Kenya & Tanzania

Traveler Reviews

• 

  Srinivas

  August 15th, 2023
  5
  I had a wonderful time on this safari and I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to experience the best of...
  I had a wonderful time on this safari and I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants to experience the best of Africa on a budget. Here is my review: I joined the Nairobi to Zanzibar safari with Absolute Africa and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The trip was well-organized, affordable, and full of amazing experiences. I saw incredible wildlife in the Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Serengeti, and Ngorongoro Crater, as well as beautiful scenery in the Great Rift Valley and Lake Naivasha. The trip would not have been possible without the excellent crew of Absolute Africa. Our cook Joseph was amazing, he prepared delicious meals every day, catering to our dietary preferences and needs. He always had a smile on his face and a joke to share. Our tour leader Martin was very knowledgeable, friendly, and helpful. He gave us detailed information about each destination, arranged optional activities for us, and made sure we were safe and comfortable at all times. He also handled any issues that arose with professionalism and efficiency. The overland truck was spacious, comfortable, and well-equipped with everything we needed for camping. The tents were easy to set up and pack away, and the sleeping mats were ok and cozy. The truck also had a fridge and plenty of storage space. The trip was a perfect balance of adventure, relaxation, and fun.I learned a lot about Africa's culture, history, and nature. I would definitely book another trip with Absolute Africa in the future. They are the best overland company in Africa!Show more
  • 
  Traveled in July 2023
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  Hi Srinivas, Thank you for taking the time to leave a review of your recent trip with us. We are very happy to hear you had such a great time on the Big Yellow Truck and we will certainly pass your kind comments onto Martin and Joseph. We look forward to welcoming you back on board to see other parts of Africa in the future!

  Show more
• M

  Michael

  February 2nd, 2020
  5
  Our trip was fantastic - was all that we expected plus more. Highlight was Joseph (our cook) & Joe (our tour leader)...
  Our trip was fantastic - was all that we expected plus more. Highlight was Joseph (our cook) & Joe (our tour leader) who made the group's daily life so easyShow more
  Traveled in November 2019
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  Thank you for taking the time to leave a review, Michael. We are happy to hear from you that you had such a good trip that exceeded expectations! we will certainly pass on your lovely comments to Joe and and Joseph :)

  Show more
• M

  Margot

  August 3rd, 2019
  4
  Martin and Joseph our cook made the first week of the trip very memorable because of the great leadership good spirit...
  Martin and Joseph our cook made the first week of the trip very memorable because of the great leadership good spirit and great food they providedShow more
  Traveled in July 2019
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  Thank you for your comments, Margot, and very glad to hear that you enjoyed your tour with us :)

  Show more
• 

  Anonymous

  September 1st, 2018
  3
  Overall, I was pretty happy with the trip, I saw all the things that I wanted to including trekking gorillas and see...
  Overall, I was pretty happy with the trip, I saw all the things that I wanted to including trekking gorillas and see the big five as well as five hunting cheetahs. But that's pretty much all down to luck - in terms of the trip let's start with the good: the tents and mats were good quality and kept dry in a couple of torrential downpours. The food was overall pretty good although we occasionally didn't have enough. The driver was great and drove safely and carefully in very difficult terrain. The truck was fine although having half the seats the wrong way around led to some disputes over seats as pretty much anybody would get motion sick on those roads. I did have a few issues along the way, first of all, the estimated driving time was usually off often by a 100% ie. a 3-hour trip took 5-6 hours and a 6-hour journey took 12+. I fully understand that it can be hard to estimate travel times but I would suggest overestimating as opposed to under as it makes people grumpy and it meant that some optional activities were not available. Second, people would join and leave the trip continuously, so the group would balloon and shrink from 15-26 people - this was pretty frustrating particularly because it meant little group cohesion. Third, the camp in the Serengeti was completely overrun - max capacity was 80 people, we had 240 the night we stayed there, this meant overflowing toilets and lack of water. Fourth, arranging your own activities in places where the truck was parked was frown upon and admonished by the guide. Fifth, information was sometimes patchy which meant that the group would spend a lot of time getting off the bus, getting our stuff because we hadn't be informed about what we needed. Along the way, I realized that a lot of smaller groups and independent travelers kinda hate the overland trucks when they pitch their tents - they are often loud, drinking and kinda obnoxious .... From my perspective, it was a trade-off between convenience, seeing a lot in a short time and at a relatively cheap price versus the control I have when I travel on my own. I did miss the opportunity to engage with locals in more meaningful ways.Show more
  Traveled in August 2018
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  Hi Stine, Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. We are glad to hear that you enjoyed your trip overall and saw all the fantastic wildlife for which Africa is so famous. Our tours do cover a lot of ground in a relatively short amount of time in order to get our groups to the key highlights in a region, which are often a fair distance apart. As you mention, drive times can really vary depending on road conditions, time spent at border crossings etc, and so they are only given as a general guide. We appreciate the frustration that is caused when there is a big discrepancy between the estimates and reality. There have been some quite significant changes recently partly due to visa changes, new road laws, and some roads being in very poor condition or dotted with seemingly endless road works. On the rare times that delays do actually upset excursions and/or tour highlights we always look to ensure arrangements are shifted so you can still get to do what you came to Africa to do. And where there have been consistent changes for some period of time we update our estimates as quickly as we can. As is the nature and tradition of overlanding, our tours are made up of components. Many of our customers find this format particularly useful as they are able to pick and choose the highlights and options they want to see and just do that section if they don’t have time to do the full route. It is also helpful for many of our passengers who want to travel with friends or family but who have different periods of leave from work or have separate commitments, so they can choose to do shorter or longer tours but both travel together on one truck. A further bonus is that we are able to guarantee to all of our customers that their tour will not be cancelled regardless of the numbers booked, unlike some other travel companies. In general we find in our feedback from passengers that the mix of nationalities and personalities joining throughout a tour is very much considered a positive part of the experience. Our tour leaders are usually very adept at introducing newcomers to the group and organising rostas and groups for cooking and cleaning often really helps to integrate those joining later on in the trip. With regard to extra activities, we have over time developed relationships with certain local operators who we feel offer the best activity options, taking into account safety and security as well as value for money. It may not always be the cheapest operator, but we feel that the safety of our clients is paramount and so we do tend to encourage our groups to do activities with the companies we feel we have “vetted” to a certain point, rather than go with a company of which we have no concrete information regarding their operation. In the rare event there was ever an issue with any activity we are able to step in and assist if this occurs with our known operator due to our close working relationship. If other operators are used, our ability to intervene and assist is limited. Our tour leaders do aim to give as much information as possible during your tour but we would always say that if there are ever any points that are unclear, please do speak to your tour leader as first port of call. We will also speak to your crew to ensure that they understand the importance of keeping everyone fully informed of the activities day to day. The Serengeti campsite is the only campsite available to us in the park and all the overlanding companies use this site so, particularly in high season when you travelled, it can become busy. We don’t have another option to camp within the park and as this is a public campsite, the numbers staying here are unfortunately out of our control. There are no trucks with 50% backward facing seats in our fleet. Where there are seats facing reverse they create social areas which are usually very popular so clients can chat to each other and use the tables for cards, use laptops etc. In general the trucks are very large and open and it is very rare that anyone suffers from motion sickness. Where they do we ask that you let us know so we can prioritise your seating arrangements. Overlanding itself is advantageous in that you see day to day life as you travel - not solely the key highlights listed on the itinerary but the ordinary, everyday goings on by the side of the road. Travel is fluid as you see one country become another rather than flying from one point to another. Overlanding is not a style of travel for everyone and as with any group travel, there is a need to be flexible and open minded to the fact that there will be people from all walks of life travelling together. Having said that, we do not run party tours and the majority of people who travel with us are in Africa to experience the amazing wildlife, scenery and culture, similar to the independent travellers, albeit with the security and convenience of a travel group. We work hard to create itineraries which allow you to see the main highlights at a reasonable pace and also allow some time to absorb local life and enjoy cultural experiences. We hope that you will take with you many great memories of your time in Africa and best wishes for your future travels.

  Show more
• 

  Georgia

  July 29th, 2018
  5
  Our tour was amazing - from our cook Joseph, to our driver David and of course our guide for the duration of the trip...
  Our tour was amazing - from our cook Joseph, to our driver David and of course our guide for the duration of the trip Edmund who went absolutely above and beyond introducing us to all his friends at the Zanzibar Food Festival so we had a taste of everything Zanzibar had to offer. The itinerary was perfect, with our group even making the few 7 hour drive days easy and hilarious! I could not have asked for a better way to spend three weeks seeing a new part of East Africa. Thank you so much.Show more
  Traveled in July 2018
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  Thank you very much for taking the time to leave a review, Georgia. So glad to hear of your enjoyment on your trip and looking forward to having you travel with us again in the future :)

  Show more
• D

  Duc

  December 16th, 2014
  4
  Valet, our drivers Patrick & BJ were awesome! There really made the trip special!
  Traveled in June 2014
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  Thanks for the review, it's great to hear you enjoyed the Kenya and Tanzania!

  Show more