US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wow, what an adventure!!!!!!!
We had a blast with Benson Safaris. Communication with Benson before the safari was very good with quick responses to requests and questions.
Our guide made the trip special. He was dependable, a great driver on dirt, mud and stream crossings, and was always there for us. He was patient and gave us as much time as we wanted for pictures. He has great eyes to find animals and continually tried to get better angles and lighting for us. We saw an incredible amount of wildlife, including cubs of lion, cheetah, and leopard. He also went way out of his way to get us close to a rhino late in the day when most other guides were taking their customers to their camps. He made the whole trip a fantastic adventure.
Accommodations were generally very good. Generally they were comfortable and everyone was so friendly and helpful. Only the migration camp in the North Serengeti was a little rustic but still okay considering where you are. I understand that more luxurious accommodations are available if that is important.
If you want a tour guide who continually talks, providing information and trivia, then our guide would not be for you. But, if you want someone who works very hard for you and gets close to lots of animals, then Kessy is for you. We were thrilled with our week with him and our total experience with Benson Safaris.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Worked out but stressful
I used Flash Mc Tours to do day trips in Nairobi and to provide driver service as we were flying in and out of Nairobi to Zambia and Tanzania. The first driver went to the wrong terminal. Fortunately, my son had a phone that could make international calls so the driver finally was contacted and provided the ride to hotel. The next day, a different driver picked us up on time and did a great job taking us to Amboseli NP. Our main contact Peter seemed disorganized and wanted us to provide flight information repeatedly. He also forgot to schedule a driver for one day until we reminded him.
The last day we had a city tour. Our driver was nearly an hour late with Peter and the driver pointing out that it was the other's fault. Our city tour driver told us that he specialized in city tours but really turned out to just be a very pleasant driver. He provided very little information.
If you are going to use Peter and Flash Mc Tours, I suggest that you constantly remind Peter about your needs. Perhaps our problems would have been less if we had a continual safari instead of needing services over 2 weeks as we flew in and out of Nairobi. However, I was upfront and contracted with Peter for the services before arriving in Nairobi.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our Moriti Private Safari was the MOST STUNNING adventure in my life's travel experiences.
Shaun's communication and attention to detail made our planning the Safari almost an effortless process. He kept in touch with information and updates and setup a safe internet option for payment. The lodge he selected as our home based was beautiful and comfortable. With just three of us in our little group we enjoyed Shaun as our guide and driver and an amazing chef who Shaun arranged to prepare delicious meals. As a main goal of our trip was photography, Shaun also added a wildlife photographer to his team so we had the benefit of truly one on one, in the moment teaching and coaching as we sighted animals. Shaun is skilled at tracking animals but we also had a local tracker riding on the front of our vehicle. With all this support, knowledge and skill of the entire team, how can one not look forward to every minute of each day!
The schedule for us a hobby photographers was perfect. We went out for several hours pre dawn and then again for sunset and early evening. Shaun is a determined tracker. On one day in particular there was a sighting of a leopard with a kill in a tree on a nearby property. Shaun put heroic effort into finding the leopard in an area that he wasn't as familiar with and we were able to spend about 45 minutes photographing the scene with no other safari trucks because they had to get back to their lodges at a particular time for breakfast. That is the beauty of a private safari where you time is your own.
Shaun always stopped for morning and evening break with beverages and snacks that made it very special to get out of the vehicle and enjoy the camaraderie of our group. After a few days together, it felt like we were with a group of old friends. Shaun and his team are very knowledgeable about wildlife, their behavior, identification of tracks, scat, flora, fauna and much more. Most importantly, safety is his prime consideration. We even went on a walking tour from our lodge to arrive at a beautiful sunset with a bonfire and wine. I was hesitant to go on the walk but Shaun has a way of putting you at ease because of his safety skills.
I could go on and on describing the special touches like a surprise full breakfast waiting for us at a picnic table setup "in the field" or the fireside chats after dinner but I think you get the idea of how amazing this Moriti tour was. Give yourself a gift and schedule a safari with Moriti!
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful time
All the bookings for international and local flights, hotel and lodges came together well to deliver a wonderful holiday experience. We saw the big 5 in northern Tanzania as well as exploring some amazing parks. David, our driver was amazing and knew the area like the back of his hand. Good service is what we wanted and that’s what we got. Thanks guys!!
UA
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
It was convincingly!
It was my first safari, and it was wonderful!
I saw a lot animals in the bush. So much nice picture for memory! Lions, giraffes, antelopes, zebras, warthogs, hyenas, hippos, crocodiles and a lot different kinds of birds. Accommodation was excellent! Mloka lodge is unforgettable place. Staff are friendly, owners of lodge are kinds and generous. Food was diverse, transport was in good condition. Our guide Fikiri Fikirini was attentive, with big knowledge and interest talking about wildlife in bush.
The weather was warm and sunny, air in bush - fresh and a little bit fragrant.
So me and my husband spent unforgettable time!
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
5-day Safari Trip to Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro CA and Lake Manyara NP
We heard about Serengeti Wakanda Tours in our hotel in Arusha (Tourist Inn) and booked a spontaneous 5-day safari trip after arriving there from Germany. We received a very informative introduction by the manager Bartho whose office is in the same building block as the Tourist Inn. He could offer us a trip with a cost of 190 Dollars per day per person (we were 3 persons), just starting directly the day after we contacted him.
The safari trip was done together with two girls from Spain, who were also hosted in the Tourist Inn so that we became a really nice and funny group of 5 persons for the following days. We immediately became friends with our driver Gerry and our cook Dennis, who not only did their jobs with great enthusiasm but also with a lot of funny moments in a very smooth atmosphere. In all of the national parks, we had the possibility to see a lot of animals every day (except of the almost extincted rhino we saw all of the "Big Five" and many others more). For the safari not much in preparation was necessary. Two nights were spent in a lodge-like village close to Lake Manyara and two nights were spent in tents provided by the agency, one in the Serengeti and one at Ngorongoro Crater. Food and water were provided by the agency as well, many thanks here to our cook Dennis who always prepared fresh and good meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner in every environment.
For doing a safari in the Northern Safari Circuit we can absolutely recommend Serengeti Wakanda Tours for a breathtaking adventure. Still after returning back to Germany we still talk a lot about that trip that will stay in our minds and hearts forever. Thank you, Serengeti Wakanda Tours!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The tour turned out to be EXACTLY as outlined by Paul Justine. No surprises. Honest.
The tour was planned several months in advance by us. The money was wired to the agency in 3 tranches. This is a honest Safari outfit. The outline of every day - including meals, hotels, additional costs - is clearly spelled out in advance. The vehicle (Land Cruiser) was comfortable and the driver/guide (in our case, Edwin) was polite/friendly/very knowledgeable. All in all, our Safari was enjoyable, thanks to the detailed organizational skills of Tanzania Roadside Expeditions.
DK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Kilimanjaro (Lemosho Route) + 4 day safari (Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro and Serengeti)
We fully recommend booking through AAA Express. We chose to combine our trek to Kilimanjaro with a couple days safari, and Jalala provided the exact tour we wished for. The communication prior to our trip was fine and Jalala was quick to reply any questions we had.
Frank and Frank were our guides for the trek and they were both super friendly and very experienced guides. The tents were a bit old and should be replaced soon, but besides that the service(food etc.) was fine throughout the entire trek. The trek itself was fantastic, but much harder than any of us expected (despite that we are all in pretty good shape). Originally our plan was to do it in seven days, however, our guides decided to do it in six days as they thought we were a strong team. Looking back we should have insisted on doing the trek in seven days as it was originally the plan, because we found ourself too tired to enjoy the trek and the view at times. Overall the trek was amazing - and we all reached the top.
During the safari Stephen was our guide, and he also had en impressive knowledge about the animals, the history of the park and the Masai-people. We managed to see all the animals we wished to see, and Stephen was very dedicated in fulfilling our wishes and knew were to look for the various animals. During the safari we stayed in great lodges with excellent food and views. Especially the tent house camp in the middle of Serengeti was amazing. Should we go again, we would probably skip Lake Manyara and do an extra day in Serengeti.
Prior to, between and after our trips we stayed at the Planet Lodge in Arusha and Mc Ellys Hotel in Arusha. We recommend staying at Planet Lodge as they have a pool and garden, but both hotels were nice.
AAA Express is a small local company (situated in Arusha), which was important for us. It was a bit cheaper than some of the other companies we received offers from, but the standard was overall very good and we wouldn't hesitate to book another trip with AAA Express.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A-MAZE-ING - One of the best holidays I have EVER had, thanks to Anya at Pembury Tours
From the initial email contact to Pembury Tours to just see what they could offer I was incredibly impressed with the efficiency and quality of service I received. Our advisor was Anya... she was 100% fantastic in all that she did. Her advice was spot on, her attention to detail fabulous, her knowledge and ability to match what our hopes were to the programme she prepared for us was just super.
I was so grateful of her patience too as I ummed and ahhhed, and wanted to check various things out and I genuinely got the feeling that she was honestly invested in wanting to make sure our trip was the best it could be.
Our visit to South Africa and our first taste of a safari was incredible. Everything ran like clockwork and Anya had thought of everything... including working out/supporting some unexpected touches to make our trip extra special. We commented a number of times throughout the trip on what a brilliant job she had done; noting that 'yes' this was 'JUST" what we had wanted.
I have been lucky enough to travel all around the world, and experienced all sorts of adventure. I can hand on heart say though that this trip was one of the best I have ever been on, and that is very much down to the truly wonderful support, advice and work of Anya. She made the planning exciting (and easy), the trip itself a dream and I loved her passion and knowledge for her country. Anya advised me on a full holiday from days and trips in Cape Town to visiting two safari lodges all in the time that we were there. I know that there is no way I would have been able to plan such a super holiday even if I had spent hours researching and thinking things through.
My thanks can't go far enough to her, and the Pembury Tours team... you absolutely will be hearing from me again!
I'd urge anyone reading this who might be thinking about going on safari to DO IT! And, then to plan it with Anya... you will not be disappointed.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Extremely great work and learning experience
Everything is done excellently it has been awesome working with kenlink tours and travel