Masai Mara Travel Agents & Reviews

The trip was great. We got to see everything we wanted to see, including the big five and the migration of large herds of wildebeests and zebras. 

The travel company was extremely helpful. The pre-trip prep was very thorough, but the true test came when I lost my cell phone in Mara towards the end and then our return flight was unexpectedly canceled. So I was stranded in Nairobi with my 12-year-old, having almost no means of communication with the rest of the world, and the rebooked flight was not until five days later.

The travel agency worked with local providers and put together a three-day side trip for us to go to Lake Nakuru to see rhinos, rebooked our local transportation, and made sure a local agent would be at the airport to help us when we departed — and they made all the arrangements within a day. They helped make a really stressful situation a lot easier to deal with.

Maurice did a great job organizing our trip. Our itinerary was thoughtfully planned and the communication to prepare for our trip was superb. We landed in Nairobi and spent one night there before heading to the national parks. Our hotel room was specially decorated for our honeymoon, which we appreciated.

Our first safari was at Maasai Mara. The game drives were spectacular and our guides were very knowledgeable. We highly recommend the balloon safari; it was our most memorable experience. The camp was very nice and the staff extremely friendly. However, we were told the camp was equipped with WiFi, but upon arrival, we learned there was no WiFi there. We ended up paying for an international data plan for three days.

Our next stop was the Serengeti. The driver we were supposed to meet didn't show due to car trouble. Instead, another driver met us, but he was late and not familiar with our itinerary. We got lost while driving to our campground and it took us three hours to locate it. We were too tired to go on the half-day game drive. 

The next day, we had a full-day game drive and saw many animals, making the safari unforgettable. However, our car broke down on our way back to camp and we had to take a detour to a checkpoint to get it fixed. We highly recommend the Serengeti Camp. It was our best lodging experience and the staff were unbeatable.

Our last safari was at Ngorongoro Crater, which was another unforgettable experience. Although we wished we could have spent more than a couple of hours there. Zanzibar was a great way to end our trip and our hotel was a perfect spot for relaxation before heading home.

There were a couple of mishaps during our trip, some of which were uncontrollable and not a result of planning, but overall, we are very happy with the experience. Thanks to Maurice and our travel company for everything!

The trip of a lifetime. Far exceeded our expectations. Our tour guide was outstanding. His knowledge of animals, birds,  plants, and the people was incredible. A wonderful personality. Every day our vehicle was spotless; quite a feat considering all the dust. Each accomedation was unique and different from each other. This was a custom designed safari by the travel agency and was unique and wonderful. We experienced things a normal safari would not.

I just got back from a wonderful two-week trip to Southern Africa and want to thank Zicasso for putting me in touch with the travel agency and Shannon, who did a wonderful job of constructing my dream trip. Everything was top-notch and well-executed, and Shannon was friendly, responsive (I'm very picky and made many revisions), and a great communicator. 

When there was a wrinkle (which fortunately was very rare), she was right on top of it (in one case a lodge had booked us into their other property and tried to move us there, but Shannon showed them proof that we had booked over a year in advance and insisted we stay in the original property. They honored that).

Here is my review of specific aspects of the trip:

Cape Town. I can't say enough about the hotel, which was one of the best we'd ever stayed in. The property itself (it's a very modern and beautiful boutique hotel steps from the beach) and the customer service were wonderful. We stayed for four nights and I can't imagine a better place to stay in Cape Town. We spent one night in the wharf area before coming to the hotel and I'm so glad we opted to stay near the beach instead. Having a beautiful ocean view and being able to walk to the beach to watch the sunset every night was incredible. 

Also, the staff were over-the-top amazing; they were so flexible and accommodating (if you wanted breakfast early or after the regular serving period, they would happily oblige; if you walked in with take-out, they would plate it for you and bring it to your room. They would also pick up take-out and deliver it to you). 

There were also many special touches - free wine, free, stocked mini-bar, free hot cocoa, and popcorn that they would deliver to your room any time - we felt very cared for. One of the managers led us on a guided hike up Lion's Head mountain, which was super-fun (he not only brought tea and snacks, but is an excellent photographer and took beautiful photos of us that he shared). I highly recommend the activity to anyone who is reasonably fit (the views at the top are outstanding). We also did a peninsula tour and an all-day food and culture walking tour the next, and highly recommend our guide - she was delightful and fun.

The lodge. Wow, I had read all the five-star reviews of this lodge on a private reserve near Kruger before we left and wondered how it could ever meet such high expectations, but it exceeded them. This was more like 10-star than 5-star. The staff (much like the staff at our hotel in Cape Town) were so friendly, professional and responsive. They would do anything to make you happy. And like them, all of the warmth and special treatment felt genuine rather than fake or forced. 

The food was amazing (and plentiful - all meals, alcohol and high tea were included), but what set this lodge apart was the amazing rangers (we were lucky to have the head ranger and his tracker). I learned so much from them about animal behavior as they were incredibly knowledgeable (and extremely respectful) of the animals. As a result, we saw all of the big five multiple times (my favorites were seeing three leopards and seven lions, including both male lions sleeping after a kill and female lions slowly hunting Cape buffalo in the early evening). We met people at this lodge who had stayed at multiple other five-star lodges and all said this one was the best, which I can believe.

Victoria Falls. The lodge was the number one rated lodge in Victoria Falls and though it was very nice, it did honestly pale by comparison to our lodge near Kruger (the outdoor bathtub and pool were both dirty and not usable. I'm not sure how one would remedy this, other than to re-order the trip so one ends in Sabi Sands). 

The staff were nice and the food was wonderful, and like our other lodge, activities were included (the guided trip to Victoria Falls was very informative as was the private "sundowner" river cruise we had on our arrival night. We saw male elephants engaging in "horseplay" in the water, a trip highlight. However, the game drive (no tracker and a much smaller park) paled in comparison to those we did in Sabi Sands). 

The optional (extra charge) elephant interaction at their sanctuary was really amazing and we highly recommend it to anyone staying in Victoria Falls. The falls were about a third dry because we went after the winter dry season. Shannon had warned us about this in advance, so they were a little underwhelming, but I'm still glad we went because we wanted to see them and weren't sure if we'd get back to this part of the continent on another trip. If you want to visit the falls, be sure to look at photos of how they look during certain months so your expectations are met. 

Chobe River Cruise (Namibia).  I'm so glad we did this cruise because it was a great way to end our trip on a really high note. We originally wanted to book the Zambezi Queen (which is bigger, more modern, and more luxurious), but only the Chobe Princess was available for our dates and we ended up getting the smallest (four rooms) of the three CPs. I thought it might be underwhelming, but I was wrong. We had a great time on our small ship with six members of a German family. 

The staff were wonderful (amazing food from Chef Edgar!) and "game drives" on the river turned out to be a game-changer. Although we saw many animals during our land-based safaris, we did see different behavior from the water (elephant herds crossing the river; baboons at play for 30 minutes at a time, whereas on land, the baboons would run away; huge groups of giraffe in an open field). 

Unlike on land, where you would sometimes drive 30 minutes or an hour in search of a sighting, we saw animals the entire time we were on small boat excursions from the larger boat. Essentially, we'd spend 30 minutes watching elephants and then move to crocodiles, baboons, and giraffes, etc.). Of my top recommendations for people going to Africa, it's to do this river cruise in addition to land-based safaris.

Thanks again to Shannon (and Zicasso) for making our dream trip come true. Although we've been to many wonderful places (including Patagonia, Bora Bora, Australia/New Zealand, etc), my wife and I agree that this was the best trip we've ever taken. And we will be back!

 A wonderful and memorable trip to Tanzania and Zanzibar. The trip was well organized and custom made to our specifications. We were looking for a local safari outfitter as we wanted to help the local small businesses and we found our perfect fit in this travel company. Our tour guide/driver was the best. He has an uncanny ability to find wildlife, and at the same time can brew the best Tanzanian coffee in his land cruiser. Our whole trip from start to finish was well organized without any issues. Would highly recommend this travel company if you are considering a local safari outfitter in Tanzania.