Asante Safaris Inc
- Located In:
-
United States
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 1998)
- Member Of:
- TTB & ATA
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $200 to $1,300 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
6 days Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater safari experience
My experience with Asante Safaris was simply amazing!
Renny took every measure necessary from start to finish to ensure we had the trip of a lifetime. From helping me to craft the perfect experience that would fit within our budget to actually being present when we first arrived for our safari, my wife and I were never in any doubt that we were in good hands. The communications and service were excellent.
Going into the safari itself, I had extremely high expectations. Doing a safari has always been a dream of mine, so the bar was already very high. And it's fair to say that the safari experience that Asante Safaris organized for us not only exceeded, but crushed our expectations. Our driver, Honest, was top notch, and gave us complete control over the experience. If we wanted to sleep in one morning and start our safari drive a bit later, no problem. Likewise, if we wanted to have a morning drive and then relax by the pool at our hotel during the day, and do another drive in the evening, no problem. I can't rate this guy highly enough.
Overall, I rate this experience 5 stars. I think the true measurement of the success / enjoyment factor of a trip is whether you would do it over again. I am someone who loves to travel, but have limited time, so there are very few places I would go back to a second time. Not because, I don't enjoy the places I go, but simply because there's not enough time in one's life to experience all there is to see and, therefore, in order to go back to the same place more than once would mean it has to hold extra special meaning. I feel like this trip is one such occasion which we would experience again and again. It's a once in a lifetime experience, and you'll be in good hands with Renny and the rest of the staff at Asante Safaris.
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Email John and Mary | 65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Choosing Asante Safaris to plan our Tanzania Journey was our best travel decision ever.
We initially reviewed a number of travel companies and selected Asante because of the sample itinerary (including Selous Game Reserve) and PURE luck. Renny Hunt (the Asante resident-in-chief based in Arusha) and Ricky Sirikwa (Guide extraordinaire) made our safari a truly great experience. The personal attention (from planning and pick up on arrival in Arusha to departure from Zanzibar) was exceptional. The lodging selected was a delight. Kubu Kubu Tented camp is a Serengeti gem, casual and in an extraordinary location (Wildlife up close and personal...giraffes strolling by our balcony, wildebeests and lions along the road, a never ending delight). Other lodging we would highly recommend is Arusha Coffe House, Ngorongoro Kitela Lodge and Fumba Beach Lodge in Zanzibar. The Serena lodges were also excellent but a tad formal for us. Kubu Kubu and Kitela were casual and friendly. Our guide was welcome to join us for dinner...we found those two lodges a welcoming place for ALL.
We chose October to avoid the crowds. Our game viewing was exceptional, even including mini migrations of Wildebeests while at Kubu Kubu.
Renny was a a wonderful host, including a great dinner at a local street barbecue in Arusha. Ricky guided us flawlessly on the first leg of our journey, and he has a true feel for the wildlife in Tanzania. Our trip to Selous was a real treat (Crocodiles and lions galore, and even a giraffe that made a special appearance for our departure). Zanzibar was just plain beach time and relaxation
To sum it up: WE WILL DO THIS AGAIN.
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Email Mike Carlson | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Asante Safaris exceeded all expectations!
It's hard to put into words what an amazing life experience it was to safari in the Serengeti and travel across Northern Tanzania, but I'll attempt to do so. This was the greatest trip I've ever experienced. Our driver, Honest, was fantastic. Incredibly knowledgable, savvy, friendly - like traveling with a family member. The sites and travel routes were impeccable. We saw all of the Big 5 within days. Ngorongoro is a must stop - breath taking to see in person. Our trip was customized to meet our needs and all suggestions were fantastic. I would recommend Asante Safaris to any traveler considering a trip to Tanzania.
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Email Cindi Cervone Carlson | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Perfect Three Weeks Created Just for Us
If you want to go have the standard safari and pay an astronomical amount of money for it - then your typical big box safari company will do. BUT, if you want an adventure that is created and customized just for you, that gives you access to places and people you wouldn't typically have...all with incredible service, support and friendship...then Asante Safari is for you!
Every single person that we have told about our trip say the same thing afterwards (even those that have gone on safari) "Who planned your trip!? That sounds incredible!" It's true -and on top of that Renny and Honest are family to us now. They opened up their hearts and their country to us and it was truly life changing.
My husband and I travel a lot. There are not very many places in this world that I say we'll come back to...but Tanzania is different. Tanzania feels like home now and it's 2 months later and I'm already itching to get back.
Thank you Asante Safari. Love you guys and see you soon!
Email Moez | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Faultless organization and wonderful team
We sought the help of Asante to organize our honeymoon in Tanzania. We wanted it to be memorable so we decided to go for a 3-week trip including a climb of Kilimanjaro, a safari and relaxing time in Zanzibar. We started planning well ahead of time and Renny, the owner, was wonderfully helpful. She always answered promptly the countless questions I had and the advice she gave me regarding the organization of the trip and lodges were extremely valuable.
Thanks to Asante, our honeymoon in Tanzania was the best trip of our lives. It is very difficult to put words behind what we have experienced in Tanzania thanks to Renny (the owner), Muhammad (guide in Kilimanjaro and in charge of coordination on the ground) and Honest (our safari driver).
Our Kilimanjaro climb was memorable. My wife and I have actually never camped out before so this was a ‘first time’ for many things! The scenery we saw was breath-taking and was changing every day. This was certainly not an easy challenge but Muhammad and the team helped us hold on until the last day. Muhammad, Oforo (the guide) and Ilyas (the assistant guide) were there for us all the time, always answered our countless questions and helped us so much during the long hikes by keeping the moral up and adapting the pace. Thanks to the team, we took it slowly and did not experience any serious altitude sickness. This was one of the most emotionally-intense experience we have ever had.
The safari part was dream-like. We were like children discovering the animals in the Lion King (for that matter, we have watched the movie again in one of our lodges and it was really funny to do so and recognize some of the Swahili words and the animals!). Honest really was a wonderful guide. He knew everything about the animals and always answered our questions. He is very cheerful and easy-going, always in an excellent mood and ready to help for anything we wanted. He knows the routes perfectly and was absolutely stunning in spotting animals from far away. We were very lucky as we have watched so many different things: beautiful scenery, the big 5, prides of lions, a baby leopard climbing a tree, a mother cheetah with 2 babies, 3 male cheetahs chasing gazelles, hyenas killing a baby gazelle (during the hot air balloon safari), a gigantic wildebeest river crossing (the most impressive thing I have ever seen in my life!). The comfort and quality of the lodges was exceptional and we were very impressed by the quality and sophistication of the service.
Finally, in Zanzibar, we had a wonderful and relaxing time. The beaches were beautiful in both Pemba and Paje. The food was very good and we loved the atmosphere in the island, particularly when we spent a day in Stone Town. We were amazed by the cultural wealth of the island.
During the whole trip, whenever we had special requests Muhammad always managed to make them happen. The organization really was faultless. Hats off! The Asante team really knows how to organize a bespoke trip to Tanzania and make your every single wishes become true!
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65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Excellent VIP trip with Asante Safaris
Renny and her team at Asante Safaris put together an excellent itinerary and executed it very well.
This was a VIP safari organized in large part around Mwanaidi Maajar, then Tanzanian ambassador to the United States, so an added element was meetings with H.E. President Jakaya Kikwete and other high government officials.
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65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Small group experience in much of Tanzania
The best trip of the year was to Tanzania with the owner of Asante Safaris. We went first to Ruaha national park, part of the Great Rift Valley. There were many baobab trees, and we stayed at a private tented camp. Our next stop was Selous game reserve, a World Heritage Site that has wild and unspoiled miombo woodland. We stayed at a lodge on the Rufiji River. Both of these sites were great for birding! Next we spent a couple of days on Zanzibar Island and stayed in historic Stone Town. We visited some of the beach resorts and did the spice tour. Then we went north to the area usually visited by tourists on safari: Lake Manyara Conservancy, Tarangire national park, Ngorongoro Crater, Oldupai Gorge, and the Serengeti. We stayed at lodges and camps, and saw so many thousands of animals of so many species that it was incredible. Travel from site to site was on 12-passenger planes.
Pre-trip communication was thorough, so we had no adverse surprises. Service was extraordinary, possibly due to the owner's being with us. Our local guides were very, very knowledgeable!
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very hands on experience from planning to completetion! Extremely understanding and forthcoming !
We were nervous about the whole trip. Renny and team ( family) made us feel very comfortable with all the goods and Bads of a safari. Most importantly, Asante Safaris was with us all the way , including pickups , transfers, proffessional guides, and very comfortable accommodations! We are already planning our next Safari with Asante Safaris. Have no objections whatsoever in recommending Asante Safaris !! Keep up the good Service!!
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20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Wonderful Honeymoon in Tanzania/Zanzibar
A wonderful experience with Asante Safaris. They were so helpful even from the first email, answering all of our questions, customizing our trip to be perfectly suited for what we wanted, and providing hands on help and guidance while we were in Africa. We loved our driver, Honest, and would highly recommend him as you venture into Ngorongoro crater and the Serengeti. He will provide you with so much useful information and insight into what you are seeing and where to go. We couldn't imagine using another safari company!
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Email Hy Goldberg | 65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Trip of a Lifetime- A Wonderful Experience We Will Never Forget
My wife and I just returned from THE trip of a lifetime. This was much
more than just another African Safari tour. We were introduced to Renny, a
native Tanzanian, running her own family Safari travel agency in New
Rochelle, NY. Whenever my wife called with questions about the trip (and
there were many), she spoke directly with Renny. What a pleasure not
having to speak with a different agent every time we needed information.
The best part, aside from the outstanding service, was the recommendation
of a Private Safari. We had our own exclusive, experienced, tour-drive
guide everyday. I would highly recommend Asante Safaris to all of my
friends. Costs were very similar to other safari vacations we priced out,
but they provided us with additional personal service both before and
during our trip.
Everything was customized to our needs. The lodges & tented camps were all
top quality and Renny had personal knowledge of where we should stay
according to our location. The trip was more than just safari everyday.
Interspersed was a flavor of east African culture. Renny knows Africa!
Important to me was seeing the wildebeest migration and river crossing
like you see on National Geographic. We traveled in September and the
wildebeest aren't in the Serengeti that time of year. She personalized our
trip to begin in Kenya at Masai Mara Game Reserve to witness the crossing.
When we needed to get to a distant location, we would fly local African
airlines instead of wasting a whole day with a long 6+hour jeep ride. We
saw everything, and up close. Lions, elephants, cape buffalo, leopards,
giraffes, zebra, wildebeest, warthogs, hippos, rare birds and much more.
Sometimes we were no more than 5 feet away (in our Land Rover) from a
pride of lions sleeping off a recently finished meal. We did the hot air
balloon ride over the Serengeti, visited a Masai village and our last
afternoon a private Hippo boat ride on the Rafiji River in Selous.
Renny and Asante Safaris made our trip an experience we will never forget!