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Donna and Stuart
US
Visited:
August 2019
Reviewed: Sep 30, 2019
Email Donna and Stuart | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
AWESOME
Our guide was wonderful, very skillful driver, extremely knowledgeable about wildlife, the area, Maasai, everything. It was the trip of a lifetime. Staying in the tent village was quite a wonderful experience and we had a Maasai warrior to walk us to our tent after dinner both nights. We saw lions hunting, zebras marching in single file, two wildebeasts fighting, an elephant scratching behind his ears, more wonders than I can recount. We saw giraffes, baboons, hippos, crocs, you-name-it. Wonderful trip, you will love it. There were beautiful serene lodges, too. The weather was wonderful about a high of 84. The food was quite good and not too strange :)
Claus Janssen
US
Visited:
August 2019
Reviewed: Sep 30, 2019
Email Claus Janssen | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A wonderful experience of the beauties and wildlife of the East African savannah.
Our guide, Mussa, of Roam Serengeti Safaris did an excellent job. He communicated in a timely manner before the safari when we were making arrangements from the U.S. Every detail of itinerary came about, as planned. He was flexible and accommodating, to make it truly a custom safari that met our budget and tastes. Mussa was extremely knowledgeable and seemed to anticipate what we most wanted to know about the animals and observe--and we did see all we had hoped for, including the wildebeest migration. He was a careful driver, most appreciated since we covered many miles on our 6-day safari. He started out as our guide and ended as our friend. Equally important, we were pleased to go on safari with a young Tanzanian managing his own business. We would highly recommend Mussa and his safari company.
Ineke
BE
Visited:
July 2019
Reviewed: Sep 28, 2019
Email Ineke | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great experience
We had a good mix of game drive and cultural experience on our safari. We had lodged run by former street kids, run by Masai and also more luxury in some tented camps and less luxury but great vibes in tented camps in the Serengeti.
The food was good but almost everywhere the same. Our guide Christopher was the owner of a little safari tour company. He was well educated, learned us a lot of things about Tanzania, it’s people and wildlife.
We even saw the big migration in the North. The only negative thing was the very long drives; even when the scenery is overwhelming, 6 to 8 hours in a car is too long...
but overall a great experience!!
Tom Milligan
US
Visited:
September 2019
Reviewed: Sep 27, 2019
Email Tom Milligan | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Trip, Great Guide, Great Accommodations
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a great way to start each day. I suggest you be sure to find out what kind of transportation you will have and try to go with a company that will transport you in a Toyota Land Cruiser and not a van. We had Land Cruisers and they are the vehicles that are built to take the punishment the roads in Tanzania will dish out, which is considerable. The company we used, TravelPartner, furnished us with a great guide in Tanzania (and Kenya, too, but TravelPartner contracted with Wildebeest Travel for him). Thomas was interesting, very knowledgeable about animals, plants, etc., and was funny. He also did everything he could to give us the best ride possible on the rough roads. He learned very quickly the kinds of things we were interested in seeing and did everything he could to make sure we saw them. He made sure to put us in good position for pictures, most notably when we saw a lion pride taking down a zebra and at three different migration sites on the Mara. If we were to go to Tanzania again, we would want to have Thomas as our guide. Every day we saw new and amazing things. The only thing I would do differently is try to spend more time at each park and each lodging. I would use definitely use TravelPartner again, would want to stay in the same lodgings and would want Thomas as our guide. I don't know of any way to give a better recommendation than that.
Clare
IE
Visited:
September 2019
Reviewed: Sep 25, 2019
Email Clare | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Incredible experience thanks to this fantastic company
I would highly recommend this company. Everything was just fantastic. We had trouble with lost luggage on our way to Tanzania and the guide, Freddy was so helpful sorting it out resulting in their safe arrival. He was so knowledgeable on safari and his sharp eye meant we saw all big 5! We were so impressed with the food, Robert the cook was highly skilled particularly when you take into consideration the lack of equipment / supplies when out in the wilderness.
The only thing we could fault was the Fact that the truck was a little old and had high seats meaning if you’re over 5 5” you’d have to duck down slightly to look out the window. They do have newer trucks though with lower seats so it depends on who the guide is.
Overall it was a once in a life time experience and we would recommend Shemeji to anyone interested in a budget safari in Tanzania.
Muniza Hassan
US
Visited:
September 2019
Reviewed: Sep 24, 2019
Email Muniza Hassan | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Everything we imagined and more!
I'll start with the cons:
1) long turnaround time to hear back from tour company prior to trip. We had to follow up several times on multiple occasions, and it still would take 2 to 3 weeks for us to get a response.
2) no a/c or minifridge in keep, although advertised. The weather was mild enough that we did ok, but the afternoons would get unbearable when the jeep wasn't moving.
Pros:
1) CLEAN! We have been to several national parks across the US, and travel frequently internationally as well, and by far I was so impressed with the cleanliness of the parks and especially the restrooms at the parks (random I know, but still important!)
2) safe! We never once felt unsafe, not from animals nor from locals when we went roaming around in the city. Although aggressive salespeople, the people are harmless.
3) the beauty and the nature
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and the animals! We saw everything and words nor pics can do justice to the beauty of the serengeti and also the ngorogoro crater.4) our guide hassan was very well informed and had an answer to all of our questions. He was very mild mannered, detailed, and made sure we were comfortable at all times.
5) the food is nothing special, but we didnt really go for the food anyway.
Dawn Hip
AU
Visited:
August 2019
Reviewed: Sep 24, 2019
Email Dawn Hip | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Everyone, should see and experience Tanzania
It was unbelievable. I was super worried about my 25yr daughter (Jacinta) safety, so I went with her and made sure we booked a great company. Mid/Range tour Serengeti with Lion King Adventures for 7days and everything was perfect. I’m pretty fussy and was totally blown away with service, accommodation 5+, security, food and the most amazing people we met, including locals.
Would highly recommend Arusha Giraffe Lodge prior or after tour. Arrange Lodge driver to pick you up (low price), because you really need security and safety at all times. Best(chef-Jasin) in Arusha and beautiful accom/family owned. My son is head chef in very exclusive restaurant and would very much love meet Jasin and learn his techniques. Staff incredible, a must especially if you like lovely accommodation, secure place, transport at decent price. Please tip well, they deserve every penny you can afford. Much better than a 4.5* hotel and they never ask
Adriana Bowman
US
Visited:
August 2019
Reviewed: Sep 23, 2019
Email Adriana Bowman | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The safari was a fun experience but communication was difficult.
Overall experience was nice, food was average, tour guide was knowledgeable. A variety of experiences was challenges but was rewarding. The most difficult time was the beginning process with making final payment and change in safari package which caused an extra day stay. This was inconvenient and conflicted with other schedules. There was no insurance, warning of roads and safety. Driving up the mountain with no guard rails and the driver was driving fast and sometimes cloudy and raining.
Lindsay Prescott
GB
Visited:
August 2019
Reviewed: Sep 23, 2019
Email Lindsay Prescott | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Absolutely wonderful and enjoyable
I thought the safari was great and seeing so many animals was wonderful. Camp Bastion was nice although it would have been nice to have a bit more free time there so we could use the pool and have a relax.
The only negative is that it is a long drive- nothing can be done about this but it was tiring.
Sruthi
US
Visited:
September 2019
Reviewed: Sep 20, 2019
Email Sruthi | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a lifetime in Tanzania
Every place we stayed in was clean, beautiful, had impeccable service, and served delicious food. We had several vegetarians in our group and they had no issues with meals. We heard lions and hyenas outside our tent in the Chaka Camps at Serengeti and Tarangire, had beautiful views on our balconies at the Serena Ngorongoro, and fabulous rooms at Escarpment lodge in Lake Manyara. The staff in each place was friendly and helpful, and we had a comfortable stay throughout the safari.
Our guides for the safari were unbelievable. They told us stories from their personal experiences of over 10 years,
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and kept our group entertained. They were also very patient with our large group which also included a 1.5 year old. Thanks to their efforts, we saw 56 (!!) lions, 12 cheetahs, a cheetah kill, 2 leopards, and countless elephants, giraffes, hippos, antelope, hyenas, wildebeest, zebras, and buffalo. We also spotted a caracal, elands, and other rarer animals thanks to the keen eyes of our guides. The guides were knowledgeable about these animals and made sure we found and saw the animals as close-up as possible while prioritizing our safety.We opted for a balloon ride over the Serengeti, and this was an unbelievable experience to see animals from a bird's-eye view. The champagne breakfast which followed in the middle of the Serengeti was amazing as well.
Soul of Tanzania coordinated our trip from start to finish, and even had a check-in point before we began the safari to ensure our expectations were met. They also coordinated our transfer to the next destination in Nairobi, where we stayed overnight before flying to Cape Town. I plan to use SOT again whenever we return, and highly recommend their services to anyone thinking about a Tanzanian safari.
*This review is also posted on TripAdvisor*