(Posted 01st December 2023)
Breaking News
Twiga Tours of Kenya has, for the second year running, been named as the World’s Leading Safari Company at the just concluded World Travel Awards 2023 Grand Finale, which was held this evening at the Burj al Arab, Jumeirah, Dubai.
Twiga Tours was one of 6 top ranked safari companies from across Africa nominated for the award, which equates to the Oscar’s of the travel industry.
 |
Previous winners of the award, which was first launched in 2021, are shown below.
- World’s Leading Safari Company 2023: Twiga Tours
- World’s Leading Safari Company 2022: Twiga Tours
- World’s Leading Safari Company 2021: Rhino Africa
Twiga Tours had previously also been named as the leading safari operator in both Kenya and Africa, as ATCNews had reported at the time:
(The Manji Family and team members receiving their award last year)
Minaz Manji, presently overseas in the US to promote travel to East Africa, had this to say to ATCNews about his company’s history:
‘As I reflect upon my past business life of more than 40 years it seems like a dream…a beautiful and wonderful dream that I long would last forever and ever. Although I went to business school and trained to be an accountant, I am an idealist and always wanted to live a life where I could reach out to bring happiness and a smile or two to someone. I am a proud African too and wanted to share my Africa…my home through my eyes so that one could share in my pride and my joy of living in Africa!
Today, I am proud to say that I have brought joy and laughter to hundreds of thousands of guests who had arrived at the airport as clients but left for home as my friends. Equally, I am proud to say my family and I have touched the lives of thousands of school going children in remote areas of Kenya and Tanzania who have had the opportunity to attend school but, who otherwise, would not have been able to do so. I am deeply thankful for the wonderful work undertaken by my family foundation, the Manji Foundation, to support primary schools in underprivileged areas by building and equipping classrooms and dormitories, providing meals, educational materials and any other assistance necessary so that such children in need may access quality education and make a difference to their lives. Most parents’ greatest wish would be that their children will follow in their footsteps and I wasn’t any different…I, too, did! It is with immense joy and pride to see my two children Shazmin and Rahim flourish in the company. Since they joined the company mor than 18 years ago, Twiga Tours has grown in strength with their hard work and innovative ideas, becoming the most sought after Luxury Tour Operator in East Africa!
As children, both Shazmin and Rahim would walk up to our arriving guests at the airport or at our family home to proudly announce who they were and engage in conversations about their wonderful experiences of living in Africa. They were fortunate to accompany their parents into the wild and experience nature at its best…sometimes camping other times staying in different camps and lodges. The children, blessed with a mix of their cultural heritage and traditional African hospitality and, particularly, their love for Africa kept our guests most entertained. Upon graduation from university the family were joyous when both announced they were returning home to join the family business bringing with them a wealth of fresh new (modern) ideas acquired from their life in a western university…that was in 2005.
Today, more than eighteen years on, both Shazmin and Rahim have settled well into their individual roles as the future management of the company and have made immense contributions to the growth of the company. A new addition to our family is Rhys, an adorable little lad whose love of wildlife seems as passionate as ours. Within this short time in his life he has made several visits to a number of game parks and wants to know why he can’t live there…our story will continue for many years to come!‘
Earlier in the year had Ms. Shazmin Manji also been awarded at ‘Female Trailblazer of the Year 2023‘ at the annual Pyne Awards.
ATCNews, whose publisher knows the Manji family well on a personal level, extends congratulations and best wishes to Minaz, his entire family and his superb team in Kenya on scooping this most sought after award for the second time in a row.
