Our Head Guide Nico and our Signature Hot Lunches
Unlimited Expeditions: The Soul of Tanzania
- Office In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2015)
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $150 to $400 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
Email Lolita | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Incredible Seven Day Safari
The name of the company itself says much. The 'soul' of Tanzania was definitely revealed to us on our incredible seven day safari through its amazing variety of wildlife, beautiful people, delicious food and outstanding service. It all began with Helena, whom I contacted asking for an itinerary and quote. I had contacted several other safari companies but Soul of Tanzania immediately stood out because of Helena. Her replies were so warm and friendly and welcoming. She replied promptly to every email, answered all my million questions and put together a fantastic itinerary for my husband and me. And tailored it to fit our budget as well. Our guide Emmanuel was just excellent! So knowledgeable, friendly and always happy. He knew every bird and animal! We had lovely, lengthy conversations about every topic under the sun and learnt so much about each other's lives and cultures. Our itinerary included Tarangire National Park, Lake Manyara, Lade Ndutu (Southern Serengeti), Central Serengeti and Ngorongoro Conservation Area and Crater. All the lodges we stayed at were perfect in every way - food, rooms, service, surroundings. Our safari drives were amazing and we saw a mind boggling number of animals and birds! We were truly in wildlife paradise. We were pretty much the only people who had a 'hot lunch' every day of the safari while most tour companies only provided a boxed lunch to their guests. Emanuel would spread out the pretty Masai style table cloth and lay out all the dishes. There's usually wine provided at every lunch, but we chose beer (all included). Having a cold beer with lunch on a hot safari day is the absolute best! Our safari vehicle was always kept clean by Emanuel and it was well stocked with cold water (thanks to the mini fridge), juices and beer. There was a charging point to charge our cameras and phones too. In addition to the great service this company already provided, Helena went above and beyond to provide us with after-safari service as well! Our camera got damaged as I accidentally bumped the lens against the side of the car when our vehicle hit a ditch during a game drive. I am now in the process of submitting a claim to our insurance company and I had to get a letter about the incident. Helena once again rose to the occasion and promptly sent me a well drafted letter all within a a few hours of sending my request! Now that's what I call outstanding customer service!
All in all, we loved our experience and we will forever cherish all the beautiful memories we made in this beautiful country. Asante Sana Soul of Tanzania!
BE
Email Murali | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
trip of a lifetime with the best operators
We did this trip in Feb 2020 just before the lockdown. In retrospect, we were incredibly lucky to do this trip since shortly after we returned the world has gone into a lockdown due to Covid-19, and is still in a lockdown.
We did a custom safari that consisted of Arusha national park (1 day), Lake Manyara national park (1 day), Serengeti south (2.5 days), Serengeti north (2.5 days) and Ngorongoro (1.5 days). It was altogether a 10 day trip and it truly was the trip of a lifetime.
With Helena, our trip planner, we planned the trip down to the finest details and customized numerous times. She was ever patient as we tried to make the most of our time and money. We looked at half a dozen tour operators and finally went with Soul of Tanzania because of the great reviews on tripadvisor, the great reviews their guides got (which is the single most important thing in a safari), and lastly that while SOT was not the least expensive it was not much more expensive that other outfitters who did not have as good reviews. Obviously while going to a new continent for the first time with family and young kids, and being in the wilderness for long periods of time, safety and comfort are important. For us, SOT was a perfect combination of cost, quality and internet reviews.
All arrangements such as hotels, permits, safari vehicles, food etc were handled efficiently by SOT and so all we needed to do was just show up. They assisted with the visa process and all other paperwork.While in Tanzania, all arrangements were handled very well by SOT and we could just enjoy the safaris. We are vegetarians and all the places had enough food for us- some places had extremely tasty veggie food. And Nico packed veggie food for our lunch every day to enjoy with the chilled south african wines.
The safari vehicles were in great shape. Nico kept them clean and well maintained which is quite a challenge in the dusty african savannahs. He had an almost unlimited supply of water and juice, and of course wine for lunch daily.The lunches at SOT have been described in great detail and all i'll say is that it was so special to have a nice warm meal every day surrounded by spectacular nature.
The unlimited mileage that SOT has is incredible. Nico drove many hours (2-4 hours each way) to find wildlife far away from the crowds. That's where we saw cheetahs and lions from close by, a zebra giving birth, herds of giraffes and massive herds of wildebeests and zebras.
Nicodemas Modamba was an unbelievable guide- he was in touch with all the other guides over the radio, he stopped and chatted with all the guides. If there was a good sighting to be had, Nico would know it. In addition, he had great eyesight and spotted Cheetahs and lions from a km away. He was knowledgeable about birds and good at spotting them while driving through the rough terrain. He was attentive without being intrusive and was an overall great guide and travel companion. My son fell ill near Ngorongoro national park but Nico was present at all times. as soon as we decided that we wanted to go to a doctor, he immediately took us to a really good hospital half an hour away. The doctors and service was very good at the hospital and my son was good enough to continue on the safari a few hours later. I'm forever grateful to Nico for being so available the entire time.
Overall we had the trip of a lifetime that i had dreamt about for many years- decades even. We saw all the big and small species we wanted to see, we saw a ton of birds (all for the first time), we had close encounters with the wildlife, we felt the magic of Serengeti that morning with three cheetahs lounging next to our jeep, we felt the magic of the land when we saw a huge flock of whiskered terns put on a flying display for us, we felt the love of Africa when we saw cheetah cubs playing with their mom, we felt the power of Africa in big African lions giving us growls and we felt the elegance of the place when a tower of 50 giraffes ambled by us. We could not have scripted such a safari- a lifetime of experiences packed into 9 days.
Don't think- life is short and unpredictable. Book your next trip with Soul of Tanzania and immerse yourself in the greatest show on earth.
A few (!) of our memorable experiences in Africa.
1) our first sighting of the african giants: as soon as we got into Arusha national park, our first safari in Africa, we saw a tower of giraffes along with the zebras.2) black and white colobus monkey in arusha national park. What a sight to see these gentle creatures chewing on leaves.3) hiking in Arusha. We did a small hike in Arusha national park and were within 20 ft of a family of giraffes! they were just across a small stream and it was incredible to be so close to them.4) hornbills in lake manyara: we saw a lot of hornbills around dusk.
5) the great migration: between ngorongoro and serengeti, we saw the migration! thousands of gazelles, wildebeests and zebras along with a huge herd of giraffes.
6) Leopard on a tree
7) Hyenas in the campsite! Hyenas and dik diks were comfortable in our Shushudia campsite in Serengeti. We were the outsiders and had to be careful. You can't walk alone after dark here- it's just too dangerous.
8) Cheetah with cubs: on an early morning in Serengeti: we saw a cheetah mom with 3 cubs and it was amazing to watch her play with them.9) Three cheetah brothers: Nico had some magic eyesight spotting these 3 cheetahs from a km away in the grass. there was no other jeep around us. just the three cheetahs almost at a touching distance.
10) A trio of lions: again we were the only jeep in their presence thanks to the deft work of Nico. The lionesses lounged in the heat while the big lion gave us a warning growl to make sure we left them alone.11) Zebra giving birth. This zebra was lying on her side giving birth and there were a bunch of zebras standing at the sidelines looking at her. We sadly could not wait for the birth since it could take several hours!
12) hyena and wildebeest: right outside our campsite in the Ndutu area of Serengeti, we saw a half eaten wildebeest and a hyena waiting around to finish eating it.
13) Tree climbing lions. twice in Serengeti we saw tree climbing lionesses. once there were 2 of them but far away. the second time there was only one sleeping on the tree but very close by.
14) Cheetahs relaxing after a kill. Three sub-adult cheetahs sleeping in the bushes. Nearby was the carcass of an impala that they had killed and were being scavenged by vultures.15) a group of maybe 500 terns near lake ndutu. These birds were putting up a big display of flying around and landing.
16) Flamingos in Lake Ndutu: we didn;t see flamingos in lake manyara due to the high water levels there but were lucky to see them in lake Ndutu just before leaving Serengeti.
17) Seeing the big five in one evening in Ngorongoro. Just one after in this garden of Eden and we saw a leopard crossing the road, rhinos in the distance and numerous buffaloes, elephants and lions. Ngorongoro is truly a garden of paradise. Just looking into the crater from the above with your binoculars is an unreal feeling. Big beasts roaming around all over- variety and quantity!
18) Bat eared foxes! rare, nocturnal! We were one of the earliest in Ngorongoro crater and hence had the fortune of seeing these animals before they disappeared into the bushes.19) Huge herd of hyenas: maybe a herd of 40-50 hyenas squaring off against each other. in the background, wildebeests roamed around nonchalantly.20) Birds, birds, birds: I think we saw 150 species (we made a checklist) of all the birds on our trip. From large birds like the Kory bustard, ostrich, secretary bird to scavenger birds like numerous vultures, to flocks of terns and flamingos, to birds of prey from kestrel to martial eagles, to the numerous colorful common birds like splendid starlings and weaver birds to the numerous exciting hornbills to the colorful and rare birds like paradise flycatcher and cinnamon bee eaters.
A few tips:Handicrafts are actually less expensive and of better quality in the airport after you clear emigration. it's probably better to buy it there than in the overpriced roadside shops.
Lake manyara, in my opinion, can be skipped. you see better diversity of birds and animals in serengeti and ngorongoro.
Arusha national park is great only for the colobus monkeys. we went specifically to see that. If you are not interested in this species of monkey, you can skip this park as well.
Nothing in this world can beat Serengeti. maximize your time there.
You can check out pics of our trip on https://www.instagram.com/murali_nature_photography/
It felt like an ad hoc freelance organization, thrown together from far away, without care.
The up front communication was relatively professional, but as soon as the trip started so did the problems. We sat in our hotel lobby in Moshi at 7am waiting for the pick up. We were the only guests in the lobby, but the driver was sitting in his van outside, instead of looking for us. The van had no markings to indicate it was from Soul of Tanzania. After about a half hour, he finally came inside and found us, and we were transferred to a safari truck in Arusha, again with no company markings. It seemed to be freelance, arranged ad hoc, and the results felt the same. Our contact at SoT, Jose, when he finally replied later that morning about our pickup issues, wasn't even apologetic. "I was informed by my operations team about the misunderstanding and I am glad that everything was sorted out."
In the truck, when we started seeing animals and asked for the binoculars that were included in our tour, we were told they were broken. Luckily we had brought one not very good pair from home, and had those to share between us. The driver found a pair at the camp that night.
Our driver drove slow on the public roads, when other trucks were all passing us (not a great feeling after a late start thanks to the pickup "misunderstanding"). On the other hand, he flew on the park roads, shaking the truck apart, with thick layers of dust coming in his open windows. We had to ask him to stop when we saw animals. On the first day we noticed that each time we asked him to stop, he would take out his phone and be playing on it until we said "ok, we can go". After asking him to be more involved, thankfully he stopped doing that and told us a bit about the animals.
At the end of a particularly long day, with a morning game drive in Manyare and then drive to the Serengeti, he couldn't find our camp. The sun set, we were exhausted, and we were still in the truck. I was trying to use google maps to help find a tented camp. Eventually we found a park staff camp, and got directions from them to find our camp. We checked in after dark, ate, and slept asap, to get up at 4am for the hot air balloon. Imagine our dismay when, the next night going to a different camp, we were lost again. We stopped at 2 very nice camps, and the 2nd camp let us use their toilet and sent one of their staff with us to show him the way. It seemed like a tiny amount of preparation could have avoided both issues, and especially after it happened the 1st time.
We saw the big 5, and a lot of of animals and beautiful sights, but we couldn't help but feel that we were an afterthought, just thrown into any car with any driver, and when the inevitable issues arose, we didn't find they had any interest in admitting mistakes or making them right. I thoroughly recommend doing a safari in Tanzania, just not with Soul of Tanzania.
CA
Email Samantha | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Trip!!!
After several searches for a safari, we decided to booked a 4 days with Soul of Tanzania. We saw the following parks: Arusha, Tarangire, Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro Crater. It was wonderful! First of all, thank you to Miguel and the customer service team who helped us to book this adventure. Professional and our questions were answered very fast.
Lodges were outstanding. Beautiful location : Tarangire Simba Lodge (Best Pina Colada), Lake Manyara Wildlife Lodge and the Rhino Lodge. Thank you to the staff who served us. Super clean and very good food.
Unlike other companies, Soul of Tanzania offers hot lunches with a flawless little set up. Lunches are taken in the parks with wine. The vehicles are in perfect conditions.
A big thank you to our guide, our man, Heaven! He was perfect for us. He has met our needs. Always ready to go miles to see all animals, especially lions and rhinos. Always listening to what we wanted to see. Very good knowledge and very patient. He knew how to find animals, and how to wait for animals.
Definitely, I would recommend Soul of Tanzania and our guide Heaven.
Email Eve Ford | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wow, absolutely amazing two weeks, so glad we used Soul of Tanzania.
What a fabulous two weeks Safari and Beach. Every lodge we stayed was excellent, with a huge warm welcome and excellent service. Our fabulous guide Nico, was brilliant, we saw so much and he listened to everything we wanted to do, and provided a perfect 8 day safari. We had picnic envy most days, as we sat down to a hot meal with wine, coffee and biscuits.
We finished in Zanzibar, in a fabulous hotel, Paradise.
The service we got from the office, who were very patient with us, when helping us with the plan, and the holiday exceeded our expectations.
Thank You
US
Email Francois | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great tour!
Almost perfect.
Better food and accommodation then expected.
Only caveat: the guide uses talkie-walkie all the time to get tips on where to find animals. People on the talkie-walkie literally talk all the time so you have background voice during the whole safari. Impossible to make a video which was disappointing.
US
Email Kimberly | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Trip of a Lifetime!
My dad and I took a trip with Soul of Tanzania in July 2018 for my 40th Birthday. After much research of safari companies (it is overwhelming!) I chose Soul of Tanzania as I felt booking with a Tanzania-based company was important and I felt there would be a more personal connection to Soul. I knew I made the right choice from the beginning! The sales team, Miguel C (he is wonderful!) and Christina F ,were amazingly responsive and helpful, answering my initial 20+ emails prior to booking. I appreciated that Soul could work with any budget and book with any accommodation in the country, so that I could truly personalize and "splurge" on a smaller, more intimate luxury camp in the Serengeti while starting off with nicer budget lodges in Tarangire. Back in December 2017 I had originally requested Ben to be our guide, however he had since been promoted to Operations Manager (congrats Ben!) by the time we took our safari. However, Deo, who was hired to replace Ben, was amazing with his 22 years of experience, internal GPS, bionic eyes, quick and witty sense of humor, deep SOULful voice, and signature "pose" for photos :) Not only did we see the Big 5, we saw the Migration herds, a Black mamba snake and Deo pointed out when we saw a "baby, 200 year-old" Baobab tree in Tarangire that we probably would not have appreciated otherwise. Deo became a friend and we enjoyed spending time with him whenever we could! There were small, but nice touches of hospitality and service; Deo surprised me with buying my favorite popcorn at the visitor's center while I was in the restroom, Deo gave me Tanzanian shillings for a souvenir so that I didn't have to trade in USD. Deo went above and beyond to provide an amazing safari experience.
When we initially booked the trip, we booked for 2 nights in the North Serengeti, however the migration herds were still in the West come July. Ben and Deo and the staff made arrangements for us to switch lodging so that we could stay in the west to see the herds! This was much appreciated and we were so grateful to be able to be close to "The Greatest Show on Earth," and witness this very special natural event.
Soul had also been informed that I was celebrating my 40th birthday, so they had made arrangements ahead of time with the Pakulala Safari Camp at Ngorongoro crater (highly recommend this camp!) with a personalized birthday cake, candles and singing around the dining tent to the "Jambo, jambo Bwana/Kilimanjaro." None of the other guides were in the dining tent and I was worried Deo wouldn't be there, but he came to sing and celebrate--it honestly wouldn't have been the same without him; it's a celebration I'll never forget!
We enjoyed the hot picnic lunches and all of the lodges were beautiful and hospitable, particularly the Kiota Camp in Central Serengeti and Pakulala Camp in Ngorongoro. I have had several friends inquire about my trip and many want to know which company I booked with; I am excited to share with them about Soul and Deo and can confidently make these recommendations. Asante to all!
Email Christina | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Life Changing
It has taken me a long time to write this review, because I have found it hard to put into words how utterly incredible, soul-nurturing and life changing my Safari with Soul of Tanzania was. From our first communication, it was clear that this company was a cut above the rest. As a sole traveller who has previously owned and run my own tour guiding business, my standards are pretty high! I value ethical and responsible tourism, and Soul’s commitment to minimising plastic waste was very important to me; as was their commitment to employing great guides (knowing I would be in a car alone with one for 6 days!)
The level of service I received was excellent – every email got a prompt reply, and all of my questions were patiently answered. I got a thorough briefing at the beginning of the tour, and was made aware that I could contact the operations manager at any time with any issues. Not that I needed to… Because from the moment I met my Guide Emmanuel, I knew I had made a great decision in choosing Soul of Tanzania.
The six days that I spent with Emmanuel were the most amazing and freeing six days of my life. He was a consummate professional - friendly, engaging and funny. He indulged my endless questions (really, I had a lot…) and patiently taught me all the Swahili words and phrases I wanted to learn. Tour guiding in Tanzania is no walk in the park – the distances are vast, the roads are challenging and the guides speak all day in a second language (I can’t help but empathise, having been a guide myself...) Emmanuel made it look easy, and I appreciate how incredibly hard that is to do.
Each morning the car was clean, stocked with warm food (in reuseable containers), wine and water; and I was greeted with a huge smile and a brief for the day. The car had a fridge and, very importantly, chargers for phones, laptops and cameras (which would quickly run out of battery with all the use they were getting!)
Emmanuel took the time to get to know me and learn what I wanted out of the Safari, which meant that I got to spend the time seeing all that I wanted to see. I had no interest in the ‘Big 5’, I just wanted to experience the animals and landscapes as we encountered them – from the adorable Mongeese, to Jackals, thousands of different types of birds (which Emmanuel could name all of), and the hundreds of thousands of peaceful herbivores of the plains – Gnu, Twiga and Pundamilia. Seeing them all was a thrill to me – and the up-close encounters with Leopards and Lions was a bonus. Each day my experience of the last day would be exceeded – from a huge convergence of Zebra ringing out their chorus in Tarangire, to a hunting Lioness in the Serengeti, to the incredible, unimaginable and awe-inspiring spectacle of the Great Migration.
Emmanuel was skilled at finding positions that allowed for photos free of obstructions, yet remained incredibly respectful of the animals we were watching. By day three, and heading towards the Northern Serengeti, my heart was loosening – jolted free by kilometre after kilometre of rutted tracks, and by hour after hour of watching animals at leisure, work and play. Until this moment, I had not understood what it is to be wild, to share in the vastness of nature untamed. Every day Emmanuel would say to me, “Christina, you are free”… And for the first time in my life, in that great wilderness, I felt that I was.
I went specifically to see the Great Migration, and we were lucky enough to witness three river crossings in one day in the Mara Region. That incredibly special landscape has captured my heart forever, and I feel so grateful to have experienced this with Emmanuel. Thank you Soul, for your commitment to the wild places of Tanzania; and thank you Emmanuel, for making my short time in the wilderness such a unique and memorable experience. As you drove, and I stood on the passenger seat with the wind in my hair, I lost a part of my soul… Forever left to wander into the endless horizon, under an ever-changing Savannah sky.
Asante Sana.
You will see me again :)
MT
Email Godfrey Grima | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic, the stuff of dreams.
We have been to a large number of countries and this was not our first African safari, having already visited South Africa and Swaziland before, but our trip to Tanzania was definitely one of our very best trips ever anywhere. We travel a lot, in fact these last 12 months alone we have been to Italy, Norway, England Russia and India (tiger safari). The trip in Tanzania was perfect throughout. We wanted to have a good safari and then a couple of days relaxation at a beach resort and so we contacted Soul of Tanzania. They were very helpful and patient with us in the planning stages. When we were happy with the package we paid and waited for the day to come for our trip. As soon as we arrived we were picked up by Nico our driver/guide. Nico was a very knowledgeable and efficient guide and a superb driver. He knew we wanted to see as many animals as possible and he worked hard, from dawn to dusk to make our dream holiday come true. Whenever he spotted something (which was all the time) he always expertly and deftly drove up close to the action. We came up close to all kinds of animals including lions, but we always felt safe and protected by Nico. He was always calm and great to get along with and answered all our questions. He was patient with our requests. He knew we wanted to see the Great Migration of the wildebeest and with his expertise he managed against all odds to drive us to within feet of this migration crossing the Grumeti River. National Geographic stuff!! One day our game drive stretched beyond sundown, (due to distances involved) and he turned the rest of our drive into an impromptu night game drive!! He used to keep an eye out for the time due to the large distances involved yet always give us enough time to enjoy the wildlife milling around us and to take all the photos we needed. The jeep was always kept spotless and well supplied with drinks and goodies, and when it was time for lunch he used to park at the allotted site, lay out the tablecloth and serve us hot lunch, tea and biscuits much to the envy of other tourists with other companies who happened to be near by. When it was time to leave we left behind us a friend. If I had to go back I would simply head straight for Soul of Tanzania offices and if possible ask for Nico! The rest of the holiday was spent in Zanzibar at the Gold Resort (another review). Well done Soul of Tanzania. Everyone did his job to perfection, from planning to implementation. We know why you chose that name!
US
Email Matthew and Kristin | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Soulful and Exhilarating
My wife and I did the Soul of Tanzania safari, the 8day, seven night package and our only regret was that we couldn't do it all over again when it was over. We had an unforgettable time. There was never a dull or frustrating moment.
Starting from Arusha, Soul of Tanzania (SoT) put us up in a very comfortable hotel, The Africa Tulip. From there our guide, Pius, otherwise know as the Lion Whisperer, drove us from park to glorious park. Pius (pronounce Puce) was an incredible guide and a very safe and skilled driver. With a week in the car together and over each meal we had a lot of time to get to know each other. Pius was kind, funny and honest and my wife and I will always remember him. If we ever make it back we will surely ask for him to be our guide again.
Since every safari vehicle is bound to the dirt roads/tracks of the parks it is essential that the guide has his own intuitive sense of where to take you in order to avoid crowds and spot rare animals. Pius did all of that. We saw a cerval cat – very rare. And we must have seen close to 70 lions. We even got to see lions feeding on a freshly killed buffalo, which we heard being killed the night before from our tent! That may sound scary to some, but we never felt like we were in danger throughout our safari.
Soul of Tanzania provided an incredible adventure with some luxury to boot. My wife and I feel very lucky to have found them when we were researching safari outfits, Pius' stellar skills as a guide and the company's fantastic customer service helped to create one of the most unforgettable travel experiences of our lives.