Tanzania: reviews from our travellers

"On extra thing we added - we were due back in DAR at 4pm for the KLM flight at 11pm. As check-in wasn't open until 8pm, this gave a bit of a gap to fill. We didn't want to risk the journey to and from a hotel in the city centre, but we did find a relatively new hotel, the "Blue Sapphire" which is 10mins away, on the main airport boulevard, where we freshened up and had a meal before heading back to the airport. I would say it was adequate for this purpose and would be ok for an overnight as well, based on our experience here.

The new international terminal (T3) is coming in to use and although not fully opened, looks like a reasonably standard airport environment, so may be better for hanging about in than T2 was previously." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 7 on a Tanzania safari

"The management and implementation of our safari package by Lemala was excellent in every way.

However our experience with Expert Africa did not live up to expectations. We chose Expert Africa because of their reputation and reliability which unfortunately for us proved not to be the case. Our main areas of concern being.
Wrong information regarding being able to book our flights to Africa. Also no proper discussion re: internal flight options.
Receiving incorrect forms and documents.
Poor advice on immunisation requirements.
MOST IMPORTANT. At no time were we informed that the gates to Tarangire National Park closed at 6:00pm. No one is allowed access after that time. If our flight had not been changed 2 weeks before our holiday we would never have reached our first lodge. A lack of awareness of this caused much stress to us, our guide and our lodge staff." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari

"We knew this was going to be the trip of a lifetime, but nothing could have prepared us for the experience we had. By the 3rd day we had run out of superlatives and by day 8 we were tongue tied when trying to describe how remarkable the wildlife was, how fabulous the food, how gorgeous the accommodations and how well we were treated. Even now, two months later we have difficulty.

We would not hesitate to use the services of Expert Africa again, in fact we would insist on it for trip planning in that part of the world. We would also insist on having Lyndsey Marris as our personal representative. Lyndsey was outstanding from day one, asking all the right questions about our travel experiences, our wishes, making suggestions before I had a chance to even think to ask, and somehow despite her being in London and our being in the United States we never waited more than 24 hours for an email or telephone response. We don’t know how she managed to work around the time difference, but she did. Her recommendations were spot on and she was flexible with changes; nothing seemed beyond her. We met and formed a friendship with a family from greater London while in Ruaha who had also used Expert Africa and had Lyndsey as their agent and they had the same experience and praise for her as we did.

We were provided with daily itineraries including private drivers, reservations at restaurants, all flight arrangements, hotel and safari camp reservations and accurate information about all of them. In over three weeks of travel there was only one hiccup and that was minor and no doubt precipitated by a flight delay causing us to arrive in Nairobi 2 ½ hours late. The driver who was to have met our flight was not there and we were unsure on how to proceed. As it turned out, a very attentive gentleman had been observing our situation and eventually came over and asked what had happened and it turned out he worked for the same company, Southern Cross Safaris, who was to drive us that day and the next. He took over and got us transported to the hotel and put us back onto our activity schedule to see the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage and the Giraffe Center. The driver from Southern Cross Safaris was delightful and informative and we met him again the last evening of our trip when we came back to Nairobi to fly home. The only adjustment we would make to our stay in Nairobi would be to give up the convenience of an airport hotel for the apparently unique, lovely experience of staying at Giraffe Manor. We didn’t know Giraffe Manor existed so it wasn’t something we asked Lyndsey about, but we really wish it had somehow come up.

I would suggest to anyone going on Safari to stay in multiple camps in diverse geographic areas. Lyndsey gave us a perfect itinerary in the perfect order: Nairobi, Selous, Ruaha, Mara River, Grumeti and finally Mafia Island and a flight home from Nairobi. Each of the areas had its own flora and fauna and special emphasis. Selous is private, no traffic or competition to view the animals, you can go off road, but the animals are very spread out due to its size. You have the opportunity to see the rare wild dog, but fewer cats. Ruaha, on the other hand, is a national park; you cannot go off road, there are many more vehicles, but it is definitely the place for cats. Mara River is all about the wildebeest crossing. It is also a national park. Grumeti is a private paradise in the Serengeti that gives you the absolute best of the best. Mafia Island is an exquisite respite from the “always on alert” feeling of safari.

If you looked on a map you might wonder why we worked from south to north just to fly much further south at the end, but Lyndsey explained her thinking, we took her advice - she was exactly correct. The wildlife built up as did the camps as we went along. Not once did we feel we were taking a back step in the quality of anything. And going on safari is quite tiring despite the fact you are being driven everywhere, so a restful beach idyll at the end is perfect.

We will definitely return to Africa. We would repeat this trip in a heartbeat. In fact this trip was so fantastic it will be difficult to resist literally going back to the same camps, but Africa is huge with so much variety, we will most likely expand our horizons. Where ever it is, Expert Africa will help plan our trip." Read full review: 22 nights in Africa; 18 on a Tanzania safari

"We enjoyed our trip immensely and were sad to leave - our guide Rama was excellent and made the whole experience memorable with his deep knowledge, great sense of humour and his obvious love of the bush and its animals & birds.

Another member of staff also deserves a mention - Jossina always had a wide smile and kind word at camp meals, bush dinners, breakfasts, in fact all the time

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

If we decide to return to Africa, your company will be our first port of call - I think that says everything" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 7 on a Tanzania safari

"This trip to Tanzania for a safari followed by time relaxing on Zanzibar, was a long-planned trip for my brother and I, and our wives. My wife and I had previous experience of safaris, but my brother did not, so I felt the pressure of "getting it right". We decided to plan it with Expert Africa following a previous very successful trip planned with their help, and I am delighted we made that decision. A meeting with Expert Africa's Olivia helped her to perfectly judge our requirements, and the result was a highly successful holiday that exceeded all our expectations." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari

"All went to clockwork, thank you.

One small comment was the times on our itinerary were different to Fisherman’s Tours. As such I thought they were late so rang the number on the itinerary for them to check someone was coming. They did arrive 5-10 minutes later, which was just before 6.30am, the time they had down. We were expecting them at 6am.

They did give us their itinerary with the times, down, but I hadn’t read it prior to the pick up.

The driver informed me I had phoned the general manager of Fisherman’s Tours, not the local office! Perhaps it would be worth checking the numbers on your itinerary which is where I got the number from.

Similarly the pick up from Qambani, was at 5am, not 5.30am as on our itinerary.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip, thank you for the organisation and recommendations. The service was excellent, and everything went fine.
Our only struggle, was with tipping, who and how much ! and not having local currency when we arrived. The porters at Zanzibar are quick to strike on the poor inexperienced traveller!!

We took advice from the Siwandu manager, (who was overall excellent) re tipping the staff, but I probably hadn’t read your comments carefully enough. I think we ended up tipping $4-500 dollars over the trip, which I hadn’t really been expecting, so I guess it would help to give a ball park figure to the client initially.

Thank you Chris for spending so long on the phone with me and Lyndsey for putting it all together." Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari

"As mentioned already, somehow the trip exceeded our expectations, even though we had been planning this for years! I am so glad we went with Expert Africa - a well named company. Having all the internal connections sorted out before we left made a big difference to our enjoyment of the trip in that we could relax, knowing everything was covered.

Lyndsey is great - we had a number of calls and countless emails. She always got back to me very quickly (within 24 hours) and provided clear and full reponses to my many questions and requests. Having the same person to work with throughout the process helped greatly and we couldn't have done better than Lyndsey - thank you." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 5 on a Tanzania safari

"Glorious trip to Kenya and Tanzania, our first visit to those countries. Having travelled in Africa extensively before, the punctuality and efficiency of collections etc was impressive. We thoroughly enjoyed the insight into local culture and the safari opportunities were stunning. All guides very kind and friendly, always keen to please.

Our limited constructive feedback as follows: All camps provided toiletries and washing powder, so no need to bring. Camps advertising laundry services still did not wash underwear (male or female), nor handkerchiefs. Drive to Il Ngwesi from Wilson airport was interesting, but ended up as quite an odyssey as driver did not know the way through Lewa Conservancy to the camp. As no signs available, this ended up as an additional 2 hours of desperately trying to find the camp before dark. All good in the end, but maybe check drivers know their destination before setting off." Read full review: 21 nights in Africa; 13 on a Kenya safari

"We loved our safari holiday - we had a fantastic experience which totally exceeded our expectations. I can't wait to go on another safari.

Thank you so much for arranging such a great holiday." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 6 on a Tanzania safari

"I had refused to do a long haul flight since our honeymoon 30 years ago. My husband was not convinced about going on safari but wanted us to go because he knew I would love it.

Expert Africa were brilliant at asking what would make the trip fantastic for us and what would make it bad. Their planning and advice meant we had the most mind blowing and amazing experience. We stayed in Arusha two nights, Little Oliver's in Tarangire two nights, The Highlands in Ngorongoro for two nights and Lemal Kuria Hills in Northern Serengeti for three nights. Everywhere was great and there is nothing we can fault about the camps, the service, food wine and outstanding hospitality.

Our eyes were wide with wonder from the moment we left the airstrip at Tarangrine airport and saw beautiful birds and incredible wildlife so close. Obviously we experienced a lot and so some experiences were better than others for us. The hospitality and exclusive feeling of Little Oliver's plus our brilliant, knowledgeable guide meant our time in Tarangire really stands out but that is very much a personal comment and does not mean the other camps and game drives were not brilliant.

Needless to say Duncan enjoyed the safari tremendously and I simply loved it!" Read full review: 8 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari