US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Kenya Safari with Travel For Change
My wife and I just got home from a 9 day, 8 night safari with Travel for Change Africa and I wanted to hurry and write this review because the company, tour, and driver/guide were just that amazing. Safaris can seem daunting and expensive when looking to book them from the US, but Patricia provided a customizable quote that was entirely within our (modest) budget. She contacted us regularly via email and WhatsApp as we approached the date of the safari, and was very professional. As other reviewers have said, a safari is "made or broken" by your driver/guide, and our guide, Patrick, was perfect. A twenty-plus year veteran of the industry, he seemed to know everyone (he was always shaking hands with fellow drivers) and everything (from an obscure bird to the best place to go in Samburu to see lions). Needless to say, we saw lions, elephants, giraffes, leopards, cheetahs, rhinos, hippos, etc., many of which Patrick seemed to find for us! While this company may not be that well-known, I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone. I warily contacted a few reviewers here prior to booking for reassurance, and I will happily reassure anyone looking to book with Travel for Change.
AE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent trip, well balanced program, great guides
The experience with the company started not really well - incorrect budget calculations, lodges offered finally were not available, some turbulences with contract sign off. But despite all these mistakes the company demonstrated great honest attitude, unique flexibility, care about our expectations and budget wise was one of the most reasonable agency we had briefed. The 12 days program was tight: Tarangire, Eyasi, Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Natron and Manyara. Exhausting but well balanced. Guides with amazing attitude, caring about us in all aspects. Some lodges and camps could have been better, some too luxurous, so the budget could have been allocated better. Tips were nightmare, spoiling a bit the whole good impression. But we do recommend this agency for its enormous flexibility, price affordability and quality of guides. To be improved though: policy of tipping, booking of lodges/camps in time and with more balanced standard.
CA
Exceptional experience in the beautiful Okavango Delta
Beautiful weather, unbelievable wildlife exposure, great photography opportunities, wonderful camp staff and food, comfortable tenting, very good safari companions, and Jane kept the whole thing rolling along with minimal problems. Even when unforseen mechanical problems arose the group as a whole pulled together and we got to were we needed to be. I would rate this as an excellent safari option for a new traveler to Africa or a seasoned safari goer. All good. Thanks Jane and crew!!!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great management & customer service, finished with a top safari experience
The initial corresponding speed & efficiency with George was just excellent. For exactly the same looking specs & itinerary when compared with other tours the price Right Choice Tours & Safaris quoted was also the cheapest I could find. The overall experience of the safari itself was priceless. A tip for everyone, going to the Serengeti/ngorongoro region in May is a great time of the year as it being the end of the off peak season meant that the weather was ok, not many people & the recent days of rain has made ngorongoro grass & flowers just lush in beauty.
The reason for 4 stars instead of 5 is just for a few things:
-Part of the itinerary was changed last minute (although when I challenged this with George it was dealt with quickly)
-As there were only 2 of us we were joined with other tour groups, & a lot of hours were spent waiting for them to arrive to join us (although we all got on really well & had a great time)
-We were greeted by other members of the company we've not dealt with so far at our hotel who requested us to give the full payment in cash the day before the trip and when asked for a receipt we were not given one (I then challenged this with George who again quickly rectified this, but it's just good to note that the least customers would like is to receive a receipt as proof of payment when they have to give lots of money to people they've not met coming to their hotel).
-it would be great to give us a warning/information on the fact that we have to tip the safari drivers & how much is appropriate; we felt bad in hindsight as we wished we gave more to our first driver Lazarus who was so knowledgable & passionate, but we didn't know how much was appropriate until we spoke to other customers on the rest of our tour.
A special thank you to Lazarus our driver & Juma our cook who made our honeymoon wonderful.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent Budget Safari
We found it really easy to tailor the safari we wanted with Safari Makers. Jo was really responsive with information via email. When we arrived in Arusha, our guide was on time to pick us up and everything went to plan. I would definitely recommend the company.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent experience and great value
We thoroughly enjoyed our safari with Lion King. They were quite accommodating throughout the booking process and during the safari itself. We stayed in lovely lodges with good food, and our vehicle was perfect for animal viewing. Our guide (James) spoke English well and was very knowledgeable about the animals, where to find them, and how to interpret their behavior. His style was relaxed yet efficient. We saw every animal we had hoped to see (and many more!) and simply had an excellent time. We recommend them very highly!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Exceptional,excellent service, unforgettable life experience
We had a wonderful bush experience. We spent a night in the Xini camping site in the Moremi Game Reserve. We enjoyed watching the stars as we were seated around the fire after dinner. We enjoyed the cold breeze from the Delta, listening to the chorus of frogs, the laugh of hyenas, the chirp of a nightjar and the roar of lions. From the beginning of the trip everyone was so helpful in making the arrangements. The marketing and communications manager Lucky was always reliable and answered every question the way we wanted it. We were guided by the best guide I have ever meet, knowledge of animals, animal behavior as well as birds. The food was on point, all meal perfectly cooked. We really enjoyed our tour. We plan to come back again next year. If anyone wants to go on tour we recommend African Jacana Safari Tours. What a life time experience!!!!
IN
Unforgettable Safari experience with highly knowledgable and trustworthy group
We planned our visit to African Safari from 25 June - 3 July 2017 and tied up with Bobby Camping Safari. Bobby Camping Safari arranged for all facilities including our pick up from the Kilimanjaro international airport, Arusha Tanzania visit to Lake Manyara Reserve, Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater with boarding and lodging internal travel of Parks and Reserves with drop back to the airport on our way back to Delhi. The facilities arrange by Bobby Camping Safari needs special condemnation.
At the Kiliminjaro international airport we were received and welcomed by representative of Bobby Camping Safari Mr. Saif who was to be our Guide for rest of our African Safari tour. On the way to our first destination Manyara lake Reserve we were welcomed by Mr. Sameer of Bobby Camping Safari who assured us that our trip to Safari shall be our life time experience and wished us Good luck for African Safari. He made us comfortable by assuring that he will always be available on his phone for help in case of any discomfort during our journey.
Our entire stay was truly an out of this world experience, much better than what we could have imagined. The entire duration of the trip was very well planned and organised. Our stay at all the lodges was extremely comfortable. Being vegetarians we were a little concerned about food, which was taken care off very nicely.
We could move in the wilderness, so close to so many wild animals that it kept us excited on which animal might be siting around the next corner and prepared us more for the next day. We were able to capture amazing photographs due to the proximity the animals with our cameras so beautifully that it is unbelievable.
Our guide Saif was most knowledgeable about the animals and was able to spot animals with amazing ease and confidence, at the same time being most careful while driving in the National Parks. His ability of spotting animals often surprised. His knowledge about the birds of the area can be great asset to the bird watchers. Saif was extremely well-mannered, friendly and treated us like family.
We would personally like to thank Mr. Sameer of Bobby Camping Safari for making our African Safari tour amazing and memorable one. His personal interest in his clients impressed us, and on our way back to the airport he came to meet us for our feedback. I would like to recommend Bobby Camping Safari to all my friends and nature lovers who are planning to visit African Safari.
Thanks.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fun and reliable safari experience
We were five students looking to explore Tanzania- our school used Benson travel so we decided to use it as well. Our 7 day safari (which is really 5 days with travel and transfers) turned out to be perfect. Our guide, Peter, was amazing at spotting animals (sometimes, even better than our binoculars) and made sure that we had a great time while in Tanzania. We went to Serengeti, Ngorogoro crater, Lake Manyara and Tarangere. Our favorite night was definitely in the moving camp in serengeti- we could hear lions from our tent! It was awesome.
Would highly recommend this trip!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
One-day Nairobi Park Tour
We have nothing but positive things to say about this experience. The organiser, Stella, was adaptable and personable, while the guide, David, was absolutely first-class. The park is small but densely packed with animals - ideal if you've got a shorter time window than a traditional safari would demand - and in a morning, we saw hippos, rhinos, lions, giraffes, ostriches, gazelles etc. We had a private vehicle and tour guide and were quite amazed at the value for money provided by this tour. We would whole-heartedly recommend it.