as you will probably end up there anyway!