PH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing trip indeed!
After careful considerations between different operators, my friend and I decided to go with Maturaf as he provided the best rates with the most amazing choices in accommodations. Although there were small lapses during communications while working on the itinerary, Maturaf had been very cooperative working on our requests. The guide that he sent us named Peter was also amazing. He was as well cooperative and made things work all throughout the Safari trip. Except for the rhino, we saw the rest of the Big Five and made close encounters with a bunch of lions.
The safari accommodations were great. We stayed in Zawadi House in Arusha upon arrival, Lake Burunge and Serengeti Kati Kati tented camps, Serena Hotels in Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro, and Tloma Lodge. We visited Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro and Serengeti National Parks.
The Zanzibar accommodations we stayed in were also amazing although personally, we prefer La Gemma dell'Est over Hideaway of Nungwi as it provided guests activities that they can join in such as beach soccer, water polo and beach volleyball. La Gemma dell'Est for me is more family-oriented but the facilities in Hideaway of Nungwi are more luxurious, as well as the food spread in their buffets are better. We stayed 2 nights each in both hotels.
The only downside, as my friend has been pointing out the whole trip, was that most of these accommodations failed to "sell/market" local cuisine but rather serve the usual intercontinental dishes.
Overall, the experience was amazing and proud to say this trip checked two places/activities in my bucketlist.
I highly recommend this team. KUDOS to Matural, Peter and the rest of Regional Tours!
HK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
More than satisfactory
I've engaged Kenya Budget Holiday for a 9d8n safari tour in Kenya and Tanzania. Communication pre trip was all through e-mails, they are very responsive and helpful! The arrangement in Kenya was good, from airport pick-up to sending us to Tanzania, they have taken good care of us and arranged nice drivers. But for the Tanzania part, our tour was "outsourced" to another agent and due to miscommunication/I don't know why, we were not able to visit one of the parks as stated in the itinerary. Through numerous correspondences, we were given a refund of the entrance fees when we were back to our home country; we are pleased with the arrangement and the operator is truly reliable. If you're looking for some budget options, be sure to look for Kenya Budget Holiday.
EG
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Tarangire National Park by SRIDHAR
Decent wildlife experience
EG
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by SRIDHAR
Limited wildlife but quite scenic
EG
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Serengeti wildlife experience
It was quite a wildlife experience with lots of animals to see in their natural environment and also their natural instincts. Food and lodging quality was of a high standard. Transportation and guide was very good
NL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
great assistance in finding a foot safari for us
Natasha was very responsive to her email. The trip was perfectly organized by her.
DK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari experience - but with technical car problems
It was a great visit to Mikumi where we saw many animals - lions included. Our guide spoke great english and was very informative about the animals and country. We were picked up at the right time and the Swiss hotel for sleep over was also very nice. The only problem was that the jeep had several technical problems. First we had a flat tire twice and then two more technical problems which took a lot of time to fix. We were probably just unlucky - and besides that we would like to recommend the company. If you don't have plans for a big safari but just want the experience this two day trip with Kanuth is very nice.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Day trip to Pilanesberg
Go Safari did an excellent job organising and taking us on Safari at Pilanesberg and dropping us back to the airport at the end of the day. It was an excellent day and we saw so many animals.
Our guide for the day was Glen who was brilliant and had plenty of knowledge not just of the animals but also the areas we passed through on the 2 hour drive to the reserve.
IN
The moment we cleared immigration we were recieved by hannah and taken to our hotel - no hassles
It was a memerable experience for us and trevero had dealt wit us on previous trips too with hannah doing the itenary with perfection. We had great sightings and excellent comfort food at the serena lodges
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
African Garden of Eden
Ngorongoro Crater is a thrilling safari destination. Meeting the crater is love at first sight - a steep winding drive up a mountain rewarded by a breathtaking view of the crater in all its glory. This birds eye view of the crater is very dramatic - the expanse of the crater can be appreciated, as well as the many habitats within it, vaguely delineated by the changes in color on the crater floor akin to a patchwork quilt. We arrived at the crater in the late afternoon and settled into our hotel on the rim for the evening. Out of the 6 hotels at which we stayed during our trip, I would say the one here was our least favorite. It was a beautiful lodge with a great view of the crater from our room, but the lodge feeling made it seem more like a traditional hotel, whereas our other accommodations throughout the trip were luxurious tents or separate huts, etc., that had more of an exclusive, remote vibe consistent with our surroundings. Our guide recommended we start our day exploring the crater at 6 AM to maximize our chances of seeing the elusive black rhino. When we entered the crater as the sun was rising, we felt like we were transported to a different planet. Our early start time was rewarded by a rhino sighting right off the bat. It is awe-inspiring to see such an endangered species in its natural habitat. We then spent the majority of the day driving throughout the crater, oohing and ahhing over the endless animal sightings - Thompson's gazelle, Cape buffalo, wildebeest, zebra, hippos, elephants, lions, hyenas, jackals, countless bird species, etc. My favorite moment in the crater was when our guide picked a spot for our picnic breakfast. He set up a table and chairs by a watering hole and we sat amongst a herd of zebras grazing and drinking. It was a surreal moment, as if we had been placed in the middle of television documentary footage. Toward the afternoon the crater became more crowded and we had covered most of the roads, so our guide decided it was time to move on to our next destination, the Serengeti. Driving back up to the rim of the crater, I couldn't help but look over my shoulder at the crater, surprised again at its massive expanse.
