Dancing Zebra Safari
- Located In:
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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:
- $550 to $2,000 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
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Email Victoria Vanransom | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Outstanding! Top notch guides, luxurious accommodations, and unforgettable wildlife encounters.
Our safari trip was truly exceptional thanks to the careful planning of Jessica Mathews, of Dancing Zebra. After inquiring with several of the larger more well known safari companies we choose Dancing Zebra. Our entire trip was private for just the three of us and the cost was significantly less then the competition. Thanks to the amazing guides and staff at our luxurious accommodations, we were treated like royalty while experiencing unforgettable wildlife sightings at every turn. My friends who have been on safari remarked that my photos were incredible and they had not seen half the animals on their safari's that we encountered. We were lucky enough to witness a mass migration of thousands of zebra and wilderbeest crossing the dirt road while crossing the serengeti. I highly recommend Dancing Zebra wen you are ready to plan your perfect safari!
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Email Phyllis | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fabulous!
If you want a wonderful trip, please choose Dancing Zebra Safari Co. What an amazing trip we had. Jessica made sure that we were able to experience all the different and unusual resorts and lodges we stayed at. The first stay was at a coffee plantation with lots of monkeys. I was sitting at lunch outside and one of the monkeys jumped up on our table and picked up the bread and started eating. Me being an animal lover, I was in heaven. I only wish I could have pet him. The second place we stayed at was a luxurious tent in the Serengeti, with a balcony, small pool and an outdoor shower. This is where we did all our game drives, and we saw thousands of animals every day. Our driver, Frank, was the best. He was fun, very likeable, and very knowledgeable about all the animals. We all sang the Lion King song in the Land Cruiser. Fun, fun and fun. We laughed so much. We visited a Maasai Village, saw how they lived and learned some of their customs, and we even danced with them. The third place we stayed at was an exotic British lodge in Ngorongoro, called the Crater Lodge. I felt like a Queen (Malkia in Swahili) there. We even had lunch in the Crater floor. And the fourth place we stayed at was the Baraza resort in Zanzibar. It was gorgeous. Everyone throughout our trip was friendly and respectful with big smiles. Jessica will set up your trip in Africa to fit your needs. I felt like we had a good taste and feel of what East Africa is like. I even learned a few words in Swahili. I will be booking another trip with Dancing Zebra to go to Kenya. Have fun. You will enjoy yourselves.
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Email Marie | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Professional, thorough, hands-on, detail oriented, good communication with vendors throughout trip!
The four of us can’t begin to put into words what an amazing adventure we had!!! Tanzania is beautiful! Lemala and each of their camps/lodge we stayed at and theirs staffs were fantastic and so welcoming!! We love their smiles!! And Robert (our guide) made our experience so memorable. He is a true gem!! His knowledge of the parks and the animals was truly remarkable! We are so blessed to have news friends in Tanzania!!! Everything you (Jessica) did for us was noticed and appreciated and we wouldn’t have had this amazing experience without Dancing Zebra Safaris!!! Awesome communication, very reliable, and great value! We will highly recommend you and your company!!!
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Email David’s family scat adventure | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
A knowledge skilled professional who is focus on delivering a once in a lifetime experience.
Jessica Mathews ( owner) listened to our desires and objectives for a 14 day Safari in Tanzania. This was going to be a family trip of 6 adults focused on building memories rather than collecting stuff. She talked and listened with everyone to understand what everyone wanted to experience and developed an agenda that fit.
We ended up selecting to use the Lemala Group for most of the lodging in Tanzania, except for the day when we were scheduled to depart and rested at the beautiful Rivertrees Country Inn.
The Lemala facilities were all five star lodges ( Hammerkop House, Lemala Kuria Hills, Lemala Nanyukie Lodge, Lemala Ngorogoro Tented Camp, and Lemala Mpingo Ridge )
The staff at all of the lodges were warm, welcoming and focused on customer satisfaction….it was totally refreshing….Jessica arranged for the same guide ( Frank ) to be with us throughout the whole trip. He was the highlight of the trip. He was extremely knowledgeable about the land , animals, the tribes, the culture and our individual interests…..from scats to birds…
In summary, our trip was spectacular. There were no glitches, never touched our bags, five star service and accommodation. We were very fortunate to have Dancing Zebra referred to us…the price we paid was more than justified by the attention to details to make the trip a pleasure and an experience that our family will never forget……
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Email Sharon | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Dancing Zebra Safari arranged the trip of a lifetime for our family of four
Dancing Zebra, and in particular Jessica Matthews, did an outstanding job ensuring that our Africa trip was truly the trip of a lifetime. Our family of four, including two teens, traveled this Summer to Tanzania and Rwanda. In Tanzania we visited the Tarangire National Park and two areas within the Serengeti National Park. We then travelled to Rwanda, where we visited the Five Volcanoes region and saw gorillas and golden monkeys. The gorilla experience, which involved hiking with a small group into the misty jungle and spending an hour within steps of these amazing animals, was a highlight of the trip.
All of our accomodations were outstanding, and exactly what we needed for our family. The lodges in both the Serengeti and Tarangire, which were all part of the Lemala group of resorts, were in settings that allowed us to take in the beauty of the park while experiencing all of the creature comforts of a luxurious resort. In Rwanda we stayed at the Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel, which was also very nice, well-located, and had extremely attentive service.
Dancing Zebra arranged for outstanding guides to escort us on our adventures in both countries. In Tanzania we had different guides for the two parks - - Malekia (aka Thompson) in Tarangire and Edson in the Serengeti. Both were superb. They were extremely knowledgable, engaging, and absolutely committed to making sure that we got the most out of our experience. They took us up close to a long list of wild animals, including elephants, zebras, giraffes, lions, cheetahs, monkeys, wildebeest, ostriches, hippos, warthogs, various antelopes, and many other animals and exotic birds. In Rwanda, our guide (Sam) was also excellent, and skillfully helped us navigate both the capital city of Kigali (where we stayed for one night), as well as the national park.
In summary, we could not more highly recommend Dancing Zebra, and Jessica in particular. She used her encyclopedic knowledge of the area to help us understand exactly what we wanted, and she delivered a vacation that was beyond our expectations.
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Email Steve Shames | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
For amazing and memorable safaris, Dancing Zebra is still the best!
This was our 6th trip with Dancing Zebra Safari Company, and one of the best! We have been to the Serengeti many times, so we decided to take the road less traveled this time, and check out the parks in the south and west of Tanzania -- Ruaha, Katavi, and Mahale.
These parks are far from the beaten path, and harder and more complicated to get to, due to limited flight schedules and availability. Luckily Jessica Mathews has been to all of them, and was fully aware of all the complex scheduling, and was able to put together an itinerary that worked well for us. It’s good to have somebody who knows all the details personally. She made sure all our needs were taken care of, from our pick up at the arrival airport, to our transfer to the departure airport. I have said it before, and will say it again because it’s true – Jessica is the best safari organizer out there.
Ruaha and Katavi have most of the animals you will see in the Serengeti, except for the large herds of wildebeests. The one thing it does NOT have, compared to the Serengeti, is the large herds of people! It was typical to go an entire game drive without seeing another vehicle. It kind of gave more of a feeling of wildlife in its rawest state, since they were not used to seeing people and their vehicles. We stayed at the Nomad camps, and both of our drivers at Ruaha and Katavi were fantastic. They really knew the area well.
Mahale was great, and we had a fabulous visit with a large group of chimpanzees. This was our first time with wild chimpanzees, and it is a magical moment to see them for the first time. Our chimp trekking guide was Butati, and after three days there, I felt like we had taken a college level course in chimpanzee behavior!
You cannot go wrong with Dancing Zebra Safari Co! Add in the great Nomad camps, the great guides, and this made for one of the most memorable safaris so far.
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Email Priya | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Reliable, really understood our trip goals, put together the best itinerary, friendly, available
My husband and I used Dancing Zebra Safari to plan an 8 day itinerary in Tanzania. They were INCREDIBLE! The Safari itself was a dream come true - when the wildlife, people, and accommodations. More over, Jessica really understood what we wanted from our trip and planned an incredible itinerary. Through back and forth I felt she really created the perfect trip for us! She was also very accessible leading up to the trip with any questions we had and dealt with a flight delay so smoothly! Also the guide, Thomson was a HUGE highlight - he was so knowledgeable and it was a pleasure to spend so much time with him! We will be recommending Dancing Zebra to lots of friends and family :)
Epic Experience
This was by far the most epic and memorable experience we have ever had. From the planning to executing flawlessly on the itinerary, it exceeded our wildest dreams. From the airport pick up to drop off, they took care of all our needs. We literally worried about nothing! The amenities were five star and the food were delicious. The staff at all the camps were friendly and went above and beyond. Our guide Edson was not only a blast to hang out with but also found us the best animals to see. We are still in awe of this incredible trip. You cannot go wrong choosing Dancing Zebra Safari!
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Email Heather | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Comprehensive and Quality Service
Dancing Zebra Safari helped us plan and ensure a wonderful experience with the mountain gorillas and golden monkeys in Rwanda.
There are many moving parts to traveling in Africa and I highly recommend utilizing a travel service like Dancing Zebra Safari to help navigate the details and logistics that are involved. Their local expertise allows you to relax because you know they've thought of everything and you can simply focus on the experience. Once all is confirmed, they provide very detailed information about what to expect, what to pack and what to consider as you're preparing for and executing the trip.
We had a wonderful guide, Jean-Marie, who is a lovely human who was knowledgeable and provided great service. We learned about Rwandan culture and developed a deeper appreciation for the country's history and spirit through the many hours we spent with him. We will never forget the immersive mountain gorilla experience. It was beautiful to witness them in their home and to observe their behaviors up close. Obviously you must keep your distance for a number of reasons, but it's an intimate encounter nonetheless. The staff at Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel took great care of us and even provided foot massages and cleaned our hiking boots upon returning from the treks.
A suggestion for consideration is related to tipping. While tipping range guidance is provided and tipping is not mandatory, it's hard to imagine not tipping the locals who work so hard and provide such great care and service. To this end, it would be great if the tipping amounts were determined prior to the trip and included in the overall costs. This way, you don't have to carry a bunch of cash with you and can fully relax. This said, you will still want cash on hand for unexpected needs or unexpected tipping. For example, we weren't prepared to tip the gorilla or monkey trackers.
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Email Michelle & Randy | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our guide was so well acquainted and formally educated in the wildlife, their habitats and behaviors
Our Africa safari was the trip of a lifetime! We celebrated retirement and while we had traveled extensively during our careers, a safari trip to Africa required special attention and we could not have managed without Jessica’s expertise at Dancing Zebra. Jessica’s many trips to Tanzania gave us great confidence and we relied on her suggestions when planning. She was organized and timely when responding to our many questions. Jessica checked in with us during the trip, which was unexpected but really nice. We also appreciated that the general managers and staff at the different lodges knew Jessica and were connected to her while we were traveling. Jessica prepped us on packing, tipping, visas, the food and the culture. It was all so well organized and exceeded our expectations!
Our safari guide Thomson was awesome. We spent 12 days together and he was so knowledgeable and patient with all the pictures and videos we took. He knew every animal, their habitat and behaviors. Thomson knew where to take us to see the Big 5 and made certain we experienced everything we came to Tanzania to see! We learned so much from him and left with a feeling of awe and education. We even learned a little Swahili from Thomson! he knew when to offer information and when to stay silent and allow us to just take it in. He was very easy to be with.
One of the many highlights of the trip was visiting Rwanda. We visited the genocide museum, the Dian Fossey Research and Conservation Center (watch Gorillas in the Mist) on the Ellen DeGeneres campus and trekked up a mountain to see and “visit” with a family of gorillas! Here too, the guides, porters and trackers were so experienced and knowledgeable. It was a visit that we’ll relive and remember forever! Jessica worked with us on planning all of it and we’d highly recommend Dancing Zebra if you’re thinking about a safari!