20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience between both the guides and wildlife
My wife and I did the safari package with 2 night at umkumbe safari lodge and 2 nights in Kruger National park at skukuza. It was an incredible experience at both sites. With umkumbe being on the Sabi sands game reserve the guides are able to go off-roading and drive right up to animals if they are deeper in the bush whereas in Kruger you do have to stay to the road, however we did see some great sighting in Kruger with lions, elephants, rhino, etc all being very close to or even on the roads. We saw all of the big 5 in umkumbe and and all but leopard in Kruger. The staff was very accommodating and the food was incredible. We utilized the included shuttle service from OR Tambo airport to get to and from the safaris (about 5.5 hour drive) which went smoothly. If we were to do it again I would probably fly directly to skukuza instead but the drive was not too bad. We were on planes for about 19 hours the day before so just a lot of sitting.
PT
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Not as great as the first time
Returned to Tanzania after 18 years hoping to recapture the magic. Not quite. The first time was during the Great Migration and it was glorious. Huge herds with hungry predators picking them off. This time in June it rained both days in the Serengeti, there were no real herds, and I didn't see a single kill. It didn't help that my tent was leaky or that our guide was more interested in yelling at other drivers and on his phone than being a guide. The overloaded vehicle didn't help nor did the fact that he seemed uncertain who he was supposed to take on which tour.
Also getting into and out of my Airbnb in the center of Arusha was an adventure in itself because of the awful roads, one of which was blocked, forcing us to reverse a long way.
The one highlight was Zanzibar. I stayed in Kiwengwa at The Kichwa House, a locally-owned place, for three glorious nights. The beach was gorgeous, the locals friendly, the food great.
PT
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Review about Ngorongoro Crater by Nicholas J D'Anna
Ngorongoro Crater was a bit dreary because of the overcast. Even the animals, which were not many, seemed uninspired.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Professional and fun, very knowledgeable and always prepared.
This camping safari was more than I would ever dream of for satisfaction. Starting with the tour compant representative, Mr. T, he was punctual and kind which was refreshing after a ling flight. There can never be enough said for a representative that is furnished with all the details and prepared to answer all questions.
My tour guide Damien, was great. He was friendly, warm, and made me feel like a local from the first minute of the tour. Damien provided so much detail that there was no need for questions. Each step of the way, we were update and informed of the next step. This was most helpful for a new safari camper like myself as I was able to prepare for each day in advance. I can't imagine this adventure without him and wish I could request him on future adventures.
We also had a private chef on safari, Chef Tito. Please understand this is the unique experience and Chef Tito is a master of spices and seasonings. He prepares 3 meals a day that each rivals the last to make you forgot this is a budget camping experience. I did not have plans to enjoy 'camping food' but I was completely wrong. His food made the trip!
I cannot rave enough about this company's dedication. They are truly top notch for someone who has been on safari 4 times prior. I will return with family and friends.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect safari for our honeymoon - highly recommend!
Our guide Andrew had such an impressive knowledge of the area and the wildlife, and could always spot animals for us or drive to the best locations to see up close. We felt comfortable and safe in our jeep, and were treated so well with the drinks and the lunch preparation. Highly recommend this tour company, locally managed within Tanzania and the tour guides are treated fairly by the management (which isn’t the case for all tour companies). Best safari experience!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent
Phil and his team were very responsive to our inquiries even before we booked the trip. We described what we needed and they delivered. On the departure day, the drivers were on time, the vehicles very clean and the drivers were also knowledgeable and friendly. At Mara, they knew where to go to find the wildlife. They were committed, not just doing another trip.
We truly enjoyed the trip.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Having travelled to numerous countries this is one of the best trips of my lifetime. Awesome
There are hundreds of tour operators in Tanzania. In fact the number of tour operators was overwhelming. We read online reviews and poured over websites before narrowing down the selections to 8 tour companies. We then selected Lappet Faced Safaris out of the 8. Francisco was very responsive and informative. We had selected the exact areas we wanted to visit and had Francisco give us a quote. He made suggestions and came back with the perfect tour. Whereas Francisco did all the planning, the actual tour was conducted by Noel. He was wonderful. We could not have hand picked a better person to be our guide for this lifetime experience. His knowledge of the area, the customs and the animals is astounding. He is patient and kind and a pleasure to spend 8 days with on a safari. I will ask for him when I return.
As we did not want to spend time in Arusha, we were picked up from the airport by Noel and taken to Osupuko Tarangire Lodge. This lodge is right outside the Tarangire National Park. We had a lovely room and the food was delicious. It was our favorite lodging on the trip. We woke up to seeing an elephant outside our window and monkeys in the trees. The lodge is next to the Tarangire National Park so we did not have to travel far to start the safari the next morning. By the first day we had seen elephants, zebra, a cheetah, giraffes, buffalo, ostriches, monkeys, baboons, warthogs, dig dig, wildebeest, gazelles, antelope, mongoose, and many species of birds.
We then traveled to the Central Serengeti National Park, despite the Serengeti covering over 3 million acres, Noel found lions and a leopard and so many giraffes, zebras, hippos, crocodiles, and other wonderful animals. Our stay at the Seronera Wildlife Lodge was very accommodating. The views from the lodge are beautiful.
This safari was taken for the purpose of seeing the wildebeest migration and we saw so many wildebeest. There are over 1 million of these wildebeest in the migration. Seeing how they travel in straight lines was so awesome from a hot air balloon.
On Day 7 we visited the Ngorongoro Crater and saw not 1 but 2 rhinos. We were told by a different guide that 80% of tourists do not see a rhino. Noel has a gift for spotting animals. God gave these animals the perfect environment to blend into, but Noel is so familiar with this area that he can spot them from far off.
Our last day was in Lake Manyara it is very pretty with the flamingos and the lake.
ALL in ALL it was one of my favorite adventures and would highly recommend Lappet and Noel. I am hopeful to return and will ask for Noel.
If I could rate them with a 10 I would do so.
IN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Had a great experience with Divulge adventures
We were a group of 4 adults and 3 children, we spent 7 nights in Kenya and had a really wonderful experience with Erick and Divulge adventures who went out of their way to make our trip memorable, we wholeheartedly recommend them to anyone planning to visit Kenya.
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nsavi tours provided us with prompt, personable and friendly service :).
Booking with Nsavi was one of the best choices we have made. Even prior to booking, Victoria, the owner and operations manager was very kind, helpful and organized. When paying a lot of money and sending overseas can be nerve-racking, but Victoria made me feel very comfortable and at ease. She was very prompt in answering all of my questions, and was extremely pleasant to deal with from the onset. We emailed frequently prior to our trip and I had even mentioned to my partner many times that I was excited to meet her.
Prior to flying out she ensured that we had everything we needed to arrive in Uganda (it required a bit of paperwork), and have the process go smoothly. She provided us with checklist and guide, and then followed up via email to ensure all of our flights and accommodation were accurately booked for our maximum convenience. I was blown away with how detail oriented, efficient, and well thought out everything was. She even ensured we had a hotel set for the day to freshen up in, as our departure was a midnight departure from Uganda.
Upon arriving, we were met with friendly and efficient service, a driver was set up to pick us up from the airport and took us to our first hotel where we met with Victoria. She went over the details of our coming days and made sure we were prepared for trekking. Again, this made us feel very welcomed and comfortable and we really appreciated these small details. We couldn’t be more grateful for how organized everything was, as it made us feel very at ease, and well prepared. Again, Victoria went above and beyond in ensuring we had everything taken care of for us at the hotel. Her service was very personable, and it was very nice to have the experience of working with someone one on one, someone who cares, and not a big company. We relied on her and put our trust in her to plan our trip well for her, and she went above and beyond. Personally, I thoroughly enjoyed how much she cared about us having a good trip and really made sure we were taken care of.
All of the lodging provided to us was incredible, as well. I want to point out how impressed I was with the level of service, and friendliness at every accommodation, both my partner, and I travel extensively and have stayed at a fair amount of luxury hotels and we both agreed the service provided to us throughout Uganda rivalled that of the luxury hotels, it was some of the best we’ve ever experienced! The cherry on top was the friendliness from everyone, and level of attention- you genuinely felt how much everyone cared about us enjoying our time in their beautiful country.
The two hotels we stayed at were Boma lodge, and four gorillas lodge. (Victoria mentioned to us she has stayed at all of these beautiful properties, and personally vetted them, another detail I was very impressed with).
Upon arriving at Kisoro airstrip, we were greeted by her lovely Driver and tour guide, Vincent, who was very friendly, extremely knowledgeable, and made us feel very safe on the rugged African roads! We had a great time with him over the next few days and learned a lot about the culture, and people of Uganda. Again, Vincent made sure we had everything we needed for gorilla trekking, and continually went above and beyond to guarantee we had a great, and smooth time. I couldn’t be more grateful that we chose Nsavi for our trip as they really made everything more special, and eliminated any stress we had about booking and travel. Victoria even went above and beyond and had gifts like water bottles, little bags, and coffee provided to us upon our arrival (all local) hand stitched with the company name, these cute little details were such a nice treat that again, made everything feel more personal, and really added to our trip!
I want to thank Victoria and her entire team for being so accommodating, so kind, and so helpful and really making our first time in Uganda incredible. I’m so happy we had the opportunity to meet and I hope that people find this review, helpful and choose to book with her incredible company. We felt we underpaid for the experience and level of service we received, I can’t thank Victoria enough for her services and guidance.
UY
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Perfect
The guide Omary who took us accompanied. The food and the places where we were. I have no words for this experience. Recommending the agency, everything was exceptional.