DK
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The ostriches liked to race with our car !!!
I choosed Crisscross Safari to organize our second tur to Namibia (19 days), from Windhoek to Victoria Falls and back. We experienced a wonderful journey ! mr. Blaauw, Thinus, understood perfectly our wishes : a blend of nature, culture, and a bit of wilderness...To se games, breathtaking landscapes, to meet people as Damara, Himba, Herero, and Bushmen was the purpose of the trip. This has been absolutly fulfilled !
We enjoyed very much the mixture of comfortable lodges, well located and a bit primitive camps choosen by CrissCross during our sojourn. it's nice to feel being in Africa far from the nearest "Intercontinental Hotel !"
We had the privilege to be accompanied by Mr. Blaauw, Thinus, it is a priceless treasure to travel with someone with so much local knowledge. Thinus was a mine of informations and anecdotes, this mixed with great humor.
Namibia is a wonderful country to visit and I highly recommend CrissCross Safari.
PS : From June (Winter) it's very nice to be in Namibia.
The food was excellent...We enjoy the wines too !
SI
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great adventure
Me and my friend had an amazing private 4-day camping safari with Shadows of Africa through Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater. The cook was excellent, the food was delightful, mix of fish, vegetables and meet. Driver/guide was very knowledgable on wildlife and where to spot animals, he showed great patience in stopping for us to enjoy watching animals and picture taking. I think best way to enjoy safari is private safari, where you can stop as much as you want. Everything went smoothly from first day, so we could really enjoy beautiful landscape and wildlife. For use was camping great adventure, despite cold on Ngorongoro crater, animals around the tent by night :)
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Review about Ngorongoro Crater by Nathan
The large number of lions here saw here was second to none in East Africa. We also saw a few chowing down on a zebra!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A great place to experience your first safari.
The national parks in Tanzania have a stunning amount of animals (significantly more so than Ugandan parks), and this makes game drives easier there. We visited 5 parks/reserves there, but by far our favorite resort was the Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge at the rim of the crater. The views from the hotel were stunning, and the dining room was very luxurious, so I highly recommend this lodge.
The Serengeti is a must for any safari to Tanzania. If you can be there during the Great Migration (Jan-Mar) you'll see some awe-inspiring wildlife. Unfortunately we went during the summer, so we missed that, but still had an amazing journey.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Everything we'd expected it to be.
We loved visiting Kenya, but having visited other countries in East Africa now I can say that I prefer other countries more. I like to get away from large crowds of tourists and the "popular" places where people go, and Kenya in my mind falls into that category. That being said, the wildlife and scenic beauty is stunning, and you see why so many people choose to go here on their safaris. We spent most of our time at the Masai Mara National Park and stayed at Governors Camp. What a stunning location, and hospitable accommodation. The staff was extremely helpful (especially at chasing off baboons that liked to congregate around my tent). The food was great, but I remember there being an infestation of beetles in the dining tent, which caused us to have to eat our soup with our hands over our bowls. All part of the experience I guess!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Ol Pejeta Conservancy by Dawn
Reticulated giraffes were beautiful!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An experience not to be missed
The Masai Mara is not just a feeding ground along the great migration, it's a scene taken from the pages of earth's majestic hot spots. Not only does the beautiful scenery go on forever making you see--maybe for the first time--just how big and wonderful our planet is, but you also get to be part of the animal kingdom in ways you've never imagined. As our driver turned a corner here and there another species of animal, bird, reptile, and plant came into view. A pride of lions nursing their cubs, giraffes eating from tall acacia trees, elephants on their way to the water, a cheetah getting up from a nap and walking so close to our jeep I could touch him, wildebeest as far as the eye can see--some battling for supremacy, hyenas snatching a leg from a carcass where vultures were having a last snack...so much and so wonderful. The hippos and crocs, and birds and lizards, and warthogs and monkeys were all so entertaining as well. If you don't know God yet, you'll get pretty close to Him on the Mara.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Whistle stop trip but had some lovely wildlife sightings.
We travelled to Kafue National Park for a 4 night whistle stop trip over Christmas. We drove ourselves from Lusaka airport which was a very easy journey with supermarkets found on route from the airport and once you are out of the city the roads are very easy to drive. We stayed at Mayukuyuku Camp located right on the edge of Kafue River. We had two person tents pitched for our arrival right beside the river with the hippos actually passing in front of them during the night. When we weren't out in the bush we were able to fish beside the stunning river. We often had dinner cooked at the camp where we ate under a nice open bush hut with the other guests. The food was very nice and at an affordable price (dinner $30 dollars that consisted of a starter, main and desert). We drove ourselves within the park and found once we were off the tar road on the side loops the wildlife was great. Animals can still be seen from the tar road but the speed limit is still high there so you have to be aware of other drivers passing through. We were there during the wet season but even off the tar road the roads were manageable and we only got stuck once but were able to get out ourselves. It might have been the time of year but there were fewer tourists in the park than I expected and you didn't have the large volume of vehicles that you often find in other parks which meant that a lot of the sightings were very personal with just one vehicle present. The game in the park was lovely to see. Although we didn't see the leopard that frequented the camp we saw elephants in most areas and had a great sighting of lions. The most special sighting of the trip, however, was coming across a pack of wild dogs that were completely relaxed around us and ended up lying down around our vehicle. At the end of the trip we had to start taking game drives with a guide as our fuel was low. If you're staying along the tar road there aren't many options for refuelling. Our guide however was very knowledgeable about the wildlife in the park and showed a real passion for the wildlife. Overall we had a lovely relaxing trip and will definitely visit again.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Kenya by Dawn
You'll see everything--animals, birds and more. The people are friendly and lovely and the scenery goes on forever.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Zambia by Steefo555
The travel from Lusaka into the wildlife areas was very simple and you were not having to travel long distances. Once inside the Kafue National Park there was a great diversity of wildlife and often you wouldn't see too many other tourists so sighting of the wildlife could be quite personal.