The BEST TOUR OPERATOR AWARDS
Usambara Trails Expedition
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2008)
- Member Of:
- TTB & TANAPA
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $100 to $600 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
It's a good organisation with a perferct very friendly and competent guide (and driver).
Good and friendly advice.
Auto Land Cruiser ok with Issuing roof.
Very friendly and very competent guide ( Afra ), from which we learned a lot about animals , nature, but also land and people.
Very responsible and good driver .
The accommodation in lodges inside the park was perfect, because you have experienced the animals directly to the lodges.
Smear in the River Lodge Fox Lodges (English line ) in Ruaha Park : Great lodge , but unacceptable food.
All in all very good - but not cheap !
( Sleeps 6 day safari for 2, 1950.- € / person).
But we were only 2 people . With four persons it will be cheaper.
NL
Email Joshua | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Safari!
We used Usambara for a safari in Selous national park in Tanzania. They proved to be very professional from start to end, Alex very responsive to dealing with our requests via email when we first contacted them and then always answering our enquiries. They picked us up from the hotel on time and the safari followed the agreed pattern. Our guide, Afra, was fantastic and very knowledgeable. He knew where to look for the various animals, had great vision to spot them, went off-road when needed to, great driving and fantastic spirit, funny and friendly all the way through our 4-days.
I would strongly recommend booking with these guys.
Well organised, good vehicle, superb guide (Serafino)
The guide had the knowledge and expertise to make this a great Safari at Rauha. Good food and everything taken care off.
Straight, serious and simple to organise with these people, together made for a great safari experience in Ruaha.
Email Steffi & Mak | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
5 days 4 nights private Safari in Selous Game Reserve and Mikumi National Park
We booked with Usambara Expeditions a couple of months before our trip in July. The communication was ok from the start and we booked a private safari with Alex - the owner of the company. We paid 30% deposit upfront and got confirmation on receipt of the money. We got picked up at our hotel on the morning of the safari and were introduced to our guide Afra who spent the whole 5 days with us. He is very knowledgable and explained a lot to us during the tour. We felt really lucky to have such good company and couldn't fault him in any way. We decided for a budget safari and stayed in two different cottages in the parks which were both absolutely fine and the food was good in both. The game drives in Selous Game Reserve were our highlight as you can go off-road to look for the animals whereas you have to stay on the roads in any National Park. We saw all the animals we were hoping to see and Afra wouldn't give up until we had seen it all :) I would definately recommend Usambara Expeditions. The only reason why I haven't given a 5 star rating is that the communication before the trip could have been more pro-active and responses could have been quicker - however, having been in 'the bush' now I understand that having access to mobile reception and internet access can sometimes take a couple of days. Thank you for a very memorable time!
NO
Email Dag S | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic experience with Usambara i Ruaha National Park
We decided on Ruaha National Park for a short safari 3 days/2 nights, and after contacting a few agents/companies we decided to go for Usambara Expedition. Decision was based both on a reasonable price and because i had previously spoken with Alex(agent) in person and gotten a good impression.
We were met at Iringa by the guide the afternoon we arrived by bus and he shoved us to a reasonable hotel for the night. In the morning we set out with him and a cook for a couple of hours drive to the Park. We had 3 fantastic days, the cabins/new goverment bandas were really nice and I highly recommend our guide Serafino who put all in to give us the best experience! Lots of wildlife (we saw atleast 15 lions) and we hardly met any other cars/parties. I had heard about Ruaha before and wanted to go there and it turned out to be even better than expected. Especially if you prefer to not be crowded by other parties, and the wildlife is astonishing. Wholeheartedly give my recommendation to both Ruaha, Usambara Expeditions and in particular our guide Serafino!
CH
Email Sarah & Ben | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic!
We (young swiss-married couple) enjoyed our 5 days trekkting organized by usambaraexp. very much!
Alex was very helpful with the booking. Joseph & Richard have been great guides trough spectacular landscape, mountains, forests, villages.. they knew a LOT about the plants, people and surrounding!
The accomodations and Food was very nice.. the price for the whole trip was more than worth to pay for all the nice food we ate and people we met.. we can really much recommend to go for hiking into the usambara region instead of the touristy place arusha!!! Usambara mountains was one of the most beautiful experience and adventure in my life!
CZ
Email Armin and Maria | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Unforgetable :)
Me and my girlfriend took the big five package, so 5 day and 5 nights trough the north of Tanzania.
I just can say, i really get something for my money. The staff was very friendly and had the expertise.
Alex is a very helpful person, not only about safari. The food was quiet good and also the place to sleep was very good. Throughout i can say, i am thankful for that experience!
Email Sion Morton | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
An excellent value for money safari
We had a four day / three night safari in Selous Game Reserve for four people, staying at Hippo Camp. Although my wife and I had been on safari before and knew what to expect, my parents (who had never travelled to Africa before) were apprehensive. We selected Usambara on the basis of the best price being offered and equally importantly for the responsiveness of Alex at Usambara to the frequent questions and specific requests that we made. Usambara were very helpful and willing to make changes to suit our tastes.
The safari itself was well organisedand problem free. We had a full itinerary (two full days in the park, a boat safari and a walking safari), which meant that we were able to see a wide variety of animal and bird life during the time in the park. Hippo Camp was conveniently located near the park entrance and offered spectacular sunsets over the Selous river each evening. Accomodation was perfectly acceptable for our budget range, and the food and service were very good. The only downside was the fact that power was turned off at 10pm, making for a hot and sweaty night without fans. All in all, a very memorable holiday.
Email Dr Stan Morton | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Superb range of animals and birds in their natural habitat nearby in comfortable accommodation
We accompanied our son Siôn who made the arrangements and his wife Oanh on the safari. We are both over 70 and had never been on safari before. It was a remarkable experience. The accommodation in Hippo Camp was superb and ideally suited to our needs. The individual lodges were spacious with en-suite facilities. The restaurant/ bar area was very comfortable and the food copious and good. It was only a short drive to Selous Game Park where the main area for observation was along a river. This had an amazing array of exotic animals and birds who were using the river for watering or as a natural habitat such as crocs, hippos and dipper birds. Our tireless guide was extremely knowledgeable and used his excellent knowledge of the vast area to take us to some remote places. We also had an extremely enjoyable Walking Safari with an interesting authentic local guide, and a boat safari. It was a really unforgettable experience and we have retained some wonderful memories captured by many photos.
Best transport arrangement
The transport that we were offered was amazing, we were driving on time, and arrived on time, thank you very much!