Serengeti Smile Team
Serengeti Smile
- Office In:
- Size:
- 50-100 employees (Founded in 2020)
- Member Of:
- Tanzania Tourist Board & AMREY Flying Doctors Insurance
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $100 to $500 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
Email Rehan | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Safari, Great guide, Great agent, Great Organisation
The Serengeti certainly lived up to its reputation and Deo, our guide, from Serengeti Smile made sure we got the most out of it and always had a smile throughout the safari.
I booked this safari with Baraka. He was patient and informative. After the safari, because I was so impressed with their reliability, communication, organisation, 5 day safari, jeep, guide, accomodation, food etc, I used them to book our airport transfer and a trip to the waterfalls and hot springs.
I booked a mid range 5 day safari for my family, adults and 3 teenage boys, starting in Tarangire, followed by 2 nights in Serengeti, then Ngorongoro and finished up with Lake Manyara. This was our first safari and we wer absolutely blown away. As a testament to how good it was, none of the 3 teenage boys used their phones throughout the safari apart from in the evenings to view the photos and videos and to share it with their friends. Deo was amazing at finding all the animals and he always managed to position the jeep in the best position. He was kind and patient and struck a good rapport with the boys and whole family. Its really important that you have a nice guide, because you are with each other pretty much from 7-7 every day! and we felt very comfortable with Deo.
We managed to see all the big 5 including the very rare Leopard and Rhino and not only that, we saw them in action. We saw a leopard sleeping in the tree with a kill perched higher up. We were lucky enough to see the leopard wake up, climb the tree and eat the kill! We also saw elephants knocking down trees. We also saw a lioness feeding and playing with her cubs. The highlight was when we were driving home to our accomodation in the Serengeti, it was late and the sun had just set so no-one else was around, and Deo spotted Zebras...he slowed down to show us and the spotted a zebra lying down roadside directly next to the jeep. We panned to the right and a lioness was there, eating its prey which itnhad probably caught 30mins before. Under the supervision of Deo, who was ready and waiting to close it if necessary, I opened the jeep roof and had a stare down with the lioness and then watched her devour her prey. We were literally right next to it and you can even hear the crunching in the video footage. It was absolutely amazing.
If, like me, you were
- debating whether its worth going on safari, having been on safari now, I can tell you... without a doubt its worth it. You will have many unforgettable moments. I think we were extra lucky but even if you dont see the animals in action, you have many memorable moments.
- If you were cautious about the tour agents, don't be...Serengeti Smile was amazing
- if you were debating 1 night or 2 in serengeti...do 2, its worh it...sleeping in the Serengeti is great. We heard a lioness roaring in the night. We woke up in the morning to see gazelles and Zebras migrating. The accomodation was sensational and although we we're slightly unlucky because hot water was not quite working, none of us minded becaue food, hospitality and accomodation was great.
- if you were debating whether to do a shared or private safari, id definitely recommend private so you can be yourselves and spread out in the jeep as well
- if you were debating 4 or 5 days, I think either is fine. We had already seen all the key animals by the end of day 4, but we were lucky
- its nice to do different parks, because it mixes up the scenery and landscape and environment. Id recommend dropping lake Manyara or doing it first (not last) ... whilst its ok and you do see a few key animals like Zebras, giraffes, elephants...having been spoilt with an abundance of them in the Serengeti, it's a bit of an anti climax. Fine for day 1 but not the most exciting on day 5.
Overall, highly recommended safari and agent (Baraka) and guide (Deo)
Amazing experience, lifetime memories
Our safari adventure was perfect thanks to our outstanding driver/guide Hussein. He is a seasoned driver and excellent guide. He kept us safe on those winding roads and led us to all possible trails to spot all kinds of animals. He was very respectful of our time, and made sure we could see as many animals as possible. Every day was an incredible day.
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Email Enya | under20 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Knowledgeable about all the animals, very kind
saw the big five in 2 days! Totally recommend it!
Email Trevor | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great service and amazing guides, would recommend.
Serengeti smile gave us an excellent experience. Communication was great throughout and always very professional.
The safari and game drives were amazing. Every day was a full day and we saw a huge range of animals up close, sometimes really close. Our guide Champion, was great. Really friendly, professional and very knowledgeable. He seemed to get us to the best spot every time and could see game from miles away. The jeep was always clean and tidy and his driving was safe and smooth (given the African massage roads 😀). Highlights where cheetah and cub eating a fresh kill, lioness with cubs feeding and lots of baby elephants. I started taking an interest in the bird life and Champion accomodated this , finding me interesting birds and places to view them. A perfect safari.
Email Lisa | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great service, fabulous safari, fantastic guide
When it came to booking a safari I wanted to use a local company and so got some quotes from a few, Serengeti Smile was the best value quote and really responsive to my (many!) emails amending the plans or asking questions. We were able to adapt the programme to suit our needs and definitely felt that we had a tailored bespoke holiday planned.
Our 6 day safari covered Tarangire, Central and Northern Serengeti, Ngorongoro crater and Lake Manyara and saw everything we expected and more, all of the big 5, the mara river crossing and the great migration. The accomodations we stayed in were all of good quality with lovely food and staff. The tented camps in Serengeti were great and gave us the feel of camping whilst having the facilities of a good hotel.
Our guide Champion was excellent, always full of energy and happy to explain things and answer our questions. He was great at spotting things from afar and we were often the first to arrive at a sighting. Some highlights were finding lions feeding off their mother, cheetah with its catch and very cute baby elephants but we saw so much it's hard to say what was best. We say something different everyday and Champion worked really hard to make sure we always had great positions for taking photos and viewings the wildlife. He also seemed genuinely excited and interested by being on safari and was always in good spirits and a pleasure to spend our time with.
Email Jacob | under20 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best holiday I've had
We found Serengeti smile on this website and had an amazing trip going through tarangiry park and going north through the Serengeti and I had an incredible time looking at the animals and especially when we saw a group lions eating an wilderbeast. Also are guide Champion was amazing and was always able to find us an animal that no other jeeps were around and he was also extremely knowledgeable about everything we saw.
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Email Kim | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amini was amazing!
Serengeti Smile was so reliable. Went to each stop, did so much during the days, and saw so much up close wildlife. Amini was such a good driver for us because he gave us the best experience no matter what. He is an intelligent driver. The value for the money is so worth it! Getting to experience Tanzania was unforgettable, thank you Serengeti smile.
Email Gaia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Magical experience
We had a magical few days exploring the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. Our sales advisor, Lambert took the time to understand what we wanted from the trip and tailored the trip to ensure it met our needs. We were really impressed with our accommodations, especially the ones within the Serengeti. Everyone at the hotels were so welcoming and accommodating. Our guide Hussein was always on time, and extremely knowledgable about the animals and vegetation. We experienced some minor issues, but Hussein looked to resolve them straight away which put us at ease. We had a few suggestion to further improve the service for future users which the tour company were more than happy to take on board. All in all it was a great experience, Hussein made every effort to ensure we saw the Big 5 and all other animals as close as possible. Hussein had an eagle eye and was able to spot animals from afar, and had an amazing way of talking to the animals, making them stop - giving us time to take the perfect shots. Beyond the safari, we have learnt more about the culture, language and people which has been fantastic. We would definitely recommend this experience and tour company - it was certainly great value for money.
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Email Kirby | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Overall great, and soon any kinks will be worked out for sure.
I was traveling with a party of 11, all age ranges from 10 to my parents in their 70s. The most important elements here were safety and consideration of this varied party and in both respects Serengeti Smile was exemplary. Walter and Zack were our drivers and while I saw other jeeps that were impatient at times and risky while navigating some really treacherously narrow roads, they never made us feel unsafe and were extremely capable. Walter was a font of knowledge and would supplement his lessons on the wildlife with books he kept in the front seat that could act as visual aids. I got along with Zack for his good nature and our shared football love. Both were always vigilant of my mother-in-law’s precarious gait and were kind to the kids (10, 11, 13).
Their knowledge of the terrain - the Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater - was evident and they made sure we got to see all the big five while on safari. The leopard was a tricky find but they wouldn’t give up and eventually we saw one in a tree (camouflaged incredibly which may explain why they’re so elusive). We saw two rhinos and had the most amazing encounter with three male lions who were lounging in front of a herd of about 500 zebras. One lion came within a few yards of my window. Just mesmerizing.
The highlight of our accommodations was the Nyoto (sp?) resort where we stayed for two nights in the Serengeti. It was surreal to sip beers in the pool looking over an infinity edge at a herd of water buffalo migrating north. My wife was gazing at grazing giraffes as she dozed in the afternoon. When you have a high like Nyoto it’s really hard for the other accommodations to compete, and if there’s one way they could improve it’s to continue searching for other venues that meet that standard. But to be honest, all the accommodations were on lovely grounds, I just imagine some of this has to do with what’s available.
I’ve only been on one safari so take my opinion for what it’s worth, but I’ve traveled all across Europe and Asia, and I know how tough a trip like this through a rustic developing nation can be and I can’t imagine another company doing better.
High recommend and another nod to our guides Walter and Zack.
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Email Jarely | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The tour operator is the best in all of Tanzania because they were kind, respectful and fun!
Serengeti Smile was the best safari option for my friends and I. The tour guide (Mussa) was amazing and he ensured that we saw all animals. All staff were helpful and kind. We would highly recommend!