CA
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
High quality small group tour operator for Central Africa
The tour company arranged a 1 week tour for myself from Rwanda to DR Congo and back. Email communication was excellent and the tour owner (Eraste) personally accompanied me on the tour and arranged the drivers and other transportation and facilitated the visa approval and border crossings at Bukavu and Goma.
Everything on the itinerary was provided and there was flexibility to make changes as requested(such as staying in the National Park) or required. Accommodation was very good and all meals were good. Eraste speaks fluent English (and French) and was well-informed, totally professional and kind and made good company on the tour.
The tour was good value for money for a private tour and I would thoroughly recommend this company and this tour to anyone.
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Overpriced and overrated
absolutely, the great migration is a spectacle you must see at least once. But other than that, I found Tanzania to be mostly disappointing. Not so much what we all saw, but more the overall experience. If you keep in mind that you are visiting the most expensive national parks in the world, you expect something in return. In the Serengeti, for example, I think the roads were extremely bad. We did 10 days of full day safaris, which at the end I almost couldn't last because of the back pain. The rest camps are completely worthless and unpleasant. Again, for the most expensive national parks in the world you can really expect more. The distances between our sightings were often enormous. Everyone drives through the Serengeti at unprecedented speed to make sure you don't miss a lion that is then sitting 200 meters off the road... And which you are watching with 70 other cars... Guides do not behave professionally, push the animals too much and the tourists are also 'once in a lifetime safari poop', which you can see from their behavior. It is often noisy during sightings and I found it difficult to enjoy it. All in all disappointing, not value for money and the safaris were not romantic and relaxing as I often feel in private parks.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Kenya - Wildlife and Culture combined
We spent 8 days traveling around Kenya taking in the wildlife and local culture. We visited Amboseli National Park near beautiful Mt. Kilimanjaro. Next we saw Lake Nakuru and Lake Naivasha. At Lake Naivasha, we highly recommend going to Crescent Island, where you can walk among the animals and there are no predators to worry about. Lastly, we went to Masai Mara and enjoyed the grasslands where you can view all of the Big Five and many more fascinating animals in their natural habitat. Overall it was a wonderful 8 day safari. We used Extra Miles Unique Adventures out of Nairobi as our Tour Guides and were totally satisfied with their attention to detail and planning. We would definitely recommend them.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable
A bucket list item and an unforgettable trip in everyway. From sleeping under the starlight (which the night sky is so much more beautiful since you are away from cities/towns and their night pollution), to camping next to animals without any dividers or fences, to seeing all different types of animals and birds, both from afar and close, to meeting new friends and fellow travelers, to seeing animals both sleeping and active and migrating (part of the Great Migration), this trip was so memorable and magical in every way. So satisfied. Shoutout to our guide Douglas for an amazing job, accommodating our every request to position the jeep to help get the best pictures.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
South Africa is an absolutely beautiful country with very diverse areas and experiences!
We spent 16 days in country and we started with a Kruger National Park Safari with Endless Summer Tours. This was outstanding. Wade, our guide offered knowledgeable insight for the Safari as well as South African life in general. We would highly recommend Endless Summer Tours.
We then spent 5 days in Cape Town. This offered its own unique experiences. Hiking Table Mountain, visiting Kalk and Falls Bay (scuba diving at Falls Bay) doing a food tour thru Cape Town, and enjoying the Cape Town waterfront. Then off to Stellenbosch and enjoying the wineries for 3 days. Great wine, beautiful views, and quaint wineries/farms.
Each area; Safari, Cape Town, and Stellenbosch offered its own unique experience. We loved our trip!
US
More wildlife than I have ever seen or expected to see.
All of the National Parks I visited were amazing and full of wildlife.
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Ngorongoro Crater by Joost
The Ngorongoro crater was the biggest disappointment for me. I imagined a crater full of wildlife but it was mainly a crater full of tourists. To see lions it is a good place but again, like the other popular parks in Tanzania, you will always have to share it with 70 other cars. In addition, I found the practical aspect of the crater a real obstacle. If you are not staying on the edge of the crater, but like most people in Karatu, it will easily take you 2.5 hours one way to get to the crater from your lodge. The crater is very small, so you can explore the vast majority of it in 2 hours. If there is something to see somewhere, you can recognize it by the dust cloud moving in the direction of the sighting...
I would strongly advise skipping this destination. It's better to stay an extra day in the Serengeti...(which I didn't like that much as well)
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Serengeti National Park by Joost
We stayed in Central Serengeti in June while the migration was also taking place in this area. Very impressive. We stayed there for 10 days and therefore also had days when the migration had already passed through the area. Those days it was not easy to spot the wild animals. Overall I expected to see more cheetahs, elephants and leopards. There is no shortage of lions, but here too we were always there with easily 70 other cars, all moving continuously to see the lions just a little better and tourists shouting at the animals. Not the relaxing and romantic safari that I am used to from private parks in, for example, Namibia or even the national parks in Zambia. The roads are dramatic even though you pay a large fee to enter the park and the rest camps are places where you really don't stop for fun.
I have the feeling that they can also make the roads much more 'romantic'. Sometimes you have a beautiful river, but you don't see anything because the road goes in the completely opposite direction. The Masai Mara does this much better.
Overall I also thought the guides were very poor. They pushed the animals too much and often locked them in.
Overall, I would rather spend my money on a safari in Zambia, Namibia or Kenya, for example.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Mario
Mix of jungle/rainforest and the lake and some of the Big 5, it was diverse and different than the plains of the Serengeti. Also - lots of monkey sightings.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Ngorongoro Crater by Mario
A magical playground for animals of all shapes and sizes to coexist with each other. Amazing and full of life. Being in the crater floor by dawn was important!!