US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Outstanding and Affordable Tanzania Safaris for Birding, Wildlife, and Cultural Experiences
I have taken 3 groups of friends over about a 12-year period and the safaris have always exceeded my expectations. The same with friends who have used RA Safaris on my recommendation. Their guides are great birders and amazing experts in animal behavior. The safari vehicles are comfortable and in good condition and the meals, lodging, and bush camps selected are excellent. I enjoy visiting many different tribal villages in addition to birding and wildlife viewing. RA Safaris will arrange the safari to accommodate the client's interest, for example to focus on birding, landscape photography, or wildlife migration or various combinations thereof. I am planning to take my young grandson and family on another RA Safari in 2017.
SG
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A tailor made safari within our budget. We're glad we found Edward !
We first asked Edward to arrange our safari week and we had specific requests : we wanted to see Masai Mara in Kenya, then cross the border (which we realized after is not easy to do) to reach Serengetti Park and finish at Ngorongoro crater. Everything went perfectly : Edward understood our budget constraint but he also managed to book the accommodation we requested (mid range tented camp).
I really want to highlight the importance of the driver on a safari ! I highly recommend Joseph to anyone going to Masai Mara. He was our driver there and he literally tracked animals for us. He is not only very experienced but he's also passionate about wildlife : he knows every corner of Masai Mara, the animal's habits, their favorite spots... He also avoided the crowds of cars filled with tourists which we very much appreciated!
If you are going to Serengetti, we recommend a night at beautiful Kati Kati. Amazing a place in the heart of the park !
If you are staying a few days in Kenya : Hell's gate is a great first experience to walk in a park free of predators. And lake Nakuru is a must to see the rhinos. Note that a van is necessary for a better experience there.
In a word : big thumbs up for budget Africa safari !
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Top of the service - everything went smoothly
Gondwana Tours & Safaris helped us personalize our tour. All of the accommodations that they provided us as options were excellent. GT&S really helped coordinate our whole trip so we didn't have to worry about anything. I can't say enough great things about Gondwana Tours and Safaris and would give them my highest recommendation to anyone! Thank you so much for a great trip.
US
More than we ever expected!
Kruger Flexi Tours was wonderful. We had such a good time and Dave was a fantastic tour guide and delivered more than we every expected. He anticipated our every need. We went on the Lion King Tour and met great people, saw lots of animals (though there is no guarantee that one will spy even one animal while on safari), ate terrific food, experienced and understood some of the local customs, and in general, had the time of our lives. We highly recommend Dave, his backpacker's inn, and especially the Kruger Flexi safari Tours.
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20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best Safari tour with a even better Safari Guide/Driver!
My 3 girlfriends and I had a incredible safari with African Comfort Zones!!! Our driver Martin was a incredible guide and was knowledgable about the animals and reserves we visited. We even saw white and black rhinos! The food was great, our luxury tents also exceeded our expectations. Do try to pack lightly as your luggage goes wherever you go! A great experience! John helped us plan the perfect safari adventure! Thank you John and Martin!
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50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Everything we hoped for and more
For years my wife and I had hoped to go on an African safari with our kids and with some friends, and when the time came to plan it, a friend of ours highly recommended that we use Charles Mpanda and his Tanganyika Ancient Routes tour company as our guide. We were not disappointed, Charles and his drivers were the best... they were extremely friendly, helpful and insightful.
Charles was amazing at spotting animals that we could never have seen without him. Traveling for an extended safari with preteen kids can be challenging, but Charles and his staff were absolutely great with the kids and the kids had a lot of fun with them. All the overnight arrangements were wonderful and Charles was hands on if any issues needed clearing up.
As our friend did for us, we can also highly recommend Charles to you... our safari was everything we hoped it would be and more.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
All round great Northern Circuit safari
We went on a 13 day, private, budget camping safari of the Tanzania Northern Circuit in June with Safari Multiways. We were a group of three with rather differing safari experience - one of us had never been to Africa, one of us had been on many safaris previously but not done the NC before, and I had done the NC several times before.
With Romeo's (the owner) help, we organised a partially customised itinerary that suited our previous experiences:
Starting from Arusha with a day trip to Arusha NP,
Manyara NP (one day)
Ngorogoro Crater (three nights with two trips into the crater and a walking safari to Empakai)
Serengeti NP (three nights)
Lake Natron, with waterfall walk
Tarangire NP, staying in Tarangire Safari Lodge
The communication with Romeo before and during the safari was excellent. But the most important factors in the success of our safari were;
1) the skill and adaptability of Amos, our guide. He had a great eye and was very patient, e.g. he spotted a leopard on the prowl and was the only guide to stick with it, and we eventually saw it stalking and hunting Tommies. We are keen birders and he was keen to help us build our list, spotting and stopping for random birds between and within parks (for the birders, we got a list of 329 sp, inc. my highlights of African Broadbill and Grey-Crested Helmetshrike).
2) the guide and the owner were really flexible about our itinerary, allowing us to modify our itinerary mid-trip. I had booked two days in Ngorogoro Crater to maximise chances of seeing Black Rhino, but Amos was the first guide to spot it on our first day and so we were able to move on to Serengeti sooner than planned.
3) the owner puts NO restrictions on mileage. I didn’t even think that this would happen on a safari as you always drive tens of km in a park without noticing. Many companies put a limit of 50-60km per day. This is nothing is the Wildebeest are in the other side of the park. We were able to travel right to the Kenyan border to see the migration – this is rare.
4) Last, but clearly the most important, was the cook, Moses. He was friendly and fun, and consistently produced great food, even in remote places, and even when left on his own for 13 hrs (with only rampaging baboons for company!).
We were a tough group to please since we had such a mix of experiences, and two keen birders and one Big Fiver. But Amos and co managed to please us all. I have done lots of safaris in the past (inc. the NC again the following two weeks) and have never seen so much. Final total 50 mammals (inc. several leopard, serval, cheetah and Bat eared fox) sightings, 329 birds.
I totally recommend this company for all round organisation, great guiding and cook.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
A trip of a lifetime
We planned an African trip of a lifetime to see wildlife. We chose Gondwana Tours & Safaris in Botswana because of their reasonable prices, great reviews, an office based in Botswana and their willingness to customize a tour to suit our needs and budget.
Wow did they deliver! Mark Hathaway worked with us for almost a year, answering our questions with a reply usually within 24 hours. Their itinerary took us to four different safari camps through Botswana, followed by a lovely two-day cruise up the Chobe River by houseboat. The trip ended with a stay at Victoria Falls, which was the perfect way to wind down before heading home. We ended up finding and photographing 41 mammal species and saw hundreds of species of birds. Thanks to Gondwana's planning, everything went off smoothly. The camps were ready and waiting for us, and transport was where it needed to be, and precisely on time. The camps themselves were delightful, with good food, a reasonable number of other guests, and eight hours a day in the field. We did not fully appreciate all the planning Gondwana did until we saw it all in action.
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20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Best Safari in South Africa!
I have been on safari with Crazy Dave twice with groups of about 20+. Both drivers we had were excellent and made the experience so much fun. They were knowledgeable about both the animals and the environment. We saw every thing we were hoping to (outside of a leopard, but what can you do?!) and the drivers were very intentional about locating the ones they could! The safari trucks were comfortable and had blankets to keep us warm if it got cold! They were patient with us while still being great about keeping us on schedule during meal times, bathroom breaks, etc.
I would 100 percent recommend using Kruger Flexi Tours for your safari. I have sent several people Dave's way and they all rave about him. By far the best safari experience I have had! I can confidently say you won't regret booking your safari through them!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
World Class service as always
The hotel that was recommended to me by Oakland exceeded my expectation. The booking was seamless and I enjoyed the experience of having all the billing and booking handled by Oakland. The communication was timely and complete and assisted me in planning my trip.