50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Trip to Mbala, Zambia for Centenary Ceremony for the end of World War I in Africa
Our trip to Mbala was for five days with the principal event being the 25 November 2018 Ceremony marking the Centenary of the World War I surrender of German East African forces to British Forces which took place on 25 November 1918. We also visited other significant locations in Zambia’s Northern Province.
Our tour guide and driver was James Tembo from African Vacations. We left Lusaka at 4:30 am to avoid the traffic and headed north, reaching Kasama that night. We visited the Lettow Vorbeck (the German Commander during the War) Memorial on the way.
Day two and we visited the Chishimba Falls which are amazing, then headed north to Mpulungu on Lake Tanganyika where we visited the port (hum ho) then the old stone church (very interesting). Unfortunately, the accommodation in Mbala that night was not satisfactory, however we endured it with some sympathy for James who had been badly let down by the Lodge owner.
Day three was the Centenary Ceremony which was fascinating. All appeared to be chaos shortly before the Ceremony, but somehow they managed to pull together an impressive event with the Zambian President, Ambassadors, Generals and von Lettow-Vorbeck’s grandson all laying wreaths at the Mbala memorial. In the afternoon we visited the old jail (which needs work), the pioneer cemetery (interesting), and Mbala’s Museum (very impressive). There is a surprising amount to see in Mbala, but you need to know where to look.
Day four and we headed north to Kalambo Falls where a torrent of water falls 235 metres into the gorge below. An absolute must if you are in the area. We then headed south to Kapisha Hot Springs Lodge where we camped the night in the tents James had brought with him. Kapisha is definitely the place to stay in this area. We woke early for a swim in the hot spring then headed off to Shiwa House which is a grand English style country house and estate. Also a must see. James then drove us to home in Lusaka.
It was a great trip. We had no preconceived expectations, and the disappointing aspects of the trip were outweighed by the hidden gems we found. James did a good job organising then running the trip, and we’re sure he is now wiser for the experience.
CL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
trip to kenya and Gorilla tracking
as searching alot for the kind of trip i wanted ti take in africa after my son had given me a birthday gift i told him i had always wanted a trip to Africa and my choice was kenya and uganda where i looked around and found go explore a proffesional company which helped me plan and gave me a non rushy programe and brian sent me a very well put together safaris which combined kenyas masai mara and hells gate snd amboseli i slept at Ol tukai i think its the best lodge in Amboseli i tracked the mountain gorillas in bwindi and chimps in kibale and also little did i know of the goldne monkeys in mgahinga Uganda is the most beautiful country you can ever visit the hills and the weather i loved interacting with the locals where i took a canoe boat on lake goerge by Derick of kasoga the experience was great thank you Go explore the team did a great job and ofcousre moses my guide in Uganda had the best knowledge of his country
CH
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Unforgettable wildlife safari
As from the beginning it was very easy to organise the trip. ITravel was very flexible and adapted everything to our personal resquests. The staff is very professional and passionate. I would recommend them to anyone !
Thank you again
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Monika
We saw a lot of baboons and elephants, as well as many zebra's, wildebeest and bufallos. However, having been to Tarangire, Ngorongoro and Maasai Mara it felt that there wasn't as many animals as in the other parks, possibly because many were hidden in the bushes of the lake Manyara Park.
AE
under20 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Enjoyable!
When we were picked up from our hotel there was someone to collect the remaining fees pick us up. He gave us a small run down of what to expect, then 5 mins to the bus station he got out and left. We were slightly confused what was happening, but the driver took care of us overall. He answered any questions/ request we had. Overall I would refer others to this company.
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A great 3 weeks of birding and nature exploring
What a great trip did we have!
Communication before the trip was great, very nice and friendly people and proper English most of the time.
Paul himself was our guide and responded before the trip on every email quite fast after sending it. In the field when we were out he probably did the same; great for his new customers but a little less great for us at that time. My advise would be to try to do this when you're not out with clients.
Paul is a great guy, he has good knowledge about the wildlife, the areas (he knows Uganda by head) and especially about the birds, although there is still room for improvements eg. when waders and swifts concerned. A lot of bird calls remain very difficult but I can't blame him because it is quite difficult indeed. I think we might have missed some species because of that but you can't know them all. On a number of occasions we were accompanied by some great guides who were a nice addition.
I think we really did not o.k. at Semliki birdwise; we missed too many birds so you might be more clearer to future clients only 10 to 15% of the birds mentioned are likely to be seen (in 1 or 1,5 days of birding). But luckily we did see some good birds and I appreciate the persistance Paul showed from time to time to find some good birds for us!
We had a really good car, we had no troubles with it whatsoever and Paul was always willing to put the rooftop up. He's a very careful driver and doesn't take any unneccesary risks. He knows how to handle the car when we wanted to take photographs and he is very friendly to fellow traffic users.
His equipment is o.k. and his eyes are really great; he sometimes saw more details with his bins then we did with our swaro's. Sharp eye!
When you're a hardcore birder with the aim to see as much birds as possible (no matter what) you should hire Paul together with Raymond (the royal Mile), Roger or Gordon (to name a few)... that's a combination which is great!
At the end we had a fantastic birding trip with a lot of nice mammals on the side. We saw 520+ bird species which is a good number in November I think. I'll have to come back in July to try to see some Broadbills, Antpitta and Semliki goodies. I definately recommend Paul and Terrain Safaris and probably hire them myself as well. Thank you Paul and Terrain Safaris for this wonderful experience! I wish you all the best!
Vincent
The Netherlands
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Eficient
Bimos Tours,
They are the best of the best i believe, Me & my family wanted to travel to Kenya (Mombasa) but on short notice my wife contacted Bimost tours they come in with amazing packages of which we chose one & without doubt we have nothing to regret...the Hotels Were superb & not to mention the excursions & transfers....
We have just arrived home & we have every reason to thank & recommend them to any Traveler
RO
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Thumbs up, good crew and highly skilled in making client have lifetime experiences
Trip was well organized and worth of every penny. Experts drivers too
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great tour company, everything well organised
We booked by email for the Gorilla tour in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Uganda through Rwanda. Paid for the tour through EFT and everything was organised as agreed. We were promptly picked at the airport in Kigali by our very capable driver, Jason and driven safely through the border to Uganda. Everything had been previously organised and accommodation and meals were inclusive for the 3-day tour. Chris had provided a list of things to carry for the tour but we were still unprepared for the water and mud we encountered in the forest so I would suggest that if you are doing a trekking safari in Bwindi, during the rainy season, please carry your gumboots/wellingtons/goloshes that go all the way up to the knee.
I would use this tour company again. They are great!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Celebration
I just returned from the 11 Day Uganda/Rwanda/DRC trip with Congo Discovery Safaris and I had a wonderful time. Barack and his brother Ken took very good care of me during this trip. Vincent was my driver throughout Uganda and he is extremely knowledgeable about Ugandan and other African countries’ history and about nature. Barack took over as my driver throughout Rwanda. I felt pretty lucky that I was able to see chimpanzees, gorillas, different bird types and lots of monkeys. I have previously been on a safari in Africa but seeing the primates up close was an incredible experience. We also spent lots of time visiting the villages and meeting local people. The village children were just as amazed at seeing a foreigner as I was with them. My tour was detoured from the DRC due to the closing of Virunga park but Ken and Barack were able to fill in the gaps at the last moment. If ever in this part of the world again, I will definitely purchase a tour from Congo Discovery Safaris.