US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful 3-day Safari Experience!
We did the 2-nights, 3 day Safari in which you fly from Zanzibar to Arusha, then drive a couple hours to the Tarangire National park for day 1 game drive. Day 1 at Tarangire went really well. Our Maasai guide, Molel, was attentive and knowledgeable. We saw 13 different types animals up close and got amazing photos (took a selfie with an elephant, from inside the jeep of course!). The park is massive and we barely covered a portion of it in the day and yet saw sooo much. Day 2, we spent in the Ngorongoro Crater. We loved it! We saw all of the Big 5. It was a miracle to see the leopard right at the end of our day. Molel heard other rangers on the call system say they saw one in a tree by the rim of the crater and he asked if we wanted to try and rush to it because once we go back up near the rim of the crater we can’t come back down, but it was near the end of the day and we had seen countless animals and just needed the leopard to complete the Big 5. So we all said YES! And we made it just in time before the leopard disappeared into the bushes. Such a fun experience! The Ngare lodge we stayed in was nice, clean, hot water and the staff were so hospitable. The meals were delicious and so fresh! Day 3, we visited the Hadzabe and Toga people. Tribes that are almost extinct in Tanzania, they live off the land. While we enjoyed learning about the people, this part we could have done without because we don’t like going and “staring” at people as if they are an exhibit. The translator/guide was great and encouraged us to interact with the natives. We did give money and buy some jewelry from the Toga and Hadzabe people as a way to show gratitude for them welcoming us into their space. Then by 1 pm we headed back to the airport to fly back to Zanzibar by 4:30. We are very glad we did this experience! On the front end, Sylwia answered all our questions and managed the logistics. I used WhatsApp to coordinate with the driver pick up and drop off in Zanzibar- Sylwia gave me his number and told me to connect with him. All in all, everything went smoothly and the animals and land of Tanzania is just beautiful! Things to know: there are a couple hours of drive time between locations (but it not a problem at all, we just napped!), have WhatsApp on your phone for communication with Sylwia and guides and/or drivers, at least 2 full days of game drives increases your chances of seeing more. We were in Zanzibar for 12 days and did this Safari in mainland Tanzania for 3 days in the middle of our trip and hands down it was literally in the top 2 highlights of our entire trip. Tarangire park and Ngorongoro crater were magical! Thanks Sylwia for suggesting this tour (we had originally thought to do the same 1-nights, 2 days Safari at the parks in the south but so glad we went with this one!).
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Exceptional
Our 5 day Safari in Tanzania began 2nd March 2023 where we were collected at Kilimanjaro airport by Jonas, our guide for the week.
Jonas was an exceptional guide with so much knowledge to share, including amazing photography of our trip! We saw the big 5 animals on our very first day.
The arrangements, including surprise birthday cakes and hotels were wonderful, Patricia and all hotel staff were truly fantastic.
Thank you Benson Safaris Tanzania for the experience of a life time
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Knowledgeable and exciting!
Had a great experience to Lake Mburo National Park. Fun and friendly hospitality from tour operators. Witnessed many different towns, cultures and landmarks of Uganda along the way. The nature is beautiful. Highly recommended! It was a memorable life time experience :)
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
FR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
SIMPLY THE BEST, BETTER THAN ALL THE REST !!!
My holiday in Uganda far exceeded all my expectations and I'm very happy to post this review to say thank you to all at Speke Uganda holidays for making it happen. I spent a long time researching all the operators and trip reviews to find a company with an itinerary and ethos that best suited my wishes. Speke came out tops with the 14-Day Gorilla Adventure Tour. Isabella in the office was ever patient with me in through the booking and enquiry stage. There were issues with international transfers from France but I believe this to be a Uganda 'problem' not Speke's. Julius was our guide and he was amazing! His knowledge and obvious passion and pride in his work and for his country made every day an adventure and a new learning opportunity. Part of the joy of booking group travel is just this, having the local knowledge to hand. Julius was a excellent guide, good company to us 4 Brits (one couple and 2 singles). He was ever attentive to our needs, stopping for endless photos en route and making sure we were well briefed each evening for the following days activities. He kept the truck clean with large bottles of water in the cooler for us to fill our own metal Speke Uganda refillable bottles. These were gifted from Tony (Speke MD) along with some Ugandan coffee and a Uganda Rwanda road/NP map in a beautiful recycled paper Speke folder. Tony called me personally whilst I was on the trip to check everything was ok and to get some 'on the road' feedback. A nice touch and shows the responsibility to client satisfaction that I felt throughout. We also had a surprise sundowner drinks set up on our evening drive in Ishasha Park which was very special. I celebrated my birthday the day of the Gorilla trek in Bwindi and this magical day was made even more memorable by being greeted with song and a cake from the team at the wonderful BirdNest Resort. The highlights of the trip were undoubtedly the chimp and gorilla treks where we had amazing experiences but also the unexpected majesty and force of the Murchison River Falls and the multitude of wildlife and sheer delight of the boat trip through the Kazinga Channel. So much more to Uganda than I ever expected - the ever changing landscapes, the green, it's so green! The wildlife, the primates, the birds! The people; warm, friendly and always smiling. The fact that you never felt you were on a conveyor belt of tourism (as you can do in other safari destinations). And not forgetting the food especially the range and availability of delicious vegetables (again something missing from other African destinations). Without question I will return to see more and I'll definitely choose to travel again with Speke.
PL
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Selous 1 day from Zanzibar
it was a really exciting day. Everything organized perfectly. Great animal tracker and delicious food in the middle of the park by the baobab tree.
I recommend this trip for people who want to spend only one day on safari while on vacation in zanzibar
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best holiday ever!
Tanzania via safari is a bucket-list adventure for almost every traveller on the planet in my opinion – an African safari holiday has got to be one of life’s greatest adventures. Whether it’s exploring the national parks, taking game drives, discovering food and local culture, Tanzania offers a broad choice of safari experiences for every type of traveller.
Our experience of the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater was absolutely outstanding thanks to the expert guides from Terrain Tanzania Safaris. Our guide, George Killas ensured we had a premium experience thanks to his guiding skills and knowledge of the areas. Accommodation in the lodges were amazing. We witnesses a live in the moment lion stalk and kill a young buffalo which was emotional and mesmerising all at the same time. Hyenas feeding on elephant remains and cheetahs in the Serengeti was an unmatched experience! This tour provided us with everything we could have wanted (and more).
I always felt we were safe and looked after by our guides and the transportation used was good quality and reliable.
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Well organized, good drivers, zero worries and fantastic memories
Axis organized for us a fantastic 4 days safari though Amboseli, and Tsavo (west & east) national parks. The overall experience was everything you dreamed of as a child. The landscapes are beautiful and you get to see the animals from really close. Besides the lodges Axis selected were located near water points in the park so the animals would come hang out in the evening. Our driver Julius was excellent, friendly and knowledgeable, he was also extremely determined for us to see the big 5. We in the end saw only 4, the rhinos were a bit shy, but Julius was the one to spot an entire group of lions on our last day which was a great send off.
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
PERFECT
I could not have asked more from a company in any industry let alone one providing once in a lifetime experiences. Between seeing every animal I could imagine to ensuring unique lodging and travel experiences I have never had such an amazing experience.
Having traveled plenty before I was unsure of the experience we would receive but between the first class accommodations to the incredible safari experiences this is one of the best companies ever!
Thank you to Yacob, our local guide in Masai Mara. Everything was perfect .
PT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An excellent company with great prices
I have spent countless hours comparing safari companies' 6 and 7-day safari offers and found Meektrails' to be the best value. They have only had positive reviews so I put my trust in them and I am happy I did. Communicating with Daniel was easy and he was flexible when I had to change the starting day and change the number of travellers from two to four. Our tour was midrange, however, two of the lodges we stayed at I would rather describe as luxurious. We spent 6 nights on the safari visiting Amboseli NP, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru and Maasai Mara NP. Our driver, James was friendly and helpful. He explained everything about the animals we saw and he was always happy to answer our million questions. We opted for the pop-up roof minivan (as it was significantly cheaper than the Jeep-type cars) and were absolutely happy with our choice. The van had no problem whatsoever on the roads and the four of us got plenty of space to stand up, move around and even stretch out on the long drives. Our visit fell at the beginning of the rainy season but we were lucky and it never rained during our drives and the roads were not muddy.
We were happy with the food at all the accommodations. Two places offered a buffet with many options (including vegetarian meals) and two offered a la carte dining. Drinks were extra including water.
The game drives exceeded my expectations. We saw hundreds of zebras, buffalos, wildebeests and different types of antelopes, more than a hundred elephants and dozens of ostriches and giraffes in the four parks. We spotted hyenas and cheetahs at Amboseli and Maasai Mara and had two great lion encounters in Maasai Mara - on one occasion the lions were just eating a freshly caught buffalo. At Nakuru, we saw both white and black rhinos although they were very far in the distance. At Lake Naivasha, we got very close to many hippos and had a boat tour on the lake spotting many more.
If I ever go back to Kenya or visit Tanzania, I will certainly book with Meektrails again!