It Started in Africa
- Located In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Member Of:
- IATA, TATO & TALA
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $150 to $550 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Cath | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Disappointing ! Even more after It Started in Africa offered to pay me to remove my reviews.
My husband and I selected It Started in Africa as our tour organizer for a 6 day Mount Kilimanjaro hike mainly because of their outstanding reviews and classification on Safaribookings and TripAdvisor. We also chose them because they were very reactive and had a nice website. But our main selection criteria was their ranking on Safaribookings (number 1) and on Trip Advisor (number 10).
The hike itself was satisfying: the guides, cooks and porters were friendly and helpful, BUT our overall experience turned out not to be as good as expected, and there were a lot of “small” details that added together gave us the overall unpleasant feeling that we had somehow been “cheated” by It Started in Africa.
The main issues were:
1. No one was there to meet us when we arrived at Kilimanjaro airport. Sylvia, our tour manager, arrived approximately one hour after our flight had landed and explained that she thought we were arriving on the KLM flight and that she had not been made aware that we were on the Kenya Airways flight. My husband had send Joao all of our flight details, which he had acknowledged receipt of. And even if what Sylvia was telling us was true, she was still 30 minutes late for the KLM flight.
2. The hotel in Arusha (Raha Leo) which was sold to us as part of the package, and included in our contract, was changed at the last minute without us being informed or forewarned. When I checked the rating on Trip Advisor, I realized that the hotel that It Started in Africa put us in (The Torch) had a much lower rating than the hotel that had been sold to us. When reading other traveler reviews posted after our trip (and since then disappeared from Trip Advisor), I realized that we were not the only customers surprised in this way…..
3. As part of the contract, It Started in Africa was supposed to supply us with duvet liners and pillows – we never saw them. The mess tent was tiny and could barely hold our party of 7.
4. My husband was victim of food poisoning and he was so sick that he had to turn back and be evacuated from the mountain. The doctor that we saw when we returned to Joburg confirmed that his disease had nothing to do with altitude sickness but was solely due to food poisoning (most likely the chicken we were served during 3 consecutive days by the It Started in Africa cook). The evacuation until the park gate was organized diligently and professionally by Tanzanian Parks. But once at the gate, the car that It Started in Africa car had sent from Arusha was not there. It was actually our piece of luck, because the It Started in Africa representative in Moshi came to pick us up in order not to keep us waiting and he agreed with us that my husband was in no condition to withstand the 3 hour drive to Arusha. The guides and I had told Sylvia, our tour manager, a number of times over the phone that it made no sense to drive back to Arusha that day, and had requested to stop in Moshi for the night, but she had refused to listen, saying that “she had already booked a room at The Torch in Arusha”. The hotel in Moshi was much nicer than the Torch and we were able to get a good night’s rest.
5. From the beginning of the trip, until the very last day, we were under constant pressure from the chief guides (and from the tour manager on the first day), to leave generous tips to the guides and porters. This gave us the unpleasant feeling that the porters, guides, cooks, etc are so poorly paid by It Started in Africa, that they rely on customers’ tips to keep their staff happy. The documents sent to us before the trip gave clear guidelines about the tipping amounts to be given out and we all know how to read – so why be so insistent during the entire trip? It really made us feel as if we were a bunch of dishonest people who would walk away from our responsibilities, and impacted our relationship with the guides and porters.
6. The number of porters/guides/cooks, etc accompanying us during the trip was never clearly stated to us before the trip. We found out on the first day of the hike that 31 people would be accompanying our group of 7 people. I’m not against employing a large number of people, but I believe that It Started in Africa should have been transparent about this before we signed the contract – as this has an impact on the total amount of the trip (tips are substantial).
7. When we were done with the trip, we were put under a lot of pressure by Sylvia, our tour manager to write good reviews on the spot for them, with them looking over our shoulders. I refused to do it and said I would do it later, as I don’t like being pressured in such a way.
8. Our last night in Arusha was part of the package, and had been paid for and booked through It Started in Africa. When Sylvia told us we would be staying at the Torch again, we refused. Not the rat hole again! Especially considering how weak my husband was. She then suggested Kia Lodge by the airport and warned us that it would be more expensive. We were prepared to pay whatever additional cost there was to pay, as long as the hotel was decent, with water and air conditioning in the rooms. And we also asked if it would be possible for the three guys in our party who were flying out later that day to use our rooms to take a shower. Sylvia promised it all, dropped us off at the hotel reception, and then vanished (very quietly for once). Once she was gone, the hotel manager told us that it would not be possible for our 3 friends to shower (but they were welcome to drink at the bar and eat at the restaurant), and we found that there was no water pressure in our room, making it impossible to shower. And at bedtime, when we turned the air-con on, we found out that it did not work either….. The next morning, there was literally no water at all in the shower! 183 USD for a room with no water and no air-con (supposedly the It Started In Africa special rate, but when I double checked on Trip Advisor, I found the rooms to be sold at 177 USD)….quite pricy, don’t you think?
But here comes the worst part!
When we returned home, I posted a review on Trip Advisor and rated It Started in Africa as "average", considering the problems that we had and the un-kept promises. The next day, Joao, the Happiness Manager, sent me an email with explanations about what happened and offered to pay me 700 USD if I removed my post or upgraded it to Very Good. When I refused, he offered me 1000 USD. After he had my review forcibly removed from Trip Advisor, I posted another review explaining how he tried to bribe me, and I received a 3rd email offering me 2500 USD if I removed my second review. I also noticed that the other average reviews which had been posted on Trip Advisor at around the same time as mine had disappeared. I managed to contact another reviewer who confirmed that he was offered money to remove or upgrade his review.
I then realized why It Started in Africa only had very good and excellent reviews on the internet. It seems that they bribe unhappy customers to remove or change their reviews if they are not 4 or 5 stars. And I cannot help but wonder....how many people were paid in the past? And how many people, like me, selected It Started In Africa mainly because of their track record of excellent and very good reviews and were hugely disappointed? How much money is Joao going to offer me this time, to remove my review from Safaribookings.com? I systematically read travelers' internet reviews before I choose a hotel or a tour organizer. I also believe that it is of utmost importance that travelers who post reviews on these websites do it honestly, as others rely on them to make decisions and chose their tour operator, hotels, restaurants, etc. I could have accepted Joao’s 1000 USD and left it at that, letting other travelers believe that It Started in Africa provides top class service and that they are the best. Maybe they are great for a large number of travelers. But not for me, and I believe that it is unfair to other travelers to keep quiet about what is going on. It Started in Africa’s business practices are unfair and detrimental to all of the tourism industry professionals who work hard and with integrity to please their customers. It Started in Africa need to understand that you cannot hide your flaws forever by bribing customers, and that there are still some people out there who cannot be bought, no matter how much money you offer them. It Started in Africa's cheating attempts turned out to be the most disturbing part of this trip for me. Knowing after hand that others before me may have had a disappointing experience with It Started in Africa, but were paid to remove their reviews, gives me the very unpleasant impression that we were cheated voluntarily by It Started in Africa from the very start.
For this very reason, I would definitely not recommend this Tour operator!
DE
Email Jaron Schilling | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
couldnt have hoped for better
From Berlin to Arusha for the trip of our lifetime. This honeymoon was executed with a level of perfection without making it dull or boring that Ive never seen before. Everyone was cheerful, funny but extremelly professional and elegant. The safari was amazing and the zanzibar hotel was oput of this world. Strongly recommended
The Trip of a Lifetime - On Safari with It Started in Africa
From the initial planning, through to the final adventure, our tour operators of “It Started in Africa” were extremely helpful and made sure that our ten day Safari was absolutely wonderful! I had to make some major last minute changes to our itinerary, but with the expert suggestions and prompt help we received from our Happiness Manager, Joao Oliveira, everything was quickly taken care of, to perfection!
We (4 adult family members) had booked a private tour and Sylvia, our tour coordinator, called us every day, to ensure all our needs and desires were taken care of. So the four of us were very comfortable in our vehicle, during the game drives and transportation from place to place and having a vehicle with a pop-up roof was perfect for watching the animals all around us, from every angle and made the warm temperatures much more pleasant!
Our tour started with just an overnight stay in Arusha, and early the next morning, the adventure truly started. We drove to Lake Burundi in Tarangire National Park, just a 2 hour drive from Arusha and were in a different world! It was just amazing to see all the animals that we have only seen in zoos or pictures, right besides our vehicle!
The Burunge Camp was our first tented camp and it was beautiful and had all the luxury and comfort we could wish for! We continued on to Manyara Wildlife Safari Camp, then on to Ang'ata Serengeti Camp in Central Seringeti, Ang'ata Migration Camp in Southern Seringeti and to Ngorongoro Crater. The last night we spent at Lake Eyasi and there, as part of our cultural program, we were able to have a snapshot of the life of the Hadze tribe and the Dacota people. We finished with the best cultural activity last, with a stop in a Maasai village before we had to return to Kilimanjaro International airport. The Maasai are among the best known local tribes due to living in and near the many game parks of the African great lakes and their distinctive customs and dress. They are the only tribe that can continue to live in the National Parks and Preserves because of their love and stewardship of their environment.
We stayed in a few lodges, but it was in the two Ang’ata camps that we could truly experience life in the bush and it came with the bonus of unexpected luxury and comfort, delicious food and the very attentive personnel that provided excellent care!
Nassari, our guide on Safari, was truly exceptional! He anticipated every request that we could make and made absolutely sure that all our wishes came true! If I had not seen the roads in the bush for myself, which were often quite rough, I would not have known that there were any bumps or deep potholes!
The game drives were fantastic - every day Nassari would ask us which animals, we really wanted to see that day and whether it was lions or cheetahs, leopards, hippos or rhinos he delivered them all! And once he found out that we were very enthusiastic birdwatchers he also made sure that we had plenty of time to see Africa’s wonderful birds in their spectacular colors, and helped us to identify many birds that were new to us.
On the game drives Nassari not only knew where the big 5 were “hanging out” but he also always drove to the best possible spot to see all the animals as close as possible - quite often right below our vehicle! He also made sure that at everyone of our lunch spots in the bush we were right next to the animals of choice.
I have traveled to some fabulous places, all over the world, but I cannot imagine that I will ever be in a better location to eat!
Tanzania is such a beautiful country and the office staff, Joao and Sylvia and our guide Nassari made sure that my trip was absolutely magical and a dream come true! I only wished that I could have spent a month on Safari, instead of the 10 days that we actually had!
I highly recommend a Safari with “It Started in Africa” especially with Nassari as your guide, to make it all possible!
I Visited in February 2016
Email Simon | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great agency, memorable safari
I would recommend It Started in Africa to anyone. Really efficient in helping us book it - Joao in the office was knowledgeable and very prompt. A well-chosen route - 4 days/3 nights, visiting Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorogoro Crater. We stayed at Lake Manyara Wildlife Lodge, then Ang'ata tented camps in both the Serengeti and the Crater rim - all were excellent. Great food and service, plus very comfortable rooms (or tents)
Our guide (David) was a legend, really enjoyed our time with him. Patiently answered all of my wife's sometimes quite bizarre questions - very impressive!
Overall, It Started in Africa were excellent. Will never forget our first safari, thank you for the memories!
US
Email Willa | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Breathtaking, organized, informational, and extremely fun!
I visited Tanzania with two good friends. We had a wonderful safari with It Started in Africa. From checking in to getting the safari started, everything ran smooth. Our guide was Damien and we were so happy to spend 3 days with this wonderful man! He was friendly, liked to chat, a good driver, calm, and extremely knowledgeable about Tanzania and specifically its wildlife. We had a wonderful time seeing elephants, impalas, monkeys, zebras, lions, ostrich, wildebeest, etc. Damien had a great eye for finding animals - even rhino very far away. He would stop and give us plenty of time to take photos and just take in the beauty. The food was delicious, provided by Roman the cook. I appreciated that providing vegetarian meals for me was no problem. The campsites were great - Haven Nature and Lake Eyasi - and every single person we met there was so nice and informative. It was a treat to meet people who lived in the villages we visited and gain their perspective on their country and the beauty surrounding it.
I wanted to visit a coffee farm in the area and ISIA had no problem taking us there even though they had never been there before. We had a wonderful visit. The only thing I suggest is contacting the places you go that are not usually on their itinerary. They were not expecting us at the coffee farm and while it worked out fine, I was nervous that no one had contacted them to let them know we were coming. I made the assumption that ISIA would contact them but I see now that I could have just contacted them to let them know.
I highly recommend ISIA for a thorough and fun safari. My friends and I had a wonderful time and we miss being in Ngorongoro Crater with Damien looking at all of those gorgeous zebras!
FI
Email Paavo | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Experience of a lifetime
We booked a safari with It Started in Africa in May 2015 and finally made the 5-day journey over the New Year 2016. It was an incredible experience and everything was quite perfect.
The booking process was simple. Joao and his team presented the options and then I spent some time in comparing especially the various camps, testing my ideas with Joao. They are incredibly responsive and typically (of course not always) replied within minutes rather than hours.
The final outcome was perfect (Lake Manyara - Serengeti Central - Ndutu - Ngorongoro), a balance of the widest plains on the planet, lakes and forests. We stayed in lodges and the two Ang'ata camps were an experience of a lifetime. Our guide, Siloh, was very efficient in locating the big five and beyond.
I requested a quote for a similar safari from a few other companies and found ISiA to be very competitive in addition to having great customer service and, eventually, delivering a highly recommended safari!
ES
Email Carlos | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari, terrible management
Our safari with "It Started in Africa" could not have started in a worst way... We had booked a 5-day safari in Serengeti and Ngorongoro (plus 2 nights in Arusha, one before the safari, and one after it). When we arrived at Tanzania we had to pay the remaining 60% of the safari. A driver took us from the airport to our hotel in the outskirts of Arusha and told us that a representative of the company would visit us at the hotel for giving us a briefing and for telling us at what time would the guide pick us the next morning.
At dinner time no one had appeared, so we sent an email to the company using the WiFi of the hotel. They apologized and told us that there was a problem with the person that had to visit us, but that the next morning at 8 a.m. the guide and a representative of the campany would appear at the hotel so we could pay the remaining amount directly to him/her and start our safari right at that moment.
The next morning only the guide appeared. No apology and no explanation given. He took us to the office in the center of Arusha and we payed the remaining amount. While we were at the office, I saw by chance that the accommodation that we had chosen for the Serengeti was not the same that was written on the paper that was given to our guide. We had chosen Serengeti Heritage Migration Camp (not the Serengeti Heritage Seronera Camp), but they had changed it for Ndutu Savannah Camp. When we asked why, the office employee just told us that "it was better". As Ndutu Savannah Camp was not even an option for accommodation when we booked the safari, we had no idea if this was true, so we had to accept it and continue the trip.
Based on our stay and the internet reviews, now I can say that Ndutu Savannah Camp was of similar category that the one we had chosen, and that the location was probably better. But we spent the whole first day thinking that we were being scammed, because no one had tolds us that our accommodation had been changed, and we only learned it by chance.
Our guide (Elia) was good but maybe not great. He is a polite and nice person, a careful driver and a very experienced guide. He always found the perfect spots for wildlife watching and he was probably more experienced than most of the other guides. Also, one day, while we were returning to our accommodation, he saw some lions and we stopped to watch them. After some waiting, we watched a hunting scene while he patiently waited. Finally, we arrived at our accommodation almost 2 hours later than the agreed time, and he never complained.
On the negative side, he is not the most talkative person. When he sees an animal, he usually just points at it and says one or two phrases. If you want to know some details, you always has to ask. Not a big deal for us, but may be for others. Also, on the Ngorongoro day, when we asked him about the lunch inside the crater (as was clearly written in the contract). He said that it was not possible because of the 6-hour permit (we have passed the entrance gate at 7:15 a.m. approximately, so we had to leave before 1:15 p.m.). We asked him to have our lunch in the viewpoint outside the crater instead, but he said that it was not possible either, because we had to leave earlier. After finishing watching the wildlife of the crater, we passed the exit gates at 11:50 a.m., with more than hour left before the permit expired, and we had lunch on our way back to Arusha. Again, not a big deal, but then, why does the company write it in the contract if there is no easy way for the guide to comply with it?
Before returning to the hotel in Arusha, we were taken to the office to fill a customer survey about the guide and the jeep, while the guide and one office employee looked over our shoulders. Not the most comfortable moment of our safari. Also, as we were in the office, we asked at what time would the driver pick us the next morning to take us to the airport. No one knew that we had already booked the transfer, even as it was written in the contract, so they arranged the transfer at that moment.
While we were accommodated at Ngorongoro, a manager (Silvia) called me by phone to tell us that he wanted to meet us in Arusha. We thought that maybe she wanted to explain to us the problems previously described. After arriving at the hotel in Arusha, our guide told us that she would visit us at the hotel. Again, at dinner time no one had appeared, so we sent an email to the company. They apologized again but no explanation was given. We left Tanzania the next morning but she did not appear.
PL
Email Robert | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
excellent experience
It was our first visit in Tanzania but not in Africa.Great staff It Started in Africa who create a fantastic atmosphere, our guide is the best tracker in the World, Louis answered for one million mail in one second! It was great experience at all . Accommodation in Tented camps(Agata and Kati Kati) was excellent. We saw all the animals that can be seen. The views in Serengeti National Park and specially in Ngorongoro National Park was amazing.It was the best tour in our life!
US
Email Derek | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Safari
I initially contacted several safari companies, and It Started in Africa always provided the quickest and most detailed email responses. They answered all my questions and were up-front about pricing for all the different options I asked about. I did an 8-day safari visiting Arusha NP, Tarangire NP, Serengeti NP, Lake Ndutu, Ngorongoro Crater, and Lake Eyasi (Datoga and Hadzabe tribe visits). I stayed at public and private campgrounds, with one night in a mobile tented camp.
I really enjoyed the safari. Tanzania is a beautiful country. I loved seeing all the animals in the wild. I got to see several lions in trees and walking or lying around, many giraffes, elephants, and impalas, and the plains full of zebra and wildebeest. Many of the colorful birds and smaller animals were a lot of fun to watch, like the jackals running around and playing in the early morning. I liked the variety in scenery between the different parks. Ngorongoro Crater was like a green paradise, so peaceful and full of animals. It was interesting meeting people from all over the world in the campsites. My guide Deo was friendly, spoke English very well, and helped me see a lot of animals. The cook prepared very good meals with plenty of food; I was never hungry. All the Tanzanian people I met were very friendly. The tribe visits were also interesting, seeing the very different ways these people live. We stopped at a Maasai village on the way back to Arusha, and, as I had a little bit of time before we had to leave for the airport, the airport driver gave me a quick tour of the city. I was a little concerned going to Africa for the first time by myself, but everything worked out well from airport pickup to dropoff and I had a lot of fun.
QA
Email Michelle | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing safari, made extra special by wonderful people
We had an amazing time on this safari, made possible by a great group of people in It Started in Africa. We had emailed a few tour operators to help in planning for this trip, and this company stood out on so many levels. We found their email correspondence to be very prompt, professional and comprehensive which made it very easy to customise our trip. They were also very reasonably priced compared to some other operators.
We did a 6 day safari trip, alternating between camping and staying in lodges and covered Lake Manyara, Central Seregenti, South Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Lake Eyasi to visit the Hadzabe tribe. We got very lucky (plus thanks to our guides' eagle eyes!) and saw the big 5, lions mating, a wildebeest giving birth, elephants, thousands of zebras and wildebeest, plus also had the special experience of having lions surround our car to take shade from the sun. The trip to go hunting with the Hadzabe tribe was also another highlight, and we couldn't recommend it more.
What made our experience extra special though was Alfred, our guide, Zaire, our driver and Peter our chef. They were so friendly, so helpful, knowledgable, professional, and nothing was too much trouble for them. They went out of their way to make us feel comfortable, and even after 6 to 8 hours driving on the road in rough terrain, they still had a big smile on their faces for us. At the end of 6 days, it was very difficult to say goodbye and as Alfred said, we came as tourists but left as friends.
Asante-sana to It Started in Africa for making our trip so wonderful, we will always be grateful for the experience.