Sunny Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 100-250 employees (Founded in 1982)
- Member Of:
- TATO & TTB
- Tour Types:
- Customizable private tours and fixed group tours
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $240 to $1,460 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
CA
Email Suzanne | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Safari was all that I had hoped for!
We researched many different safari companies, and we were very pleased that we chose Sunny. Jessica always replied quickly to emails and was very willing to add on transport to and from the airport, without additional charge. She met us at airport at Arusha with our guide Abdul, which was reassuring, and reviewed again what our safari would include. We had 4 days and 3 nights but wanted to see as much as possible. We did visit Tarangire and then stayed at Maranyara Wildlife Lodge the first night, then to Serengeti and stayed at Kati Kati tented camp, did another drive in Serengeti for the morning, then on to Ngorongora Wildlife Lodge. Spent the next day in the crater and then to Kili airport for 2000 hr. flight out. Our driver/guide (Abdul) was very good, with many years experience, good English, sense of humour, and great sense of where to find the animals. He was safety conscious and treated us all with respect, and we felt very safe and "looked after" for the 4 days.He found several fresh kills, surrounded by lions/leopards...amazing!! All our accommodations were excellent and meals were as well. No complaints. I would not hesitate to recommend Sunny Safaris, Jessica Simon and Abdul as a winning combination, and found the price was very reasonable for what we received. A very memorable experience.
SE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic 3-days safari
Me and my husband booked our 3-days safari with Jesca Simon from Sunny Safaris. She was extremely helpful with all the questions we had before, during and after the trip. We had a change of flight at the last time and arrived at another time and airport than we first had booked but it was never a problem for Jesca to rearrange our pick up.
We were very lucky to get our guide, Edward!!! He was for sure an expert to find all kinds of animals and he was respectful towards the nature and all animals. He really looked after us and made sure that we got fine rooms at the lodges.
During our safari we had a jeep only for us. We think it was great not to depend on other passengers wishes and we could decide all on our own, how long we stayed at different places, when we had our lunch and so on.
We visited 3 parks, Tarangire, Ngorogoro and Lake Manyara. We think it was perfect for us. We saw all the animals we had expect to see and we had no wishes for more. We were there the last days of December 2014.
If you plan to go on safari we highly recommend to book it with Sunny Safaris.
Epic honeymoon!
We booked our honeymoon with Sunny Safaris and the word that stands out is EPIC! Everything from booking the safari via email to the actual trip was very easy through Sunny Safaris. We booked through Jessica and she was very happy to change a particular hotel or add a hot air balloon ride for us. The lack of stress continued when we arrived at the airport and the driver/guide for the week was there to pick us up. During the safari we stayed at various Serena lodges, all of which were unique and very comfortable. Our favorite by far was the Kirawira Luxury Tented Camp, where we stayed for two nights. The tents were huge with very nice big bathrooms. The view was amazing! Our guide, Abdul, was easy to work with and he did a good job at finding the animals and getting up close (while always keeping safety in mind). We also booked our trip to Zanzibar through Sunny Safaris and again, all easy. They booked our flights for us and had someone pick us up and drop us off at the airport. Everything exceeded our expectations, from the number of amazing animals that we saw to the beautiful accommodations. I would highly recommend booking with Sunny Safaris to anyone!
DE
Email Cathi | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very enjoyable safari!
We (2 students, couple) were looking for a Safari in Northern Tanzania and collected several offers as we were looking for budget options. SunnySafaris made the best offer together with some good recommendations on e.g. Tripadvisor. Therefore we decided for a 3day/2nights camping safari with Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro and Tarangire NP starting from Arusha. Prior we had a very good email communication with Masha, and all our questions were answered. In the morning on the first day we were picked up by Paul, our guide, accompanied by our cook.
We were lucky to be the only ones on the trip, so we had the huge car for us, which turnded out to be great to move around during gamedrives and to have a real 360° view. Also, we could stop where and for how long we wanted. By midday we reached the Tarosero camp near Lake Manyara where our cook prepared a great lunch. After that we startet the gamedrive in Lake Manyara NP till the evening. Then evening - sleeping in good tents - we were surprisingly tired. Next morning we got up early, after breakfast we left to Ngorogoro. There we spend the day, lunchbox during the day, good dinner again and the next morning we packed everything leaving to Tarangire NP, in the afternoon leaving back to Arusha, where we got dropped off at our accomodation, even though it was a bit outside of Arusha and difficult to find.
Negative aspects:
- Prior to the safari we asked for the option to buy additional water because the provided 1 l per day is not sufficient. It was told to us that we will stop at a cheap supermarket for that and do not need to worry. However, this "cheap" supermarket was designed especially for Safari-Tours and was not cheap at all (water in the village near the camp was cheaper).
- The driver/guide stopped twice at some kind of souvenir shops where we were forced to spend time while he went for a coffee.
- The guides/cooks eat seperately at the camp - they cook local food (e.g. Ugali) prepared on a nice fire place. It would be a nice option to also be part of that.
- On the last day we really need to stress that we would like to spend as long as possible in Tangire NP, as our guide wanted to leave to Arusha.
Positive aspects:
- Guide and cook were very friendly.
- We saw amazingly many animals (from the big 5 we did not see rhinos) and the guide gave us an introduction for all the different species. He also knew good spots for animals and pointed out many things for us.
- The camp was very luxurious for a tented safari - there are good bathrooms - and power supply to charge cameras, mobile phones was available. Very secure feeling within the camp.
- The food in the camp was made of 3 course menus - we got catered with a vegetarian and a non-vegetarian option as ordered before. The food was very nice, the lunchboxes were okay as well.
- The three parks are very different in their topography, fauna and flora. We enjoyed that a lot and felt that this Safari really gave us an amazing insight in the wildlife in Northern Tanzania.
DE
Email Nina and Chris | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
100% match with our wishes and needs! Already second amazing time with sunny safaris!
We just came back from a 14 day safari and are still wondering about this perfect organized and absolutely well done trip!
Right from the start we had an excellent communication with Jessica, answering all our questions, fullfilling all suggestions, adapting our wishes to reasonable timing , locations and activities. We felt more than comfortable already in planning our journey! Service was great, payment easy via bank transfer from germany (we paid 100% in advance) and everything was so amazingly good organized. Driving times, hiking, game viewings.....moreover, we even had the feeling, that in every camp/lodge we had the best rooms/tents..wonderful. Jessica even was calling us on our trip to check if everything is alright! Thanks a lot!
Our safari was a good mix of game drives (Arusha NP 1 d, Tarangire 2 d, Ngorogoro 1 d, Serengeti 5 d, Ndutu 1 d), hiking (Crater highlands 2d) and walking (Lake Natron 1d and Arusha 1d). For the price we paid, it was for real exclusive!
David was an outstanding wildlife guide and great driver. Never saw him looking up a map, even though we went mostly off the beaten track, being alone in the wild, especially in Serengeti. Always best informed where to go for finding the rare animals. We had such a great time! Driving was always secure and we felt very comfortable with his open-minded and hearty personality.
Well done!!!!!
Amazing experience
Our Experience with Sunny Safaris was great right from the start. We emailed Jessica and she responded very quickly with a quote. She was able to answer all our questions and was very organized arranging a pick up from a difficult location and with assisting us with payment options. She was also very friendly once we met her at the office to make our final payment, and answered all of our last minute questions before we departed on our Safari. Our driver David was fantastic, he was friendly, knowledgable and made us feel very safe. We loved the fact that we were able to see the big 5 as well as numerous other animals. David was able to get us up close to so many different animals which was awesome! We were able to take many beautiful pictures and loved the experience of the great migration. I highly recommend this company to anyone who is interested in a great experience.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
4 days in the Serengeti/ngorongoro
Booked a last minute safari through Jessica. She did a great job meeting our budget and desired itinerary. Very timely responses via email helped us immensely. They even took our credit card info and passport scan in lieu of a bank transfer.
Truck was in good shape and we didn't have any breakdowns (saw many near ngorongoro). Wish that they had told us that it didn't have A/C. Afternoon drives were brutal because it was so hot and the dust from other vehicles gave us coughs.
Jessica also lent us her binoculars and called to check in on our progress and satisfaction during the safari. A very nice touch.
The driver, BJ, was knowledgeable and spoke good english. He was gruff and made it tough to get comfortable in his presence (we spent 6-8hours a day with him in the car). The cook, Vincent, was rude and did not ask us when and what we'd like to eat. We were at his mercy when it came to schedule. We also discovered that the meals he prepared for the staff were better than the meals prepared for us.
At the end of the day we were there for the animals and we tried to keep that in mind. The tour operator was great. In our case, the staff was lackluster. Hopefully you get nicer, more respectful guides/cooks. If so, your experience will be 5 stars!
Email Maarten, Steven & Vanja | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Unforgettable safari experience
We did a three-day safari with Sunny Safaris in December 2014, starting in Arusha and ending in Mwanza. I can only say that it was an unforgettable experience! We saw all of the Big Five and witnessed two lions savouring a wildebeast from up close.
The first night we spent at Ngorongoro Wildlife Lodge,which offers a breathtaking view from the terrace, decent food, and fabulous rooms. The second night we slept at Serengeti Kati Kati Camp. An outstanding camping experience, with large tents including toilet and shower, solar lighting, a dining tent with excellent food and a campfire at night.
Our guide Ismael was friendly and knew all about the animals in the park. He clearly knows his way through the park and drove us all the way to western Mwanza without ever consulting a map. Yet, he had some problems locating the tented camp site; apparently the camp changes location frequently and finding the camp in absence of satellite navigation required quite some meandering.
One thing you should make sure to agree upon when booking with Sunny Safaris, is the number of days you will get inside the park. In our initial package we had a three day safari, but only 48 hours inside the parks. (Park entry goes via a sophisticated and rigid smartcard-system, which allows entr
Safaris with Sunny since 1999
Have travelled with Sunny annually for the past 17 years. Firm is long established with a big fleet of nice vehicles but still provides personal service. Our latest safari was for 8 weeks, camping mainly in Special campsites. We commenced in the Selous then flew back to Arusha while Hamisi our Driver made the long return road journey. We then visited Arusha Park, Tarangire, Manyara and Serengeti, quite a complex logistical feat, but fresh food supplies were well organised, even arriving by air in Serengeti. Our regular cook is Michael who is superb, even baking his own bread on the campfire. . Highly recommended.
A Memorable Safari
My two friends and I went with Sunny Safaris on our 6 day/5 night camping safari in Tanzania. We visited four parks: Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro. The scenery and wildlife was stunning everywhere we went.
The trip, logistics and customer service exceeded our expectations. Throughout the planning process, Jesca, the manager, was prompt and informative in her responses. She was very willing to cater to our requests. Moreover, we appreciated the fact that she would check to see how we were doing every few days during the trip. That is customer service at a supreme level.
We were also very pleased with our driver/guide, Abdullah, and our cook, Dogo. Abdullah always listened to our requests and made awesome recommendations on where and when to visit the parks. He is very knowledgeable of the flora and fauna in the area and was eager to educate us on them. Thanks to his instincts and experience, we were able to see wildlife that others may not have seen, including leopards, a rhino and a male lion. We thoroughly enjoyed Dogo's cooking. We were pleasantly surprised at the variety and tastiness of his food, especially since we were camping. It is always nice to have hot food and beverages and Dogo was able to do so with smiles.
Overall, Sunny Safaris delivers high-quality and value-driven vacations. As with every tour operator/vacation, you will need to do your research and ask questions during the planning stage if you would like the vacation to meet your expectations.