Javiva Adventures

I am a Travel Agent myself, and I chose Javiva Tours to organise a tailor made trip up to Crater Lake. I actually did all the work myself ( I looked for the accommodation etc.) and I just needed a driver and some recommendations and a second opinion basically. Janet was great at sending a lot of proposals, but they were all either too touristy ( overcrowded spots) or too expensive, so I decided to go with my own itinerary and we ( Janet and I) agreed a package price. As a travel agent, I know our Industry and our commissions are really low, so as a gesture of gratitude for all the work she had done for me, I wanted her to book as many things as possible for us ( I.e boat and tickets to crescent Island and other things ) , so that she could earn some money. However, when we arrived to Nairobi, this is what we encountered: 1) She forgot about us and we had to wait at the airport for some time. 2) We were then told that we had to pay her in full, and for that we had to go to some shopping centre, completely out of our way, and with cash, otherwise we had to pay some really high credit card fees etc ( This was not mentioned before, when paying for the deposit) This seems to be the standard in kenya, but we learn it the hard way. 3) Because of all these detours and delays, which were not mentioned at the time of booking ( we thought we could just pay the driver), this messed up my itinerary and we lost almost 1 day. 4) She never really informed the driver of our plan, so we had to keep telling him all the details ( Including using google maps) on a daily basis and this brought some unnecessary stress 5) Luckily the driver was really nice. 6) The big surprise came at the end when we reached Crescent Island, our driver and us, went to the cashier and neither the tickets nor the boat were pre-booked ( no so advantage in prepaying) but also, she had charged us x 3 times the price of the entry ticket . 7) At this point, I was totally suspicious, so when I arrived home, I checked all the itinerary again and I could see we were really scammed/overcharged everywhere . ( i.e she had charge us some $ 50.00 or so per day, for the driver's food, when in Kenya, drivers eat almost for free ( $6) in every hotel, it is a standard procedure) etc. etc. 8) I wrote to her, and tried to negotiate a refund, and after a few whatsapps, she admitted the overchargement, but basically she said I accepted it at the time of booking ( Took advantage of my 1st time in Kenya) .. 9) She then said, she did not know how to make a refund ( She knows how to charge though,.) so again, I went out of my way to speak to : paypal, western union etc.. and when we finally agreed to paypal, she refused the refund. 10) In between point 8 and 9 I received very long whatsapps full of insults addressed to me. 11) I never received my money back I suspect she might reply to this review with some crappy excuses like refunds outside Kenya are costly etc.. but what I wrote above is true and speaks for itself.

So helpful . Have not booked yet but will review once I’ve returned from my holidays . Enquiry has been brilliantly handled

I highly recommend to travel with Javiva Adventures, Janet( the owner) is very nice, welcoming, knowledgeable , professional and She will make your visit and trip unforgettable. Choosing them it's totally worthy it.

Had a great and perfect arrange day with them. If you consider to have a full day of safari, I only can recommended them! They will make you day worth while

It was really awesome and amazing experience to travel with Jeviva. Janet was amazing and she reached out on us just to make sure were okay and satisfied. I highly recommend her for an amazing safari and delicious food. Our driver Patrick was really awesome.

My travel consultant Janet was always kind and very responsive and making sure to accommodate.