Happy safari guides from Aardvark Expeditions
Aardvark Expeditions
- Located In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2008)
- Member Of:
- TATO & TTB
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $180 to $650 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
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Email Abhishek Anchliya | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Six Out of Five Stars- Amazing Kilimanjaro and Safari Experience!!
My wife and I, along with few friends climbed Kilimanjaro followed by a safari with Aardvark Expeditions. Over the course of 12 days spent with Aadrvark, we experienced nothing but great hospitality and excellent service. Kilmanjaro trip was very well organized. Our guides were excellent and food was delicious. Aardvark chose a great group of porters for us. Hard working lovely people. The arrangements on the mountain were A class. Our tents were always ready before we got to the camp and we were always greeted with hot tea and delicious popcorn followed by sumptuous meals. Four of us were vegetarians and they took our special diets into great consideration. The guides and porters played a critical role on the summit night. The attention we received was unbelievable. There was no other team on the mountain with porters singing for them on the summit night except us. It really kept us going during rough patches. If it were not for Aardvark, the wonderful guides and the porters, we would not have made it to the summit.
The safari experience with Aardvark was also fantastic. The vehicle was brand new and the chosen lodges were great. We stayed at Kati Kati Luxury camp in Serengeti and Rhino Lodge in Ngongoro Crater, both the places were quite amazing. Specially the Kati Kati camp, Its an experience in itself. Our guide Aaron was very knowledgeable and was able to spot animals from far away. We saw great wild life, all the big five and many others.
The owner Philemon Joel is a lovely human being. He was really prompt in communicating with me right from the beginning. He never took more than a day to reply to my text messages or emails. He went out of his way to help us whenever a situation arose in Tanzania. He also helped me in getting a local Tanzania sim. He even helped my wife and I to book tickets for Zanzibar. He helped us throughout our entire stay in Tanzania by giving us great advise and booking things for us. We only paid Aardvark for Kili and Safari but Philemon was pretty much our guide and contact for the whole trip.
I can go on and on about our wonderful experience wth Aardvark and Philemon. However, all good things must come to an end. I highly recommend Aardvark for Kilimanjaro and Safari trips in Tanzania. You cannot go wrong with them. I have extensively travelled throughout the world and Aardvark is one of the best adventure companies I’ve dealt with. Tanzania is a beautiful country with wonderful people. Must visit. 6/5 stars- Highly recommended company!!!!
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Email Hari | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Country! Highest Service Quality!
- Super friendly & flexible: Philemon came to meet us after every event and got feedback on how to improve things for the next set of things. He went out of his way to help out my friends who had some delayed baggage.
- Work Crew: The people that aardvark seems to work with all seemed top notch. Our guides & crew for the Kilimanjaro trek were super attentive and made sure that we were well fed (the food was pretty yummy) & helped us make it to Uhuru Point. Even singing songs to motivate us on summit day which I didn't see anyone else do that night!! All of us made it to the top. The safari guide was also extremely professional & knowledgeable about the area and the animals.
- Equipment - most of the equipment was in pretty good shape. I had some trouble on the tent zips during the kili hike, i would urge that they add a checklist on these tents before sending them up the mountain. The Safari jeep was brand new. The safari jeep was also in pretty good shape.
- Lodging - The lodging that Aardvark booked for us for the safari (Kati Kati Lodge in Serengeti & Rhino Lodge at Ngorogoro) were amazing - Scenic, Great Service, Clean & awesome showers. The Arusha outpost lodge: not so great (the only good things here are the Indian food at the lodge cafe & the WIFI - works better than in most other places but the showers here suck big time)
Overall, The experience was great. The value for money was excellent. We made some friends for life.
AE
Email Kshitish | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Experience
We had a great experience climbing Kilimanjaro. The porters were great and the guides were top notch. They were very knowledgeable and helpful. They ensured that all of us in our group completed the hike to the top. We were the only group where the guides were singing songs to keep us motivated during the summit night. I would rate the overall experience as outstanding. Definitely worth it.
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Email Hema | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Kilimanjaro and Safari
We came to know about Aardvark Expeditions and Philemon Joel through one of my friend who had already climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with this Tour Company which is based in Arusha, Tanzania.
It was our first trip to Africa and I was extremely apprehensive initially. Philemon Joel was very friendly and meticulous that gave me confidence. We told him all the activities we wanted to do and the number of days we could spare. He came up with a thorough itinerary that covered everything from the moment we land at the airport, the local transits and lodging for our 6 days hike to Mt Kili (Machame Route) and 5 days Luxury Safari (Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater Tour and Tarangire National Park).
It is important to take a good company for the hike and Wildlife Safari. Aardvark Expeditions' porters, the drivers, the guides were extremely friendly and knowledgeable. On the hike the guide monitored us daily for any signs of altitude sickness and made sure that we had acclimatized well. We had an absolutely fantastic time climbing Kili and were thrilled to reach the top after a very long and hard climb on the final ascent morning. we were so well looked after, fed and never had any worries at all throughout the 6 days. In particular would like to reiterate how great our guide Merinyo Lucas was. We know we would not have made it to the top without his guidance and support. The food and service was excellent. Philemon took care that all of our dietary needs (vegetarian). I could not believe that I was enjoying a sumptuous meal at more than 10000 ft. It kept me motivated and energized.
Philemon Joel is very dedicated to his business, in the matters of customer satisfaction, right from the beginning , I could communicate and he understood and fulfilled every single request of mine. Hiking Mt Kilimanjaro and Safari had been a dream of mine and my sincere thanks to Philemon to have given me the most amazing trip!!
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Email Azra H | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A great experience
Me and my boyfriend had a great safari experience thanks to Aardvark. We did a privat budget camping safari and visited Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ndutu, Serengeti, Ngorongoro (if I remember well, we did it in 6 nights, and 7 days). Definitely something to recommend if you are looking for a near nature experience! Our guide Godfreay was very knowledgable and made the whole experience even more interesting and fun. With him onboard you don't need a binoculars or to worry that you'll not see all hidden animals - he spotted animals from miles away! We could observe the nature and animals in our own pace, which we really appreciated. Our chef Moses was a real magician and made simple but very tasteful food.
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Email Luke K | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable Experience
This was my first time ever going on a Safari so I didn't know what to expect. Everything about the experience was great and easy. First, they picked us up and dropped us off at our hotel. Second, everyone at Aardvark was very helpful and make sure we were enjoying our time. The driver's were very knowledgeable and knew how to handle the dirt roads. The meals were delicious and had much variety, who knew cooking at campsites could be so good?
Let's not forget they made sure we saw the Big Five animals (lion, elephant, buffalo, leopard and rhino)!
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Email Tom K | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Enjoyable and fun
It is hard to compare Aardvark Expeditions services to others since this is the only trip like this I have taken. My trip to the Serengeti and Ngorongoro was the budget (camping) trip. Next time I may pick the stepped up tour since I am 60 years old. I have to say the trip went as scheduled. The food was not only good but remarkable. Drivers / tour guides very knowlegable and friendly and a pleasure to to travel with. I would highly recommend them.
Highly Recommend for Safari
A group of 7 of us from the United States participated in the 5 day/4 night camping safari in July 2015. The highlight of the trip was seeing the big 5! The guides and cook were also excellent and very knowledgeable. Aardvark did an amazing job coordinating everything beforehand and actively communicating and answering our numerous questions before arriving. I would highly recommend Aardvark Expeditions for any of your Tanzania travel needs!
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Email Erik | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Aardvark expedition- best tour operator in Tanzania
We had the pleasure to go on a 4-days safari in Serengeti and Ngorongoro national parks with Aardvark Expeditions. I can really recommend the company, and. Mr. Philemon, that runs the company, really offers what he promises and can design the trip after your preferences.
We had a experienced guide that took us around, and we were very happy with the accommodation, services and food that was offered.
In Serengeti, we stayed at a luxury tented camp, Katikati tented camp, which was really comfortable with good beds etc. at the same time as we were in the middle of the park and zebras walked outside the tent when went out in the morning. The staff were very service-minded and the food really good, the breakfast buffet excellent. In Ngorongoro we stayed at a lodge with great view over the crater, and the trip down into the crater is something of the most beautiful I've ever seen!
Philemon also offered airport transfer and hotel in Arusha for the first and last night, which was very convenient.
I would definitely go with Aardvark expeditions again if doing another trip in Tanzania!
CA
Email N Malik | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent Value for Money with Aardvark Expeditions!
My husband and I did a 4 night Mt Meru trek with Aardvark Expeditions. We were very happy with the service that we received. Philemon went above and beyond to ensure that we were satisfied with the service provided by Aardvark Expeditions. He arrived at Arusha Airport to pick us up 1 hour early than our expected arrival time, and was not perturbed in the least when our flight landed more than an hour late. He was available to help us navigate through Arusha, even offering to pick us up and drop us off a few times to help us out. We were also able to rent gear for our climb from Philemon for a very reasonable price. As for the trek itself, we found that the food provided was probably not quite a 'fancy' as some of the (considerably) more expensive tour operators, but it was more than filling and was able to satisfy our picky tastebuds! Overall, we were very satisfied. We would trek with Aardvard Expeditions again, and we would highly recommend them if you are looking for a tour operator that provides excellent value for money.