Silver Spark Team at Ikigai Office Westland
Silver Spark Africa Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2018)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $6,944 to $34,718 per person per day (MXN, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
ES
Email Rui Jorge Dantas | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Terrible organization and management by Abongo, though Peter the guide saved the experience
I booked the "Nairobi: 4-Day Maasai Mara and Lake Naivasha Safari" through GetYourGuide, operated by Silver Spark Africa Safari, and the company's management (especially the boss, Abongo) was absolutely dreadful. I do not recommend them at all.
The issues started the day before the trip:
Last-minute changes: We were informed that they had to change our hotel because it was fully booked, and that the Spanish-speaking guide we requested couldn't make it due to being in "quarantine."
Extreme lateness and unprofessionalism: We were told to be ready at 6:00 AM at our hotel in Nairobi. The boss, Abongo, showed up at 8:00 AM (two hours late) because he had overslept, and he smelled strongly of alcohol. After dropping off the vehicle, he left and did not join us for the safari. Furthermore, the van he provided was incredibly old; it’s a miracle it even survived the trip.
Failure to pay entry fees: Upon arriving at the Maasai Mara gate, we were denied entry because the company had not paid the fees. Abongo sent me a WhatsApp message demanding that I advance $400 USD, claiming GetYourGuide hadn't paid them yet. After a heated argument where I flatly refused to pay, and after waiting for 2 hours, our guide managed to get them to let us in just to eat, under the condition that the payment would be processed later.
Held hostage at the hotel: After Maasai Mara, we headed to Lake Naivasha. The next day during check-out, the exact same issue happened again: we were forced to wait and couldn't leave the hotel because the company had failed to pay for our stay.
The only saving grace:
Our driver and guide, Peter, is a 5-star professional. He was amazing, always available, and constantly trying to minimize and resolve the endless problems caused by his boss, Abongo. The safari itself is wonderful because of the nature, but Silver Spark Africa Safari's management is a complete scam. They put you through incredibly stressful situations while the owner pockets the money and fails to pay vendors on time. Avoid this company at all costs!
Email Ina | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
We would advise others to avoid Silver Spark. In our experience, their conduct felt unethical
I booked almost 8k worth of trip and got cheated by this company . Bad broken van, terrible transfer from Kenya to Tanzania via rural road to save toll fee, worst of it is to cheat us out of hotel that we paid for to a cheap hotel in a weedful beach in Zanzibar. After promising to return 300 dollars for 8 months and 50 msg exchanges, I had to pay my friend on my own as I booked the trip . I feel terrible and stupid to have trusted them
NL
Email Vinod | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
I do not recommend Silver Spark Africa
Our highly anticipated 5-day private safari, costing over $4000++, with Silver Sparks was a complete disaster. After full payment, we were subjected to:
• Substandard vehicle.
• A seemingly new and potentially unpaid driver.
• Unpaid entry fees at tour sites (despite our full payment).
• The driver's concern about not being paid, jeopardizing our return.
• Last-minute cancellation of our return airport transfer via text leaving us stranded.
• Unacknowledged overpayments for dinners.
• Zero communication or proactive updates from Silver Sparks during our trip.
• Unauthorized itinerary changes.
Silver Sparks takes your money and fails to deliver on their promises. This unprofessional and unacceptable experience ruined our first visit to Kenya. We strongly advise you to seek other reliable tour operators.
Silver Sparks never acknowledged returning the monies we paid twice due to their negligence. Seems to be their standard way of operating.
A formal complaint has been filed with the Nairobi tourist board.
NL
Email Leonard, john, fee and martha | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
He was very hulpfull and a good guide. He made sturen we felt comfortabel the whole tour.
John Mankiri, really helped us with changing money. He made sure that we would understand what the planning was for the Day and we could always ask him questions. John made sure that the sxhedule would adjust to our needs.
ps. John mankiri deserves a promorion or a raise !!!!!
CZ
Email Petr Taborsky | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
very good experience, friendly, informal, reliable
Pros
- good communication, all e-mails were answered in a few hours
- flexibility, they organized an unscheduled day in Nairobi for us including visit of former US Embassy destroyed by terrorist blast in 1998, one of the highlights of our trip besides national parks
- we probably got to see as much as we could in such a short time thanks to the great itinerary
- reasonable price for this category of safari trip
- excelent driver and guide David, always in a good mood, helpful, never tired of answering our questions or satisfying our endless need for the best picture spot, wonderful character we will never forget
Cons
- even though they say on the website that they do accept credit cards they do not, after we refused requested cash payment, we finaly agreed on Wise money transfer, cashless procedure which worked out fine but wouldn´t have to be so complicated, only dissapointment in otherwise perfect service and only reason for not giving five stars
Email Milli Gupta | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Extremely Accommodating and flexible with good team of excellent employees
Extremely Accommodating and flexible with good team of excellent employees.
David - our tour guide who was our driver for the whole trip was very very helpful, knowledgeable and made sure every single opportunity to see if and any and all wildlife. He made our whole Kenya experience the very best. We all loved Kenya and the safari.
Our overall experience with Silver Spark Safari was extremely good. The reason for giving 4 stars is -
out of our whole trip of 10 days - 3 accomodations were extremely good (Samburu- Nakuru and Kibo(Amboselli). These made our experience unforgettable.
but 4 accomodations were really bad (the 1st night hotel in Nairobi, Milili Hotel- Maverick Camp in Aberdare- Lake Naivasha and the last camp at Amboselli).
We had to pay extra out of pocket to get another accomodations from Aberdare and move to Lake Nakuru.
Would highly recommend even if the ratings say good but please please check them more in depth).
If we keep the accomodations aside, Silver Sparks on the whole, Abongo our main point of contact from beginning to the end and on top of everything David made our Kenya safari the best.
Highly highly highly recommend this company.
Thank you Silver Sparks for everything for making us our family unforgettable memories of the lifetime.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Email Adrian | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best tour guides in the industry!
Our tour guides David and Maluta on our 9 day safari through Kenya (Lake Nakuru, Maasai Mara, Amboseli) and Tanzania (Tarangire, Ngorogoro Crater) were incredible! They provided an amazing service and knew a lot about the best spots to find the animals during our trip. They were extremely professional and made sure we were well looked after throughout our trip.
The tour operator (Abongo) was ok. A few logistical issues throughout the trip which were not handled very well, and could have been dealt with more professionally, but overall we were happy with the service and the trip we had.
An Unforgettable Family Safari Across Kenya"
My family and I had an incredible safari experience with Silver Spark Africa Safaris, visiting Lake Bogoria, Lake Nakuru, Maasai Mara, Lake Elementaita and Amboseli National Park. From start to finish, the trip was exceptionally well organized and the accommodations exceeded our expectations. Our communication with Kevin and Abongo before, during and even after the safari was outstanding. They were always responsive, professional and attentive to our needs, accommodating all of our requests including arranging an airport pickup and transfer to our hotel on the first day, outside of our itinerary.
Our driver-guide, Samwel, was fantastic. He was friendly, knowledgeable and had an incredible ability to spot wildlife that we would have otherwise missed. His expertise and enthusiasm greatly enhanced our safari experience. The entire Silver Spark Africa Safaris team were excellent and everyone communicated fluently in English, making the journey smooth and enjoyable. Although our itinerary was packed with exciting destinations, everything was perfectly paced. We were able to experience all the highlights without ever feeling rushed, allowing us to fully enjoy each park and wildlife encounter.
We traveled in a safari minivan that was far more comfortable and well equipped than we had anticipated. The vehicle featured Wi-Fi, charging ports and a pop-up roof, which made game viewing both convenient and enjoyable. One of our favorite accommodations was Lake Nakuru Lodge, located inside the park itself. Staying within the park added a special touch to our experience and allowed us to maximize our time in nature. This safari created wonderful memories for our family, and we are already considering bringing our parents to Kenya for their own safari adventure. When we do, we will not hesitate to book with Silver Spark Africa Safaris again.
Thank you to the entire team for a truly memorable and unforgettable experience
Email Rueh | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent work, great Safari!
We had an incredible 13-day safari in Kenya and Tanzania with Silver Spark Africa. We visited Lake Bogoria, Lake Naivasha, Amboseli National Park, Tarangire National Park, Serengeti National Park, and Maasai Mara National Reserve, it was truly an unforgettable wildlife adventure, including exploring the Mara Triangle and crossing between Kenya and Tanzania. With our guide Samwel, we saw the Big Five and so many animals like zebras, wildebeests, elephants, giraffes, buffaloes, flamingos, pelicans, and many bird species. Lake Bogoria was especially amazing for birdlife.
We were lucky to visit during the calving season in Serengeti National Park and saw many baby animals. In Amboseli National Park, we saw baby elephants with their mothers, and in Maasai Mara National Reserve, we watched playful lion cubs, such a special experience. Everything was perfectly organized by Kevin. Our guides, Samwel in Kenya and Babu in Tanzania, were professional, knowledgeable, and easy to communicate with. Even during the rainy season, they drove safely and made sure we never got stuck. Samwel always found the best spots for viewing and photos, which made the experience even better.
This safari exceeded all our expectations. We highly recommend Silver Spark Africa and especially Samwel as a guide for anyone planning a trip to Kenya.
Email Nelly | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Well organised, excellent team!
We communicated with Abongo throughout the entire booking process for our safari, and he was incredibly responsive, professional and helpful from start to finish. He ensured that every detail was well arranged and that we felt fully supported both before and after our trip.
Abongo connected us with Samwel as our safari guide, and we could not have asked for a better experience. Samwel took exceptional care of us throughout the journey. Whenever we encountered even the smallest issue, he addressed it immediately and ensured everything was handled smoothly.
Our game drives were truly unique compared to other safaris we have experienced, both morning and evening game drive. Samwel was always ahead of schedule, actively communicating on the radio to locate wildlife, bigFive and making special efforts to help us find the animals we were most interested in seeing. His knowledge was impressive he answered all of our questions promptly and shared detailed insights about the wildlife, ecosystem and local culture throughout the safari. He was consistently punctual, always early for meetings and departures and remained flexible with our daily itinerary, adjusting plans based on our preferences and requests.
This was, without question, the most enjoyable safari we have ever experienced. We highly recommend Silver Spark Africa Safaris and Samwel to anyone seeking a professional, well-organized and truly unforgettable African safari adventure.