HK
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
There is no shame but the most shameless operator.
Vervet Safari was the 2nd operator that we selected after we found our 1st selected operator, Qualified Tours Tanzania, was not reliable. (Please refer to the comments under the name of my wife, Teresia) Vervet Safari was referred by my friend who had engaged with Vervet Safari for many years. Hence, we had full confidence with Vervet Safari and their managing director, Basili Augustino. We asked him to arrange a 15-day safari trip for us (9 persons) and fully paid the cost to him 1 month before we departed to Tanzania. The cost was all-inclusive, including accommodation, meals, airport transfer, Safari jeep, driver, fuel, national park fee etc. The first few days' arrangements when we were at Arusha were ok. When we left Arusha, the nightmare began. When we had left Arusha and stayed at Manyara, Basili borrowed from me $200 and promised to return the money to me when we returned from Serengti. In the morning, we departed to Serengeti, Basili suddenly informed me one of the drivers had left, and we had to wait for another driver. We scheduled to depart at 8:00am but delayed for over 2 hours. Due to the delay, we couldn't reach the tent before sunset. More unfortunate was that the head lamps of one of the deeps were malfunction. One of the jeep had to travel in the dark. Fortunately, we reached the tent safely at 20:00 but had wasted one day. After the dinner, we were told the tents fee had not been paid. We had to pay it ourselves. We contacted Basili. He promised to pay it back to me when we returned from Serengti. The next day, we continued our trip in the morning and headed to Northern Serengti. When we almost reached the entrance. the driver told us Basili hadn't paid the park fee. He stalled to resolve it and finally we had to stay overnight at the village outside the park as the park gate was to close at 18:00. We had to find the hotel and pay by ourselves. The next morning. we departed early and reached the entry gate at about 12:00 noon. At that moment, Basili still kept stalling paying the fee. In order to keep our schedule moving, we agreed to pay on behalf of Basili. Basili agreed and promised to pay it back when we returned from Serengti. With the help of the gate manager, we were allowed to pay with our personal credit card. Unfortunately, there was some problem with the payment system. We had to wait for another 2 hours before we could enter the park. When we entered the park, it was almost 16:00. When we reached the tents after a short tour of the park, it was 18:00. We had again wasted another day. We finished our morning game drive the next day and left the Northern Serengti back to Central Serengti at noon. When we reached the park gate, no need to say. we had to pay the fee by ourselves. However, the park manager did not let us pay by ourselves. He said the jeeps were under the name of Vervet Safari, and hence, the fee must be paid by Vervet Safari. We had asked the manager to help to see if there would be another ways, but we were unattended. Finally, we had to stay overnight at the village outside the park again. No need to say, we had to pay the accommodation and meals by ourselves. We were very terrified and left Serengti the next morning. When we reached the accommodation at Manyara, Basili met us and said sorry to us. He also promised everything had been settled and told us not to worry. However, he didn't return the money to me immediately. Instead , he promised to write an agreement to me, promised to return the money to me within 2 weeks after we finished the trip. We thought everything was settled as promised by Basili and kept moving on the journey. Out of our expectations, the fee for culture visits was not paid again. We also need to pay the fuel cost on our way back to Arusha. At the end of our trip, Basili didn't even arrange airport transfer for 7 of our team members.
Conclusively, we had paid USD7,8xx on behalf of Vervet Safari, but up to this moment (6 weeks after the trip), I have not received a dollar from Basili.
From my personal experience, I met 2 unreliable Tanzania local travel agents. One of it was referred by my friend, who had worked with Vervet Safari for years. I am wondering if I am really, very bad luck or there is some .........unethical practices in the industry? Furthermore, the inconsistent park management at the Central and Northern Serengti are another concerns.
I wish my comment would help the other travelers.
IN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent
After contacting lots of tour operators i shortlisted Josana tours for :
1) Joseph the owner was very patient and ready to make changes in itinerary as per my requirement.
2) His rates were very competitive compared to others
3) I had read few receives and they were all positive. I hence took chance booking with him but to be honest we, group of 8, were all happy with his services.
Our guide George really added value to our safari tour. In October, we could see river crossing by Zebras and wildebest all thanks to George. He took us to the right place at right time and his strong intuition helped us see river crossing in October. Also during our Safari he took us so close to animals that we could see them just few meters away. He was really knowledgeable and well in touch with other guides which helped us see almost all animals along with hunting. We also saw birth of baby deer. In short, safari with Josana tours was truly and experience worth it.
PS: ours was a private safari and all accomodations were customized.
IN
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Ayalew is an experienced and knowledgeable tour guide!
Hidden Ethiopia Tours brought Lalibela alive for my wife and me during our visit in August 2025. They were professional, flexible and very knowledgeable in their history and culture. We had a once in a lifetime experimce of being transported in time and space! We came away renewed in our understanding of orthodox Christianity of the Lalibela kind, but in our spiritual life, as well.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
What a beautiful country
We did 4 days safari in Serengeti and then went to Zanzibar for 5 days. We were absolutely blown away by the wildlife in Serengeti and the beauty of Zanzibar. The smiles on Zanzibar people was a breath of fresh air in this world where everyone is stressing about money. Our tour company - kiliclimb africa safari - was great. The tour guide - Ombeni - was exceptional in finding wildlife. Ningbo beach in Zanzibar was exceptional. Every step of the way we found some delicious surprises. The whole trip was just beyond our expectations and we will surely visit Tanzania again soon.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
3 days was the perfect lenght
IT was a very good choice to do a Safari that took three days, longer and i ver mich would have preferred to stay in a lodge. But three day Camping was perfect
CN
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Watching the wildlife is really great, but the road facilities definitely still have room for improv
Maasai Mara is the most worthwhile place to visit. Although the accommodation is the most basic compared to the other places, it really allows you to see the most wildlife. Amboseli is mainly for viewing the snow-capped Mount Kilimanjaro. The scenery of Lake Naivasha is also nice, and it is recommended to take a boat ride and visit the islands. The animals at Lake Nakuru are relatively far away. If time is limited, the top recommendations are Maasai Mara and Lake Naivasha.
NZ
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
Unforgettable experience
I booked a 12 day safari with Beautiful Safaris Uganda. My guide, Kelly, was excellent. Very knowledgeable, friendly, always attentive to any needs and accommodated changes to the trip part way through.
The itinerary included gorilla trekking, chimpanzee tracking, Lake Bunyonyi, Murchison Falls, the national parks – all of which were amazing. To see all this you cover long distances so you also get a great overview of the country with changes in scenery, towns, agriculture and economic conditions. The lodges were clean & tidy and good food throughout the trip.
The tour company kept in touch prior to traveling to Uganda answering all my questions of what to expect.
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Highly recommend!
My partner and I did the 5 day private mid-luxury safari. Our guide was Simon - he was the best. Super knowledgeable and friendly. Got us some incredible views of the animals. We were lucky enough to see 4 of the big 5 too. All accomodations were beautiful and lived up to mid-luxury expectations. Very reasonable cost for such an unforgettable experience. To top it off, Loveness and her team set up my partner’s proposal to me! They really do go above and beyond. Highly, highly recommend Mountain Warriors.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing Uganda/Kenya adventure
My girlfriend and I had the most incredible two-week safari adventure in Uganda and Kenya in August, all arranged by Amani Afrika! From the very beginning, Vivian worked closely with us to craft a perfectly tailored itinerary. The trip was extremely well organized – every detail was taken care of so smoothly – and all of our accommodations were fantastic. All we had to do was show up. All the accommodations were well taken care off and transfers were effortless. The vehicles in Uganda and Kenya were comfortable and perfect for game drives.
A special shout-out goes to our Uganda guide, Barnabas. He was absolutely amazing – incredibly knowledgeable about every animal we saw, especially the birds. As Birders we loved that he went out of his way to add extra birding stops to our game drives. He literally knew every bird in Uganda by site and sound. Barnabas was also wonderfully kind and attentive, always making sure we were comfortable and felt completely safe. His enthusiasm and care made our safari days so much fun.
Our Kenyan guide, Chris, was equally fantastic. His passion for wildlife, the local ecosystem, and the culture of the region really shined through. Chris shared so many interesting facts about the animals, plants, and even traditions of the Maasai people. We learned an incredible amount from him at every turn. His knowledge and storytelling brought the landscapes to life for us, making each drive educational and exciting. In addition, Chris had an eye for photography and helped us get some amazing shots. He also found some amazing wildlife encounters and felt especially lucky to have him as our guide.
We absolutely loved this trip and it exceeded all of our expectations. We can’t say enough good things about Vivian, Barnabas, and Chris – they made the adventure unforgettable. If you’re planning an African safari, do yourself a favor and book with Amani Afrika. You won’t regret it!