50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Let down
We used Land and Lake to take us on a 3 day safari to South Luangwa and while there were no problems with the lodge or the safari drives, Land and Lake let us down on both transport and also failed to communicate with the lodge. 30 minutes outside of Lilongwe we broke down and had to spend over 2 hours by the side of the road while a replacement vehicle was brought out. On the way we met up with another Land and Lake vehicle that had broken down the day before. We arrived at the lodge after almost 8 hours after leaving and missed an hour of our afternoon drive. The lodge (not a part of Land and Lake) and the manager were superb but dietary requirements of half of our party were not passed on to them. Land and Lake have proved unreliable and although I would use the lodge again I would not use or recommend Land and Lake.
NL
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great last minute service & very good value
We booked our safari two weeks in advance after some very helpful advice through e-mail. We decided to do a 5-day camping safari incl. Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater.
On our way to Kilimanjaro airport we missed the connecting flight at Nairobi. We had to wait over twelve hours and arrived in the evening instead of early in the morning. Just four hours before arrival, I requested Sunny Safaris to arrange an pick-up from the airport and a hotel booking in Arusha (all through e-mail). They arranged both perfectly, and we could start the safari early on the next morning. Paying a small part of the remaining balance in TZS instead of USD was no problem either (we had to pay for new flight tickets cash at Nairobi).
The safari itself was just amazing. We were lucky to see the early arrival of the great migration around Seronera. We saw each of the big 5 at least three times. The experienced driver/guide and cook (Pessa and Vincent) did a great job in making our adventure unforgettable.
We inquired different companies and Sunny was by far the cheapest. It seems there is little difference between companies in terms of service and meals on the campsites. So it felt as great value for money us.
The only con we can think of is that the vehicle looked a bit older than the others around, but we had no problems except for one flat tire. But it was very comfy to have a 8p vehicle just for us...
Definitely recommended!
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
My driver/guide was excellent. Many opportunities to see wildlife
Sometimes there were short delays in communication but Simon always returned emails
DK
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Very professional and flexible safari operator with contacts to the very best lodges.
The communication has been great through the entire process, always quick and good replies to our mails. We were very impressed with all the information provided before hand and everything has lived up to our expectations. Our stay at kirkmans camp were extremely pleasant. Great location, great accomodation, great food and staff, and not the least amazing safari-experience. Our guide was very professional and knew so much about the wildlife! We also had a good stay at the ngala lodge but felt it was a little bit less intimate and personal primarily because of its bigger size. The staff also seemed less engaged, but still great accomodation, great food and amazing wildlife experience. All transfers went as planned so it was easy for us to just relax and enjoy!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
7 day Kruger family adventure of a life-time
If you are lucky enough to secure a booking with Shaun at Moriti Safaris, you are in for a treat. Shaun is a pleasure to spend time with (our boys adored him) and has a great sense of humour. His passion for the bush and the animals is completely infectious, and his tracking skills enabled us to get up close to so many different animals. His hand-picked accommodations were fantastic. We stayed at Panzi Lodge (the boys loved playing in the pool and with the two resident Jack Russels) which was rustic and gorgeous, then at Angela's House (an incredible private house with a view to die for). All our meals were gourmet and delicious. The trip surpassed all my hopes and expectations - it was amazing!
Five Star!
Here is a snippet from my journal. In summary this was a remarkable resort. I'd recommend it in a flash!
On our last morning at Victoria Falls the breakfast calm was shattered when a baboon leaped off the roof on to the veranda dining area and terrorized a man at a table. His fortunate wife had just left to make another pass at the buffet. The animal grasped for food off the mans table but he only succeeded in knocking dishes on to the floor before a waiter shooed him away.
The Zambezi Sun, our hotel, is ideally located, literally at the entrance to the National Park, which includes the falls. It's several acres with a series of two story hotel units. On our last day, right around six four zebra sauntered past our living room. Just up, I grabbed my pants and went out with photo equipment in hand. They were oblivious of my presence. This apparently is not unusual on our first evening a group of velvet monkeys went prancing by our unit. Giraffe and elephant are in the area, but I did not see any during our stay. We did see several gazelle as we arrived at the property that first evening.
We toured the falls our first evening. It was hot and the sun still intense at five. We took the main route across the "knife-edge bridge." The water flow was very disappointing, just a trickle; this was the end of the dry season in October. The path leads to a promontory overlooking the main falls area. The vista is spectacular even without the water flow. The drop-off is hundreds of feet, providing an excellent sphincter test! In the distance is the main bridge over the mighty Zambezi river linking Zambia with Zimbabwe.
On the middle of our three day stay we did a river cruise. The Zambezi is the fourth longest river in Africa we were told. The Nile, the Congo, and the ++. We had wanted to do the "African Queen," a larger vessel than seen in the Bogart movie. But, it was only available for the sunset dinner cruise, which was not of interest to us. How lucky for us as it turns out. The small boat, which would probably hold 12 or more, was large enough to seem safe. There was only one other couple, Ian & Esther--another story, so the boat was very fast and very maneuverable.
We started our adventure heading upriver. Within a quarter we came on a herd of bachelor elephants. There were 16-17 in the all male group. The captain pulled right up to them at the river bank as he told us to not worry, because they do not go into the water. Whereupon one and then three elephants entered the river just to our left. We moved on up the river a nod in a short while came on 5-6 hippos; they were grazing on the bank. As we moved closer they hurried off to one side into the river. From then on it was just eyes, ears and noses! There were many other species, most birds, one croc and a variety of fauna. Toward the end of our two hour jaunt we beached the craft and had a Picnic lunch with fried chicken, curried potatoes, some quiche and fruit for desert. Back on board we went bat out of hell down rapids to the hotel where we were dropped off. A magical day!
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Best Safari Experience with Shadows of Africa
It's difficult to choose a tour operator for a safari if you don't have a referral. There are so many companies out there. We narrowed it down to Shadows of Africa because they were SO informative, so communicative, and helped us with some logistics with 4 of us coming from different countries and needing particular types of accommodations. Everything exceeded our expectations; we loved our driver, Moody and we had the experience of a lifetime. You feel surprised all along the way with lodges that are beautiful and food that is great and the warmth of the people and of course, most of all, we saw more animals and scenarios than we expected - and they can't probably control that, but we felt that Moody was an amazing guide, seeing things we would have totally missed. And being unplugged in nature for 6 days? Pure heaven. I will recommend this group to everyone. Thank you, Shadows of Africa. It was the best.
CA
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The Safari of a Lifetime
I have been on four Safari's so far in East Africa and the one organized by Zazu Tours and Safaris tops my list. It was so well organized and the staff were incredible. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and our cook made sure that there was an abundance of delicious local cuisine. And nothing beats camping in the middle of the Serengeti. Truly the experience of a lifetime. I highly recommend Zazu Tours and would love to go back and Safari with them again.
CH
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Outstanding first safari experience
We were a group of 4 people thereof 1 in a wheelchair. As we didn't know if a safari with a handicaped person really works we were a little bit afraid when starting the safari. But thanks to the good preparation of NRSC it was an outstanding experience for us: everything was perfectly organised! The lodges were very comfortable and people extremely attentive. Our driver was very experienced and supportive and adapted the daily program to our specific needs whenever it was necessary. Everything Fransisca and her team promised came more than true - it was our first safari, but hopefully not our last (of course only with NRSC!)!
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
fantastic adventure
Together with Makasa we made plans for climbing the Kilimanjaro and after that 8 days of safari.
We told Makasa about our plans and they made for us a perfect custom vacation plan. We must have asked them a million questions about climbing the Kilimanjaro and every question was answered. Its been an experience we will not forget, and i'm very pleased we booked with Makasa. The safari was also wonderful with a very experienced guide. He knew so much facts about the animals and nature to tell us. We've visited 4 parks each with there own unique experience. Everything was very well arranged. It was the perfect vacation.