Africa Odyssey Anmeldelser 

Awesome African Adventure
My family and I booked an adventure with Africa Odyssey to Tanzania and Zanzibar and are just returned from a phenomenal trip. The lodges they chose were absolutely top and all the transfers and other arrangements went perfectly. We were so sad to leave !

I booked a safari in Botswana in September with AfricanOdyssey. I wanted a memorable vacation, and i accepted to pay a very high price as i was expecting a wonderful experience. All lodges were very expensive in Botswana and they charged were multipled by 3 in 8 years but not the salary of the staff so benefits are only for shareholders. So for me, Botwana is not better than other experiences i had in others countries, but really much more expensive. I booked with this travel agency (africanodyssey.com) but i had others proposals exactly the same price meaning there is a rack rate defined by Wilderness-safaris.com. So for 8 nights with domestic flights i paid almost 22,000 USD (yes twety thousand USD) and for that rate i get 3 lodges from (africanodyssey.com) for (wilderness-safaris.com) lodges
- a basic lodge (for me 300 USD) called Kahalari Plains camp. very d disappointing for an high rate - too expensive for the confort
- Little mombo which was refurbished but too expensive also
- a camp called Vumbura Plains Camp (north camp as there is 2 camps) . I paid 3200 USD PER NIGHT for 1 person , for a supposed 5 stars camp and this rating is a huge lie because considering the confort, the service and the fafed room, it's a place i will never have been even for 50 USD? And for that rate you can expect , at a cheapest rate, a suite in the more expensive 5 stars hotels in Japan, Paris , New york, London.. My experience was awful and i am very angry to have been advise to go there , when the job of a travel is to make customers happy and i am far to be happy for such disaster.
I have obviously the invoice and the pictures if Trustpilot needs it and i am not stupid and it's not diffamation but a real experience.
1- my pool was brown-green !! as the birds were staying in a tree above my private pool and they defecated inside. So so do you want to put a finger inside? and why this pool was not protected or moved in another since years? is that normal to have such disgusting room for 3250 USD per night
3 - and it's far to be finished : the room was faded with a very bad decoration and with old damaged basic furniture and dirty carpets
4 - there was blinds around the room and they were there since the opening, so around 15 years : they were dirty, opaque because the sun damaged the plastic and dusty. So i was supposed to have a nice view from my room but i can't see anything : just non transparent blinds. How Wilderness-Safaris dared to offer at this rate such slam.
5 - and the top was when my mosquito net falled on my legs as i was resting on my bed. The net was retained to completely fall by the fan !
There is no maintenance in Vumbura Plains.

when i complained : the staff was also arrogant telling me Botswana is the Rolls Royce !! very modest. specially when this is very true for the indecent rates for poor confort but also for a very bad experience

So 1st i posted 6 reviews on Tripadvisor and the deleted or make it invisible (pending), so i can't inform others travelers to avoid Wilderness-Safaris and AfricanOdyssey as it's a very bad choice. I choose the Wilderness safaris lodges because on their good comments and rating (4.5 / 5) but deleting the bad reviews is a censure and the average note is rising. But it's just a scam. Tripadvisor also make a pressure on Trustpilot but they didn't succeed meaning Trustpilot is fair and you might find this review here
After i checked a website which have an algorithm to detect the percentage of fake reviews and tripadvisor for this lodge seems to have 40% fake reviews and it's probably subestimed as many bad reviews has been deleted so invisible.
-----
so this is the analysis on this lodge : "analysis on Tripadvisor : Vumbura Plains Camps , botswana - 40% low quality reviews for this 5 stars according to Tripadvisor which is a lie.

so the result of their analysis is "There are indications of inauthentic reviews. You be the judge.
Analysis overview
Our engine has analyzed and discovered that 60.0% of the reviews are reliable.
Our engine detects that in general the reviewers have a positive sentiment.
The most used word by reviewers is our.
Our engine has profiled the reviewer patterns and has determined that there may be deception involved.
Our engine has determined that the review content quality is low.
Reviews summary
Able to track animals by their tracks, which meant that we saw the highlights before my wife and i recently stayed at this camp and experienced some of our best safari sightings of our trip

Our guide speedy was awesome and was the first guide we had that was consistently able to track animals (resulting in us being the first just spent 3 nights at vumbura south camp
".
And the global result was : "Fakespot Review Grade
C
Our analysis detected 40.0% low quality reviews

and this lodge is rate by them at 2.5 which is very generous but they can't take in account the deleted reviews"

on Tripadvisor , few bad reviews, but some looks like mine but not so extreme
one sample : from 2015, so now the experience is worst
"

AlwaysOnTheAirplane

Washington, D.C.

223323

Reviewed July 14, 2015

Does Not Deliver at $4,000+ Per Night

extract:
We considered rating this property as "terrible" but decided on poor. This rating is a reflection of a series of what were mostly small but upsetting events. The rating reflects our expectations of a property that costs well over $4,000 per day and even more when you have engaged a private guide and vehicle." ……...

and the answer was "WildernessSafaris, Manager at Wilderness Safaris Vumbura Plains Camp, responded to this reviewResponded July 17, 2015
---
Dear AlwaysOnTheAirplane,
Thank you for taking the time to share this detailed feedback on your recent stay with us. Although you declined to complete a guest evaluation form in camp, our Operations team have already made us aware of your concerns. Our Customer Care team has been in contact with your Travel Agent accordingly, and you will receive further correspondence from us via that channel; regarding your stay with Wilderness Safaris.

""also wilderness-safaris tried to buy my silence - difficult to change bad behaviors !! so probably many unhappy customes accepted this corruption signing a paper.
so this the extract of a mail sent to me : ""We appreciate your candour and as we do concede that your stay at Vumbura Plains was not optimal, we
could like to offer a refund for 2 nights on the provision that you sign a full waiver and release. This offer is
given without prejudice or acceptance of liability or error on our part and that you will refrain from posting any negative reviews, images and comments on social platforms about Wilderness Safaris. Please let us know if you accept this offer, so that we may send through the waiver letter for you to sign."
I refused, 6400 USD is attractive but i refused as i loose almost 22,000 USD (without international flights and this charity compared to my prejudice of 22,000 USD !! as they wasted fully vacations.

I prefer to fight against those bad practices and publish the most i can about my experience and there is a lot of reviews now posted in different websites and it's just the beginning

So I ACCUSE AfricaOdyssey to have published on its website OLD PICTURES probably from the opening of the lodge, so new , and also very different. So they are dishonnest if they knew the real condition of the lodges or incompetent if they don't know the current bad quality of these Wildernes-safaris lodges. So 2 good reasons to avoid them as they are a bad choice to organize a trip. They are only interested by a huge amount paid by Wilderness even they are wasting the vacations of many tourists

So it has to be known to all travelers.
for myself i will travel again to other countries for safaris , but i will ban Botswana - too expensive for a very bad experience and i prefer to have more days vacations for the same rate or pay less for a better experience for also 8 days.
and i promise i won't go again the travel agencies which are supposed to be skilled to advise you the best vacations. But direct is the best choice and it's easy
and this unskilled and disapointing "travel agency" is far to be the best choice

Be aware of fake data on internet

-------------Answer to the Managing Director of AfricanOdyssey
It's not the price itself which is very shocking
- i am used to the best palaces in the world and my purpose is to explain to others travelers that for a crazy price per night in Botswana (average price i paid more than 2600 USD average per night !!) : i got the confort of a bad motel in 2 lodges on 3. This is just indecent and there is no value for my money. Even worst : you don't respect your customers and you took them for nuts. You are arrogant thinking you are the best country for safaris specially when the Okavango river is drying and very probably your Okavango will be a part of Kahalari desert one day.

Just remind trees can't reach the sky ! specially with awful rooms!

I am not the only person on social networks who wrote very bad reviews.

This trip in Botswana was a pure nightmare and the upmost awful vacations i ever had.
and concerning AfricanOdyssey : how can you send your customers in such places for such crazy price. If these lodges were in such awful condition, your duty was to tell me and suggest a better property than Wilderness-Safaris. My pictures are true and i have your invoice.

This trip in Botswana was a pure nightmare and the upmost awful vacations i ever had. And concerning AfricanOdyssey : how can you send your customers in such places for such crazy price. If these lodges were in such awful condition, your duty was to tell me and suggest a better property than Wilderness-Safaris. My pictures are true and i have your invoice.
You made a huge mistake with me as i will continue to post many bloody reviews on social networks and i will be delighted if travelers avoid AfricanOdyssey and they just offer a pas

Our friends ventured on a safari for their honeymoon and raved about their experience with Africa Odyssey. Hence, my husband and I knew who to contact when we were ready for our trip to Africa. Communication was excellent throughout the entire process and they answered every question without hesitation. We could not be happier with all the arrangements and everything ran smoothly - all transfers/flights were on time, accommodations were wonderful, and our safaris were an incredible experience. I recommend Africa Odyssey without hesitation and look forward to a trip with them in the future!

We booked through Africa odyssey for our recent trip to Tanzania. They by far had the most organized website, as most information on the internet regarding Africa is daunting and difficult to interpret.
I love the fact they contact you and discuss what’s important to YOU regarding your travels. They also get to know who you are and They style of traveler you are which makes your experience more pleasurable. All logistics and travel went smoothly without any complaints or mishaps. I highly recommended this organization and will likely be using them in the future

A great company to deal with Very professional
David Spitz

Great service, excellent advice, friendly and efficient, would use again and definitely recommend.

My wife and I just returned from a trip to Tanzania and Zanzibar organized by the fine folks at Africa Odyssey. What a fantastic experience! Kitty Crisp and her colleagues were incredible to work with and made planning for this, our first trip to Africa, very easy and enjoyable. They were courteous, knowledgeable and responsive to every question we had and helped us focus on exactly where we would want to go and the optimal accommodations while we were there. They were also very flexible in arranging for all of our in continent transfers and travel (which we highly recommend).

Lake Manze was our camp in the Selous. Again, we can’t say enough about the fantastic accommodations there and helpful staff. The managers, Sean and Millie, were welcoming, accommodating and perfect facilitators, matching us with a tremendous guide (Samwel) and driver (Abuu) and fellow guests for meals and for safari which enriched the experience beyond words. We enjoyed having a few opportunities for driving and boat safari where we were paired with just our guide and driver and other opportunities where we shared the experience with another couple. The bush had much to offer and each offering was a gift.

Zanzibar Palace in Stone Town (and Stone Town itself) were exotic and exhilarating and a great place to sight see, dine and do some shopping (Memories of Zanzibar was a fine place to do this).

Zuri Zanzibar, our beach resort, was a great place to wind down from all that we saw and did on safari and in hectic, crowded and fun Stone Town. The food, sleeping accommodations, pool, pristine beach, spa and wonderful staff catered to every need.

We highly recommend African Odyssey for their service and value and believe you will benefit as we did from their assistance. Enjoy!

Thanks a lot to Africa Odyssey!
Would highly recommend them to everyone who plans a journey to Africa. They are very professional, helpful, and would be carefully attentive to every small detail of your itinerary.

Camp Mwagusi was fabulous. The staff is exceptional, the accommodations were amazing and the food was great! We loved everything about our stay and our safari experiences. I highly recommend!

Trip Tanzania
I contacted Tanzania Odyssey for oyr first trip to Africa. Since my first email all ran perfectly. George listened to our thoughts and came out with a proposal that inclufed all our thoughts. We have just returned back from the trip and all has been simply perfect (selected lodges, transfers......). Thank you George for making this trip be marvelous! !!!!!

Provided me with everything I wanted in this trip and patiently answered every question I had. Without a doubt the best trip of my life

Great times and a gazillion photos thanks to Tanzania Odyssey!

August 2018 - Just back from a wonderful two week break with the family in Tanzania. I rang Marc and his team around Christmas time last year for their help and advice, and within a couple of days I had a bespoke itinerary to read, that included both a kid friendly safari and a wonderful beach break in Zanzibar. I provided a budget and a vague idea of what I was looking for and everything was then taken care of. It's a faultless service.
The safari camp and the beach hotel recommended were perfect, and the international and domestic flights were very straightforward.
I'm now looking in to a trip to Costa Rica in 2019 and Odyssey are at hand.
Tash Yates

It’s really difficult to put our Boswana trip into words, except to say that my wife and I shed tears of delight when we first stepped out onto Mombo camp's entry platform and viewed the wide expanse of delta and animals adjacent to the camp. The facilities were superb, and the management (Peter & Faith) and personnel were spectacular. We were treated like royalty the entire time, and it was by far the best vacation of our lives, and we've travelled all over the world.

Sitting around the "bush TV" (firepit) at night was a wonderful experience after spending most of the day exploring and viewing wildlife. Ike got us into a LandCruiser less than an hour after arrival (30 hrs after leaving home in California), and it was well worth the effort, as we discovered a Leopard that had just dragged an Impala into a tree, which we were able to view within 20ft. Cheetahs, Rhinos, Elephants, Impala, Warthogs, Hippos, Zebras, Giraffe, Water Buffalo, Lions (2 of them actually walked thru our camp area!) in 3 days of touring; what more could you ask for?

Special thanks to Dave at Africa Odyssey, who helped figure out the time of year, number of days to stay, and all the transfers needed to get there.
Nothing to worry about the entire trip, except to just enjoy the scene.

There’s so much more to see that I hope we can make future plans for a return trip.

Scott at African Odyssey organised the perfect trip for our large group of family and friends. We started with a chimpanzee encounter in Entebbe, then stay at Clouds Mountain Gorilla Lodge to trek the gorillas in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest which was an absolute life highlight. Next we toured the genocide memorials in Kigali and on to Legendary Mobile Tented Camp to witness the wildebeest migration in the Serengeti. We were overwhelmed by this whole experience. We saw a lion kill, a literal zebra road crossing and animals as far as the eye could see. The food, service, drinks by the fire and glamping was the best we could have hoped for, and felt like such an adventure. Baraza Resort in Zanzibar lived up to all glamorous expectations and the rooms were enormous. Giraffe Manor in Nairobi, Kenya, was beyond belief. The giraffe encounters were extraordinary but so is the manor itself. Every room, a delight and the photos just don't do it justice. And finally Sasaab Lodge was the icing on the cake of a trip of a lifetime. We had a Samburu warrior tracker in stunning traditional dress and Masai warrior elder accompany us on every safari game drive, to the warrior's village where his sister was married, and later to sunset rock for sundowners. Thank you African Odyssey for making everything so easy for us. Everything went like clockwork. Truly wonderful memories.

Great locations, great coordination of transport between locations. Meant no worrying about the arrangements and let us enjoy the experience of the vacation. Highly recommended.

Was looking to book a safari as a one-off 50th birthday treat for my wife. Knew which country we wanted, and had an idea about locations. Contacted multiple agents and Africa Odyssey were prompt in replying, provided plenty of information, responded quickly to questions, and offered very good value for money. Booking was easy, and a really nice app was provided with all itinerary details available on it. Relevant information was passed on to the lodges - dietary needs (g/f) were catered for, and birthday cake (with associated singing) provided at two of the three camps. An additional (later) request for a sky bed at Hyena Pan was also handled efficiently.
Unfortunately a motorway incident on the way to the airport caused us to miss the outgoing flights. Upon arrival at the airport, flights were rescheduled by the airline at no additional cost. Contacted Africa Odyssey on the emergency email to notify of new flight dates and times - received response within the hour confirming that the Lodge had been notified and transfers rearranged.
Overall, we would definitely recommend Africa Odyssey to anyone considering going on safari.

We had an amazing holiday booked through Africa Odyssey. We went to South Africa for safari and then Madagascar for a beach holiday. They expertly guided us through the process and their knowledge and experience was invaluable. I can't recommend Marc and the team enough if you are thinking of booking a similar holiday.

Smooth planning, great & flawless execution.
Everything as described.
Fantastic people on the ground! Attentive, knowledgeable and passionate.
A truly exceptional experience!

I have travelled to Africa a bunch of times, using a bunch of different booking agents. I now use Africa Odyssey exclusively. Not only are they experts, but their prices are reasonable, and they are there if you need them if something goes wrong.

Highly recommended!!

Our extended family of 7 had a wonderful time in Africa. Our experiences exceeded our expectations. African Odessey did a great job in organizing our travels.