NL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Professional and helpful, Tanzanian side not very good!
We had a 11 days private Kenya and Tanzania safari. Silas is very professional and helpful. He was in his car in the carpark when we arrived. The flight arrival was delayed by one hour but after contacting him on the phone he promptly arrived to get us to our hotel.
The Kenyan part of our safari was excellent. The driver/guide Samuel is a very knowledgeble and a nice guy. But the disaster started the moment we crossed over to the Tanzanian side. We were made to pay $50 each to get the yellow fever certificates at the border. The person just took cash in Euros and filled in the yellow booklet. No vaccination was given. Upon asking for a receipt they gave some vague reasons saying that the internet was not working and that we shall get it by email, which, of course never happened. A Tanzanian driver received us and we started our Tanzanian journey to the Serengeti park. Within about one hour the left rear wheel of the rickety Toyota Land Cruiser just came off while we were driving! Luckily no one was hurt. We were in the middle of nowhere on a village road. The driver managed to change the wheel with the help of few villagers and we resumed our journey. After every 15 minutes of driving the driver had to tighten the screws of the wheel. This happened a few time. Then suddenly that newly changed wheel had a flat tyre! The driver just could not change it. He had to arrange an alternative private transport for us from the nearby village, who was kind enought to take us till the Serengeti gate. In the process we lost many hours. Ultimately we could reach our camp site after 8PM, eight hours after the border crossing!
The new Tanzanian driver gave a very unprofessional and unfriendly impression. The game drives in Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater were excellent. On our fourth night in Tanzania we were dumped in an extremely low level hotel near Lake Manyara. A very depressive place indeed. Certainly the lowest level of acommodation we had during our entire trip. The driver did not know that we needed to make a game drive in Lake Manyara National Park. There was no time for that any more. The next day we had to leave for Tangerine National park. The only solace on the Tanzanian side was that the national park game drives were really worth the trouble.
We had a sigh of relief after crossing over to Kenya without much trouble. The last two days in Kenya were very good with game drives in Amboseli, and transfer to Nairobi for our return flight home.
I requested Silas to reconsider his contract with his Tanzanian partner "Seven Wonders Safaris" in Arusha, Tanzania, which prompted him to end his contract with them. Thank God.
I hope this small review is helpful.
NZ
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Overall fair satisfaction
We were not advised to avoid online visa application..that was costly!!
Few misguided information as to what expected to see at the safari games and the standard of the lodges! Some were excellent and some were very poor with no hot water to shower in the morning!
Our Guide was lazy overweight and more on his mobile than guiding us ...with the operator instruction to Tip him 10 usd daily ..not good !
Overcharged for luggage extra weights at domestic flight from Arusha to zanzibar..
However after all ..very good holiday with lovely Tanzanian people.
CA
Experience level: first safari
Spectacular wildlife and beautiful beaches.
The safari tours are fantastic. Drivers/guides are well coordinated with each other ensuring that animal sightings are passed along, giving tourists the best opportunity to see as many animals as possible.
Beaches are beautiful but the harassment from local vendors is intolerable. Locals are friendly until they find out you don't want to give them business or money.
As a woman, make sure you cover up to below the knees (no shorts no matter how hot if you're not on the beach) because the looks you get make you feel like you're a piece of dung at the bottom of a shoe.
Get a hotel close to the main attractions because the driving is insane.
IE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good company bit car had issues and started safaris late each day
I went on a safari with them in November 2022 and overall the experience was really good, but I didn't find it as amazing as everyone writes in the comments. First, the driver wasn't the friendliest and we started our days much later than I had been told (8 am leaving time from the camp where it should have been 6 am for example). The car had issues and broke down on the way back.
I feel like a lot of tour providers are out there and you need to get a bit lucky as well, but don't think spending more will automatically mean better quality.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Keely
Lack of animals other than baboons
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Trying hard but not there yet
I've been on over 200 safaris to East Africa in the last 25+ years.
When my first 2 vendors were not able to assist me on this trip I turned to these guys.
I was told they worked with many photographers in the past and understood what was needed.
We struggled to get our guide to do what we wanted/needed for the right shot - all within the rules. He was nice enough and kind BUT he was often on his phone making it difficult to communicate with him as we had to repeat ourselves almost every question/statement.
The guide did not even have binoculars - how can you be a guide and not have binos?
The vehicle was not in great shape. It did what we needed but for only having 3 in the car it was tight, narrow, and the way the rear seat was positioned it meant that the person riding in the back often hit their head on the top of the interior - this was often with the way our guide drove - often going way too fast over certain parts of the roads.
The camps we stayed at were all fine - I'd stayed at them before so knew what to expect.
The value was OK as their price was very aggressive, but the overall level of service was not up to the standard I like.
I give Kameraz a 3.5 out of 5.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Budget experience for MidRange price
First of all - National Parks are amazing!
However, this was no value for the price. I paid midrange and got budget service.
Generically, on the 7D trip 3 middle days are resting. No game ride in the morning before leaving Masai Mara so we arrived early to the next city and nothing to do. Next day after the morning ride there is the optional lake but again quite early finish especially if you dont want to pay for the lake extra. Lastly, again morning park and full day just driving. No sunset game. These 3 days could have been 2 and use the extra day for amboseli/masai mara or anything. Amboseli “full day” is 9.30-16.30 only.
However, more than anything your guide can make it the best experience or the worst. Mine was the latter - Castro. I see some other reviews mentioning his communication skills.
The guide’s communication was lacking. He was not giving us information. Which made the experience lesser. He was straight out annoyed when clarifying questions were asked. Especially about times. 30 min difference is huge when you wake up almost every morning at 6am.
We got very little information about the animals, except the name.
Then, he used our car as a taxi as well between cities.
The promised 1l water was not given. When asked the guide got aggressive. Like you got some in the hotel. That is none of your business. I paid 1l water a day with you and your company.
Everyone in my group paid budget and only me the mid range category. Really have the impression that I also got the budget driver.
Cherry on the top, he started to punish me. Dropping the others first eventhough my hotel was before and making an extra hour of bumping road. He thought I wouldn’t notice but I have GPS and connection.
Finally, I was told 1300$ after paying the deposit they told me 1300$ more to pay. It was quite unpleasant surprise as I checked at least 5 times for the price.
I would have expected higher standards from KATO member company.
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Tarangire National Park by Laura
First park we did, as soon as we entered we were welcomed by elephants walking to the lake to drink, it was incredible.
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Ngorongoro Crater by Laura
Not my favorite place, reeeeeally cold, but there we saw hundred of animals all together reaching a small lake to drink and it was again a spiritual experience, seeing life itself all coming together to sustain itself.
RO
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Mixed
Overall, the adventure went well. In detail, we saw wild animals - that's why we went to Tanzania in the first place - and sometimes they were so close... right next to the jeep's front wheel OMG. We had Mister T, Lewis, Silas as our guides and Piu as a chef in Ngorongoro. On the first day of the safari, the jeep had issues when it exceeded 35 km/h, and we lost a few hours trying to fix it at a Mad Max-style service center :). The response was that it could be repaired if taken elsewhere for a part, and all of us in the group chose to continue using it as it was. On the second day, a different jeep, a different guide, and a different group: this time, the gearbox broke down right before entering the park, before the ticket gate. After a few phone calls done by Silas, we were told that it would be fixed in an hour. After an hour, we were told it would take another 2 hours. After the first hour of the two, we were informed that we would receive a replacement vehicle around 3 - 4:30 pm. After a while, Silas managed to persuade another driver (just entering the park) from a different company to take each of us to our respective accommodations - we drove for 6 hours with only a few stops because it was already getting dark, and the driver didn't have time to return back safely. The vehicles were not properly checked, which posed risks (what if we were already near the group of relaxed lions we photographed next to the front wheel? What if the vehicle didn't start? I'm sure Silas would have found solutions, but I would have preferred not to have these worries :). The first night of accommodation was at Boma Lodge - excellent lodging and food. The second night was at An'gata Lodge - MASH-style tents, a dedicated team - we were escorted to and from the tents by a team member using walkie-talkies; good food. The third night was at a camping tent, and the toilet/shower area needs improvements. Good food cooked by Piu. During the night we were visited by zebras OMG :) I'm glad that, overall, the safari was a success. We took memorable photos/videos and returned safely, with no unpleasant incidents regarding food. I can recommend improvements in communication between guides and tourists AND regular technical checks of the vehicles. Regarding tips, I agree with it up to the point where there is so much pressure that it can be believed that salaries are not paid from the money tourists pay for the safari (and it's not a small amount), and guides rely solely on tips. I hope that is not the case.