Founder of Dancing Zebra Safari, Jessica Mathews
Dancing Zebra Safari
- Located In:
-
United States
- Size:
- 1-5 employees (Founded in 2016)
- Member Of:
- Africa Travel Association (ATA) & The International Ecotourism Society (T.I.E.S)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $700 to $2,500 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Therese | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Kenya Safari with the help of Dancing Zebra Co.
Jessica made the Safari part of our trip so easy. After a few calls and emails, we were set! We received our packages in the mail with instructions as to who would meet us at the airport, one night accommodations before the Safari began, and then we were off the following day to Governors Camp. An excellent camp which is open to the animals in the area. I had an elephant and her baby munching grass outside my tent the first night. Yes, there is 24-hour security outside of the tents, monitoring the area at all times!
We had an excellent driver for our three drives. We were able to see 4 if the big 5, only kissing the rhino. He was very knowledgeable about the area and also played a significant role in making our trip memorable. The food and accommodations at Governors Camp were excellent as well!
After 2 1/2 days, we were heading back to the Wilson Airport were we were again met by the local rep from Cheli and Peacock Safaris. We were hoping to take advantage of the unique gift shop at the Wilson Airport but due the later hour, they were closed. Our rep was able to make a call and we stopped at a very nice gift shop in Nairobi to pick up some final
souvenirs.
This was my first trip to Africa and Dancing Zebra Safari Co made it easy and memorable. Highly recommended!
Email Barbara | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
First class all the way!
We whole-heartedly recommend Dancing Zebras! We went to three national parks as a family. We have two kids - ages 18 and 15. Jessica from Dancing Zebras asked all the right questions and our safari was exactly what we wanted. We loved the private game drives and amazing guide.
I especially appreciated the booklet sent to us before our trip, spelling out our daily itinerary, suggested packing, tipping, etc.
Email Rita | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An amazing way to celebrate our anniversary
We visited northern Tanzania in February and stayed at several Nomad camps. The attention to detail and service provided by everyone at Kuro Tarangire, Entamanu, Ngorongoro, and Serengeti Safari camp was exceptional. Staff at Entamanu noticed immediately after we arrived at camp that I was congested and recommended ginger tea. By the next morning the congestion was gone and I felt great the rest of our trip. Each of our guides were very knowledgeable about their park and the animals there. They used their experience and knowledge to provide us with unique animal sightings and didn’t just follow other guides around. Camp staff was friendly and interested in our experiences. Our last night On the Serengeti camp staff surprised us with a cake decorated to celebrate our 30 anniversary, which is why we went to Tanzania.
Dancing Zebra listened to what we wanted to do and how we like to travel and put together a great trip for us. Emails were promptly responded to and Jessica always had time to take our calls. We told Jessica what we wanted and showed up to enjoy. Everything was arranged and Nomad handled all the details so we could spend every moment enjoying the parks.
Email Steve S. | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Tanzania safari
Travel company: Dancing Zebra Safari Company
This was my fourth trip to Africa and the most rewarding. Jessica from Dancing Zebra met with us twice (we live in the same city) and went over all the details and delivered everything on the itinerary, even when she had to do some last minute shuffling around so that we would have a night time game drive. She is very good in planning trips and specific itinerary. She knows Africa, and especially Tanzania.
And Ian, our Guide/driver was excellent. Almost always, he found the animals we set out looking for, even wild hunting dogs, which are very rare in the Serengeti. The Serengeti is huge, but he knows it like I know my backyard. He was giving directions to several other drivers who were lost. He is the best guide I have had in all my trips!
Very happy with Dancing Zebra and Jessica and Ian.
Email Jason & Allison | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Dancing Zebra gave us the trip of a lifetime that we will never forget & live in our hearts forever!
This was truly the most amazing trip that we will probably ever go on in our lives. We wanted something different, amazing and a once in a lifetime experience for our honeymoon, and that is exactly what we had! From start to finish everything went seamlessly and exceeded everything we could ever imagine! From the amazing wildlife spottings during our safari, to the relaxing beaches of Zanzibar we fell in love with Tanzania and all that it encompasses. We are so happy that we had Dancing Zebra, Jessica & Ian along the way, there is no one better!
Within a very quick timeline Jessica planned us the perfect trip. She made everything super easy and really listened to what we wanted to do and see, she hit it out of the ballpark! During our time in Tanzania we had Ian as our tour guide and couldn't have asked for anyone better, we actually don't think there can possibly be anyone better! His friendly smile and personality made us feel so welcomed from the second we stepped off of the plane to the second he dropped us off for our departing flight. He knew the best spots to go to, was extremely educated on not only the incredible wildlife that we saw but also the culture and background of everywhere we went. Whatever we wanted to do Ian was more than willing to show us and made it an adventure we will never forget!
During our trip we visited Tarangire National Park, Ngorongoro Crater, Serengeti & Zanzibar. We fell in love with safari and honesty can't pick our favorite park, they were all absolutely amazing and beautiful! Neptunes at Ngorongoro had such an incredible vibe and view of the coffee plantation that it sits on. The Kubu Kubu tents were our favorite!! We would sit on our balcony when we would get back from our drive, overlooking the Serengeti continuing to spot animals and at night we would sit out there and gaze into the beautiful star lit sky...truly incredible! Zanzibar was beautiful and full of culture. Breezes Beach Club was everything we imagined...beautiful white sand beaches, sunny skies and total relaxation! We took a drive to Stone Town which was a great spot to visit, we saw and learned a lot about the historical town.
There was nothing about our trip that we would have changed, everything was incredible bliss everywhere we looked! When we come back to Tanzania, which we plan on booking Dancing Zebra again when we do, we would stay on safari for a few days longer. We loved spotting all of the animals and being able to just watch them for as long as we wanted. Jessica & Ian we can not thank you both enough for such an incredible honeymoon that we will continue to tell our family and friends about, and live in our hearts forever! You both made it such an enjoyable trip and we can't even imagine a better company to safari with than Dancing Zebra!
Email Jane | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Jessica with Dancing Zebra Safari Co is simply the best!
From our first inquiry call to Dancing Zebra Co throughout the trip itself, Jessica was helpful, patient, conscientious, and professional. The trip far exceeded any of our expectations due to Jessica's expertise, attention to detail, and commitment to plan a trip that seemed personally tailored for us. It is clear that Jessica has done her homework and wants only the best for her clients. The Lemala locations in Tanzania were stunningly beautiful and the Lemala staff/guides were extremely friendly, helpful,and hospitable. Jessica is passionate about the safari experience and is excited to share this passion with her clients. We couldn't imagine a more perfect experience thanks to Jessica at Dancing Zebra Co. and Lemala.
Email John | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
In a word, Dancing Zebra was FANTASTIC -- most helpful with all of our questions and concerns.
Communications: Jessica with Dancing Zebra was super -- always quick to respond to every question we had.
Service: Dancing Zebra provided terrific service in every aspect. Timely and clear. Provided great details, travel hints, etc.
Expectations: Exceeded our expectations.
Safari Tour: The Tour was amazing. The three locations (all Lemala camps in Tanzania) were each different, providing interesting variation. Through emails and phone conversation, Jessica designed a trip that exactly matched what we wanted. She is very passionate about making sure our experience in Tanzania was the best possible.
Email Mark and Nelly Emmerson | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Delivered an unforgettable lifelong experience through local knowledge and attention to detail.
My wife and I had been looking to travel to Africa on a safari for a long time, we had many questions, started with Google and reviewed the many options available to us. One rainy afternoon we attended a travel exposition in Santa Clara where we met several tour operators, but we had no idea how fortunate we were to run across Jessica Mathews of Dancing Zebra. The minute we met her, we knew from friendly smile, detailed knowledge of Tanzania, and the fact that she is passionate about sharing her own experiences to provide others an vacation of a lifetime. After discussing our specific "safari" needs and expectations, she sent us an initial draft itinerary that was extremely well thought out and needless to say we were very excited about our upcoming adventure. After some additional discussions and some fine tuning based on her recommendations we had a detailed itinerary with a daily diary of what to expect. Everything about our trip to Tanzania exceeded expectations, from the time we arrived and met at the airport by our smiling guide until the day we left Zanzibar. A couple of highlights - first off our guide (Ian of Nomad) was exceptional, his knowledge and understanding of animals, local culture and respect for both made the trip very enjoyable. With his guidance we were able to see the BIG 5 (over 2000 photos taken) and so much more, we visited Tarangire, Ngorongoro and Northern Serengeti over an 8 day guided tour; The accommodations and food were also outstanding we stayed at Camp Kuro and Lamai Serenteti where the staff treated us like family, the meals and the rooms were first class. During our stay we also had a chance to visit a hospital (FAME) in Karatu, visit with some Masai children and walk with a Masai warrior to his village which was also very memorable. We finished our trip with 3 days in Zanzibar with some relaxing time on some of the most beautiful beaches ever seen. None of this would have been possible without the detailed knowledge of Jessica, every part of our trip was well though out, and the logistics of all travel was carried out without a single glitch! I would highly recommend Jessica if you and your loved ones want to experience Tanzania, she is wonderful to work with and has the knowledge and passion to make it a memorable lifelong experience!!
Email John D. | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Planned a Perfect Safari Experience and Adventure !!
From the moment we first met Jessica at the Los Angeles Travel Show, we knew we were making the right choice with our safari planner. While there were many safari companies to choose from, Jessica was friendly, knowledgeable, and genuine. It was important to us that our tourism dollars remained in Tanzania and were used to fund local operators, camps, and lodges that were owned and run by Tanzanians who employed Tanzanian staff. Jessica’s focus on cultural authenticity, conservation, and local empowerment was just what we wanted.
Since it was only my wife and I to accommodate, we were also looking for a safari planner who could arrange both shared and private safari vehicles and mix mid-level and luxury accommodations to keep our overall cost reasonable. While we had previously talked with some safari planners who were inflexible with these requests, Jessica planned the perfect trip, with the right mix of rustic, yet luxurious accommodations, and both shared and private safari experiences, in absolutely beautiful and authentic settings. She also worked with very well-respected local operators and incredibly knowledgeable and friendly local safari guides (including our new Rafiki, Ian), who all made our 14-day journey through Tanzania exceptionally special. Jessica and the Dancing Zebra team gave us a trip of a lifetime that was beyond what we had imagined. We can’t wait to work with her again!
Email Walt & Carol G | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Well planned fantastic safari exceeding all of our expectations
Jessica at Dancing Safari's was fantastic to work with in planning our 4 week trip to Africa. My wife and I, along with another couple, have been trying to plan a trip to Africa for over 3 years. The 4 of us are all experienced travelers in our early to mid 70's who travel 4 to 5 months per year and have travelled extensively all over the world. In recent years we have done Antartica, Manchu Picchu, Galapagos, Brazil, Peru, Turkey, Europe and many other places and are not easily impressed. This trip exceeded all of our expectations and is now our #1 all time trip. We have traveled many times together and have never had problems planning a trip ourselves, however we found planning a trip to Africa to be very difficult on our own. First came trying to figure out: what countries to visit, then when to go (to both see the most, avoid bad weather and avoid the bugs), what types of camps to select, how long to spend at each safari camp, how to travel between camps and how to arrange the entire process with minimum wasted days. We tried working with several travel agents at agencies like AAA and other packaged tours advertising on travel sites like Travelzoo, and other companies packaging small tour groups.
Over the past two years we went to the Los Angeles Travel Show where we conferred with various tour operators. Finally we met Jessica at her both in early 2018. We also met with several other tour operators. After exchanging emails with several of these safari tour operators it was clear that Jessica was both the most responsive and knowledgeable and really worked at understanding what we wanted. Whereas other operators tried to steer us towards their own product Jessica worked at finding something that met our desired experience and budget. Although we wound up spending more that we originally budgeted, we had a truly unforgettable experience.
We selected a trip which included 8 days in Tanzania, 8 days in Kenya, 4 days in Botswana, 2 days in Zimbabwe, and 6 days in Cape Town (our friends didn't join the last 8 days). This length trip required extensive coordination amongst over 10 different lodges and arranging both the the air transportation and all the ground transfers. This included over 22 flights. During the planning stage Jessica provided frequent updates and was meticulous in ensuring that everything was planned correctly. The result was a seamless trip where everything went exactly as planned. We were met at every airport with staff who were always on-time and waiting for us. Luggage was handled for us. Unlike other tours planned by organizations like Tauck and Micato, we had a private tour for the four of us (not on first part in Tanzania where we had 4 others on the private charter airplane, but for Kenya we had the whole airplane to ourselves). Our safari tour vehicles were Toyota Land Cruisers or Land Rovers. Although most operators we saw operating out to the same lodges packed their vehicles with 6 to 9 people, we never had more than the 4 of us. The lodges we stayed at in Tanzania, Kenya and Botswana were all 5* quality. The food, service and staff were outstanding.
The safaris were incredible. By the end of the second day we had seen all the big 5 and so much more. Each new camp kept building on the experience.Out game drive guides were extremely knowledgeable and very accommodating. We were worried that spending over 3 weeks on safari would be too much and repetitive. Not so. Each location was unique and memorable.
As for cost, although it was a very expensive trip, when we compared what we paid with others who went on similar itineraries (Tauck and Micato) , we paid considerably less and got a lot more. Overall we would give Jessica and Dancing Zebra our highest recommendation. Although we went high-end I am sure Jessica would also do a great job for those wanting a lower budget trip.