LU
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable experience in South Africa!
This was my first time in South Africa and it was a vacation that I will never forget. The tour was super well organized and the team very prepared. You feel that they enjoy doing this. I will definitely go back for another tour. I totally recommend them!!!
Incredible!!
Absolutely incredible customer service. Andy Saidy went over and above to ensure we had the perfect trip. Highly recommended!
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
We'll be back for more!
We went on a tour of South Africa for two weeks with our guide Federica from Shikwaru Adventures after a friend recommended her to us. She adapted and tailored the tour and the visits according to what we wanted to see. We went for a whole tour of South Africa, beginning in Johannesburg where we saw the Mandela Museum, Mandela's house, a youth Center, all while learning about the history of the city and the country. After that things kept interesting as we took the road towards the private game reserves and Kruger National Park. The trip went on through Swaziland and St Lucia and we finished in Cape Town after a short flight.
Federica knows really a great deal about the country, the animals, the people and was able to answer 99% of the questions that went through our mind during the trip. It was a really great experience, we managed to see almost all of the big five during the two weeks, but we'll be back to catch the evasive Leopard! If you want a tour where you can take your time, where you're not in a packed bus stacked with 30 people where everything is calculated to the minute then you can stop searching.
NZ
A wonderful experience seeing many animals in a short time
Our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the animals. He treated everyone on safari well. Our tour was made at the last minute & we only had a short time so the tour company was flexible. They offered us a number of options for us to choose from. I loved every minute!
DE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Just excellent! Amazing 16 days Safari Tour at it’s best
Just excellent! Not to miss if you are planning a safari trip to Tanzania
If you are planning a safari trip to Tanzania, you may find difficult to select a tour company. It took us a lot of effort to select one for our 16 days 20th anniversary trip last January. So glad that we came across Soul of Tanzania!
Everything was planned to the detail, to the best standards.They let you participate in the planning process, with a selection of routes, national parks and lodging. Once there, everything runs very smoothly, starting with a perfect conditioned vehicle and your guide picking you up at the airport, to a extensively informative meeting with Iris Duba, the Operations Manager in Arusha. Cant thank enough her to her assistance all along the 16 days trip. she is available for any questions or issues that may arise.
Our guide, Herman, is just fantastic. An amazing person, very friendly and nice to be with, with an incredible knowledge of wildlife of all sorts. We recommend him to anyone for such an adventure!
Please feel free to contact me here if anybody has questions about this review.
Viviana & Martin, Munich, Germany
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
14 Day Luxury Tour of Rwanda and Uganda - Gorillas, Chimps, and Birds
We just returned from the "14 Day Luxury Tour of Rwanda and Uganda -
Gorillas, Chimps, and Birds", offered by Gatatu Safaris, and I want to give
an honest review of our experience with this local Ugandan company. We are
seasoned travelers in our 70's and have traveled extensively with wildlife
companies all over the world. We decided to take a chance booking with
Gatatu Safaris instead of an American company because we really liked the
itinerary they offered since one of us is a wildlife photographer and the
other is an avid bird watcher. Not only was it a good fit for our interests,
it was less expensive for what it offered compared to the American companies
we considered. We were overall pleased with our experience although there
were a few short comings. For example, at the beginning of the tour, our driver did not
have the promised itinerary of daily activities and they were not occurring.
Calls back to the office resolved this situation to a degree.
Since it was advertised as a bird tour, we expected to have professional
bird guides at each of the parks where birding was mentioned as an activity.
This had not been arranged ahead of time, but was handled by our guide "on
the fly", and we were never sure if we would have a bird guide or not, nor
how knowledgeable he would be. Another surprise was the game drives
themselves. The itinerary on the website listed multiple game drives at the
national parks, and this was one of the main reasons we elected to go with
Gatatu Safaris. On our travels, we have always taken game drives in safari
vehicles with pop up tops allowing the occupants to stand up and see clearly
in all directions, but this was not the case with Gatatu. The game drives
were conducted with our driver, Stephen, in the same vehicle used for
transportation between parks, a 1999 vehicle with cramped seating that was
not air-conditioned nor was the fresh air vent working, so we endured many
long, hot drives on Uganda's very bumpy and dusty roads with the windows
open. Stephen was neither a naturalist nor a birder, but he did arrange to
hire bird guides in some of the parks after we got there, and he did arrange
to rent a pop up vehicle for one of the game drives.
One thing that Gatatu Safaris handled very well was changing our
accommodations for the gorilla trekking to a location where they felt like
we would be able to do the trek more easily since we are both in our 70's.
This took a number of phone calls and a talk with the park director, so we
were grateful that they arranged this for us. One thing that could have been
better were the briefings before each day and each activity - what to wear,
how long it would take, do we need water and a hiking stick, etc.
This was advertised as a luxury safari tour, and all of the accommodations
were excellent, the best available in each of the places where we stayed,
so we were pleased with that aspect of our trip.
My recommendation to prospective travelers considering going with Gatatu
Safaris is to agree on a detailed itinerary ahead of time with the company, print
it out, and bring it with you, and be aware that it is a small local Ugandan
company and may lack the polish you expect with a high-end American or
European safari company.
IT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent Experience
ME and my wife, we had a wonderful in Africa, probabily the best of ever. We visit Zambia and Malawi and we found a Tour Operator well planned and professional. Francesa+Stefano they are the heart of the tour Operator. Very nice person, funny and Kind. If i will come back in Africa a will planned a Tour with Them
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great experience with a really good quality/price
Hi,
It was a really great experience with a really great guide (Saloum) who was really kind to picked us in our volunteering village next to DAR and right on time. He takes really good care of us and knew a lot of things about animals, was always trying to make us have the better spot to see animals and taking pictures. The three days safari with a boat safari, a car safari in a really nice open roof 4x4, and the walking safari made a really complete trip for a good quality/price with a really good cook and nice accommodation. Totally recommend it.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Perfect!!! Impeccable !!!
Great experience.
Have travelled to africa in several occasions and this was by far the best experience. Their knowledge and commitment to make every single moment special was unusual. Highly recommend them.
BR
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Our trip was worth every penny
We enjoyed our trip to Lake Nakuru and Masai Mara. My family and I were received at the airport by the driver/guide who I must say seemed upbeat about his work. He briefed us about the entire safari and patiently listened to our queries etc. We were able to see most of the wild animals during the game drive, the scenery around the park was breath taking. We were amazed about the variety of bird species that we saw. We plan to another holiday in Tanzania and hope it will be as good as the one in Kenya.
Thank you StarMount safaris, you were very professional! see you next year same time