Average User Rating
Rating Breakdown
Write a User Review
Liviu Cira
AE
Visited:
March 2025
Reviewed: May 17, 2025
Email Liviu Cira | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Tales of Tanzania
We went to Tanzania for a safari trip and came back with unforgettable memories! The safari was beyond expectations. Seeing animals in their natural habitat was blissful. From a group of 13(!) lion cubs chilling together under Serengeti's sunset to the elephant that stopped in front of our car in the Ngorongoro forest, or the buffalos visiting the lodges at night and the lion roaring in the background while we were having dinner at the lodge in the savanah, everything seems out of this world.
Beyond the game seeing experience, we have to thank and appreciate the hospitality of the locals. From the tour guides diligently narrating safari tales to the locals receiving us to their villages in Materuni and the Masais in Ngorongoro, everybody was very welcoming and accommodating.
The main attraction was the 2/3 days safari trip starting in Arusha, proceeding via Ngorongoro, then staying in South Serengeti for a full day and then coming
Read more
back through Ngorongoro and descending in the crater there. We've seen a wealth of antilopes (Eland - the biggest, Dik Dik - the smallest), lions, elephants (lots of them), giraffes and probably thousands(!) of zebras and gnus - while following the road in Serengeti we crossed straight through an immense heard of them.In addition the safari trip we also had a short hike on Kilimanjaro, visited the Materuni village where we MADE coffee end-to-end, from peeling the coffee seed to brewing the coffee powder, visited the Materuni waterfall (perhaps the tallest in the region if I'm not mistaking), had great fun and the Kikuleta springs and took photos with animals, fed them and pet them (yes) at a resort near Kilimanjaro.
All in all, dreamy experience, first contact with Africa and safaris, felt safe throughout our trip and came back home with a strong desire to write another chapter of Tales of Tanzania.
Ania
US
Visited:
October 2010
Reviewed: Jun 5, 2011
20-35 years of age
Breathtaking parks, mountains, unforgettable meeting with wild animals!
I think the best time to visit Tanzania is October-November when great migration takes place.
It could be hot during the day and cooler in the evenings. So always have right clothes with you. I also recommend to visit Zanzibar. Beautiful island that belongs to Tanzania. Warm Indian Ocean, white beach, unique City of Zanzibar
Read more
with Stone Town and parks with endemic animals will satisfied everybody. If you need more information visit my bloghttp://www.travelpod.com/members/ania12
Senal
AE
Visited:
June 2016
Reviewed: Jul 13, 2016
Email Senal | under20 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
An underrated diamond in the rough.
I cannot compare the experience of the safari to that of others I have been to because Tanzania has surpassed all my previous adventures tenfold. A lot of this owes to the brilliant effort given by our safari guide who ensured we witnessed the already impressive wildlife in the most exciting fashion.
Thanks to him, we didn't just see the Big 5 and the other magnificent beasts, but experienced them.
The accommodation and staff were spectacularly suited to our needs and the food was another experience that cannot be found anywhere else.
Finally, I am obliged to implore future Tanzanian travellers to take a moment at night and look up. You won't regret it!
Tom Bissonnette
US
Visited:
August 2009
Reviewed: May 25, 2012
50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A beautiful country with many contrast including people, wildlife and scenery!
Read more
whil you are eating a gourmet meal cooked inside a field tent kitchen was amazing. Our guides were knowledgable as well as friendly and attentive. Overall I would recommend everyone to take a trip to Africa and experience the vast, beautiful continent that it is. If you can add a hot air balloon ride over the Serenghetti at dawn don't miss it.
Tamela
US
Visited:
June 2012
Reviewed: Jul 10, 2013
Email Tamela | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Life changing experience
We used Awaken to Africa on both of our trips to Tanzania. Our guide David is one of the best we have ever used. He ensures we see the all the wildlife and Grace makes sure our accommodations are top notch. Once you go to Tanzania to see the migration you will want to go back every year.
Tanzania... best travel experience of my life!
Read more
I feel like my itinerary was perfect, I wouldn't have changed a thing about it. Flew into Kilimanjaro Airport, and planned to spend two nights in the town of Arusha pre-safari, just to get acclimated to the time change, and to have a buffer day in case of flight delays or other problems like that. And it was a very good thing that we did that. ("We" was just myself, and one friend... party of two for this entire trip.) My friend had a mishap with her passport as we were preparing to fly out of St. Louis, it was current, but did not have more than six months validity left on it, which we did not know was necessary. What a day that turned out to be...after some scrambling to find out our options, my friend flew ahead to Chicago with hopes of getting her passport renewed on the spot. Thankfully, we had a long layover there before the international flight. Long story short, my friend did make it on the plane to Amsterdam, with only minutes to spare. The door was closing. I was already on the plane, planning to go ahead to Tanzania, knowing that we had the buffer day built in and that my friend could at least make it by the second day, and we would not miss our safari. So, just a word of advice, check your passport date! And do try to have an extra day to recoup when you arrive, or just relax, or to save yourself a whole lot of worry in case something like this happens to you.
The best part about our "extra" day in Arusha, though, was that we did get to have the most lovely lunch at Hatari Lodge, and a half-day visit to Arusha National Park. It was something I had debated back and forth, whether or not to include Arusha National Park in our safari. I am so glad we did. My very favorite photo from the whole trip was from there. And the way we did it was very cost effective... we asked to have lunch at Hatari Lodge, which is inside the park. So it was sort of a bonus to see the park, while we were just driving thru on our way to lunch! And our guide was so wonderful (Prosper was his name, with Good Earth Tours). We were getting to know each other during the drive, and I was just asking casual questions, making conversation. I asked about whether we would likely see Flamingos at Lake Manyara later in the week. Prosper said if we wanted to see Flamingos, he would make it happen. Turns out, the flamingos were actually in Arusha. lol LOTS and LOTS of them. He didn't have to do it, because it wasn't on our itinerary, but Prosper took at least two extra hours of his personal time, and took us to see the flamingos in Arusha National Park after our lunch. It was so beautiful, and such a pleasant surprise. Just a fantastic way to start our journey together.
Sorry for the long story there... but I felt it was important to share. Back to our itinerary:
Two nights in Arusha at the Kibo Palace Hotel
Two nights at Tarangire Sopa Lodge
One night at Lake Manyara Hotel (A Wildlife Lodge property)
Lunch at Gibbs Farm
One night at Ngorongoro Sopa Lodge
Two nights at Seronera Wildlife Lodge
One night at Lobo Wildlife Lodge
Two nights at Migration Camp (including a full-day game drive to the Mara River)
Flight to Zanzibar
Stayed four nights at Imani Villa Beach Resort
Flight back to Arusha, picked up by Good Earth representative, who took us to some local places for last-minute shopping, lunch, etc. They kept our luggage for us during the day, and then drove us back to Kilimanjaro Airport for our flight home.
Good Earth took such good care of us, and so did the good people working at all the different lodges and camps. The food was so good everywhere we went. At least that is my most humble opinion.
I was especially impressed with the Wildlife Lodge properties. They are extremely budget friendly, and I thought they would be a little more rustic than they were, but was willing to save a few bucks by staying with them, in order to better afford the luxury of Migration Camp as the grand finale of our safari at the end. The Wildlife properties are Very, VERY well located, you are in the heart of all the beauty and wildlife. They are truly great lodges, the architecture of the common areas especially pleased me. And the food here was just as good as the Sopa lodges.
Migration Camp, well, what can I say, but DON'T MISS IT! Just an amazing experience to treat yourself extra special for a night or two. It's expensive, but I think it is worth it for at least one night.
I guess that is the basics, please feel free to contact me for more details! I love to talk about it and reminisce! :)
Cheers!
Sandi
Ian Moore
The place to visit for wold life safaris.
We travelled with Access2Tanzania who helped us plan the trip, where to go, where to stay, meeting our budget, etc, they were simply delightful to work with and I can not thank them enough for their help and patience as we worked on different agendas and pricing.
When we arrived in Arusha (we flew from Dulles on Ethiopian Airlines directly into Addis Ababa and then onto Arusha to arrive by early afternoon) we were met by our guide, Fulgence, and our personal vehicle. He was an excellent guide I would highly recommend him and A2Z. Instead of stopping for a night in Arusha, as is typical when flights arrive in via Amsterdam, we drove directly down to our first stop near Tarangire National Park. This allowed us to start seeing the animals early on the second day.
I have a web site where you can see where we stayed and which parks we visited (http://www.moorecs.com/Tanzania or my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/ian_moore/)
Read more
and that should give you some ideas as to accommodations, places to see and, of course, the main attraction, the animals.The tented camps are excellent and provide safe, clean and beautiful accommodations. We stayed two of our ten nights in a wilderness camp where you literally stay in a large tent and your hot water for a shower is brought to you in a bag - it is hoisted above the bathroom end of the tent. Toilets are chemical and at night you fall asleep to the sounds of lions in the distance, hyenas surrounding the camp and the night sounds of Africa - truly a great experience.
We would recommend the tented camps over the lodges which tend to be more European in nature, large dining areas and like a normal hotel anywhere in the world.
As for the animals - you will never go back to the zoo with the same excitement again. Our guide was brilliant in finding the animals and would sit as long as we wanted - you are not limited by the wants of others, simply what your group in your vehicle wants to do. We could stay out as late as we wanted and get up at times that suited us - but don't be lazy, the dawn rides out into the Serengeti for breakfast are worth the early rise. Getting up close to a prides of lions when it is only your vehicle anywhere to be seen is tremendous and our guide found remote locations where we sat for hours watching families of lions with their cubs (right beside our vehicle), a lion stalking a warthog, or a Leopard and her cub hauling their dinner, a gazelle, high into a tree - simply spectacular.
We would recommend that you take some time to visit the local villages or Masai boma. They really enjoy your visit and if you plan on doing this you may want to bring some small books or pencils for the children in the school. There are some pictures on my web sites of the children in the Masai school. You will find the Tanzanians to be a very welcoming people and happy to have visitors.
This is one of those bucket list of adventures and Tanzania has it all - wonderful people, great and varied accommodations and of course an unbelievable range and number of animals. Not to be missed.
Chris M.
US
Visited:
April 2010
Reviewed: Jun 11, 2012
35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Exceptional wildlife and expansive landscapes.
It's hard to beat the wildlife, biodiversity, and expansive landscapes of Tanzania. From the highest peak on the continent to Ngorongoro wildlife rich crater, from the expansive Serengeti to vibrant alleyways of Stonetown on Zanzibar, Tanzania has it all and then some. If you're short on time and want to see big game, head straight to Ngorongoro. You'll see everything but giraffes here - they can't climb down/up the steep crater walls. There's so much wildlife it almost feels like a zoo. If you're more into the search and discovery style safari, and have the time, the Serengeti is for you. Better yet, do both. Climb Mt Killy to brag that you bagged the continent's summit, but for my time and money, I'd climb Mt Kenya - more beautiful and fewer traffic jams on the trail. Finally, the rich swahili culture, white sand beaches, and the alluring alleyways of Stone Town on Zanzibar are not to be missed.
Nathan
US
Visited:
June 1999
Reviewed: Aug 15, 2013
20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
A great place to experience your first safari.
The national parks in Tanzania have a stunning amount of animals (significantly more so than Ugandan parks), and this makes game drives easier there. We visited 5 parks/reserves there, but by far our favorite resort was the Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge at the rim of the crater. The views from the hotel were stunning, and the dining room was very luxurious, so I highly recommend this lodge.
The Serengeti is a must for any safari to Tanzania. If you can be there during the Great Migration (Jan-Mar) you'll see some awe-inspiring wildlife. Unfortunately we went during the summer, so we missed that, but still had an amazing journey.
Eleanore Avery
US
Visited:
February 2012
Reviewed: Apr 19, 2017
Email Eleanore Avery | 65+ years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris