CZ
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Well Organised Trip!
We had a great experience climbing both mount Meru and Kilimanjaro. The Timber Wolf Adventure staff was very helpful and professional all the time, before and during the trip. Smooth communication and very helpful.
AE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent
We did the Horizon's safari with Pollman's. Everything from start to finish was excellent. Driver met us on arrival at the airport and took us to the hotel for our 1 night stay before heading off to Safari. The Horizon's safari takes you to 4 different parks so you get the full experience. The lodges we stayed in were excellent. Our driver, Mark, was outstanding. He was so knowledgeable, covering all topics including the animals, vegetation, and the history and culture of today in Kenya. He was very patient with us, stopping when we wanted to, he took the effort to look out for animals we particularly wanted to see, he never rushed us away on to the next thing. So happy we did this trip and would highly recommend Pollman's. Thank you.
CA
Marvellous, wonderful, memorable, terrific holiday
Only 5 stars? I'd give them at least twenty. Everything went perfectly and the experience was life-changing. I would recommend Yellow Zebra to everybody and certainly book with them again if we ever go back. The camps and hotels they selected for us were fabulous and all transportation was choreographed smoothly. Even the animals co-operated - especially the elephant that spent 40 minutes chewing up trees literally on our doorstep at Machaba. YZ provided a wealth of pre-trip information and was helpful at every stage. Thank you so much for a vacation we will never forget!
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Masai Mara
Our Safari, organized by African Scenery Holidays, was great: we had a 4 days safari (Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru), but actually we had game drives 2half days and a full day.. it was enough as Masai Mara was full of animals! we saw many lions, cheetahs, leopards, hyenas, hippos, crocodiles, zebras, giraffes, elephants, wildebeest, ostriches, pumbas, timons .. and a white rhino in lake Nakuru. We also visited the Maasai village and it was very interesting.
our safari was a budget one but we saw as much animals as the luxurious safaris.
The tended camp we stayed in was basic, and the food monotonous, we had to change driver many times as the travellers in our van had different itinerarys (maybe longer or shorter safaris than our), but it was ok.
The communication with our tour coordinator Fredinah was excellent, both before and during and even after the safari. She was always on hand to answer questions and reachable anytime. After the safaris we moved to the coast and this part of trip was for self organized, but she was still available to help us when we needed. We felt we had a secure support and a person to trust in, and it was very reassuring. Thankyou Freedinah!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Most exciting and amazing vacation ever!
Went on a safari vacation in July. Saw 4 of the big 5 on the very first day! We eventually saw all of the Big 5 and what we learned are the "Ugly 5". Every day brought a new experience with new animals/birds added. Highlights were the 3 species of Giraffes, Masai and forest elephants ( all in herds with their families), a pride of 13 lions, ballon ride over the Masai Mara, amazing hippos and rhinos ( all with babies), spotting Leopard on the rock, just to name a few of the everyday experiences. The weather was perfect, cool in the morning and then warmer ( not hot) in the afternoons. Bugs were never an issue. Very good accommodations - lodges and tented lodges ( like glamping). Had few issues with hot water or plumbing but nothing horrible. Most of the food was buffet style with lots of variety and good tasting. The service was excellent. We had a private tour with an excellent guide who spoke several languages. He was able to spot the animals and was very knowledgeable about the wildlife and Kenya in general. We had a pop up van that I would not recommend. The roads are VERY rough. I think the 4x4 pop up would have been more comfortable for the number of days on Safari(12). After safari we spent 3 days at the beach in Mombasa. Unfortunately, it rained the entire time :(, but it was still a relaxing finish. GREAT trip!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome Experience of Kruger National Park
We had an absolutely wonderful time on our 4-day, 3-night camping safari at Kruger National Park. David, our main guide, was super friendly and knowledgeable with years of experience. The campsite he found for our camping trip was incredible, nice and secluded at the nearby Marloth Park. We could hear lions roar at night and had giraffes come through our campsite. The bathroom at the campsite was very nice with a great outdoor shower and warm water- good after a long game drive. David cooked us amazing dinners at our campsite fire and was kind to accommodate my vegetarian diet well. Our two guides during out game drives were both awesome- friendly, enthusiastic and full of knowledge about the animals. I would recommend at least 2 full days of the game drives to increase your chance of seeing a wide variety of animals. We were blown away by the amount of animals we saw! David's truck for the longer drive to and from Johannesburg was comfortable and clean and he was nice to stop along the way as we needed. Overall highly recommend this company and the 4-day tour option!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Enjoyable but didn't get full itinerary!
Positives.
Good communication whilst booking safari.
Good friendly guide"jacktone"who got us to the major sightings in the parks and safely transported around in his clean safari van.
Overall the accommodation was good for a budget safari
Enjoyable safari overall.
Negatives.(minor)
Offering transport on our free day in Nairobi for $260 which we did by uber for $30!!
Telling us enroute that our naivasha boat ride was optional (included in itinerary),which we got a day late after sorting things out.
Not stopping at suitable picnic area on way back to Nairobi.
Cold breakfast at miti mingi camp,and no hot water for over an hour one morning,plus tough meat in stew in evening.
Towels taken from our tent by staff at kimana camp(you have to provide your own), on morning we were leaving so unable to shower,and tent in poor condition.
Family tents not adjacent in spite of booking months ahead and safari company promising to secure good tents for us.
All the above are acceptable by us as part of travelling on a budget.
Negative(major)
However this was not,
The itinerary we had agreed and paid for said we would get a full afternoon game drive upon arrival at nakuru,and a short one the following morning before departure,with possibly one on arrival at amboseli later the same day.
Due to rescheduled boat ride we arrived later than expected at nakuru and were told we would have a longer game drive in nakuru the following morning (which meant no chance of getting to amboseli in time for one same day),but no game drive at nakuru on arrival.Upon pointing out what itinerary said I was informed that the itinerary was inaccurate and that it should have said only one game drive in nakuru,I made it clear that I was unhappy about this,and was assured that something would be arranged to make up for it.
Nothing was done to make up for it,in spite of us having a spare day in Nairobi after end of safari.
Stephen has since informed me (in one email),that nakuru game drives were 2hr upon arrival and another 2hr before departure,so 4hr morning of departure should have been enough.
Stephen has also by email agreed with staff member telling me at the time that we were only supposed to have one game drive!.
The fact that emails conflict and neither agrees with our itinerary (which he admits was cut and pasted from elsewhere) means we still feel short-changed.
We received an apology after returning from Kenya but that was too late.we expected something (at the very least an apology whilst still in Nairobi.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fabulous service from Cardboard Box Travel Shop
My family (me, my husband and 2 kids - aged 9 and 11) recently did a self-drive trip through Namibia and Botswana. Having never been to Africa before, we found Cardboard Box Travel Shop to be a very useful source of information and support. Our consultant (Anita) provided great advice in planning our itinerary (and making sure we were seeing all the highlights while avoiding too many long driving days), and in recommending accommodation and activities that suited our family. She answered all our questions, made the bookings for us (including car hire), and ensured that our trip ran very smoothly. I highly recommend Cardboard Box for their passion and knowledge, professionalism, attention to detail, and friendly service. We had the most wonderful trip and look forward to returning. Thanks Anita!
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
AMAZING EXPERIENCE!
Safari with Mega Adventures was a UNIQUE experience.
We organized the trip with Mohamed (by email) who always showed his willingness and attention to any request made to him, with answers that were always quick and satisfying.
Once we landed at the Kilimanjaro airport we found a great guide waiting for us: Mubarak!
We were really satisfied. We did 8 full days safari with him, time run very fast. He has always been available and attentive to our needs, taking care of our comfort on the jeep, which however was very well equipped with:
-sunscreen
-repellent for insects
- hands disinfectant gel
- wet wipes
-binoculars.
He was also a reliable driver and a very prepared guide, explaining a lot of things about animals, savannah and the Masai culture.
everything was BELLISSIMOOO!!!
Grazie MegaAdventures
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
The guides were exceptionally good and the trip was very well organised. Highly recommended
Natureways exceeded our expectations in every way. The quality of the guides was a real highlight. The entire team was superb, from river guides to cooks and others at camp.