Hilary and Martin - owners of Suricata Safaris
Suricata Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2016)
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $190 to $600 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
AT
Email Regina Oemer | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience, very safe
We just ended our 5-days Safari as one of the first guests after Covid-19 Lockdown (25-29 July 2020). Life is like normal in Tanzania/Arusha and they are really happy to welcome tourists again. For care of health they have buckets with clear water, soap and sanitizers to clean your hands everywhere. On our Safari every Hotel or Lodge welcomed us with face masked and they checked our temperatur. They are making efforts for everyone to stay safe. But if you dont mind, you dont have to wear face masks.
We really enjoyed our safari with our guide Florid. He really cared about everyone on our Tour to be happy and safe. Also I think 5-days is not to long for a safari. We enjoyed it until the last day! We slept in a Lodge and two Tended Lodges. They were really beautiful and on europian standards.
Asante Sana Suricata!!
DE
Email Liane | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
We have always had the best views!
Since years already i have been sending all my friends, couchsurfers and visitors with the Suricata Safaris on adventure and never anybody complained. The communication is at anytime excellent and everything happens in time. This time it were my parents visiting me from germany to go with me and my friends to Serengeti, Ngorogoro and Tarangire to have the full african feeling in tents. So it was very important to me that everything would be perfect. And it was! It was more than ever expected! Our Tourguide Mandela has been doing an amazing job. Even in critical situations he was able to lead our group of 6 people through in total safty! We had kids with us and sometimes if you are very close to the giant animals its important to keep calm. In addition under all safari cars we always had by far the best views on the animals really close to us due to our guide. Also we have to thank our cook Ben for the delicious food we got every day freshly prepared and for being every time very happy and in a good mood. The kids loved him so much!
My parents are super impressed about our adventure and super super happy here in Tanzania thanks the Suricata Safaris. My father found it very educational for all, the kids and us. And i am most happy about the professionality of Mandela, which provided us safty at all times. But also he was super brave. As close as we got to really big Elefants and even a Leopard we all were scared to death but Mandela was still relaxed to indicate us to enjoy the moment! We really really did! Big thanks to the whole team from us! We will never forget the nights together with the baffalos, lions and hyennas at night! It was stunning and magic!
The tour operator was knowledgeable, well spoken, respectful, patient and fun.
With hundreds of safari companies to choose from, we were lucky we chose Suricata. From the moment we first contacted them, they worked tirelessly to make sure every detail was taken care of.
Our guide Frederick was incredible, and made being in the wild so comfortable with his care and deep knowledge of the animals. And our chef, Chaz, worked around the clock making us delicious meals ever day.
For those afraid of coming to Tanzania because of COVID 19, do not worry, the country and all of its attractions are open and ready for you.
CZ
Email Sabina | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Almost a VIP safari with the best guide Rocky
After months of coronavirus isolation in Europe, the safari in Africa is all the more fascinating. Once Tanzania reopened for tourists again and the holidays in the Czech Republic began, there was nothing to think about. I had a great experience with Suricata Safaris, so I asked their professional guide Rocky and his boss Hilary to recommended me another adventure... so I decided to visit Lake Manyara and Tarangire National Park this time. It was almost a VIP adventure, because we were only two tourists in the car - me and a nice man from Germany.
Rocky took perfect care of us all the time, prepared an excellent picnic lunch in the park and told a lot of interesting things about the animals with genuine interest along the way. Local flavors dinner at Figi camp was specially prepared for us by Chef Salim. One of the great adventures is changing the tire, which we managed together. Rocky just has a smile on his face at all times and that's how it should be.
Tarangire National Park captivated me with the number of elephants and huge baobabs we admired. We were also very lucky with the lions I wanted to see the most.
Thanks to the professionalism of the Suricata team, I have a lot of unforgettable experiences again. ASANTE SANA SURICATA SAFARIS
Email Tiia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Hillary swapped customers to cheaper tour operator without disclosing this
I spent a good while researching safari options prior to my trip to Tanzania. I chose to book with Suricata Safaris based on their great reviews (#6 of 1,294 Outdoor Activities in Arusha) and accepted the cost as a part of the great experience I was in for. Weeks in advance, I had emailed the company to confirm this tour was going ahead on that day. Hillary from Suricata Safaris confirmed this.
When the tour started, I quickly realised it was not the 5-star treat I had paid for. Another day in, I realised that we had ended up with Arunga Expeditions & Safaris (#674 of 1,294 Outdoor Activities in Arusha) and their rude personnel. When I asked about this, our driver told me to "stop complaining". When I confronted the Suricata representative, Hillary, he said that they moved me to a cheaper operator to save costs.
My experience with Arunga was very poor. There was no toilet paper, no hot water and no WiFi in the camps, and I shared a small tent with two people (I was told differently when I made my online enquiry with Suricata Safaris). When one of our crew fell ill and needed transportation out of the nature reserve, our guide suggested that we need to sort that ourselves.
I ended up getting dinner and 10% of my money back from Suricata Safaris after the tour. This really does not make up for the difference in quality for the two tour operators.
CZ
Email Václav | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Perfect experience with Suricata Safaris
Our safari with Suracita team was absolutely amazing. We choose a 5-day trip (Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Manyara and Tarangire) and enjoyed every single moment. Hilary was from the first moment very professional, friendy and delivered what he promised. Our driver was Louis (funny guy, very friendly). Our masterchief cooker was Salim (unbelievable what he was able to cook for us during the whole safari). What we loved the most from safari were baby lions. They were so cute:). Except for rhino and tree lions we saw all wild animals (we had bad luck wiht weather). We were absolutely satisfied and would recommend organizing safari with Suricata Safaris to anybody.
Few tips: Take something warm for Ngorongoro (nights are really cold). Do not forget to take binocular. Do not pack black and blue clothing with you (tsetse flies loves it).
RU
Email Sergei | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience
We were on Zanzibar and wanted to go for safari. My wife contacted many travel agencies, but communication with them was very hard and strange. Some didn’t answer our questions, some provided ambiguous information about tours. So we tried one more time on safaribookings.com.
We contacted with Hilary (the owner) and he provided us detailed and clear information about the tour we wanted to go. As we contacted him a day before the tour he asked for no prepayment and we decided to give a try.
Hillary managed our pick up at Kilimanjaro airport and drop off at the hotel we booked in Arusha by ourselves. Next day Leonard, his driver, picked up us from hotel and brought us to Suricata’s office where we cleared the payment (we advise you to have USD in cash because it is much more easy to pay and you don’t have to search for ATMs). Once the payment was done we started moving.
We had 4 day tour. I’ll drop the itinerary here.
Day 0: Arriving at Kilimanjaro airport, night at hotel in Arusha. We stayed at Dam Stam hotel which is nice.
Day 1: Tarangire national park, night at Twiga lodge
Day 2: Serengeti National Park, night at Serengeti Angata luxury tented lodge
Day 3: Serengeti National Park, night at Ngorongoro Angata luxury tented lodge
Day 4: Ngorongoro Crater, drop off at Kilimanjaro airport
All national parks were amazing, but the most we advise you the Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater because they have a lot of animals. We saw everyone except rhinos, we saw zebras, lions, elephants so close that it was unbelievable experience.
Hillary and Ezikiel (our driver and guide) managed everything so we didn’t have to trouble ourselves. Also our group was accompanied with Saleem, the cook, who made us very tasty meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner).
All team (Hillary, Ezikiel, Saleem) was very friendly and helpful. As we took our journey amid of COVID-19 crisis (in the middle of March) guys were relaxed, helpful and friendly despite the panic around.
I strongly advise you to connect with Suricatas because they are very flexible and helpful. The price was good too.
US
Email Elijah | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Best Safari I have been on!
I don't usually leave reviews, actually this is my first but my girlfriend and I just went on the Suricata 5-Day Mid Range Group Tour and it was amazing. I have been on other safaris in Tanzania, and to many of the same parks, Suricata was my favorite. From the beginning Hilary responded to my inquiry quickly and was very helpful insuring our safari was everything we wanted. The safari included airport pickup and drop off and hotel stay in Arusha the night before and after the safari. Hilary met us at the hotel prior to the safari to explain everything and answer any questions we had. The Safari itself was great. Our guide Ezekiel was everything you could ask for; he has a genuine love of animals and a serious knowledge to compliment it. At multiple times he was able to use that knowledge to situate us in the perfect position to have a group of male lions walk directly by our car or watch a leopard climb out of a tree. His extensive knowledge was also very useful when an aggressive male elephant wanted to tip our vehicle. Ezekiel also was skilled at all sorts of problem solving that ensured our safari was smooth and enjoyable, plus his friendly and lively personality were irreplaceable. The accommodation was excellent, staying in either private rooms at a lodge or private semi-permanent tents at tented lodges. Suricata cooks delicious local meals and provides everything needed for the perfect safari. As for animals, we saw it all, and lots of it, you know it is a good safari when at the end of it you are not excited about seeing most of the animals because you have see them so much. I would highly recommend any safari you are interested in with Suricata. Great experience beginning to end.
FR
Email Lucile | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
a once in a lifetime adventure
We did a 3 day safari in Manyara, Ngorongoro and Tarangire, with Lewis our driver. Everything was beyond my expectations. Lewis was extremely nice, we saw plenty of wildlife, the food was very good and accomodation in small huts was lovely. Easy contact with the manager to organize the trip beforehand.
Thanks again for this great experience!
GR
Email Ioan | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Once in a lifetime experience!
It was a great experience! We didn't expect to see so many animals. To begin with, the safari itself is a unique, once-in-a-lifetime experience. We even saw baby elephants and lions. And a lot of zebras. Our driver, Mandela, was always scanning the site for animals and he was able to spot them easily! He was also a great driver! Our chef, Pius, was also great as he could cook nice food under difficult-cooking conditions!
As it is a safari, you must be prepared to leave your confort at home for the majority of the days (we stayed in tents for 2 nights and 1 in a nice lodge). Food, accomodation, taxi from the airport to the hostel (before and after the safari) and from the hostel to the airport was included.