CH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Trip
Our trip to Uganda was an unforgettable experience, perfectly organized from start to finish. We arrived in Entebbe on Day 1, where we were picked up by our driver, Moses. He was absolutely fantastic—punctual, knowledgeable, very friendly, and above all a safe and reliable driver. We felt well taken care of from the very beginning.
From Entebbe, we drove down to Bwindi National Park and spent the night at Broadbill Forest Camp, a beautiful lodge in the middle of the jungle. The staff were incredibly warm and welcoming, and the entire stay was excellent. The next day, we had the once-in-a-lifetime experience of seeing gorillas up close—definitely a highlight of the trip.
Afterwards, we continued to Rwenzori for trekking. Everything was well organized and went smoothly. Moses suggested taking a scenic route through Queen Elizabeth National Park, which turned out to be a wonderful idea. We saw a wide variety of wildlife and enjoyed stunning views throughout the drive.
We then stayed overnight in Kasese at the Sandon Hotel, which was also a great choice—comfortable, clean, and with friendly staff. There was a power outage, but it wasn’t a major issue. Following our trekking time in the Rwenzori, we continued to Fort Portal for one more night before returning to Entebbe for our departure.
Overall, we would rate this trip excellent. Everything was well organized, there were no unexpected changes, and the entire team was extremely polite, helpful, and professional. Our tour operator Sander was highly responsive and always quick to answer any questions. We couldn’t have asked for a better experience.
Highly recommended!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A very memorable, safe wildlife experience
Had a wonderful time. Lots of wildlife. Ranger guide and lodge staff were informative,attentive and welcoming. Shannon who helped with the booking was great.
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely sensational.
Best holiday for years. Saw up close all animals i had hoped for, the guides were incredibly passionate and very skilled to get us a great experience. I knew that id enjoy this experience but it was fantastic.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect Tour
We had a wonderful tailor-made stay combining adventure and discovery in the best possible conditions!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Tiko made our experience unforgettable and was very welcoming and knowledgeable.
This was the most amazing, unforgettable experience and would highly recommend to everyone. We did the private tour day trip safari and flew from Zanzibar which was very well organised and safe. Our guide Tiko was there to greet us with a very warm welcome. We set off in a spacious jeep with cold drinks provided throughout our journey. We saw most of the animals in the morning. Watching the elephants cross in front of our path was amazing. And seeing the lions so closely was a dream come true. It was like living the real Lion King experience. The park is huge and the landscape provides beautiful views. The lunch provided was delicious with a great range of choices. The guides ensure we have a safe and enjoyable experience whilst informing us about the animals. Overall me and my family want to say a massive thank you to Shammah Wonders for such an incredible day which we will always remember.
CA
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beyond our expectations
We dreamed of it, we lived our dream. The guides in Kenya and Tanzania were perfect, knew the parks, the habits of the animals and allowed us to see them so close up. All the lodges were of an excellent standard, the meals were varied and delicious, and the rooms were comfortable. We return with our heads full of memories, images of animals and extraordinary landscapes. Initially, we had some concerns, but our safari revealed a welcoming and smiling Africa.
Five star treatment!
From the moment you are met to the moment u are dropped off you feel like royalty! Nothing is too much trouble for the staff. The little things are noticed and attended to without u having to ask. Food, drinks, tours are all five star. Rooms are fantastic! Cleanliness of main lodge, grounds, and rooms are exceptional.
I truly did not want to leave this place. If u do nothing else in Victoria Falls you have to do the 3 night, 4 day staycation at this wonderful lodge. All inclusive, food, drink, tours. Not buffet style but quality off the menu food. Local spirits, cocktails, wine, and beer. Had he best long Island ice teas, whiskey sour, and Irish coffee made for me.
ES
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent
The best safari! a dream come true! Thank you serengetimufasa.
CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Once in a Lifetime Experience Ruined by Suricata Safaris
I went on a 3 night/4 day Tanzanian Safari with my animal obsessed 14 year old son.
It was suppose to be a trip of a lifetime however it was spoiled by a disinterested guide (Shabani).
The safari started poorly as the guide wasted an hour by needing to stop at two different gas stations to put air in his tires. That should have been sorted before we started the safari.
We then attempted to enter the Tarangire National Park. However we ended up waiting for another large amount of time as the safari company had not properly filled out their paperwork to enter the park. We watched all the other safari companies enter without stall.
We had 5 other guest in our jeep and we were excited to finally see our first elephant.
We pointed it out and told the guide we wished to stop and take photos however he refused and said he was hungry and we needed to stop for lunch.
We ended up seeing many more elephants that day however if the guide had spent 5 minutes so that we could see our first elephant it would have helped create a better atmosphere in the jeep.
One thing that was established early on was that there was nothing scientific about the guide service.
Most of the time you just drive around in circles waiting for another company to radio where an animal is and then all the different companies converge on the area.
We ended up seeing 4/5 Big Five in the Tarangire that day without much effort.
I'm certain that all the other safari companies no matter the cost would have seen the same animals.
That evening we stayed in the Suricata Boma Lodge which was excellent. Although there was more staff than guest they ALL went out of the way to make the stay special. 5 stars !
Three of the guest in the jeep elected camping so we did end of spending a portion of our time each day driving to and from the different lodgings.
On the 2nd last day the distance between the mid-range and camping was over an hour in each direction which meant earlier wake up times and less time on the actual safaris.
The 2nd day we drove to the Serengeti and the guide again seemed disinterested.
Perhaps he has checked-out after a busy season or needs a vacation but he offered very little throughout the entire safari.
I understand he sees these animals every day but for most of us this is a once in a lifetime experience and could help with at least trying a little enthusiasm.
He was short at times with the other guest and would sigh or voice his displeasure if he was asked to wait a moment longer to take an extra photo.
Surprisingly as we stopped for lunch the 2nd day we realized that between the 7 of us in the jeep we didn't actually know each others names.
You would have thought our guide would have attempted to establish this in the first moments of the safari the day prior.
However it was evident he couldn't care less and made no effort to create a fun experience, he just wanted to get through it.
On each of the four lunches we asked the guide to sit and eat with us but he refused and took his plate elsewhere.
On the 2nd night we stayed at the Tanzania Bush Camps (Simba) which was an amazing experience.
We were dropped off at the Bush Camp by the other Suricata Safari guide (Felix) as Shabani had stayed at the other campsite.
While at the Bush Camp, Felix actually approached our table, sat with us and asked how the dinner/stay was, which was contrary to our experience with Shabani.
The next morning Felix drove us 20 minutes to the campsite to pickup our other members of our group.
On the quick 20 minute drive with Felix we saw a variety of animals which he was happy to stop for.
He genuinely seemed happy to see us happy.
The 3rd day we tactically had my son sit in the front seat beside Shabani with hopes he would actually provide some excitement or new information to my son who is a huge animal fan and its always been his dream to do a safari.
Over the course of the day Shabani made no effort to speak to my son, at one point my son actually fell asleep.
That evening we left the Serengeti and approached the Ngorongoro Crater lookout.
Shabani didn't leave the vehicle. As he sat with his cellphone watching more videos, it was up to us to try to figure out what we looking at.
He then dropped the other group off at the separate camp and then drove us 1 hour away from the group in the opposite direction.
We then had to wait almost another hour for another member of a different Suricata Safari group whose jeep had mechanical issues.
In the original agreement with Davis from Suricata Safaris it was established my 3 nights accommodations were as follows :
1.)Suricata Boma Lodge
2.)Tanzania Bush Camps
3.) either Marera Valley Lodge or Hhando Coffee Lodge
On the 2nd day we saw a sign for the Marera Valley Lodge and Shabani verbally told us we would be staying there on the 3rd night.
However as we were driving into the Karatu area that night he made a left turn into the Inoga Lodge.
Once in the valet area Shabani instructed everyone to get out (5 total guest) and told us this is where we'd be staying.
Although its obvious he knew Suricata Safaris changed the accomI went on a 3 night/4 day Tanzanian Safari with my animal obsessed 14 year old son.
It was suppose to be a trip of a lifetime however it was spoiled by a disinterested guide (Shabani).
The safari started poorly as the guide wasted an hour by needing to stop at two different gas stations to put air in his tires. That should have been sorted before we started the safari. We then attempted to enter the Tarangire National Park. However the we ended up waiting for another large amount of time as the safari company had not properly filled out their paperwork to enter the park. We watched all the other safari companies enter without stall.
We had 5 other guest in our jeep and we were excited to finally see our first elephant. We pointed it out and told the guide we wished to stop and take photos however he refused and said he was hungry and we needed to stop for lunch. We ended up seeing many more elephants that day however if the guide had spent 5 minutes so that we could see our first elephant it would have helped create a better atmosphere in the jeep.
One thing that was established early on was that there was nothing scientific about the guide service. Most of the time you just drive around in circles waiting for another company to radio where an animal is and then all the different companies converge on the area. We ended up seeing 4/5 Big Five in the Tarangire that day without much effort. Im certain that all the other safari companies no matter the cost would have seen the same animals.
That evening we stayed in the Suricata Boma Lodge which was excellent. Although there was more staff than guest they ALL went out of the way to make the stay special. 5 stars !
Three of the guest of the jeep elected camping so we did end of spending a portion of our time each day driving to and from the different lodgings. On the 2nd last day the distance between the mid-range and camping was over an hour in each direction which meant earlier wake up times and less time on the actual safaris.
The 2nd day we drove to the Serengeti and the guide again seemed disinterested. Perhaps he has checked-out after a busy season or needs a vacation but he offered very little throughout the entire safari.
I understand he sees these animals every day but for most of us this is a once in a lifetime experience and could help with at least trying a little enthusiasm.
He was short at times with the other guest and would sigh or voice his displeasure if he was asked to wait a moment longer to take an extra photo.
Surprisingly as we stopped for lunch the 2nd day we realized that between the 7 of us in the jeep we didn't actually know each others names.
You would have thought our guide would have attempted to establish this in the first moments of the safari the day prior.
However it was evident he couldn't care less and made no effort to create a fun experience, he just wanted to get through it.
On each of the four lunches we asked the guide to sit and eat with us but he refused and took his plate elsewhere.
On the 2nd night we stayed at the Tanzania Bush Camps (Simba) which was an amazing experience.
We were dropped off at the Bush Camp by the other Suricata Safari guide (Felix) as Shabani had stayed at the other campsite.
While at the Bush Camp, Felix actually approached our table, sat with us and asked how the dinner/stay was, which was contrary to our experience with Shabani.
The next morning Felix drove us 20 minutes to the campsite to pickup our other members of our group.
On the quick 20 minute drive with Felix we saw a variety of animals which he was happy to stop for.
He genuinely seemed happy to see us happy.
The 3rd day we tactically had my son sit in the front seat beside Shabani with hopes he would actually provide some excitement or new information to my son who is a huge animal fan and its always been his dream to do a safari.
Over the course of the day Shabani made no effort to speak to my son, at one point my son actually fell asleep.
That evening we left the Serengeti and approached the Ngorongoro Crater lookout. Shabani didn't leave the vehicle. As he sat with his cellphone watching more videos, it was up to us to try to figure out what we looking at through the faded signage.
He then dropped the other group off at the separate camp and then drove us 1 hour away from the group in the opposite direction. We then had to wait almost another hour for another member of a different Suricata Safari group whose jeep had mechanical issues.
In the original agreement with Davis from Suricata Safaris it was established my 3 nights accommodations were as follows :
1.)Suricata Boma Lodge
2.)Tanzania Bush Camps
3.) either Marera Valley Lodge or Hhando Coffee Lodge
On the 2nd day we saw a sign for the Marera Valley Lodge and Shabani verbally told us we would be staying there on the 3rd night.
However as we were driving into the Karatu area that night he made a left turn into the Inoga Lodge.
Once in the valet area Shabani instructed everyone to get out (5 total guest) and told us this is where we'd be staying.
Although it was obvious he knew Suricata Safaris changed the accomodations, he made no mention of this beforehand.
Confused and standing in the lobby all 5 of us voiced our displeasure of being in that hotel.
Shabani made absolutely no effort to help with the hotel issue and simply said complain to the company not me before quickly driving off and leaving us in disbelief.
The Inoga Lodge was a definite downgrade and we didn't see any other guest through the duration of the night.
This is obviously the Suricata Safaris attempting to cut corners and save a buck.
This is also a breach of the earlier agreement/contract we made.
As this is the off-season there is no possibility of overbooking.
One couple in our group had holes in their shower floor.
Our door to the room was mostly inoperable and my son had to use the window twice to gain access.
I could put my hand under the door and also on the one side. This was the only hotel where we encountered mosquitos at night (probably through the door openings)
The last day Shabani picked us up at 5:40 am because we had to drive an hour back in the same direction we were earlier to pickup the other group.
We were provided a boxed breakfast rather than a sit-down meal we were accustomed to and Shabani only gave us 10 minutes to eat.
On the drive back towards the Ngorongoro Crater we almost went off the road due to an unnecessary and reckless driving manoeuvre around a truck that was deemed too slow for Shabani.
As we descended into the Ngorongoro Crater Shabani again seemed disinterested/tired/bored.
My teenage son, as for most of the trip provided information about the animals to the other guest of the jeep while Shabani watched videos on his phone.
After 20 minutes we were ready to move on however Shabani would then go into information we had already established through my teenager.
This was happening the whole trip.
For the amount of breaks that he took - that would have been a more appropriate time to go on your cellphone not while your guest are looking for information about the animals.
We found we had to prompt our guide with questions that were already answered just to get him to engage.
It became a joke with the other safari group in Felix jeep who felt bad for us.
They stopped showing us photos and videos they had because our experience was nothing like theirs.
Most of the animals we saw were with binoculars or from a distance as Shabani couldn't care less.
He actually made efforts to drive away from the animals.
The final display was our last moments inside the Ngorongoro Crater, a large elephant walked into the lake, Shabani decided at the time that he needed a break so we sat and watched the other safari groups engage with the elephant.
Shabani said we would see it after his break however he drove away from the elephant and ascended back up the crater in the jeep.
It left our entire group astonished.
As Suricata Safaris provided all meals for the 4 days, to top it all off I developed food poisoning at some point which made two uncomfortable emergency stops on the way back to Arusha which also affected the next part of my holiday in Zanzibar.
I had reached out to Suricata Safaris about my concerns while still on the Safari on November 11.
My immediate response from Davis was "Hello, I am very sorry to hear this from you, allow immidiate to follow up on this and see what transpired for the last minute change"
As of November 27 I am still awaiting a response, which shows how much Suricata Safaris cares about its clients.
Don't make the same mistake I made by choosing Suricata Safaris.
I've included a photo of what most of my Suricata Safari looked like
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Memorable Experience with Excel Gateways – Kenya Wildlife Trip
I had an amazing and truly memorable trip with Excel Gateways earlier this month. From the very beginning, Nancy was incredibly helpful in curating our itinerary. Her valuable guidance and insights helped us make the most of our trip in a cost-effective and efficient way.
A special mention goes to Bedan, our guide for the 6-day Kenya wildlife tour. He was absolutely fantastic—highly experienced and deeply knowledgeable about all the national parks and Kenya's geography. His local contacts and helpful advice added a personal touch to our journey and made the experience even more special.
We were fortunate to spot nearly everything we had hoped to see, especially during our time in Masai Mara.
Thank you once again to the entire team for a well-organized and unforgettable adventure!