US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
7-day tanzania wildlife safari
My trip started from Tarangire National Park, and ended at Serengeti National Park. Everything went well until the day before my trip ended. We had a flat tire and the our truck was not equipped with proper tools to change a spare tire. So we got help from other guides. The spare tire was not in a good shape. So the next day (last day of our trip) we had another flat ; which turned out to be the spare tire. Now we don't have any spare tire . So I felt unsafe to continue on our game drive for the rest of the day. Not only that, while entering the Serengeti, the fuel tank strap broke thus hanging on one strap all the way. That slowed us down too.
I believe for any company the vehicles should be double checked for basic things such as proper inflation in tires, spare tires in good condition, overall health of the engine , check all the fluids, etc. And last but not the least , tools to change spare tires that are in working order.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Not Great!
This is the review of the service received from Raja Tours ( https://www.rajatours.org/) for the private 5-day Safari (Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro) for two, July 2018.
Summary: Overall experience: 3/5 (could have been a lot better only if we had a better guide)
A) Itinerary: 5/5 (Rajab worked with us to customize the plan and select the parks and accommodation we wanted).
B) Driver/Guide: Driving skills 4/5 (Hashim/Hashimu was a very safe driver), Guiding skills: 1/5 (Sadly Hashim wasn't familiar with the parks, hot spots, and routs, however we were lucky enough to follow other drivers/guides to find and see some of the animals. Also, other factors contributed to this rating such as lack of communication, being unfriendly, strong focus on getting out of the park by certain time (we typically ended up at the gate 1 hr ahead of the schedule).
C) Vehicle: 2/5 (old beat-up vehicle (Toyota) with no A/C (cooling/heating), non-reclining seats, and barley functioning windows/doors (some windows wouldn't open/close, some doors wouldn't open, etc)
Again, Rajab was very responsive throughout the booking process and provided us with a great itinerary. However, considering this's a once-in-a-life-time trip, it was disappointing to have an inexperienced unfriendly guide.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Safari was good; Roho Ya Chui was Disappointing
This was my second safari trip and third tour in Sub-Saharan Africa and my first journey with Roho Ya Chui. We traveled to Tanzania (Ruaha, Selous and Zanzibar)
The good: Ute was very responsive throughout the booking process. I selected the parks we visited and Ute recommended the lodges. The Zanzibar hotel she selected for us at the end of the trip was a particularly good choice.
The bad: I asked for a modification of the itinerary 10 days after booking and deposits because I had done some further reading and had gotten some negative signals about one the lodges she booked us in. Her response was an immediate no as it turns out she had bought an end to end package from a local operator in Tanzania who owned both the lodges and the air carrier responsible for our transfers. She was dismissive of my concerns about the lodge, but I asked if she could humor me and at least inquire about a modification before giving me an automatic no so I could make my own decision. She investigated and informed me the change would have meant the forfiture of my deposits so I stuck with her plan.
The really bad: Before our journey I reconfirmed our arrival information and asked specifically who would be meeting us, how they would be identified and with whom would they be affiliated as I hadn't been provided that information. She furnished me with the number of the local duty manager and received no additional details other than that they would have a sign with my name. She also said I could also contact her with any issues if they arose. We arrived as scheduled at 4 am to Dar Es Salaam and no one was there to meet us. I called the local duty manager - no answer. I called, texted and emailed Ute - no response. It was left to me how to figure out ground transportation in an unfamiliar African city. I managed, but it was not the best experience after 30 hours of travel. A couple hours later Ute responded and asked me why I hadn't called her. I said I had and she said she insisted she didn't get a call from me. I sent her a screen cap of my call - and she then admitted she had missed the call. I found it a bit strange that she would intimate that I had somehow mishandled the situation considering I was the client who was needing assistance - but as I said to her - I took care of it and no harm done. The local operator did refund me the money I paid to get to our hotel.
Our first camp/lodge was great. Our third and final stop was great. Our second (the one I had been concerned about) was less so. The property was under renovation and some services that were advertised were not available (pool out of commission; bar/main lodge being re-roofed, no hot water, and no view from our accommodation). These were minor issues as for me it is really all about the animals. More concerning was that the promised animal drives (the whole point of the exercise) were not available to us on two (out of four) occasions. When this happened the second time - I had to put my foot down. The manager admitted (what I already knew from observation) that they were fully booked and didn't have enough capacity to accommodate the drives for all guests. I found this very disappointing - doubly so as this was at the location I had told Ute I was concerned about. Ute was informed but, once again, it was up to me to get the issue resolved in real time. She said she was contacting the camp manager, but I never did hear from Ute if she spoke with the manager, what the excuse was or any particular apology. Ute did offer that no one had ever complained about that particular lodge in the past which was sort of besides the point. I don't know if she was suggesting that I am particularly difficult or if other people's good experiences were supposed to make up for my bad experience. In the end, a simple apology would have sufficed.
In sum, the booking process through payment was very smooth, but I cannot say she was helpful when problems arose and rather than being helpful or at least soothing when things went wrong was strangely defensive. Based on my experience, she gets the basic job done but if you run into any problems, you are on your own.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
A little disappointing.
The weather was very nice. Wildlife not as abundant as I expected but then it was the dry season. MY accommodations were NOT what I paid to have---I paid for a mid-range tented lodge and ended up in a tent on the ground and shorted one day stay in the Serengeti. MY agent took the money I paid (in advance) and did not make any hotel arrangements, no one day hike on Kilimanjaro nor did he provide any arrangements for the 2 day stay in Kenya for Amboseli National Park or the Park fees in Tanzania National Parks (3). This is at least $1,000 loss and time wasted. I actually had to spend a day filing a police report on [email protected] Nagol. This site needs to be shut down to prevent this scum from hurting other travelers and ruining the safari business in Tanzania. Most of the people were extremely nice in trying to help sort all of this out for me and make sure I saw what I came to see. I was in a group of 6 but it was a little stressful as the guide/driver never knew what to do with me. Please DO NOT advertise for this site. He is a crook
TH
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Review about Lake Manyara National Park by Polwach Wudhikulprapan
Lake Manyara is pretty small comparing to other national parks we visited. What we like about this place is that we saw lions resting on the trees which was quite spectacular, thanks to the springwater that has an influence on their behaviors. There were not so many kinds of wild animals to see here although olive baboons were notably abundant. The lanscape is a mix of plain and forest and not so scenic as Serengeti or Ngorongoro.
PH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our guide was great
No complaint about our guide, he was absolutely great. He tried his best to make us comfortable and satisfied with the tour. He also shared a lot of wonderful insights about safaris and the animals in the savannah. 5 stars for Lion!
However, the road going to Masaii Mara from Nairobi was terrible and we were not informed beforehand. The driver also made a lot of detours before we got to our destination. On our way back to the airport, the traffic was terrible and we almost missed our flight, not to mention, the hotel we booked for us to get a shower before the flight.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Wildlife, no so great Driver
The Safari was very nice, and we were really lucky, despite rain season. However, out driver always seemed to be in a hurry outside the park and the extra-activities seemed to a nuisance to him
AR
Great stopover
I asumed it was going to be a mediocre experience with just a good location but it ended up having a nice variety of animals: zebras, giraffes, impalas, topis, waterbucks, warthogs, monkeys and ankoles. Not the usual big 5 but very enjoyable nonetheless. Convinced my guide to drive by since I had some hours to spare on my way to the airport and it was delightful. Great stopover to complement what I had already seen.
Some sceneries were amazing while other sections of the park were too bushy, but they seem to be "taking care" of that since there were big chunks of the side-road having been burned down, or something like the sort. Roads were bad.
ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing safari experience with Routes Kilimanjaro Adventure
Enjoyed it. Great organization. Good communication and food. Enthusiastic and informative driver guide. Good condition safari vehicle. Highly recommended.
We were the group of 8 adults, did did an eight days safari with Routes Kilimanjaro Adventure in mid December 2017. Pick up and drop off was from JRO. Weather cooperated on most days except the one day which we were delayed due to over flooding. But our driver guide Godfrey was helpful. We chosen medium accommodation which exceeded our expectations and was excellent (especially in the middle of the Serengeti). Food was great. It was mixture of local cuisines and some international dishes. Plenty of veg options available. Picnic lunches during game drives were good to.
Now for important stuff - Godfrey was excellent both as a driver and as a guide. He made sure we followed all the park regulations and observed wildlife safely and respectfully, while being able to enjoy. Godfrey had an amazing eye at spotting birds and animals from distance. His knowledge of their behavior, habitats and patterns was superb. However, watching wildlife is always a game of chance and of lucky according to Godfrey. We saw a herd of more than 100 elephants on one day while no elephants on last couple of days.
Overall we were extremely happy and satisfied with our first safari experience. Routes Kilimanjaro provided excellent service and good value for money. We will definitely choose Routes Kilimanjaro again for future safaris.
Thanks to Stella for organizing this wonderful safari. Having done all the bookings and communications online, and a continent apart, there is some apprehension. But Stella and Routes Kilimanjaro were patient and answered all our questions and accommodated requests.
AE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Almost there but something is just not right
Throughout the planning stages Gosheni was very helpful and overall the safari was nice. But I am writing this review with mixed emotions. During the planning process there was a huge emphasis placed on the company having new vehicles and permanent guides. The vehicle that we had for our safari was fantastic and new, but it was not owned by Gosheni. Instead they had subcontracted our safari to another company. The guide was friendly and gave us a great trip but is not a an employee of Gosheni, and instead works for another company. In the end we were delivered with a great trip, but I am left with a bit of a sour taste. Their website is really focused on how great they are because they employ the best guides. They claim to be a reliable and honest operator.
We traveled in low season so it still seems very strange that they subcontracted our trip to another company, named Masai Safaris. I read several bad reviews about companies that Sub-contract safaris to other companies and the mess it can end up it. So we specifically chose a company that seemed to run their own trips. Apparently this is not the case, so I can't recommend this company even though the safari was well planned and delivered.