US
65+ years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Review about Zambia by Jim Scarff
The countryside is fairly flat so it lacks the great vistas of East Africa, but offers much less crowded conditions and excellent wildlife viewing.
CI
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Kenya by aabangasser
My only safari experience in Kenya was at Nairobi National Park, which I don't believe is really representative of all that you can see there. I have heard great things of some of the other parks though, and understand they are truly exceptional.
BE
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Uganda, the real pearl of Africa
Uganda is the best African country we did. The wildlife is very diversified.
The birds are beautiful and we had the chance to spot the magnificent shoebill.
We did spot many species of kingfishers (Woodland, Pied, Malachite, Giant kingfisher).
The most emotional moments we shared in company of the mountain gorilla's nearby Lake Mutanda.
We spend a lot of time with them and we could make beautiful portraits of them!
In Bwindi NP, we spend 3 nights in a basic tented camp, completely lost in the rainforest. Unforgettable!
We met also lots of kids there, and we really were touched by their presence and kindness!
If you ever plan to visit Uganda, do not hesitate, you will be surprised by his beauty (better than Kenya).
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about South Africa by South Africa Nature and Stuff
Amazing country with amazing diversity
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Family Summit of Kilimanjaro with Trek2Kili 2014
Our family of 4 (ages 47, 47, 21 and 20) was lucky enough visit to Africa in 2014. Without doubt the highlight was our week trekking with our wonderful Tre2Kili crew. We chose Trek2 Kili because we really wanted to work with a company owned and run by Tanzanians. Azizi, the owner, was a porter himself and worked up to guiding and then to running his own company. We chose the 7 day Rongai route, as many companies we consulted offered it as the best acclimatization route. The crew we worked with was outstanding and worked so hard to make everything as easy and pleasant as possible for us. We truly just needed to do the hiking each day, everything else was done for us. We are so grateful to our guides (Roger and Godlove), all of the porters and especially our cook (King). The food was terrific, really unbelievably good for being in the wilderness for 7 days. I found King's soups each day to be particularly life-reviving! The crew was also very pleasant and fun to work with each day. We were made to feel like family. My 20 year old son spent many down-time hours playing hacky-sack and cards with our crew. He had an absolute blast. Summit night was certainly a challenge, but all 4 of us made it to Uhuru peak without any real problems. For the actual summit attempt, we had our 2 guides (Rogers and Godlove) plus 2 summit porters (Charles and "Diesel") to carry everything and give extra attention. The Rongai route was absolutely beautiful and seemed to enter a different eco-system each day (up though pine forest, moorlands, alpine tundra, moonscape and then down a different route which added rainforest on the final descent). I truly loved the trekking each day, and for myself walking in this quiet beauty was even better than the summit! The Bristol Cotteges hotel Trek2Kili arranged for the nights before and after the trek in Moshi was excellent, clean and comfortable. We highly recommend Trek2Kili and all our crew.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The most fantastic experience of my life
I returned to Tanzania in January this year with my partner and another couple. I first went to Tanzania and went on safari with African Scenic Safaris 5 years ago, at this time I also climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. The service throughout was 100% and it inspired me to return to see more of Tanzania, again with African Scenic Safaris. We spent 6nights/7days on safari which included 3 game parks, where we saw all of the big five, 1 night at lake Eyasi, where we visited the bushman and finally concluding our trip with a night at a Masai village.
Amanda was easily contactable via email and nothing was too difficult to organise and would always respond promptly - before, during and after our safari. She also helped us plan other activities in Tanzania, including around Moshi and on Zanzibar. Our safari guide was Grayson, he was extremely knowledgable, while having plenty of humour which made our safari full of experience and a thoroughly enjoyable time. Omari was our cook and the food throughout exceeded everyone's expectations and we were never left needing more. The cleanliness of the food preparations and the quality of the food was exceptional. We were very impressed with the vehicle which was well maintained, clean and better than most others we saw whilst on safari.
I would highly recommend going on safari or a Kilimanjaro climb with African Scenic Safaris. I have recommended quite a few friends and will continue to do so.
Exceeded expectations in every way
We recently completed a six-day safari with Elkan Safaris and rank it as one of the top experiences among all our travels. Following an initial email inquiry, company CEO Victor Godwin called us in the United States at his own expense to help us plan the trip. When we arrived in Arusha months later, Victor met us the evening before our safari to go over fine details and to arrange payment. We were hesitant to wire thousands of dollars from New York City without ever having met anyone from Elkan, but we really needn't have been. Business was always conducted with complete transparency and honesty, and in the end, Victor was accommodating, both of our desire to meet first and pay in person, and of several unforeseen date changes.
But the true substance of Elkan's ability to show us good time began when our private Land Cruiser pulled out of the hotel parking lot and headed west toward Ngorongoro and the Serengeti. Our affable and charming guide, Julias , demonstrated encyclopedic knowledge of all plants, birds, and game we saw. In fact, I can't remember a single instance in which Julias didn't know what we were looking at. He seemed to have names and facts at the tip of his tongue at all times, and backed up his verbal seminars with reference material from various field guides he carried in the car with him. We appreciated his infectious enthusiasm and how excited he got whenever he spotted birds or animals he must have seen hundreds and hundreds of times. The truth is, the Serengeti is never the same two days in a row, and it probably never gets boring. We also enjoyed the many meals we shared together, the cultural exchanges, and learning about Tanzania from an open and good-hearted native who was eager to share his limitless love of animals, nature, and his country.
The quality of the tented camps Elkan selected for us was very high: comfortable, clean, private and luxurious with attentive staff and good food, given the remote locations. I recommend Elkan Safaris without any hesitations or criticisms. They go to great lengths to provide an exceptional safari Safaris, and I know that if you choose them, you will have as wonderful a time as we did!
Kenya Safari 2011
I had an excellent experience with Sureway Tours on my safari through the Maasai Mara in Kenya. Communication, coordination, and service were great and really added to the experience.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
An Exceptional Introduction To The African Continent
I had an absolutely fantastic time with Simon and my tour group both at Kruger National Park as well as en route. The service Simon and Wild Wings Safaris provides is exceptional. Thanks to Madi for recommending and acquiring great pre and post safari accommodation at Premier Hotel. Road transfers to and from Kruger were very comfortable and picturesque. Accommodation in Kruger National Park was also comfortable and very sufficient for our needs. The meals prepared by Simon were more than sufficient and of very good quality. It was a delight to be treated to something as exotic to my palate as ostrich! Simon and Robert are both exceptional guides whose knowledge of the park and the species indigenous therein are second to none. My (first) game viewing experience could not have been better! My main hope for the safari was to see the rhinoceros and I was treated to a rhino sighting almost daily including both white, and the more rare black, rhino. Simon informed me and my travel companions that we were very fortunate to see African wild dogs on only our second day of safari as they are very rare to see, especially in packs as large as that which we saw. Regretfully, the only animal we did not see this time around was the elusive cheetah. So, it looks like I will have to (gladly) return for another game viewing experience in the future.
Excellent trip for 2 adults and 3 children
The safari was perfect, the driver was friendly and informative. Paraa Lodge was fantastic in Murchison Falls. Our driver tailored the game drives based on our children. Would definitely recommend this company.