Visit Tanzania - Eastern Sun Tours
Eastern Sun Tours & Safaris
- Located In:
- Size:
- 10-20 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Member Of:
- TATO, TTB & TAWTO
- Tour Types:
- Custom budget & mid-range tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $240 to $1,100 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Anna | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent Service
a group of 4 of us travelled to Tanzania in December over Christmas for a week of Safari. I contact Mercy from Eastern Sun around June/July about our prospective travel plans, she was wonderful and quickly set out an outline of the trip. Communication was excellent, and the service provided by Mercy and her team was good as I went and forth with her to make sure all details of the trip were perfect, and fit in with the rest of our travel plans. The lodgings Mercy picked for us were very good and we have a great Christmas meeting friendly people at the different sites! The driver also spoke well and had good knowledge of the area we were travelling in and the animals we were seeing and the trip would not have been the same without him! The whole group had the most amazing time with Eastern Sun, and I'm thankful that I picked this Safari Operator.
US
Email Anne Moelgaard | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An unforgettable experience!
We chose Eastern Sun Tours Safaris based on their excellent reviews, and they certainly did not disappoint! We have never traveled in Africa before, so it's so important that you book with a trustworthy company - it's a lot of money, and a good chunk of it has to be paid before by a bank transfer, but everything worked 100% and we had absolutely no issues with anything. Nancy emailed us as soon as the transfer went through, to let us know all was well, and we felt in very good hands.
From the beginning, the communication with Nancy was excellent. She responded promptly always and answered all our questions. The 8-day trip she ended up putting together for us was just amazing.
I think we were very, very lucky to get Hassan as our driver! He's probably the best driver, I've ever driven with. He knows his landcruiser like an extension of his own body and always adjusts the speed to the conditions of the road and the traffic. We felt very, very safe with him. On top of that, it is obvious that he is very well liked by his peers, and has a ton of friends (not surprising, when you get to know him!), which means he always knows where the good sightings are. He'd "smell" a leopard from five km away, and then drive straight there and get us in the best spot of all. He did this over and over again, it's like he knows exactly where the animal is heading and can place the car right where it will cross the road fifteen minutes later. Amazing! We got absolutely stunning photos of two cheetahs walking straight toward us and crossing the road right behind our car. And an unforgettable experience with nine lions trying to ambush a wilderbeest - it got away, but it was still very exciting. We even got to see the almost extinct black rhino in the Ngorogoro Crater quite close up. It felt like every day was better than the day before - which had also been absolutely unforgettable.
We started in the Tarangire National Park, and had to stop every two minutes to take photos of new wildlife. We soon discovered, that if we stopped for every single one, we'd never get anywhere, there were so many new species. We totalled 42 different species of mammals during our trip, and this includes lion (we saw over 60 in total, including the most adorable cubs), leopard (five in total), cheetahs, elephant, buffalo, rhino (one), giraffes, serval cat (rare, because it's nocturnal), hippo, hyena, jackal and lots of different types of gazelles and other mammals. And that doesn't even cover the birds, which were also absolutely stunning.
Next up was Lake Manyara, where we spotted our second leopard, when it ran across the road right in front of our car. Wow! Then the road to Serengeti took us through the Ngorogoro conservation area - so, so beautiful! In Serengeti, we decided against taking the long drive to see the big migration, but stayed in the proximity of the hotel (Four Seasons - amazing!), and we saw so much there, that we did not regret it. This was where we had our close-up with the two cheetahs and Hassan also found a spot where a big group of lions were feeding on a newly killed zebra.
In Ngorogoro, we were lucky to see a black rhino. We were told, that the three days before we came, there had been no spottings, and we were lucky to get close enough to get good photos, which was also rare. Be sure to bring a good camera with a good tele-lens! I saw people trying to get safari shots on a go-pro camera (I'm not kidding) - what a shame to spend so much money on a safari and come home with go-pro shots. Go-pro is great for mountainbiking, for safari - not so much... That being said, we actually got so close to many of the animals, that we came home with great iPhone shots, too.
We ended up in Arusha National Park, which is small (it didn't feel small at all, though), and absolutely stunningly beautiful. We went on a walking safari with a ranger there, and got up close to giraffes and buffalos (not too close, of course). That was fun! We also got amazing photos of flamingos flying in front of Mount Kilimanjaro. Ahh...
Another highlight of the trip was our visit to a Masai village on our way back from Serengeti.
The car is a Toyota Landcruiser with a roof, that pops up, so you can stand up and take photos. There is a powerpoint, so you can charge your devices, which was a very nice feature. And also a cooler for drinks. It was surprisingly comfortable, considering how much of the driving was on dirt roads (where you get the "African massage"). We stayed at luxury camps and lodges, and they were all amazing, but I'm sure you can also get a great experience with the cheaper lodges. Most of your time is spent on the road anyway. I think, Eastern Sun Tours Safaris got some good deals with the lodges - we felt like we got a lot for our money.
I could go on and on, but to sum it up, I'd go back in a heartbeat. And I'd definitely choose Eastern Sun Tours Safaris again! They were amazing!
US
Email Sevgi | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
3 day safari
My friends and I had limited time in Tanzania, Eastern Sun Safaris was able to easily arrange a short safari. Working with the staff, especially the kind owner Mercy, was so easy! We were able to arrange everything over email, and they were very flexible with our travel dates. This was my second safari with Eastern Sun. The last time I used this company was in 2014. The safari is wonderful, the tour guides are respectful & knowledgeable. The accommodations are great. Food was good. Tanzania is beautiful. I always felt safe. I plan on using Eastern Safaris again in the future, and would recommend the company to anyone!
TH
Email Mark | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Such an incredible experience
This was an incredible experience for both of us, and we couldn't be any more happy with our Safari. We were on a little bit of a budget for our particular Safari, and what Eastern Sun was able to do with the budget we gave them far exceeded our expectations. The hotels were very nice, the food along the way was delicious, and all equipment including the car was well above standard. I would also like to say that Mercy was incredible in handling the millions of questions I had before we even got to Tanzania and was very quick with all of the changes I threw at her. Our guide Richard was incredible and had incredible eyes for spotting wildlife I never would have seen. He had very good knowledge of all the parks an answered our questions very well. He was also very enjoyable to be around and to stay with for the five days. The only negative about our Safari was a small confusion or error about the final payment. Everything was completely legitimate, however, there was a mistake on the part of Eastern Sun that caused a bit of a scramble towards the end of our Safari. However everything was handled in the end. It was just s shame to leave on a sour note. But other than that I couldn't recommend the Safari more and you will be definitely happy with what they put together for you
ES
Email Nacho | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari experience with Eastern Sun Tours, incredible trip!!!
We did a safari of 5 days with Eastern Sun to Tarangire Park, Serengueti and Ngorongoro Crater and the experience was amazing!!! The trip surpassed our expectations in every posible way. The kind and always prompt attention of Mercy, the unique and outstanding skills of our driver Amani, who was extremely kind doing his best so we could see as many animals as possible. We were able to see hundreds of thousands of animals, migrating, eating, playing, hanging around. The lodges picked
by Eastern were great! Like the ones showed at a travel Magazine. We will definitely recommend choosing Eastern Sun as a company that provides a great deal for doing a safari in Tanzania!!
Asante Sana!!!!!
US
Email Rich and Tonya | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Thank you Eastern Sun!
Thank you to Mercy, Richard and the team at Eastern Sun. Four of us took a tour of the Serengeti, Tarangire, Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro for seven days and six nights with Eastern Sun. They did a great job setting up the lodging and getting us to and from Arusha. Mercy is an honest broker and Richard is a capable tour director. Thanks again Eastern Sun!
Email Megan Pearson | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Unforgettable Experience with Eastern Sun Safaris
Eastern Sun Safaris delivered on every level. We booked our 5 day Safari directly with them and Mercy was fantastic with her communication. We changed our dates and flight times on numerous occasions and Mercy just fitted in around our requests.
The accommodation we stayed in was recommended by Mercy and was a mixture of wild camping in tents with animals sounds sending you to sleep at night, as well as more established camps such as Olduvai Camp in the Nngorongoro region which has a beautiful setting around a Kopje ( an outcrop of large rocks). All the accommodation was fantastic.
The food at each camp was very tasty, especially when you realise that some of the camps are truly in the wild and the cooks are working with very basic equipment.
Hassan, our guide was a very safe driver which is important in this part of Africa as the roads are often dirt and can turn to slippery mud after the rains. He was amusing and the more we chatted to him the more knowledge he imparted to us.
We were keen to see the Wildebeest Migration so chose the southern part of the Serengeti as February/March is the time of year when the wildebeest are giving birth on the flat grasslands in the south. We were not disappointed and had many wonderful animals sightings with Hassan's knowledge of the Serengeti knowing where to go to see the best sightings..
I would wholeheartedly recommend Eatern Sun Safairs to anyone wanting to visit the Serengeti. It was an unforgettable experience.
CH
Email family a | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
private safari, 5 people
we wanted a private safari, so we described via e-mail before our trip, what we want to do and see and Nancy organized everything accordingly.
she has chosen really great accommodations and on the trip we have seen many different animals, including the big five.
on safari you drive a lot - luckily we had a driver who showed us all the interesting places and we could just enjoy and relax...
AT
Email Philipp | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent tour operator
Our driverguide Nerick and his team made our trip to an unforgetable memory!
AT
Email Herbert | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Everything perfect
Good service, good equipment, nice guides, perfect locations and lodges.