Safari Multiways

A poor and frustrating experience!

My honest review of my experience with Safari Multiways.

I was a Canadian long-term volunteer in Moshi, Tanzania. My husband was coming to visit me from Canada so I started to research budget-friendly options for a 4D3N private safari in the northern circuit. I stumbled upon Safari (SM) Multiways as per a recommendation from a board discussion on Tripadvisor; of all the recommended companies it was SM that provided me with the most economical quote. SM does not have an account on Tripadvisor so I instead gathered information from Tripadvisor forums and safaribookings.com. The consensus was that SM is a excellent tour company that you can count on to be reliable, professional, and give you the most bang for your buck.

I was in contact with Victor during the planning stages. Victor immediately left a great impression as he was very professional, pleasant and responsive. The planning experience instilled my confidence and affirmed the great reviews left by hundreds of past clients. Unfortunately, our excitement and confidence was short-lived.

Our itinerary was as follows: 2 days in the Serengeti, 1 day in the Ngorogoro Crater, and 1 day in TP where we could journey home that very afternoon.

SM arranged to pick us up from Moshi at 7:00am to head to Serengeti central. It wasn’t until the day before our safari that Victor suggested we instead stay in Arusha overnight to head to the Serengeti as it is a 6 hour journey from Arusha; if we travel from Moshi another 2 hours would be added to the commute. I wish he suggested this to me earlier so that we could’ve made the necessary arrangements. We had an engagement the evening before the safari so there was no way for us to stay in Arusha the night before. This lack of communication/planning already left a bad taste in my mouth.

We were picked up the next morning by our driver and tour guide, Pius. We knew beforehand that we were not signing up for a luxury vehicle, however, the car was very much dilapidated. Throughout the safari, a few things from the car kept falling off at a time. For example, the window frame (not sure what the technical term for this is) fell off, as well as the bumper – which Pius needed to buy rope to secure back to the car. The seatbelt for one the front seats (which we preferred to sit in as we got a better view being closer to the dashboard) did not work; this is a safety hazard. There were no headrests so we woke up with headaches/neckaches every time we fell asleep during the commutes. Even worse, the car doors did not lock. So, whenever we had to leave the car to eat or use the washroom (with Pius included), I was relying on the good graces of the Lord to ensure no one tried to steal anything from the car. This is unacceptable.

On our way to the Serengeti, Pius asked if we had a lunch box. I don’t know what gave SM the impression that we’d have a lunch box with us as we were being picked up from home, not a hotel. Pius had to stop in Arusha to grab lunch boxes for us – adding 30min to an already long, 8-hour commute to the Serengeti. We arrived in the Serengeti around 4pm. What was supposed to be a 4-hour game drive in the Serengeti (according to the itinerary sent by Victor) turned into a 1-hour game drive as we were dropped to our camp by 5:30pm.

We enjoyed our second day in the Serengeti and Pius worked hard to ensure we saw all the animals we wanted to see. I can say that he was friendly and kind; however, the more time we spent with him, we started to realize that he felt more like a driver than a guide. He knew the names of the animals and birds but did not know anything else beyond that. I wasn’t expecting a national geographic commentary but he did not have any knowledge of basic things like their diet, or general information about their habitat. We were fortunate to see the critically endangered rhino through our binoculars, but when I asked Pius whether the black rhino can only be found in Tanzania or if it can be found in other countries as well, he did not know.

The worst part of our trip happened while we were in the Ngorogoro crater. First off, we didn’t reach the crater until 12pm. I was already worried about lack of time until I learned that the permits only allow 6-hour visits at a time. By 3pm, Pius explained that we saw all the animals we needed to see and there was not much else to see in the crater - and then suggested we head back to our lodge. I insisted that I would like to spend more time exploring the crater (considering we spent a lot of money on our permit) as we wanted to make the most of our time there. By 4pm he began to exit the crater. Therefore, we only explored the crater for 4 hours (1 hour lunch break included). After researching online, I learned that people usually use all 6 hours of their permit to explore the park. Halfway up the crater ascent the car engine seemed to stop working and we were stuck on an upwards slope. I was fearful that the car would break down completely and we would either fall off the ledge or slide backwards onto the vehicle parked behind us. While Pius was getting help from others around him, he did not explain what was happening but looked panicked. Some of the gentlemen helping had to put bricks behind the back tires so Pius didn’t have to keep shifting gears to keep the car in neutral/park. After everything was resolved I was honest with Pius and shared that we did not appreciate not being informed of what was happening at the time. He advised that these issues are common in Tanzania – but can be resolved easily – which is why he didn’t feel the need to explain, but profusely apologized – which we really appreciated.

For our last day, our lunch boxes were forgotten at the lodge. This was really frustrating as we not only had to cut our time in short in TP in order to have lunch in town, but the value and amount of food in a packed lunch box is worth far more than the local restaurant lunch we ended up having in Karatu.

Once the safari ended, I was relieved. It was singlehandedly the most stressful and frustrating vacation I've experienced, and if I were to do it all again, I would not go with SM. In fact, I wish I could do it all again and experience the stunning national parks Tanzania has to offer the RIGHT way! I understand that we went with the most affordable tour company, but when you spend well over two grand on an experience, you at least expect an acceptable level of standards.

Although, our experience does not seem to be consistent with reviews of many happy clients of SM, the cynic in me found that most (if not all) of the clients’ reviews had Amos or Omari as their guide. I tried to look for reviews of Pius and he is mentioned as the “driver only”. Based on pure speculation, I’m inclined to believe that SM may have been “testing the waters” with the knowledge that I’m a long-term volunteer and may not hold the same standards as the wealthy western tourists who often go on these safaris. I think we were given the bad end of the bargain (ie. a battered vehicle and a guide lacking in experience) perhaps as an experiment.

On a more positive note, the accommodation SM chose for our mid-range budget needs were superb (Tukaone in the Serengeti and Eileen’s Trees Inn in Karatu). Also, despite the lack of knowledge and experience, Pius was otherwise really sweet, and even bought red bananas and baobab fruit for us to try during the trip.

With hundreds of TOs in Tanzania, word of mouth is often the most powerful tool for raising the profile of your company. But as it stands, I cannot, in good conscience, recommend Safari Multiways to my large network of expat volunteers, friends, and family in Tanzania.