20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Incredible experience with a 5* tour operator!
A wonderful once-in-a-lifetime experience, organised and led by a very professional, reliable and well-run team - Mufasa Travels! We are so pleased with how everything went with Mufasa and couldn't recommend it highly enough. I'll try to outline some of our experience in the hope it helps others.
Communication with Joseph:
We started planning our safari dream holiday 9 months before flying out. We emailed around 10 different suppliers and eventually decided upon Mufasa for several different reasons.
Most of it came down to the communication we had with Joseph via email. From the very first email, he was prompt, polite and extremely helpful with his responses, information and suggestions. Some other operators were also good in this regard, but it felt as though Joseph always went out of his was to make us feel comfortable and gave us personal suggestions on how to make our trip the honeymoon of a lifetime. Very importantly, it never felt like he was trying to over-sell us anything - it was all very much about me and my wife and what we wanted - he was happy to just assist! He was also very patient, as I think I ended up sending him about 100+ emails over the course of 6 months! Each one replied to with an articulate and thorough response.
Joseph really is a credit to Mufasa team and he is the reason we ended up choosing Mufasa and planning what ended up being such a wonderful safari together.
We went for a private tour which we highly recommend if your budget permits. You can take your time, are never rushed, can decide what animals to focus on, can decide how long to stay at any given spot etc etc. It just gives you so much flexibility. We also went for a luxury option with all three of our camps being top quality accommodation. At two of them we even had our own butler!
Masai Mara:
What a wonderful Park this is. Being our first safari, our objective was to see the Big 5. We ended up seeing that and much much more! Our guide Julius was excellent. He is extremely experienced and has being around the Masai Mara (and other parks) for most of his life - even his father was a guide! He was attentive, funny and knowledgeable and we recommend him highly! Everything went smoothly and it felt like he was always one step ahead in the planning.
The only thing we would note is that on the last day we had a bit of a hiccup and weren't provided with the required packed lunch from Masai Mara, when handed over to the Tanzania side - so we went a bit hungry! Other than that, everything was perfect!
We also decided on a hot air balloon ride over the savannah for sunrise on one day, followed by a breakfast out in the open plains. We highly recommend this if it is in your budget - one of the best things we've ever done! Also a special shout out to out driver for this (Pesi) who during the game drive back to our lodge managed to show us a Leopard for the first time!
Serengeti and Ngorongoro:
As we had seen the Big 5 in Kenya, we wanted to match that in Tanzania but also wanted to focus on big cats as well. Therefore, our guide (named Saidi), had a big task ahead of him! In short, Saidi delivered everything and more! He was amazing! We saw the Big 5 but also our request to focus on the big cats led to us seeing dozens of lions (hunting, courting, in trees, sleeping etc), 7 Cheetahs (3 different sightings, one of which they were hunting), and several Leopards. We also saw some smaller rarer cats like the Caracal and a Serval twice! It couldn't have gone better.
Saidi was deeply knowledgeable and was able to immediately answer all of our questions with ease. On top of that he made sure to point out everything he could and taught us so much about the endless plains of the Serengeti. What we loved most about him was that he used his radio so effectively. Communicating with other guides to find specifically what we were looking for every time, it was great! If you go to the Serengeti/Ngorongoro - be sure to ask for Saidi!
Accommodation:
In Masai Mara we stayed at Neptune Mara and it was incredible. The lodge overlooks a river where we saw giraffes, hippos, gazelle, crocodiles, zebras and baboons - all while having breakfast!
In Serengeti we stayed at Kubukubu Lodge which was great. There is an amazing view over the savannah and an awesome outdoor hot shower!
In Ngorongoro we stayed at Acacia Farm Lodge. This place is wonderful and very sustainable as it makes use of the farmland to produce its own foods! The staff also organised a wonderful surprise romantic dinner with a bonfire for us!
Overall:
Long review (sorry!), but to sum it up, it was the experience of a lifetime and we could not have had that without Mufasa Travels, Joseph, Julius and Saidi. Communication was very prompt and thorough throughout all of our planning, we were given countless ideas and suggestions, there was also a lot of flexibility to do exactly what we wanted, and the delivery from the guides was pretty much flawless!
We highly recommend Mufasa Travels, Joseph, Julius and Saidi!
DE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Booking a lodge and a car made easy, safe and pleasant.
Jacky from East Cape Tours was amazing. Her communication was always prompt, so friendly and competent, she even rang me once so we could have a quick chat to get to know and trust each other. Jacky quickly understood our needs and responded to it perfectly. What she found for us was just 100 percent what we had been looking for. Jacky made booking our SA experience really easy and pleasant.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Dana was extremely busy. There were questions we had that we needed an appointment to have answered.
We were met at the airport by Joseph, who was very professional and friendly. Our accommodations at Seasons were nice and included a wonderful breakfast.
Humala lodge was a wonderful adventure with good food, excellent staff, and our game driver Tandy was excellent! The Boma Zulu dancers were really fun!
James transported us to Tshukudu via the Panorama route and was very helpful, answered questions and took care of transfers and accommodations questions for us for our Victoria Falls excursion.
Our Tshukudu cabin was nice, but there were ants everywhere. The food was excellent! Our game driver Tyler was excellent as well.
Our accommodations at Victoria Falls at the Ilala Lodge was magnificent! Beautiful room, excellent food and wonderful staff. Lucky picked us up at Victoria Falls airport and transported us to Victoria Falls and the Chobi river package. He was excellent and very helpful.
Our Victoria Falls accommodations only included breakfast. We were surprised that we had to pay for lunch and dinner!
SE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Valuable and trustworthy experience of a lifetime
If you’re looking for a once in a lifetime experience and want to feel secure about that your money actually goes towards, not only the expenses of the tour and everything around it, but even environmental benefits and protection to keep this beautiful area alive, Tanganyika Travels is the way to go. Because they did just that for me and my family! We’ve never been more satisfied with the service and our exceptional experience!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The best safari
The best safari we have ever had was with Hello Tanzania. Tarangire and Ngorongoro safaris are very professionally organized. We would like to thank Sylwia and her team for great experiences and their work. We highly recommend their services. Thank you very much
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Bright African Safaris gave us an EXECTIONAL safari experience.
We just completed - Sept 1 to Sept 14, 2022 a 14 day private tour with Bright African and were over joyed with the results. I liked the idea of working with a locally owned company and was not disappointed. Bright African is a professional, organized and extremely pleasant organization to work with. I had no problems with communication in the planning process and Salim in the office was more than happy to make adjustments we requested and answer our many questions. The pricing for the tour was reasonable . I also liked the idea they were not demanding about the timing of the final payment- a small point but shows their integrity.
Our guide Albert Mungre was a delightful person and excellent guide who had a great grasp of the plants and animals we encountered. In addition to the flora and fauna, Albert gave us a good insight to the people and country of Tanzania . We were able to see all the bucket list animals in the various parks we visited and got to see 4 migration crossing at Mara river which was an amazing experience. We traveled in a Toyota Land Cruiser with a pop-up roof for each game viewing. Considering how bad most of the roads are in the parks, the ride was fairly comfortable.
Here was the itinerary for our private safari. The lodging we selected was all mid-range type accommodations- and this can be adjusted to fit your particular tastes and requirements.
Day 1: Kilimanjaro airport/Arusha. Overnight at Kutoka lodge
Day 2: Arusha/Arusha N.park. Overnight at Kutoka lodge
Day 3: Arusha/Tarangire N.park. Overnight at Tarangire osupuko lodge
Day 4: Full day in Tarangire park. Overnight at Motto cottages
Day 5: Manyara area/Lake eyasi bushmen. Overnight at Hhando coffeelodge
Day 6: Full day in Ngorongoro crater floor. Overnight at Ngorongoro lion paw
Day 7: Ngorongoro/Serengeti N.park. Overnight at Zawadi serengeti tented camp
Day 8: Full day in endless plain of Serengeti. Overnight at Zawadi serengeti tented camp
Day 9: Another full day in endless plain of Serengeti. Overnight at Zawadi serengeti tented camp
Day 10: Central Serengeti/Northern Serengeti (special day for migration watch). Overnight at Heritage Mara migration camp
Day 11: Full day in Northern Serengeti area. Overnight at Heritage Mara migration camp
Day 12: Early morning balloon ride and Another full day in Northern Serengeti area. Overnight at Heritage Mara migration camp
Day 13: Serengeti Kogatende/Arusha airport Under the shade safari lodge
Day 14: Arusha/Kilimanjaro airport. Fly out
Each area had its charms- I would especially recommend the Lake Eyasi bushmen as something truly unique to see.
If you have the time and money take the balloon safari it offers a unique perspective and the experience is well organized and fun; plus you will have the best breakfast of your stay.
In conclusion, selecting Bright African will be the best decision you make
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
It's good
It's a best experience
Sure, I ll go back after 2 or 3 years
RO
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Strongly recommend
Together with our guide, Philip, we had an amazing experience in Tanzania visiting 3 main national parks. Philip has a lot of knowledge about animals behaviour, trees, birds and wild life, he answered with patience every question we had and he has thousand of interesting stories to tell. We strongly recommend Lomo Tanzania Safari!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wow!
What a wonderful experience! Spirit of Kenya planned and executed an exceptional safari in Kenya for us that exceeded our expectations for wildlife, nature, and culture, all of the things this beautiful country has to offer. In preparation, Tiago responded promptly to all of our questions (and we had many), eased our concerns, and put together an excellent itinerary and accommodations. Our guide, Anthony, was so knowledgeable of all the species we encountered, made sure we saw everything we wanted to see, could spot most any bird or animal from far away, and was a lot of fun! We felt very well taken care of. Great value for money.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Migration trip in Kenya and Tanzania
We and a friend ( Three adults)spent 11 days in Kenya and Tanzania for Great Migration trip.
We create our own itinerary and tailored details by Matthys who works for Discover Africa.com
We had an amazing experience - a best itinerary (Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Serengeti NP and Tarangire NP) and accommodation in this trip. We had many incredible animal sightings. We saw the Big 5 , Migration watching and loads more!
Tim and Comfort were an excellent, experienced guide in Kenya and Tanzania both country, and Comfort was very helpful, knowledgeable and efficient