35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
4.5 / 5 A fantastic experience, with a few minor - very minor - glitches
From the beginning, Pendo at Benson did an outstanding job communicating with us to arrange our trip just to our liking. This was not an easy task, as we had 2 families with different needs attempting to create an itinerary that would appeal to everyone. She took all of our changes to the itinerary in stride and arranged everything to our liking. Our guide, Kessy, was amazing - we could not have asked for better. When you spend as much time in a vehicle with someone as you do on safari, it's really important to have a good rapport. The first part of our trip was with my husband and me with his brother and family. Kessy was great with the kids, even when they weren't always the most fun to be around. Kessy was very knowledgeable and friendly, and was always open to our whims when it came to animal-watching and our questions about everything. The second part of our trip it was just my husband and me, and having Kessy all to ourselves was wonderful. He even put up with my obsession with watching dung beetles and my husband's need to get just one more really good picture of that giraffe... one more... (As a bonus, he was also very patient with my unending - and at times pathetic - attempts to learn Swahili.)
We did a side trip to Zanzibar, (midway through for my husband and me, at the end of the trip for my in-laws), which was unfortunately a little disappointing. The hotel we stayed in was great, but it was a very busy area and swimming and playing on the beach was not pleasant because we were constantly being approached by folks trying to sell us tours or boat trips. This is of course not the fault of Benson Safaris, but it would have been nicer to stay somewhere where there was a little less commerce happening at all times of day and night. There was some confusion with Benson when it came to the snorkel outing that had been planned. In our itinerary it stated that we were going to Chumbe Island, but when the guide came to pick us up he said that no, we were going across to Prison Island, a much shorter trip and by all accounts not nearly as interesting for snorkeling. After some back-and-forth telephoning with the tour representative in Zanzibar and with Pendo we figured out that the tour was incorrectly represented on our itinerary. It turned out to be too choppy for snorkeling in the Prison Island area unfortunately, so we missed out completely on that. Obviously the tour company has no control over the ocean conditions, but had we actually gone to Chumbe as we thought we were going to, it would have likely been better due to the location of the snorkel site there.
The other minor hiccup came with meals. My in-laws are vegan and we were assured that accommodating this would be no problem. Somehow, however, it was not communicated to the lodge we stayed in for safari, and lunches were not only not vegan, but there was only one lunch packed as vegetarian at all. Also, there were extremely limited options for vegan for the family at the lodge. Kessy did his best to try to fix this, but I think that communicating what vegan means was difficult. Again, a minor hiccup, but if you have very specific meal needs it would be a good idea to double and triple check on this.
Overall, though, an amazing experience! My recommendation overall is Benson Safaris for safari, and perhaps a different, local Zanzibar tour company for visiting the island.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Fantastic Trip with Vimat Safari!!!
Vimat Safari was an amazing experience! The planning with Vincent was great as we had many questions and wanted to make sure our Safari was the schedule we wanted since we wanted to take advantage of every minute. Vincent from Vimat was kind, professional and accommodating to every need. The planning was perfect! We had our guide with Bonaface who was on time every morning he made sure we saw all the animals, personally my dream was to see Lions, cheetah and leopard.. I had no expectations as I know from previous Safari in South Africa that it’s not easy to spot the cats. Our guide did a phenomenal job as we saw 34 lions .. 10 cheetah and 2 leopards up close and personal. It was incredible!!!!!! This was the most amazing Safari experience I have ever had.. the car also had chargers for your the phone, drinks and snacks... super comfortable.. we did the private tour and it was worth every penny. I highly recommend Vimat Safari as they are well prepared, professional, accommodating with great experience to find the animals. The Safari did not disappoint.. they gave us a dream come true Safari!!! Tanzania!!! Wow!!!
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
FIVE STAR EXPERIENCE
I had a great experience with Safe Tours and travel,the prices are Fair, they provided transport through out the whole visit, the drivers were very professional, kept time and very tidy. Grace kept communication up to the last day. Their services were beyond my expectations. I would absolutely recommend this company to anyone seeking five star experience at a fair price. ******
YE
under20 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Professional, caring and highly recommended Tour Operator
My girlfriend and I visited Tanzania and had MangiEmpire Tours Co. as our Tour Operators. The team was very professional and prompt right from initial responses and helped us tailor our itinerary based on what we wanted to see/do and our budget. Although we had reached out to 10+ operators, we picked MangiEMPIRE Tours because of their promptness, quoted prices and flexibility in terms of accommodating our preferences.
During the tour itself, the accommodation, the vehicle, the food and the team (guide and chef) were as described in the initial conversations and were actually critical to our having a great trip. The guide was fluent in English, very knowledgeable and most importantly keen to show us the best the Safari could offer which meant we didn't have to push him at any point. The chef was really kind and adjusted meals to our preferences and dietary restrictions.
They were both very professional and polite. Even after the trip, they had us visit the office and give feedback and suggestions, which was a really nice closing touch. All in all, Africa Safari is a wonderful trip and it was great to work with an experienced, professional and committed team that made sure it was all worth it. Definitely recommend them!
FR
20-35 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Memories and Stories for Life, with a Top Company!!!!
We went on a 4-day Safari through Tarangire, Ngorongoro, and Serengeti. We chose MangiEmpire Adventures Tanzania as they were highly recommended by friends, and they truly lived up to that glowing recommendation! Our guide was extremely welcoming, friendly, professional, patient, and knowledgeable. He always got us in great spots for photos, but was respectful of the animals and knew how to read their behaviors. As a very experienced guide and driver, we felt very safe at all times with Him. He truly loves and is passionate about Tanzania's people, culture, animals and landscapes. It was nice to be collected and dropped off at the airport by the same person -- he was a lovely friend by the end! Also, during the booking/planning stages, the Company staffs were very responsive and easy to communicate with, especially Nova; the Director. We would highly recommend MangiEmpire Tours Tanzania, for excellent guides, well-maintained vehicles and a high-standard Safari experience.
BD
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Excellent organization & communications with MangiEmpire Adventures Tanzania
We did a 5 days trip mid-range-Safari to Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro crater and Lake Mayara. The organisation and communication with the office of MangiEMPIRE Safari was perfect and very easy. As we wanted to stay 3 nights in Serengeti (what we would suggest to everybody), the safari was customized easely and quickly according to our wishes special wishes. The Serengeti where we could see the "big migration of the wildebeests and the zebras" was definitely the highlight of the trip. We highly recommend this company to anyone. Our guide accompanied us and driver, which was a very pleasant company, showed us many sights and also took us off the beaten tracks.
AF
20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The absolute best safari experience!
We wanted to thank Soul of Tanzania and our incredible guide for an unforgettable 4-days safari in Northern Tanzania! As a couple, we felt comfortable and well cared for the entire time. With our guide’s knowledge and experience, we were able to go directly to the best locations at the best time of day for wildlife viewing. The big animals were numerous and spectacular, but he took us beyond the Big 5 and was able to help us identify nearly 100 bird species as well! On the way he was entertaining us happily and helped fixing our logistical problems. For example, I left my camera battery charger behind at the hotel in Arusha. They had another company car pick it up and deliver it to us on safari the next day! Huge thanks to MangiEmpire Tours and our elite guide for making our trip 5 stars. I highly recommend this conservation-minded, experts and top company.
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Second time booking with Rose Hipwood
This is my second adventure organized by Rose through the Luxury Safari Company. Three years ago, we had an amazing trip in Zambia and Mozambique. We are now crossing the Atlantic to upstate New York after 10 days in Kenya and Zanzibar. Rose helped choose the destinations and camps and I must say we loved it just as much as 3 years ago. This time we took our neighbors who have never been over seas. They were absolutely blown away. The animal sightings were unreal despite the abnormal heavy rain and tall grass. Unbelievably, we saw the big five in first 6 hours of arrival including a pumba kill by two lionesses. Only through the skill of our guides Anthony and Moses at Salas camp did we have the chance to see this. Rose knows where to send clients. How often do you beg the chef in a wilderness camp to share his recipes??? Amazing. Kilindi in north Zanzibar was exceptionally private. Ask Chef Francois for a sample of the turmeric ice cream--I can't believe I am saying this but perhaps best flavor I have ever tasted. Earl grey white chocolate was a close second while chili mango sorbet tied with lemongrass sorbet for third. I will admit that I was concerned about a tour operator outside the US three years ago. I saw a review that said "In Rose we trust". Our last minute SafariAir flight cancellation was immediately fixed by Rose before I could even call her. Enough said.
Andrew W. Syracuse NY
BR
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Amazing Experience!
Everything was just great, from the Safari tour organization to all the assistance provided by Cat and Carmen, from Wayfairer! We strongly recommend Wayfairer and will definitelly travel with tem again!
35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Cannot praise the Wayfairer team enough
The experience we had from Wayfairer was nothing short of first-class.
Yes, the places we stayed and visited were exceptional, however it is important to distinguish between these and the services that were provided by Wayfairer in terms of putting together our trip; this is a review of Wayfairer as a travel agent.
The sales process was pleasant and pushy like some of the others. They took time to understand our goals from this trip and were happy to offer ideas as well as match our needs.
Their choice of local partners (a critical part of the trip; things like safari guide, transfers etc.) was everything we could have hoped for and more, the best service and experience we have ever had. Everything just worked.
Communication was excellent throughout the process.
Even while we were on our trip they were able and happy to answer queries via their Concierge.
We will be using them again and would have no hesitation in recommending them to anyone.
