Reviews of safaris to Northern Kenya

"Our trip was excellent and a wonderful family memory with our young-adult children. The recommended lodges were excellent and we were very happy to be able to support the local communities at each site - facilitated by Expert Africa and Richard Trillo.

Logistically, the connections between cities, lodges, and airlines were flawless. This was our second trip with Expert Africa (and working with Richard Trillo), and it was more complex than our last one: international, bush, and charter flights; three sites; two countries. This trip would have been impossible for us to have pulled off on our own - especially with the two-year delay forced by the pandemic! We were very happy to have these experts on our side!

Regarding the pandemic, Rwanda had the strictest protocols at the time of our trip - requiring four tests in seven days - but our driver arranged all three in-country tests and kept tabs on our results and paperwork for us. Masks were required in all airplanes, but the COVID numbers are so much lower in Africa than in the USA that we all felt very safe in the lodge settings - venues were spacious and largely open-air. We definitely had some anxiety about passing a PCR test in order to go gorilla trekking (we'd had COVID just 45 days before), but we hoped for the best and it worked out for us (and trip insurance would have come through had it not).

I would say that while COVID introduces a "wild card" into the proceedings, the travel-related requirements were well managed for us while overseas, and, in my opinion, going on safari is far safer than going to an American movie theater!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 7 on a Kenya safari

"Another well organized trip by Expert Africa, initiated by Olivia and completed by Lyndsey. Communication was always swift and to the point via email.

We visited the Samburu region, Amboseli and the Maasai Mara, giving us a caleidoscopical overview of Kenya. Initially a bit weary of possible crowds and an all too touristy experience we were pleasantly surprised how well this combination of areas and camps worked out. The only mass experience was on our transfer from Amboseli to the Mara via Nairobi-Wilson. In hindsight we would have preferred a direct flight on Mombassa Air Safari or possibly a charter; we were totally spoiled by the lovely direct charter flight from Sarara to Tortilis Camp…😉" Read full review: 17 nights in Africa; 14 on a Kenya safari

"Thank you for your assistance in creating this trip for me on short notice. I so enjoyed the camps and the areas that I visited since they were definitely different from my previous trips. I really appreciate you listening to my requests and arranging camps that met my criteria - most certainly the conservation part and assisting the surrounding the communities. Thank you Lyndsey.
I am sorry about the hiccup at the end of my trip. I was nervous about getting the test results back in time to get to the airport. As usual, the airport was a challenge - I stood in the line with KLM signage, and when I get to the checkin counter, they say I need to go to another counter, where the signs say, they are closed....
I walked up anyway and asked to be assisted, and luckily the gate person did so.....
Thank you again, and I expect to return in May - just giving you a heads up..... :)" Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 11 on a Kenya safari

"Just thrilled to be back in Africa & on safari again after 2 years of Covid.

Very pleased with the advice we got about our trip (including when one of our original accommodation choices shut and we had to make a change), also got helpful & practical information about the various Covid rules & restrictions." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 11 on a Kenya safari

"A magical trip returning to a place we visited in 2018. It's a place where it's as much about the community as it is about the wildlife." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 9 on a Kenya safari

"Richard was excellent in making ground arrangements. Everything ran smoothly. Excellent pre-trip communication.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No..would recommend." Read full review: 19 nights in Africa; 15 on a Kenya safari

"We had a wonderful trip with many momentous adventures but quite a lot more tedious jeep rides than we had bargained for, especially in the Kenya portion where the distances between camps was several hours on washed out roads only to find out when we arrived that the next activity would be a jeep ride! This was disappointing as I had been quite clear that that what I was exactly what I was trying to avoid.

The biggest issue was that Olivia had not made clear to me the consequences of the rainy season. I thought it just meant that it would rain a bit during the day and we would get wet, something I don't care about. What it really meant is that the bush would be so green and thick that animals would be extremely hard to see, that water would be so readily available everywhere that animals would be widely dispersed across hundreds of thousands of acres, and therefore hard to find, that the bugs would be fierce. and that the normally rough, bumpy roads would be so deeply rutted and washed out hat driving was bone crushing. And, as I noted in my comments about Sarara, some activities such as the Singing Wells, were not possible. No one can control the weather but if I had known what the rainy season was really like I don't think I would have taken the chance of traveling in the shoulder season. Since we were the only guests at a number of places, i felt everybody else had gotten the memo except us!

Also, some of the logistics could have been worked out better. Though the three Samburu camps look equidistant on a map, in fact it made no sense to go to Saruni Rhino last instead of Sarani Samburu, which is quite close to the airstrip.By going there last, it added another 2 and a half hour jeep trip on washed out roads to get back to the airstrip we had just come from two days earlier.

Finally, we were never told that the trip from Saruni Rhino to Plantation Lodge would be over 10 hours. We were shocked to discover on arrival at Kilamijaro that our jeep ride was over 4 hours. I can't believe there was not a scheduled or even charter flight from Kili to Manyara. In any event, no one told us about the length of the trip and we had no food from 8 AM till 6:30 PM expect for the driver's small pack of Pringles. I expected better attention to logistics.

With the exception of Stone Town, all the places we stayed were great. I just wish we had done the trip a different year when we could have done it at the right time." Read full review: 20 nights in Africa; 7 on a Kenya safari

"An intensely memorable experience - fell in love with Kenya all over again.

Especially enjoyed the interaction with our guides and staff at the lodges - have witnessed first hand over the years how more and more local staff are establishing themselves as guides and managers which is fantastic. At times quite an extreme and adventurous trip, with journeys to remote parts where we were the oddity. We had difficulty agreeing our top three moments so had to settle for six!" Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 10 on a Kenya safari

"This was a slightly complicated three week trip, as we were organising the first two weeks privately, with our son who lives in Kenya, and then segueing this with a final "solo" week planned with Expert Africa. In fact, it became a bit of a hybrid arrangement and Expert Africa (Richard Trillo) was enormously helpful and flexible in assisting us to plan and book both parts of the whole trip.

We covered some 2,500 miles of travel in country (not including flights to/from UK), by road and internal flights, taking in Nairobi, the Aberdare National Park, Nanyuki, Mount Kenya National Park, El Karama Lodge in Laikipia, Sarara Camp in Namunyak Wildlife Conservation Trust, wild camping north of Archers Post, Buffalo Springs National Reserve, Shela on Lamu Island, Porini Lion Camp (Olare Motorogi Conservancy), Loldia House on Lake Naivasha, Lake Elmenteita and Lake Nakuru National Park.

Every part of the itinerary booked with Expert Africa went without a hitch and we felt thoroughly well looked after from beginning to end. We saw more wildlife than you could possibly imagine, including all of the so called "Big Five", met wonderful, friendly people and learned something of their lives and cultures. It has been a truly memorable trip and I would recommend Expert Africa to anyone who might be planning a similar experience.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

I really can't think of anything!" Read full review: 22 nights in Africa; 9 on a Kenya safari

"Kenya was fabulous. Highspots were Sarara Camp in general (a whole list of things), the fab Villa at Saruna Mara ( terrific staff); Peponi (just being there...). And hotel One Forty Eight in Nairobi was a superb place to arrive at after a long flight...

We were especially impressed by the cheerful helpfulness of all the Kenyan people we met, in all the places we stayed- and in between.

Plus- the weather was perfect...." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 13 on a Kenya safari