ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The best choice we made.
Meru Slopes Tours and Safari was a wonderful experience for us. We were a group of 6 and we did a 5 days Safari and it was a pleasant experience. It was a last minutes decision due to problems with other companies, yet our expectations were surpassed. They communicate quite well, they are courteous and professional. We got a wonderful deal, half of what most companies offered us, the tents and lodges were beyond expectations and I believe we had the best tour guide, driver and chef. Ask for Hilarry as your driver and guide, and Saleem as your chef, they are the best combinations. Oh, they also give you two free nights in Arusha to prepare for the Safari and unwind afterwards. They will guide you through Arusha and fetch you from either airports. On our end, they had no flaws and we plan to do it again. I highly recommend contacting them before you commit to other companies. Also this is a local company, booking with them will feed many mouths in a country as beautiful as Tanzania.
FR
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great safari experience, good value for money
We chose to do our safari with Shimeji after comparing programs and costs from several operators and we were very happy with our choice. We had a fabulous time and the whole experience was amazing. We were travelling with three kids (5, 3 and 1) and the guides (Moses and Adam) were patient and did everything possible to make sure the little ones had a good time. Communication prior to the teip was very good. Emma, from the office, was very responsive and opened to fine tune the trip to accomodate our needs and interests. Payment was also smooth and easy, by transfer to Shimeji's Dutch account ineuros (we are based in France).
CN
An excellent trip with Hello Tanzania
My parents and I traveled with Hello Tanzania for 12 days, it was a wonderful trip, and we experienced a lots. Hello Tanzania is a best safari company, Mwajabu is a very well manager, she replys the email always in times, it helped us solved some emerency problems in Tanzania. At Zanziba, because our miss, we could not connect with our driver, and both my parent and I were very worried, and I used the email connceted with her. She helped us solving the problem very fast, and we really appreciated that. All the service which they provided was totally higher than our expectations, like the hotels stayed were clean, and quiet, the staffs at hotel were really nice. The foods were delicious, and our driver at Serengeti was a very great, they provided were very great services. Our driver was very professional, he would give us a brief introduction of the place we were going to visit, and he drives very well. The road in Tanzania's national parks were not that well, but our driver's drive skill was perfect, it made us feel very safe. He knowed different species of animals at which locations of park. We saw amost all the species of animals at Serengeti.
It was an unique experiences for us. If we go back again, we will choose Hello Tanzania once again to let them help us plan our trip.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
These guys are the best and go the extra mile - and very reasonable!
We had a 24+ hour layover at Johannesburg Airport and wanted to go on a safari. Did not have a clue on how to book one but thankfully we found safaribookings. Mmilo was one of the few companies that was willing to accommodate a short notice request for a private guide and vehicle who took us on a daytime-to-dusk safari. Willem picked us up at our hotel and provided great historical commentary during the 2.5 hour ride from JNB to Pilanesburg national park. His intimate knowledge of the park and the animal habits allowed us to see no less than 15 species including elephants, giraffes, rhinos, gazelles, wildebeasts, a host of birds and even a leopard. We enjoyed a delicious lunch al fresco at a park lodge, and took many close-up photos of the animals. The tour ended when the park closed at dusk and we were returned to our hotel with door-to-door service The price was very reasonable for a private tour and a far superior experience to the massive buses that we saw roaming the park roads. These guys are fantastic and very accommodating.
FR
50-65 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
We did travel by bus from Arusha to Mt Kenya. Great experience with Isaack. Good Organization
We did climb mount Kenya. So amazing. Very good staff. Excellent food. I did love it
AT
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Awesome Safari with Khanga!
Short Version:
Our Safari with Khanga was really great and we did enjoy it a lot. We can totally recommend them as your Partner for a Safari in Kenya.
Long Version:
It was our very first stay in Africa and our first Safari as well.
We saw the "Big Five" within 3 days and so much more (unfortunately the Leopard just showed us his beautiful back) ;-)
The communication before we started was really great and we sent a lot of mails with questions who would be answered immediately and with great expertise by Lawrence.
Our driver Steve was very experienced (20+ years as a driver / guide) and told us a lot about the different animals and the country in general. What we really liked about him was that he also did not that much chit-chat and let us enjoy and soak up the beautiful landscapes and wildlife of Kenya.
Steve always rushed us to the best locations when new animal sightings came in over the radio and we spotted so many animals by ourselves.
We always felt very safe with him, regardless if we where driving in the city, on some dirtroads in the National Parks or on the Highway (there was a lot of crazy traffic sometimes).
The different accommodations felt sometimes a little bit outdated (Tsavo East and Tsavo West) but where always at a great location with a amazing view. We enjoyed our stay at the Jacaranda Elementatita Lodge near Lake Nakuru the most - an incredible beautiful place. The tents at Masai Mara and Amboseli where a lot more comfortable than we imagined them in advance.
We did a 7 day Safari and started at Nairobi, then went to Masai Mara for two nights, then up to Lake Nakuru and Lake Navaisha for one night. Then we drove to Amboseli for one night and then to Tsavo West for one night and Tsavo East for the last night.
All locations where beautiful in their own way.
At the end we where dropped off at Mombasa where Khanga organized a rental car for us for the next 11 days, where we drove up and down the coast from Diani up to Malindi and then down to Mombasa. At first we got the wrong car (smaller than agreed), but in the end we got another car after some days and it all worked out pretty good.
Unfortunately the Safari is over, but the 7 days went by in a Flash.
Thanks again to the Khanga Team, especially to Lawrence and Steve for making this trip to Kenya an unforgettable and awesome experience for me and my girlfriend. We can totally recommend them as your partner for a Safari in Kenya.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
CA
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nice safari, hotels and guide !
My mom and I really appreciated our safari with Godson who speaks an excellent french. We saw a lot of animals since the guide was always in contact with the other guides. Hotels were comfortable and food was nice.
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.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Experience and professionalism; punctuality, accuracy, friendly; expert travel advice; exceptional!
From start to finish, this was the best travel experience I have had (and I've been to 63 countries and on two previous African safaris). Communication via e-mail was virtually instantaneous and everything on the safari was delivered exactly as arranged for. Not to mention, the safari itself was superb! Ute at Roho Ya Chui is an absolutely amazing, organized, and dedicated professional who truly made this safari the wonderful expedition that it was. All I can say is, thank-you Ute!