Taking you to the exotic African wild!
Morning Star Tours & Travel
- Located In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2018)
- Member Of:
- IATA, KATO, AMREF & TOSK
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $2,325 to $13,985 per person per day (MXN, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Leah | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic time with memories made that we shall cherish forever!
We have just returned (today!) from a 10 night holiday in Kenya where both my parents were born. It was their first time going back to Kenya in over 50 years!
We had a driver called James who took us out on safari and drove us to and from Amboseli National Park in his vehicle last week. We got on ever so well with him right from the word go and he became a good friend to our family. He was friendly, helpful, professional and reliable throughout. We even invited him to dinner with us on Wednesday evening along with Alice from Morning star.
Alice was in contact with my sister both before & during our stay. She was extremely knowledgeable, helpful and so easy to get along with.
I would like to thank both James and Alice for our wonderful experience and hope to see them again in the future.
One tip for others using the company for airport transfers, please allow plenty of time and perhaps ask to be collected earlier as our transfer was 30 minutes late due to traffic which meant that we were rushing to reach the airport before check in closed and under pressure to get there. Other than this blip, we had an extremely pleasant experience using Morning Star. Thank you
Email Ajanta | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari experience
My husband and me were born in Nairobi Kenya and returned for a holiday after 50ish years
Our driver James was friendly professional and composed
We did the sunrise and sunset safari to Amboselli -saw giraffes zebra cheetah rhino hippo many elephants etc.
Email Anil | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
An unforgettable adventure of a life time
My wife and I just finished a 10-day private safari in Kenya - and were stunned by the amazing diversity of the animals and beauty of the various national parks. Dennis was our tour consultant and we selected Morningstar based upon the prompt and detailed price quotations he provided and the ratings on SafariBookings. He adjusted the itinerary based upon our selected parks, Nairobi - Amboseli - Naivasha - Ol Pejeta - Samburu - Nakuru - Masai Mara. Overall, the itinerary was organized very well, good accommodations and included airport transfers. Thanks Dennis.
As to the parks themselves, they were even better than our expectations. From the views of Mt Kilimanjaro, elephant herds of Amboseli, the beauty of Naivasha, special 5 of Samburu, flamingos of Nakuru to the unique vistas of Masai Mara with the big 5 - unforgettable moments.
James was our guide for the trip. He is very knowledgeable about all the parks and wildlife, highly skilled in spotting different animals, and turned out to be a photography enthusiast who offered to take photos with the long lens from driver seat. He surely has an eye for taking great photos and certainly helped capture some moments that otherwise would not have been possible. Thank you James.
We ended up giving 4 stars instead of 5 due to certain aspects that Dennis and James could have done better. Given the road conditions and traffic, anticipated transit times between parks was too optimistic, would have appreciated advice to reduce some parks. James should have checked that the Land Cruiser sliding windows could be easily opened and showed us how to operate them on day 1 so that photos could have been taken easily without having to climb up on seats and take from the open top only. He should also have been punctual on pickups, not spend inordinate amount of time on phone during game drives and should have gotten our agreement to any changes to daily activities specified in the itinerary with us.
Overall, we had an unforgettable experience and would recommend Morningstar.
AE
Email Luca | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Very efficient and organized.
The trip was very well organized, the agency responded white promptly to all our enquires.
We only had a minor issue one day with the driver telling us we had including only morning drive when in fact we had full day for the whole trip. The agency helped us in that occasion.
Overall is strongly recommended.
FR
Email Emma and Anne | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Reliable and friendly safari organiser with maximum flexibility
I found this tour operator online. There are many offers so it can be confusing. I travelled with my adult daughter for our first visit to Kenya which was a safari followed by a few days relaxing by the beach. We chose Kenya because there is no trophy hunting. We booked rather late and were initially looking to join a group. My contact, Dennis, was very reactive to all my questions and flexible with the arrangements and dietary requirements. I was inspired by the proposed tour for just the two of us which included Massai Mara, Nakuru Lake and Amboselli. I really appreciated having the our lovely driver David to ourselves as we could have road stops when we wanted and get all the photo shots we wanted. The lodges were extremely comfortable and the buffet meals were copious. The price was an important criteria for me and in the end it cost me no more than a trip in a group including the flights from France (I booked flights on Ethiopian Airlines via Addis Ababa). If you only have 2 days for safari, I recommend Massai Mara and Amboselli.
NO
Email Andreas M | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari adventure
For our 9-day safari we visited Tsavo west, Amboseli, Lake Nakuru, Ol Pejeta, Lake Naivasha and Masai Mara. Big thanks to Alice and the whole team for organizing everything and making us feel well taken care off during the whole trip.
Our driver guide was an excellent driver, and it was very clear that he knew all the parks very well. He made sure we found all the good spots, and we got to see almost everything we wanted to see, including a leopard and a river crossing in Masai Mara.
The reason we can't give a 5-star review is because of shortcomings in our view related to our driver guide. In short we expected our driver guide to be our guide, in addition to our driver. We felt that the role as guide was less prioritized and he focused only on the work of being a driver.
From the start we did not get the impression that he was interested in getting to know us.
We felt it was difficult to keep a conversation going, and he was using his phone a lot.
We expressed on several occations that we wanted as much time spent on game drives as possible. Almost always he proposed less time driving, and we had to negotiate to get some more time. This made us feel quite
uncomfortable. At times we felt the mood in the car was not good, and on several occations felt we were a liability.
In Masai Mara he proposed a game drive much shorter than what was stated in our itenerary. We raised this with the booking team, which clearified this with the driver, making the last safari day worry-free and a wonderfull day for us.
On a last note, we would absolutely consider traveling with Morningstar again, and also recommend them to our family and friends. We would however try to better align the expectations prior to arrival.
Email Aspen | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing personalised experience through towns and national parks
I did a 9 day tour through Kenya and Tanzania with a friend through Morningstar safaris.
The communication from the director was prompt, and the itinerary was tailored to our interests.
We were picked up at Nairobi airport and then spent the next day with our guide going to places we wanted to see - the elephant orphanage, giraffe sanctuary and Kazuri beads.
Our first guide Rono was very friendly, welcoming and knowledgeable, and provided us with some incredible up close views of animals. The Masai Mara was the highlight, as well as the hot air balloon.
For Tanzania our guides Chris and Eric were able to teach us about Tanzanian culture, food and wildlife, and you could see how proud they are to be Tanzanian and safari guides.
Unfortunately our vehicle had some car troubles which meant some unplanned lengthy stops to get it fixed, but this wasn’t the fault of the guides.
The accommodation booked was incredible, a highlight being the Serengeti Embalakai Lodge, where we heard a lion prowling around at night and the glamping tents were beautiful.
Private tours are costly, but for the ability to tailor it to our interests as well as have room to see all the animals and take photos, I thought it was worthwhile.
To note: Drinks are not included at the accommodation throughout the tour - alcohol or soft drinks, however water is.
Email Debbie | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Comprehensive Tour Operator with Great Drivers
My husband and I along with a good friend and her husband had an eleven day safari and beach trip throughout Kenya. I went in knowing where I wanted to go mostly, and worked with Dennis at the front office. He was able to put together an itinerary that took into account what I had asked for, but also expanded it to address what my friends and husband would want to experience, considering this was their first time in Kenya and on safari. He put together a packed itinerary that hit so many things (Nairobi, Samburu, Aberdares, Naivasha, Mara and the Coast). We were always on the move with our driver, Alex. Alex was great - some amazing driving skills and good eyes. Also very sociable so always connecting with the other drivers to find the good spots and sharing perspective on life in Kenya.
The accommodations were great, the land cruiser was relatively comfortable and well stocked with water.
During the planning, Dennis was very accessible and communicative. He was willing to make small changes to the plans as I had some particular notions of what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go. Having Whats App downloaded allowed me to connect with the front office while we were traveling around Kenya, which was helpful when we were at the coast.
We greatly enjoyed working with Morningstar! The only issue I would mention is that if you have questions or concerns, speak up clearly and early. It's not a bad idea to review the itinerary with your driver/Morningstar upon arrival to make sure your understanding of what is included and what isn't is still the same and has been confirmed with the driver and the accommodations. Especially if you are going off the regular tourist track (out of the major parks).
There were a few communications transparency concerns where I think the office had everything under control, but plans had changed and we had not been updated. There were some miscommunications at the end between Morningstar and the accommodation, that seemed to have been based upon expectations and not confirmed commitments from the accommodations.
When I spoke up or contacted the office or mentioned something to Alex, a fix was often figured out (or at least they attempted to figure it out) but you need to speak up early if you have questions or concerns and don't make assumptions that just because something is stated on your itinerary, everyone involved is aware of what the initial travel itinerary was and is and has the same understanding of what's included and what isn't.
The experience we had for the money we paid was a great option and Alex was there and ready for us on time every day. He had a great energy and was flexible with our irregular requests (finding a pharmacy in Nanyuki, going to my old house in Nairobi, visiting Sarit Center/Westgate in Westlands.
CN
Email winkle | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
healing&soothing
We booked a 9-day, 8-night trip with James as our driver. For the first 7 days, we were very happy and grateful to James for his patient explanations about the animals and his enthusiastic efforts in finding them. We also want to thank Dennis for helping us with flight delays. However, there were some issues that made us unhappy, and these seemed to worsen in the last two days:
James' personal state: James seemed to be a bit late every day initially, which we didn't mind at first, but by the eighth day, he seemed quite distracted. While waiting for the elephants to pass, he was even watching TV shows. Additionally, we felt we could have had a priority spot to view the elephants, but it was taken by others.
Tip issue: We initially communicated with James that we would give him the tips on the last day. However, the day before, we felt he was urging us to give them. After giving the tips, he was very late the next day, claiming he was waiting for us in different places, which was quite frustrating.
Duration of Game Drives: According to our communication with James, each day's Game Drive was only five hours, including the time from the hotel and back. However, we met other people who said their Game Drives lasted more than five hours.
Lunch issue on the ninth day in Nairobi: Dennis informed us that James was aware, but James claimed he had no knowledge that our booking included lunch in Nairobi. He even blamed us for not informing him in advance, which led to the possibility of having to eat packed lunches in the car on our way to the airport. The lunch fee was non-refundable. Eventually, after much effort on our part, we managed to have lunch in Nairobi, and for the first time, we saw how fast James could actually drive!