65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Winner comes home! and what a win!
Yes I won the seven night, eight day Ultimate African Safari with Churchill Safaris - offered in International Traveller Magazine. My daughter & I flew into Entebbe, had a great night at Papyrus Lodge then set out with our wonderful driver Ivan & another traveller Brett. The four of us off to Kibale - with lunch stop at Fort Portal & spend our 2nd night at Chimpanzee Forest Guest House. Early start to track the chimps - bit of a climb but so much fun. So many photos. Off to Queen Elizabeth National Park for a game drive & stay at the fabulous Kasenyi Lodge. The tents were amazing & so was the food! Next day a cruise on the Kazinga Channel - elephants, hippos, crocodiles, baboons water buffalo & birds galore. Another 5 course dinner & some sleep & off to new Lake Mulehe Lodge on the edge of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest - oh what a view. Next morning the time had finally arrived - gorilla trekking. Impossible to convey this once in a life time experience. Yes we had to walk where trackers cut a path at our feet using machetes. Yes there were lots of vines - but few bugs. Yes it was so worth every step. What a memory.
The next day off to Lake Mburo National Park to stay at the Lodge & welcome rest with a game drive & another opportunity to see zebra, warthogs & so many other park dwellers.
In summary, this was a wonderful adventure, an excellent itinerary, well organised, excellent lodges, great food, water freely available at all times & friendly people all the way. I am a grandmother & nearly a septuagenarian - I have heaps of photos & so many happy memories.
I did it - why don't you?
Thank you very much Churchill Safaris
CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing once in a lifetime Safari
My whole life I’ve wanted to go on a safari & African adventure Specialists Safari tour made my dream a reality. Andrew & his team went out of their way to make everything so special for us. Communication & service was incredible. We will absolutely be back... 100% recommend them!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
For the past 3years I've contracted them, they've been Very professional and competent
Communication is very timely and useful. the service is commendable with a wide range of options available and communicated. The tour is well planned and lives up to expected standards
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
We had a wonderful safari, better than we expected!
We first saw this company as a sponsor of "Nature" on PBS. The owner was available by phone in the U.S. which made communication very easy. Jessica was very caring and made sure all our questions were answered as needed. Together we designed our custom tour so that we could travel a little slower, allowing us to relax as well as time to do some bird watching. A nice mix of accommodations; surprisingly luxurious resorts, a tented cabin, and a mobile camp in Serengeti. We were offered cultural experiences, and we chose the walk through a village near Karatu and a couple of walks by different guides local to each area. Our driver and guide, Yunus, was very knowledgeable about animals and birds, and loved nature. He went the extra mile to make sure we saw all the critters we had mentioned and many more. As a driver he was always very safe. The owner, kept in touch with our guide throughout the safari, checking to make sure all was well. Finally our scenic flight from Serengeti to Arusha topped off our stay. In summary, we will always have very fond memories of our wonderful safari with Dancing Zebra.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful Safari Trip - hopefully one of many!!
This was an incredible experience! I provided Maggie the dates we wanted to go, and she coordinated a detailed itinerary that exceeded all expectations! They even changed their schedule to meet me earlier due to my early plane arrival!
Our driver, Anwar, was incredible. We had a great time in the vehicle with Anwar, and learned a lot while seeing the animals in their habitat. I can't thank these two enough for the experience, highly recommend!
FI
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Ruaha National Park by Rudiger Schultz
I had in the Ruaha the best accommodation, the Mwagusi lodge inside the Park with a astonishingly, luxury service.
FI
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Mahale Mountains National Park by Rudiger Schultz
The Park is excellent as is its wildlife and nature. The standard accommodation there is not overwhelming but all in all I rate the price-quality-relation as satisfying.
FI
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
A lot of nerves needed
This is merely a Review about Gombe Track & Safari, The Mahale Nationalpark, their guiding and accommodation as well as the Coast View Resort Hotel in Kigoma.
I was picked up in Dar from my hotel early in the morning and in time and brought to the airport. My flight with Tanzania Air was also very good and smooth. I arrived on the schedule in Kigoma where a car from the Gombe Track and Safari was waiting for. In addition to a driver, a cook was provided, who served me in Mahale very well. The car was in a bad shape and not suitable for the rough road of 107 km which I mentioned already on our way to the park. But we made it. After an exhausting trip, lasting 6 hours we reached the village from where a boat trip was organized. This speedboat hacked me through the waves so that my back was badly aching for hours after my arrival. However the most pleasant moments I had in Mahale although my driver from the Gombe Safari company had sent the boat to pick me up again for my return one day to early. We however got that settled well and I could stay as it was planned for 4 days enjoying the jungle and the Chimps I had paid for.
The boat came on the 23rd of January to pick me up again. It was late because of the rough waves on lake Tanganyika. The driver had been sleeping in his car overnight because he came one day too early. It was exactly the same car as on the trip to Mahale. This time happened what I had been expecting during our first trip. The car broke because of electrical problems after 35 km in the middle of nowhere on a hot and dusty road in the wilderness. Some Daladala busses dropped by until it got dark. I urged the driver several times to get into contact with Joshua, the manager of the company, several times. Joshua came to pick us up at 9 pm when it was already dark and brought us to Kigoma, where we arrived at 00:30, totally exhausted, dirty and sweaty at the booked hotel (Kigoma Coast View Resort) which has a 4 Star reputation. The receptionist, a girl had already fell asleep but opened us the door and has let me in into my room. Dirty as I was I wanted to get a cold shower but noticed, that there was no water in the hotel. The shower could not be used, the toilet not be flushed until the next morning from 7:45 am to 8:20 am, when the hotel manager allowed to put on the pump, which delivered the water into the rooms. So I had to sleep dirty and sweaty as I was in my sheets, getting no sleep at all. After taking my shower in the morning I waited to be picked up by Joshua and demanded to see the idiot of manager of that hotel and made clear that this kind of treatment of guest is not only unacceptable but a crime to the paying customer. He apologized but didn't give my money back which would have been the only acceptable way to proceed. I have been regularly in Tanzania for 7 years as a voluntary pediatrician and seen a lot of inconvenience but never have been in a situation like this. This hotel should be put onto a black list for avoiding damage to other customers. Also Gombe Safaris should have offered a compensation for all the problems with the car and for booking this hotel. I was offered a lunch on the day I left. I am sorry to say that but I have the impression after many years being in Afrika that companies which are running under local, african personnel and not able to offer proper level of service and endanger their customers. The next time I am taking a Safari I will make sure who is running the company. This should be a warning to every tourist coming from Europe or the States or Australia to pick their services carefully, avoiding local companies.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Passionate friendly people who do all they can to make sure you are happy
I emailed Kajie Safaris after finding them on safaribookings. At the time, i was not sure if i should book with a bigger international company that had more reviews on safaribookings or if i should book with Kajie who only had a few reviews, although Kajie was highly rated. After exchanging some emails with Ronald and seeing how flexible, responsive and friendly he was compared to the other tour operators i was dealing with, i chose Kajie. The price was better than the other operators i had contacted for the same exact tour/specifications and Ronald was more genuine than the others.
Initially we had booked the tour for three people.
The day before we were set to travel, a friend decided they would like to join our trip as well. I message Ronald on the night before we were traveling to ask if we could change the bookings to accommodate 4 people rather than 3, and he was so helpful and sorted everything out for us. I don't think you can get that sort of service from another company.
Ronald and Hamida took us around Uganda. They made sure they showed us every amazing view they knew about, all the best photo spots. They were very friendly, and the general feeling was that they were more like friends showing us their country, than just our tour guides. We were very comfortable with them.
You can tell they love what they do and they want you to experience the best they can offer. Even while there, if you decide you would like to change something in the tour they are happy to make it happen.
We had an amazing time. Thank you Ronald and Hamida!
FR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent 3 days safari, organized as fast as possible
Everything was ok, nothing to complain about! Eliamini has been a perfect driver/guide for us, and Ben provided us good advice.