US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
6 day Machame Route + 2 day safari
We booked the 6 day Machame Route and 2 day safari with MJSafaris and it was excellent! Jackson was fantastic - super helpful in answering all my questions and addressing my concerns. Their pricing was very competitive but we received the same high quality equipment, meals, and services from our guides and porters as others who paid much more than us. Both the Kili climb and the safari were unforgettable experiences... My guide for the two day safari - Innocent - was superb, extremely knowledgeable with 10+ years safari experience. We had one small issue with one of our sleeping bags on the mountain but Jackson handled and resolved the situation so well that we were more than happy that we booked with him. Highly recommend!
IL
Destination of rare beauty
Let me start with saying that the Ngorngoro crater to me - was the highlight of our entire African experience. And this includes the Serengetti reservation and a few days on the beaches of Zanzibar.
We stayed at the Simba camping ground at Ngorongoro national reserve, which offers decent commodities - fair amount of bathrooms and showers for the amount of people that stayed there with us, also providing streaming water throughout the entire day. Another important fact - the water at Ngorongoro is said to be drinkable, since it's pumped from mountain-side springs. We did use the water for drinking and experienced zero side effects.
The beauty of the crater is built from several aspects - it being a high ground (allows experiencing night sky like never before and having chilly weather throughout the year), covered in green vegetation at the peaks and naturally surrounding a marvelous open area within.
It's great to watch all the animals inside the crater, walking freely, slowly moving from one source of food to the other. While in the Seregeti you'll encounter mostly savannas, in the Ngorongoro crater you can cross various types of terrain within a couple of hours - from high mountain peaks covered in green vegetation, to salt lakes, streams, river, fresh lakes and savannas.
I wish I'd have stayed several days at the Ngorongoro crater instead of just a single day.
BE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nature at its best!
This was our first safari. We did first Lake Manyara, then Serengeti, and finally Ngorongoro. I think this is the best sequence.
Serengeti is huge! Distances are long, so if you are expecting a zoo-like experience with an animal at any corner, you will be disappointed. We spent two full days and spotted lots of lions, zebras, wildebeests, antilopes, elephants, buffalos, ... No rhinos, but I don't think they are present in the Serengeti. On top of that the scenery ("Serengeti" means "large plains" in Swahili) is absolutely wonderful. Spotting a lion atop a "kopje" is unforgettable!
More crowded than Lake Manyara, but much, much less than Ngorongoro.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Totally an old style African Safari
After one of our families most exciting safaris, I thought I just have to post our recent trip.
A mobile safari seemed like a good family adventure for two young teenagers, easily bored by museums or treks through old cities. We chose Botswana for our family and on our first three days in Botswana we enjoyed amazing water safaris through the Okavango Delta.
By boat we were able to move around the delta easily while getting amazingly close to the animals, and the huge array of colourful birdlife. The elephants seemed right at home in the marshland and were not disturbed as we approached.
At our accommodation our tents were assembled by a beautiful lagoon, complete with a pod of snorting hippos. On arrival a startled impala bounded through the camp, being chased by wild dogs, then swam across the lagoon. On our walking safari the next day we came across a pack of 15 wild dogs – a rare and wonderful sighting.
After the first three days we swapped the boat for a land cruiser and headed off for three nights in the Moremi National Park. One night, when I got up to use the en-suite (a tarpaulin area at the back of the tent), I peered over to see the moonlit face of an equally startled elephant, just meters away. He moved on to the next tree for a good munch. More elephants offered themselves as a photographic backdrop in the morning as we had breakfast and on the safari drives we were lucky to spot leopard, honey badgers and incredibly, a daytime sighting of a serval.
The following morning we were woken early by the roar of male lions, seemingly close. Our knowledgeable guide woke us to say we were skipping breakfast to board our vehicle and explore. Sure enough 500 metres up the road we came across two kings of the jungle, marking their territory, roaring at another pride. Magic.
After a recovery night at the Maun where the kids got a quick Wi-Fi fix, we headed off to Nxai Pan. This was a total change of scenery with salt pans, majestic baobab trees and an arid open bush environment. The waterhole was the epicentre of our game drives. We watched the passing parade of elephant, giraffe, springbuck, and wildebeest as they took turns to rehydrate.
The African sunsets were spectacular. And on the last night a mother cheetah decided to show off her frisky teenagers for our cameras.
Tour organisers, Rebecca and Anton from Lelobu Safaris in Maun, and our guides, cook and camp assistants all took amazing care of us, ensuring we were safe and comfortable at all times. Botswana is a spectacular country, best seen in the true African style – by a mobile tented safari. A totally magic experience for the whole family. The family from Australia with my niece and nephew, both absolutely loved this experience before we came to Cape Town, Cape Town has also been a great add on to end our trip in Africa.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Fantastic safari to Amboseli, Tsavo west and Masai Mara
Fantastic holiday which was organised by Daniel. We found it hard to decide which company to go with initially, but was so glad we chose Transtrek. From start to finish they were very professional and organised everything in great detail, which made it into a perfect safari. We went to Amboseli, Tsavo west and Masai Mara and our guide Peter was great, really knowledgeable and experienced. We had a brilliant time on safari and saw loads of animals, (four of the Big five, amazing!).
The accommodation chosen was perfect, the tented camps where luxurious and the lodge in Kilaguni overlooking the waterhole was pure magic. I would highly recommend Transtrek to anyone as we had a fantastic safari and nothing was too much trouble. A company that still gives the personal touch. Thank you so much to Dan, Wanjiku and Peter for a perfect holiday
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Keep it up, Good Job Safari Big5
We had an Amazing Trip to Ngorongoro Crater n Marango Falls - Moshi
Excellent Service Provided by Safari Big5
CA
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Safari was all that I had hoped for!
We researched many different safari companies, and we were very pleased that we chose Sunny. Jessica always replied quickly to emails and was very willing to add on transport to and from the airport, without additional charge. She met us at airport at Arusha with our guide Abdul, which was reassuring, and reviewed again what our safari would include. We had 4 days and 3 nights but wanted to see as much as possible. We did visit Tarangire and then stayed at Maranyara Wildlife Lodge the first night, then to Serengeti and stayed at Kati Kati tented camp, did another drive in Serengeti for the morning, then on to Ngorongora Wildlife Lodge. Spent the next day in the crater and then to Kili airport for 2000 hr. flight out. Our driver/guide (Abdul) was very good, with many years experience, good English, sense of humour, and great sense of where to find the animals. He was safety conscious and treated us all with respect, and we felt very safe and "looked after" for the 4 days.He found several fresh kills, surrounded by lions/leopards...amazing!! All our accommodations were excellent and meals were as well. No complaints. I would not hesitate to recommend Sunny Safaris, Jessica Simon and Abdul as a winning combination, and found the price was very reasonable for what we received. A very memorable experience.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
An exceptional experience in Tanzania for Kilimanjaro and a safari.
Doing Kilimanjaro for 6 nights and 7 days with African Scenic Safaris, and then immediately going on a 5 day safari, could be a logistical nightmare, and hard work. It was however, a once in a lifetime experience, truly incredible. Amanda worked tirelessly with us, reassuring us over our mountain fears, and seeing that our safari happened. Even when our return flights to London were changed at the last minute, she adjusted our safari and made good things happen. Not only did we receive professional, prompt and courteous assistance from Amanda, but every one of the African Scenic Safaris employees that we came into contact with, displayed such professional behavior. Our well being and enjoyment appeared to be the number one priority of every person we encountered.
Naturally there were nerves and fears about climbing Kilimanjaro, but our team of 22 made sure we were successful. From our incredible three course dinners, (I need those soup recipes!), filling breakfasts and lunches, we were never hungry, to the patient man assigned to the private toilet, to our waiter bringing us ginger tea, and being always attentive and patient (patience was a key trait all the team had), to our tent master, all the men and women who tirelessly carried everything we needed with smiles and support for us, to our truly wonderful guides Ame and Antipas. Their knowledge, patience, calming ways, support and belief in us made our trip the success it was. We often took a long time to get from point to point, but that was never an issue, as that is who we were, and that was accepted. The night we set off to climb the mountain, along with Ame and Anti we were supported by Musa and Emanuel, both incredible assets to the team, and to our success. While climbing Kilimanjaro was a serious challenge, I believe the constant support and belief in us from the guides and team, made it happen successfully and enjoyably.
African Scenic Safaris certainly helped my dream come true by exceeding any expectations I had (as well as really supporting the nerves!) in climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
The safari following was incredible - Grayson was a very well informed guide, humorous, calm, and sharp eyed. Mr. D created the most amazing meals - after an exciting day of game drives to come back to a camp site for a gourmet meal was wonderful. Choosing to do the camping option is a worthy choice - being right there is an unforgettable experience.
I could seriously write forever about the wonderful time I spent in Tanzania, and how African Scenic Safaris were part of my truly memorable experience. I highly recommend them. Wonderful.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Big Five stars for Big Five Voyage
My girlfriend and I did a 6 day safari to Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro and Manyara.
We were treated to a really personal service by Amon and Oscar prior to our trip and upon arrival were taken for lunch, looked after around Arusha and made to feel very welcome. Had a fantastic time on the safari with a dedicated driver who was able to find us countless big cats (alas we only saw 4 of the big 5 - in spite of our driver's concerted efforts the Rhino were in hiding!) and we had great food and service for the 6 days we we spent with them. Highlights included the Serengeti, the Panorama campsight and the village tour of Mto Wa Mbu, and Johnson our driver has to be commended for his care in helping to look after my car-sick girlfriend!
The Panorama campsite aside, the campsites were basic, but then again, we got what we paid for and we were right in the heart of the action (Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater campsites) - walking past Zebras on the way to the washrooms in the night stays in the memory!
The only small fly in the ointment was an uncomfortable visit to a Maasai village where we were made to feel like walking dollar bills. Although this was at our request I would suggest this is best avoided.
Amon's preferred style of communication was via whatsapp which was somewhat unusual at first but we found him to be highly trustworthy, helpful and personable - and we left the country feeling like we had made a new friend. I'm still in touch with him and would gladly go with him again if I come back (which I plan to, someday).
All in all, a small, but friendly, professional, trustworthy operation who provide great value for money - thanks guys!
DE
They really care!
Michael, the manager was really caring about everyones personal well-being. He gave really valuable information, advice and helpful.
He couldn't have been more professional and human at the same time.
Dennis, our driver and guide was full of information and interesting anecdotes. He and the cook were very easy to get along with and pleasant to talk to.