IT
an amazing wildlife experience
South Luangwa National Park
We had our trip to South Luangwa National Park on April 2015.
The journey has been organized by me and some friends of mine, very fond of African Safaris, using a local agency, Jackalberry Safaris, led by a south african guide, Mr Gavin Opie, a deep expert of the area.
We flew with Ehiopian Airlines from Italy to Malawi, and then drove to Zambia.
We staid in a small cottages in a camp, in the nearby of the Park entrance.
We decided to have the trip on April because we wanted to visit the Park at the end of the rainy and green season, in order to see Nature in its all magnificence. Sure we took some rain (and with open cars could be a problem ) but I must admit that it has been worth. Furthermore we could watch lots of birds, particularly present in the Park in this period.
The Park is very different form the classical African savannah of Kenya and Tanzania. Open areas are limited, and bush and woods are predominant… it is not so easy to spot animals, first of all predators, but when it happens ..the images that you catch are wonderful.
One of the targets of the safari were wild dogs.. but unfortunately we didn’t succed in spotting them…we saw the paws … we looked for them a lot..but nothing.
We did some night safaris, an interesting experience. During one of those safaris we had the privilege to watch an amazing hunting scene: eight lionesses captured and devoured in few minutes an imapala right in front of us. Unforgettable moments.
Because of the dense vegetation (and so the difficulty in spotting quickly predators) and because of the mud, we could not have walking safaris, another particularity of this Park….a good excuse to come back soon….
At the end I must say the a Safari in the South Luangwa National Park is a really amazing wildlife experience (few people, few cars… only Nature) even if for photography maybe less interesting than a trip to open areas like Kenya or Tanzania.
LK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Lion kingdom
Samburu is one of those places which just surprise you right from the word go. Literally 2 minutes into driving into he park, we spotted two cheetahs lounging in the shade. The wildlife in this park is just fabulous - from the herds of elephants, the giraffes, zebra and the birdlife. However, the highlight was the lion sightings. Absolutely breathtaking!
Samburu also gives you stunning sunrises and sunsets. The photographs look like they were taken straight out of the 'Lion King'.
All in all, a park you cannot afford to miss if you're visiting kenya. It will certainly give you memories of a lifetime.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great service, great organisation and above all provided a great experience.
After making our mind up to travel to Tanzania for our honeymoon, I stumbled across Earthlife on safaribookings.com as I was searching for an 8 day safari package with 6 days in Zanzibar. I was immediately grabbed by the competitive price and once I made a few enquiries it was clear that this company offered the best combination of pricing, level of communication, and day-by-day itinerary. There were no hidden costs and they were flexible to any suggestions or alteration to the itinerary (which we didn't require as it looked ideal).
We enjoyed the cultural aspects like the Masai village and the local village tour near lake Manyara. This split up the game drives nicely and gave us a chance to buy a wood carving and painting straight from a villager rather than a more expensive outlet. It was lovely seeing kids playing games, the plantations and the countless friendly faces.
We trusted Deo and Catherine's experience as they have been doing this a long time. Forming there own company in recent years has been a challenge in a competitive market with larger tour operators around but they are successful in offering a client focused experience with a personal touch and constant reassurances throughout the planning/booking stage. We got references from 5 other clients and had no problems wiring the complete payment before travelling to Tanzania. Deo came to meet us before our trip and then again afterwards for a review of our trip. I honestly can't see where they can improve the service - it's impeccable. All our lodge accommodation was great and our guide Gilbert was professional, friendly, relaxed and determined to find and describe every animal he could for us. I thought I knew a lot about the wildlife but learnt so much from Gilbert, particularly about animal behaviour and the birdlife which was spectacular. We saw the big 5 (rhino from a distance) but some great close up encounters with Leopard, Lions, Elephant, Buffalo, and numerous others including a Serval cat which was awesome. the highlight was seeing a mother lion taking her 3 cubs across a river. Jumping across with one in her mouth and then encouraging the others to swim across. The safari got better each day as promised, with more and more action. We still had time to relax by the pool before dinner at the lodges and enjoyed views in each place. I got bitten a bit by flies as expected but my partner and Gilbert were fine and it wouldn't put me off going again. Neither of us got ill and the food/service was great in all accommodation they booked us.
I will recommend Earthlife to anyone and it was obvious they took pride in their personable approach compared to the larger companies which we often saw with their vehicles rammed full with clients and seemingly a few glum faces. We had a guide to ourselves which was perfect as it was our honeymoon. He took packed lunches for us and was excellent at spotting animals. He spotted the first rhino sighting of the day at Ngorongoro in the afternoon and called it through over the radio. Within minutes we had about 20 vehicles beside us! A fabulous once-in-a-lifetime adventure but hopefully one day we can do it all again.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Cholo tours were amazing in every way, they were informed, attentive, honest and very friendly.
Cholo is a charming, warm and friendly tour and host. He speaks very well and is completely fluent in English. Cholo went out of his way to make our stay as comfortable as possible. He worked within our budget and gave us the best value our money could buy. We felt completely safe in his care and he took full responsibility for our entertainment as he was very knowledgeable about the Island and the activities.
The tours we went on was interesting and exciting. We will most certainly use Cholo again who has now become a friend.
IL
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
a great experience because of the great company
meticulous andprpfessional planning of the trip , every details was taken care, the trip was executed with great precision, with guides and staff wich took care of us throughout the entire trip. the manager were available for any request and wish, fulfiled these requests and beyond. i strongly recommend using their services.
CN
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
good condition vehicle with good driver guide
We did 4 days safari (3 days Mara and 1 day Naivasha)with the driver Peter.he is a good driver take us try to find big5.yes,we done it.We can't saw gnus cross is a little regret.It doesn't matter.we will come back to kenya again in next year.
PT
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Top quality service.... I can't recomend them enough!!
I'll keep this sort but to the point!
We hired 5 vans over a one week period, for 24 guest, and it was fantastic. The service was professional, the drivers were fun and cheery, and the vans were modern.
I've lived and worked in Kenyan most of my life, so I speak from experience when I say they are a SOLID company and one you can trust!
I will be recommending them to all my friends, family and everyone else.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Excellent two day safari. Fantastic your guide and very reasonable price!
My friend and I did a 2 day safari with Chels Travel & Tours company, visiting Tarangire and Ngorongoro Crater and we had such a fantastic time! At first I was nervous booking the trip with Chels Travel as they are less well known than some of the other bigger tour operators and I had heard horror stories from others about booking with fictional companies in Arusha, but the price was too tempting to miss out on and now I would not hesitate to book again.
Chels Travel is a small, independent company and as such are excellent at tailoring their tours to their individual clients needs. We were on a tight budget and Beatus organised the tour to stay within budget. He was very accommodating of our requests and questions ahead of the tour and on the safari itself he was a fountain of knowledge about the surrounding culture and wildlife. Having now been on a few safaris since, we know quite how excellent Beatus was as a guide / driver. He was a fantastic animal spotter as well as incredible knowledgeable which certainly added to the whole experience. I would certainly recommend Beatus and Chels Travel and Tours to anyone looking to go on a safari in Northern Tanzania.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Samburu camping getaway....Simply Amazing!!!
The camping getaway at Samburu National Reserve was way beyond my expectation...it was very well organised from the word go and we all had sooo much fun! Am looking foward to many more safaris in the near future...Kuddos Cheetah Revolution! !!!