- Report: #1112203
Complaint Review: Edge East Africa Safaris - Nairobi Select State/Province
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Author Not Confirmed
Why?
Edge East Africa Safaris
3E, Marcjo Plaza, O/Rongai, P.O. Box 57382 - 00200 Nairobi, Select State/Province, Kenya
Phone:
+254 020 2189909
Web:
www.east-africa-safari.com
Categories:
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Edge East Africa Safaris Stole $35,000 USD Nairobi Kenya
Last summer a group of 8 of us paid Edge East Africa Safaris $35,000 for a 2-week photo safari in Kenya and Tanzania. We called a few references provided by the manager, George Ngondo at EEAS, and they said they had good trips. Two days before leaving the United States we emailed George to arrange where to meet him on our arrival in Nairobi, and he replied that due to financial problems Edge East Africa was having with one of its directors, our trip had to be cancelled and we could reschedule for 2 months later, or get a full refund in 3 months. We opted for a full refund in 3 months.
We then checked with several of the hotels Edge East Africa was supposed to reserve for us to see if it was a scam from the start, and found a mix of 'never heard of you', 'yes, we have a reservation for you, but no deposit', and 'we had a reservation, but cancelled it because George Ngondo never put down a required deposit and did not return our many calls to resolve the matter'. It appears George Ngondo/Edge East Africa started to set up our trip, but then decided to keep our money instead.
3 months came and went, with a flurry of emails between us and George Ngondo and after 4 months (late December, 2013), still no refund and just excuse after excuse.
5 of the 8 of us also lost our non-refundable air fare. The other 3 lost $250 each, on top of the $35,000.
We checked on Trip advisor shortly after Edge East Africa cancelled our trip and discovered an Australian group that had the same thing happen to them with George Ngondo/Edge East Africa. In their case, they had been out $16,000 AUD, and had been trying for a year to get their money back from George Ngondo/Edge East Africa Safaris.
We are still emailing George every few days and he continually promises we will get a refund by a certain date, and of course that date passes and we get yet another story and another promised date, which passes without a refund....you get the idea.
Bottom line: Avoid Edge East Africa and George Ngondo like the plague. It is a scam. Not ony are you at risk of not getting your safari, you may not find out until you get there, which is what happened to the Australian group. They flew all the way to Kenya only to find out there was no safari!
