HK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
intimate
The overall safari trip is fantastic. Peter is a professional and friendly tour guide. He took us to see a number of fabulous wildlife like lions, cheetahs, elephants, rhinos and so much more. Besides, he knows the route in every national park and sightseeing spots. Also, he has a good view when safari as he can always find animals we could not find. Without him, we may see much less animals. He is also knowledgeable and prepared since he could recognize every animal we met and explained everything about it, such as its habituation, what it fed on and so on. It is so confident and safe to have him as our tour guide. The Land Cruiser vehicle he drives is also outstanding. It has a strong performance and can bring us to anywhere despite the various bad road conditions. Moreover, hotels we lived are all very comfortable and quaint.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very professional, great experience
Carolyn has been incredibly helpful throughout the whole time; and our guide Eric is very professional, can quickly help us locate animals. Pallid is a great tour company that not only helped us with our booking (we booked one week before the trip), but also quickly adjusted with our sudden change of plan. We had a great time and will definitely come back for more.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fast, easy communication. They planned the perfect itinerary for us.
We had an incredible experience with Lion King Adventures! My husband and I took a 10 day safari where we visited Tarangire, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti, and Lake Natron. We saw a crazy amount of big cats, elephants, white rhinos, and a Mara river crossing. The itinerary was well-paced, the accommodations were wonderful (catering to dietary restrictions), and the wildlife was everywhere. Our guide, Ozzy, was a highlight of the experience. He has eagle-eyes for animals, a great sense of humor, and taught us so much about the wildlife and Swahili. We felt very well taken care of, and the whole trip went without a hitch. We had fast, clear communication throughout the planning process as well. I highly recommend you request Ozzy and safari with Lion King Adventures!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent service
The service I received from Mufasa was excellent.Davis was extremely helpful.
My driver and guide was superb.
All things were well organised.
The only issue I had was that they should have provided a newer landcruiser.
JP
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An Unforgettable Safari Experience with Beacon Safaris
We spent eight days in Maasai Mara, and every single day was exciting and became an unforgettable memory for us. The safari exceeded our expectations, and we were able to experience the beauty and wildlife of Maasai Mara to the fullest.
Our guide, Carlos, was exceptional. He has a deep understanding of nature and wildlife, and he did much more than simply show us animals. He understood animal behavior and the surrounding environment, and he created opportunities for us to witness wildlife as part of a natural scene. Thanks to him, we were able to experience many unforgettable moments that we would never have discovered on our own.
The communication and service from Beacon Safaris were also excellent, and we felt well taken care of throughout the trip. We are extremely satisfied with the experience and would highly recommend Beacon Safaris to anyone planning a safari in Kenya.
Thank you to the entire Beacon Safaris team, and especially Carlos, for giving us such an incredible experience.
CO
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good safari experience, but unacceptable handling of the final day
I took some time before writing this review because I was hoping to receive a logical explanation and, above all, an apology from Meektrails for what happened on the final day of our safari.
We booked a private 12-day safari through Kenya and Tanzania, starting in Nairobi and ending in Arusha. Overall, most of the safari was a very good experience.
Our guide in Kenya, Ben, was excellent: professional, responsible, friendly, and always willing to do his best to give us the best possible wildlife experience. Our Tanzanian guide was also professional and made a genuine effort. The hotels were generally good, although I would not recommend the Elementaita hotel due to the enormous number of lake flies in the area.
Unfortunately, the final day was a completely different story.
The driver for our final transfer was the same guide who had been with us during the Tanzania portion of the safari. We had agreed that he would pick us up at 8:00 am. to take us to the airport for our 2:30 pm flight to Zanzibar. The drive from Ngorongoro to the airport takes approximately four hours.
At 8:00 am. , the guide did not show up. We waited until 8:45 am. without receiving any communication from him or Meektrails.
I then contacted Charles at Meektrails, explained the situation, and asked for the guide’s contact information so I could try to reach him directly. My attempts to contact the guide were unsuccessful.
Around 9:00 am. I asked Charles to urgently arrange alternative transportation so we would not miss our flight. We were in a remote area, so arranging transportation ourselves was not easy.
Finally, at 10:15 am. a taxi arrived. The driver did everything possible to get us to the airport, and after a three\-and\-a\-half\-hour journey, we managed to catch our flight to Zanzibar just in time. .
What was particularly concerning was the lack of communication. It was only after I contacted Meektrails that they became aware of the situation. I then had to send two additional messages before I was eventually told that the guide had supposedly experienced a medical emergency and had been hospitalized.
I can understand that an unexpected medical emergency can happen. What I find unacceptable is that there was no communication with us or any apparent contingency plan. Even if the guide was genuinely unable to contact anyone himself, the company should have had a system in place to realize that their guide had not arrived and immediately contact their clients.
What disappointed us even more was what happened afterwards: no apology, no follow\-up to check whether we had arrived safely, and no compensation for the stress and inconvenience.
We paid approximately USD 11,000 for a private safari for two people. At that price, we expected a much higher level of organization, communication, and customer service.
The final day was extremely uncomfortable. We had breakfast at 7:00 am. and did not have another meal until approximately 5:00 pm. when we finally arrived in Zanzibar.
I want to emphasize that the entire safari was not a bad experience. We had many excellent moments and our guides did a good job, particularly Ben in Kenya. However, the way Meektrails handled this incident and the complete lack of communication afterwards significantly affected our overall impression.
For these reasons, I cannot recommend Meektrails for the Tanzania portion of the safari.
Emergencies happen. What is within an agency’s control is having proper communication, monitoring scheduled transfers, having a contingency plan, and taking responsibility when something goes wrong.
In our case, none of this happened.
After spending USD 11,000, all we expected was something very simple: an explanation, an apology, and some gesture from the company to acknowledge the stress and inconvenience we experienced.
Unfortunately, we received none of them.
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very helpful and professional
Always caring and helpful.
Answered all questions very well and guided us well, so that we make the most of our holiday.
Very professional as well.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
great safari
The safari was amazing. Our guide Dennis was really warm‑hearted and helpful. We were very lucky to spot lots of animals, and even witnessed a cheetah hunting. The accommodation and food were also good. It was a fantastic experience, and I would definitely recommend it to others.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
An Unforgettable Kenya Safari with Donwell Tours
We had such a wonderful time in Kenya, and a huge part of that was thanks to Christine and the team at Donwell Safari Tours. Christine was fantastic from the start. We planned the entire trip through WhatsApp, and she was always very active, responsive, and helpful throughout the process. She arranged all of our accommodations, guides, and drivers, and was flexible with every request we had.
Our time in the Masai Mara was definitely a highlight. Simon, our guide, was amazing. He was incredibly patient and knew so much about the animals, their behavior, and the local vegetation. We were lucky enough to see the Big Five and the Great Migration, and Simon made the experience even more special with everything he shared along the way.
Christine also organized our time around Nairobi and beyond, including trips to Lake Magadi, Lake Naivasha, and Kiambethu Tea Farm. The nature tour at Lake Naivasha was another great part of the trip and was very well organized. Daniel and Grayson, our drivers for those days, were both excellent. They were knowledgeable, patient, and made each outing enjoyable.
We also really appreciated the warm welcome from the Donwell team at the airport when we arrived. Everything felt well organized, personal, and thoughtfully planned. We are so happy we chose Donwell Safari Tours and would highly recommend Christine and her team to anyone planning a trip to Kenya.
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fabulously well organised, knowledgeable, enthusiastic and skilled owner/operator.
The amazing 2 night 3 day Okovango Delta safari was the most memorable experience of all time. Communication beforehand was excellent providing detail of the tour. Tabla the owner/operator is really experienced; ensuring my husband and I felt completely safe and comfortable at all times. His ability to enthusiastically seek out animals and birds was astonishing, ensuring we did not leave disappointed. We did a walking safari and glided along in a Mokoro canoe and learnt so much. We did it all and saw it all! The camp set up was fabulous with ensuite tents and comfortable above ground beds and quality warm bedding. The camp person and the cook were so friendly and helpful and the food exceptional. It was sheer luxury in the most beautiful setting. It was incredible value for money and Tabla the nicest person you could meet and a very skilled driver.
Of huge convenience is the excellent accommodation, Acacia Cottages in Maun, which is operated by Tabla’s wife, Ruth. We stayed there before and after the safari and cannot rate the experience of the whole ‘package’ highly enough. We recommend this exciting luxury safari and the delightful, caring owners Tabla and Ruth.
