Best Experience on our Kenya tour
I took my family on a 3 nights tour visiting Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru.
We had 2 kids on the tour and we all enjoyed the arrangements and services by Trips Without Borders.
We booked a budget trip with accommodations at nice tented camps at both locations.
Great Job...Well done.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A good booking agent makes a huge difference.
We booked our Tanzanian Safari through Trip Advisor Africa Safari with Seth Vincent based upon there good reviews and competitive prices. When we arrived in Arusha and paid we were kind of surprised to see that our receipt of payment was issued by Sandland Tours and Safaris. Our confusion turned to panic when we looked up the reviews for Sandland. I immediately got ahold of Seth Vincent who reassured me for like 2 minutes that everything was going to be okay and that we could count on the reputation of his form Trip Advisor African Safari. He'd personally selected or guide and we could count on a good experience.
In short, he was correct. Our guide China was incredible. He had 9 years experience, was knowledgeable, funny, and very hospitable. I couldn't imagine a better guide. There was someone on our trip that was challenging at times and China was always extraordinarily patient with her beyond what I would have been. I always felt taken care of and we saw 4 of the big 5 in 4 days. (Plus we got three different lion hunts.)
That said, conditions remain fairly primitive and things come up. Showers were cold, we had a flat tire, the temperature dropped to 40 degrees, and roads were really rough. But we booked an adventure not a resort and we definitely got our adventure.
I also want to commend our cook Simon. My wife and I are vegetarian as were 3 other people on our trip. The food was delicious, plentiful, and nobody on our group got sick.
I want to clarify that the outsourcing of safaris seems to be a very common practice here, so what Trip Advisor did was certainly not unusual. Nearly everyone on our tour booked with a different agency and ended up on the same Safari. What I appreciated was that Simon was available to take my phone calls, hear out my concerns, and was involved enough to see to it that we got a top tiere guide.
Seth Vincent staked his firm's reputation on us having a great Safari, so kudos to them for delivering. We had an amazing experience.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
We would book again so long as we can get China again as our guide.
We didn't book with Sandland. Our booking agent was Seth Vincent with Trip Advisor Africa Safari. When we arrived in Arusha and paid we were kind of surprised to see that our receipt of payment was issued by Sandland Tours and Safaris. Our confusion turned to panic when we looked up the reviews for Sandland. I immediately got ahold of Seth Vincent who reassured me for like 2 minutes that everything was going to be okay and that we could count on the reputation of his form Trip Advisor African Safari. He'd personally selected or guide and we could count on a good experience.
In short, he was correct. Our China was incredible. He had 9 years experience, was knowledgeable, funny, and very hospitable. I couldn't imagine a better guide. There was someone on our trip that was challenging at times and China was always extraordinarily patient with her beyond what I would have been. I always felt taken care of and we saw 4 of the big 5 in 4 days. (Plus we got three different lion hunts.)
That said, conditions remain fairly primitive and things come up. Showers were cold, we had a flat tire, the temperature dropped to 40 degrees, and roads were really rough. But we booked an adventure not a resort and we definitely got our adventure.
I also want to commend our cook Simon. My wife and I are vegetarian as were 3 other people on our trip. The food was delicious, plentiful, and nobody on our group got sick.
So our experience with Sandland was amazing. We'd book with them again, but only if China was part of the deal given that the reviews for this firm are hit or miss.
KR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An absolute amazing African experience.
Everything was impeccable. The communication with Gail (our rep), was there for everything we needed before, during and after. They definitely lived up to the expectations I had and went beyond. The Safari tours themselves were great and my favorite was Sabi Sabi Bush Camp. I would highly recommend Pembury Tours and will definitely use them again in the future if I can get back to Africa.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Tarangire National Park by RoninRtist
Absolutely splendid visit. Notable scenes were the large family herds of elephants just within reach of our Landcruisers. We were able to see a line of zebra stretching from horizon to horizon as they meandered down to the river for a drink. A single file line of zebra about 5 miles long! The view from the overlook rest stop is truly a Kodak moment.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Ngorongoro Crater by RoninRtist
Utterly breathtaking! You have to see it to believe it. The crater rim vista is jaw dropping gorgeous. The drive down into the crater is a 360 degree scene of wonder. A multitude of wildlife to be seen in the basin.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by RoninRtist
A wonderful park on the north side of Lake Manyara. The lake is a shallow salt water lake that is home to tens of thousands of flamingos, countless pelicans and storks and a multitude of other birds. The more heavily forested areas of the park are home to elephants, baboons, etc. A great destination for avid birders.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beyond Words.
Serengeti National Park is truly a sight to behold. All of my previous years of watching National Geographic specials, Planet Earth, Wild Kingdom, etc. really did not prepare me for what was to unfold. I booked my safari through Augustine's Adventure Africa (AA Africa) whom I cannot recommend highly enough. Such a great experience with this outfit. Super nice and knowledgeable guides. They planned and executed everything on our itinerary to the letter for my 11-day safari. My itinerary included full lodging, meals and transportation. AA Africa took care of everything from the moment we arrived at Kilamanjaro International Airport to the minute we were dropped off on our return flights. We planned my safari to coincide with the great migration of wildebeest during the start of the dry season in the south Serengeti towards the Masai Marra in the north, with excursion to some of the other nearby parks. The weather was extremely nice; averaging in the mid 60's F to the 70's F. Luckily, the cooler weather kept the mosquitoes and tsetse flies away. The Serengeti's scenic vistas are just mind-boggling immense. There is no IMAX screen large enough to truly render how magnificent the scenery is. The varying terrain just added to the awe. We entered from the west and came through the Rift Valley to enter Serengeti National Park, drove through the vast short grasslands and into the forested habitat as we approached our lodging in the central Serengeti at Kubu Kubu Lodge. The lodge is really nice, clean and well maintained. Staff is super nice, attentive and helpful. The views from the lodge is breathtaking complete with an outdoor shower. I stayed 3 days in the Serengeti before visiting the other parks, but could easily have spent the whole trip here. The abundance of wildlife is astounding. As an avid photographer, I was flabbergasted by the shear amount of subjects to photograph. When we caught up with the migrating herd, it was just a mass of roaming fauna. The migration herds numbered in the tens of thousands. Standing up from our Landcruisers with the top open to see the panoramic vistas of the landscape amid a massive herd of wildebeest was pure insanity. I heard the theme song to "Dances with Wolves" playing in my head while Sir David Attenborough was narrating everything to me. The videos just pale in comparison to the real thing. Interspersed were herds of zebras, ostriches, warthogs, elephants, giraffes, etc. just mere inches away! My camera had it's work cut out for it to say the least. All-in-all, a truly astounding experience. One which I will gladly wish to repeat in the near future. I highly recommend putting Serengeti National Park on your Bucket List if want to create some remarkable memories.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Tanzania by RoninRtist
There is just too much to see for just one visit. It will take multiple visits to truly see everything. Tanzania have three main safari circuits that you can book. One in the north, south and west.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
4D / 3N Masaai Mara and Lake Nakuru safari
The thing that impressed me the most about Africa Flash MC was the ability to enquire about the trip via email and actually getting a response. We contacted several companies to enquire about pricing, itineraries etc. and Peter was one of the few that actually came back with a response and did so in good time. From there on it was smooth sailing and payment was easily done with a small c/c surcharge. We chose the budget option and in my opinion it was anything but - the accommodation was more than comfortable and did the job just nicely.
Once we were in Nairobi I was happy that the expected "Africa time" feature I knew so much about turned out to not apply here, in fact Peter arrived at our hotel 10 minutes ahead of time and was ready to roll out as soon as we checked out. That was just a sign of the good things to come! We were originally going to be doing Maasai Mara first and then Lake Nakuru, but Peter advised we'd switch them around so that it meant my other half could spend her birthday in the Masaai Mara instead and he also arranged a really nice birthday cake for her, fantastic!
The first part of the trip we went via Lake Nakuru and had the whole van to ourselves which was very cool. It was there we met our guides for the tour Richie and Dennis. Whilst at Lake Nakuru we got our first taste of Giraffe, Buffalos, White Rhinos (a rare sight!), Zebras, Flamingos, Warthogs and countless more and so our quest to see the big 5 begun. We then spent the night at Lanet Matfam Resort which was comfortable with a decent sized bed, buffet lunch and dinner, a pool (although we didn't use it) and a bar with nice cold Tusker for sale to sit under the trees and enjoy in the sun.
It was then time to move on to the Maasai Mara where we met up with the rest of our group and spent the next 3 days / 2 nights. We were again treated to a great selection of animals and rounded out seeing the rest of the big 5 including more Rhinos (black this time), Lions, Elephants and Leopards amongst other animals. Our highlight of the trip was Richie's driving - there was nowhere he wouldn't go and nothing was too much of a challenge! A true pleasure, exciting and great fun to be a part of. We went on an evening safari drive the first day there (capturing a nice sunset), a full day drive the next day (with packed lunch) and then finally a morning drive (seeing the sunrise) on our final day there. Just the right amount in my opinion after having also had the afternoon drive in Lake Nakuru.
Finally, our accommodation was the Rhino Tourist Camp which was a big tent (2 beds, 1 double and 1 single) that backed off to a proper shower and toilet. Hot water wasn't an issue at all. Pure (budget) luxury. The meals were great and the cook was a friendly chap. To cap it all off, Peter had sorted out a really nice birthday cake for my other half which I surprised her with on our final night there and it was the perfect end to a great trip.