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Email Davide | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Six day safari (luxury option). Pros and cons
Victor replied to my request for a quote very promptly. He arranged a pick up from Arusha airport for the following day. We discussed the details of our upcoming safari in his office in Arusha, and one day later we were on the road for our 6-day safari. After making contact with Victor, we researched a bit better and came across a few reviews about him which put us a bit off. In particular, what didn't convince us was the fact that he suggested to pay half the safari via card and the rest via cash - without giving us valid explanations as to why he preferred this option. We insisted and eventually we paid the total via card. There was a minor change in the original itinerary, which he told us about the day before departure, and which did not really change the quality of the trip. As mentioned, we were a bit concerned given the previous negative reviews (not of Care Kilimanjaro, but of other companies he managed in the past). I have to say, in the end we were actually very positively surprised. He threw in the price an extra night of accommodation (the first one in Arusha), the pick up from the airport, and upgraded us to a better hotel for two nights of the trip. He was also very kind to send one of his guys early in the morning to our hotel, two days after the safari ended, because we had realised we had forgotten our Tanzania travel guide in the car. This was really kind of him.
Our guide duirng the safari was Peter. A knowledgeable guide, but we had a few instances in which he wanted to impose his agenda over ours. In particular the first day, when he was pushing for us to go to a curio shop to buy souvenirs at the end of the first tour of Tarangire National Park. We politely declined and said we preferred to stay longer in the park, to which he told us that we wanted to teach him his job, and even accused us of manipulating the other couple that was in the car with us to agree with us on not going to the shop! We were all quite shocked by such an angry reaction. Also, at times during the trip, he was rude with my wife - to the point of telling her "I don't talk to you", more than once. Very unpleasant.
Besided these episodes and the lack of manners, he did his job and drove us safely to the Serengeti and back. Also, he was good in spotting animals during our game drives.
Overall, our experience with Care Kilimanjaro was good - in spite of all the concerns we had before the departure and despite the difficulty we all had in dealing in a relaxed way with our driver. The car was solid, and Peter solved quickly a couple of mechanic problems. The hotel choice was really excellent. The animal spotting was impressive: we saw 25 lions during the whole trip (some of them hunting), two leopards, three cheetas, a black rhino, and countless elephants. Well done Peter in spotting the cheetas and well done to me (Mr Lucky, as he called me) in spotting the second leopard in Lake Manyara Park ;-)
Victor means well but he needs to be more organised. He told us initially we would have been six people in the car. It turned out we were four (two couples). This meant more space, of course. But then why did he tell us six? On the second day a fifth person joined us. This person, and the other couple with us, also complained about the conflicting info we all received about the group. This is not a major problem, but makes people a bit suspicious and shows that the tour operator is trying to squeeze in different travellers with diferent packages into a single car. So in brief he should be more transparent and more organised. Also, the whole cash Vs credit card payment was confusing. One of our fellow travelers, who joined us for one day only, had to handle cash given to her by Victor to our driver, and then to another driver later in the day. She seemed (and rightly so!) quite stressed having to carry around about 900$ in her purse. This was, obviously, unprofessional of Victor.
Again, more tansparency is needed, so that people who have spent quite a lot of money on a safari trip can relax and just enjoy the scenery, istead of having to deal with all these issues.
Safari in Northen Tanzania
We booked a tour with Care Kilimandjaro in June 2015 (10 days) in order to discover the wildlife of Tanzania.
3 days in Serengeti and Ngorongoro with an excellent guide and cooker.
We visited Kilimandjaro area, waterfalls, Masai tribe around Arusha and Mto wa mbu for culture.
Everything was well.
If an unexpected event happens, Peter finds quickly a new solution.
Average User Rating
Rating Breakdown
- 5 star 4
- 4 star 2
- 3 star 0
- 2 star 0
- 1 star 0
Disclaimer
- All corporate and/or tour info is provided by Care Kilimanjaro, not SafariBookings