Hilary and Martin - owners of Suricata Safaris
Suricata Safaris
- Office In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2016)
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $190 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
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Email Andrea | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Perfect First Time Safari Company
It was my and my husband's first time in Tanzania and our first safari and I feel like we're spoiled now. Not only did we have excellent luck and saw all the Big Five and had great weather (visited beginning of November, end of the dry season), but we were so well taken care of as well.
We arrived in Arusha by bus and did a 3-day tour to Serengeti and Ngorongoro. Hilary met us at the hotel and went over how the process works. He did a good job placing us in a group with people our age and experience (other first-time young people). The hotel isn't going to win any awards for luxury, but the staff was helpful, the bed soft, and the breakfast very good.
The safari itself was amazing! Our guide was super knowledgeable and had amazing eyes to spot wildlife. You can tell he really cares about the animals and the landscape as well as the clients. Our first meal wasn't really to our taste (a lot of meat), but the chef did a great job adjusting and all our subsequent meals were excellent. The ride is dusty, but you don't need to worry about your clothes getting dirty. Layers are good because the sun is hot, but the wind in the jeep is cool. The tent camping isn't ideal if you need a hot shower and soft bed every night, but as far as camping goes, it was very comfortable.
We ended earlier than the rest of our group so the company arranged a ride for us to Arusha. They also picked up return bus tickets (we came from Mombasa). The hotel and Hilary were also accommodating by switching our breakfast for dinner since we left very early.
Overall, we had a great time! As a first time safari, we appreciated the handholding and help. We had such a perfect time and if we come back, I know what company we'll book through.
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Email Tanner | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Big 5 Safari Experience with Excellent Guide
We had little time for a safari, so we loved Suricata Safari's 3-day option. Hilary, the owner, set everything up for us, from the hotel the night before and after the safari in Arusha (with breakfast included) to the jeep pickup from our hotel and making sure we were all set to get transport out of Arusha afterwards. All the meals on the safari were included and delicious (our chef rode with us and prepared everything to our group's needs like vegetarian and gluten-free).
Our guide made sure that we had an excellent experience in Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater. We saw all the animals we could've asked for: face-to-face with lions, multiple black rhino sightings in the crater, giraffes at sunrise, elephants grazing, a cheetah hunting, even a leopard lounging in a tree. And of course there were tons of zebras, buffalo, wildebeest, hippos, and monkeys. Our guide did an amazing job spotting animals that none of us saw (since he's been doing it for 17 years!) and he made sure to give them space while double-checking with us that we were enjoying it and had enough time at each encounter. He made us feel taken care of and I would recommend him to anyone going on a safari.
We slept in tents at the camps and felt safe. In the Serengeti, it was warm and bug-free. On the crater rim, the weather was colder and we were visited by bushpigs in the night.
When I set up the tour, I communicated with the owner directly and he explained all the details. Bring USD in cash to make the payment easier. Hilary met us at the hotel the night before the safari to help us with the payment and explain the entire situation. If you go with Suricata Safari you'll have no worries.
CA
Email Matthew | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Experience of a lifetime!
My wife and I just finished a 7 day/6 night safari through Tarangire NP, Manyara NP, Serengeti NP, and Ngorongoro NP. From the start we were impressed with Suricata; the cars were all very clean and well maintained, the campsites were comfortable with good amenities(free WiFi!), and the program was fantastic. We saw all the 5 big plus every other animal imaginable. We were even lucky enough to see a cheetah hunt its prey, a lion fight and a Rhino in the Serengeti. Along the trip we were also shown a Masai village and a traditional market.
We cannot recommend our guide Elias and our chef "chef" enough. Elias was incredibly knowledgeable and always catered to what we wanted. I was impressed when he would wash our 4x4 everyday. He could answer our questions honestly and has a wit about him that made him our friend. He consistently went above and beyond to give the best safari experience.
Chef always had food ready for us to start our day, a nice packed lunch and then a hot delicious meal ready for when we returned at the end of the day. It's amazing what he would cook for us each day while camping. A nice little touch provided was a bottle of wine for dinner every night.
Hilary was always easy to get ahold of prior to our arrival and while on safari with any questions we had.
We thoroughly enjoyed our Safari experience with Suricata and would highly recommend Elias and Chef to any further clients.
The only catch we ran into was make sure to bring 100 dollar US currency that is 2009 and newer as older bills are not accepted across Tanzania. All smaller US currency will be accepted regardless of date issued.
We LOVED our Suricata Safari!!
We just got off the trip of a lifetime and it was all due to Suricata Safaris!! Our awesome driver Ezekiel and a super talented chef Charles made it all possible. Those guys along with the owner Hilary make a great team. They all worked above and beyond to make our trip better than we even hoped for. These guys give you the same safari as the bigger companies but at a better price. I HIGHLY recommend this company if you are ever in Tanzania for a safari. All pics so close and only with a cell phone!!
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Email SH | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful!
About a month before departure we booked a 3-day/2-night safari which was budget friendly (searched through safaribookings.com, then paid a deposit through PayPal). Hilary (owner) was always available by email and definitely flexible with our requests.
We visited the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater and were able to see every animal including the elusive leopard, but unfortunately not the few rhinos (still very lucky)!
Our tour guide Johnson and partner/chef Philipo were more than accommodating and we were happy to have such a duo!
For our very first safari we could not be more pleased and would recommend this company to anyone.
Asante sana!
SK
Email Blanka | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Three days safari with Suricata
The safari tour was well organised. All we agreed via WhatsApp with Hilary. He pickup us at the airport and drove us to the Jevas hotel, where we stayed the first night. The hotel was fine. Our guide was on time to pick up us in the early morning in the hotel. Then we passed pretty long way to Serengeti. However the roads are bumpy, it was not so bad, as the Jeep was comfortable and spacious. On our way we saw a lot of animals. Starting monkeys in the first camp, then all the other Serengeti animals, like giraffes, zebras, gazelles, big elephant, lions ... most of animals were in the Ngorongoro crater. It was great to see how they live all together in relative piece in such nice place. Our driver and guide was very knowledgeable about animals, nature and told us a lot of nice stories about the life there. He was taking really good care of us; like we were his children :) The nights in camps were very exciting; sleeping in tents with animals around; we met elephant, buffalo, zebra, hearing the hyenas and other animals in the night camp. In the camps were buildings with toilets and showers with warm water, simple kitchen and also building for serving meals. We really enjoyed our 3 days in wild Africa. The only bad impression was that there is already too many cars, that disturb animals in their daily life.
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Email NOva | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best Masai Mara Safari
Best Masai Mara Safari Experience
We did a seven days Safari with Suricata Safaris and it was one of the most memorable experiences ever. We drove North to camp at Lobo so we could see the Migration of the Wildebeest. It was a long drive but it was worth every moment. We drove through the Ngorogora Crater, the Serengeti, and what was most amazing was what we saw on our way to Masai Mara. It was like driving through a scene in a Discovery documentary. We saw all sorts of animals and games, we were also fortunate to see some prey huntings and much more. The scenery is breathtaking further North, it was absolutely unexpected and we couldn't have asked for a better Safari experience. We saw all Big Five, we were lucky enough to see three Rhinos not too far from us, all thanks to the spotting eyes of our driver, Ezekiel. He is a very experienced driver as the road to the North is quite tricky, but he managed to navigate it with ease while still spotting animals for us to take photos of. We were comfortable with Hilary from the get go, he made us feel welcomed and we had no issues with him. he even invited us to free dinner upon our departure. We highly recommend Suricata Safaris as they have exceeded our expectation in many ways. The value was well worth it and it was incredible to know we didn't need to break the bank to do a safari
IE
Email CiaraG | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic safari experience
We went on a camping safari with Suricata safaris in September. We had a fantastic experience. Firstly I managed to book the wrong date and arrived a day later, the guys at Suricata were extremely accommodating and managed to fit us onto another tour. Mandela and Salem went with us on safari. Mandela is a fantastic tour guide. He knows everything!! He answered all of our questions and is a very nice cool guy! Salem is an excellent chef, we enjoyed all of the brilliant meals he prepared for us and we never went hungry. I definitely enjoyed the camping experience. Suricata is a fantastic new company that cannot be bet on price
IT
Email Archis Joshi | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Unforgettable experience!
Everything was organized perfectly, the driver and guide Mandela and the chef Emmanuel were very concerned to keep us all happy.
Mandela is very much prepared on all the wildlife facts and info and very available to hear our suggestions and expectation so to try to fufill them.
The nice meals prepared by Emmanuel were a perfect company to our 5 days safari
CL
Email Daniel Aravena | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic Safari, great staff
We were unsure about booking our Safari in advance as we have had received offers from different providers and we felt most of them were expecting us to bargain. Out of them all, Hilary's quote was the most complete and crystal clear from the beginning. He contacted me on Whatsapp and from then we had great communication. He arranged pick up from the airport pretty quick (we confirmed only 24 hours before our arrival) and everything went perfectly. He even arranged transportation for us in Arusha in our day off at a very convenient rate. Regarding the Safari, simply fantastic. Driver Edgar was clearly quite experienced and patient and chef Dioniz Adam was very funny and his dishes were always delicious. Our trip was always above every expectation we had. Campsites were well located (and beautiful), tents were good quality and truck was comfy with power outlets for our mobile phones. We were always in good position for pictures and saw some impressive landscapes. You know you're in good hands when your driver is leading the pack when spotting animals and that's what these guys have provided. Will recommend Suricata to all my friends. Very good Safari for a fair price. Can't get any better :)