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
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful experience, no problems
We signed up for a 10 day safari with It started in Africa in July this year. There were just two of us together with the guide Kueka and the cook Fatheli, not sure how it is spelled, Pronounced Fazili. They spoke amazingly good English and looked after us brilliantly. Both were great company, easy to be with, warm, not intrusive, and put up with us beautifully.Great food, lots of it, and modified to suit my gluten free requirements really well. Far too lovely besan flour patties for me to resist though, a wonderful change from bread, not that there is any gluten free bread in Tanzania, as far as I could tell. Kueka is an animal and bird enthusiast and really happy to take us out looking at animal as much as we liked. He had an encyclopaedic knowledge about the animal and birds and was a fantastic spotter.But he was deft in not overwhelming us with too much information. We slept in tents, with basic beds in the tent on four nights, on mattresses other nights. comfortable enough for us.(We did not opt for the luxury camping option) The vehicle was a sturdy commodious four wheel drive, which had a lift up roof for when we were looking at animals. It felt completely safe in the vehicles opened up because there are strict rules forbidding any kind of interaction with any animals in the parks. As a result, the animals go about their own business ignoring us. We are neither prey nor predator.This means they do not usually run away either, so we get close up viewing a lot. The results of feeding animals, inadvertently or otherwise, are obvious in the permit office areas on the edge of the parks where baboons attempt to get into vehicles to get at food and can be dangerous. There were an incredible variety and number of animals and birds in the four parks we visited.It started with a large family herd of elephants, together with ten or so zebra and a similar number of wildebeast fifty metres inside the boundary of our first park and it just carried on like that. We had one long drive or two shorter drives in a park each day. We visited Tangarire, Manyara, Ngorongoro and the Serengeti National Parks. We stayed in public camping grounds some kilometres from the first three parks. In the Serengeti, we stayed in the middle of the park, about three hours game drive in, seeing lions, ostriches, baboons, giraffes etc on the way. The Serengeti camp was open to animals (No fences nor a man with a gun to scare the big animals off!) and there was elephant poo by our tents. We got up one night to find several zebra grazing close by. Elephants spent a lot of time by the shower block one afternoon. Lions roared in the distance one night. I was a bit nervous getting up in the night but no-one else worried. The camping grounds have a large kitchen for the cooks and a large dining hall for us to eat in, all covered over, and netted in and with power and point points for chargers, not that they all work all the time. The whole trip was fairly comfortable and fun and just wonderful in terms of seeing animals.
AT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Simply the Best, Unforgettable and Stunning experience...
To be honest, when I contacted Joao Oliveira for Safari, I became bit suspicious as he used to reply usually within 1-2 hours (even in the night). Also, Safari company is quite new and therefore had to search for how genuine they are, before transferring advance payment. Reviews about the company made me to trust them. Joao helped to arrange and make safari itinerary in the best convenient way. I was completely satisfied with his responses towards my all questions and queries.
We made a safari for 5 days, 1 day Tarangire ( 1 night at Maramboi Campsite), 3 days Serengeti (2 nights at Ikoma bushcamp Serengeti), 1 day Ngorongoro crater (1 night at Rhino Ngorongoro). Fabulous locations, fair arrangements, good food and facilities.
Tarangire was nice experience but we spotted mainly elephants, giraffes and zebras (no cats) which we spotted also in Serengeti and Crater, and therefore it would have been no harm in skipping Tarangire. Manyara lake is famous mainly for Flamingos, which was not our primary aim to spot in Safari. Serengeti and Crater safaris were mind blowing. We could spot all big 5 animals (Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Black Rhino and Wild-Buffalo).
Martin, our tour guide, guided us in all possible ways. He has eyes like an eagle and could spot animals even a km far. Binoculars provided by company made our safari much more interesting and exciting. Instead of Joao (as he was out of station), Mathias helped us.
Overall, I would recommend It Started in Africa 100%. They know how to make your once in a lifetime safari memorable in all ways. They are very joyful, friendly and fantastic.
US
Email Nancy | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
GREAT safari company: It Started in Africa delivers it all!!!!
Four of us (friends/colleagues) took a 10-day journey with It Started in Africa. They organized the perfect trip for us - Tarangire, Ngorogoro, Serengeti, and Lake Natron/El Donyo Lengai climb. We can't recommend them highly enough - from the first contact with Joao by email to our final sad goodbyes at the airport - we had nothing but great service and warm interactions with everyone. ISiA really delivers what they promise, without exception. They were honest, open to our special requests, and very accommodating of our adding and changing the itinerary (before departure). They helped us book other portions of our travel (Zanzibar) and everything went perfectly. Best of all, our guide Isaack is one of the most generous, kind-hearted, funny people we've ever met. He took such good care of all our needs, and most importantly, he is a brilliant and talented guide to the wildlife and parks of Tanzania. His expertise was extraordinary. He knows every bird, every animal, and explains their habits and habitat with great flair. His driving skills were equally astonishing. And, everywhere we went he talked with people (locals, other guides, our hosts in the different camps) and though most of that was in Kiswahili, we felt that he is known and respected, and shares information with all sorts of people. We felt completely safe in his hands, and always cheerful. His humor and affection for people, places, and creatures were tremendous - we miss him and want to go back for another journey with It Started!
All four of us are quite experienced travelers - we travel to many places in the world as part of our research jobs (a great privilege, we know!) and often are tour leaders ourselves, for students and other researchers. We understand how hard it is to ferry people around and keep them happy: It Started has all the skills, and knowledge, and patience to take good care of their customers. We all highly recommend this company. All their guides are good, we are certain, but Isaack was a star. None of us will EVER forget the ten days we spent in his care. THANK YOU, dear Isaack! And Joao, Mathias, Bernard, Dickson, as well.
PT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Experience with It Started in Africa!
Just returned from a 5-day safari organised by It Started in Africa, what an outstanding experience! Our safari exceeded any expectation I ever had.
We visited Tarangire Park, the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater, the itinerary was great. We saw lot of animals and most of them really close! It was so exciting!
The team was fantastic! We chose a group safari and I couldn’t be happier with our ‘safari-mate’ Satish! What an incredible person to share this experience! Jonhson, our guide, was kwnoledgeable, familiar with local environment, nature and wildlife. He’s also an excellent driver and always kind! Pascal, our cook, was amazing! The food was incredible and soooo tasty! He was also so polite that we were grateful to have him in our team.
Thanks to all the people that made this experience unforgettable: Mathias, Andrew, Ludi and all the people in the guest house.
I would like to make special mention of João Oliveira (Marketing/Operations Manager).He was very helpful in all subjects and sent prompt responses. He was a big help in the planning of the entire trip and always friendly.
I must say that was an unforgettable experience with the most fantastic group we could ever wish, I would happily go to a safari with It Starded in Africa again and again!
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Awesome day tour in Ngorongoro
We just had one day available so that's what we wanted to see, the crater, and boy it was amazing! They took us there really really early so that we could make the most of the day. We saw a lioness hunting, cheetahs, huge huge huge elephants that were out of this planet. Car was great, driver (Emmanuel) could spot a rhino with just his eyes while we had trouble finding him with our scopes, though the binoculars they gave us were TOP. Highly recommended.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a lifetime...Fantastic Company
Before booking with It Started in Africa, I did a lot of research to find the perfect mix between a high quality safari tour in Tanzania and value. ISIA met all my requirements, providing a tailor-made, wonderful experience, with the absolute highest quality of service, responsiveness, efficiency, comfort, informed and competent guides, and security. From the beginning contact with ISIA to the very end of our safari, covering four national parks, my experience was nothing short of excellent in every way. I highly recommend ISIA for a trip of a lifetime.
NO
Email Magnus | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experiences with It Started In Africa.
We were four friends who went to Tanzania. We heard with several safari companies, but ISIA was the one with the best offer, and also most flexible for suiting our needs. The communication was also top notch, with great and fast answers!
We were all very satisfied, for several reasons:
- We did see all big 5 and generally a lot of animals and beautiful landscapes
- Our guide, Martin, was very observant
- We really enjoyed the meals, both breakfast, lunch and dinner
- It was a great experience to camp “in the wild” in the middle of Serengeti
- They were so helpful on buying us drinks during safari
- One of us needed a SD-card, and the guide did everything he could to help us finding one
We would definitely recommend ISIA, thank you.
ID
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
What an experience - and yes, we saw the BIG-5+
Me and two girlfriends had a fantastic time on the safari with ISIA back in April 2014.
Though, it was a rainy season but the the experience was remarkable!
We had blue skies and mystique-foggy scene at the same time, which were so fantastic for photographic captures!
The safari experience was a marvellous one!
From Tarangeri, Serengeti and Ngorongoro, including the Maasai Village visit.
Johnson as our guide is very professional, and most of all, focus on what we wanted to see (and yes, we saw the Big-Five!), even though we were kind of giving up to search the Rhino at the last day, but John kept insist to look for it!
One time, he pointed out on the hunting of 12 Simbas to a poor Impala from a distance and that was an exciting moment, especially our car was the only one there, after a while of course others followed:). Also, we had a chance to witnessed the killing of Zebra by female Lions and then followed by the crocodile who was waiting in the pond and out to enjoy the leftover. What a good-eye of John and what a fun game-driving!
The Ang'ata Luxury Camping is one of our favourite as we were outdoor surrounded by spectacular view of Serengeti. Next time, I wish to stay longer or at least one more night/day in Serengeti and Ngorongoro.
The guesthouse people are also were very nice and friendly. They made sure our stay was comfortable and feed us very good meal, from the funny Chef, Pascal! :)
Anyway, I can keep on and on about my wonderful experience, but in short ... yes, I want to express my BIG thank you to ISIA and all the staff for giving us good advise, guiding, patience and best service.' Terima kasih', or Asante Sana, in Bahasa Indonesia!
I linked some of my pics in dropbox to share with you... feel free to use them. Also, fyi, I will write an travel article about Tanzania and ISIA on my blog www.liburing.com, hopefully by end of this month or the latest mid July. I will share with you when I posted. Once again, I thank you all!
Cheers!
Nova
MY
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Magical Place
The safari could not be more perfect. It was such a magical place and I will never forget all the memories and feelings I had while driving in the Serengeti and Ngorongoro. I managed to see the big5, including a lion hunting and killing a Zebra, while in the Serengeti. Saw several leopards in trees. Saw cheetahs with their cubs (18 in total), crocodiles, many hippos and big herds of elephants. Ngorongoro Crater is a true wonder of the Earth. The safari was awesome. Thanks so much Baraja, Joao and Loy
PT
Email Joana Coutinho | 20-35 years of age
Great experience
My husband and I have done a Safari with It Started in África and loved it. We wanted to do a 7 day Safari in serengeti and ngorongoro crater and then go to zanzibar. Everything went perfect since our guide and cook picked us up from our hotel in arusha. We did 1 day at lake manyara, then 4 day at serengeti national park and finished at ngorongoro crater on our way back to arusha again. We stayed in tents all the 7 nights, and being my first time camping, i actually didnt felt bad at all. The tents were good, spacious and our sleeping bags confortable.
Our guide, Samuel, had lots of experience and he knew all the birds and other small animals. We really liked him, and we were very lucky because we had the chance to see the big five, which, as he told us, may not be very easy. And they also provided us with binoculars, which was very useful when you can only see an animal several meters away from you. We also did an extension to ndutu to watch the great migration. There we could actually watch animals more closely, and we had the chance to watch a herd of lionesses hunting a zebra.
The overall experience was great, we loved the safari, loved our guide. The company matched our expectations, which were very high, since it was the trip of our dreams. Joao was very helpfull, always helping us and answering our questions and doubts, and Baraja too. We would definitly come back with It Started In Africa.