BE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Mdonya Old River Camp, bushlife at its best
Mdonya, bushlife at its best.
Knowing our expectations and our desire to find interesting spots to make great pics, Matoke Tours adviced us to stay at Mdonya Old River Camp.
If you are looking for an authentic bush experience, don't look further ... Mdonya has it all. At Mdonya the impossible is made possible.
After more than 10 African safari's and having visited even more camps, lodges,..., our stay at Mdonya was a blast!
It was our second stay in Ruaha, which is one of the best remote wildlife parks we have ever been to, and this time it exceeded our expectations once again. Ruaha, same size as Switzerland and one hour and a half bushplane flight away from Dar Es Salaam is one of the parks that is least invaded by tourists in Tanzania and is known for its density of wildlife including several packs of Wild Dogs.
We arrived at the end of the dry season and we had a marvelous stay.
First of all, the Mdonya camp itself is so authentic that you imagine yourself being Dr Livingstone. The Camp is composed of 12 authentic bushtents. No electricity inside but candles, petroleum lamps and comfortable beds. The toilet and shower are located outside the tent. The dinner area is just a big long wooden table under the African sky. But heck, what else do you need? The reception area does have a charging station (to charge your batteries, phones,...). Life at Mdonya is mainly spent in the open air which is beautiful! The food is fantastic. You taste the Italian "cucina" mixed with the finest African delicacies.
The camp is completely focused on pleasing its guests. That is the sole mission of superb camp manager Mary and her staff. Whether you want the standard gamedrives in the morning or in the evening or whether you want to go on a full day gamedrive, everything is possible. We did a fullday gamedrive every day, got breakfast in the bush and got lunch in the bush. Every day, we left before dawn and arrived back at the camp after sunset . We never heard a complaint from our overtired driver or guide. Neither did we get a remark from the camp manager that we had spoiled too much fuel. :-)) Not to mention that the on-the-go meals were mouthwatering! Living life to the fullest!
Ruaha is a national park but the area where Mdonya is situated offers the opportunity to go offroad if something interesting is spotted. We arrived at the end of the dry season, meaning that all wildlife was concentrated around the few waterponds in the dried out riverbeds (the Mwagusi & Ruaha river) which was the sign for OMG sightings during our whole stay. We saw at least 7 different Lion prides. One pride had cubs, the other one had killed a giraffe 30 minutes before we arrived, another one had killed a baby elephant just minutes before we arrived, another one did an attempt on a herd of buffalo's,... Every day we saw lions and not just passive ones but the very active ones. A real photographic peak! Apart from that we saw the rare sable antilopes and bat-eared foxes, hyena,elephants, giraffes, impala, gazelles, duikers, dik dik's and more than 20 different birds of prey (Martial Eagle, Fish eagle, Verreaux eagle owl, tawny eagle, ...). But the real highlight of our journey was the "live" kill of a leopard that we followed during a few days and that killed a baby impala just in front of us. What an experience! Every night, satisfied and well-fed, we fell asleep accompanied by the sound of roaring lions or hyena calls.
Unfortunately, we did not see Wild dogs and the Tse Tse flies - especially in the Jongomero area - were annoying, but these were only a minor inconvenience in what was overall a truly fantastic trip.
For more reports, movies or pictures, please watch our website wildlifebrothers.com. More to come soon!
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Profesional and flexible
The groups have a maximum size of twelve travellers spread over two cars, you always have a spacious window seat. Both the drivers and the tour leader are well prepared and try to avoid any delays. They are also informed/educated about the country, culture, roads, parks and animals. We had nice accommodations, vehicles and in the parks we always had a ranger. The tour was very complete (without extra costs). Overall we had an excellent tour through Uganda.
EG
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Budget Safari
Everything was great, safe, and affordable (for budget safari). The guide was very helpful, Martha is too patient and answered all the questions and the concerns. The people tried to do their best to make my trip to Kenya a great one. I can say, I spent less money in Kenya than what I will spend in my country for the same period of time. Masai Mara was awesome, Hell's gate was too nice, I was very happy and the other tourist from all over the world had the same feeling.
All you have to take care about is the hotels, sometimes they try to deceive me to take more money (for ex. fees on Wi Fi !!!) but this happens anywhere in the world that's why it is ok for me.
If I come back, I will choose big time safari. I will recommend it to my friends too.
Thanks.
NL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Five day safari and trip to Zanzibar
In the beginning of 2014, we wrote to Ben and Marion of Caracal Tours and Safaris: We will arrive on April 17th and depart on 3 May. Could you put us together a trip including a safari and Zanzibar? Marion asked us some questions about our needs and very soon we got a tailor-made proposal from her, including hotels, lodges, transfers and flights to Zanzibar. Marion has compiled a wonderful trip for us. The first days we stayed in Moshi, followed by five days safari, then again a few days Moshi and finally five days at Zanzibar.
This period falls in the rainy season, but we have not seen much of that. A few cloudy days with occasionally a shower, but during the safari we always had nice weather. Only in Zanzibar we had one day with a lot of rain. The advantage of this period is that it is quiet in the national parks. Also prices of hotels and lodges are much lower than in the high season.
The highlight of our trip was definitely the five-days safari. Go to http://www.caracalsafaris-tz.com/reviews/Gerrie-en-Gerald.html for a photo impression. In particular, the Serengeti is truely unique. The reality is much more impressive than anything we had seen on the internet and TV.
Ben is an excellent guide who really discovered all things to discover. Again and again he shows you things you were not able to find yourselves. And do not forget: he is a great driver. We have had five great days with him.
Ben and Marion, thank you very much for this wonderful holiday. Tanzania has become an unforgettable experience to us.
Gerrie and Gerald
FR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Land tour of Namibia
We were picked up at the airport by Thinus with a warm smile and welcome. The week we spent with him was interesting with beautiful scenery. He was very knowledgeable and a real gentleman. We stayed in good lodges in different locations. Sossusvlei was amazing with wonderful dunes and interesting landscapes. The accomodation was beautiful as was the choir in the lodge that sang for us. We stopped at a lagoon side view in Swakopmund for lunch as then saw the Pelicans. Damaraland was very different. Thinus our guide grew up there and had stories concerning his childhood. His courage impressed us in sharing these memories that are so intimate to him. The views at sunset were beautiful and the village we visited a fond memory that lives on. Etosha was much more a traditional saphari but the richness in animals was extraordinary. We saw herds of elephants, several lions, zebras amongst many other animals.
Namibia is a large country. The people are very friendly, the scenery due to the lack of water very different and well worth visiting. With Thinus one is in safe experienced hands. We would recommend him without any hesitation. At the end of our trip we had not just a tour guide but a new friend.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Barney is the best!
So happy to have had Barney as our guide. We learned so much and had such a great time. He is not only knowledgeable but also very funny. We can't wait to go back and see our new friend!! Will definitely refer him to others for a trip of a lifetime.
CH
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing game view in Ruaha
We were met by Michael at the Airstrip of Iringa and driven to Ruaha. Michael was an excellent driver and guide. He knows a lot about the animals. It was both fun and interesting to discuss with him the differences between Tanzania and the Western society and culture.
Besides he is very friendly and obliging!
After getting back to Iringa, we were taken by George to Mbeya. He is a very safe driver!
I can highly recommend UB On Safari! Be sure, they want you to live an experience of a lifetime and are happy to make flexible changes if you wish so.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
My experience with Chels was excellent. I could not have imagined a better experience
The service was fantastic. I would recommend Chels to anyone wishing to experience safari in Tanzania. The guides and other staff were knowledgeable, friendly, capable, and overall fun to be with
I recommend Daigle
I took a solo tour of Tanzania's southern circuit with Daigle Tours in July of 2014. Although I was a bit wary of using a smaller tour company, the experience was smooth and enjoyable from start to finish. I initially chose them because they were more flexible, working with me to adjust a set tour to meet my needs. I was picked up by my guide at the airport, taken to 4 lodges that ranged from good to amazing, and dropped off back at the airport. In between, the game drives were awesome, one of the best travel experiences I have ever had. There are lots of safari companies out there, but I can definitely recommend Daigle.
IT
Great!
It has been a great experience. Jeremy was of a super great support. A special thank to Charles and Kapande, two Angels!!!!