CA
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Meleck provided us with amazing cultural and wildlife viewing experiences! The trip of a lifetime!
We can't say enough wonderful things about our experience with Meleck and Parakuyo Tours! During the planning phase of our trip we received enough information that we arrived in Tanzania well prepared for our safari, and from the moment we landed at Kilimanjaro airport we were made to feel welcome and at ease. The food, lodging, and friendliness of staff exceeded all of our expectations.
Melecks in depth knowledge of the animals and their habitats enabled us to learn about and to see many more animals than we had originally thought. We were amazed by the number animals we did see and how close we were able to get to them. We have some great pictures and videos!
Because we were interested in the local people and culture, Meleck provided us with the opportunity to meet and talk with people and to take part in a number of cultural activities. He was very knowledgeable about the people, history and local culture.
The quality of our trip is a direct result of Melecks attention to detail, his high degree of prepardness, and well as his desire to provide his clients with the very best possible experience.
We will definitely recommend Parakuyo Tours and Safaris to anyone who is interested in experiencing Tanzania!
CA
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A wonderful adventure for our family!
Our family recently returned from our East Africa Wild 15-day adventure to Kenya and Tanzania. Although we had been to Kenya over 30 years ago, we had always wanted to return with our children to have them experience the beauty of East Africa. Our friends recommended East Africa Wild and we are happy they did so. After several conversations with Alym (owner) over FaceTime, he was able to plan the perfect trip/Itinerary for us based on our interests, comfort/activity levels and need for adventure! (Not an easy task given we were 5 adults!) But he did it! The accommodations were fantastic! We mostly stayed at the wonderful Serena Lodges and they were our favourite. The rooms were perfect and the hotel staff were very attentive. Our guides (Newton in Kenya and Saif in Tanzania) were great and worked hard to make sure we saw as much wildlife as possible and answered all our questions, whether they were related to wildlife or local culture. Newton & Saif were always on time and did their best to accommodate any and all requests that were made (we made lots!). We were also very well taken care of by the staff 'on the ground'. En route to Africa, two pieces of luggage were left behind during one of our connecting flights. The tour company staff in Nairobi quickly took care of the problem by tracking our bags, picking them up from the airport and delivering them to our lodge.
There were too many highlights on our trip to list them all but they included a bush breakfast along the Mara River, a private bush dinner accompanied by Masai tribesmen, and of course the many game drives where we saw the 'big five' and so much more! We totally and with confidence recommend East Africa Wild!
IE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
9 day trip - 5 days in Kenya, 4 in Tanzania
We travelled from Ireland in December 2017.
We would be keen to stress that this is a review of the booking company - African Adventure Safari, not of the safari itself.
The safari was, for the most part, brilliant. It would be hard to travel to the Masai Mara and Serengeti and not be impressed.
It appeared to us (and several others we met) that essentially, for the budget trips you paid a tour company who booked your place on a safari trip. Safari guides/drivers seemed to receive their assigned tourists each trip or each day. So, whilst the drivers (who seemed to work for several various companies) were very good, we couldn't credit this to the tour companies as there seemed to be little relationship between the two.
So, onto reviewing the booking company;
It was arranged and confirmed that they would collect us from the airport in Nairobi around 7pm. Upon arrival, there was no sign of anyone. We waited and eventually opted to use the mobile phone of a taxi driver. We rang Mike, who we had been dealing with us over email. He advised us that he was parking the car and would be with us in five minutes. After ten minutes, the random taxi driver came over and told us that Mike had called back and had asked us to wait by the road. Another twenty minutes passed, with the taxi driver waving to us every so often to indicate that it would be another five minutes.
Nairobi has a reputation and we were growing increasingly uneasy.
Eventually the taxi driver came back with the phone and handed it to me. It was Mike advising us that his driver had gotten stuck in traffic (odd, given that Mike said he was parking the car) and told us the taxi driver would take us. Given that I had just been handed the phone, I made sure to make him confirm a few of our details before we hung up. We were very clear with the taxi driver that we wouldn't be paying him for the journey as the transfer was already paid for. He wasn't very happy about this and made another call to make sure he would get paid.
The taxi driver asked us to wait while he got his car. Two cars pulled up (neither particularly looked like a taxi), he sent the first car away and the driver of the second one got out and our "taxi driver" got in. The route we took (presumably to avoid traffic) went through some very rough areas, with several fires burning by the roadside, through the outskirts of the city. We have travelled a lot (including countries like Venezuela, Colombia and Indonesia) but this was the most uneasy we have ever felt whilst travelling. The combination of being unsure about the taxi driver and the route we had taken had made us feel very apprehensive. This wasn't the start to our trip we had hoped for. As it was our honeymoon, we had booked through a tour company in order to avoid these specific issues.
After 40 minutes we pulled up at our hotel. Mike was there to meet us, with one of the safari guides. He wasn't very apologetic, but seemed friendly enough and gave us his mobile number to contact him through Whatsapp. We had booked the hotel through Mike and he asked for cash to pay for the room. We handed over the cash and it was only when we went up to our room and was able to check my emails that I realised that it was double the price we were expecting to pay. We checked the price on booking.com (which was also cheaper than the price we had been quoted). We texted Mike and he told us that the price he had quoted was per night, so was double what we were expecting and double the cost on booking.com. We were unhappy but there was little we could do.
After our trip to the Masai Mara and Hells Gate, which were both brilliant, we were taken back to Nairobi for a transfer to Arusha (Tanzania). We missed our bus, but that wasn't a problem because we just caught another one. We were met in Arusha by a taxi driver and taken to our hotel, which all went well.
The next morning we were starting a trip to Tarangire, the Serengeti and Ngorongoro. We met the 'boss' and who asked us what our itinerary was (he didn't seem to know what we had planned). He asked about water, we told him it was included in our trip, he asked about our transfer to the airport at the end of our trip, we told him that was also included. We found out later that the 'boss' is the boss of all of the drivers/guides in Arusha, so manages all of the trips that leave from there.
There was clearly very little coordination between the tour companies in Kenya and Tanzania.
The first night of our trip we stayed in a really nice lodge, but one of the other groups (all of the vehicles will stop to eat and sleep in the same places, so you will see a lot of each other) had to stay somewhere else because there had been a mix up and the lodge was overbooked. The next morning, everyone was moved to different vehicles because there had been a mix up with the bookings. This wasn't really a problem for us, but did take a while to be sorted out and a couple of groups had to wait longer than us because people from Arusha were joining them.
Once on the trip, again it was amazing and the driver/guide in Tanzania (Estome) was brilliant. Estome had a couple of different books on the animals and answered every single question we had. He stopped when we wanted to take photos, spotted more animals and birds than you could imagine, and was a really nice guy. Overall we enjoyed the experience in Tanzania more than Kenya, although we saw more animals in Kenya.
Some people from the other groups had problems with their itineraries not being followed and accommodation not being what was expected (this seemed to be people who has asked for an additional stopover or to not be in a tent or a shared tent). When they were booking, they were told it was ok, but once they were on the trip, they were sent along with the rest of us. A vegetarian in our group had to remind them a few times. We hadn't made any special requests, so we didn't have any of these issues.
In Arusha, we had been booked in to the Cloud View Hotel for our last night. Our diver had asked us where we were staying and had been speaking to the 'boss' through the day. When we arrived at the hotel there was no booking for us. Apparently the 'boss' hadn't received the information or money from Mike so no booking was made (this hadn't been mentioned until we were at the hotel's check in desk though). We were taken back to Arusha Tourist Inn and stayed there for the night (this hotel seems to owned by the 'boss' so a booking wasn't needed).
We text Mike about this straight away, but didn't get a response until the following afternoon, by which time we were in Zanzibar. Again, there was no apology and Mike's response was that they are looking for a new partner in Tanzania.
Overall, the trip was amazing and the guides, particularly in Tanzania, were brilliant. The issues we had were with the organisation and, with the exception of the pick up from the airport, were annoying but had no lasting effect on us.
Whichever company you book with, our advice would be to reconfirm everything before you travel (dietary requirements, transfers etc), take printed copies of your itinerary, be prepared to stand your ground on what is already paid for and included as part of your trip, and unless you are booking a bespoke trip, stick to the basic itineraries because people who had special requests didn't seem to get them. And have a great trip.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Somak Driver Offroad and Endangering Lion
I've just come from the Mara where I saw a Somak branded vehicle go off road so that they could get a meter away from a sleeping lion. The driver then got angry when he saw me with my telephoto lens taking his photo. Do not support companies that employ irresponsible drivers.
HR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Experience!
Everything was just perfect! We were lucky to have the best tour guide ever! Charles thank you for everything, you really made it unforgettable for us! Charles is really well experienced in doing safari in Selous game reserve, he knows every corner of the park and places where animals are usually hiding. Thanks to him, we saw every animal and beast we could have seen! Driving to and from Selous was great, again thanks to our driver! Charles you really made it and thank you so so much!! Greetings from Croatia :)
BE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing safari, great people and a warmst welcome in Africa
My boyfriend and I did a 3 day safari (4 nights in total) with Sky View Adventure. It was a wonderful experience from the first day to the last! Everything was really well organized and Paul and Emanuelle are amazing people. They really care about their clients and really want to make the best safari possible for you! And we had!! The three day safari was a fantastic trip! We had a good driver, food, campingspots and we saw the big 5! In our last night we had a local dinner with Paul to conclude the safari and it was really nice! I would DEFINITELY recommend this organisation! They are rather new, but sooo great! Thank you so much!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good, Reliable Tour Company
We did a 5D4N safari and they were able to join us with a group. Our guide Emmanuel was the best driver and had good knowledge on the parks and the wildlife. Good spotter too. We always had the best angle to take photos. They can tailor fit your trip for you so don't hesitate to ask for options. For example we asked for a mix of accommodation options from public camping (the default option for all nights), mid-range to a night of posh tent camping (we were curious!). We were glad we did that.
CH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our guide Thomas was great.
My husband and I booked a 3 day private tour into Selous game reserve from 02 to 04 February with Kiliholidays. We reserved by paying 1/2 down and paid the remainder upon commencing the safari. We too had trepidation about paying more than 6 months in advance, but the
company is honest. We kept in touch with Mack Kornelio by WhatsApp and arranged the pickup in Dar es Salaam thru this means as well. Mack is responsive.
Thomas met us at our hotel in Dar es Salaam on the dot at the prearranged hour. He was super throughout the whole trip explaining fauna and flora as we went along. He is a great driver and professional guide and I can recommend him hands down.
The negative portion of our trip was the nightly camp. Here USD 500 and 50,000 shillings were stolen from us by the staff at the Selous Jimbiza Camp from our locked lodge. We were the only guests, thus later the police ruled the theft as an inside job. Everything about this camp was negative - slow to react, simple breakfast not on time, food barely palatable. Simple hot water for coffee in the morning took too long despite stating the night before we’d leave at 0630h for the game drive. They would not even power on their generator because the camp had “its” schedule. I asked the ceiling fan at the restaurant to be turned on during lunch because it was very hot but got the response it would be at extra charge being outside generator hours! Jimbiza is not customer focused and contains thieves.
Kiliholidays subcontracted to Jimbiza and Mack promised to sever relations with them upon hearing of the theft. I hope relations will be terminated not only by Kiliholidays but all other tour operators for the sake of future safari participants. However with this incident, Mack showed support for clients. He and Thomas talked and agreed to involve the police. Thomas took the initiative to take the room attendant to the police station in our vehicle with ourselves. He knows how to deal with local procedure. Thus we had an unexpected adventure to see Mloka police in action.
All in all I can recommend Kiliholidays for safari tours.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great value for money but poor organisation and communication
First of al we both had a great time in Zambia and its an amazing country with lovely friendly people and amazing wildlife and stunning landscapes. We organised a 18 day trip with Den of Den's Safaris. He was great at replying to all our queries prior to booking the trip but once we had paid everything communication totally dried up. We had a lot of questions just before we flew to Zambia and despite emailing on several occasions there was no reply from him. At one point we thought the company no longer existed and our money was down the drain!! Luckily my boyfriend was out in Zambia beforehand on a private visit and he was finally able to contact him by telephone. It was very inconvenient for us not being able to find out the name of the lodge we would be using while staying in Lusaka as we wished to leave part of our luggage there. However, many times during the trip neither our local guide / driver knew where we were going to be staying!! Nor did one guide know whether he was flying with us to Livingstone or not as his ticket was booked 10 min. before flight departure!! In fact Den really believes in doing things at the last minute and if you book him you must realise that he has very competitive prices based on the fact that lodges / campsites, etc. are booked totally at the last minute. We travelled in November which is the rainy season and we were incredibly lucky with the weather until we went to the Zambezi River National Park. The road to our lodge was susceptible to flooding and thus when it rained hard part of the road washed away. Den being a safari operator should have known to have that component of the trip at the beginning of November when the weather is more likely to be dry than at the end when the rains come. Unfortunately, we had to leave our lodge a day earlier as otherwise we would have been stranded there. Unfortunately, Den's staff didn't really know what to do and all decisions have to come from Den who as you have probably realised is quite difficult to get hold off All in all everything worked out for us and we had a really great trip, however, it was much more stressful than expected due to the lack of communication and organisation from the operator. On a more positive note it was an amazing trip and ended on a really high note with a houseboat trip on Lake Kariba.
AT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Highly professional organizing of an unforgetable 7 day Masai Mara, Serengeti & more adventure
We booked a 7 day safari with Allan from Back of Africa Adventure for January 2018 on short notice. During planning he was very flexible in his offering and responded to all of our requests within few hours. He gave as a very detailed description of the safari in advance which was customized to our needs. Payment of deposit through wire was easy to handle as well as the final payment when we started the safari. The guides he hired were very knowledgeable, flexible, warm-hearted and open people and we spent great days with them and learned tremendously much not just about the wildlife but also about the people of Kenya and Tanzania. The standard of the accommodation was above our expectations and convenience was assured throughout our trip. In terms of accommodation, the highlight for us was the wildlife experience in the tended camps inside the Serengeti. Allan kept in touch with us during the safari and made sure everything worked out. Definitely, Back of Africa Adventure is a tour operator to recommend.