ES
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Feeling deceived
Services contracted: Fully customized private safaris, 4 days Amboseli, Tsavo West and East and 9 days Samburu, Buffalo Springs, Aberdare, L.Naivasha, L.Nakuru, Hell's Gate and Maasai Mara.
First of all, I want to put on record the positive aspects:
- Smooth communication with quick responses from Stephen during pre-hire planning.
- Willingness to adapt the tours and accommodations to our requirements.
- Experienced and qualified drivers.
I am writing this review 5 months after the safari because in those months Stephen from Pride of Africa assured me that he was looking into ways to compensate for the problems I describe below.
- Problems with payments. I paid a deposit by wire transfer to secure the booking. The balance was to be paid upon arrival in Nairobi in USD, but most of the banknotes I had with me were refused. They said they would only accept freshly printed notes, even though the older notes I had were perfectly legal. They also refused to accept payment by credit card or wire transfer. We spent hours at the ATMs until we had reached the maximum on my cards. The driver offered to make up the difference in cash and accept the payment via bank transfer later.
- Non-compliance with the programme. The visit to Samburu Park was cancelled, thus saving the entrance fees, but we have not been refunded. The safari in Aberdare Park was limited to 1 hour in the cafeteria of the Ark Tree Lodge, despite the fact that we had indicated from the beginning that we were not interested in visiting the lodge but wanted to do some of the trekking to the numerous waterfalls in the park. At Lake Naivasha the tickets for the boat trip and visit of the island turned out not to be included despite both activities being included in the programme (the justification was that the programme included the entrance fees to the parks, but that Lake Naivasha was not a ‘park’ (??).
- Non-compliance with the Masai Mara programme. It included 4 game drives in the park: the first in the afternoon on day one after the scheduled lunch at the lodge where we were to arrive at noon, 2 full-day safaris and the last one in the morning before the scheduled departure for Nairobi at noon. However, the driver delayed leaving the previous park (Lake Nakuru) and made several stops along the way, meaning we arrived too late for the first safari. On the last day, the safari was reduced to a drive between the entrance gate near our lodge and the exit gate closest to the road to Nairobi, in a manoeuvre by the driver to save on entrance fees by justifying at the checkpoints that we had only crossed the park on our way from the lodge (we even went through the checkpoints with the roof closed so as not to look like we were coming from a game drive). We reported these irregularities to Stephen before we left Kenya and asked for a refund of the unpaid entrance fees, but since then he has only postponed the resolution (claiming that he had to complain to the driver) and has avoided refunding the money to date.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A friendly, amazing and knowledgeable host!
What an amazing experience! From RISHEM that booked the package for me—he was super responsive and help me all along the way. The coolest shuttle drivers, the game drivers and the host JANINE at Damula camp. WOW I was blown away. For the price you get everything included and we met super cool fellow travelers. I highly recommend go with them -at the price point you cannot do better. ALSO PLEASE TIP YOUR DRIVER AND YOUR HOST.
NL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good communications,in time pick up and very nice tour
Very nice,good communications,on time picking up.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Communicative and Welcoming
From start to finish, Leopard Orchid Safaris were professional, kind, and accommodating. I was nervous, as a solo female traveler to go on a safari by myself and especially with a male guide, however Sammi was so kind and welcoming. He made me feel comfortable and safe. He was so knowledgeable and made sure I truly enjoyed my time. I would 10000% recommend this company and Sammi as a guide. I plan to recommend any and all friends who want to go to Kenya to book with this company.
CZ
35-50 years of age
Great overall service
I booked a Kilimanjaro climb throuh Crater Explorer and was very satisfird with communication, price, personal attention, team of guides, cook and porters and the entire experience provided. The team was very experienced and took great care of me throughout the trip. Pricing was transparent, communication clear and included hotel accomodation before and after the climb as well as airport pick up. Tour operator arranged for sleeping bag rental and personally came to the hotel to discuss details and make guide introductions. I had a wonderful experiemce.
SI
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience
We just arrived from Safari, organised by Luka’s African Adventures. Our guide Luca was very responsive, careful. He knows a lot about nature and animals in Safari. We were visiting Tarangiere, Serengeti and Ngorongoro, we highly recommended Luca as a guide and also his agency.
CZ
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
reliable, helpful, friendly
I was very satisfied with the travel agency, they are very helpful, communicate quickly and have affordable prices compared to others. The whole tour was very well organized and delivered what it promised. The accommodation chosen was very nice and comfortable, the food very tasty. I can recommend.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
great experience!
It was an incredibly enjoyable and memorable trip! I 100% recommend it to anyone looking for an authentic wildlife experience. Assad is the best tour guide ever—his passion for his work and his genuine love for animals really shine through.
We saw all the animals we hoped to see, including the Big Five, flamingos, and even some unexpected surprises like serval cats. Assad’s knowledge of the animals is unparalleled—he can tell you their habits, gender, age, and even the smallest details that make each species so fascinating.
The highlight was being able to get so close to the animals—closer than I ever imagined possible. The opportunity to witness these majestic creatures in such close positions was beyond anything I expected.
中国人不骗中国人，Assad向导超级专业，请选择！
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing very good organised
It was amazing, 5 days of safari together with our guide Yahya. The accommodation where we slept are excellent. We made ze trip with 2 adult en 2 young adults 22,24 years.
Our Safari was just super fun, very well organised, but our driver was also super fun, we enjoyed it. We see the BIG 5
SE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Taking on Kilimanjaro with a 10 year old
Took a private tour with my 10 year old son. Kwesa tours provided the best guides in Tuliza and Geofrey who cared for us all along. They were both knowledgeable and very flexible and sought to find the best solution given my son’s low age. The food and services provided was top notch and we were very well cared for with hot tea, snacks, warm water for washing etc. Unfortunately we didn’t make it to the summit due to my son not coping with the altitude on the fifth day and had to be evacuated from the mountain. Tuliza and Geofrey knew what to do and acted quickly and forcefully by hastily carrying him down until he recovered.