Our Dedicated Team brings Together diverse skills
Migration Venture Africa
- Office In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2015)
- Member Of:
- TATO, TTB, MNRT & TLTO
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $200 to $1,500 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
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Email Bonnie Evans | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Outstanding coordination and flexibility
I was the leader and planner of 26 Firendship Force ambassadors from the Atlanta area. I chose Migration Venture Africa to organize and coordinate with me a three week adventure that covered 2300miles of Tanzania. With due diligence and communicating with at least 5 other outfits I chose this company because of superb communication skills, flexibility, positive attitude, knowledge and great human interpersonal skills. The owner of the company, Amos Lufumbilo, had great management skills and worked with me over a year on our amazing journey. We had his company do all the intracountry transportation and transfers to and from the airport. There were a couple of small snags but Amos was right on it. He assisted me in planning a philanthropy visit with Msamaria Street Children School where there was great need. The day after I arrived he took me into Moshi to buy bulk food and supplies for the orphanage and even arranged a truck to transport it there for me. The food was enough to feed the orphanage for two entire months. We also gave school supplies and toothbrushes to the children. It was such a joyful experience that left such an impression on our group. One of the first days we visited a privately owned organic coffee plantation where we observed bean to the freshest coffee ever. We particularly loved the men singing and dancing as they did the work. Next event was to hike up part of Mt Kilimanjaro which was suppose to be just a 30 minute hike but turned out to be 6.5 Miles round trip. One learns that Tanzanians interpretation of time and distance is quite different than ours. It was a narrow path going up and down. When 10 of us saw the last steep climb, we decided to stay put and sit on the river rocks and soak our feet in the cold clear water. We could see the waterfall in the distance. We had a casualty of one of our women slipping with dislocating her ankle and breaking it in three places. Amos and our tour guides were supermen in getting her down off the mountain and carrying her about a mile and a half on their backs so a motorcycle could rush her to the hospital. Amos was a hero in that he got the orthopedic surgeon to come into the hospital to care for our ambassador. He stayed with them and made sure they got back to the Mountain Inn and got them to the airport that next night. Her husband and her raved about Amos and how he handled the emergency.
Our group booked the 6 day 5 night Northern Circuit Safari where my suggestions in accommodations and tent camps were accepted. The Bougainvillea Safari Lodge, Osupuko Tented Camp Serengeti, Rhino Lodge Ngorongoro were all either satisfactory or fantastic. The Tented Camp did not serve any grilled game meats so that was a dispppointment. We had Cape buffalo and Elephants visit our camp. The game drive each day was awesome. Each park had its own personality. We did not see any rhinos. We had four safari vehicles with pop up tops where each person could see out. Our driver did not want us to stand on the seats but we did after taking our shoes off so we could see better. You get up close and amazed at the animals . The roads getting to Serengeti are horrid with sand blowing in your face and the condition of the roads. Someone with bad backs or necks should not do this adventure. It is an adventure of a lifetime. Only 9 of us did the Balloon Safari over the Serengeti which is very expensive but once in a lifetime experience. I highly recommend it. We also visited a Maasi Village and meet the people who wore colorful robes, danced and sang for us. The chiefs son told us more about the Maasi and their customs. We were allowed in their compound and were able to go inside one of the huts.
It took us two days of driving to get from Moshi to IRinga where we would stay with a Friendship Force Iringa family for 5 nights. Halfway we stayed in Morogoro at the Arc Hotel which was a good place except that the government had torn up the roads and gave us a challenging maze and gutted roads to get to it How our drivers managed to get there is extraordinary.
We met up with our Iringa Hosts. The Iringa Club ended up hiring Amos’ tour vehicles so we could be transported from place to place. Their driving skills are to be admired. We would say something was impossible and they would conquer it. We did find the Tanzanian people to be very gracious and live using just basic needs. We were requested many times to donate to a list of needs by the club, church, schools and villagers that we visited. Our group dedicated the seed money for a deep water well, 290 uniforms to the Primary age children of the school as well as a huge pile of school supplies and a piece of candy. We visited two other city type schools wher the needs were not as great but we donated at each school supplies.
Amos grew up in Iringa thus he knows the area very well and stayed in town while we were there. He even attended some of the Friendship Force events which was so gracious of him. He normally does not go along on the adventures but he went on ours. He contributed immensely to its success.
Our next and last Safari was to be at Ruaha National Park since it was close to Iringa so we could visit a park that did not have the swarms of tourists as the Northern Circuit did. It was a real treat. We did several safari drives and even a safari walk but I recommend you just stay and stare in wonder at Ruaha River Lodge which was phenomenal. Even the food was terrific. You each have a banta that overlooks the river where scores of animals roam as well as exotic birds. Elephants same right up to the sides of our porch and walked right in front of us so close that one could touch them ( we did not ). The rooms and common area are tastefully decorated with first class design. Everyone of our members would had loved to had stayed here two additional nights instead of just two since all we wanted to do was stay at the banta or common areas all day and watch the animals. There was no need to go on a drive. The accommodations were located right in the park. Do yourself a favor and stay there. You will love it!
We had another two day drive with the same stop on Morogoro on he way back to Moshi. Our home base was the Mountain Inn where we started a total 7 nights. It is okay but there are not much choices in Moshi. The rooms are simple but adequate with a bathroom that had a shower, sink, toilet and shelves. The restaurant needs great improvement since both the breakfast and dinner buffet was always cold. The staff was wonderful and did their best to assist us in any way they could. The Inn has nice gardens and a clean pool which one will enjoy. It is all secured and only about 20 minutes from downtown and about 45 minutes from the Kilimanjaro Airport.
The paved roads in Tanzania are also challenging since there are no traffic lights. They use high speed bumps to slow traffic down which are jarring. Bring a cotton kerchief to cover your face when on the sand roads.
I highly recommend Amos and his staff. They were all gentlemen and professional. We enjoyed making friends with them that we will treasure for a lifetime. The company exceeded our expectations.
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Email anonymous | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Was part of Friendship Force group, which included safari and separate trip to Iringa.
The safari part of the trip was outstanding. The Ruaha NP was rather bland after the excitement of the earlier parks (Serengeti, Ngorogoro, Manyara, etc.) The only real negative was the Arc Hotel in Morogoro. The hotel itself was very nice, but getting to it from the main road was extremely laborious and time consuming, especially when we were travel-weary to say the least. Certainly there could have been something more convenient. Overall, Amos and his team did an outstanding job of coordinating the trip. Thank you!
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Email John Wilhelm | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful attention after a trip ending injury.
Unfortunately my wife broke her ankle on the third day of our trip and we missed the safari portion. Amos, our trip leader summoned help to evacuate her via dirt bike and car to the local hospital. She was x-rayed , diagnosed correctly, put in a splint and released for a return home. One of their staff drove us to the airport for our return to the US. They did everything they could to help us make the best of a tough situation. I would highly recommend their customer care and sensitivity.
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Email Marcia | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
This was an amazing adventure which included multiple safaris in 6 different national parks.
Our USA tour leader did all of the original communications and arrangements and was the key communicator throughout our tour. She did a fabulous job. We got information throughout the tour from Amos, although most of us wanted more information sooner, and sometimes we felt he was too brief in his explanations, or rather terse when we asked questions. The overall tour exceeded my expectations. We had wonderful accommodations (marginal at Mountain Inn in Moshi, but otherwise great.) The drivers were excellent. We loved having CP and Sam. They spotted things we would have missed, shared information about what we were seeing, and were very friendly, polite and fun. It wasn't as good when Amos was in the car talking loudly either to the driver or on his phone. Then we felt like the explanations and overall experience were interrupted for the rest of us.
The vehicles, especially for Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Lake Manyara were not in good repair. Ours didn't have working seatbelts in 2 of the 6 seats, one of the seats kept moving on its track so we rarely used it, and we experienced clutch failure twice. Others mentioned their very worn out vehicles, too.
Beyond that, I was thrilled by the amount of animals and birds we saw, and surprised at how close we came to many of them. It was a disappointment not to see a rhino, but not totally unexpected. Overall I was delighted with the total experience and felt that Amos and Migration Venture Africa set up a wonderful tour for us. Thank you so much for safely showing us a bit of your beautiful country!
Email Jude | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
it was an once in a life time experiance
i would highly recommend this company The staff were very polite and courteous and eager to please with all requests to find animals on safaris The choice of accommodation was excellent and food Vehicles could have been of a later model My only complaint is that as a female travelling on her own that you have a card displaying the company name to identify and not a verbal phone message at the airport as it can be very daunting in a strange country
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Email Bobu | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Dream trip of lifetime with difficult and strenuous tansportation.
The guides/drivers and itinerary were outstanding! Guides knowledge of game preserves and animals was top notch. There are no suggestions for improvement. Some of our vehicles were old and in need of replacement, causing delays in already long days. Most hotels and tents at Serengetti were outstanding. Mountain Inn staff needs better training on providing service and how to serve hot food.
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Email Larry Lavenberg | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Trip
I thought our trip with Migration Venture was fantastic. They thought of everything! Our guide, Ninah, was an expert on the habits of birds and animals and where to find them. It was obvious that he loved his work and he was really good at it. All the guides were courteous and thoughtful and helped to make this trip unforgettable.
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Email Jodi | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
I was part of a larger group that booked Migration Venture Africa for our safari adventures.
The people who are part of Migration Venture Africa were all great, as I found all Tanzanians to be. The company was very attentive to any issues or concerns, however my only request would be that they invest in newer safari vehicles. The vehicle I was in ended-up breaking down along side the road, after a day and half fidgeting with the radiator.
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Email Judy | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
My "bucket list" adventure was more than I could have imagined.
The safaris I experienced were many and varied. We spent several days in each of 5 different national parks and saw so many animals so close up, I was amazed. The accommodations were excellent with good food, hot showers and friendly staff. It would be impossible to choose one best experience or sighting but without doubt I can say that the Ruaha River Lodge stay is one I would like to experience over and over. The setting was so serene, the food so good, the animals so close, it's hard to come up with the words to describe it. Our guides were knowledgeable and lots of fun to travel with. Overall, a wonderful experience with a director who was very accommodating and did everything he could to meet our needs.
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Email Charlene Clements | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful! especially enjoyed the guide Nina in the Serengetti.
what a fantastic trip starting with my airport pick up and ending with my airport delivery. I especially enjoyed the knowledgeable guide we had for our visit to the serengetti national park. Nina was a wonderful guide and I highly recommend him. Our accommodation at the park was a wonderful tent.