ES
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
My experience with Hamadi
I was travelling around Tanzania with my French friend Apolline. We contact Hamadi just few days before arriving, as well as others guides from different companies, but we felt he was the nicest one since the beginning. Our budget was low, so he informed us about all the possibilities we had and advised us. He picked us up at the bus station at midnight, it was not at all a problem to him, and he took us to a bed&breakfast where we could stay for free for up to four nights. He also showed us Arusha and when he had some work to do his brother took care of us. They both helped us with everything we needed.
We really enjoyed our two days safari and we could see everything but cheetahs and leopards. It was amazing to see the Ngorongoro.
Since I wanted to go to the Kilimanjaro but I had not much money, Hamadi offered me a very low priced tour.
In Africa it is normal to feel that everybody wants to make business from you, but not with this people, we really felt welcome. Asante sana.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Our guide was excellent. The hotels were memorable experiences. The animals were amazing.
I suggest going in late November or early December. The crowd is much less and the weather much better. The experience was a once in a lifetime. The only disappointments were limited WIFI and most hotels turned off electricity during the night (while sleeping).
NG
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Really nice people. I must say you get value for you money.
Seeing the big five and other animals in their natural habibat was just awesome. The safari was out of the world. Like we were shooting for Nat. Geo. Wild.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great day trip to Ngorongoro Crater!
We had a 12-hour trip to the Ngorongoro National Park and it was the best day out of our 2.5 week tour (covering three countries and including other game drives). The owners of the company met us the day before to go over our trip and make sure they covered what we wanted to see, and we were picked up and delivered back to our hotel at exactly the times promised. Our guide was great - gave us a lot of information on the drive to the park, and had been there many times so knew exactly where to go to see the animals we hadn't seen before. If I'm able to come back to Tanzania for a safari with my family, I will be coming to Tanzania and Earthlife will be the first arrangement I make! Thanks for a fantastic trip.
DE
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Perfect Tour In Africa
Communication was perfect. Services given were excellent. The trip went behold my expectations and generally the trip was more wonderful than any other trip i have gone into Africa. Wish i could be able to award Flotish Tours more than 5 stars. Thank you Flotish Tours team for a wonderful trip ever.
CH
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Awesome Kruger experience
The trip was organized trip perfectly! Everything was perfect and Mike was a wonderful guide who went out of his way to make everything comfortable for us. In addition, he knows a lot about the animals
and also how to find them. We had amazing animal sightings in Kruger.
Christine was most helpful and very patient in the phase of "designing" our private customized trip.
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Days full of excitement, wonderful views, friendly people and sense of total safety.
From the moment our guide collected us from the airport our only task was to enjoy the experience of seeing the animals and birds and landscape of Kenya. Every journey, all accommodation, comfort breaks, games drives and meals were arranged, just as we had asked them to be, with the vital addition of Transtrek's experience which ensured we had days of real wonder, while feeling relaxed and 'at home' in each situation. We saw hundreds of animals, each day was a new surprise and complete joy which I still feel . People reading this will have their own expectations of Kenya, if you are thinking of travelling to Africa Transtrek will work to make sure you have the experience you want and keep you safe while you do that. For me, seeing so many elephants, lions and cubs, leopards, and horse riding within touching range of giraffe and zebra were only some of great moments. We saw hundreds of animals and birds, many of them were kind enough to cross in front or behind our Jeep, totally ignoring us, due to the talent of our guide. Finally our guide Peter is a genuinely professional animal and bird spotter, he is patience, funny, completely trustworthy, a skilled driver and worked hard every day to make sure together we fulfilled our wishes, not just to see wildlife but to see Kenya. The world has many beautiful places to explore but we will be going back to Africa, with Transtek.
US
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great Safari and Beach Experience!
We had a great time on our safari. Everything went smoothly and we felt very well taken care of. We were picked up as promised at the airport and everything was provided as shown on the itinerary with no worries. All of the accommodations were clean and comfortable and quite luxurious. The service was fantastic everywhere and the food delicious. Our safari guide, Allen, was friendly and knowledgeable and made sure we saw everything and had water enough and answered all of our many questions about animals, birds, plants, etc. We really enjoyed our time with him. Our hotel in Zanzibar was very nice and although we could have booked some tours around the island we were so enchanted by the beach and village we just chose to relax. Next time we will happily try some more activities on Zanzibar. We were completely pleased with the entire experience!
DE
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
The "Big Five" within 4 hours
Crossing the Crocodile River and starting at the Malelena Gate on a cloudy afternoon, we saw our first african leopard after just 10 minutes of driving. It was a big male, slightly underfed. We could enjoy the sight of the majestic predator for approximately one minute until he disappeared in the bush.
We kept on driving and encountered a big male elephant wearing a radio collar. The bull was in the musth and he discharged temporin from the temporal ducts on the sides of the head. After he left the scenery we drove on towards Voortrekker Road towards Numbi Gate. Within the next 30 minutes we saw a male and a few female lions as well as a single black rhino and a group of white rhinos. Moreover a huge buffalo herd appeared, joining the white rhinos for grazing.
Our guide told us that other people will need to return three times to Kruger Park to accomplish the "Big 5" mission, and we just reached that goal on a single afternoon game drive. We were so lucky.
This was approved by the next full day game drive. It was considerably hotter than the day before, so the animals stayed in the shadows most of the day. Nevertheless we encountered a few sleeping lions, some elephants, several antelopes, hippos and lots of baboons.
On our sundowner game drive we had the rare opportunity to spot a male cheetah. It began to rain and the cheetah climbed on a big tree to observe the surrounding area. I was aware of tree climbing leopards, but a cheetah? This was new to me and a truly unique experience.
US
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Once in a lifetime through the Serengeti
No visit to Tanzania would be complete without a visit to one of the most famous parks in the world: The Serengeti. Located within the northern reaches of Tanzania the Serengeti is an expanse of land that is home to hundreds of thousands of animals. Here you will have a chance to view the Big 5, if you're lucky. I chose to visit the Serengeti on a 5-day, 4-night Safari after a climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro. I used the company Popote African Safaris, based out of Moshi. I can highly recommend this company for both the safari as well as the climb. The owner, Sabino, was always happy to answer my questions about everything that would take place, and also allowed me the flexibility to customize my tour so that it would meet my needs, rather than their needs.
My 5 day safari began with a very long drive from Moshi to Tarangire National Park, home to the Baobob trees. Also famous for having one of the highest population densities of elephants in Tanzania, it is surely not to be missed. Everywhere you looked there were family groups of elephants. As an elephant lover, I just found it to be one of the best places ever. As I was the only person in my group (besides my guide) I was free to stay and watch the animals for as long as I liked. Other animals seen within the park included, a lion pride, zebras, giraffe, numerous species of birds (including the Lilac Crested Roller), and numerous types of hooved animals (waterbuck, gazelle, etc). The weather was sunny and warm, but not hot.
From Tarangire we traveled along the Ngorogoro Crater rim to the Serengeti National Park. The first day through the park is spent as a wildlife safari as you drive through the dirt roads (read: bumpy, dusty, awesome) to the camping site (or other, if you chose higher class accommodations). Along the way to the camping site was saw various animals, including lion, cheetah, a family of leopards, a couple of elephants, hippo, giraffe, ostrich, hyena, dik-dik, vervet monkeys, cape buffalo, baboon, topi, wildebeest, etc). Sometimes, because of the size of the park and the time of the year - depending upon which end of the great migration you end up in Tanzania - the park can seem almost devoid of animals. At one point we drove 20-30 minutes without seeing any animals. Though, I have to say, it didn't matter. I was in the Serengeti.
Camping was a great experience. Although I had camped before in Namibia & Botswana, this was still a great experience. In your campsite you're likely to meet many other travelers, all with a common goal. The food was amazing each night and plentiful. From soups, pastas, rice dishes, meats, fruit, etc. Amazing food.
Day 3 of my safari was in the Serengeti. It was a great experience on this day because most groups are only doing a 3 or 4 day safari and so they are headed back towards the Ngorogoro Crater while the rest of us get to travel deeper in to the Serengeti. I counted just 4 other safari vehicles for about 5 hours this day. Here we were able to find many groups of lions and some cheetahs, again some more leopards (I think I was really lucky with the big cats), and many other animals. At one point, my guide decided that as it was just the 2 of us, he was going to take us off roading just a little bit (which is not technically allowed) but he had found a pride of lions just laying in the grass and he wanted me to get to see them really up close. I'll be honest that I did get a little lion fatigue by the end of it. I think I counted about 15-16 prides of lions we saw on the first and second day in the Safari. Though my National Geographic moment did happen also where we watched a lion & lioness mating ... every 10 minutes ... until she's no longer receptive. It's a sight to behold and I'll always cherish my moment of lion porn.
On the 4th day after a couple of hours in the morning through the park we made our way towards the gate to the Serengeti and onwards to the Ngorogoro Crater. As we were leaving there was a safari vehicle parked on the side of the road with a flat tire. We stopped to see if they needed any help, but they were OK. What struck me as odd was that all of the occupants (Tanzanians) were out of the car walking around. There's no way I would ever be in the bush walking around and for good reason. As we headed down the road further, not more than a quarter mile, we came across a pride of lions who were tracking the broken down car. I pointed this out to my driver who made a quick U turn and headed back to warn them. Now, had this been me I would have immediately jumped into the car but these people were not phased at all. We turned ourselves around and chased the lions away. I would have loved a video or photo of this moment, but my guide was spending all of his energy trying to chase them back the opposite way - swerving this way and that. What an experience.
The final day we traveled down into the Ngorogoro Crater. I'm not sure what I was expecting but I think I was a little bit disappointed from the lack of animals. It's not a very densely populated area for animals, but it is one of the only places you're likely to see the rhino. We did see him, but he was about 2 miles from the road and was barely a speck on the binoculars or my camera lens (650 mm).
All in all, a trip to the Serengeti (and any national park in Tanzania) is well worth it. The food was great, the camping was great, my guide was amazing, though I would have enjoyed having more people in the group I think, to better socialize. Do not underestimate the weather. Although most days it was warm and either sunny or overcast (it only rained at night, 1 night), it gets quite cold at night!
