5-Day Luxury Ivory Moon Lodge Safari in Kruger National Park

amazing kruger experience, some consistency would help

On the whole we had a wonderful safari experience seeing 4 out of the Big 5, a really special trip. We had a mix of full days in Kruger, private reserves drives and a panoramic route day. The two MoAfrika guides we had over two full days in Kruger were knowledgeable and of course, great at spotting animals. The morning on both days started off with a lot of information but by mid-morning, the energy really dropped and there wasn’t much information given to us on the animals we came across. The guides seemed much more interested in chatting to their colleagues on the radios throughout both days rather than engaging with us. I know that some of that was genuinely for checking where they were spotting animals but the majority of it didn’t seem to be so. We met some ladies who had a different guide and they had an excellent experience with him, he shared loads of information all day so it was unfortunate that was not our experience. It didn’t stop us having an amazing time but it could have been improved by more effort. On both days in Kruger we had one hour for lunch – the first day the guy came back 15 mins late and the second day 10 mins late as we were waiting which is valuable animal spotting time. After lunch and heading back through Kruger towards our hotel, both were barely looking out for animals and there was barely any conversation or info shared which was disappointing. The drive from Hoedspruit to Kruger was approx. 1.5 hours. It was very cold in the morning so do bring jackets and wrap up although there are some warm ponchos in the vehicle. On the drive back approx. 3.30pm we drove through some villages and we got stuck sitting in traffic in the village at one point. I did feel quite unsafe to be honest. I personally would recommend to people that they fly into Kruger and stay at accommodation in Kruger instead of doing Kruger this way. One of our days was a Panoramic scenic route tour. Exact same thing - the driver started off chatting and telling us about the sights but by mid-morning he wasn’t engaging and was watching videos and talking on his phone instead. A standout part of the trip was the private game reserve tours – we had one at sunset and one at sunrise. They were amazing and set the bar really high, we saw lots of animals quite close and the guides really went above and beyond to try find animals from my moment we entered to the moment we left, giving lots of information. Our transfer drivers getting us between places were great, very friendly. The Radisson Hotel which was part of the package was beautiful with great food. When booking the trip, the person I was in contact with on Whatsapp was responding very quickly and I was really impressed. After making the booking though, it was taking days to receive a response and I had to ask for things multiple times before getting them through. It did leave me wondering a couple of times whether it was a legitimate booking to be honest. The ladies we had spoken to did not receive an itinerary at all so they actually had no idea what they were doing day to day. If the itinerary and information shared could be more detailed, this would help with having much reduced questions. Some more consistency with the effort of all the guides and more information shared and responsiveness from the booking contact would really help ensure that all customers get a 10/10 experience. I would rate the overall experience as 'good' but the options are average and very good so have selected average out of these.

Response from the operator: Hi BunchO... Thank you for taking the time to share such detailed feedback about your safari experience. We are pleased to hear that you enjoyed a truly special trip, seeing four of the Big Five and creating memorable moments on both the private reserve drives and the Panorama Route. We appreciate your kind words about our transfer drivers, the accommodation, and our reservation team during the booking process. It is also wonderful to hear that the private reserve experiences exceeded your expectations and provided some unforgettable wildlife encounters. At the same time, we sincerely appreciate your honest feedback regarding the level of engagement from some of the guides during your Kruger drives and the Panorama Route tour. Our guides are expected to provide an informative and engaging experience throughout the day, and we regret that this was not consistently your experience. Your comments regarding communication, lunch timings, and responsiveness after booking have also been noted and will be shared with our operations and reservations teams as we continually work to improve our service. We are grateful that, despite these shortcomings, you still had an amazing safari experience overall. Feedback such as yours helps us identify areas where we can improve consistency and ensure every guest receives the exceptional experience we strive to deliver. Thank you once again, and we hope to have the opportunity to welcome you back for an even better experience in the future. The MoAfrika Tours Team

via Tripadvisor