35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Absolutely amazing experience and a excellent company.
Benson Safari was so professional from start to finish. All the staff were excellent. Our safari was amazing.
BE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Nice bike ride!
There was good communication from the start. James made sure our bike trip went smooth, they picked us up at the airport, we went to the giraffe center, for lunch, on to bike at the Swara planes (beautifull experience), dinner and afterwards they dropped us at the airport for our flight home. Everything safe and smooth!
Higly recommended if you like to ride a bike!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Big Foot For Life!
So this was my second trip with Big Foot. Wow!! I will never go with anyone else. These guys are great, and not just one or two of them, but everyone from Big Foot that I've interacted with (7+ people) is just amazing! Daniel, the owner, is just fantastic, he made sure we got the best deal and worked with us to set up the perfect trip in the Mara.
World-class safari guides with great personalities and professionalism. I never had to worry about a thing. They were very good at picking just the right package/lodge to suit my needs (both times). There was NO shady business (I've heard of other companies making promises they don't keep) and they even went out of their way to help things run smoothly.
I highly recommend Big Foot for any of your safari trips, go with them and you won't regret it!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Fun
I enjoyed the Safari and all the wildlife. The folks at Kenya Walking Tours were very professional and met all our needs.
Our guide was excellent as was the food and the entire "camp life experience"
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience and a fun adventure!
The Safari was outstanding and well coordinated. All expectations were equal to or exceeded the expectations outlined in all the literature and e-mail correspondence. We saw every imaginable type animal and the beautiful sub-sahara landscape and countryside.
I highly recommend the Hot Air Balloon ride as part of your adventure.
US
Taga Safaris worked hard to find my family fantastic camps to visit in peak season in Kruger area
We had an amazing time - certainly covered seeing the big five, but got to see and learn so much more beyond that.
Motswari in particular was great find - affordable but upscale camp and the staff was extremely knowledgeable and friendly.
Will use Taga Safaris for our next trip to Africa - Botswana, perhaps?
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Not the best experience
I was on a tour with Wild Trek in August 2017.
Our mini van was in bad shape. Each time the driver stopped in the middle of the mara triangle, I had to say a small prayer that the van would start again, so that we would not be stuck in the middle of the jungle. Finally, the van broke down on the way to the airport, luckily the driver arranged for a replacement van in good time. The vehicle send to take us to the airport was surprisingly better than the one given to us.
Secondly, I felt a lot cheated on the hotels arranged for us. They gave us an itinerary and prices based on certain hotels, once we confirmed the itinerary, they gave us lower rates hotels (as the ones originally listed was not available), but did not adjust the cost of the tour accordingly. So I felt quite cheated on the cost.
They did not specify in the original itinerary whether included a minivan or four wheeler, we ended up with a horrible old minivan. Only the final voucher stated that we would be given a minivan, so in a way I felt cheated in that respect too.
Our driver / guide was not the best either. He would rather we not bother him with questions, or speak to him. At times, he ignored are questions about wildlife. Although, we gave him a good tip at the end of the trip, he asked for more. I thought tips were voluntary contributions, he demanded more, which irritated me. Firstly, I did not find him to be up to the mark, but still tipped me a good amount as it is customary, then when he demanded more, it left a bad taste about the tour and the driver.
The guide just kept driving aimlessly in masai mara, was hardly interested in showing us any wildlife. He discouraged us from opting for an early morning gaming.
Another incident, the driver refused to do anything outside the itinerary, however on the second day, he asked us to visit the amboseli village and asked us to donate $100 to the village. We didn't check to see if it was in the itinerary and went along with the guide, but that was the only thing he did outside the itinerary, he refused to do anything else outside the itinerary. The visit to the village was a rip off.
Our tour was booked at wild trek through a local travel agent in India, I partly blame the local travel agent for not ensuring that the price difference of the savings was not given back to us. The local agent should have been transparent to us with regard to pricing.
Regardless, the issues with minivan and guide were the services of wild trek safaris.
Overall I wouldn't really recommend wild trek tours, and if you do opt for it, ensure that they are transparent on costs and services availed.
I feel as though my whole experience in Masai Mara would have been different if a) we had a good guide b) better vehicle, and c) the hotels as per our original itinerary.
AR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience!
Finally I found some time to write about my experience.
My boyfriend and I booked a 7 days safari, Masai Mara - Nakuru - Samburu, our guide : David
We stayed 3 days in Masai Mara and they were perfect!!!we got to see all the animals we wanted, Lions giraffes elephants foxes rhinos crocodiles hippos.
The tents were ok, I mean it is not luxury but you could sleep there
After that we went to Nakuru, which is not better that Masai Mara but it was a mandatory stopped between MM and Samburu since its a very long journey.
In Nakuru we saw diifferent types of giraffes elephants and rhinos and falso Flamingos.
Samburu was a whole differente adventure. Just being on the village was an experience, in the park we could see cheetahs leopards and ostriches, besides the giraffes lions and elephants
During the week we algo get to learn some swahili culture and Kenyan history.
We want to highlight the work of David who cared of us and our well-being during the whole trip.
Thanks for a wonderfull experience
Ayelen y Pablo - Argentina
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Memories for life with Soul of Tanzania AAA+
We booked our tour with Soul of Tanzania in February 2017 with tour dates of July 30 - August 7 2017. In hindsight booking with Soul was the best decision we made to make this trip a luxury safari experience and memories that we will cherish for life.
Pre-Tour: Responses to all emails from Joao, Luis and Iris were prompt and specific. No fluff – straight to the point responses that shows clear understanding of request. So in the end – you get what you are promised. We booked an eight days tour airport to airport.
Upon- Arrival: Soul of Tanzania car received us at airport. What impressed us most was that their driver waited till 3:00 AM in the morning when flight plans for one of the couples travelling changed last moment when they missed connection and reached Kilimanjaro in wee hours.
The Safari: Four things that made our safari a memory of lifetime.
First – the guide – Benedict. He is excellent - wonderful, patient, understands animal behaviors and has sixth sense on when action may be forthcoming. He is serviceable and shares detailed history and animal traits. Now we know Soul of Tanzania has many guides who are equally qualified, but we are beyond happy with Ben. Without Ben, this experience could not have been same.
Second – Vehicle. Our Toyota Land Cruiser was well maintained, had refrigerator, charging stations and was washed every day for best clean experience. Very comfortable for six.
Three – Food – Our premium upgrade provided hot breakfast, lunches and dinners served on tablecloth in real cutlery and premium wine at lunch. Quite a feat to relish in middle of nowhere. Ben was very considerate of food restrictions and preferences.
Four – luck and patience. Once again this is where Ben helped us find right excursions and his read of animal mood to say if a kill or river crossing was imminent. In my view if you leave it to locals and stop second guessing their instincts, you have better chances of seeing the best.
As to our safari, lots of details here but in a nutshell –
Day 1 – Mount Kilimanjaro
Day 2 – Tarangire national park . Saw a baby elephant calf milking his mother. Spent evening with Flamingoes at Lake Manyara.
Day 3 – South Serengeti – close encounter with Cheetah. Spent half day with Maasai tribe
Day 4 – Central Serengeti – Started out with lions in love act and drove through seeing tens of thousands of Zebra, Wildebeests and Giraffe migrate towards great river crossing
Day 5 – North Serengeti , wildebeest migration and river crossing at Mara River – Giant croc kill
Day 6 – Day of Lions in Central Serengeti. Saw over 40 lions in a day. Saw a gazelle give birth and newborn take its first step and lioness chase and kill a gazelle… circle of life
Day 7 – At NgoroNgoro crater with microcosm of all the wildlife at Tanzania…
Day 8 – Arusha coffee plantation, shopping and flight home
Post Safari – Iris met us to take our feedback. She is professional and genuinely interested in how they can drive continuous improvements.
In summary – while there are many tour operators with good credentials, you cannot go wrong with Soul of Tanzania.
US
We had an incredible experience; amazed by the beauty of Kenya and the helpfulness of our guide!
They were perfect! We felt well taken care of and the driver / tour guide was very familiar with the safari.