Safari360
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2017)
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $280 to $700 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Alex | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing and a shambles at the same time.
Our Safari was mid-range so some of our experience may not apply if you are booking Budget or Luxury. I will add that I did also make repeated attempts to reach out to Safari360 after our experience to pass on feedback but never heard back. I don't think they are interested in repeat business.
The Shambles:
On our first day we were told by our guide that we would be collected from our lodge in Arusha at 7am. However by 7.45am we had still heard nothing, and no guide had arrived. We had to ask the front desk at the hotel to call the office for us which they were helpful in doing. They told us someone would come for us soon but it was another half an hour later when another guide arrived who was also taking another group to Tarangire. The plan was for us to meet our guide Naiman inside Tarangire. When we met up with Naiman in Tarangire the first thing we noticed was that he was not in uniform like Wakari and wasn't in uniform for any of the days he was with us. This was a stark contrast to all of the guides we would see on the road at the rest stops, all of whom seemed to be in uniform. The second thing was that Naiman had not been provided with our itinerary and asked us where we were going. On the first night and also on another subsequent night I had to navigate Naiman via Google Maps to reach the accommodation because he had no idea where we were supposed to go. While I didn't mind doing this it was not the service we had paid for, we had assumed we would be able to relax while our guide navigated us to the accommodation points. Another frustrating point was that in the truck we were picked up in, the power point was at the front of the vehicle and easily accessible. However in our eventual truck it was right at the back and much harder to access. If we sat at the back while the phone charged we couldn't hear what useful information our guide was telling us about the animals. Our biggest issue with the truck however was the size of the windows which were much smaller than pretty much every single truck we observed at the rest stops. I've attached photos to demonstrate the struggle for someone to constantly be leaning forward to sight animals which was quite uncomfortable. My wife who is smaller than me had the very same issue and she is only 5 ft 4.
The food: The food at 2 of our lodges was fantastic, however very poor at the other 2 lodges. The packed lunches were dreadful.
The Amazing:
Naiman - Our guide Naiman was extremely skilled on the challenging roads and we're very grateful that we never got a flat tyre. He was also extremely knowledgeable about the animals and we really enjoyed his company. We saw the vast majority of animals that we wanted to see and have to give Naiman lots of credit for that.
Naiman is a nice person with a friendly manner and is clearly an extremely hard worker. He works very long hours and on one occasion at the end of a long day after dropping us off he had to go and get the truck fixed which would have made his day even longer.
There was another occasion when there was an issue with the breaks on the truck and we went to a mechanic and Naiman was also getting his hands dirty helping to fix the car. He has a very positive can do attitude that is a huge benefit to Safari360.
This was also evident when on our final day Air Tanzania moved our flight from Arusha to Kilimanjaro airport at very short notice. Even though this added 3 hours travel time to Naiman's day that was unplanned, he still took us to JRO airport which really was such a lifesaver for us! I also really want to thank Safari360 for accommodating this.
On the whole if you book with Safari360 these guys will do a solid job and you will have a great time. However I do believe that there will be better options out there. In some respects the service was lacklustre, in other respects they really went above and beyond for us, so this was a challenging review to write.
NL
Email Corbin van Noort | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
a well-organized and memorable safari experience, with excellent wildlife spotting and safe driving,
We recently completed a 5-day private safari in Tanzania, covering Tarangire, Central Serengeti, North Serengeti, and the Ngorongoro Crater.
Overall, it was an unforgettable experience, and we were fortunate to see all the animals we had hoped for.
Lameck, our guide, was excellent at spotting wildlife and drove safely throughout the trip. His knowledge of the animals and environment was impressive, and we learned a lot from him. Additionally, Pietro, who handled our booking, was professional and prompt, making the planning process smooth.
However, there were a few areas for improvement:
Bluetooth speaker to wake Lions: One incident that left us feeling uncomfortable was when Lameck used a Bluetooth speaker to play hyena sounds to wake up sleeping lions on our first day. While this did lead to better photo opportunities, it felt unethical, especially with numerous jeeps already surrounding the lions. Although he stopped after we expressed our discomfort, this behaviour seemed at odds with the ethos of conservation that Lameck self-proclaimed. We believe this practice should be avoided entirely in the future.
Language Barrier: One of the more significant issues we faced was with Lameck's English, which made communication somewhat difficult. Almost everything he said, we had to ask him to repeat himself, and after a while, it became tiring to continue asking questions.
Communication about our route and plans: For much of the trip, we didn’t know where we were or where we were going next. For example, when I asked about visiting Seronera, Lameck simply said "no" due to our accommodation, but we ended up going there later. A bit more explanation—like letting us know we’d visit later—would have helped manage expectations. It would also be helpful if he provided options, like whether we'd prefer more time with animals and a later arrival (after sunset) at the lodge, or an earlier return. Keeping guests more informed would enhance the experience.
Overall, it was a fantastic safari, but with a few adjustments, it could have been even better.
Email Mara | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nice Tour but not like description
Thank you for organizing our safari days. We were very much looking forward to the great accommodation "Eco Lodge" as described in the offer. Therefore we were disappointed with the "replacement accommodation" which was not of the same standard.
Danke für die Organisation unserer Safari-Tage.
Wir haben uns im Vorhinein sehr auf die tolle Unterkunft „Eco Lodge“ wie im Angebot beschrieben, gefreut. Deshalb waren wir von der “Ersatz-Unterkunft”, welche nicht dem selben Niveau entsprach, enttäuscht.
Reply from Safari360
Posted on Nov 3, 2022Hello Mara
Many thanks for the review but this happened due to the fact that you erred when transferring the deposit and the funds were not received on our end. The deposit forms a significant part in securing accommodation for the trip and thus a change was necessitated. That said the company had to step in and improvise so as to ensure smooth operations of the safari. The deposit has so far not been received as it was sent back to you.