HK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Just Perfect
We did 2 nights in the Masai Mara and 1 night in the Lake Nakuru, staying in the Sarova Lodges.
It was beyond our expectation.
First of all, Anthony our driver was great.
Uber friendly, smart, good driver and most importantly a perfect guide.
Always on the look out for rare animals, our game drives were magical, and a big part is thanks to Anthony. Finally he is very informed and could replied to all our questions about each animal.
About the area, MM is a must see, we saw 4/5 big fives (nobody in the hotel saw the leopard during our stay).
In LN we saw less animals, but when we did it was from closer than in the MM.
To conclude, I really recommend Beacon Safari and more particularly Anthony, for your upcoming Safari.
Enjoy!
CA
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Superb Safari experience!
We had nothing but 10 star.....yes we double it!....service from Compass Odyssey. Darren Humphrys was amazing to deal with as from the outset of ensuring that we had a trip exactly suited to our needs. He kept in constant communication with us, through the deciding stage, right through to while on safari and after we got home. There were no questions left unanswered--competent and thorough he was. He arranged for a wonderful first-time experience in superb accommodations and with reliable, personable guides. We felt we could have had no better experience in Chobe, Victoria Falls and Sabi Sands/Kruger. Initially we were a bit reluctant to have private drives as we wanted to meet other travellers, which we did at the lodges at meal times. After seeing jeeps crammed with other travellers, we were definitely pleased we had game drives on our own. Compass Odyssey's representative, Mortimer was a definite help to get us easily and smoothly through the border crossings into Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe and later to the airport in Livingston for our flight to Kruger area. We were thrilled with the Tyndon Safari Camp and even more pleased that we were at Sabi Sands rather than Kruger. We did spend a day in Kruger, but we preferred the quiet splendour of Sabi Sands to the more 'crowded' Kruger. Thank you Darren for organizing such a fantastic, memorable trip!!! We heartily recommend Compass Odyssey. We will be coming back.....and hopefully soon!!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great tour, very Knowledgeable guide.
Thoroughly enjoyed the tour,
The guide was great, very experienced and very knowledgeable.
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience!
This summer we spend a four week holiday in Tanzania, visiting friends, safari and diving on Zanzibar.Before our holiday we did quite a lot of research on different safari companies and compared all prices and packages.
Quit soon we found out that de prices from Bobby were by far the cheapest. After reading some reviews we decided the book with Bobby Tours and start our adventure.
We started our holiday in Dar El Salaam visiting friends. Afterwards we took a flight to the west part of Tanzania (Mwanza). Since we had such a long holiday we decided to book 6 day/ 5 nights budget camping safari. Our driver from Bobby Tours (Gasper) picked us up at our hotel and took us to the western entrance of the Serengeti National Park. This was a 2 hour drive from Mwanza. The good thing starting from Mwanza is that the western corridor of the Serengeti is really quit, since most of the people start their safari in Arusha. Our package was 6 days/ 5 nights (3 days Serengeti, 1 day NgoroNgoro Crator, Lake Manyara en Tarangire and drop off in Arusha).
I recommend all people to go longer Safari (5 or 6 days), since it increases the possibilities of seeing more animals! We had a wonderful time! Our driver ‘Gasper’ was the best and a really sweet guy. He knew all the good spots and was always having fun with us, but also with the other drivers in the parks. We had a long safari (6 days) and saw a lot of animals! Taking a bit more time allows you to just enjoy a beautiful sight or landscape! So I would recommend everyone not hurrying finding ‘the Big5’ and really experience the Serengeti and it fabulous nature.
Our driver ‘Gasper’ was a really good wildlife spotter! After entering the Western gate and driving for maybe an hour we already saw: lions, hippos, crocodiles, giraffe’s and many herds of wild beasts, impala’s and Zebra’s.
We liked all parts of the Safari, but especially fell in love with Serengeti. It’s expansive plains and impressive nature are the best! You sometimes drive for hours and not see anybody since it’s so big. On the other hand, you sometimes see about 15 cars around a tree, because there’s leopard. It’s funny seeing so many cars in one place, everyone trying to take the perfect picture.
Especially these time you see how many cars from ‘Bobby Tours’ hang around. I think Bobby has about 25 cars, really new and good quality. The cars have 8 places, but only few were occupied. Me and my girlfriend, the driver, and a chef.
Having a lot of space was wonderful since you could move around in the car and pick the best place for spotting wildlife.
I liked all parks since their all special in their own way. Tarangire, by example since it has the most elephants and Lake Manyara for the lakes and birds.
Ngorongoro Crater, feels like a magical world entering the crater and driving around. We saw a lot of action in the crater. Lions and hyenas were hunting. This was also the location where we saw a Rhino! Our driver had the eyes of a ‘hawk’ and spotted it a mile away. Although it was far away it still was a truly magical moment.
We took a basic camp safari since we like to camp in the Netherland and it’s just much cheaper then staying in a lodge. The campsites were fine, showers, were not always hot. On some campsites there was electricity and warm water. Remember to bring some warm clothes for the Ngorongoro crater since it can get quit cold there during the night. The food was also good. Every night the chef sets up a table for diner and serves you some bread, soup, dinner and fruits for dessert. In the morning breakfast is served, with coffee or tea, fruits, pancakes and other food. During the day you will have a lunch break with sandwiches.
Advice, when taking budget safari there’s not always power to charge your devices on the campsites. Be sure to bring enough batteries en SD cards for your camera and other devices, you’ll need them. Also it might ben helpful to take a solar charger to power up some devices! Don’t bother about your cell phone! There’s not much coverage in the Serengeti and the sights are far too beautiful. So don’t waste time watching your cell phone.
Another advice don’t rush around! Hakuna Matata! Not only take a picture and move on, but wait some time to really look! There is more then meets the eye around, also small creatures and many birds par example. We asked our driver to show us the different type of birds. I think at the end of our safari we saw about 50 different bird species! So do not only go for the big animals!
We had a truly magical time and we would love to come back sometime! Wildlife is never boring. Many thanks to our driver and friend ‘Gasper’ for all the fun and spotting all wildlife.
With love!
Philippe and Lotte from The Netherlands
TR
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Experience of a lifetime
This was our first safari and we really didn't know what to expect but the experience was beyond our dreams. Flash is a very professional, trustworthy and well managed company. The 12 day safari was well planned with a lot of action as well as nicely planned rests. The hotels were five star and the best of all was our guide Melek, his name means angel in Arabic and he protected us like an angel! He is very experienced and professional and security conscious. I would highly recommend Flash and Melek.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
We had a fantastic trip!
Thank you to Saso Uganda Safari! Our family of four had a great trip to Murchison Falls. Our guide looked after us very well and we had a wonderful time.
HU
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nice customer service, correct communication, friendly hosting, professional guide
We were more than happy with the services. They were on time, they did what we agreed, no surprises, no hidden charges. The guide was excellent, nice personality, and professional, with a very deep experience of salaries.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A truly awe-inspiring holiday in beautiful surroundings.
Our trip to Phinda Game Reserve was as a present for my Dad's 60th, and it did not disappoint. Our accommodation (we stayed at the Mountain Lodge in Phinda) was beautifully laid out and equally good for both seclusion and socialising - whichever you prefer. The rooms were incredibly generous in size with decking out the front and even a plunge pool for those that are feeling brave. The grounds of the lodge were kept in immaculate condition, the swimming pool was literally a 2 minute walk from your room, as was the outdoor and indoor dining area which hosted the majority of breakfasts, lunch and dinners. Prepared by head chef Neo (who made a point of individually welcoming you to your table and explaining what was for dinner every night, a really nice touch) and his team, the food was always of impeccably high standards as was the presentation of it. We couldn't have been more impressed at the level of service from the in-house team of hosts. They could not do enough to make your stay a more memorable one, from how you'd like your eggs done, to birthday gifts they really did provide everything and were a large factor behind why I feel the holiday was such a successful one. Keep an eye out for Mandla particularly, who I didn't see without a smile on his face for four whole days.
The weather was amazing for the duration of our stay, including some breath-taking electric thunderstorms on our first night. As for when you're out on safari, it does get quite cold when you're out after dark, so despite it being really sunny when you set off, take a jumper. Blankets are provided which was unexpected, but very much appreciated! It was my first safari and will take some beating - we managed to see everything we wanted to, leopards and black rhino's included...and as a keen photographer I was afforded plenty of time to take photos at will of the amazing animals on show. Our guides were totally receptive to what we wanted to see and put on a wonderful breakfast in the bush one morning, as well as taking us on some great walks when there was a bit of downtime.
My only minor criticism would be that considering you spend 7 hours a day in them, the Jeeps weren't the most comfortable form of transport. I'm a little over 6 foot 2 and the legroom in the Jeeps wasn't really adequate for me, the seats weren't very well padded either - but really once you'd gotten over it this didn't detract at all from my overall enjoyment.
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Phinda Game Reserve to anyone, it was an unforgettable experience and we owe much to those who hosted us and made our stay that little bit more special.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great, personalized services!!!
My adult daughter, my wife and I highly recommend Budget Africa Safari re: touring Kenya (Maria Mara, Amsoleli) . They are a smaller, younger, aspiring company that worked hard to meet our very need. Edward Thionga took the time to tailor his packages to our needs including some of the places we wanted to see and places we wanted to stay in. His drivers Edward and Maury were extremely nice, accommodating and very attentive.My wife, daughter and I highly recommend Budget Africa Safari to Kenyan tours (Maria Mara, Amboseli). We highly recommend Budget Africa Safaris.
We were much less impressed with Sandland Tours who handled our Tanzania portion (Serengeti, Ngoro Goro, Lake Manyara). Sandland is much bigger and more established but was not as open and communicative as Budget Africa Safaris.
(If you have to coordinate between companies -make sure the companies and then the drivers talk and coordinate the handover very closely and well including bags, money exchanges, lodging places etc.)
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Honeymoon
We spent our Honeymoon in Tanazania , and we spend a truly beautiful safari with safarihub , our driver Omblau was really helpful and knowledgeable , we spend one full week in tanzania and we went on several camps , we met some really nice people along our travels and i want to say that this trip was for us once in a lifetime ! thank you !