CH
Email Barbara Fluri | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing experience !!!
I went on this trip with my friend Olivia and we have been talking about it for years.
We spent 6 days visiting Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorogoro Crater.
It was difficult to make a choice but finally we went with Earthlife and it has been a super positive experience. We were picked up at 3 am at the airport by our driver and guide Daniel and he stayed with us for the entire stay, drove us safely to Tarangire where we spotted our first elephants and Cheetahs. We saw more animals in Lake Manyara and enjoyed our 2 night stay in Tented camps with hot showers twice day.
During the entire trip, we had good meals and did feel completely safe.
Our guide Daniel has been a great 'travel companion' as well. He was great in spotting animals, explain us how they hunt or what they eat. He was patient and very kind and we also got to know how locals live and what life is like in general.
I can only say the very best about our experience and Deo has done a great job organizing all of that for us !!
IN
Email Matrishva Vyas | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Ultimate destination for wildlife lovers
We visited TANZANIA in January 2018. The place covered were Lake Manyarra, Ngorongoro crater, Serengeti, and Ndutu. We booked through Safaribookings and I must say it was a wise decision. Our operator Earthlife Expedition delivered all which was promised. I routinely conduct a photographer tour in East Africa since 2014, and I must acknowledge that this was my best tour as organiser. Apart from enjoying the wide variety of Wildlife, the smooth flow of the itinerary and great hospitality provided by all camps was just heartening.
I definitely recommend TANZANIA to everyone.
Already, I have booked my safari group to visit TANZANIA in February 2019. And hope to explore its beauty once again.
NO
Email Vaiva | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Perfect 3 days safari
Me and my husband did 3 days safari at Tarangire NP, Ngorongoro Crater an Lake Manyara NP with Migtation Venture Africa. All three parks are different but very beautiful with loads of animals and birds.
Weather was just perfect, around +27 °C. No need for long sleeves, trousers or boots.
We had very profesional, friendly and patient guide Anderson. After a while he knew where and when to stopp a car to take best pictures of animals.
Accomodation was in a tented camp. It was basic but there was everything we needed.
CZ
Email Ondrej Simunek | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing African experience
My first safari experience was indeed a wonder, we have visited Serengeti park and Ngorongoro Crater as planned, and National park Tarangire, which was not originally in the plan, but our guide changed it according to update on animal quantity, which we were very grateful for! Tarangire NP was great, even though its area is relatively small, the richness of wildlife was enormous, number of elephants was the highest I have ever seen!!!
We have been staying in tents for the whole time, which was very adventurous, unfortunately there was quite a lot of rain during the nights and in Serengeti park there was quite some water coming through the bottom of our tent. Due to that we did not sleep that much that night, but the morning animal watching compensated it hundred percent, the chance to see the cheetah family on one side of the road and lion family on the other side was just stunning!
We were very grateful for the services of our guide China, who was very helpful and always did everything he could for us to have the best pictures and told us many interesting things about the area and the animals we saw.
We also had our cook to prepare meals for us everyday, which was very nice. Since we have chosen the budget form of safari, this was quite, what we have been expecting. Only thing was that our stomach were obviously not that expecting that and this made some of the meals difficultly digestible. Together with the one wet night in Serengeti made the day really an adventure, which was not super pleasure.
However, as I was saying, the animals and the nature were so stunning, that we were able to go through everything.
FI
Email Rudiger Schultz | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
A lot of nerves needed
This is merely a Review about Gombe Track & Safari, The Mahale Nationalpark, their guiding and accommodation as well as the Coast View Resort Hotel in Kigoma.
I was picked up in Dar from my hotel early in the morning and in time and brought to the airport. My flight with Tanzania Air was also very good and smooth. I arrived on the schedule in Kigoma where a car from the Gombe Track and Safari was waiting for. In addition to a driver, a cook was provided, who served me in Mahale very well. The car was in a bad shape and not suitable for the rough road of 107 km which I mentioned already on our way to the park. But we made it. After an exhausting trip, lasting 6 hours we reached the village from where a boat trip was organized. This speedboat hacked me through the waves so that my back was badly aching for hours after my arrival. However the most pleasant moments I had in Mahale although my driver from the Gombe Safari company had sent the boat to pick me up again for my return one day to early. We however got that settled well and I could stay as it was planned for 4 days enjoying the jungle and the Chimps I had paid for.
The boat came on the 23rd of January to pick me up again. It was late because of the rough waves on lake Tanganyika. The driver had been sleeping in his car overnight because he came one day too early. It was exactly the same car as on the trip to Mahale. This time happened what I had been expecting during our first trip. The car broke because of electrical problems after 35 km in the middle of nowhere on a hot and dusty road in the wilderness. Some Daladala busses dropped by until it got dark. I urged the driver several times to get into contact with Joshua, the manager of the company, several times. Joshua came to pick us up at 9 pm when it was already dark and brought us to Kigoma, where we arrived at 00:30, totally exhausted, dirty and sweaty at the booked hotel (Kigoma Coast View Resort) which has a 4 Star reputation. The receptionist, a girl had already fell asleep but opened us the door and has let me in into my room. Dirty as I was I wanted to get a cold shower but noticed, that there was no water in the hotel. The shower could not be used, the toilet not be flushed until the next morning from 7:45 am to 8:20 am, when the hotel manager allowed to put on the pump, which delivered the water into the rooms. So I had to sleep dirty and sweaty as I was in my sheets, getting no sleep at all. After taking my shower in the morning I waited to be picked up by Joshua and demanded to see the idiot of manager of that hotel and made clear that this kind of treatment of guest is not only unacceptable but a crime to the paying customer. He apologized but didn't give my money back which would have been the only acceptable way to proceed. I have been regularly in Tanzania for 7 years as a voluntary pediatrician and seen a lot of inconvenience but never have been in a situation like this. This hotel should be put onto a black list for avoiding damage to other customers. Also Gombe Safaris should have offered a compensation for all the problems with the car and for booking this hotel. I was offered a lunch on the day I left. I am sorry to say that but I have the impression after many years being in Afrika that companies which are running under local, african personnel and not able to offer proper level of service and endanger their customers. The next time I am taking a Safari I will make sure who is running the company. This should be a warning to every tourist coming from Europe or the States or Australia to pick their services carefully, avoiding local companies.
GR
Email Neraida Botsaris | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very nice experience! Our salary quide was very nice!
The weather perfect, food not many chooses generaly, but great mangos! Local transport a bit difficult. We enjoyed Safari it was a special expirience and our safari guide was very nice!
US
Email zhangns07 | Experience level: first safari
Great experience
It is a great vacation trip! We see a lot of wildlife and beautify scenery of Africa! We highly recommend it. Our guide and driver are very good at identifying wild animals. They have a great knowledge of wildlife animals, we learn a lot from them. The accommodations and transportations exceed our expectations, very comfortable.
Lovely safari in Selous Game Reserve - but too short!
We had ordered a 3 days safari in Selous Game Reserve and the program was great except for the morning flight was leaving at 2.pm and the rivertrip started very late. The lodge was beautiful and the service excellent, but the stay was too short. The safari was top, but we didn’t se more than 2 of the great 5, because of the rain. The third day we had to go to the airport at 9 am because the plane was arriving one hour too early.
DK
Email Charlotte | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
It was exciting
I loved it all. I Can indeed recommend this trip.
DE
Email Nadi Drehsen | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing scenery with more wildlife animals you could wish for
Wildlife: amazing! We saw the big five and many more. Nearly every animal bit crocodiles.
Scenery : Ngorogoro Crater and surrounding area are breathtaking . Something you won’t see anywhere else in the world .
The Serengeti is very beautiful and unique itself . Tarangeri Nationalpark was nice , too.
Lake Manara was not my favourite, as you can’t really drive up to the lake , you only see it from a distance . Further up in “the jungle” we saw plenty of monkeys and elephants, which made up for it.
Weather: a little bit chilly during the night and early morning, afterwards very hot.
Accommodation- the tents were put up for us every night which was great, we just wished they would have told us to bring a pillow, they provide sleeping bags but it might be more comfortable to have your own for cleanliness reasons.
The campsite near lake manara , where we stayed the first and the last night of our 6 day trip was very nice (it’s called “Fanaka”) , the stuff was very friendly , you could even put your own drinks in their fridge, and there was hot water in the showers .
But! The campsite in the serengeti , especially the facilities where just terrible, so we didn’t have a shower for 3 days. I‘d recommend to pay the extra money and get a tented lodge .
Food was ok.
Our guide Moody was a very friendly.
