US
I would advise you not to book this company. Seriously, you'll thank me later.
We booked a 4 night budget safari to see the Serengeti, Ngorogoro Crater, and Lake Manyara. While the wildlife did not disappoint (thanks to our freelance drivers, who were excellent guides), the rest of the experience was pretty awful.
We got quotes from a bunch of different safari operators and Kiliholidays came in the cheapest. This should have been a red flag, but we are broke grad students so we decided to hire them. Unfortunately, we got what we paid for.
The vehicles were in a sorry state of disrepair and one of them lost a wheel - twice. The bolts were rusted and after hitting a big bump, the wheel would tear loose and bounce off into the bush. Instead of getting new bolts to fix the wheel, the drivers simply borrowed bolts from other wheels. We saw a couple vehicles from other tour operators get flat tires, but no one else on the road had a wheel come flying off.
We also had some customer service issues with the company owner, Mack. You may have noticed that he has written responses to the other bad reviews from our group (there were 8 of us total).
Feel free to read his responses, but as you do, remember that this is how he would talk to you if you had an issue on safari with his company. It's a lot of blathering and blame shifting, which is really not what you want to deal with when you're totally dependent on your tour operator and just trying to have an enjoyable vacation with friends.
In summary - we felt unsafe in the vans and we felt that Mack took advantage of the fact that we were (stupid American) tourists, dependent on Kiliholidays for food, shelter, and transportation. Don't make the same mistake we did - book with someone else!
IE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
not what was advertised
Tanzania Safari Supremacy is a complete rip off. Simply put, what they advertise and what they set out in their itineraries are not what they will provide. I travelled with them in July 2015 and was utterly disappointed at the service they provided.
Firstly, when we were picked up from our hotel in the morning the operators demanded that we pay the balance in cash. This was never mentioned to us in any correspondence beforehand, which it clearly ought to have been given the size of our group and the amount of cash we would therefore need to have on hand. We had expected to be able to pay by card, but instead lost an hour that morning travelling to the airport to access an ATM – a terrible start to the trip, a waste of our time, and no apology from the company. Unfortunately this was only the beginning of our problems.
We had opted to use this tour operator as they claim in all their materials that the drive to the park is 4-4.5 hours from Dar es Salaam (there are other parks in the region but they are a longer drive so we chose Mikumi as we had limited time available to us and wanted to maximise our time in the park). The drive took 6 hours. This wasn’t due to traffic as there wasn’t any significant traffic and the journey time was the same on the way back to Dar from the park. This delayed not only our arrival on the first day but also meant we would not have time to make use of our final morning on safari as we had to ensure we would make it back to Dar in time to catch the ferry.
The itinerary for the first day was to arrive by midday and immediately start on a game drive. Instead, when we arrived the driver told us that the plan was not to go out on a drive until 4:30pm! This was a loss of over half a day of driving for absolutely no reason.
At this stage we were very annoyed by the situation. We asked the driver to take us out at 3pm so as not to lose so much time and, reluctantly, he agreed. We also asked at that stage for the driver to get the manager, Elvice, who we had corresponded with by email beforehand, on the phone so that we could discuss the issues that had arisen. The driver did not get him on the phone.
On the first evening the driver (allegedly) checked what time breakfast would be served at, told us it would be 6:30am and initially suggested picking us up at 7:30am to go on a drive. As anyone who has been on safari before will know, it is best to go out as early as possible as the animals move around most in the mornings before it gets too hot in the middle of the day. Thankfully, we knew this so insisted that the driver pick us up at 7am and he, again reluctantly, agreed.
Later that evening the catering staff (who are entirely separate to the safari company and did a fantastic job and were most helpful) told us that breakfast is not served until 7am (a fact I have no doubt the driver was fully aware of). They tried to contact the driver for us to tell him that we would instead go on a drive earlier and return for breakfast later in the morning but they were unable to get through to him.
The following morning the driver did not turn up until 7:25am. When we were eventually able to speak to Elvice much later that day he claimed that the driver was delayed as he had had a flat tire. The driver never mentioned this so I fully believe this was just a story concocted later on to try and cover himself. He didn’t apologise at all when he did arrive late and when we made it clear that we were very unhappy with how we were being treated he again offered no apology.
As an aside, the driver showed very little in the way of knowledge about the animals. If we had not asked him questions about the animals I don’t think he would have said a word the whole time and when he did answer questions it didn’t seem like he knew very much about the animals. When we did come across animals it seemed very much like just a matter of chance rather than any skill exercised by the driver. Even if all the other issues had not arisen, I think we would have left the tour feeling quite disappointed by the drives because of this apparent lack of knowledge.
Returning to the main issues. When the driver arrived late that morning I insisted that he call Elvice as the group was so appalled at the service. He instead got another middle man, Philbert, on the phone who refused to listen to our complaints (which were expressed in a calm fashion) and began to scream down the phone at me, called me crazy a number of times, and then hung up the phone on.
We asked the driver again to get Elvice on the phone as he was, as far as we knew, the person in charge. The driver claimed that he did not know who Elvice was, he only knew Philbert. We told him that we were not happy to speak to Philbert and insisted he get Elvice on the phone and the driver said he would.
We eventually went out on our morning drive and by the time we returned for lunch we still had not received a call from Elvice (although we are quite confident that the driver was speaking on his phone to someone from the main office, he denied it when asked about it). At that point we again insisted on him calling Elvice. Again he claimed he did not know who that was and that he only knew Philbert so he put Philbert on the phone again, who claimed that Elvice could not be contacted as he was ‘in the bush’. When I said that that wasn’t acceptable and that we must speak to someone in charge he again started to shout at me and ultimately hung up the phone.
We again explained to the driver that we had to speak to someone in charge and that we wanted that phone call to happen now. 10-20minutes later we eventually got a call from Elvice. Unfortunately, all Elvice offered us were excuses, such as the phantom flat tire. He refused to acknowledge that the itinerary he had sent us was very different to what was proposed when we arrived and ultimately could offer us no solution. I asked that he consider the situation and call me back within an hour to offer some solution to the problem but, unsurprisingly at this stage, the call never came.
That evening when the driver dropped us off, we asked him to call Elvice again. At first he tried again to claim that he didn’t know who that was or how to contact him, but, obviously, this didn’t stand up and he eventually got him back on the phone. This time Elvice was much more hostile. He tried to claim that we had caused very issues and that we had tried to not pay for the safari (absolutely baseless claims), he offered the same nonsense excuses, and ultimately, when I insisted that there was no excuse for providing a service so different to what was advertised, he became completely frustrated and (judging by the sounds) hurled his phone against the wall.
Do not use Tanzania Safari Supremacy. There are so many companies offering safaris in this region, try any of them other than this one. They don’t provide what they promise, their driver showed no expertise, and their customer service is despicable.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
6 Days Safari in Tanzania
We had a wonderful Safari in Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Lake Manyara and Tarangire national parks with a Adam our super entertaining driver guide. The accommodation was up to our expectations and everything was well organised. Highlights of the Safari being a live lion hunt, meeting the wonderful and colourful Masai's and learning some Swahili.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing safaris
This was my first safari holiday to Africa, but the first time to Tanzania. I had to carefully select the right operator in terms of value for money and an overall quality of experience. After a lot of research and an initial decided to go with 3crest Tours & Safaris with a very open and transparent company website with safari Itinerary price, professional staffs, very good customer care and services. Gabriel was very patient in planning our itinerary to fit within our budget. I must say a Tanzania Safari is very different compared to the rest of Africa i should return Tanzania again by next year.Sleeping bags is very nice, food is delicious, driver guide is so competent.In short i can say every thing with this company is super. I have now recommended my friends and anyone to book with 3crest Tours & Safaris for their vacation all the time. Thank you Gabriel and the team.
For any questions about this company you can email me
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Once in a lifetime safari!
We just returned home from an incredible 8 day safari where we visited Samburu, Masai Mara and Amboseli national parks. We booked our trip through Kiboko Kenya Safaris. Clare was very professional and always responded quickly to our emails. She listened to what we wanted and planned an itinerary that suited us. Her rates were very competitive and we're extremely happy with the standard of accommodation. We were especially impressed by our Masai guide who made sure we saw every animal on our wish list (including lions, leopard cubs and cheetah cubs!). We would absolutely recommend Kiboko Kenya Safaris and can't wait to go back to Kenya!
QA
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome experience: amazing service- graciously cared for- saw the Big 5+
We just returned from a 6 day/5 night camping safari and can honestly say that it was one of our very favorite trips of all time. With so many companies to choose from, we are glad we went with World Tours. Owner, Richard was incredibly responsive to our numerous emails and made sure we were taken care of from the moment we landed until we were back at the airport for our return. Our guide/driver, Steven was amazing! Extremely knowledgeable and willing to wake up early and stay out late in order for us to see as many animals as possible. He knows the parks well and was thoroughly gracious throughout the entire trip. Our cook, Vitalis, was also wonderful- preparing great meals- large portions, varied and tasty! The only not-so-great aspect of the trip was the condition of our vehicle. It was an older jeep with worn interior, no air-conditioning, blurry windows and lacked power to get up hills. However, it added to the experience and we can't wait to return!
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
All-round Great Experience
My wife and I have just completed Ulinda's "Classic Safari" - 3 nights at 3 different locations in Botswana. Both still to come down to earth - it was beyond our expectations.
From the time I first contacted Jane Bettenay to the time she farewelled us at the Kazungula Ferry for our onward journey to Zambia dealing with Jane was a pleasure.
Jane met us at Maun Airport and conveyed us to our overnight stay at Thamalakane River Lodge (not part of the Ulinda package) in preparation for the start of our safari with Unlinda the next day.
Originally the safari included stops at Moremi, Savuti and Chobi however due to the severe dry weather we had our first location moved to the Khwai Development Trust area. This change to the itinerary was communicated to us a couple of weeks out from the start and the choice proved excellent.
This safari normally caters for 8 people however we were the only one's so the service level was great, whether it be food, facilities or comfort we were both delighted. I suspect that even with a full party the standards would not drop. I have had some camping experience but my wife has had none during her 65+ years.
As conveyed to Jane when choosing what we wanted from the safari "we just want to see the animals". And we certainly did. And every day produced one or more surprises. Even on the last day in Chobe we we able to observe a Leopard with two cubs drinking no more than 5 minutes drive from our camp site and not another safari party anywhere in sight all because of Jane's knowledge, experience and advice that we be up and into the day at dawn - it sure paid off every morning.
The sunset gin and tonic to end each day and the camp fire discussions at night rounded out, what for us was a holiday that we'll continue to talk about for years.
This was our first trip to Africa. Maybe not our last.
HU
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Anniversary gift safari to Tanzania
- All planning as per itinerary
- Comfortable jeep with good openings for photos
- Good natured driver guide knew whereabouts of the animals and good sense of humour
- The lodges and food was very good
- I appreciate Safarihub notifying the lodges that this was an anniversary gift and they went the extra mile by putting flower petals to the bed, and offering free upgrades in some of the lodges and complimentary wines.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Serengeti Safari
Fantastic, we had a great trip. Initially we thought spending 5 nights in the Serengeti was a bit much however when we realised the sheer size of the park we were glad we had taken that decision. We stayed at several tented camps including kati kati and nasikia, each one was different and had something unique to offer. It’s a surreal feeling when trying to be one with nature. We saw most if not all of the animals, including two live kills one with a lion and the other a leopard which is rare. Friendly driver and we liked the fact that Safarihub kept in contact with us during the safari to make sure everything was okay.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A great safari by a great guy!
Thanks to Joe from Asili Explorer for a wonderful safari through Lake Manyara, Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Crater. We saw everything we wanted to see over four days and three nights. Joe has an eye like a hawk! He managed to spot animals that I am sure a lesser guide would have missed. Definitely recommended.