RO
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Dream become true with Big Time Safaris
Excellent cooperation before booking and during safari (David and Richard were responsible for this) a well trained driver and guide helped us to have a wonderful experience. We were lucky choosing this company and all for affordable princes.
Thanks... a lot !
CA
65+ years of age
Garden Route hard to forget
My expectations were high but this custom travel surpassed all. Great job Mari and Katie
RU
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A wonderful safari and excellent organization.
The organization of the safari was very good. There were other people in the group with me, but no one was waiting for anyone. Everything was quick and in time. I was also met and escorted to the airport. The drivers were polite and attentive. A tour guide took care that everyone at an equal degree and maximum saw the animals. There was no flamingo on Lake Nakuru. But the organizers for an additional fee gave us the opportunity to enjoy these birds in another place. Hotels everywhere were good, except Nairobi. Small and noisy. This is the only small minus. In the rest I recommend this company. Special thanks to Tom and our driver Patrick. I was pregnant and he traveled very gingerly.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Kruger / Sabi Sands Safari's
When you plan trips over the web, there is always the uncertainty that your expectations are higher that what you will experience once you get there. Absolutely not the case.
Working with Ute from Roho Ya Chui was great. She was flexible, answered all my questions and helped us through all the areas of arranging our trip including adding an additional day in the Sabi Sands. From our flights into Skukuza airport in Kruger park to our return flights from Skukuza to Johannesburg, everything went as smoothly as I could hope for. Everyone we encountered worked hard to ensure we had a great time.
My hat off to Mandla who was our guide through 2 days in Kruger and a long drive along the Panorama route taking in Lisbon and Lone Creek Falls was tremendous. Our stay at Chestnut Country Lodge was extremely comfortable with absolutely 5-star accommodations and dining.
The second half of our trip was at Notten's Bush Camp in the Sabi Sands where everyone is extremely well taken care of. The staff there is delightful to talk with and hear their stories about living in that environment. the food and accommodations are absolutely fabulous. We had both walking and drive guided safari's that were a different adventure every time. Lions, leopards, wild dogs and about everything else you could ask for. From the Big 5 to the Ugly 5 and almost to the Super 7, I can't recommend Notten's enough.
Absolutely a great time. Tough to come home.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a Lifetime!!
Pembury Tours was fantastic! Tammy organized our family trip so well to meet all our needs and expectations. Tammy was so sweet and kept us informed during the whole process. The entire trip was absolutely amazing!!!!! The accommodations, food, tour guides, site seeing, shark cage diving and safaris were" Top Notch." We will highly recommend Pembury Tours to all our friends.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Kenya/Tanzania tour was a blast!
Writing this review will never do justice to the experience we had on this trip. I could write an entire book on the trip and still not get in the sense of how wonderful it was. The beauty of Africa cannot be captured in words or pictures, it must be experienced in person.
My daughter (age 21) and I went on a 16 day Safari using Right Choice Safaris. This was our first time in Africa, and we both had the time of our lives! Below is the highlight itinerary sent to us by George:
"Safari Highlights.
01 night in Nairobi on arrival. Good for those arriving after mid day.
02 nights in Amboseli
01 night at the Lake Nakuru national park- Kenya
03 nights at the Masai Mara game reserve- Kenya. Migration at best
02 nights at the Serengeti game reserve -Tanzania
01 night at the Ngorongoro crater -Tanzania
01 night at Tarangire national park- Tanzania
04 nights in Zanzibar, Blue bay beach resort"
The Safari was planned by the organization and we followed all of their recommendations and did not do any "customization" of our own. We had a private safari for the two of us which gave us the freedom to go at our own pace. Our guide in Kenya was Jacob and in Tanzania, Fadhil. I believe Right Choice Safaris handles the Kenya part and partners with KiliSlopes in Tanzania for the Tanzania part.
Every place we stayed at was absolutely wonderful. The safari had a combination of tents and lodges to give us a taste of both kinds of experiences, and we loved both.
George was always available, answered all our questions, and was in touch throughout the trip for getting our feedback. My sister and her husband are going next year and they are going to contact George to set it up for them because we had such a positive experience with him.
Jacob and Fadhil were both amazing. I do hope that when we go back, and we most definitely want to go back, that we will get to work with Jacob and Fadhil again. They were both super knowledgeable, both friendly and fun, and both wanted to teach us about the animals, their behaviors, and their roles in the larger ecosystem.
Everything was amazing. Lodging, food, service, and of course, the most important part, nature and game viewing.
For game viewing, make sure you take binoculars. Also, take the best cameras you have and ample storage. We took over 5000 pictures!! Expect to be in a car for 8-12 hours a day in order to get maximum viewing experience. It sounds like a lot, but when you're being driven through some of the most beautiful lands in the world, and seeing animals up close, it all flies by so fast.
It's hard to pick a favorite spot for us. Each park/reserve had its own unique ecosystem and we are glad we went to all of them. If you have to skip one of the destinations due to lack of time, I recommend skipping Zanzibar only because it took us a long time to get there (drive/fly/delayed flights, etc.). If we absolutely had to recommend one place to see for first time travelers, then we'd recommend the Masai Mara/Serengeti parks which are really an extension of each other, are the spot for the migration, and a must see for anyone who ever goes on a safari.
Vaccinations: Make sure you see a travel doctor and get the correct vaccinations. Furthermore take your vaccination cards with you. Without proper proof of vaccinations, they will not let you into the country.
Health precautions: Do your research on how not to get sick there. Our travel doctor gave us an entire packet which we reviewed thoroughly. If you do, you won't get sick there and will be able to enjoy your trip fully.
Tips: Get your cash and exchange it to the correct currency before you travel. Finding ATMs in the country was not an easy task, and no one has enough change there for you! Get your money before you go and have it broken down into small change. The staff everywhere expects to be tipped, and you need tons of change. Tip graciously! They sure deserve it.
CH
Professional service with a smile.
Reliable, professional and knowledgeable service backed up with a relaxed atmosphere.
NL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
When can we go again, please?
TMS was excellent in their communications, service and information. The book they send us before departure was perfect and gave us a lot of information to prepare our trip. It was nice to have a good GPS and cellphone during our trip. Seen a lot of the beautiful nature of SA and we didn't have to sit in the car for days and days!
PL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An experience unlike anything else!
Roger is very easy to communicate with and is a very good organiser. He managed to arrange an incredible experience for me and a couple of my friends with a short deadline. Highly recommended!
During a beautiful hike we had the chance of seeing 14 out of the entire family of 17 gorillas. Among the group we saw a silver back and a little, cute gorilla that was just as interested in us as we were in him. We managed to get really close to the gorillas and observe them for quite a while, all under control of the rangers, whose relation with this animals is truly amazing. This really is an experience hard to match to anything else and Wal-Mark Africa Safaris really makes sure you get the most of it!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
very satisfactory
Company has very knowledgeable staff about the line of their work, put clients above everything and very engaging.