Bright African Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2007)
- Member Of:
- TATO, TTB & TLTO
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $50 to $85 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Our first African safari was a blast, thanks to Bright African Safaris
When we started to look at safari trip to Africa, we looked at Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa. We chose Tanzania because of Serengeti (for the great migration), friendly people, and peacefulness. We were amazed in all three accounts. Tanzania has a more sustainable model for Safari and is not blindly going after mass tourism market - thankfully.
We chose Bright African Safaris (out of five tour operators based in Arusha) based on high ratings and praises here and also because Msangi and his crew were very prompt in responding to my initial inquiries and were extremely patient with giving various options and explaining the differences. If he has a recommendation, he does so in the interests of giving us best experience.
Since I am into photography, I asked Msangi beforehand if he can provide bean bags. He pleasantly said yes. When we were greeted by our driver/guide at the airport, he immediately told me that he has two bean bags prepared for me. That is great service!
BAS's car also is equipped with electric outlets for charging phones, laptops, cameras etc.
Like many other people commented here, we were a bit concerned about wiring money for deposit and paying up the full amount ahead of the trip, as it is an uncommon experience in US. Everything turned out very well for us in the end. Wiring to Tanzania does seem to take longer than usual, and we were a bit late on wiring the last payment so by the time we arrived in Arusha, BAS still had not received the money in their bank account. But Msangi assured us all lodgings were properly booked for us and told us 'no worries' and we were ready to go on safari.
Without knowing what kind of camps or lodgings we'd expect, we chose to have a bit of everything from beautiful luxury camps in serene surroundings to simple public camping grounds (where a cook from Bright African Safaris cooked for us for two days). All great experiences for us! In every lodging location, staff were extremely courteous and service was far above the business hotels in US. Everywhere we went, people were genuinely happy to see us and were eager to help us have a great experience.
Our driver/guide Junga is an amazing naturalist for our safari, and a wonderful cultural guide to Tanzania. Since we didn't quite know what to expect, he quickly observed our interests and adapted the game driver accordingly. We have two teenagers and they were fully engaged and immersed on the game drive thanks to Junga (and didn't pull out iphones once :-) - he would quiz them with questions before giving out answers. Junga has books of birds and animals that he apparently had studied and spent a lot of time on. He also has an app about birds and animals on his cell phone. At one time, in a quiet spot in the woods on our morning game drive, he played a bird song with his cell phone connected to my daughter's portable speaker via bluetooth, and a bird (an African Fish Eagle, I think) echoed back! It was amazing! My kids were delighted! Junga would tell us that Safari is so much more than just BIG FIVE. So many colorful birds are also eye catching. He is so right!
For those of you who are thinking about going to safari for the first time, I can say for sure that the experience of seeing these amazing animals in their natural habitat up close is absolutely unforgettable and there is no substitute. Everyday at dinner time, Junga would ask everyone's most favorable moment of the day. Now with a few weeks passing by, I could still vividly remember:
- the first glimpse of a herd of zebras and giraffes in Arusha NP, with green Mt Meru as background, so elegant and peaceful. The scene reminded me of Jurassic Park (just substitute dinosaurs with giraffes :-)
- a lake full of flamingo birds at Momella Lake in Arusha NP. I got beautiful bird-in-flight pictures here.
- surrounded by a HUGE herd of 40+ elephants passing right by our car to across a river in Tarangere.
- the breathtakingly beautiful lilac breasted roller bird in Tarangere.
- a nice walk to the shore of Lake Manyara escorted by a Masai warrior. Saw beautiful flamingo, stork, and other birds. And wildebeest and gazelle.
- the troops of baboon jumping up and down a big tree in Lake Manyara NP
- a leisurely hike down to the floor of Empakaai Crater, accompanied by an armed park ranger. My son was into macro photography. It was on this hike where he took the most beautiful pictures of insects and flowers. The ranger was informative and patience, telling us to 'pole pole' along the way.
- beautiful view into Olmoti Crater after a short hike to the rim, accompanied by the same park ranger
- a freshly killed zebra lying by the road on Ngorongoro Highlands, with the predator nearby but no where to be seen.
- the moment entering Ngorongoro Crater floor was a sensory explosion
- Ngorongoro Crater floor did not disappoint: tons of buffalo, wildebeest, gazelles, zebras. We also spotted hyenas, jackal, hippo, and a rhino (very far though), thanks to Junga's keen eyesight. In the late afternoon, saw our first BIG CATS: four lions napping and yawning.
- got inside the home of a Masai family and a classroom of Masai kids on a visit to a village
- two couples of ostrich dancing on the plain, as elegant as ballet dancers, not long after entering Serengeti
- spotted two white rhinos (out of 40 or so total) in Serengeti in open space right after picnic lunch on top of a kopjes;
- nine tree climbing lions in Serengeti; a lioness ready for hunt;
- a pair of cheetah; three leopards on trees, once with a prey (an antelope) on a nearby branch.
- sensational sunset at beautiful migration tent camp in Serengeti. Knowing that we are into photography, Junga made the effort to talk to one of the staff so that he can escort us to go out of the camp into open plain so that we can take better pictures. The pictures turned out to be the best sunset I have ever taken!
- vast amount of wildebeest and zebra on migration route in northern Serengeti. The terrain is vast and nothing like I could have imagined. We saw wildebeest kills along the way, and vultures scavenging on the bodies. The ultimate danger of migration!
- the camping at Lobo public campgrounds; the comfortable tents, beds, blankets, sleeping bags and pillows BAS prepared for us; the delicious meals our chef cooked us; the chat with fellow campers, from three different countries, two of them from less than 20 miles from where we live back in US!
- the scenic ride on a small plane from northern Serengeti to Arusha to Zanzibar. The plane was delayed for about two hours. Junga patiently waited with us and even took us for a quick drive to a nearby sight before boarding. He and the chef also prepared us boxed lunch for the day, which was must appreciated later as we only had about 20 minutes when transferring at Arusha.
- many many more
We did ran into some car problems. One was a small accident on the very narrow road between Ngorongoro crater and Lake Empakaai in the highlands; it could be a real accident but we were lucky. It's not our driver's fault but that is a small road with many blind turns. Another time some debris broke the cooling fan and we had to leave the Mara river to find help. Junga contacted BAS in Arusha and they were able to get a replacement part flown in to a nearby airstrip and had it fixed by a mechanic at a balloon tour operator in the afternoon. While waiting for the part, Junga was able to drive us along the river looking for wildebeest crossing with frequent watering to keep the car cool enough, but we missed seeing the crossing that day (due to interruption of game drive looking for help). That's a small disappointment for us.
We find the national parks in Tanzania well preserved, not overwhelmed with tourists, and very clean. The rangers are very friendly too. We had two walking tours with rangers along the way and we liked the experience of on foot, to feel it more directly and see other things (like a beautiful chameleon) you cant see in a Land Cruiser. The only complain we had was the long wait at the entrance of most National Parks. It seems there's endless and inefficient paperwork.
All in all, the Safari trip in Tanzania was a blast for all of us. We are grateful to Junga, our cook, Msangi, and Bright African Safaris and have wholeheartedly recommend them to all my friends and family.
Email Steve and Colette | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
You Will Not Find Better
It was important to us to support a Tanzanian/Kenya based and owned safari company as we were informed that many of the largest companies are non African owned which means the revenue is not staying in Africa. Bright African Safaris and our guides Stephen (Kenya) and Athuman (Tanzania) made this an exceptional trip.
We initially made contact due to the positive reviews on Trip Advisor and BAS did not let us down. We started investigating our trip 8 months in advance and over the next month and many emails and suggestions later we booked a 12 night safari thru Kenya and Tanzania - Rukia and Msangi from head office were always prompt in their communications and offered great advice on lodges and parks to visit.
Our only tip would be to ensure you get accurate information on the time it takes to travel between parks as this may influence whether you drive or fly some legs of your safari.
We spent most of our safari with Athuman in Tanzania and would recommend you personally ask for him as your guide - he is easy to get along with, attentive, has a good sense of humour and generally made the safari more enjoyable. Athuman was recommended to us and his knowledge on all the wildlife, both animals and birds was exceptional.
Bright African Safari were very professional and were a major contributor to making this a trip of a lifetime for us.
Please feel free to contact us.
US
Email Krishnan | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing safari experience
Just us husband and wife went on a safari to Tanzania in Aug, 2015 with Bright African Safaris and had an amazing experience. We had such an amazing time that we decided to retake the same safari with Bright African Safaris in July, 2016 but this time with our two boys aged 8 and 4. You can read the review I posted back in 2015 here - https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g297913-d2191230-r307988448-Bright_African_Safaris_Day_Tours-Arusha_Arusha_Region.html.
Msangi promised us that we would return with an even bigger smile the second time - and he did not disappoint. As expected, his excellent service started right from when I initially wrote to him till when I came back to the US. The wire for my second (full) payment for the safari was delayed for some reason and hadn't yet reached him even on the day of our flight from the US. I spoke to him on the phone and he assured me that he would look into it and asked me not to worry since all arrangements/bookings for my safari was done. Luckily the payment arrived the day we landed and all was good but I really liked the way he handled the situation.
We had an excellent guide this time as well - Masatu. Masatu took the effort to connect with my kids (he has kids the same age) and throughout the safari ensured that things remained interesting for them, taking the time and effort to explain things to them. He knew this was the second trip for my wife and me, so even though our route was the same, he ensured the experience was very different. We saw much more interactions between the animals this time around (a herd of elephants harassing a leopard on a tree, a cheetah hunt, a lion that had just killed a wildebeest, a lion couple, ahem, making love etc etc). So, despite going back in less than a year it was still am amazing experience for us and ofcourse our kids had a blast. When it comes to safaris the guide/driver is super important and based on our experience this year and last, Bright Safaris has some really good drivers/guides. Their vehicles are very well maintained (we saw a few vehicles broken down and on our last day even offered a couple a ride in our car and they were stranded in a broken down vehicle).
All of our hotels were great like last year - Msangi usually nails this. He put us in small boutique hotels, that had pretty good, personalized, non-rushed service and each place gave us a slightly unique but very immersive safari experience.
On the last day, on the way to the airport, our driver/guide (Masatu) gifted my kids football t-shirts/shorts in Tanzanian team colors which was really nice. The kids loved it and it was a really nice gesture.
All in all an amazing experience. Our go to tour operator for vacation in East Africa.
SA
Email Mohammed Hamdan | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Spectacular lifetime experience!!
I went with my Father on May 1st and spent 6 days, visited "Lake Manyara", "Serengti Park" and "Ngorongoro crater".
BAS staff is such an amazing people, they consider every little details that can make your stay more wonderful
Our guide Othman is one of kind, and the chef Mr. D (delicious) adds special touches to the food
Finally, Mr. Msangi helped us before we come and he won't hesitate to promptly reply to every concerns.
I really advise to choose this company for the Safari tours.
US
Email Denny Hess | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Bright African Safaris Exceeds All Expectations and Delivers Real Value for Your Travel Budget!
Msangi at Bright African Safaris answered all of our concerns, and we had many, in a prompt and professional manner. The initial itinerary was changed several times by us prior to the actual safari without any problems. Msangi provided detailed information regarding the lodging and transportation and discussed all trip details in person after our arrival in Tanzania to minimize any issues or confusion. Our driver/guide, Junga, was very professional and provided excellent information regarding all of the animals that we saw during the safari drives. Junga was able to find the "Big Five" for us before our safari ended and provided a stop at a Masai village that was very informative.
Email nicole hadson | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Msangi made our trip the best
We leave and work in Dar es salaam for about two two years now. Am writing this feedback just to thank msangi and his team at Bright safaris. Msangi and BAS were recommended to us by one of friends we work together who comes from the same village as msangi. We went on five days safaris and all what he promised he provided to us. It is a bit worrying to pay large amount of money to someone you don't know. we are lucky we paid it to the right company with right people. Onema was our guide and he did his best to make sure we are happy. We went on 4days tented camp safaris to serengeti, ngorongoro and manyara.
All I can say, we real enjoyed our vacation.
My Tanzania safaris
I travelled with my husband's parents, a total of 3of us, in October 2015. Our guide onema, drove us through Arusha, Tarangire, Serengeti, and Ngorongoro Crater over 6 unforgettable, wonderful days. I don't know why people focus so much on The Big Five, but we saw those and so very much more! We were so glad to have a guide who has an eye for the critters because we would not have known what to watch for in looking for the less common animals and we might otherwise not have spotted them. Rukia has a good eye for places to stay. My all time favorite place was maramboi Tented camp and I was so sad to leave after only one night there. Everyone at every location except The Rhino Lodge was exceptionally attentive, showered us with personal attention, and bent over backwards to make our trip as rewarding as possible. The only thing I wish were different is that, although the food was good in the evenings at all of our locations (some better than others!), we were served African food only a couple of times, and instead served a solid interpretation of Western food. Morning was always Western foods which was nicely done but forgettable. The worse food was the box lunches. Some research should be put into packable food items and suggestion of variety. Although we were hoping for more authentic dining options, I am aware it would be difficult for them to accomodate the variety of dietary restrictions they are presented with and still remain authentic. So in summary, we weren't there for the food, thus the food didn't effect my "take away" from the experience. I loved this trip and would recommend it to anyone who appreciates nature, wildlife, and who wishes to preserve memories of these animals while they are still around. Helpful information for travelers: Because so many are involved in the upkeep of each place, many working in the background, tips are given at the time of departure from each hotel/tent camp, including tips for meals, housekeeping, etc, you leave it in a designated box and the owners (or someone) distributes the total to all of the working staff.
Email David | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Once in a life time Tanzania safaris
My wife and I have dreamed of visiting Africa and experiencing the thrill of seeing animals in the wild. I started the research on finding the best safari company early in December for our april safari. I qualified each company largely through safari bookings reviews and Bright Africa had all excellent and very good ratings. But what I was most impressed with was how quickly and clearly all of my questions were addressed and answered. Msangi was always spot-on and I would typically have same-day responses! Bright Africa was also very competitive in their pricing of our 5 day safari with luxury accommodations. In the end; we chose Bright Africa! Like everyone else; I was a little apprehensive about wire transferring the down payment but let me put your fears to rest; your money is safe and this is a trustworthy company.
When we arrived in jro late at night we were met by a driver from Bright Africa ($50 extra but worth it.) holding a sign with our names on it. He took us to our first lodge for the night, the Outpost. A very comfortable if not too fancy room had us well rested for the next day. We also booked an extra day to rest up and recover from jet lag before starting our safari. This worked out great; a low-cost day to relax and revive for the big days ahead. Due to high bookings we had to bounce around a little, walking across the street to Pamoja Lodge the next day. Again a very comfortable room and good food (try the pizza!). We met a couple of groups from around the world that night for a few beers; great fun! Msangi met with us that day to see that we were comfortable and to let us know when our safari would start. (nice touch!)
We were met by our guide, "Hoffman" the next morning who took us to Arusha Park for a game drive, canoeing, and a hike to the falls. This was a great and gentle start to our safari. The canoeing is a "can't miss"!
The next day we took the long, tough journey to the Serengeti. Be prepared, this is long, bumpy and dusty. It is a long day! Beautiful sights along the way and the incredible Serengeti Sopa Lodge awaited our arrival. This is an experience you will not forget! Great food, stunning views and cold beer...heaven!
We spent the next couple days in the Serengeti seeing all of the Big Five except the black rhino. All along Hoffman was a perfect gentleman guide, making sure we were comfortable and was a walking wildlife encyclopedia. It is evident he truly loves his job and the parks he knows so well. I can not say enough about this gracious host. A true pro!
Our last safari day was in Ngorongoro Crater and we stayed at the majestic Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge. Another can't miss folks! The crater experience was awesome and we did complete our Big 5 bingo by seeing a black rhino up close! Last we had the long drive back (ugh, dust, bumps,) to the Bright Africa office. Our debrief was to be sure that we were satisfied and happy; of course we were. From talking to other travelers in the lodges I know that we had the best experience!
A few tips: Get off your butt and look around! Your guide will do his best but he has only two eyes and is driving the truck as well. Try to find more animals than he does. Soon you'll be spotting the critters too!
Communicate! Your guide may be as good as Hoffman but he can't read your mind. Tell him specifically what you want to see, what you want to do etc.
Learn! the language that is; learn at least cursory Swahili and you will see the reward.
Last thing: choose bright africa
IL
Email Al | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Successful 5-day safari with Bright African
My daughter and I chose Bright Safaris, Tanzania for our first ever safari experience. We were not disappointed. It is a small local company owned by Msangi. He always answered our emails promptly and clearly suggesting different itineraries and accommodation according to our budget. He also sent us contact email addresses of previous customers from whom we acquired positive feedback. Once dates and the itinerary were settled we had to secure the trip by sending a small deposit, which made us a little nervous. All was well though and he confirmed receipt with the remainder to be paid in cash on arrival. We were met at the airport by our guide Othman who was an expert driver and a guide so full of knowledge of the animals, culture and terrain. He had the sharpest eyes and good humour. We felt safe and well looked after. He was punctual and kept us to our itinerary. No time was wasted. He made a big effort for us to see and get safely close to the migration of the Wilderbeast, cheetahs, leopard, lions and birds. We were accompanied by a cook named Rama who was fantastic. We are vegetarians and Rama's skill was clearly evident with the soups and dishes he served using local produce. As we chose the camping budget option, Rama worked under difficult conditions from 04.30am preparing breakfast, lunch and dinner to a high level. On our last day he surprised us with a bottle of "champagne" which was a lovely surprise. The campsites were basic but clean. Only two of the three that we stayed at had hot shower water, but we were warm in our tents and slept well. We were supplied with a torch and binoculars, but you might want to get another torch. Also - make sure to bring some warm clothing as during September it can get quite cold at night. Msangi answered emails from our worried family when we were out of range of cell phone reception explaining that all is well. Msangi met up with us before our departure to ensure that all had gone well and our smiling faces showed it had. Highly recommended.
A Guide is more than a guide
My family of 6 people (including one 10 year old) recently returned from a safari in Tanzania organized by Msangi of Bright African Safaris. The trip was spectacular in every way, not the least of which was our guide throughout the twelve days, Athuman Abuu. I am writing this review to focus on the relationship between Athuman and our family. In essence Athuman became one of our family in that we spent all day together sharing incredible experiences. From what I have read and heard from other safari goers, this is not unusual at all. What was different was that we invited Athuman to join us for meals (we paid a nominal fee to the camp for his dinner). We never thought not to offer this when on the first night we discovered that he was to eat elsewhere. I can truly say that having out guide join us for meals enhanced the friendly, intimate time spent together in this very special experience. I highly recommend to other safari goers to extend this gesture to your guide.