1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

So many its difficult to choose! However seeing all the elephants lined up in the river drinking was incredible.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

Stay for longer than a week if at all possible, and bring a huge memory card for your camera.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

Yes, all the guides were local and everything was eco friendly.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

Fantastic holiday, would love to go back again.

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

There are too many memorable parts to mention! Breakfasting in the bush, a herd of elephants crossing the airstrip, being woken at 4am by a lion roaring just outside our camp (and thinking it was an elephant!!), watching my kids walk off hand in hand with a Masai warrior, being taken under the wing of a Samburu warrior, who, at 21 years old, could teach the teenagers of the Western world a thing or two about respect, discipline and work ethic. Just unbelievable.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

Don't take too much on camp- the list of requirements given by the tour operator really really is enough. The 'just in case' scenario isn't necessary. And try to do as many additional things as well as the game drives- we didn't have enough time to do an accompanied bush walk or nature walk.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

I hope our holiday benefited the local people. I suspect we benefited from them, far more- it was an education, not just a holiday.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

An experience. Incredible really. Unbelievably knowledgeable drivers and guides. Our Samburu warrior guide, Francis, at the local operator, was an inspiration and made a huge impact not just on myself and my husband, but especially on my 9 year old son.

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

Game drives in the morning both in Sambura and in Masai Mara.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

The trip was great. Remember to bring binoculars.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

Yes, but I think it is very important to stay in the already made car tracks to avoid criss crossing the plains with dirt roads. That would spoil the views.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

Very good, and perfect program intensity for families with game drives and perfect number of breaks in between. Wonderful quality on the food. The tents where great, and the flights between the parks very efficient.

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

There were so many memorable parts to this holiday from Jackson our spotter sitting on the bonnet of the truck with the spotlight looking for lions. Hearing them roaring around us while in our tents at night and having to walk past the buffalo to get to the tent on our last night at Rhino camp. Watching the kids making catapults with a Samburu warrior and beating him in the shooting competitions when using their bows and arrows, they were totally captivated by the stories of his culture. Having a hippo wallowing in the river outside our tent at the Mara.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

If I did it all again I would have 3 days in each place to really do everything and also relax a bit more and appreciate the surroundings. We didn’t have time to visit a village or school something we had hoped to do.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

The Porini Rhino camp is an eco tented camp that can be removed so the area can quickly put back to how it was. They use solar power for everything. They employ tribesmen around the camp and as game spotters. The Mara and Samburu Intrepids employ local staff.

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

Despite all the troubles in Kenya we still had had a fantastic time it was just a shame Virgin Atlantic had to cause us so much stress; we were exhausted. So I could not say I was reborn but this was nothing to do with the holiday if we had continued onto the coast we would have been able to unwind. But it does rate as one of the best holidays we have ever had. The staff were friendly and couldn’t do enough for you. The attention at the Rhino camp was second to none.

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

Everyone involved, from the driver who picked us up at the airport to the staff at the camps and the brilliant guides and drivers on the safaris, went out of their way to help and make the holiday truly memorable. We particularly loved the night game drives and got as much enjoyment from glimpses of some of the rarer animals - honey badgers, genets and jumping hares - as we did from the usual safari suspects! The game watching in the Masai Mara was fantastic and seeing the two Rhinos from 'Animal Park' in the reserve at Kigio was another memorable experience.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

There is a fair amount of road travel (bumpy and dusty) but it didn't spoil our holiday in the slightest but should be a consideration if you aren't a particularly good car passenger or have young children. Our two girls of 11 and 16 loved it.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

We definitely felt that using this company provided a significant benefit to the local people both through direct employment and indirectly through sales of craft, etc. Environmentally there is little doubt that the two Porini camps were excellent examples of low impact tourism - being limited to a very brief 'safari' shower at the end of the day was just part of the fun of the holiday.

4. Any other comments?

Thanks for asking about our recent holiday. We are torn between giving it a four or five star rating - definitely four and some bits of it were five!!

1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?

Being let down by Kenya Airways when they gave our seats away and pushed us on to the next flight from Nairobi to Mombasa. Which did not fly as landing lights at Mombasa were not working. They had absolutely no contingency arrangements for their passengers, and everything was utterly chaotic. After nearly 8 hours at the airport they eventually took us to a downmarket hotel in a horrible part of Nairobi - promising to collect us in the morning at 4am which they did not do. After much trouble I eventually arranged my own taxi, provided by the hotel, to the airport - reclaiming the money I paid for it. Managing to arrive at the Beach Voyager Hotel at about noon. Thereby missing a night at the beach voyager which I had paid for - I think I should be compensated for this at the very least, and for all the mobile calls I had to make to the operator for help. I was very unhappy about this and frightening to be in a strange, dangerous place like Nairobi with only my 10 year old son. Luckily the operator did send someone to help me, to my great relief.

2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?

Don't use Kenya airways ever as apparently they make a habit of overbooking flights and giving paid for seats away. Also to not rely on the operator to give accurate duration for trips by road. For e.g. they said the road trip from Nairobi to Lake Nagura was 2 hours on a comfortable road. I was at least double that on a dreadful road. This was another spoilt day.

3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?

Possibly a little

4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?

I paid the operator nearly £3,500 for the holiday, which did not include flights from the UK. This was just for myself and my 10 year old son. My expectation for the holiday was very high, much higher than was actually delivered. So the whole thing was quite disappointing really. I don't usually spend so much on a holiday, but this was to be a very special treat for Ben partly because his Dad died 4 years ago, and also because we have had a very stressful few years. To be honest I did enjoy quite a lot of the holiday, but it did not live up to my expectations I am sorry to say.

Read the operator's response here:

I am sorry to note that Ann Windle was so unhappy and I note that she has made two statements about The operator Safaris:

1. "Luckily the operator did send someone to help me, to my great relief."
Comment: there was a major problem with the airport landing lights failing and literally hundreds of passengers of Kenya Airways and all the other airlines were inconvenienced and things were fairly chaotic. As soon as she called us on her mobile to notify of us of the problems one of our staff went personally to the airport to help her. I am glad she appreciated our help.

2." Also to not rely on the operator to give accurate duration for trips by road. For e.g. they said the road trip from Nairobi to Lake Nagura was 2 hours on a comfortable road. I was at least double that on a dreadful road."
Comment: We are sorry to note her comment that we cannot be relied upon to give accurate information as she found the trip from Nairobi to Lake Nakuru to be very uncomfortable and at least double the 2 hour journey that Dorothy had indicated. In fact the distance from Nairobi to Lake Nakuru is 97 miles all tarmac road on the main highway going from Nairobi to Uganda and the 97 mile journey normally takes a little over 2 hours, just as Dorothy indicated. Unfortunately at the time when Mrs Windle travelled there were some major road works taking place and there were a number of bumpy diversions in place which meant a slower journey although I would think it most unlikely that it actually took 4 hours to get there.

The airline problem was obviously very inconvenient but I am afraid this was out of our hands and, as Mrs Windle has mentioned, we did everything we could to help.

The inaccurate description of the duration of the road journey is regretted but this was entirely due to the roadworks which were taking place and of which Dorothy in our office was unaware at the time when she had emailed Mrs Windle to advise on the timing of the road journey.

I hope this helps to answer the criticism and we are very sorry that Mrs Windle was unhappy as we truly strive to see that our customers are well looked after.