US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Look no further - book with Crystal Safaris!
I just got back from a 3-day gorilla trek with Crystal Safaris and the answer is yes, go with Crystal Safaris! Barbara, who is the owner and also who we communicated with via emails, was always responsive via emails and incredibly helpful when we got there! She had let us know in advance that the Gorilla Safari Lodge was fully booked so she had booked us next door at the Icumbi Gorilla Lodge. Not only had she pre-checked the room for us, she came during our stay to make sure everything was okay! On top of that, the airline had lost my luggage (perfect timing) and I had trouble contacting the baggage department, so she had made calls to get a hold of someone for me. She spent quite a bit of time on the phone for me and I will always be appreciative of that as that is not something she needed to do.
Our guide was Hannington and when he came to pick us up in Rwanda, I thought he was just driving us to the lodge in Uganda. But we realized he was going to be our guide for the next 3 days - what a nice surprise! It's comforting to know that there is one person you can rely on and trust for your entire trip. Hannington is the perfect person for that job. He always watched out for us to make sure we were well take care of. For our gorilla trek, our group of 8 was supposed to start the trek at the top of a hill but because some individuals came in cars that were not equipped to drive up a steep incline, it was suggested the entire group start at the bottom of the hill and walk up. Hannington knew immediately that if my sister and I hiked that hill, we would not have enough energy for the actual trek. He ended up saving all of us by driving the whole group to the top in his vehicle. And boy, was I glad he did! He also knew how to get us across the borders and quickly :) Trust me, you'd want a guide to help you through that part (there are no signs).
As for the trek, I would suggest booking a room for the night after the gorilla trek. You'll be happy you did. You will come back with so much dirt and mud piled on you, you will be grateful to have a warm shower and somewhere to sit/relax after a strenuous hike. Get ready for an incredible experience - the gorillas were no more than 5 feet away from us! It will be an experience you will never forget.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unbelievable experience and you will help the community!
I just got back from a 7-day safari with Great Pelican Safaris and wow! We saw everything: leopard with her cub, wild boars playing with each other, lions mating, and even from afar, the black rhino chilling. There aren't enough words in the dictionary to describe how wonderful our guide, Sunday, was. My sister and I both travel a great deal and we both agreed that Sunday was probably the best guide we've ever had. He knows EVERYTHING! There wasn't a question he couldn't answer and he answered in detail. He was also an unbelievable spotter. He would be driving and all of a sudden stops, points out into the field at a spot like a mile away, and says "there's a cheetah lying down in the grass" and we're all like "where?!?!" Sure enough, with the binoculars, there was a cheetah laying there. Or he would spot an animal miles away and would be able to differentiate if it is a male or female. It still baffles me how he can drive, teach, and spot an animal all at the same time. He was also very good about getting you up close to animals so you can get the best photos (we had lions walk by our car). I came home with so many Instagram worthy photos!
We even visited 2 tribes - Maasai and Datoga. Don't skip this - it is truly a unique experience. I also liked that when we visited the tribes, we were the only group there. When we drove off, we passed another Maaasai tribe and saw a bunch of tour cars parked outside - no thanks!
The owner/guide of Great Pelican Safaris, Trey, also came along with us. During this trip, I found out that he had moved to Tanzania so he could support the orphanages there and thus, the reason he started Great Pelican Safaris. A chunk of the proceeds goes to 2 orphanages that he supports. Unfortunately, a lot of big tour companies don't always give back to their communities so it's comforting to know that not only am I getting one of the best tours, I am helping their community indirectly as well. At one point when we were given a tour of the city, Arusha, some kids ran up to Trey asking for food. Being the kind hearted person that he is, he bought them a bunch of bananas.
I can't say enough about this wonderful company. Save yourself the time and book Great Pelican Safaris! You won't regret it.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The journey of our life time
We just ended an amazing trip with Migo safari( 7days through lake Manyara, Ngorongoro conservation area and Serengeti with a day in Zanzibar at the end. The trip its self was the of a lifetime, we loved each place we visited and had an amazing experience in wildlife tourism as well as cultural tourism. We did two activities during that trip that we also loved, walking safari in like Manyara (beautiful experience up close and personal with animals and exotic birds) and a tour through a local town cal Mto wa mbu it was great being able to get a sense of how people live in the area try out some local craft and drinks some homemade banana beer, we highly recommend MiGo African Safaris LTD. Also we also many thanks for Unforgettable Destinations Travel Agents to introduce us to MiGo African Safaris and Tours.
Looking forward to seeing you next year.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Service all around
I booked with Amazing Memories 1.5 years in advanced and coming into it, I had the highest of expectations for my once in a lifetime trip. I wanted to see the wildebeest river crossing and see animals catching prey. Although I was two weeks too late to watch the river crossing, our guide Joseph made sure we saw the Big 5 in the Masai Mara within 2.5 days. We saw 3 leopards and 1 rhino up close! The service from Joseph was top notch and he was very knowledgeable in the animals, birds, plants, and Kenya in general. He knew where the animals will move to next and ensure we get the best view points for our photos. He has eyesight like my binoculars and is consistently on the ball.
The itinerary itself was a bit confusing because it had said we were getting unlimited game drives almost every day, but it didn't seem to be the case. There are set time slots during the day that game drives are designed/organised which did not allow for as much flexibility as I expected.
Email communications in the planning stage were relatively good. We were able to change the accommodation for some legs, and add extra days to the itinerary and costs would be adjusted. They sent through an information pack which was helpful to get you ready. It would be good if they included a warning very on dusty roads, so you can prepare for it.
The buffet at the accommodations were amazing, esp Lake Naivasha Sopa Lodge. Although for some reason we kept getting the furthest room from the reception area throughout the trip.
For our Serengeti leg, we got Santos as our driver from Migada Tours. He was always punctual, which I appreciated. He took us to see the lion's nest, hippo pool. We saw two leopards, one which walked right in front of our vehicle!
Overall, the package, service, organisation was great and turned out to be me and my partner's best holiday yet.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Great experience
Run Wild Safaris has provided us with several fantastic photographic safari experiences! Everything one would need to plan for beforehand as well as while you are on the trip itself, can be catered to your liking. Run Wild Safaris has first hand knowledge, from people who are actually from Southern Africa, and can provide you with extensive knowledge on preferred locations to travel to, how to best coordinate which regions to see and what activities to do while there - all of which were at competitive prices. Its worth noting that Run Wild Safaris will not just simply book your trip for you, but rather, they can guide you from the very beginning stages of planning your trip (visa questions, air travel advice, airport charters, etc.) all the way through to ensuring you have a enjoyable experience while on your trip.
Some of the locations we have visited with Run Wild Safaris include Matabeleland, Kavongo Zambezi, Victoria Falls, Shangani and Chizarira. The accommodations we stayed in at these locations were fully staffed, with chefs cooking our meals daily, camp staff who were readily available, and excursion guides who provided us with insight into the local culture and surroundings in a way that only locals can.
My friends and family have many more places within southern Africa that we would like to visit and we will definitely be utilizing the services of Run Wild Safaris in the future. Run Wild Safaris provides valuable expertise for planning our trips to Africa – and I’d recommend their service to anybody!
ES
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Neverending story
Wildlife, scenery, and weather are excellent. Relationship between price and accommodations levels have been very good. Food has been abundant and good. Our transportation and guide excellent.
Classic Journeys Africa is a very good travel agency, everything happened like we acorded.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent personal service
Kathi provided a truly excellent service. She gave us some terrific advice where we were uncertain about elements of our trip and was able to beat all the quoted prices we'd received directly for our accommodation. The wine lands day tour was a real highlight and was organised by African Welcome. She checked in with us during our trip and was on hand when we needed some advice while in South Africa.
Amazing! Martha was brilliant organising it all and Gilbert was a fabulous guide and driver.
Absolutely brilliant! Martha was brilliant in terms of organising it all and Gilbert was a great driver/guide! The whole experience was amazing! A great company to go with.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
DE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Safari, Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar – Great organization and service
Communication and service provided by Benson Safaris was very satisfactory from the first day (starting in Germany) to the last. Despite some obstacles during the trip, such as a missed flight, the interaction with Benson was easy and problems could be solved fast and uncomplicatedly.
The accommodations suggested by Benson were all to our liking and we felt very comfortable at any point in our trip, so our expectations were definitely met. During the Safari we were accompanied by our tour guide Cassie. He was an excellent driver, fluent in German and great at spotting animals – just generally a very pleasant person to be around.
In addition to the safari we also had an amazing time climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. It was a great experience, which wouldn't have been possible without the incredible crew accompanying us up the mountain. Both, guides (Shaban, Dickson and Omary) and porters, made us feel safe and comfortable and helped us reach the summit with joy.
Also during our third part of the trip, Zanzibar, the service provided was great and especially the transportation was reliable and good.
If we are traveling to Tanzania again, Benson Safaris would be our first choice to plan the journey.