Avoid this company!!
Avoid Sandlands!
Do not book with Sandlands Tour Company in Tanzania. Mr Abraham Shaidi and his colleague Simon will take your money and not deliver what you actually booked. During our trip this happened to us, another lady we met and we were informed that it was not the first time Mr Shaidi had done this.
My friend and I paid $1680 for a 4 night/ 5 day safari and did not receive everything in our itinerary. We should have had 2 nights in the Serengeti, but we only got one. We should have had an evening and full day game drive in the Serengeti but we only got two half days - one of these 'half days' was only from 3:30-6pm. We should have had two game drives in Ngoronogoro but we only got one.
We were paired with three men who had booked a budget 3 night safari costing around $600 and our itinerary was changed to suit theirs. Meaning we essentially got the same experience as a budget safari (with the exception of accommodation) but paid over $1000 more.
Further to this, we spent almost 2 hours daily waiting around for the men to pack up their camping equipment despite the fact we deliberately didn't book camping to avoid this delay.
On two occasions, Mr Shaidi also instructed our driver to take us to different accommodation than what we had actually booked - accommodation that was significantly lesser than what we paid for. It was only because our driver was kind and honest that we realised this and were able to call Mr Shaidi to demand we were taken to where we paid for.
When we spoke with Mr Shaidi to resolve this, him and his colleague Simon refused to take blame for the fact that they falsely advertised the itinerary and didn't give us what we paid for. Mr Shaidi did compare the itinerary we booked, to what we actually received and agreed it was vastly different. However, he blamed Simon for this and Simon blamed him. Mr Shaidi was the one who instructed our driver of the itinerary to follow. Mr Shaidi assured us that he would ensure we each received $200 in compensation the next day. However, predictably this was also a lie and we received no money back.
Do not waste your time and money booking with this company. They are complete con-artists and will try to cut corners wherever they can. We are extremely angry and disappointed that we spent so much money and did not receive what we booked and hope that this review ensures nobody else is ripped off like we were.
IN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good people , Great service !
Had a wonderful time with Wildebeest. Geoffrey our guide took very good care of us, He has excellent knowledge about the park and knows the best places to catch all the action you need! He has an "Eagle's Eye". Every thing was managed wonderfully and on time. Thank you wildebeest!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Avoid these guys!
I have never written an online review but feel I should.
As soon as I paid my deposit communication suddenly went very quiet and I had to send several chaser emails to find out what was going on.
Finally a day before we were due to start I received an email 'Pick-up at 6.30am'. 6.30am came and went and at 7.30am I finally received an email response saying 'Call driver 07xxxxxxx'. Not even an apology. You can imagine how stressful this was morning was! When I spoke to the driver on the phone he explained that one of the guests on our safari had a delayed flight and was waiting at the airport. When I met the others they said they all arrived the previous day! Other than that, they hadn't prepared the vegetarian option for lunch which I had requested.
The second day brought more dramas. After being told to wake up at 7am for an 8am start we were all extremely frustrated to find the driver had disappeared. He eventually came back at 10am and explained that his boss hadn't put the funds on his company card. We missed out on 2 hours in the Ngorongoro crater because of this.
We were promised extra time in Serengeti to compensate for this but on the 3rd day exactly the same thing happened! The driver even asked if anyone could pay the balance on their card and that his boss would refund through the web!
I know they offer extremely cheap packages but no saving is worth the stress of waiting around to get into a park on a once in a life time trip. Pay a little bit more and avoid MJ Safaris."
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fabulous exactly as described, guide sincerely interested in giving best possible experience.
Communication was excellent. Robert responded to every email within 24 hours. The experience was exactly as advertised, even better. Ashton did his very best to meet our expectations so at the end of each day we discussed the plan for the next day and he made suggestions within options available. He was excellent at even the smallest details like getting us positioned for the best pictures.
CA
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The highlight of our 4 week African experience was with The Safari Partners in Zimbabwe and Botswana
The first week of our month long African adventure was booked with Chris from Safari Partners to the countries of Zimbabwe and Botswana. Chris arranged our flights, hotel transfers and safari camp accommodation. All was seamless and we were delighted with the entire experience. In Zimbabwe we stayed at The Elephant Camp and were pampered with the very comfortable accommodation, friendly staff and delicious meals. The camp offered many side adventures, like riding elephants, walking with the lions, white water rafting and tours to Victoria Falls. We thought it could not get any better, until we arrived at the enchanting &Beyond Xudum Okavango Delta Lodge in Botswana. The flight in the small plane was thrilling and our guides were waiting with the safari vehicles to whisk us away to the camp. The friendly staff at Xudum anticipated our every need. The safari guides and trackers were outstanding and endeavored to give us the very best experience. The food was truly gourmet. It was magical to watch the sun go down every evening with a glass of bubbly in hand. Thanks Chris for such a memorable trip.
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience!
Early September 2016, my girlfriend and I went on a five day private safari with Engagi Safaris. Of these five days, we used three to do some amazing trips.
First of all, we did the Chimpanzee Habituation experience in Kibale National Park. This meant we went into the forest with a ranger, Jessica for a full day, and we were lucky enough to be the only ones in the group. In our case, it took until lunch time until we found a group of chimpanzees, which was super rewarding after a couple of hours of searching for them. From the moment we found them, we did not lose them anymore and we could just sit and be lazy together with them, but we could also see them play, and interact with each other and some times with us. We stayed with them for a couple of hours and then we left. It was an absolutely amazing day.
As a second activity, we did the famous gorilla trekking. We did this one in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The experience was different than with the chimps, first of all, because the walk is much harder due to very steep walks (a lot of fun though). The word impenetrable is also in the name for a good reason, the forest is very dense. It also differed from the chimp trekking in that we were only allowed to stay with the gorillas for an hour after finding them. But that hour was really amazing, the gorillas come so close, one even sat down right against my leg. Just imagine a creature weighing almost 200kg just walking straight towards you and parking her big butt right next to you. It was truly spectacular.
The third activity was the Golden Monkey trekking in Mgahinga National Park. This was about 1.5 hours walking up until we arrived in a bamboo forest (which I hadn’t seen before and would already be a reason to go up there by itself). Then we started searching for a group of Golden Monkeys, which took about an hour. We were then again allowed an hour before we went back and called it a day. Also a very nice tour, although compared to the others obviously the lesser of the three.
The rest of the time on this safari was spent driving (we had lots of distance to cover) and relaxing in beautiful lodges. For the first two nights, Robert took us to Kibale Forest Guesthouse, which was truly beautiful. Also, the kitchen was very professional; they made very good food and they were really fast. The third night we had the pleasure of staying in Roberts own lodge, Lake Bunyonyi Resort. And the last night, we stayed in Kisoro town. The accomodation was not as beautiful as we grew used to by then, but it was still a very nice place to relax.
All in all, we were very happy with the safari. Robert arranged everything for us and took very good care of us. He speaks English really well, and he taught us so much about Uganda. He told us about the wildlife there, about the culture, but also about politics. He really knows a lot about everything. And he gave us a really good price for the safari.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very helpful and useful operator
I used this operator to book the Kruger Safari and the hotel in Cape town at the luxury end of the market. The agent I dealt with was very helpful without being pushy. She also recommended where to stay on the rest of my trip, I found the advice very helpful and practical. The hotels in Port Elizabeth and Johannesburg were equally good
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
What a Great Safari with Beacon
Two friends who work with me in Middle East and I just completed a 4 day safari to Masai Mara and Lake Nokuru reserves. We researched a number of tour companies and chose Beacon. Everything about our trip turned out great. We requested a private tour for the three of us. Robert, our tour contact, was very prompt with a proposal. He then made a couple of requested adjustments after our feedback, and was always in returning e-mail questions. He met us at our hotel with our guide on the morning of our departure. I am always concerned when I make advance deposits for service, but both our payment and the promised service occurred flawlessly. We chose higher end tent camp and hotel accommodations, and they really were first rate. We were pleasantly surprised by the service, quality of food, and accommodations at these "camps" at the reserves.
Our guide Mousa was outstanding. He was experienced, knowledgeable, safe, always on time, and we enjoyed his company. We toured in a land cruiser which had plenty of space, and was able to go on any of the roads/trails in the reserves. Mousa had a good radio network and rapport with other guides, and they shared information which helped locate some of the harder to find wildlife. February was a lower volume season, allowing us to get very close to the animals without large crowds. Came back with fantastic photos. The only caution I would have is do not plan your airline departure too close to the planned safari return time if flying out of Nairobi. The traffic to get across the city can be very heavy so allow plenty of time. I would like to return for another safari my family from U.S. and plan to use Beacon when I do.
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
5 days Mt Kenya and 3 days Masai Mara
I booked two trips with Bush-thorns Adventures and Safaris:
-5 days trekking tour to Mt Kenya via Chogoria and Sirimon Route
-3 days Safari to Masai Mara
Both trips were very well organized and a great experience. Comunication with the senior tour consultant was always prompt, questions were answered almost immediately. The price, also compared to other tour operators was very fair.
I would definitely recommend travelling with Bush-thorns Adventures and Safaris.
CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great experience
I did a 5 day safari to Mara/Nakuru/naivasha/hells gate! I had an amazing time, way more then I expected and the staff at Pride of Africa handled everything professionally. It was way more then I ever expected and a better deal than other places I've been. Would highly recommend these guys if planning a safari!!