US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Thoroughly investigate prior to booking
Purchased a Safari Via a charity. They were very difficult to communicate with, did not have black out dates, once we started nailing down trip, my dates became unavailable, then they became unresponsive, then when I reached out Charity, they all of a sudden had our dates available but then tried to charge us fees to get to the location of more then $8,000. for a few hours drive. They are suppose to be a non profit however in further research, it is difficult to find information about that part. They had not kept up their paperwork and it had just gotten filed a year prior. We have decided not to trust them on such an important vacation. if they can't communicate now, what would we do in a foreign company. Do your research.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nice gamedrives, excellent driver, bad accommodations, miserable customer service from the office
We’ve been doing a tour for 16 days/15 nights with this company. We visited several nationalparks and destinations in Kenya.
Nairobi-Amboseli-Mount Kenya-Thompson falls-Lake Nakuru-Kakamega forest-Kisumu-Masai Mara-Naivasha-Nairobi was our tour
First of all we can say thanks to our driver and guide Evans, who was very friendly and helpful. We enjoyed all the game drives with him, we were able to spot all of the big five and he was able to tell us a lot about all the animals we saw. He’s very experienced and has a lot of knowledge.
So on the first day in Nairobi we’ve been picked up on time at our hotel and drove to the office to do the outstanding payment with our creditcard. The office wanted to charge us 5% on that amount, which we refused because it was not a small amount and we already paid a lot, it was never mentioned or written anywhere that paying with creditcard will be charged with 5%. If we would have known we would have paid full in advance. We started our program in Nairobi, it was fine and in the evening we arrived at the sopa lodge in Amboseli. The hotel was good and the first game drive the next day was great. On our way back to the lodge our drive told us our program the next to days will change.
There the disaster began, they wanted to fool us the first time. Our schedule was to visit the Mau Mau caves on the way from Amboseli to Mount Kenya the next day but it was not possible due to lack of time (whole day driving). So he told us we would postpone it to the day after and skip a whole day gamedrive/visit in Ol Pejeta Conservancy (Sweetwater Rhino Sanctuary). That’s ridiculous, they obviously really tried to fool us and why was the visit to Mau Mau caves planned anyway, if they now it’s not enough time for it? So of course we’ve been insisting on our gamedrive in Ol Pejeta.
So after the second night in Amboseli we spend the whole day on the road to Nanyuki (Mount Kenya) and arrived at Sportsman Arms Hotel in the evening. Horrible hotel, unfriendly and inconsiderate staff, dark rooms with a lot of broken items (lights, dustbin) and water dripping out of the bathroom light from above. Restaurant also very dark and uncomfortable, staff as mentioned, buffet very small and not tasty at all.
The next day our gamedrive at Ol Pejeta was great but we had to quit in the early afternoon due to one out of four persons was already feeling bad because of conditions of the last night... sad because of the nice conservancy and bad because of returning early to that hotel (we just thought ok we’ll tolerate one more night there).
The next day we went to Nyahururu to visit the Thompson falls, spent few hours on the road and arrived at the lodge for lunch. Already two out of four persons felt bad/were ill due to the last two nights. Lodge was very old and rustical but had charme but could definitely be maintained better, especially the showers.
The next morning we took off to check-in to our hotel in Nakuru and left with picnic lunches for Lake Bogoria which was a nice trip. We arrived at our hotel (Hillside Court) in the late afternoon and took a first look into our rooms and we’ve been disappointed again. Dirty sheets, leaking toilets, dirty towels and so on.
That was the point we decided not to be disappointed about accommodations anymore and just to look forward to get back to the hotels late and wake up early the next morning for gamedrives/excursions.
The next day we had our gamedrive at Lake Nakuru, which was as enjoyable as the other gamedrives! In the evening we had to go back to our hotel, at least the staff tried everything to get us comfortable.
The next day we went to Kakamega forest and finally had a good accommodation again, the Rondo Retreat. Really charming, quiet and in the middle of the forest! After a good night we had a guided walk into the forest the next morning and went to Kisumu arriving at our hotel for lunch.
In Kisumu we decided to upgrade the hotel in advance on our own cost to have two comfortable nights with a day at leisure in between! Later it paid off...
After two nights in Kisumu we took off to Masai Mara with a stop at the soapstone factory in Kisii which was quite interesting. We arrived at our camp in the Mara at dinner-time. The Lechada camp is not maintained well, the mattresses are done, the showers are very dark, dirty, no hot showers, all in all very poor bathrooms, food was okay but the dining hall also very dark. Staff and the Masai have been friendly.
The gamedrives the next two days have been amazing, the Masai Mara is really awesome.
After three nights in the camp we took off to Naivasha and we’ve been really excited about our hotel, the Lake Naivasha Resort was on the program for two nights. Arriving at Lake Naivasha our driver told us we’ll stay in the ‚sweet lake resort‘ which is a totally different price category than the Lake Naivasha Resort wish we found out really fast online, so we told the driver and insisted on to stay in the Lake Naivasha Resort as per program. As we were doing our boatride before lunch, our driver was to sort out with the office. As we came back I had to talk with the boss Lucy from the office for the first time, the lady really told me that the hotel was changed and we’ve been informed about, which was not true and a lie! After me still insisting on us staying in the better hotel as per program she was shouting at me on the phone!!! It was getting later and later so that we even had no lunch and we finally accepted to stay in another hotel called Masada resort, because Lucy was not reasonable and insisting to her lie the hotel was changed and we knew. So we checked in at around 6pm in the Masada Resort without having any lunch (all meals included) and the hotel was also definitely not the same category as the hotel on the program, the hotel that we have paid for! How can a hotel/program that we have paid for be changed?
The next day we went to Hells Gate Nationalpark and had a gamedrive in the morning to back at the hotel for lunch and afternoon at leisure. After another night at that hotel we took off to Nairobi the next day.
We would never recommend that agency to anybody, please be careful!
Our driver/guide Evans Ngigi was really excellent but the Office/the boss Lucy really unprofessional, customer service was very bad or no customer service at all! She tried to fool us with skipping Ol Pejeta Conservancy which is 95 USD per person, in total almost 400 USD. And finally she corned us with our hotel in Naivasha and saved a lot of money (hundreds). This lady is criminal! Sadly we had no chance to react because it was already paid and booked directly with that agency in Kenya.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Operator cancelled trip one day before departure date!
I rested with my family on Zanzibar and we decided to go on a four-day safari in Tanzania.
Through the www.safaribookings.com I found several companies that do safaris in the Tarangire / Ngorongoro / Serengeti.
I made a request, more firms answered me.
Among them was the company Twinkle Star Tours and Safaris.
They gave me the best price and a perfect program, we agreed everything to the smallest detail.
To save money, I decided to buy tickets by local airlines from Zanzibar to Kilimanjaro myself.
When I bought the tickets, agreed with Twinkle Star on the dates and times of transfer, right on the day before of our departure from Zanzibar, Twinkle Star said that he could not conduct a safari, but his acquaintance from the company Inno African Safari would hold it.
He gave me the contact of this other company and no longer answered my questions in the WatsApp.
I contacted this new company and he set me the price exactly twice as high as we agreed with Twinkle Star.
And this is the day before the start of the safari!
It was good that I had contacts and agreements with other companies and we quickly agreed on a safari with another company.
I warn all people on the www.safaribookings.com, do not mess with the company Twinkle Star Tours and Safaris.
TW
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
bad experience with this company
這間老闆在收錢時很快說一切包在我身上. 但並沒有先把錢給司機加油. 所以我正中午大太陽之下被困在車子裡1個多小時等這間老闆匯錢給司機去加油. 且這間safari所提供從dar 接送的車子是沒有冷氣的. 浪費時間 cp不高 不推
this company didnt give money to driver for fuel in advanced. so i was stuck in the car in the middle of day for more than 1 hour(the car condition is bad with no ac no light and even gear box is not functioning well) not suggest at all. terrible
DE
Overpriced for poor value
Don't trust a word they're saying! Better yet, don't book with this deceiving company! They sold us an overpriced three day safari, told us we paid for food although we said we'd bring our own for less money and still we didn't get any food (which we unwillingly still payed for), payed more than any of the other tourists who went with us and felt utterly betrayed. Communication after the transaction was shit and we immediately felt the deceiving and untrustworthy atmosphere.
The safari itself was fine and the guide nice enough, but he barely told us anything about the park or the animals.
We had another safari with another company in a different park for way less money that was so much better it's unbelievable.
So yeah, don't book with them. (They also knew we were unhappy so they didn't even sent us a link to review them like they do with their satisfied customers.... strange right?)
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Misleading and bait and switch
A group of people went to Kenya and Tanzania from June 24th through July 10th, 2019. The majority of time was spent in Kenya. We had used TripAdvisor African Safaris agent Seth Vincent to arrange for the Kenya portion of the trip. During the booking period, we received several itineraries outlining the accommodation and numbers of rooms we requested to accommodate our party. Although we had received confirming emails outlining where we would be staying and the number of rooms booked, on at least two occasions the number of rooms were shorted, forcing people to double up although people had paid additional money for separate rooms. We can only assume that Seth pocketed the difference himself. We had been promised a lovely place in Arusha, Tanzania at the Mount Meru Hotel. However, Seth had emailed our subcontracted drivers and had them book us into a very poor hotel in a rough area of Arusha. We called the hotel on our approved itinerary and they had no record of any reservation for us. Again, I suspect that Seth deliberately did a bait and switch that probably allowed him to pocket the difference while putting the 14 of us in a very poor hotel. This was the last night he was responsible for so we really had no recourse. We cannot prove that this was deliberate on his part but he would not return any calls at that point.
The bottom line is DO NOT use this person for your safari experience. Do go with a firm that has lengthy track record and positive reviews.
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Unprofessional
Dissapointed
Unprofessionalism and disappointment guaranteed.
My family and I experienced a nightmare with Watu Safaris managed by this man called Mr. Majenda. What was supposed to be a relaxing and memorable getaway with my two year old son and husband turned into a horrible cascade of unpredictable and disappointing events.
Before the trip:
Mr. Majenda and I were in good communication and he seemed quite courteous and civil. We arranged the trip for July 19th and 20th. We were to be picked up from Dar-es-salaam at 5:30 am and be driven to Mikumi to spend the day, sleep in the premises and continue our safari the next morning. Two days before the safari, I emailed Mr. Majenda to make sure if all plans were in order and he assured me like the professional I thought he was that all is well. He told me that my driver would contact me to make arrangements. I didn't hear from the driver so I contacted him the night before the trip. The driver had no idea about the trip. He told that he thought it was for the 29th and not the 19th. Mind you, Mr. Majenda had prepared my invoice with the correct dates and all emails had the dates of the safari as subject. So the driver then asked me to wait so he can clarify with his boss Mr. Majenda. They somehow managed to hire another driver from a different company right around midnight. I was notified by text about this new driver situation.
Day of the trip:
We woke up early to prepare and were ready by 5am. Time of pick up arrives and no show. So I call the new driver. He picks up the phone, surprise! I had just woken him up. He told me he was not briefed about the pick up time and that he was on his way. I honestly think this guy was innocent in all this.
So we get around 6:15am and head out. We arrive at Morogoro and meet Mr. Majenda at Watu Safaris offices to complete our payment. He says sorry without any explanation and proceeds to deduct the payment. We head to Mikumi. At this point, I am already very dissatisfied and honestly feeling let down. What else could go wrong?
At Mikumi park:
We arrive at the gate, present our IDs and ask for our booking for lodging that night. Guess what? None of that exists! After almost an hour of calls, no success as to where we were going to spend the night. Our entrance fees were supposed to be covered in our safari package but we ended up paying out of pocket to get into the park. At this point, I was expecting at least a call from Mr. Majenda but nothing. Two hours later, I decide to call him. I was very furious. He gave me a half type of apology and blamed it on his driver for mixing up the dates. I told him to own up for God's sake! He said that they had booked us at a hotel nearby to spend the night and that "it was more expensive than the lodges" that we were originally supposed to stay in. I was so disgusted. If I wasn't pregnant and also with a 2 year old, we would have driven back home the same day. We ended up staying at that hotel and completed the trip next morning.
We did not get a personal apology from Mr. Majenda, nor did he call us to make sure we were okay. He didn't care about us after getting his money. The only thing he did was pay for the hotel bill including all meals and offered to reimburse us our entrance fee. I understand that some things can go wrong when planning a trip but in our case, all things went wrong and for this reason and the way he handled things, I do not consider Mr. Majenda a professional.
SE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Scammed.
Me and my wife set out on the three-day/two-night Masai Mara Tour Joining Safari with the promise of two half days and a full day of wildlife viewing in van catering to maximum 7 passengers but with supposedly only 5 passengers joining. The trip Nairobi to Masai Mara was supposed to take a maximim of 5 hours. Food and lodging was going to be basic but sufficient. That sounded somewhat tangible.
In practice what we received was two full days of travelling with 8 people in a van designed for 7 passengers. Day one and three consisted of 7-8 hours journey in each direction Nairobi to Masai Mara. In terms of wildlife viewing we had one somewhat full day (8 hours/6:45am to 3:45pm) and two very short days (45 mins + 90 mins). And in all honesty the food and lodging was tolerable at best.
We feel we have been subject to a scam, and every single tourist we met along the way had the same sad story to share.
Our word is to watch out... but then every operator seems to run the same type of scam, cartel-like with far too many middlemen getting their hands on the roughly USD 300 you are likely to part with for this Safari option.
In all fairness you get about 60 to 80 USD of value for this 3 day/2 night Safari. And that's generous.
GR
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Worst experience
I found them on google search and thought that the reviews were good. Proceeded on to book and pay because they seemed trustworthy. About three days later, I tried contacting them but no one was answering. I tried everything I could but still nothing. So, I decided to file a complaint with my bank and went with another agency. I would never recommend it to anyone. Either they plan who to con once in a while, or this is a scam. Don’t fall for it. Worst experience ever.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
I had to tell myself not to be mad and enjoy this honey moon private tour
I'm here to note the tour operator so I'd like to state several facts dealing with Back of Africa:
1. Allan asked me to pay the balance in cash but we don't have any USD, so he added 40 dollars (I can't remember how much excatly) bank fee in order to pay by card.
2. Three hours after departure we realized that it's not the direction to our first destination Amboseli so asked our driver. He told us we're actually going to Masai Mara.
3. I contacted Allan, he replied sorry for not telling us, and the program change is due to non availability at a lodge. Given that we were asked to pay the deposit 3 months ago "in order to secure the logistics", it's simply NOT acceptable to make the reservations at the last minute then realize that it's full. After carefully studying and made this tailored grogram together, imagine my furstration when Allan reversed our itinerary without informing us at all.
4. Since the itininary is reversed, I asked for a new full program. He said ok but I never recieved anything until the end of the trip.
5. On the initial program is included 3 hot meals per day, except for the full day safari in Masai Mara. Surprisingly we were given 3 times this non editable and completly non hygiene lunch box (imagine a toast sandwich with cheese and a greasy chicken leg after 5 hours under the sun). So we didn't have lunch and starved the whole day until I suffered from stomachache every evening. For the 3rd time I had to complain and fight for a real meal during our 7 hours drive from Naivasha to Ambosali.
(Allan told us later that full board hotel booking is only 5 dollars more expensive than half board, so it's more interesting for him to book with in-hotel lunch or lunch box. Again, since our program is changed, the road trips don't allow a in-hotel lunch. Since he never sent over the new program, we always needed to figure out by ourselves where we go the next day, and have no clue of lunch arrangement.)
6. On the last day back to Nairobi, Allan joined us for lunch, and asked us to express ourselves. He said sorry again, gave us loads of excuses that we as customers find it hard to accept. I asked on D1 some form of compensation which he refused, because he is too busy, and "miastake is human", and he "learned the lesson". This meeting is a pointless loss of time for our holiday.
7. I felt offended during this whole meeting. Allan was adressing only to my boyfriend and never looked at me, even when saying goodbye.
I would definately recommend Kenya and loved the breath taking scenaries and amazing animals.
Our driver and guide George is quiet and doesn't really smile, but has adequate knowlege and did his job.
These moments of frustration were not expected especially given the price we paid, we need to at least have the service we booked.
If I have any advice to give, do check every detail with him before you pay, and do not trust.