65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Beyond our expectations!
I found Golden Rwanda Safari’s from reading reviews online. After contacting Frank, the owner, I just had a good feeling about this company. He had an initial package that combined Rwanda mountain gorillas with Kenyan safari’s (my dream trip). We planned the 12 day trip and Frank was so patient with me as I customized so many parts of it. We paid for the trip ahead of time to guarantee good hotel rates per Frank’s suggestion. As we got close to the trip, I worried a little if all would go well since no one I knew had used Golden Rwanda Safaris. I could not have been happier. We were met at the airport by our amazing Rwandan guide, Sufiane. He took care of us like we were family. We had beautiful hotel rooms (I think often the best rooms of the hotel) and a very comfortable truck. Sufiane always kept us informed of timing and sights we were seeing. Rwanda is so beautiful and seeing the Mountains Gorilla’s was beyond amazing.
We flew to Kenya and we were met by our Kenyan guide, David. Again, he treated us like family. He is so knowledgeable about the animals and could spot them so quickly. He kept us on track for all our safari’s and since it was just two of us with David, he would tailor the day to what we wanted to see. We had a comfy pop up roof truck that had windows you could easily close (to avoid dust). Our hotels were fantastic and it was hard to leave sometimes. The hospitality in Kenya and Rwanda is wonderful.
The cost of our trip was similar to many other tour companies. We had no added fees, whatsoever, when we were there. The customer service, communication and reliability of Golden Rwanda made this a trip of a lifetime. We were able to have dinner with Frank, which was really a personal touch and unexpected. We saw the Big 5 along with so many other animals and we were up close and personal with many of them. I would not hesitate to use Golden Rwanda Safaris again and I highly recommend them to anyone traveling to East Africa!!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Golden Rwanda made our trip to Rwanda one of our best trips ever!
Our family of four (2 parents and 2 kids aged 17 and 21) wanted to go to Rwanda to do gorilla trekking but the more we learned about Rwanda, the more time we wanted to spend in the country. We reached out to Golden Rwanda and they did an excellent job helping me organize what turned out to be a 16 day trip! Communication with Frank (the owner) was excellent and we landed on a trip were we would go to the genocide memorial in Kigali, Nyanza royal palace, Nyungwe National Park (chimpanzee trekking, hiking, and colobus moneys), Lake Kivu (coffee plantation, fruit bats, and relaxation), Volcanoes National Park (2 days gorilla trekking & 1 day golden monkeys), and Akagera National Park (2 days in the south, 3 days in the north). We have traveled quite extensively in and out of Africa and this trip ranks up there with one of the best ones we have done. We were picked up by our guide/driver (Taufique) late at night in Kigali and quickly dropped off a the Governors Residence for a good night's rest (highly recommend this place). We would spend the next 16 days with Taufique in Rwanda. The two days of gorilla trekking were something that had to be reserved well ahead of time (Golden Rwanda did this for us) but everything else in the trip would be discussed the day before. I love this approach of having an outline of a plan but adjusting it along the way depending on the desires of the group. This was something that we have rarely had with a tour guide and it made the trip fantastic!!! We ended up experiencing things that were not in the original plan (such as ziplining in Nyungwe, the fruit bats on Napoleon Island, colobus monkeys in Nyungwe, walking with rhinos in Akagera, coffee plantation on the edge of Mount Kivu) and also eliminated some things that were too much (i.e. an extra day hiking in Volcanoes NP). Taufique was a master of logistics...getting us to where we needed to go, making sure lodging was ready for us, organizing food/coffee stops, and recommending activities along the way. He basically organized everything. Additionally...he was our wildlife guide in Akagera (which is a phenomenal park!!). So...first of all...go to Rwanda for more than gorillas....Nyungwe, Akagera, and Lake Kivu were particularly fantastic. It is an AMAZING country with so much to see and really nice people. Second...GO with Golden Rwanda and have them run the trip for you. It was fantastic and I highly recommend them!
CH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A great Discovery of Rwanda thanks to Golden Rwanda Safaris
Our family of 4 just returned from a one-week discovery of Rwanda and its natural parks. We truly recommend Golden Rwanda Safaris.
- From the beginning, Frank, the owner, was very fast to answer and always gave us good ideas for our trip. The booking and payment was very easy and safe, which made us confident.
- Our guide, Taoufique, was very friendly and fun, very knowledgeable and always trying to give us the best experience. Thanks to him, we discovered so much about Rwanda.
- Rwanda is an amazing country. We didn’t know a lot before, but we were really touched by the history, the people, and the fact that the country is so safe and clean. Everywhere we stayed, the hotels and lodges were very good, with the best rooms and delicious food.
- Of course, the gorilla trekking was the highlight of the trip (really worth it !) but we also enjoyed many other activities, like walking with rhinos in Akagera and doing the zipline in Nyungwe hills.
We had a wonderful time and we would love to come back to Rwanda again with Golden Rwanda Safaris.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very pleasant and easy to work with.
Ndamungu was very pleasant to deal with everyday! !
NG
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent Private tour of Prison Island
The services and communication were excellent and the tour guide was extremely knowledgeable. the prison island tour was fun and i would definitely recommend it.
IL
Best trip ever
We are a family of four and it was memorable and special holiday. Everything was Excellent organised
The planning of our safari was thorough and gave us, as first timers, a safari as complete as I can imagine Our guide on safari was superb very knowledgeable and well spoken he ensured our safari experience was superb. The lodges were fabulous, the surprisingly good. We had 10 days in Tanzania followed by a beach holiday in Zanzibar including a day in stone town. We loved it and regional tours took all the hassle out of our trip. We would highly recommend MercuryZanzibarSafari
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Incredible
We (me and 6 other people) did a 3 day safari (2 nights) with Qualified Tours and it was really great! Our guide picked us up on the first day in the morning at our accommodation in Arusha and we went directly to the first national park - Tarangire. In advance, we clarified everything easily via WhatsApp and were able to select our desired route. Included in the price was everything from guide to accommodation to food and water. The Tarangire National Park was super beautiful. In the evening we drove to the accommodation that Qualified Tours booked for us and were overwhelmed! We were accommodated in the super beautiful Hhando coffe lodge and had a 4-course menu in the evening (drinks had to be paid extra). The houses we slept in were super nice and big, there is a pool and the breakfast buffet was also very good! On the second day we went to the Ngorongoro Crater and were overwhelmed by nature and the animals. We then spent the afternoon at the beautiful pool in the lodge and in the evening there was a delicious buffet. We spent the last day in Lake Manyara National Park and in the evening our guide took us back to an accommodation in Arusha. I highly recommend Qualified Tours! It was super great!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Worth it! Exceeded all expectations and wouldn't change a thing!
Wow we don't even know where to start with our review of East African Safari, but basically it ends with smiles and two thumbs up! Simon was beyond helpful answering our many, many questions and was also very accommodating with our requests on length of trip, and where we wanted to stay at night. We E-mailed other safari operators as well but Simon's prompt and helpful replies, in addition to their community integration and conservation efforts, is really what sold it for us. This cost is a bit higher than other operators, but as we soon found out that it is 100% WORTH IT!
Just a few quick details about our trip: 10 days Safari, starting in Mwanza with stay near Speke Bay, and then passing through Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire, and finally flying out from Arusha.
Our guide, Cosmos, was beyond expectations and definitely one of the reasons the trip ended up perfect for us. He met us promptly at the airport in Mwanza with a big smile and immediately shuttled us over to the Tilapia Hotel so that we could relax after being on airplanes for 20+ hours. The place even had a pool and gorgeous view of the water so we felt relaxed and ready to go the next morning! Cosmos was waiting for us right when he promised, and after chatting for a bit we knew he was going to be a great guide over the next 9 days. We were both interested in learning Swahili for the trip and so were constantly bugging him for swahili translations but he energetically answered every question we had!
One of the first big highlights that made us glad we chose EASTCO happened when our original hotel for the second day, the Speke Bay Lodge, ended up being full so instead Simon got us rooms at nearby Serenity on the Lake lodge...which was one of the nicest places we've ever stayed! Throughout the entire trip there were multiple instances like this, where things didn't go exactly as planned (for those of you you've traveled to Africa this shouldn't be a surprise) only to find that Cosmos and Simon would improvise quickly to make everything perfect for us!
Every day had a pretty standard routine, Cosmos would tell us what time to meet him, we'd drive around watching wildlife, and then spend afternoons back at the lodges. My girlfriend and I are slow eaters so a few times were a little late to meet him at the vehicle but he would just respond with a smile and the usual Tanzanian response of "No worries! Pole Pole!" Cosmos' energy, promptness, and especially knowledge of African wildlife really were incredible. He'd usually spot and identify wildlife before we could even see them! We managed to see every bit of wildlife we had planned (including rhinos and leopards) and he even managed to find something I had absolutely been dying to observe...a leopard tortoise! I can't stress that enough with Cosmos, he will go out of his way to make sure you get a chance to see what you want and he has the eyes and intuition to make it happen. At the same time, he is also very patient and would sit quietly while we sat for long periods of time just to watch a pride of lions eating or hippos bathing.
Another reason we're glad we went with EASTCO: I accidentally left my cell phone at one of the lodges which of course is always a stressful situation. However, Simon called and had the lodge actually mail the phone to himself in Arusha, after which he personally organized a driver to BRING THE PHONE down to us near Tarangire park!! We didn't have to worry at all about the entire situation because it was handled perfectly by Simon and Cosmos, and phone was delivered back safely into my hands!
Also, we had planned (and paid) to stay at the Rhino Lodge near the Ngorongoro crater because it was a more budget friendly lodge option, but on the day were supposed to head over there Cosmos got a text from Simon telling him to put us up in the Serena Wildlife Lodge instead!! For no extra cost to us! For those of you unaware, Rhino lodge is a budget lodge away from crater rim, while Serena is one of the few luxury lodges that actually sit on the rim...with an incredible view! This was a very pleasant surprise for us, and I have to be honest, that hot shower felt incredible after a dusty day in the crater.
The final days of the trip were spent in East African Safari's own lodge, the Boundary Hill Lodge (can check out our review on TripAdvisor) which also exceeded our every expectation. Reading about the history of the lodge was inspirational, basically created to help support the local communities (and indeed even 50% owned by those same communities) and an inseparable part of the Tarangire Conservation Area. One our final day Cosmos took us around souvenir shopping and even offered to help bargain with vendors if we needed the backup (a very nice offer sometimes when buying things as a traveler!).
In summary, if you want a dependable, quality, top-notch safari with a guide who is friendly and very knowledgeable...then pick East African Safari Company! Also I should mention that Simon also organized all of our airfare to other places around Tanzania. We picked them because of their integration and support of local communities and incredible work with wildlife conservation (basically the entire reason Boundary Hill Lodge was even created) but found that they also provided a better Safari trip than we could have ever hoped. Absolutely worth it!
IT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
the best operator in all Africa!
mercury zanzibar safari for me is the top service in all Africa. Mister Ndamungu, the boss, is a special person.
JP
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The one of greatest safari companies.
The company think of the needs of tourists the best such as the balance of destination and costs. Thanks to this company, I could have a trip to ngororo and serengeti. Also, the company replys the soonest. This helps tourists so much. I really thank this company.