US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A good choice
I did the five day safari and I can say that it was one of the best travel experiences of my life.
From my understanding all the tour companies hire independent contractors and they all take you to the same camp grounds or choices of hotels.
The advantage of this group is that they provide transportation from the airport and an extra night of hotel for the same price others charge.
I was a single traveler and my tour was cancelled. Mohammed did right and got me on a tour with some Brazilians, then a big mixture of people for three days and then two French people for my last day. He was very available late in the evening.
He asks you to pay a little up front on a weird African PayPal site. He had a driver waiting for me at the airport. The lunches were OK.
So much of what you will see is luck. I saw a Cheetah chase a gazel, three lions attack a hyena, and two pairs of lions having sex. These parks are awesome and they are some of the best places in the world to see animals. This company tries and took care of me.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Speechless - best Safari!
John organised a safari tour for us, five people in total (grandparents, 3 grandchildren) - the organisation was really easy, John is super helpfull and patient and was also available via e-mail or phone all the time. Our driver - Kennedy - was the best we could think of. He has a lot of knowledge about Kenyia, the wildlife, the people and the culture. Even if the streets in Kenya are horrible we felt really safe the whole time cause he seems to have a lot of experience with that! He knows all the "good spots" so we saw cheetahs hunting and feeding, a few lions "weddings", leopards (also one feeding on a tree), hundreds of elephants directly in front of our car and so on and on...
We really appreciated how he cared about our granny - she isn't the youngest anymore, but with Kennedy she had a lot of fun and one of the best vacations ever! The wildlife was amazing, we saw more than we could ever expect. Kenya's landscape is fascinating and with CKC it was absolutely awesome! The hotels they booked were perfect for us, the staff, rooms and food was really good.
We would definetely do it again!
ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Awesome experience with FB Tanzania Expeditions
I went to Tanzania with my girlfriend on September 2019 for a couple of weeks. We invest 1 week climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro with the best people you would ever go with. The whole teem was incredible, starting by Francis and Cris, best guides ever, folliwing by the rest 8 people in the team. They defenitly made the adventure an unforgettable experience. The took care of us, they explained to us every little detail on the way, and at the end, the make us get the top, from zero to hero! non stop to the top!
Extra special for us, cause once we were on the top, I proposed marry to my furure wife, so as you can imagine, no way to be happier.
The safaris were also very nice, we did Taranguire and Ngorongoro in a couple of days, both are great, specially Ngorongoro.
We felt confortable, cared, loved, at every moment by Franky, a big person, who I really hope to see again.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fabulous First Time Safari Experience
Michelle was wonderful to work with from our very first email. We had many questions and she was able to help us narrow down the choices and pick the perfect lodge for our first safari experience. Michelle understood what we were looking for and really listened to us. We chose Lion Sands Tinga London and we were beyond thrilled with our experience. Our villa was fantastic, the food was delicious and the staff at the lodge were amazing. We saw the Big 5 and then some. I would definitely use Sun Safaris, and Michelle in particular, again in the future.
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
amazing experience
I arranged everything with Sharl and she was always very kind and professional, she arranged a totally tailor made trip for us. Tom, our guide and driver, was a perfect guide and a very good and safe driver. He really loves his work and this 8 days experience around Uganda was fantastic!
CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Awful experiences
Robert at Wanderlust promised me a tour with two nights in the Serengeti, and after arrival, he made up a sob story about why the tour had to be cancelled and tried to push my child and I to take a generic tour. We had just been to Masai Mara and weren't desperate to see the Serengeti, so I said No. I initially felt sorry for him, even though he'd messed up the dates we were supposed to be in the Serengeti in his "story," so I agreed to take it day by day and perhaps go on day trips with his company.
Before our first trip, we agreed that I'd pay by Western Union, just as I'd done for the deposit, but then he emailed to say he preferred Cash to exchange into USD to pay for our park entry fee. Initially, I preferred this over using my limited US$, but as it got later and later into the evening, I emailed to say I would give 100 USD to his driver tomorrow for the park entry fee. He wouldn't take No for an answer, saying he needed the cash Now to pay for the park fee online, and showed up at my hotel around 9:30 pm. He said we'd just be going to the "nearest ATM," but after we got in the car, we passed by ATM after ATM. More than twenty minutes later, he pointed at the exact ATM he wants me to use and waits outside. Luckily, the machine wouldn't let me take more than 350 USD, and he let us leave. It felt like we'd been kidnapped by loan sharks and forced to go to an ATM. On the way back to the hotel, he greedily counted the cash while talking non-stop on the phone. Very scary.
Via email, we were then informed that instead of 6-7 am, we'd be picked up at 5:40 am the next day. Then at 5:00 am, the lady from the hotel knocked on my door to say the driver was here. The name of the driver was different from the one I'd been given, so I had the hotel staff take down the license plate number. The van then picked up a couple who'd book through another middleman and were told their pick-up time would be 5:10. We then arrived at a camp to join a couple who were on a 3-day safari, but were told they be waking up in about an hour. This couple had booked through yet another company, and the safari itself was operated by another company in an almost unmarked safari jeep.
It turns out that nobody had informed the safari driver that the first couple had to be at the airport at a certain time. So our time on the actual safari was cut short to accomodate this.
Although we still had 50 USD with Robert, for safety reasons, we opted to leave Arusha as soon as possible. I sent him a Paypal request for money, but we never saw those 50 dollars again.
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Brilliant introduction to safari holidays and Kenya
Was on Transtrek's A Taste of Kenya safari a couple of weeks ago - it was terrific. We got to stay in several location with different styles of accommodation, all of which were very comfortable and served excellent food. Some journeys between locations were quite long, but the country is so beautiful and fascinating they were always interesting.
From the first time I spoke to Daniel about the holiday I felt confident that we'd be looked after. I must also mention our driver, Tony, who was a mine of information on all sorts of subjects ensured we saw as many animals as possible. This was a holiday I had wanted to take for many years and I can honestly say it exceeded my expectations and I would have no hesitation in travelling with Transtrek again.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Confortable, funny and relaxed!
The communication was very good, they are always available and they answer to your questions very quickly! The service, the driver makes you fell like a very guest, they know to take care about the customer! One thing that for me was a little bit bad was that sometimes is a must that you have to give the tip or they ask you a tip, yes in a good way, but for me a tip is something more that if you want you can give! It's not a must!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Amazing Experience
My family was excited by the great experience we had. This really was an incredible experience for us from start to finish.
We were picked up and dropped off directly from where we were staying in Nairobi. Accomodation was as described. I felt comfortable
and safe wherever we stayed.
We managed to see lots of animals and our tour guide Dan really went above and beyond to make sure we were at the best spots to see the animals.
We really have no complaints and would recommend this tour to anyone interested in exploring this part of Kenya.
Thank you so much to the staff that supported us throughout our trip. Mary, Sam and Dan - you are brilliant!
KR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
They are very friendly and professional.
It was 2 night 3 day last minute drive to Mikumi. All the services in the package were satisfactory except that there was no A/C in the vehicle.