Mali Kale Africa Safaris

Outstanding Safari from beginning to end!

Jambo! I highly recommend Mali Kale Safaris owned/operated by Richard Boniventure! Richard was a top notch guide & driver. His communication pre-trip was speedy and he was flexible with change requests. He often sent photos of his current safaris prior to our reservation which got our family very excited. Richard is a very kind, generous and easy going man. He gave our entire family Christmas gifts during our recent safari over the holidays. His driving skills were impeccable and he was very patient during game drives. My family (mom/dad, kids 21,19,16) loved his clean and well equipped safari truck (cooler of drinks, outlets & USB ports). He was very knowledgeable about all animal and bird species. His eyes are incredible - he would often stop, scan the area and point out loads of animals we hadn't seen. I cannot rave about him enough!

As for the safari route, we LOVED nights 1&2 at Maramboi Lodge. Lovely accommodations, food buffets, staff and having animals walk right next to the pool was amazing. Excellent happy hour/snacks. Do stay here! Tarangire Nat'l Park was a highlight and we saw loads of animals right off the bat. Manyara Nat'l Park was interesting with different topography. We thought 1 day in each park was sufficient. The Lake Eyasi portion was a bit out of the way although the tent lodge (Kisima Ngeda) was unique being lakeside. Visiting the Masai tribe was fascinating and worth the stop. We really enjoyed hiking to the Hadzabe tribe and witnessing their lifestyle. Ngorongoro Crater was another highlight with a stay at Ngorongoro Serena Lodge. These accommodations were superb. Every room has a view of the crater as the rock style, old timey lodge sits on the rim of the crater. I would have preferred 2 nights here. We were able to traverse the entire crater thoroughly in 1 full day. Last park was the Serengeti in which we had 2 full days. Again, this was plenty for my family as they were long 8-9 hour game drives. Our tent lodge was lovely (Mbuzi Mawe) although quite out of the way. My recommendation is to stay closer to the visitor center if possible.

The most memorable moment of the trip for everyone was the sunrise hot air balloon ride. Yes, it's insanely expensive but worth every penny. Richard booked the flight for us with Serengeti Balloon Safaris. Request Abeid as your captain. He was so skilled, personable, knowledgable and funny. The ride was surreal flying over the savannah at sunrise. Abeid often had us close to the ground gliding safely over animals. His landing was perfect too. Post-flight, you are whisked away to a delicious, fancy champagne brunch set up in the bush. Don't skip this excursion. It's a once in a lifetime experience.

We said good-bye to Richard at the Serengeti airport. He arranged our flights to Zanzibar for our next adventure. Our 7 day/6 night safari with Richard will never be forgotten. Do book with him. You won't be disappointed. There's no need to book a pricy tour operator. All the safari trucks are identical. They all drive on the same roads. Everyone sees the same animals. The only difference is lodge accommodations. We stayed in similar lodges as those on Tauck Tours. Richard is able to book any accommodation you like. His tour package was very reasonable for our family of five. Asanté Sana Richard.