We will show you Tanzania Better than Anyone else
Tanzania Mwangaza Safari
- Office In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2008)
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $120 to $600 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
for a custom tour
Your request will be sent directly to the operator
If preferred, you can contact the operator directly
Reviews
FR
Email Peter M | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The perfect safari for a very competitive price
We did some tough bargaining to get the safari into our too low (I must admit) budget. What often happens when bargaining too much, that the quality is not as good as hoped for, did not occur with Mwangaza. We have no complaints whatsoever about the safari, the transport, the accommodation, the meals, the excursions, they all were perfect.
Before going to Tanzania we had inquired about prices for safaris and decided that they were far beyond our budget. Once in Tanzania, we found out that the safaris in the Northern region are 'expensive', but there are 'cheaper' solutions. And the cheaper solutions seem to be more like our kind of tourism, as they are not as standard and industrialized. Finally we booked a 4 day safari to Mikumi and Udzungwa.
During the trip, now and then we felt a little ashamed when we heard how much more other tourists had paid for the same safari. Although installed in one of the more expensive hotels (Double Tree by Hilton) of Dar Es Salam, Mwangaza comes up with very competitive prizes.
We had two full days in Mikumi National Park. We saw elephants, lions, hippos, zebras, giraffes, warthogs, antelopes, wildebeests, wild dogs, monkeys and many birds. We saw them all in very good conditions (< 10 meters). The drivers are very well organized in communicating spots among each other, so if there are lions somewhere, all the tourists will see them. This means that there will be 5 or 6 cars at the spot (when we were there in Januari).
The first night we spent in Vuma Hills Lodge (they call it a 'tented camp', this means that a tent is hung up within a 5 star bungalow structure which allows a good protection against mosquitoes) within Mikumi National Park. The food (set menu) is very good, the coffee too and the beer is cold, even though electricity is not permanent. There is a very nice small swimming pool as well. If you go to Mikumi, make sure you spend the night in Vuma Hills, it was our best accommodation experience on this trip, and one of the best overall. You only can stay there if the admittance fee to the National Park is paid for during both days. You may purchase some souvenirs as well, they seem rather authentic and reasonably priced.
In the National Park and on the way to the lodge, there are many tse-tse flies. This is no reason to panic, they don't seem to be carrying sleeping disease, at least not all of them, not many tourists get infected. They are still a harass, so protect yourselves as good as you can. It seems that bright colored clothes are better, as the flies prefer 'buffalo colored' surface.
The second and third night we spent in Bastian Lodge, outside the National Park. This is also a nice place with good food, coffee and beer and a nice swimming pool.
The third day we went to Udzungwa. As a Dutch national, I was surprised to find out that the waterfalls are called after Prince Bernard, with his picture at the entrance office. We did the 'light' trek to the pool at the bottom of the waterfall. This was already quite an effort. To go to the top, you really should be in good shape. We had a nice swim in the river.
The fourth day we did a 'before breakfast' safari tour, and that is when we had the closest look on lions, elephants and giraffes. It seemed that they were not as scared in the early morning, but I don't think that has a scientific basis.
After breakfast and a short swim, we left for the airport. We asked the driver to make a stop in a souvenir shop and we were very happy he did, because at the brand new airport terminal there were almost no souvenirs for sale ant the ones that were far too expensive.
We had a wonderful time and would like to send our warm thanks to Sultan Mwangaza, the real African mama tour operator, who perfectly understands our westerner's wishes and comes up with a real competitive package deal, in which there is no risk of unexpected expenses. In the deal is explicitly stated what is included (almost everything) and what is excluded (beer, wine, tips, souvenirs).
JP
Email Ena | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
African savanna!
I was very grateful to have you pick me up at Dar es Salaam Airport even at around 3:00 in the early morning. They also helped me purchase SiM cards, which have nothing to do with the tour. The tour itself is about 7 hours from the airport, with a one-way break to Mikumi National Park. The road was paved and it was a Japanese car, so the ride was not as bad as I thought, but it was still hard for 7 hours. They always drop in for a rest break (we chose a beautiful place if you could, and asked for a beautiful place). The driver was fluent in English and very kind. In the national park, transfer to a jeep and go to safari for about 4 hours on the first day. The animals you see seem to change each time, but you can also see rare (?) Lioness. Accommodation is not possible or impossible, but it was necessary to be careful that a big monkey came to open the door to the entrance.
On the morning of the second day, we had a safari tour, but we couldn't see any animals in terms of time. The jeep driver changed in two days and seemed to be a person who explained a lot and a person who took time to take a picture. It was a wonderful tour to experience the Tanzania savanna in a relatively short time.
(automatic translation from Japanese)
Email Alexander Cleland | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic, Mwangaza was very well organised and organised this safari without any hassle.
The communication was amazing. They organised without any hassle what so ever. Mwangaza was great to deal with. I couldn’t have wished for a better safari experience. I couldn’t fault this company at all.
SE
Email Fredrik Strebel | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Safari in Selous
We booked everything through the fantastic woman Mwajabu Sultan at Tanzania Mwangaza Safaris & Tours. She arranged our days in Dar Es Salaam perfectly and then we went on a safari. Easy transfer by plane to the park. We had two fantastic days at Yoho Ya Selous which is a fantastic camp with wonderful rooms and staff. After the safari, we flew straight to Zanibar simply and smoothly for a week of relaxation.
US
Email Iliana Jivkova | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing business!!!
My friend recommended this company and we couldn’t be happier with our experience! 24 hrs customer service, excellent communication, personal touch, and so much more! Everything was just the way we planned it. Beautiful Safari with nice guides and drivers! And for our surprise we got a complimentary taxi on the last day or our stay in Tanzania. The taxi picked us from the Ferri, drove us around the town, store our baggage and waited for us to have dinner and then drove us to the airport- all this for no charge!
FR
Email Mons | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
fantastic safari! the 5 days passed too quickly. Atmann is a very good guide. I highly recommend you
Fromage airport to airport everything is very well
CH
Email Angela | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing
We spent some amazing and beautiful days in the Mekumi Nationalpark. We want to say a big thank to Mwatabu and her team.
US
Email Derek | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Poor experience
Never in my life have I written a negative review, so I honestly feel bad about this post. However, if I were a potential customer of Tanzania Mwangaza Safari, I would want to know this information.
I was volunteering at a hospital in Dar es Salaam for a few weeks and decided to splurge on a safari at the end of my trip. I chose this safari company because they were affordable ($1450 USD) and offered a 4 day/ 3 night trip that fit my time constraints. The communication and payments prior to the trip were excellent. Turns out that nobody else signed up for this particular trip so it ended up being just myself and the driver.
Day 1 - Departed right on time and the day went completely as expected on route to Selous. We did get delayed for 1.5 hour behind multiple trucks stuck in the mud and blocking the road, but that just goes with the territory of travel. Went on an evening boat trip with another group, with a French speaking guide, but he was nice enough to offer some info in English to me.
Day 2 - Driver showed up 1 hour late then had me wait while he went to the restaurant and ate breakfast. We then drove to Selous entrance gate where we waited another 1.5 hour for him to locate a guide for the day. I watched in envy as dozens of others tourists arrived in plane and jeep and went on safari while we sat on the side of the road waiting for the guide to arrive from the neighboring village. I just chalked it up to inconveniences associated with a budget minded safari. Other than that, it was a great day in the park with many animals seen.
Day 3 - Driver showed up 1 hour late again. The day was supposed to be a sort of game drive on our way through Selous park on our way to an afternoon game drive in Mikumi park. The driver told me he needed to drive quickly so he would not incur additional park fees. As a result, absolutely zero wildlife viewing happened as we drove at 70 kph through Selous. I thought the vehicle might completely come apart as we sped along the rough roads. We ended up with three flat tires we throughout that day. The spare tire and jack were not suited for the fixes so the driver and I spent hours that day collecting stones in the brush, crawling in the mud under the jeep to precariously prop up the vehicle, and stopping at a roadside tire shop. I am amazed that one of us did not get seriously injured they way we were forced to rig the jeep for the tire changes as the jack and stones repeatedly did not hold thus dropping the vehicle violently back to the ground. It took us 14.5 hours to make it to Mikumi that day so our planned afternoon safari definitely did not take place. It is a budget trip and all part of the adventure, right?
Day 4 - We made plans to go on a half day game drive in Mikumi prior to our drive back to Dar. Unfortunately, the driver showed up 2 hours late that day and was unreachable by phone. Mikumi was beautiful , but we only had two hours in the park before we had to make the 8.5 hr (normally much quicker, but we had to drive slowly because of the tires) trip back to the city.
I realize I am incredibly fortunate just to have the opportunity to go on safari in Tanzania. Perhaps my expectations were far too high for a budget safari. Looking at their current reviews, it appears I am one of the only customers to have a less than optimal experience with Mwangaza so take this negative review with a grain of salt. However, when I look back and realize we spent 31 hours driving, 8 hours waiting for the driver and fixing flat tires for only 8 hours of actual safari related time, I feel this trip was far from worthwhile in terms of time and cost.
In summary, even though the people at Mwangaza were very nice, I personally had a very poor experience with them.
TR
Email Okan | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
very nice
Mikumi Safari (2days/1night) was a very nice experience for us, we have enjoyed the tour.. Thanks to Sultan for her warm support and Mwangaza Safari.
BA
Email Marko | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
You won't regret it - one of the best experiences in Africa
All Safaries that I found are at least 2-3 days and I believe that there are more things to see on those safaris. If you don't have much time and you are in Zanzibar I would recommend this trip to everyone. For 200$ you get a full day of an unforgettable experience, good lunch, and amazing pictures. You can trust Mwjabu completely!
This is nature so of course, there is a bit of luck and maybe you won't see all the animals (I didn't see lions, rhinos or elephants) but just to be there in Savana is amazing! I was on a trip to 29th Feb and I saw giraffes, zebras, gazelles, antelopes, a lot of monkeys, birds like flamingo or eagles... I was on all possibles trips in Zanzibars and I would say that this one is number one for me!
