65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
This is trip #6, and there will be more. As always, a perfect job.
Ben and Aurelie have carved a very special niche out for themselves in this market, and here's why. Ben doens't stop at the uber-service, careful planning, detail management and now critical hand-holding that is necessary with the swiftly changing Covid landscape. What keeps me coming back are these:
1. Superbly trained guides, the best in the business,not just on the mountain but in every country.
2. He supports and promotes local businesses, charities and NGOs which are doing it right, and he puts his money where his mouth is by helping local families, activities and business whose integrity he respects. That helps them, helps me purchase from the right places, and in all ways we all benefit.
3. If you find something extra you want to do, Ben will bend over backwards to fit in into your agenda. He is great at keeping in touch and more than once had to wave his magic wand to get me a travel certification that a website refused to deliver.
4. I have spent a lot of time with his guides, both on Kili and on Mt. Kenya. I continue to be deeply impressed. Seeing them again is like coming home to family.
This time around Ben sent me to some familiar places, such as Reseacher's Rest and Moshi, but he sent me far afield to game parks near Same, TZ and to the MamboViewpoint EcoLodge. Not only are these places both remote and stunning, they were both uncrowded and as a result, unbelievable. The Lushoto drive was a full cultural immersion and the game park near Same had unbelievable black rhino viewings. While other sites are better known and more popular, being willing to do a little driving paid off handsomely in both photos and a chance to see without looking over or past many other vehicles.
I also spent time at the breathtaking and remote Mara Eden resort,which is also way out of the way, so much so that the drive through the Maasai Mara just to get there and back were game drives. Those few days left me with my heart in my throat from what we were able to view, and as always with a most able driver, Simon.
I had revisited the beautiful and incomparable Ol Pejeta, which is worth every bit of the four-hour drive from Nairobi. That wants its own review, but in every way, it's not to be missed.This was my second time and with any luck not the last. Game viewings, as it is a conservancy, are guaranteed, and the best part is that you get a solid education as you explore, view, photograph or ride the various parts of the 90k acres. And see lions and their meals, which is something else again.
Finally, and I cannot emphasize this enough, Safari sites and Trip Advisor are, unfortunately full of advice on how to go cheap. Folks, if you go cheap, someone loses, and that is particularly true when I see unsubstantiated information about how the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project Partners "jack the prices up."
As a prize winning journalist and professional adventure traveler who has written extensively about, spent time on the ground with and done far more research than probably anyone else on KPAP, not only is that false but that kind of narrative perpetuates porter abuse on the mountain. ETrip, like other partner companies with KPAP, are committed to a fair wage, proper conditions, good training and the kind of treatment which ensures not only our safety but folks who are happy to see us coming. You don't get that when you shave too much off the cost of a trip. Travel is pricey, plan for it. Get good operators. ETrip gets my business every single time, and they earn that money.I have the deep satisfaction of knowing that those guides and employees who are affiliated with them are not worried about a paycheck and can concentrate on ensuring that my trip rocks.
Ben has become a trusted friend, for good reason. He has earned my respect many times over, and it is a joy to plan another trip. Which, with any luck, will be next spring.
Amazing
The tour was so amazing our guide David was so patient with me and my family including a 1 year baby, we had an amazing expérience and the customer service agent who did the booking.com process Milka was really professional and nice. We definetly recommand expedition masai safari
We are more that satisfied.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent service!! I have already booked another holiday in December.
Their communication, service, was amazing and what I liked most is the way they keep time.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An exceptional experience
Thanks to Axis Safari, we had a truly unforgettable experience. The team is professional, responsive and answers all your questions. Everything is super well organized, you don't have to worry about it. The organization is well established between transfers, stops, accommodation, food etc. The price / quality ratio is top. We did 3 days in Massai Mara and saw 4/5 of the Big Five but honestly we saw so many amazing things. It was just magic ... Plus there is real team monitoring, before / during and after the trip to make sure everything is going the way we want it to. Thanks to Axis who made a dream come true!
(automatic translation from French)
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Very Well organised
They are very organised .The trip to mara was an excellent experience. Their staff are very friendly and supportive.
I will choose expeditions maasai safaris any day!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent!
We were collected from the airport on time. The vehicle was clean and in good condition. Jeremy was very friendly and willing to assist us with anything. Overall we were very happy and would highly recommend them.
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Friendly and knowledgeable
I have travelled twice with Daniel Shamba from Epic Africa as my guide and would gladly hire him again. Daniel was able to tailor our trip to our needs and take us to all sorts of amazing destinations. We hired him to help us with a professional photography trip and he always delivered, negotiating great prices, keeping us safe and offering one of a kind experiences. He also took us on more traditional tourist attractions in Tanzania like safaris which we quite enjoyed. I would not hesitate to explore Tanzania with Epic Africa again or recommend them to others. Thanks Dani! :)
BE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very responsive and great customer service
Paul was very attentive during our communcations by email. I asked for a lot of info upfront and he was always happy to reply quickly with good advices. They were very flexible and taylored the itinerary of our trip as we wanted.
I did a 10-day safari trip with my new-wed. Our driver James was very kind and respectful. He knew all the reserves by heart and could find animals swiftly. We saw the big 5 thanks to his good game-tracing skills. He knew how ro fulfil tourists needs and also let us some space when we needed it. His driving skills were excellent, we never felt unsafe.
I really recommend Roadside Expeditions.
IT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Simply fantastic! And I'm not saying it just to say it, but it's pure reality!
Our journey began amid a thousand doubts and indecisions due, unfortunately, to the pandemic. But everything turned into magic when we relied on Stanza and his agency. People devoted to their work who make you experience the essence of Botswana at 360 degrees.
Thanks for everything, you made us richer inside ...
see you soon Marco Gemma Diego and Agata
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Look no further to choose your safari operator! Ben and his team are very professional!
We came back with a lot of great memories that will last our lifetime. Many thanks to Ben who made our dream vacation come true! We were supposed to travel last August (2020) with a different company in which we ultimately had to cancel because of the pandemic. We were desperate for a legitimate safari operator after our bad experience with the company called “Wildebeests Safaris”. We still have not been refunded for the service we did not receive. However, we were lucky that we have found Ben and were very happy that we chose his company! Ben was very patient throughout the booking process and answered countless questions mainly of the current travel restrictions associated with COVID. The quote he provided us with was very easy to read and it was precisely laid out with breakdown expenses. He also helped us customize our itinerary and gave us extensive discounts on tented camps including a complimentary stay at the Researches Rest in Arusha. We really enjoyed our stay there. Eddie cooked a home style meal for us and and he told us an interesting story about the lodge.
We wanted to focus our trip on the river crossing of the wildebeests so Ben recommended us to stay three nights in the Northern circuit of Serengeti and three nights in Maasai Mara. We could see the river crossing six times on our first day in Serengeti! Vultures and eagles were circling around in the sky waiting for the wildebeests and zebras to get killed by predators. We also saw a lot of wildlife including lions, cheetahs, leopards, hyenas, elephants, giraffes, hippos, crocodiles, warthogs, antelopes, birds, storks, vultures, eagles, and many more…! We could see everything we had hoped for.
In Tarangire, we could find three climbing lionesses on one tree. Young male cubs were roaming right by us. We were very satisfied with the number of times we saw lions close up. We saw many “honeymooners” in Serengeti and Maasai Mara. We did not see this many in South Africa six years ago.
Most importantly, all of our guides were fantastic! We couldn’t have great safari experience without them. We had three guides during our 18 day trip to Kenya and Tanzania. All of them were experienced, intelligent, passionate, and knowledgeable about the wildlife. They can spot animals that no one else can. Simon was a very friendly and outgoing guide who was great to spend time together. He sensed immediately a coalition of cheetahs that were chasing after a gazelle. We could video the dramatic scene of the kill. He also knew that a massive number of elephants were coming towards us so we made a stop to see the elephants crossing the road in front of our vehicle.
Eli was our guide in Tanzania. Not only is he an excellent guide, but also is a very good driver. He was driving careful for us on the rough terrain because my partner had a back and abdominal pain from a surgery two years ago. What we were amazed by his skills was how he could quickly spotted animals. He was also patient until we finally saw the wildebeests started come down the river and we were the first one to see the entire scene of the river crossing! He was able to show us and told names of a unique and diverse flora and fauna in the area.
Mike was our guide in Maasai Mara. He was also skilled in spotting animals. We found more lions in Maasai Mara than any other places! He made sure that we received our negative COVID test results on time for our next destination. He recommended us to visit Lake Nakuru and Samburu next time to see some animals we didn’t see on this trip.
We highly recommend Ben and his team for booking your East Africa vacation. We will definitely book with ETrip again!
