Experience Happy Escapes
Santaviva
- Located In:
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 2014)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $1,735 to $53,770 per person per day (MXN, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
DE
Email Yu | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
excellent service
The operator plans thoughtfully, offers delicious foods. I am satisfied with its service.
Email Michael | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Ivan and the Santaviva team were amazing, ensured a perfect experience and love every second!
Myself and three friends were returning to Uganda via the Western side and were lucky enough to find and book online at Santaviva. The accommodation is located in the heart of Kisoro and Ivan the host couldn't have been more helpful. We stayed for 3 days and were given great advice on local hikes and activities including exploring the ancient tombs and villages.
We also organised a 6 hour Gorilla hike through the impenetrable forest which was a challenging and amazing experience! This included transfers to and from the forest!
All up huge thank you to Ivan and the team for an unforgettable experience!
Email Erugo | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Professional
If you are visiting Kisoro, Uganda I would highly recommend you book with Santaviva. Ivan the owner is not only an excellent host but has an array of tourist activities that you can choose from. If you are coming from the airport or a nearby border he will personally pick you up which is a relief and adds additional assurance that you are in good hands. For activities he takes the time to customize a plan that fits your budget and expectations. He pays attention to details which is why important. Ivan and his staff are also very kind and helpful. The room and boarding are perfect for those who want a comfortable yet affordable place that has Wifi.
Now for the good stuff. You can choose from anything from gorilla trekking, local museum experiences, hiking, biking, to my personal favorite the Kisoro Volcano Coffee Experience. You are sure to be delighted! I also had the opportunity to rent a boat and see the beautiful views of Lake Mutunda and surrounding areas. The beautiful mountains and lush vegetation are truly a true gem and wonderful attraction. This was also a favorite because it was my first time doing such an activity.
If you are a foreigner or a citizen of Uganda looking to get away, explore, and enjoy the serenity of Kisoro I would highly recommend Santaviva for all of your accommodation and tourist needs.
Email Nontomb | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Exceptional service and good communication
Santaviva listens to the client and delivers with precision. I did the Ubumwe Uganda-Rwanda Tour. The driver was professional, changes to the programme were carefully discussed and agreed upon. The stops were very significant in terms of learning and enjoyment. Kisoro, Mbarara and Lake Mutanda were enjoyable. I loved every experience I had with Ivan at Santaviva
Email Irene | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent service
Great planning and a bucket full of activities to choose from gorilla trekking, mountain climbing, hiking, zip lining, boat cruises, cycling, to cross border tours all at a great price and with excellent quality.
Email Emmanuel Rwabose | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Ivan was an absolutely fantastic host/guide and gave us an experience beyond our expectations,
Ivan's communication was great, timely and useful. His staff's service was both respectful and accommodating. The tour was absolutely fantastic, packing a wide variety of activities into a few short days without leaving us tired or overwhelmed. Great value for money.
CH
Email Mathias | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Recommend the Gorilla trekking but don't go to another country other than Uganda and Rwanda
My girlfriend and I booked with Santaviva respectively Ivan a 14 days tour in the upper price segment for Uganda/Rwanda (Gorilla trekking) as well as Safari in Tanzania and 4 beach days in Zanzibar (no activities apart from a stone town visit the day we are leaving). It was our most expensive vacation so far (we paid together USD 14'000) and think it was for Santaviva as well.
For the Gorilla trekking, Ivan was very attentive and everything was well organized. He even helped us out and lent me his boots as my luggage did not arrive. If our trip ended there, it would have been 5 stars! But it didnt.
We do not recommend booking anything with Santaviva in another country other than Rwanda/Uganda. In Tanzania we needed another guide/driver (who did a very good job!) to do the Safari but Ivan joined the tour as well. However, this was absolutely not necessary and we did not see such a set-up of 2 guides with any other tourists (and there were a lot of other tourists...). As newbies and not knowing how things/safaris work in Tanzania we would have expected that we were at least asked about this but we were not. Throughout most of our Tanzania trip it felt like we were 3 tourists and Ivan was just there to take videos and pictures to promote his Santaviva business on social media and have a good time/vacation. He even joined for example the balloon safari and got a (free) premium breakfast with the balloon guests as the only guide/driver of around 80 guest, which made us feel uncomfortable as the staff enabling him that clearly expected a tip for that (we were not asked nor did we want him to join). Further, he was not honest with us about the nice accommodation he stayed in. Confronted with this set-up, Ivan mentioned that this is the way Santaviva ensures quality and provides service to guests.
Ivan even flew with us to Zanzibar, in his words to say goodbye at the end of his journey (or if we want any additional activities, which was clear it was not our intent for those relaxing beach days). And as the only activity (a tour in Stone Town) was organized by an intermediary anyway, it did not make sense to us at all. On the way from the airport to the hotel he mentioned that his flight is 2 days after ours, only to mention a few minutes later that it was changed and now is even before we left (before any activities would have happened). However, we heard him mentioning this "suddenly changed" flight date and time already a week ago to another guy, so this was clearly a lie. Overall, we were left with a feeling that our trust was violated and that we overpaid and financed his business promotion and vacation trip, which is obviously not what we had intended. Finally to mention - everything else on the trip has worked out and was well organized.
Reply from Santaviva
Posted on Jan 8, 2026Dear Mathias,
Thank you for choosing Santaviva for such an important and special holiday, and for taking the time to share your detailed and honest feedback. We truly appreciate the trust you placed in us for your Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zanzibar experience, and we are grateful for the opportunity to respond.
We are pleased to hear that your gorilla trekking experience in Uganda and Rwanda met your expectations and that you felt well supported during that part of the journey. It is encouraging to know that our attentiveness and organization in that segment stood out positively.
We would, however, like to respectfully address a few concerns you raised, some of which we had already discussed together during the Tanzania portion of your trip.
At Santaviva, our operating model for premium and multi-country journeys is to personally accompany guests from the start to the end of the tour. This approach is intended to ensure consistency, quality control, and guest comfort—especially when working across different countries and ground partners. During our discussion in Tanzania, we explained that this decision was also influenced by your concerns regarding post-election uncertainty, as well as recent changes in our contracted ground handling arrangements at the time. Our priority was to ensure that you received the experience you paid for without compromise.
Regarding Tanzania, while a local professional guide/driver was fully responsible for safari operations (as required and standard), my presence was purely supervisory and supportive. I regret that this was not perceived as added value and acknowledge that we should have communicated this more clearly and formally in advance.
On the balloon safari experience, I would like to clarify that no unauthorized persons are permitted on launch grounds or bush breakfasts. My participation was by direct invitation from Miracle Experience management, following prior communication that I would be accompanying my guests to better understand and observe the operation for quality assurance purposes. This was not intended to cause any discomfort, and we regret if it did.
In terms of accommodation and costs, your tour price included international flights, regional and domestic flights, lodges, activities, and logistics across four destinations. Any meals or accommodation I received were offered by partner lodges within designated guide areas and did not form part of your billed costs. I would like to reassure you that your holiday did not subsidize personal travel or leisure—our business model typically pays out over 90% of tour revenue directly to service providers.
With regard to content creation, I strive to document and tell the story of every journey I personally guide, something that was communicated during the trip and which you kindly supported, including sharing personal moments via the tour app. That said, we understand that the balance between storytelling and guest privacy or comfort is important, and your feedback will help us improve how we manage this going forward.
Finally, on Zanzibar: while no additional activities were pre-booked, I made myself available through our WhatsApp group in case assistance was required. My presence there was not a vacation, nor an added cost to your tour, but rather an extension of guest support using business profits. That said, we fully accept your feedback that this was not necessary from your perspective and will take this into account for future trips.
We are truly sorry that parts of your experience left you feeling uncomfortable or disappointed. Your feedback is valuable and will help us refine our communication, expectations-setting, and tour-escort policies—especially for multi-country itineraries.
Thank you once again for trusting Santaviva with your holiday and for openly sharing your experience. We wish you both wonderful memories from Africa and all the very best in your future travels.
Warm regards,
Ivan