African Adventurer

Traveler Reviews

• A

  Anonymous1.5•September 2018
  It was obvious on my tour that Absolute Africa cares very little for Africa. This tour rarely involved local...
  It was obvious on my tour that Absolute Africa cares very little for Africa. This tour rarely involved local experiences- not because it was a group tour but because the guides do not care to do anything local. They care about getting on the truck, getting to the supermarket and then getting to the next campsite. We never stopped for local food- I was on the truck for 30 days and we stopped at 1 restaraunt for lunch the rest was supermarkets- the guides do not know much about the cities you go or places you visit and the optional activities were all based at tourist destinations where you camped, often run by foreigners. Our guide would often mention how "today we might stop and play football with some kids at a place I know on the way or today we will stop at a restaurant for lunch" but it never happened. The best memories I have of this trip are when I left the group at our longer stops (there were only like 3) and actually had the oppurtunity to go to markets and get clothes made or eat food at local places- again none of these experiences were recommended by the guides, who would always just convince the group that these werent things we could do, or would enjoy doing in africa. We would be on the truck all day and stop at the supermarket every day that we travelled. I cannot stress this enough THIS IS A SUPERMARKET TOUR OF AFRICA. I saw at least 20 supermarkets in my 30 days. We did not once visit a local market. Every single day that we travelled on the truck we would pull into a shopping mall and go to the supermarket. Often we ran out of time and would not get to do activities. I had friends on another overland tour going to the same destinations as absolute and they were doing a lot more activities then we had the oppurtunity to do e.g. we didnt get a chance to visit waterfalls in malawi but we went to the supermarket twice. I had 2 guides during my trip, who showed little interest in the places we travelled to. To get any information on the countries we were in, my friend on the tour and I had learnt to go to our driver. One of the tour guides even made a joke about how the countries we were travelling in weren't developed because the people are stupid. The other really annoying thing about this trip was setting up our tent in the dark. We would leave really early in the morning and always plan to be at our campsite before dark but often- probably due to the excessive amount of time we spent in supermarkets- we would arrive at campsite in the dark. So we would set our tent up in the dark and then with the one night stops we would leave at 5 or 6am so we would also be pulling it down in the dark. To make this even more painful our guide was super passive aggressive about the whole groups methods of setting up the tents and everyone would be stressed about leaving on time so we didnt get to our next campsite at dark, making the vibes all work and no play. Again my friends on the other overland trip said they didnt have this experience of setting up their tents in the dark so I am not sure why it happened so often on our trip. Of course everyone on our truck just blamed africa- I dunno absolute maybe your poorly organised tours are the problem. This is an incredible part of the world and a wonderful place to travel and I was genuinely dissapointed that Absolute africa ignores oppurtunities it could be taking to support the economies and people of the coutries that they travel to. On the positive side, its a cheap tour and hey, it's a unique oppurtunity to explore some isolated campsites in the dark and contribute to the south african economy (by shopping at each and every south african owned supermarket on the continent)Show more
  Traveled in May 2018
• CT

  Chris5.0•February 2016
  I did the 30 day tour With Phillipa and our driver Stephen. It was truly the trip of a lifetime, Phillipa was so good...
  I did the 30 day tour With Phillipa and our driver Stephen. It was truly the trip of a lifetime, Phillipa was so good at making everyone aware of what to expect when to expect it and how to handle it. She has a fantastic pallet so all the meals she (we) provided were outrageously delicious. The groups aged from 19 to 55 with me being the oldest and I felt so welcome and included that I strongly suggest to all my friends to use Absolute if when they plan to go. Steve our driver was so professional and courteous and I enjoyed my time visiting with him as well. I'm not a good passenger but never felt unsafe or apprehensive with him behind the wheel. The whole adventure was outstanding and completely off the charts. I'm in the process of saving up to do the other portions of the trip with them in the future. If you are interested in seeing Africa up close and safely with way too much fun tied in then this is the way to go... Show more
  Traveled in November 2015
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  Thank you for your comments, lovely to hear you enjoyed your trip Chris

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• P

  Poppiebell4.5•June 2015
  A 73 day overland tour, through a whooping 10 countries. Starting in Nairobi and finishing in Cape Town (tour name,...
  A 73 day overland tour, through a whooping 10 countries. Starting in Nairobi and finishing in Cape Town (tour name, Absolute Safari). This tour really is an incredible way to see some of Africa and a fantastic opportunity to get up close and personal with the animals, while enjoy the dramatic landscapes, unique to Africa. Absolute Africa have many years of experience doing these tours and it refreshing to travel with a company whose passion for the dark continent was greater then their interest in your $$$. Amazing value for money with witty, well informed guides and drivers. Everyday brought another adventure. I can highly recommend this trip. A few of my personal highlights from the trip, Gorilla trekking, The Savannah, Rhino trekking, The Namib Desert and watching the changing scenery and animals from an open-side safari truck. Amazing!Show more
  Traveled in February 2015
  

  Reply from: Absolute Africa

  We really appreciate you taking the time to leave such a lovely review, we are so pleased you realise our genuine passion for this incredible continent. Thank you.

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