20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unbelievable Adventure of a Lifetime - We Want More!
When we decided to go on a safari for our honeymoon, we had a plethora of choices to select from. At least on paper, Lion King Adventures seemed like a standout given the most reviews on Safaribookings.com. On our actual trip, they went above and beyond with end-to-end service, all the while constantly beating our daily expectations. My wife and I presented Lion King with a tough ask. We wanted to go on the adventure of our lifetime, both with completely different goals. I wanted to immerse myself in the worlds described in Hemingway and Teddy Roosevelt’s legendary hunts, while my wife wanted to revel in the luxurious glamping experiences portrayed by her favorite influencers. Curiously, our roles switched by the end of our 8 days; she developed an insatiable appetite for capturing Tanzania’s fauna on film, while I readily retreated to the pools and spas located in our three-room tented camps.
Even before our trip, the Lion King team showed initiative and reached out to us pre-emptively. We were contacted by Godwin, then Pendo for logistics and preliminary information. They both took the initiative to answer our frequently asked questions about COVID restrictions, deposits, full payment dates, contingencies, etc…all the while adjusting and customizing our dream vacation based on our preferences for hotels, safaris, and cities.
They also knew when to not appease the customer. Initially, I wanted to maximize every minute of our trip and suggested that we start a safari the day that we arrive. They could’ve acquiesced to my request, but, more appropriately, suggested otherwise, given their vast experience with people like me. In retrospect, their recommendation to take at least a full day to relax was the right decision. Going on safari the day of arrival would’ve been absolutely miserable.
The entire staff knows understands hospitality, and it showed from day one. Our flight arrived at Kilimanjaro International Airport at 3:00 AM on a Wednesday, and we were greeted by Bright. Despite the early morning arrival, he happily answered all of our incessant questions on logistics, provided a breakdown of our itinerary and helped settle us in for our stay at Gran Melia.
Our safari driver and guide, Peter, is an example of premier hospitality and client care. His encyclopedic knowledge of ecology, minerology, animal behavior, paleontology and evolutionary biology never ceased to amaze us. I majored in neurobiology, specifically animal behavior…and he likely self-studied enough to be a graduate level educator in the topic. He not only gave descriptive narrations of all the flora and fauna we encountered, but he also detailed their interactions with the environment, their development, the likelihood of encountering them in the wild and where we could get the best photos of them! He took care of the small details, like making sure our water bottles were cold (my wife prefers them icey). But he also took care of the major details, ensuring we would maximize our time on all our safaris. Our safari took us from Tarangire NP to Lake Manyara NP, then Serengeti NP and finally Nrongoro NP. Each day was sequenced (most likely unintentional, but nevertheless impressive) to be better than the one before. We saw an elephant 20 feet away on day 1, and 2 feet away on day 2. We saw a sleeping lion 10 feet away on a tree branch on day 2, but saw a fresh litter of 8 lion cubs 3 feet away on day 5. It just kept getting better each day the point that Peter probably started worrying how to keep topping the previous day. You spend 10+ hours on your safaris with your guide traveling from place to place, so you need to enjoy each other’s company. Peter always came with a smile on his face, never late, and kept our interests at the top of his mind. You won’t find many people like Peter in the world, let alone as your safari guide. After our 6 days with Peter, it felt like saying goodbye to a long-time friend.
My wife and I are both min-maxers with Type A personalities. It’s hard for us to trust an external entity with something as important as our COVID-delayed honeymoon/adventure-of-our-lifetime. Yet, at every step of our honeymoon planning and the actual execution of our trip, Lion King delivered time and time again. They are the highest quality service you can ask for while getting the most value (at least that’s what we concluded when we spoke with other guests who stayed at the same lodges as us…some guests were paying double what we paid for no additional benefit!). Rest assured that, if you choose to go on safari with Lion King, you’ll hold all other hospitality services to an unmatchable quality.
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
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.
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!
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
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
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
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!
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!
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.