Game Watchers Reviews

Our entire vacation far exceeded our expectations. My husband and I love to travel. We have traveled all around the world, by ourselves and with tour companies. Gamewatchers is the most responsive company we have ever worked with. Rick from London, Ontario was our contact and from day one he was on it. He answered all of our questions, gave suggestions and worked out a schedule that met all of our needs. All the staff that we interacted with were friendly, extremely knowledgeable and made our experience the very best that it could be. I can tell you about our day to day experience, but I think from other reviews you also get the idea. The difference I have found with Gamewatchers from chatting with other people who have gone on a safari is that you are on your own safari and experience. We went to 6 porini camps, the Nairobi Tented Camp for one night, and then Amboseli, Rhino, Mara, Cheetah, Lion camps, each for 3 nights. Within that itinerary, we meet up with others for maybe one or two nights, they went on their way and then we meet up with them at another camp. It made it very interesting as we would meet new friends at new camps, old friends at new camps and also when out on game drives. Everyone, commented on how great an experience that was and in fact we have plans to meet up with some of our new friends in the future. We meet fellow Canadians, people form India, New Zealand, England, Australia and the US. A terrific group of like-minded travelers. The day to day experience was the similar and yet different at every camp and every game drive. Let me explain and not in any particular order of importance: You will never leave the table hungry at a Porini camp...ever! The food was fresh, home made and the chefs at all the camps are amazing. The soups all the camps were so delicious - PLEASE - we suggested they make a soup recipe book and sell to make extra money for local programs, we all agreed we would buy that, no problem! The bucket showers are sooo good! The water is hot and as long as you get wet, turn off the water, soap up, and then rinse you should have plenty of water. After a couple of days, you tend to see the same cast of players, elephants, giraffes, gazelle, pumbaas (warthogs), etc. but every day is so different. Maybe some fighting going on, a new born or a family feast with a bit of food fight between, lions, hyenas, jackals etc. You will be awed by the fact that a leopard or lion may only be a couple of feet away from you, or a hyena cub is trying to chew the vehicle's tires. The sunsets in Kenya are the very best we have ever witnessed! The days are long...very long. The Masai people are incredible, not just because of their extensive local knowledge, but they all seem to have a very happy disposition and an incredible dry and quick sense of humor. We had very interesting conversations with them and many laughs. Do go to a Masai village. You won't regret the experience. We always felt very safe. Google translate works with Swahili, so learn a few words. (It would be great if Porini camps had list of 10 common words English/Swahili for everyone to use...send out in email before you travel.) Take more cash then you think you will need...you will likely need it. Easy to get Kenyan Shillings at bank machines. There are 2 banks with machines at Wilson airport, if you need to get cash, just ask to be picked up 15 minutes earlier from the hotel. You are given a reusable water bottle when you arrive at camp - so you may or may not want to take one. Every vehicle has hand sanitizer, bug spray wipes, tissues and toilet paper and warm water proof ponchos to wear if needed by anyone. The term off roading has a whole new meaning in Kenya. The drivers are amazing, but if you have a serious back issue I would think again. There is some clothes washing available at some camps, but if you ask for hot water, not a problem so you can wash your underwear and socks etc. Nobody is concerned with what you are wearing...unless you have spilled something dramatic, you can get many days out of the same tops/pants, so pack light, the airlines at Wilson do weight your luggage. Don't leave your items hanging on a line unattended....monkeys are very clever and you may come back with a sock, or top missing. We thought we would be clever and take a solar charging battery...then we meet the monkeys. We put that one away. Some tents have charging stations in them, but there are always charging areas available at every camp. Some tents you can get wifi, some not, but there is an area at each camp, usually the lounge/dinning or the office tent where internet is accessible. If you enjoy walking...this will be a bit tough. There is no out and about walking. You can walk around the camp in the day time. But as walkers who enjoy long walks daily, it was a little tough, but does not in any way stop us from returning, or enjoying our experiences. Every morning you are woken up by a tent attendant. Typically 5:30 am. The attendant has a tray has hot water for making French pressed coffee or tea, milk and sugar if required, some cookies and a medium size jug with hot water to wash your face and get started. The morning game drive starts around 6:00 am and out you go. Breakfast is an amazing bush breakfast, usually around 8:30 or a bit later, but this really depends on what is happening around you. We were quite happy to wait one morning when we were watching a pack of hyenas wait for their turn at the remnants of a zebra. It became quite the hyena game followed by a food fight and hyena chase around our vehicle. These fights to win a portion of the game can be quite intense. When you get back from the morning game drive it is usually 11:30 - 12:30, again depending on what is happening on the drive. It will give you some time to catch up on emails, or download morning photos, etc. Lunch is at 1:00 pm, and usually a buffet. Always had salads, fish, meat and dessert....you will never go away hungry. Now you will get some down time. Time for a siesta, read a book, have a shower, enjoy the camp...but not for long. 3:45 pm you will be back at it with a cold or hot beverage, a cookie or small piece of cake and out on a game drive by 4:00 pm. This afternoon game drive is shorter and by 6:00 pm or 6:30 pm and you will stop and enjoy a sundowner and snack while watching the sun go down. Back to camp by 7:00 - 7:30 pm, depending on where you are and what is happening around you. Back to camp, shower or clean up and then head to dinner at 8:00 pm. Usually home made rolls, soup which is truly amazing, a hot dinner, dessert and time to get back to your tent around 9ish pm to start all over again. Get an e-sim card for your phone. There was great reception with them and at one point on a game drive, my husband was able to do an e-transfer of funds to one of our employees. It is amazing when you are landing in a bush plane and the animals are on either side of the runway as a welcoming committee. When you get home, you will miss the noises at night. Lions, hippos, baboons, etc. The morning noises are just as lovely, birds, monkeys bouncing on your tent as they get down from their trees....that noise isn't rain. Somethings you will never forget. When an elephant is eating about 50 ft away from your tent for an hour, while you are sipping on glass of red wine. Waking up at 1:30 in the morning with two adult zebras eating 10 ft away from the door of your tent and a baby zebra is having a nap. Amazing! Bucket Shower Tip: Have spouse go first...the first few moments of the shower can be cold depending on time of day you are showering, because of the water that has been sitting in the hose. We had showers in the morning, afternoon after lunch and also after the sundowner drive before dinner. Best time in our opinion for the shower, after lunch or before dinner. The mornings are too chilly. Game Drive Tip: Take some adapters or cords with you and you can charge your spare batteries, phones etc., while on a game drive. Travel Tip: If you are thinking of participating in the hot air balloon ride, then do it! It was so unique to have elephants and giraffes looking up at you. It is an early morning start, but well worth the time. If you are going to be at Lion Camp then take the balloon from there as you leave at 5:00 am to get to the balloon, other camps you leave at 4:00 am or earlier. But again, don't let the early morning take away from your experience. This was truly one of the absolute best highlights of our vacation! Phone Camera Tip: Most phones have amazing cameras now, so take advantage of them. This trip was the first time I used an additional camera grip on my iPhone 14 pro, and it was a game changer. Much steadier pictures and easier when in some areas then my larger camera. Packing Tip: We each took a small hanging unit, which has 4 shelves and and a zipped drawer. It was great when moving from camp to camp. We would just open our soft sided suitcases, pull the unit out and hang up...get toiletries out of suitcase and a few other bits and we were unpacked and organized in minutes. Same for packing, done in just a couple of minutes. I have a picture, and you can order on Amazon. Finally, is everything perfect, no. I think that the camps should upgrade and put charging stations in each tent. I understand they are running on solar panels, but could easily turn the power source off to charging stations for periods of time during the day. Also, wifi, should be available in tents, as it is not always convenient with time changes to do everything during Kenyan day light hours to go to the wifi tent. It would really be great if Porini Chefs put together a soup cook book...really they were that good. But those are our only issues....with 3 weeks in Kenya on safari....we have already started to make plans to return in 2026. If we had done this trip years ago, we probably would not have seen other parts of the world, because we are going to need to return a few times...probably more than a few. We have been a lot of places, including expedition cruise in Antarctica, and this trip is top of the list in all respects. Thanks to everyone at the camps and in Nairobi for the best trip ever!