US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Old decrepit vehicles and poor communication
I booked a 14-day safari with Yala – this was to cover safaris in both Uganda and Rwanda – the booking process went well and Yala was initially good in communicating promptly. When I arrived in Entebbe, they were a bit surprised as they had not seen the arrival announcement – the van that was to transport me to the hotel was an old decrepit van without an A/C (I should have seen this as a sign to come) – in any case I made it to the hotel and was told that the safari vehicle was to be another one in much better condition.
The next day, the driver showed up in another old decrepit vehicle and lo and behold, the A/C was not working in this one either (Note – most of the roads in Uganda are dirt roads so you need to keep the windows closed and wear dust masks). The driver did not speak much English, even though what was promised was an English-speaking tour guide. We decided to push on – about a couple of hours into the journey, the right rear tire developed a side bulge (this was a re-treaded tire that had developed a sidewall failure – re-treads are banned in the USA for just this reason). The jack that was in the vehicle did not work, so we had to limp back to town to get a shop to help us – this took about 3 hours in all. I contacted Yala and insisted they provide me with a better vehicle and they promised to do so. When we reached Murchison Falls, we were covered with red dust due to having to keep the windows open as the A/C did not work. All of my game drives were in this broken-down van which had a low clearance resulting in us scraping the bottom every time we went through a ditch.
Two days later, Yala had still not provided a replacement van, but they did change the driver to one who spoke better English – we made it back to the main town again on dirt roads with no A/C. I had asked for the replacement van to meet us there so we could continue on our journey – guess what – no van. We ended up leaving the decrepit van at the hotel and continued to our next stop (chimp trekking) in a small Toyota Corolla. Two days later, a replacement van showed up – guess what the windshield had a big crack in it along with pockmarked glass – it was an old van but the A/C worked. So, we continued onwards and got stuck on a mud-soaked road (the van did not have off-terrain tires and did not have a high clearance) – the villagers helped us and we resumed our sight-seeing when suddenly the engine stopped and would not start. After waiting for 2 hours for a local mechanic to show up, he discovered that is was a GPRS failure as the van was not permitted to go out of a certain area – the mechanic by-passed the GPRS device and we were able to start the engine and go on our way to the next stop. By this time, I had sent Yala about 6 emails none of which were replied to.
The next day, while climbing up a mountain road, the gear shuddered and then gave way with a loud bang – again we were stuck on a mountain dirt road for 2 hours before getting a ride to the gorilla lodge. Yala switched the gorilla lodge without my consent because it was closer to where the gear breakdown happened and did not return any of my emails on the subject.
Two days later, a different vehicle was provided – this time an SUV (which is what was agree to when I first accepted their contract), and an A/C that worked. I was told that we had to exchange this vehicle back for the one which had broken down in a couple of days when returning from Rwanda. Two days later on returning from Rwanda, we were to meet at a designated spot to exchange vehicles as the van had been repaired with a new transmission and drive shaft – at the last moment, we were told to continue onwards in the same SUV as before. Yala again changed the safari lodge I was to be staying at without informing me (this after confirming that all the lodges had been booked and that I could not change any dates given all of the issues I was having) – again no replies to any of my emails other than talking to the driver.
I finally made it back to Entebbe – no word from Yala, no apologies for all of the issues, no explanation for the 2 lodge changes (and both were terrible when compared to the original places) – nothing. Be careful when booking with this agency – they have terrible vehicles and very poor communication. I would not book with Yala again -the only reason for the 2 stars is because of the efforts of the drivers who were with me – they tried to do their best with little or no support from Yala
SE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience with everything
Tekko Tours helped us with everything, they are responsive and are professional in what they are doing. We were able to have a customized Safari itinerary in Kenya created with the help of Maggie. She gave us a lot of options with our requests for our 10-day visit and we were able to arrange the Safari itinerary perfect for us. The driver William is an amazing driver in many regards. He drove us safely between the national parks, and his extensive knowledge about spotting the animals made sure we got to see everything we wanted on the game drives. He puts the clients first and makes sure you get a wonderful experience. We wholeheartedly recommend this company.
AR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
100% recomendable!
We booked the 5 day safari (Tarangire, Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro) and it was simply spectacular.
The guide (Elemes) was very correct, the vehicle was in optimal condition and the accommodations, one better than the other.
LK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Our guide, justine, was excellent.
He had good knowledge about the animals and the country, was very social and knew where to find the animals.
Our chef, jeff, was the best you could hope for. Fantastic food and great service, I never forget this service.Thank you.
AE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Unforgettable
It was amazing for me and my wife to book a safari with Living wild tours,in the first place they were so responsive and helpful during the booking,the prices are pocket friendly and the value of money is really observed,while Ceasar the guide is so friendly and keeps in touch with other tour guides and park rangers to be able to locate animals,our 7 days trip to Uganda was unbelievably amazing we saw lots of animals,good friendly people and food thank you Ceasar hope to see you again
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Amazing Mikumi Safari.
It was amazing experience 2 days safari well arranged by Daily Expeditions Limited. It was perfect safari for us we were able to explore the wild on mikumi,the accommodation,guide,vehicle were well arranged. We spot buffaloes, Masai giraffes, hippos, crocodile and impala. We were so excited for this life time moment,we will strongly recommend others to use Daily Expeditions Limited in their safari arrangement.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
8 Days Lemosho Route
We made it all the way to the summit thanks to the wonderful guides. They were very receptive to each individuals needs and abilities. I have a food allergy and they were very careful and respectful of my food needs. The whole mountain staff was great and we had a very positive experience thank you.
Thomas-Australia
FI
Safari Serengeti & Ngorongoro
We had an excellent time with our driver, Daniel. He was very professional in finding all the animals, and could tell us all about them & answer all our questions. The lodging was just what we expected: one night in tent other at Rhino Lodge. The food was superb!
Thanks again Daniel & Daniel
PL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great experience
We had very good experience with this operator. They organized for us the gorilla trek and transfer to Kigali. Richard was always very responsive and went an extra mile to help us with additional things like buying bus tickets or arranging lodge transfer. Thank you very much Gatatu crew, you rock!
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience with Snow Africa in Tanzania!
We did 2 tours with Snow Africa. The first one was the Kilimanjaro Trek via Machame Route (7 days) and a 3 day safari through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and the Serengeti.
On the Kilimanjaro Trek we went along with our 2 guides, 1 cook and porters. They have always taken very good care of us, we have always got fresh, boiled water to drink and for clean up ourself. Joshua our chef was a really great cooker, especially his soups! Every evening we have a 3-course menu and lunch boxes/hot lunches during the day. Our guides, Julius and Hussein, were also very nice, they told us a lot about themselves and their life in Tanzania. From the walking pace they have adapted to us and also as we did not so well because of altitude sickness, they took good care of us. Although we did not have much to do with the Porters, they were always friendly to us. The work they do is very exhausting and hard, but you always seem them laughing. It was a pleasure to have met this team!
After Kilimanjaro and a break in Zanzibar, we came back to the Mainland for a Safari. We decided to do the Safari with Snow Africa, because we were really happy with the owner Florent and the Trek before. We did a private 3 day safari through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and the Serengeti. We stayed in 2 different public camps in the nationalparks in tents with our guide Benjamin and the same chef Joshua like on the Kilimanjaro trek. Our guide was really friendly and knows a lot about animals and the nationalparks. Because of him, we saw a lot of animals, especially our wish for male lions, actually we spotted the BIG Five.
We can only recommend Snow Africa and would do a tour with them anytime we came back to Tanzania. Everything was well planned and organized. Thanks for everything!