LT
Review about Queen Elizabeth National Park by Rasa Muleviciene
It was all day rain, i saw very few, the road is terrible. It is my experience because of the rain.
SG
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Review about Lake Mburo National Park by Jasmine Oh
There is nothing much at Lake Mburo National Park.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
It was not a Jackpot that's for sure
I have to say the experience that my friend and I had with Jackpot Safaris was not great. Andrew (the owner of the company) is very warm and friendly until he's got your business. After that he becomes a lot more awkward and doesn't really want to listen to what you want to to as much.
I did a 3 day safari of Tarangerie, Lake Manyara and Ngorongora. We asked to leave nice and early at 7 as spending only 1 day in Tarangerie we wanted to maximise the amount of time spent there. Andrew refused point blank and said we'll get picked up at 9. On the day of the safari - the truck was over 45 minutes late. When the truck arrived it was noticeable one of the oldest Safari Trucks and the inside was not very comfortable. Despite being 45 minutes late one of the first thing the guide said to me was how because he was freelance he gets paid less than other guides so tips are quite important for them. This was not a particularly great start.
When we got to Tarangerie, when we went inside the park he said to me and my friend that he din't have binoculars in the car (which was a big disappointment). Furthermore he didn't seem that enthusiastic about looking out for animals and the impression I got was that he was going to mainly do driving and not strain his eyes too much looking for animals. I have done a safari in Tanzania before and our guide as well as being a lot more enthusiastic, said he'll keep his eyes peeled for us so I do have a bit of a precedent on what to expect and it did not deliver. Also going round the park there was clearly a problem with the radiator on the car as he kept having to stop and top it up (which no other cars were doing). Also I think we were only in the park for around 4 and a half hours.
The camp site that we stayed at was very nice and even had beds in the tent. So what I was abit confused about was after we paid for the safari Andrew asked us if we had tents to take with us to which he said we didn't. He then said ok. Naturally when we got to the campsite we couldn't help but wonder as to why we were asked to bring our own tents if there were tents provided that came with beds. Based on the impression of Andrew I had gotten, my thoughts were that he wanted us to bring our own tents so it would be cheaper for him (but that saving would not have been passed on). I can not say for definite whether that is the case or not but that is my theory. Also another suggestion - say you don't eat fish - it's not a great idea!! The soup was very nice but the main meals were not nearly as good as the ones I'd had previously on safari in Tanzania.
After our late start going to Tarangerie we asked to leave early the next day to go to Lake Manyara. Our guide said there's no point as you can drive round Manyara in 3 hours. Well maybe you can drive round in 3 hours. But my friend and I had not been to Manyara before so we didn't want to just quickly drive round and only spend a few hours there. We wanted to take the time to enjoy the scenery and the animals. Again I think we only spent around 4 and a half hours there.
That evening he said we'll be leaving early the next day to go the Ngorongora. I was quite excited as I thought that this meant we'd be spending longer in the crater. However in reality the only reason we were leaving early was because he wanted to get back earlier so we were not spending any more time there. This was one of several occasions on the safari where I felt the guide just wanted to get things done as quickly as he could. He was not very enthusiastic.
Despite leaving the crater early (not long after 1 which was a bit early for my liking) it took an extra hour and abit to get back as the engine was overheating we had to stop for a long time to let it cool down and for the guide to put more water in. Andrew you may need to invest in a new truck.
PH
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
HU
35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Zsolt Banyai
Is animals density combined with the high general cost of doing safari in Tanzania makes this park a bad idea - I would rather spend more time in Tarangire or Serengeti than visiting this park again.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Never shows up on time
I was very disappointed with Falcon Safaris. When I booked these activities I was under the impression that Falcon Safaris worked closely with our concierge at the Royal Livingstone. Every voucher slip that we had told us a time to be ready, and we were always ready at that time. Unfortunately Falcon Safaris was always at least 45 minutes late. It literally happened 4 times. The concierge was always in disagreement with Falcon Safaris and I felt that we paid the price. Would not recommend Falcon Safaris to other guests of the hotel.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Skeleton Coast National Park by Michele Bartlett
Miles of mist covered coast with nothing to see. Terrible weather. Boring
US
20-35 years of age
Beautiful Mountain on its Way to Ruin
Mt. Kilimanjaro is, needless to say, a pretty unique place on earth. Unfortunately, Tanzania runs it more like an amusement park than a place to be revered for its national beauty.
As the camps get more crowded closer to the summit (the trails merge) they get progressively worse. Tour companies do not treat the place very well. Trash is abundant around all the campsites, and the vegetation is trampled/abused all around, I suspect, not by the toursists themselves, but by the 3+ crew members typically accompanying each tourist.
Most disappointingly, human waste policies are almost non existent or just not followed (no bathroom business within 50m of a trail, for example.) Outside of camps, every few minutes, you will pass a spot that smells like the national pee-corner, or a spot with enough used toilet paper to cover a kitchen table. Really detrimental to encounter this so frequently in a place that I'd hope to see as pristine as possible.
Unfortunately, the camp toilets are not much better. In a year of living in Tanzania, the large public toilets with tile floors are the worst smelling restrooms I have encountered anywhere in this country, and of any public park anywhere in the world. The small wooden ones over a pit are pretty standard bush toilets, so they're ok.
I realize that this sounds like a prissy white guy from a developed country has his panties in a bunch because things aren't squeaky clean in Africa, but I relish the "roughing it" experience one can find camping or traveling in less-developed parts of the world. I'm no stranger to gross or inadequate toilets, but I was pretty disappointed in what I encountered in such a world-famous park that supposedly hosts luxury trips. Nothing luxurious about stepping over human feces on your way up the mountain (literally happened).
These two things (trash and sanitation) really deflated my experience of an otherwise incredible trip. The company I went with did everything in their power to make it fantastic, and its sad that my only grievances are with the park itself. The ecosystems you pass through and the views from some of the camps are stunning, and 19,341 feet does feel pretty cool.
But its absolutely not worth paying Tanzanian Natl Parks the fee they extort from visitors for a park that's so poorly maintained. You could have an unreal three week vacation in SE Asia for the same money, without (ideally) hiking through a sewer. If you're dead set on climbing a mountain in TZ though - Mt. Meru is incredible and Mt. Hanang is really cool too. Cost you about 1/6 the money for Meru, Hanang less than $100. Kilimanjaro, is unfortunately, overrated.
NO
Search for Moley
Im looking for a ranger with the name Moley? I hope he is still at Ruaha? Im a friend that worked with him ? Can you please ask him to contact me via mail?
Kind regards
Rudi from Makalali Game reserve?