Fig Tree Tours and Travel
- Located In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2015)
- Member Of:
- TANAPA & BRELA
- Tour Types:
- Small & medium group tours (Budget & mid-range)
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $195 to $850 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
_3696_5c3e3d48c4740.gif "Fig Tree Tours and Travel")
Reviews
Email Ingrid | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
What a way to start your year!
Chose Fig Tree based on the type of safari we wanted to do, the reviews and, of course, the budget friendly price... so happy we found them! We did the 7 night safari with our 2 boys, ages 14 and 13. Pick up was on time at Kilimanjaro Airport and we were driven to our first night's stay at Vijiji Centre in Arusha. Spent a happy afternoon at this lovely place and got all the info for the next few days from John. He was very accommodating and went out of his way to find budget-friendly options when we asked for something more lodge-like to stay at before the tour, seeing that we would have a whole afternoon free beforehand. The park visits were changed around due to others joining our tour for shorter tour options. This didn't change where we went and actually seems to have worked out better. We first had a Romanian couple and then 2 young Austrian guys join...had such a nice time chatting to and sharing the tour with them all. Frank, our guide, is definitely the stronghold of this tour. He is so knowledgeable, a skilled driver, great with people, speaks good English and is really well-liked among his peers. Masewa (spelling?), our chef, produced beautiful meals, enough to satisfy all our different tastes, as if from nowhere! His facilities were so limited and yet we never went hungry or dissatisfied. We felt very lucky to have had these 2 on our tour. The tour included Serengeti (2 days), Ngorogoro Crater, Tarangire and Lake Manyara. All the parks are amazing in their own way. As far as accommodations go do keep in mind that this is very much still Africa... but saying that, we loved every minute of our 'budget' Safari! Really glad we opted for the slightly longer tour as we got to see and experience so much more. We happily recommend Fig Tree tours! I do have to add though, unfortunately, that we missed our flight to Dar Es Salaam due to John being involved in a car accident on his way to fetching us. This did leave us in a bit of panic, since his phone had no battery and he could not let us know what had happened. The very helpful manager at our accommodation, Mzunguu Lodge, sourced a taxi for us and even though we managed to arrive with an hour to spare, the plane was overbooked! Thankfully there was another flight a few hours later, no connecting flight to panic about (we were staying in Dar for a couple more days) and a lovely restaurant under the trees to wait at but it did taint the experience a bit. He did apologize profusely and also insisted he'd pay for the taxi (we had since gotten back in email communication...we had local simcards to make our lives easier) Such a pity that this had happened but overall we couldn't fault our experience and as such still happy to give 5 stars.
PL
Email Artur | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Everything as promised. Enjoy Fig Tree Tours
Everything was as promised except of pickup time on first day. Although we were picked up after 7 we left for Safari after 10:30 am because car was waiting for people booked in different companies. In the car each one of us had safari sold by different company but it was not a problem at all.
Safari was better the expected. We have seen thousands of animals and all kinds that were possible to be seen in Serengeti/Tarangire/Ngorongoro. Tents were very basic but that's what was in the offer :)
Food was good. Car was little bit used but still ok. Driver was great and very helpful.
For sure I can recommend this company :)
IE
Email Simon | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Safari - budget friendly
My girlfriend & I did a 3 night/4 day tour of Tarangire, Serengeti & Ngorogoro crater.
It was the perfect amount of time to cover a range of habitats and see all the wildlife on show.
Fig tree were the most competitively priced safari we found, we expected there to be trade off in quality here.. but there wasn't. We stayed in the same campsites & followed the same routes as most of the premium priced operators. The food was good, and our guide excellent & knowledgeable. Most importantly we got up close with all the wildlife.
I found John very helpful in the entire booking process. He accommodated our request to upgrade to a lodge for one night (which I would recommend as its an amazing experience) and generally the safari far exceeded our expectations.
I was slightly apprehensive paying a sizeable deposit in advance, however this is standard requirement for most safaris and its definitely worth it for having the peace of mind knowing its booked in advance.
One small criticism is that the details of the itinerary moved slightly over time, this did not make much difference in the greater scheme of things… but if you are they type that gets hung up on this keep an open mind to minor changes.
I would have no problem recommending John & Fig Tree tours, and would use them again next time I safari in Tanzania!
DE
Email Andrii | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Good organised, tasty food
Our guide Frank was very professional and helped us every time!
RU
Email Nikita | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
ngorongoro, tarangire
everything is super! met at the airport, placed in a hotel and taken to a 2-day safari. I made a prepayment through the fig tree tours website, there were no problems! we really liked the cooperation with this company, I recommend it to everyone!
Good service and atención.
We enjoy whith my family. Amazing experience. Quick comunication and excelent service.
IT
Email claudia | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Unprofessional as they did not follow the agreed plan
I have contacted Fig Tree for the positive reviews and for the reasonable prices, though, I did not have a good experience for a number of reasons. First of all I was given a program and ended up doing another! So a piece of advise, make sure you are very specific on your requirements, making plenty of research and you get a program confirmed in writing exactly as you have understood it and you want it. I have asked for a 5 nights budget camping safari with 3 nights inside the parks (2 in serengeti and 1 in Ngorongoro) and I got instead a 5 nights with only 2 days inside the parks (1 in serengeti and 1 in Ngorongoro) I never asked to go to Tarangine and we found ourselves spending the first day there instead of Serengeti and slept outside the park. Serengeti is big, if you do not spend at least 2 nights inside you waste a lot of time traveling between parks and you don’t enjoy much time game viewing! In fact out of so called 5 days in reality you do 4 days of which 1.5 days game viewing and the rest is traveling or waiting). Second of all you need to know if you are going with the actual company car and driver for the whole trip or not. In our case they just gave us a freelancer driver with other people from other agencies, sometimes they do this in case they don’t find enough people to fill the car and they don’t have drivers available. Funny enough we were 6 people coming from different agencies and we all had the same program but ended up doing another one. Or we were all stupid or it is common for agencies to be unclear and unprofessional. We got 2 different drivers in 3 days while another couple which stayed longer got 3 drivers in 4 days ending up wasting time and therefore money (we got delayed a couple of times during the trip for missing payments from the company to the driver, literally 2 hours waiting!). Third of all you need to make sure you clarify in advance the amount of tips to give to the staff; we were told we had to give 10 usd per day per person to the driver but we ended up having to give tips also to the cooker, which was not expected. Ref. Tips it would be much better for the company to pay for the drivers and cookers and include that amount in the overall price! It would avoid misunderstandings and uncomfortable situations and leave the customers choosing if a tip is worth to be given (tips should not be forced!). Fourth of all, be aware of the extremely bad conditions of the public camp sites, overcrowded with dirty facilities! I have been camping several times in Zimbabwe and other places and the experience of the camping is incredible, you are immersed in nature, hearing the animals around you after a nice meal cooked on the fire. In Tanzania the experience is far from this; I have never experienced such crowded camps and you loose completely the connection with nature (if you are in a safari for this reason!). You will only hear people talking, and more, all night and no sound of animal! Also, be aware of the commercialization of the safari and expect many cars around; if you are sensitive about animals conservation it can be quite overwhelming seeing how many cars can surround a lion surely disturbing them... Our driver was old school and very sensitive about this matter which I have appreciated. After all I could not recommend this company as after the trip and discussing the program issue they are still insisting they did nothing wrong. And note I have confirmation in writing of the 3 nights camping from them! Literally unprofessional.
BZ
Email Asako | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Wonderful Experience. saw over 50 species animals.
I stayed Tanzania 5nights 6days. Owner John welcomed me at airport at the first day. John was flexibly dealt with me, show me masai market, coffee factory, rested in venice hotel arusha. 2nd day, private tour to Masai Villege. took a while to start the tour, didnt expected to walk so much but i could see the masai house, hear singing and beautiful view. went to shopping in Masai market at the end. the Guide Emanuel was so kind and gentle. 3rd day, went to Seregenti. I was told to depart at 6am but it was 7:30am. but John apologized me and fixed.10:30 pick up tents at sunbright campsite.12:30 took the time to across the boarder of the park, ngorogoro, 15:20 seregenti gate. 16:35 Game drive started. It was late so only 1 hour game drive, but Guide Frank let us see the cheetah''s family. 17:45 pick up other guest which had car trouble. 18:00 reach camp site and built the tent. no hot shower, but comfortable in sleeping bag/mat/tent. 4th day., 6:00am depart for game drive in Seregenti National park.(my favorite)we saw Lions,Leopard,and many animals.11:30 back to campsite, ate branch. 13:00 leave for ngorogoro. waited a while at the gate again. 18:00 arrived nogorogoro camp site. i heard hot shower and wifi available but only cold shower at night. it was very cold but loved the camp. 5th day, 6:00am went to ngorogoro crator,2nd day game drive, had already saw Big 5 include rare Black Rhinoceros, thanks to patience of guide Frank. he was bit rough,not explain whats happening, but there are reason how he do. so i trusted and followed him then we made the day. even had 2 time tire flat, went happy unforgettable day at the end. We could stay Nice cotage at sunbright campsite with hot shower. Chef albert cooks delicies, but he didnt tell us the menu, so i didnt know what is next or how much should i eat apptizer or main like that. 6th last day, went Tarangire. we had already saw major animal a lots. so this was relaxation game drive, more elephants and birds.i had evening flight so Guide Frank and John took me the kilimanjaro airport , escorted me and brought the delicious coffee i ordered at first day. Thank you very very much for wonderful experience. I shall return.
Email Fahad | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A well organised wonderful safari experience
The communication with John from fig tours was excellent. He arranged a 2 day safari of ngorongoro crater and taringere national park. We had pickup from the Arusha airport and he booked our accommodation as well, making everything hassle free. That evening, he came over to brief us.
Our driver (Freddie) was incredible. He was very knowledgeable, having been a guide for 5 years. He kept us entertained and always tried to ensure we got the best view of the animals. At one point, we were less than 15 meters away from elephants!
John also arranged transport at the end of our stay to the airport and was very good at keeping us informed of everything. Our experience was incredible thanks to both Freddie and John!
KW
Email Ravi Maruti | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome tour Experience with family and kids
Tanzania is a beautiful place with lovely people. I recommend people to go with family especially kids. You love it. Great Safari's Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tangerang, Lake Manyara, Mt Kilimanjaro and many more like Hot Spring Kikuletwa / Chemka ..
Our tour operator Fig Tree tours & travels. Mr. John made the tour so comfortable and much more than what we expect. Food and Accommodation and safari... amazing experience, and I highly recommend him for economical prices among all.
My 5 years Kid enjoyed a lot the tents in the camping. And the food they served hot and tasty.
We viewed a lot of animals like Elephants huge family, plenty of lion prides, wildebeest, gazelle, giraffe, birds, ostrich, bedfellows,hynah, leopard, Zebras, antelopes, what not. all. Masai Village visits too
and had a great relaxing experience at Kikuletwa Hotsprings swimming and jumping in the clear water. And visited coffee plantations and coffee factory and bought freshly roasted beans and coffee.
Really want to mention Mr. John, Who picked up from KIA airport and dropped at Airport after all 7 days Trips & Safaris. and made our tour very comfortable.
I really recommend him, because, of the hospitality, responsibility all around 24x7 and the best part is very economical price comparitive to any operator.
* all campsites have WiFi, safe and Dining Halls, great tents, sleeping bags.
