In front of our office
Northern Circuit Adventure
- Located In:
- Size:
- 5-10 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Member Of:
- TATO & TTB
- Tour Types:
- Small & medium group tours (Budget & mid-range)
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $195 to $580 per person per day (USD, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email David and Lynda | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic, well organised, great staff and a value for money tour.
My wife and I went on a 5 day / 4 night tour of Tanzania in March 2015. After doing alot of research online prior to leaving Australia we found that Northern Circuit Adventure covered all the same places that the other safari companies did but cost a lot less. For this reason we decided to give them a go and were certainly not disappointed.
The manager Mike was great to deal with via email prior to us leaving and was able to customise a tour based on the dates that suited us and places we wanted to go. He organised somebody to pick us up from the airport and take us to his office and then the hotel in Arusha.
Our tour itself was also even better then expected. The driver and tour guide (Elias) was extremely knowledgable and managed to spot pretty much all the animals we could hope to see. Our cook Sweetbart dished up tasty meals every night and breakfast in the morning, as well as providing plenty of laughs and conversation during our dinners etc. These guys (along with the animals of course) really did make the tour a very personalised and enjoyable experience.
We would highly recommend saving your $$$ and giving these guys a go. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
NO
Email Jon Bakken | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Well laid out 2,5 day Safari tour
We booked the tour based on recommendations and were not disappointed. We were picked up promptly at the small Arusha airport and taken to the Cloud View lodge, which is a small hotel on the outskirts of Arusha. The hotel was Ok and quiet.
We had a good briefing of the program The hotel is ok. We then went on a tour to a near by Masai settlement. This could have been better organized. Lots of waling on the main road and a somewhat cramped journey back in one of the local taxi buses. We went to the Tarangire National park, well worth the visit, but watch out for the Vervet monkeys when you have lunch. We stayed the Sunbright campsite in Mto Wa Mbu. Fairly basic. The tour operator brought a cook that provided ok breakfast and dinner. On the third day we visit the Ngorongoro crater. spectacular. The supplied 4x4 game drive vehicle was good and the driver/guide very good. The last day we visited the Lake Manyara NP, very close to village where we stayed, before we departed from the Arusha Airport.
SE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Safari memories for life!
We visited Tanzania for a three days Safari. Before we went to our next stop. What a amazing trip! memories for life! We could write a long long text about our safari, but instead I just want to say to all of you that haven't been on a safari, GO! We saw alot of animlas, from small colorfull birds to big lions and elephants.... We will go back!
Thank you so much for a great Safari! We miss Tanzani and all of our new friends!
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Cheap but good
Northern Circuit Adventure is one of the few tour operators that offer "budget" safari's. Everything was well organized and I had a great time!
But don't expect any extras with a budget safari. So make sure you buy any drinks beforehand as it won't always be possible to purchase them at the campsites.
CA
Email AV | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The Best Tour Operator in Tanzania
We had a great time with Northern Circuit. Mike is awesome - although we booked our own flights after the safari, Mike went out of his way and rushed to the airline to help us reschedule our flights after our flights were cancelled. We were so worried but Mike saved the day.
Our tour guide and cook during the safari were amazing as well. I have nothing but good things to say about the duo. They allowed us to take our time with pictures and would nudge us when we were being slow. NCA is an experienced operator and I will definitely be booking with them again!
CA
Email Jan | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great trip in the Serengeti!
We took a four day trip which covered Lake Manyara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro crater, and Arusha. It was the experience of a lifetime. The guide and the cook in the trip were really great. We were a little disappointed that the guide wasn't a little more strict about getting up early in order to see the actual hunting. We weren't aware until the last day that the hunting takes place very early in the morning and it was too late by then.
The food was excellent; we were very surprised at how good the food was considering we camped in the middle of the forest for three nights. I was very impressed with the trip overall.
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic staff and a great value for your money.
I had an excellent experience overall. The tour director
(Mike), our driver/guide (Elias), and chef (Musa) were all amazing and accommodating. Musa, hands down was the best chef and he cooked the tastiest food I've had in Tanzania. Elias was a great driver and guide. He would always be on the lookout for animals unlike what we heard from some of the other tourists. Mike, by far, provided the best customer service during my whole Africa vacation. When our flight got cancelled out of JRO, he went to the Precision Air office and rescheduled our flighs. He didn't have to do this as it was the day after the tour had ended. Kudos to Mike for helping us out.
The areas we visited were all typical locations that all tours go to. We were disappointed that we couldn't go off-road or go on night tours. Turns out that another permit is required to do that. If you would like to go off road then I suggest inquiring about it before the safari.
I had an amazing 4-days with NCA and I would recommend it to my friends.
JP
Email Mark | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Very helpful customer service, and safari went as promised
Booking our safari was very easy, and all of our customizations (including domestic flights unrelated to our safari) were easily covered - Michael is great to do business with.
The tour itself was as promised, and we saw a great variety of wildlife. Our guide (Solomon) was very experienced (he said he had been a guide for 8 years), and he was able to spot a lot of animals we would have missed otherwise. He picked up that I had an interest in birds as well as mammals and started to stop the car more frequently for birds as well -- and he knew every one.
There were 2 things that were different than our expectations: we wanted to visit the Masai people, which we did, but our tour package document stated that the visiting would be included, it did not mention that we had to tip the Masai people $20USD per person to visit -- unexpected.
Also, the tour package document stated that the tents would be prepared by the staff. Mostly, they did -- but with our help. I am not adverse to helping, but the guides didn't make us feel like we had a choice.
Overall, though, we saw lots of great animals, have a good time, and got value for money. There were some other safaris that were slightly cheaper for similar itineraries, but I went with Northern Circuit because of their attentiveness during the booking process -- I felt in good hands, and we most certainly were. I would contact Michael again next time I am going to Arusha.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great service for a three day tour
Northern Circuit Adventure delivered exactly what was expected - and the service was excellent. Michael is clearly keen to provide the best experience and his communicaiton was great, including arriving to welcome us personally as well as checking in post trip that everything had worked well. Our driver Dennis was great - knowledgable and friendly, giving us the right amount of information and never giving us the impression we were simply the next bunch of tourists to pass through. I would definately recommend Northern Circuit Adventure.
PS. try to have cash with you or pay up front as getting cash out of the ATM in Arusha was a bit tricky!
Well done safari but quite poor camping equipment
We went in a groop of fife persons in the most popular northern cirquit national parks (lake manyara, tarangire, serengeti and ngorogoro). We travelled in a jeep with a very experienced guide who spotted so many wild animals even far away!!! Also we saw lions and other predators as close as can be in ngorogoro, and also in serengeti the wildlife to watch was amazing.
Our cook was quite young and not so experienced - the food was ok but could be improved in future. Also the camping equipment could be hold in better conditions - The tents and matresses were old and stank ugly - not really enjoyable for sleeping - should be changed soon! Nevertheless an unforgetable trip into the wild!
Reply from Northern Circuit Adventure
Posted on Jul 1, 2015Hello Sylvia,
Thanks for your kind support and it was nice to have your safari feedback on our pages and gave your experience with our company and the staff!
Just for your information we have improved by having a new camping equipment’s and we want to assure our future clients including you once you will come back again and do the safari with us you won’t be disappointed again!
All the best,
Northern Circuit Adventure,