10-Insider Tips that will help you choose the Right Safari Tour Operator
Helpful Advice on Choosing the Right Tour Operator for your Primate – Wildlife Safari in Uganda
Selecting the Right Tour Operator for Your Safari in Uganda: When choosing the right tour operator for your Safari in Uganda, it’s essential to research and find a company that aligns with your values and priorities.
Look for a Tour Operator that prioritizes your safari wishes, lodging choice, well-being, safety, and security while on Safari in Uganda.
You also want a tour operator dedicated to sustainable Eco-Tourism, ethical primate wildlife encounters, and sensitivity to local communities such as the Batwa people.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions and read reviews from previous customers. Additionally, consider the level of comfort and amenities offered on the Safari, as well as the level of expertise and experience of the driver-guide. Choosing the right Tour Operator for your Safari in Uganda will give you a more enjoyable and meaningful safari experience in the Pearl of Africa.
Choosing the Right Tour Operator for Your Safari in Uganda
10 -Tips that will help you in selecting the right Tour Operator for you
1.-Finding the Best Safari Tour Operator in Uganda:
Who is the Best Safari Tour Operator in Uganda? Type that into a Google Search, and you will come up with various lists of Safari Tour operators that claim to be the best in Uganda. Tour operators often compile such lists and list others friendly to them.
Is there such a thing as the best Safari Tour Operator? We would suggest that claiming to be the best tour operator is a myth. Only the best tour operator can meet your expectations for a Safari.
There are hundreds of Ugandan Tour operator websites on the Internet. They often claim to be the country’s best or the leading Safari Tour Operator. It can be quite a challenge for someone wanting to find the best tour operator for their Safari.
/what might be the best Tour Operator for one might not be the best for another. Safari travelers are looking for the best Safari Tour Operator for them. Tour Operators are service providers offering you the experience of a once-in-a-lifetime safari in Uganda.
2.- Go on your Safari with a Local – Use an in-country Tour Operator:
For most, Uganda is part of the great African unknown. You are clueless about what to expect and do not know about tourist visas, yellow fever certificates, or even what airport to use.
A local tour brings their knowledge of the country, culture, scenic wonders, wildlife, and primate activities. Only a local Ugandan Tour Operator can give you the best Safari Experience.
The added benefit is that you deal directly with a Ugandan Safari Company eliminating any go-between costs and making your Safari more affordable.
Discover Uganda, Experience it through the eyes of a local Ugandan. You are not dealing with a travel provider in London, LA, NY, Paris, Rome, or Berling but a local Ugandan Tour Operator.
A Safari is an inner and outer experience. You cannot experience Uganda on a self-drive Safari or a Safari arranged by a Tour Operator not located in Uganda. We like to say we live and work In Uganda, and we know Uganda is our home, and we do not need a map or GPS device.
3. – Use an accredited Association of Uganda Tour Operators (AUTO) Safari Company
By choosing an AUTO Tour Operators member company, you deal with hundreds, not thousands, of Tour Operators found on the Internet.
You are dealing with an Uganda Tourism Board-licensed company that adheres to a code of conduct, ethics, and standards where the client comes first. There are standards that a tour operator must adhere to, and there are annual reviews.
UTB periodically inspects licensed tour operators to meet the higher standards the Board sets.
AUTO members are the ones who have an inside track when it comes to the all-important Gorilla Permits. They sell the lion’s share of primate tracking permits and have the first pick over other tour operators.
For peace of mind and higher professionalism, deal with an AUTO Tour Operator. The added plus for you is that he is a Ugandan Tour Operator that knows the country firsthand.
4. – Use a Tour Operator with an Informative Website
You can learn a lot about a Tour Operator by perusing their website. It should give you the information you want about Uganda Travel, Safaris, and Requirement rather than everything about selling.
By looking at a tour operator’s website, you can quickly catch the motivation of the tour operator.
A Ugandan Tour Website should address your health concerns and security. Whether your dietary needs can be met, the kind of lodges and hotels are used. You can participate in the activities and provide something about your driver’s guide and vehicle.
Additionally
A tour operator should have a website that not only sells but also informs you and gives you the safari information you seek.
A tour operator should see things from your point of view and not theirs.
5. – Do some research on the tour operator you are Considering:
In your country and Uganda, we live in a world where things are not always on the up and up, and the reality is that anyone can put up a Tour Operator website. Each day there is a handful more, most of whom are honest individuals wanting to partake in the great pre-pandemic Tourism Gold Rush.
There will always be a few bad apples, including in tourism—briefcase tour operators without substance. Unscrupulous individuals do not care about the outcome of your Safari but personal income. Just because someone has an Association of Uganda Tour Operators logo on their site does not mean they are a member.
Be wary of Tour operators who use Gmail or Yahoo email addresses and not an email with their web-domain name.
Look at the tour operator’s reviews on their Google Business page, Trip Advisor, and Facebook. Sadly, such studies can be and are manipulated, even in Uganda. In addition, you can look up their Facebook page and LinkedIn, Google Business presence, and Google Business demands verification of the business location. Be sure to look at the reviews on the above pages and TripAdvisor.
Such research deals with the reputation of a tour operator. Do you need to know how long the Tour Operator has been in the Business? You do not want to entrust your African dream safari to a Tour Operator who has just started, and that would be risky unless you thrive on chaos. It would be best to have a tour operator with experience and a proven track of successful Safaris.
While a novice tour operator may be enthusiastic, creating and implementing a successful safari takes more than enthusiasm. You invest considerable money, and experience, customer service, and a satisfying Safari Experience are developed as the Safari company matures.
You want someone with experience that has remained innovative and is on top of the latest trends in safari travel. The good news is that the Uganda Tourism Board, the Association of Ugandan Tourism Operators, and the Tourism Police vigorously enforce its standards and bring dishonest tour operators to book.
6.-Does the Tour Operator offer you the Safari that you want?
Those wanting to go on their long-planned Dream Safari have certain expectations. Many tourists seek a Tour Operator that supports primates, wildlife, and indigenous people’s conservation and environmental sustainability, creating a win-win situation for nature and humans.
Most Tour Operators want to get sales, especially during the present pandemic. They are jacks of all Trades and sell safaris all over Africa.
Other tour operators choose a different style, becoming niche safari operators, offering what they are best at. Should you want a luxury or midrange Safari, you do not want to use a tour operator that provides budget safaris.
If you want a private safari just for your vehicle and driver-guide, you do not want a tour operator specializing in group safaris.
Choosing the right Tour Operator for your Safari in Uganda depends on your preferences, including the booking and planning process. Sometimes a tour operator may attempt to create a safari that does not suit you. Stick with what you want unless what you are offered makes sense.
7.- You do not want to deal with a High-Pressure Sales Tactic Tour Operator:
Go with me to Uganda’s extensive and bustling Owned Market. As you enter, shopkeepers will pull you to their stalls to sell wares. They will shout at you, beg you, and even physically try to pull you to their shop.
As you search for a tour operator, you might find a former Owino shopkeeper now selling safaris. At least, it seems that way, and it isn’t enjoyable, no matter what.
No one wants to be pressured into something they do not wish to do. Selling a safari is relational, not aggressive. Say no and go elsewhere. Fortunately, the above rarely takes place, but it does happen often. However, tourism arrivals have been down since 2020, and the pandemic has taken a toll on tour operators. Challenging times mean that some may resort to pressing you into going on Safari with them.
A few who use high-pressure sales tactics might be con artists working a scam. A reputable, accredited tour operator will not use such techniques. Yearly there are several such cases reported. Not many, but a few. Those conned have lost significant amounts of money that are often never recovered.
The solution is simple. You can say no and go with someone else.
8. – A low price offer by a Tour Operator is not always a good deal for you!!!
When Comparing Safari Prices, it is good to remember the Yugo Principle, “Cheap Things are not Good, Good Things are not Cheap.” The Yugo was the World’s Cheapest Car, which gave its owners unending trouble and grief, costing them more than a higher-priced vehicle.
We know that cheap things fall apart in Uganda and much of Africa, where unscrupulous traders send the lowest.
Cheap Things are called Fake or Zing-Zong Goods in Uganda. Below are Standard Goods made in China, such as fake Nokia, Samsung, or Apple Phones. They are like the forks that bend upon use, the knives that do not cut, or the fan that burns up after one week.
The last thing is a Zing-Zong Safari based purely on price. An African Safari is the journey of a lifetime for most, and saving a few hundred dollars is not worth sacrificing for a better experience that gives you long-lasting memories.
Lower-priced safaris are often the result of offering lesser value. That is especially true with the lodges and hotels a tour operator may choose for your African Safari.
When weighing your safari options, always compare apples with apples. We know what a Safari should include, and we will notice what is left out by a tour operator to offer a lower price. The worst mistake that you can make is to only look at prices!
Here are some of the low-price gimmicks used to give you an attractive Safari price: 
- The Practice of Bait and Switch: Your itinerary shows one thing, such as a moderate lodge, you wind up in a lesser value lodge. When you ask, you get an answer like they were overbooked. The same applies to the quality of vehicles. When you ask, you are told it is in the shop for repair.
- Gorilla – Chimpanzee permits may not be included: This is a practice of scammers and rarely happens. They might have an Association of Uganda Tour Operators logo on their site but are not members.
- You did not realize it, but the Safari you bought is on a Bed and Breakfast basis: You have to pay a sizeable amount for lunch and dinner.
Suppose the safari price is too low and too tempting. You might be the recipient of a stripped-down, bare-bone safari. You get what you pay for.
Search on Google for Cheap Safaris in Uganda or try Cheap Gorilla Safaris. Here is the reality no matter what a site might say, there is nothing cheap about an African Safari, especially a Gorilla Safari where the permit price is $700. Be comforted. A Gorilla Safari in Uganda will cost you at least half as much as in neighboring Rwanda without compromising the quality of experience.
9. – You need an honest Tour Operator when it comes to payments:
Most Association of Uganda Tour Operators will allow International Wire Transfers. You can also use a credit card with PesaPal, East Africa’s answer to PayPal.
Two payments are usually required, the down payment and the final payment. Do not pay Safari in full unless the safari n begins in less than thirty days.
Do not send money via Western Union, Moneygram, or World Remit. Neither should you send money to a personal checking account for a Safari. If that happens, your internal security alarm system should go off.
The reason is that you are entering into an iffy non-businesslike relationship. Do not be tempted by promises of the moon, sun, stars, or a seemingly low price. All signs that someone is attempting to defraud you.
A legitimate tour operator will have a business bank account in Ugandan Shillings and US Dollars. No legitimate tour operator will ever ask you to send a safari payment to a personal checking account or a mobile money account.
10.-Consider Kabiza Wilderness Safaris as your Safari Tour Operator:
Choosing the Right Tour Operator for your Safari in Uganda: Kabiza Wilderness Safaris has been an accredited tour operator in Uganda and an active member of the Association of Uganda Tour Operators (AUTO) since 2008.
We are also accredited by the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) (License UTB/TT/82445), ensuring that they meet the national tourism standards and requirements set by the government.
Kabiza Wilderness Safaris offers a range of safari and tour packages in Uganda, including luxury and mid-range safaris.
Our “Hakuna Matata” slogan means “no worries” in Swahili and reflects their commitment to providing their clients with a stress-free and enjoyable safari experience.
Our luxury safaris offer high-end accommodations and personalized service, with experiences such as gorilla trekking, wildlife viewing, and cultural tours. Our mid-range safaris provide comfortable and affordable accommodations and a range of safari experiences.
Overall, Kabiza Wilderness Safaris is, according to past clients, a reliable and reputable tour operator in Uganda with a proven track record of providing high-quality safari experiences to their clients.
For over a decade (2008), we have done only one thing: creating and implementing memorable Safaris for our clients. We do not claim to be a jack of all trades but a tour operator offering mid-range and luxury private Hakuna Matata – No Worries Safaris focusing on Uganda, the Pearl of Africa.
We live and work in Uganda. It is our home, and we would love to introduce you to a different country from anywhere else in Africa. Discover why Uganda is the Pearl of Africa while with us.
We offer Ugandan Hospitality with a dash of American Style Customer Service, including a quality safari vehicle and an experienced and knowledgeable driver-guide who will introduce you to Uganda. You are on Safari with a local who does not need a GPS guidance system or a copy of the famed Bradt Guide to Uganda.
We offer both a flexible no-risk booking policy and our one-of-a-kind price guarantee.
