NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Amazing trip due to the fantastic tour operator Augur Tours & Travel
I can recommend Augur Tours & Travel to everyone who would like to have a safe, interesting, enthusiastic tour experience in Uganda! I lived for one year in Uganda, and we used the services of Dauda a couple of times. Dauda always makes our trips incredible. He is super friendly, reliable, good in communication and has a lot of knowledge about all the different aspects in Uganda. We felt very safe with him, he is a good driver. Furthermore, Dauda is patient, he respects your privacy and is very humble, and the most important one, he makes us smile! Please keep on going like this Dauda, you're doing a great job!!
JP
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
A wonderful and well organised trip to three different environments in Botswana.
We have been on African safaris in various countries before, but Botswana was new for us, and we hoped to see some places and wildlife that were special to the area. We discussed various possibilites and budgets with Natasha, and arrived at a plan which sounded just what we wanted. And it was. We experienced three different environments - Central Kalahari, the Okavango Delta and the Kwando River over the eight days. We saw lots of animals and birds, including local specialities which we hoped for - brown hyaena, aardwolf, Cape fox, side-striped jackal and wild dog were animal highlights for us; wattled crane, slaty and black egrets, lesser jacana and lots of raptors were bird highlights. We also saw many lions, and leopard and cheetah, as well as elephants, zebra, lots of hippos and a wide range of antelope. And the African landscapes and waterscapes as alway were spectacular. Everything went to plan - Natasha's outline of the camps we chose and the activities we could do was excellent, and the guides were phenomenal. The accomodation and food were great and the lodges clean and in beautiful locations with friendly staff. Altogether a wonderful holiday!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A fantastic time
We had an amazing, comfortable and memorable five-day tour in Uganda, thanks to Ceasar and Jackie from Katona. Jackie responded promptly and professionally to my questions, working with me to find options that would fit our budget. They gave great lodging choices - especially at Bush Lodge in Queen Elizabeth National Park, everything exceeded my expectations for a budget option. They even had a gentle hippo visiting the dining area every evening.
Ceasar drove smoothly and safely, and we had fun, informative conversations. He carefully planned details like breakfast time, departure time, and whether we would take packed lunch so that our tour or game drive would be optimally timed, while allowing us flexibility. On the day of the gorilla trek in Bwindi, he helped us secure a nearby gorilla family and even borrowed two trekking sticks from a nearby hotel for us. On our last day, driving from Queen Elizabeth to Kigali airport, he managed to stop at Lake Bunyonyi for lunch, arrive at the Genocide Memorial before closing, and help us run an errand downtown - and we hadn't even woken up early!
Since we visited Queen Elizabeth during the dry season, when the animals congregate around water boies, Ceasar worked extra hard. During the morning game drive, he read the body language of the kob, the presence of birds, and tracks on the ground to infer whether larger predators were nearby. We saw lions with cubs, elephants, buffalo, water buck, warthogs and smaller animals. Having worked in the park for years, Ceasar had interesting tidbits about every animal.
Though we never met Jackie as she's based in Kampala, she called to check in most days of our tour. The folks at Katona are conscientious, responsible and warm. I will book with them again if I return to Uganda.
Kwaza tours organised tour by car with accommodation for us to Usambara mountains and Tanga region.
We were taken to a lush green coffee farm and base camp at the foothills of Kilimanjaro and had great time. We drove to Lushoto and Bumbuli where the views were fantastic and really enjoyed our tour and stay at Mullars. We were taken to Tanga and Pangani which proved lovely places to visit. The beach in Pangani is outstanding. Accommodation was simple, very clean, and great. Our tour, organised by Kwaza in a very nice car and driver named Pemba, proved superb, caring, and we had a great time. We wish to go to Ngorongoro and Masai land next year and will let Kwaza plan the tour.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Based in Nairobi - so operates well within Kenya. SOL If you are planning to use them outside.
Where do I start? Here you go!
1. A/C did not work on any of the vehicles outside Kenya. Driver had windows lowered and with the muddy roads, there was dust everywhere.
2. One of the drivers (Charles) stole one of our smartphones and lied to us when we asked about it. Later we found that there was a social media account attempted to be opened under his name with this number.
3. We made the mistake of adding an unplanned point (Victoria Falls from the Zimbabwean side) to the trip. They not only charged us exorbitantly, but also charged us for services not rendered, and refuse refund the excess charge.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our honeymoon was seamless!
Greatest Africa helped us have a seamless honeymoon from start to finish. We had originally made reservations at 3 different accommodations ourselves, but Greatest Africa offered to take over our itinerary for us so that rather than us having to confirm with three different hotels, they instead did all the confirmations for us. As well, we were able to schedule excursions and transfers with them which made our transition from the craziness of our wedding, to the ignorance of traversing another country, that much more relaxing and enjoyable. Vanessa's communication was prompt and professional, including scheduling a last minute excursion we inquired about. There was a small mishap in regards to which days we were at which accommodation but Greatest Africa fully understood their mistake and was quick to give us complementary airport transfers to make up for this. THAT is top notch service and keeps customers coming back. We will definitely use Greatest Africa again if we do decide to come back to South Africa, and have already recommended our friends to do the same.
Thank you for making our honeymoon so memorable!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing Botswana and Zimbabwe
Our experience with Ubuntu Safaris was excellent. From our first interaction to the day we landed back in Australia Cuan provided an amazing service to us. He worked closely with us to design the Botswana and Zimbabwean tour of our dreams, and the result was outstanding. Cuan's knowledge, contacts and extensive experience meant he could advise us on the best areas for the weather, time of year and animal sightings. Everything was perfectly organised and advised, exactly what you need in Africa.
The lodges through the Kwondo Company were luxurious, comfortable and perfect for our first Safari experience. Highlights included 3 lionesses and their 6 cubs, a male lion eating a hippo, wild dogs hunting and of course the elephant drinking from the pool. Amazing holiday, thank you Ubuntu Safari's.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful, memorable, worry-free vacation to Tanzania
Galloping Safari and Walter were the best. Walter's communication was always timely and informative as well as very helpful in trying to help us set up our itinerary. They worked with us until we were satisfied with the arrangements down to the last detail. We changed our mind often and Walter was always patient and helpful! Lawrence our guide for all of the northern parks was outstanding! We could not have asked for a more knowledgable guide, host or companion in Tanzania. He made sure our trip was so enjoyable that we will be sure to return to Tanzania in the future!
The last 6 days of our trip we arranged with Walter and Galloping Safari to fly to Selous for three nights and then onto Zanzibar for a final three nights. The arrangements were first class. The climate in Selous and Zanzibar was surprisingly much warmer, but the staff at the The Serena River Lodge in Selous and the Baraza resort in Zanzibar did everything to accommodate our every need.
We would not hesitate to travel again with Lawrence and Walter from Galloping Safaris!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazingly thoughtful and there for us 100%
Quite honestly, I was a little hesitant to book with Dancing Zebra because I had trouble finding online reviews, but I couldn't be happier that I booked our honeymoon through them.
From the very beginning, Jessica was flexible with our budget and needs and gave us an excellent recommendation for a 6-night safari. Every aspect and every quesiton was thoroughly covered by both Jessica and Abdullie. They gave us a full breakdown of what to expect each day from both the driver/tour and the accommodations through both an online portal and a customized pamplet that gave tips on everything from the details of the accommodations to tipping customs to even what to pack for the trip.
We actually ran into a problem with a self-booked flight heading into the safari--the flight had been cancelled without any notification to me or my husband. I contacted Dancing Zebra to let them know, and Abdullie was all over it, even though the flight had not been part of the itinerary that Dancing Zebra had covered. He was able to get in touch with the airline that cancelled and helped to ensure that I was booked on another airline to get to Kilimanjaro Airport to be in time for the start of our safari.
While our guide, Peter, was amazing and knowledgeable throughout the entire trip, the most enjoyable part of our trip was our stay at the Nasikia Naona Moru camp in southern Serengeti. My husband and I were thrilled with how luxurious the tent was (the epitome of "glamping"), but what really made the stay was the staff. They were so kind and thoughtful--I had the flu throughout the entire stay and they made sure I had enough fresh ginger tea to cure an entire family with the flu. The last night we were there, they made us a special dinner outside, underneath the stars. The staff sang and danced us a farewell song and we had such a wonderful time!!!
I cannot thank Dancing Zebra enough for the amazing honeymoon that we had.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Moriti Safaris - the trip of a lifetime!
My wife and I cannot say enough about the extraordinary safari we had with Shaun of Moriti Safaris. Our trip into the bush exceeded all of our wildest expectations. Not only did we repeatedly see the Big 5 (lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros and buffalo), but we saw herds of giraffes, wart hogs, mongoose, guinea fowl, tortoises, hippopotamus, all sorts of antelope, hyenas, zebras, baboons, hares and on and on. In addition, Shaun pointed out incredible birds, like eagles, vultures, kingfishers, heron and storks, etc. Believe it or not, we even tracked a leopard for 2 days, and eventually saw it at night, close enough to take pictures from our vehicle. Nothing was too big or small for Shaun to bring to our attention, including a huge termite nest and dung beetles. Shaun was a wonderful guide, host, diver and companion. We cannot recommend him highly enough. Thank you Shaun for making our safari an experience to remember for ever.