20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
8 Day Tanzania Safari and 4 day Zanzibar Beach Holiday
The following is a very thorough review of our 5* safari holiday, majestically delivered by the Wild Secret Safari team! Without a shadow of a doubt, the best family holiday I have had.
The Safari
We were a family of 5, including 2 Children. Rashid organised everything for us from the hotels/camps/lodges to airport transfers. As soon as we arrived in Tanzania we were met with our tour guide Nathan at the airport. We stayed in Arusha for one night, then our Safari begun to Tarangire national park to get a flavour of whats to come before moving onto the beautiful landscapes of Serengeti. We visited Central and Northern parts of Serengeti and witnessed the amazing Wildebeest Migration, including the river crossing on 2 separate occasions! Nathan was a very friendly and knowledgeable tour guide. He took us on game drive routes not many other tour guides were familiar with, due to his vast experience. He could spot animals from quite a distance and we were able to see Lions, Cheetahs, Leopards, Elephants, Zebras, Giraffes, Baboons, Wildebeest, Buffalos, Hippos, Crocs and Hyena, including exotic birds and much more! He also made us the best hot chocolates!
We had some awesome encounters with Lions and Elephants, something we will never forget! The roads are quite bumpy and dusty in Serengeti just be aware. Nathan was an excellent driver though, he tried to make the journey as pleasant as possible. We met him every morning with a spotless car and good banter!
Moving on to Ngorongoro crater was a very memorable experience, the number of animals we came across in a short amount of time was amazing. We even had a nice picnic lunch and took some incredible pictures! Lake Manyara we visited on our way back to Arusha, which was a nice national park but with less action compared to the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater.
Halal Food
With our safari package our food was catered for, Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. After breakfast at the camps/lodges we were out for morning game drives.
Our lunches were prepared for us every day by the camps/lodges in our picnic boxes which we would eat outside in designated picnic areas located in the National Parks, or in our Jeep. Lunch boxes were made to order by telling the staff in the lodges our chosen options for the day.
Dinner- we were always back at the lodges/camps in time for dinner which was usually served around 7/7.30pm.
All the food was Halal in the camps/lodges we stayed in, which was amazing. Stress free! The owner of the Ole Serai camps is a Muslim himself so we were at ease.
Accomadation
All our camps and lodges were luxurious with beautiful views of sunsets/sunrises. We enjoyed every moment in them, including the gourmet Halal food. They exceeded our expectations! All the staff were so friendly and welcoming. We would definitely choose Ole Serai again in our next visit!
Massai Village
During our stay we had a chance to visit a Massai Village, for an extra cost, not included in our package. It is a $50 entry free to visit them, charged per family. You are able to see them dance and take as many pics/videos of them. They will show you around, where they live and show you inside their huts. The chief will tell you about their culture, lifestyle, religion etc. You can even join in on their dancing if you would like and then at the end they will show you their hand crafted items for sale. This felt a bit unpleasant as we felt we were pressured to buy something to support them, even though we had already paid them an entry fee. Also, their prices are crazy, so haggling was required. At the end we were told to leave because another family were here-which left us a little disappointed. Overall we didn’t feel like it was worth it as it wasn't really an authentic encounter, better off visiting a real massai village.
Shopping
There are a small shops on the sides of the road while driving out of Arusha or into Manyara. You can ask the driver to stop by to do some souvenir shopping. Just to warn you, you will need to do a lot of negotiating and haggling at these places since they will start off with the crazy prices which will leave you feeling very frustrated. E.g. $10 for 1 keyring.
Tanzanite (this part was written by the Mrs!)
If you want to buy some tanzanite please ask your guide to take you to a genuine place, like the Safari Galleria, or some places have tanzanite counters inside hotels. There is discounts and haggling involved in buying tanzanite as well, if you want the best quality choose AAA+. They are pricey but they are beautiful gems!
Zanzibar
We stayed at a beautiful resort for 3 nights – all inclusive food. The beaches in Zanzibar are incredible with white sands. This a really nice place to come and relax after your hectic safari trip.
Overall our Safari was amazing, Africa is a beautiful country. We would 100% come back again through Wild Secret Safaris.
US
65+ years of age | Experience level: first safari
OUTSTANDING !!!!
I am a retired physician that traveled to Kenya with my wife and my 20 year old son. We booked the Amboceli National Park ( 4 day trip ) trip through Gracepatt Tours. In addition to this we made arrangements to be transferred to Arusha, Tanzania at the end of the tour. We continued our Africa adventure with Globus Toursl for a 10 day tour of Tanzania and then we made arrangements with Gracepatt to transfer us from Tanzania back to Nairobi.
The tour was extremely well organized, the transfers between the two countries was smooth without a glitch. The price was exceptional and 1/3 of the price of a similar tour with Globus Tours!!!!! The owners of the company, Grace and Patrick - Gracepatt !! met us at our hotel. They are extraordinary nice, decent and very reliable. We felt very fortunate to connect with Grace and Patrick on such a personal level in addition to them providing us with exceptional service at a great price !!! We HIGHLY recommend the company to any traveler that is interested to travel to Kenya or needs any transportation in Kenya,Tanzania or needs to connect between those two countries.
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Bad service
Service poor, tried to follow up told me they can only refund 60 dollars ,till yet no refund just apologises I been following up .never will I spent my money on them again .try at your own risk ,
MT
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
If you are looking for a camping safari, look no further. Ulinda Safari Trails are the best.
My camping safari with Ulinda Safari Trails, was a life time experience. Jane is an excellent guide and off road driver. She knows everything about the natura of the region and delivers this knowledge without any extra blah blah. She is an excellent photographer herself and thus always knew what we needed to take memorable pictures.
The tents and beds were clean, large and comfortable making the nights in the wide with lions roaring, elephants crushing downs trees, hyaenas laughing and hypos splashing through the water simply unforgettable. The food was delicious and more then enough in quantity and always accompanied by a limitless supply of good wine and beer to end the day. All the crew were very polite and always ready to help and to sedisfy our wishes immediately. I cannot wait to go back to Botswana and join Jane again on an other safari to the Kalahari desert or the Chobe game reserve.
ES
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Good agency
Good agency, serious and with good services.
The driver-guide, very good.
An agency of the most reliable and serious.
All very well.
US
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Amazing safari and experience
From the beginning this company was very helpful and the communication was quick. Thanks to Margaret for helping me throughout the trip. The jeep was comfortable and reliable, guide was knowledge, and I saw some unforgettable animals. The food was great and camping in the parks was an experience I'll never forget. Would love to come back again!
JP
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Office staff and driver treat us kindly that makes us great memory.
Encountet Africa Safari respond our questions quickly and provide necessary information. We could meet gorilla in a short trekking then enjoy watching them.
CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Brilliant Tanzanian Safari
The Tanzanian safari itinerary set up by Discover Africa was everything we could have hoped for, and more.
The lodges (Maramboi, Pakulala, and Nasikia) all came with excellent hospitality, accommodations, and food.
Special accolades to our two guides - Ebebezer and Henri. Both gentlemen made for perfect hosts. Any visitor would be lucky to have either one as their host in Tanzania.
Oh, and we can’t forget to mention the incredible things we saw while on safari!
NL
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great gamedrive safari with excellent ranger!
A great service, nice people, they give you a full day safari and do everything for you to make it unfotgetable.
And that is what it was!!
Thank you for everything.
If you want to make a good trip, choose Khalanga Safaris.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Faultless, extremely well planned Safari that delivered beyond expectations.
Cuan summed up our needs accurately and delivered the perfect Safari for us.
All communications conducted in a timely and appropiate manner, attention to details was faultless, management of an unexpected Airline flight cancellation was handled very efficiently and as a result of all this the Safari itself delivered beyond expectations. We highly recommend African Ubuntu Safaris.