FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very nice safari , and thank you so much for you Joseph for everything
We had a great time, the hotel is beautiful. I thank all the fairness of the hotel Kekoorok lodge, the drivers, and Joseph Dubois for the organization!
(automatic translation from French)
DE
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
A great Mokoro Boattrip
We were picked up from our accommodation and drove to the starting point of our mokoro boat tour. We saw many elephants standing and eating in the water. It was exciting that the elephants blocked the canal several times and we had to avoid overland. There were wonderful pictures possible of the animals and of our evasive maneuvers. On the island we did an interesting bushwalk. Then there was a delicious lunch. The tour was well organized and carried out. Joel and Freddy did a great job. An unforgettable experience, a great day in the delta!
RO
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Lifetime Experience with Gorillas
I have never been so excited in my life than during our safari in Uganda. We arrived at the Airport and we were very well received. We stayed in a 5 star-hotel. I was with my family of 5 and the rooms and food was great. The following day, our driver arrived early, provided us with itineraries, and we drove to the airstrip. Throughout our 5 days stay, we experienced so much. We had a driver who was always there to assist us. The Gorilla trekking was the best experience. Bwindi Impenetrable forest is a magical place. Thanks to Dallago Tours for organizing this.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Absolutely outstanding and attentive to our every need
I would absolutely recommend our safari to everyone and truly cannot say enough good things about our experience. Our tour guide Khalifa was warm and hospitable and made sure we were happy on every step of our trip. He made us feel at home and was nearly a celebrity every place he went. He was so well acquainted with the landscape we saw all of the Big Five and Ugly Five as well as found animals the first of any guide so we would have a private view. We had an amazing time and will hopefully be back soon! GBT forever!
All of the lodges were top quality and the staff was incredibly professional and attentive in every single aspect. Beautiful landscapes and historic architecture at every stop. You’d be foolish to miss out on this experience!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
You will never regret booking a tour in Uganda with Matoke Tours!
I don't even know where to begin, so I'll start with GO VISIT UGANDA and do it now! I just got home to Los Angeles, California USA, a week ago, after visiting Uganda for 13 days and all I do is cry! I miss it so much! It was the absolute highlight of my life! I am a 42-year old single woman, and this was my first solo travel adventure. Uganda is truly a special gem and I have visited 6 other countries in southern and eastern Africa. I can tell you, there is no country like this. Uganda stole my heart and I am in love with it! It has stunning landscapes and breathtaking views, the most delicious fresh food directly from the farms, warm friendly people, and the most special chimps and mountain gorillas in the beautiful forests (and big game too)! I have been on several safaris before, so my focus in Uganda were the mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and the chimps in Kibale National Park. Everyone HAS to do this at least once in their life.
I first reached out to 6-7 tour companies and began my research. I first started researching in 2019. I had not heard of Matoke Tours before and found them online through my various searches. I contacted some of of the mainstream larger adventure companies and was not impressed. I have to say I was so pleased with the response time and care from my travel advisor Pleunie van Uden. I am very detailed oriented and have high expectations when it comes to customer service. Pleunie was on it! She impressed me with her professionalism, care, and had a great business skills set too, which is comforting when you are spending so much money for an adventure with such high and life changing expectations. Example, no typos in her email correspondences. It's silly, but that comforted me. She always returned emails within a business day accounting for a 10-hour time difference. The other companies were not as professional and response time was too slow and I felt "lost in the shuffle." I corresponded via email with Pleunie and let her know what I was looking for, how many chimp and gorilla trackings I wanted, my desire for high end lodges and accommodations, that photography was my hobby and I was coming with all my camera equipment, and that safety was a priority as a solo female traveler. She designed a program for me within a very quick turnaround and pretty much had it on the first try, she nailed it. The process was as smooth as can be and felt too good to be true! Then Covid happened. Pleunie was great in assuring me everything would carry over to whenever we could all travel again and once the world was ready again. I stayed in touch with her throughout 2020 and she kept me posted on the status of the country, tourism, and the gorillas. She even let me know when a baby gorilla was born which I was happy to hear. She felt like a friend, even though she was all business. That's how you know you are working with a stellar tour advisor. Then came 2021, dates were re-booked and adjusted a bit to work with my schedule, Covid vaccines rolled in and things were looking good! Just when I would worry everything would get shut down again, Pleunie remained positive and assured me things were looking promising. With each month that passed by getting me closer to September, I felt like I needed to pinch myself, like was I really going to Uganda, finally? With all the Covid protocol and PCR tests needed throughout my trip, Pleunie remained positive, informative, assuring, and was truly excited for me. As stated, I was concerned about safety as a solo traveler, and she really comforted me and made me feel taken care of. Pleunie put together a magnificent program including Kibale National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, and the Northern and Southern sections of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Add on top of that road tripping with my driver guide to each location, which allowed for more sight seeing, interacting with the community, driving through the villages and really getting a feel for the country (well the west and southern side of the country -- I must return to see the North and East). Pleunie was always available while I was in Uganda as well, in case I had any emergencies, she was just a WhatsApp call or text away. She was FANTASTIC. I am already referring Matoke and Pleunie (and my guide Geoffrey, see below) to everyone back home and can't stop speaking praises. Thank you Pleunie for creating the most fulfilling adventure, it changed my life! You nailed it. Incredible job.
Now let's shift the focus to my driver guide Geoffrey Katende. It was like fate that he was my guide. Geoffrey was the absolute best! I tear up just thinking about the journey he guided me through. From the airport pick-up in Entebbe to the final goodbye 13 days later, Geoffrey will be a friend for life. He is a special man. He was very seasoned, so knowledgeable... knew just about everything -- all kinds of facts about Uganda, animals, birding, you name it. I felt like I was in such great hands. Geoffrey is a natural. Hospitality, care, guiding is who he is. I felt so safe and cared for, and we had some great laughs too! As a solo traveler, he was like my travel buddy and always remained professional. He interacted with the locals often through our road trips, we had some great photo shoots and photo exchanges, we made friends along the way with lodge staff and rangers, everyone knew him and I just felt so lucky he was my assigned guide! Geoffrey understood me and adapted quickly, as I can imagine the range of personalities guides have to manage. He has such a good heart and just wants you to truly enjoy your time and fall in love with Uganda, which is absolutely what I did! An example, of his good character: we were driving to Queen Elizabeth National Park and I had stopped to take a photo of the landscape. As we started to drive away, he stopped the car, went in reverse and then stopped the car again, got out of the car and picked up a nail he saw in the street. He didn't want another driver to drive over the nail and pop their tire. That's a good person. I am sure there are other wonderful guides at Matoke but I won the lottery with Geoffrey. I can't wait to come back again! I am so grateful for his guidance, care, and professionalism, all while having so much fun! It was hard to say goodbye, because he took such good care of me. Many tears, many tears. Thank you Geoffrey Katende for being the wonderful man that you are, and Matoke is so lucky to have you! Any guest is lucky to have you as their guide. Oh, and one more thing, he is an excellent driver! He dealt with my need for air conditioning (I can be demanding with that), car sickness from the anti-malaria medication, and driving the bumpy roads at times in the rain -- he was a champion at it and always assured me everything was ok. He sent me home with a delicious avocado he picked out and memories and photos that I will cherish the rest of this lifetime. See you soon hopefully Katende!
Also, a special shout out (mention) to my second guide Jacob, who was fantastic as well. Unfortunately, we only had a day together, as it was the end of my trip and I was only in Entebbe for the night to get my PCR test and await results. He was lovely though in the short time we had together. Funny, outgoing, and personable. He was great help to me at the airport and took me as far as he was allowed to go, with all my heavy luggage (4 bags), in the hot heat! We didn't have much time together, but I can tell he would be loads of fun to have as a guide.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
AMAZING EXPERIENCE AT ZIMBABWE! CLYDE AND HIS TEAM AT TAYLORMADE AFRICA ORGANIZED A FANTASTIC TRIP!
Our 3 Safaris at Zimbabwe exceeded our expectations in every level!
Clyde helped us (3 couples) organize the most amazing trip ever! Logistics were right on point, specially considering covid made it much more complicated. He always checked in during the trip in case there was something he could do for us.
The lodges were pure luxury and the service from the staff was unbelievable! The Game we got to see was abundant. We saw all of the Big Five... Lions feasting on their prey several times, even while doing a walking safari!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
They really cared and made sure that we had a great safari.
Incredible 8 Days!
We just had an amazing time with Africa Kenya Safaris – can’t thank you guys enough. Everything was perfectly organized, from our pickup at the airport and then to Amboseli and Masai Mara parks. Our guide Daniel was the best. He knew just where to find the lions and leopards at the Masai Mara and had great stories to tell. Over 8 days we became great friends and can’t wait for our next safari with you guys. Thanks again for an incredible holiday!
AE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent
Expeditions is the best agent that anyone would wish to use to arrange his/her vacation, attention to detail and reliable.
DE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful days in Kidepo Valley NP
To go to Kidepo Valley NP with Peak Cruise Safaris was an excellent idea. The service before the tour was very good and everything has worked. My driver Abdul was an absolutely nice guy. He had a very good knowledge of the park and he knew where to go.
So I really enjoyed my time in Kidepo Vally NP. I loved to watch the beautiful landscape and the wild animals, as much as the visit to a remote community.
So I had a wonderful time in Kidepo Valley NP.
CH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic experience
My safari through Northern Tanzania with Lion King was superb. During the booking process, both Godwin and Pendo were immensely helpful in planning my trip in a way that it would be a wonderful experience. Pendo in particular even went further than that - my luggage got lost on my flight into Tanzania and she helped me get it back a couple of days later, even had it flown to the Serengeti where I was by that time. Exceptional service. I then had the immense pleasure to have Musa as my guide and it couldn't have been any better. He is extremely knowledgeable and I learned so much about animals, Tanzania and Africa in general. Musa was terrific in spotting any animal, big and small, and I was lucky enough to see everything there is to see - from all big 5, to baby lions and even a cheetah family. Musa also went all out at all times to make sure I was comfortable and had everything I needed. He was patient, always friendly and happy, fun to be around and great to have a chat with (even in my native German - which he speaks extremely well). Thank you Musa for this fantastic trip and experience - and thank you Lion King for all your fantastic support. All accommodations were great (I especially loved the tented camp in the Serengeti), so was the food and all staff and people we met along the way - all were incredibly friendly and helpful. I can wholeheartedly recommend both Lion King and Musa as a guide - you won't be disappointed. Hope to come back one day!