Kenya Safari for group of 10 - OTA or Local Operator?
I'm booking a Safari for a group of 10 adults (family) in August 2019. I've been in contact with two well reviewed Kenyan operators (Sunworld and Gamewatchers). They've both provided itineraries for 6 nights in a mix of Masa and Amboseli.
Sunworld came out to ~3000pp and Gamewatchers to ~4000pp, with flights and nice luxury tents. Sunworld is cheaper due to a little more driving and a lodge (not camp) the first 3 nights.
However, with 10 people, everything is magnified when price goes up just a little! So I looked at online travel agencies. I can book 3 nights in Amboseli and 3 nights in Masa at comparable places through hotels.com for something like this:
3 nights Amboseli, Ol Tukai: ($600/room-night) x 3 nights x 5 rooms = $9000
3 nights Basecamp Masai Mara: ($400/room-night) x 3 nights x 5 rooms = $6000
So that leaves about $15k for taxes, flights, transfers in Nairobi, and a few other things that come up. What am I missing? It is "safer" to go with a tour operator of course, but for that amount of savings (even just $5k conservatively) it seems worth it.
Anyone with expertise or experience with this, please help me out! Thanks.