Reviews of safaris to Ruaha National Park
508 holiday reviews from our travellers of holidays which include Ruaha.
Thor & Deb
BC Canada
"Our retirement trip"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 7 Sep 2015 and 8 Oct 2015
"It was absolutely a fabulous trip. We are seasoned off-the-beaten-track travellers and I absolutely marvel that everything, everything, worked exactly as it was supposed to. Here we were, in the middle of central Tanzania, waiting for a 10:05 flight. Guess what? At 10:03, there was the plane, buzzing animals off the grass runway, then touching down to pick us up. It happened every time.
How do they manage to have tonic, gin, lime, glasses, ice, and potato chips in Katavi? It must be a logistical nightmare--but there was my gin and tonic, always perfectly served. Dazzling!
We felt safe, treated so well by enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and genuinely caring staff throughout..... And then there were the animals. We never saw a rhine, because they have been poached to virtual extinction in East Africa, but we saw most everything else, and up close and personal. Having a leopard on your tent porch is not something I will soon forget.
A word of caution: Mother Nature can be entirely unsentimental. We watched two lionesses kill a baby giraffe as the helpless adult giraffes watched. This was not easy...... but it is what happens out there. This is not Disneyland." Read full review: 31 nights in Africa; 25 on a Tanzania safari
How do they manage to have tonic, gin, lime, glasses, ice, and potato chips in Katavi? It must be a logistical nightmare--but there was my gin and tonic, always perfectly served. Dazzling!
We felt safe, treated so well by enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and genuinely caring staff throughout..... And then there were the animals. We never saw a rhine, because they have been poached to virtual extinction in East Africa, but we saw most everything else, and up close and personal. Having a leopard on your tent porch is not something I will soon forget.
A word of caution: Mother Nature can be entirely unsentimental. We watched two lionesses kill a baby giraffe as the helpless adult giraffes watched. This was not easy...... but it is what happens out there. This is not Disneyland." Read full review: 31 nights in Africa; 25 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr DW
Surrey
"My Sep 2015 trip"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 7 Sep 2015 and 21 Sep 2015
"The trip of a lifetime Fantastic
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
No keep it up you are the best" Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
No keep it up you are the best" Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs B
Newark
"Best trip so far"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 7 Sep 2015 and 16 Sep 2015
"The amazing game viewing in Ruaha made this probably our best trip ever. In both Ruaha and Selous we saw more lion than we dared hope. The lack of elephant in Selous was disappointing and disturbing but more than made up for by the huge population in Ruaha.
Incorrect documents in our pack was a little concerning but quickly resolved." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Incorrect documents in our pack was a little concerning but quickly resolved." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs D
London
"Excellent Trip"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 5 Sep 2015 and 18 Sep 2015
"Everything we hoped for!"
Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 11 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs R
Queensland
"African Safari"
I visited Tanzania between 1 Sep 2015 and 10 Sep 2015
"A fantastic trip.
Ruaha walking safari was a clear highlight. Great for travellers who have safaried in Africa before." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Tanzania safari
Ruaha walking safari was a clear highlight. Great for travellers who have safaried in Africa before." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 9 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs I
Suffolk
"August 2015 - Selous & Ruaha"
I visited Tanzania between 20 Aug 2015 and 29 Aug 2015
"Our trip back to Tanzania after 7 years was every bit as wonderful as we expected.
Added bonus this time Leopard and Cheetah sightings. Both Impala in Selous and Mwagusi in Ruaha were exceptional camps and we would recommend them to anyone wishing to take a safari. Both areas have a diverse animal population giving a fantastic safari experience." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Added bonus this time Leopard and Cheetah sightings. Both Impala in Selous and Mwagusi in Ruaha were exceptional camps and we would recommend them to anyone wishing to take a safari. Both areas have a diverse animal population giving a fantastic safari experience." Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mrs H & Mr S
UK
"Selous - Ruaha August 2015"
I visited Tanzania between 18 Aug 2015 and 27 Aug 2015
"Overall, our trip was fabulous!
It was well planned by Expert Africa (thanks again Ellie Dunkels!) and the whole trip went smoothly from start to finish. We were glad that we had chosen just two camps this time with four nights at each as it meant we had time to relax and enjoy the lovely environment of both camps and have plenty of time for drives, a walk and boat trips. We were able to observe the animals at close quarters and just really enjoy being in their company. All the staff and guides at Impala and River Lodge were first class.
Thank you everyone!" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
It was well planned by Expert Africa (thanks again Ellie Dunkels!) and the whole trip went smoothly from start to finish. We were glad that we had chosen just two camps this time with four nights at each as it meant we had time to relax and enjoy the lovely environment of both camps and have plenty of time for drives, a walk and boat trips. We were able to observe the animals at close quarters and just really enjoy being in their company. All the staff and guides at Impala and River Lodge were first class.
Thank you everyone!" Read full review: 9 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs S
Waco, TX
"would have been 5 Paws without Selous/Manze"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 14 Aug 2015 and 24 Aug 2015
"Selous should not be marketed as having meaningful elephant populations
everyone in the country seems to know it but it was not indicated to me
Lake Manze is overpriced by at least double
should be sold as a budget camp for families going to cheap beach hotels in Zanzibar
because we are very experienced travelers we don't let any single issue spoil a trip but--
We usually do our own bookings but made an exception for this trip due to the number of domestic flights
and our preferred tight flying schedule .Iwas impressed by the service from both Richard and initially, Clare and
the details such as flights,transfers hotels,time usage were well done
I have never paid the pricing of Lake Manze/Selous and received as little
I rate the camp and game experience below modestly priced South African Private reserves near Kruger
eg: Nkorho or Gomo Gomo which are 50% lower
Kwihala was an excellent recommendation and Kicheche was as advertised
I do not think the location of the camp can compare to Karen Blixen tents on the River
where i have stayed previously but they have a different manager from my last visit there
and Kicheche was very satisfying." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 6 on a Tanzania safari
everyone in the country seems to know it but it was not indicated to me
Lake Manze is overpriced by at least double
should be sold as a budget camp for families going to cheap beach hotels in Zanzibar
because we are very experienced travelers we don't let any single issue spoil a trip but--
We usually do our own bookings but made an exception for this trip due to the number of domestic flights
and our preferred tight flying schedule .Iwas impressed by the service from both Richard and initially, Clare and
the details such as flights,transfers hotels,time usage were well done
I have never paid the pricing of Lake Manze/Selous and received as little
I rate the camp and game experience below modestly priced South African Private reserves near Kruger
eg: Nkorho or Gomo Gomo which are 50% lower
Kwihala was an excellent recommendation and Kicheche was as advertised
I do not think the location of the camp can compare to Karen Blixen tents on the River
where i have stayed previously but they have a different manager from my last visit there
and Kicheche was very satisfying." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 6 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr P
Maidstone
"My Aug 2015 trip"
I visited Tanzania between 6 Aug 2015 and 19 Aug 2015
"This was to be a special and rare trip for us as all members of the family were to be together.
In fact the trip met and even exceeded our expectations. We have separately commented between us that this has been the trip of a lifetime.
Many thanks to Expert Africa and special thanks to Ellie who patiently guided us towards the right destinations and the right places to stay. We are very grateful.
We look forward to talking to you again - sometime - about our next trip!" Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 12 on a Tanzania safari
In fact the trip met and even exceeded our expectations. We have separately commented between us that this has been the trip of a lifetime.
Many thanks to Expert Africa and special thanks to Ellie who patiently guided us towards the right destinations and the right places to stay. We are very grateful.
We look forward to talking to you again - sometime - about our next trip!" Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 12 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs R
PA, USA
"An amazing and unforgettable experience"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 27 Jul 2015 and 9 Aug 2015
"The entire experience from start to finish was best in class. We truly had a once in life time experience and we are so happy we chose to work with Expert Africa.
I would strongly urge anyone thinking of going to Africa to work with you guys. The reviews we had read to help us decide and plan were all accurate which is alway a bonus as well.
If I had to do it all over again, there are minor ( and I mean minor) things I would have changed. The first day was an extremely long day of travel. After 21hrs of traveling we were a bit surprised by a four hour drive until we got to our hotel. We certainly sucked it up and at the end of the day it was fine but I may have opted to stay a bit closer.
I may have also done one less day of selous. Not sure if it was our location, luck or combination of the two but we we could have done one less day there. Again, this is being super nit picky it really was amazing.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
My only suggestions is a bit more detail around the flights and the distances of the transfers." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
I would strongly urge anyone thinking of going to Africa to work with you guys. The reviews we had read to help us decide and plan were all accurate which is alway a bonus as well.
If I had to do it all over again, there are minor ( and I mean minor) things I would have changed. The first day was an extremely long day of travel. After 21hrs of traveling we were a bit surprised by a four hour drive until we got to our hotel. We certainly sucked it up and at the end of the day it was fine but I may have opted to stay a bit closer.
I may have also done one less day of selous. Not sure if it was our location, luck or combination of the two but we we could have done one less day there. Again, this is being super nit picky it really was amazing.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
My only suggestions is a bit more detail around the flights and the distances of the transfers." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
508
reviews of Ruaha by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
Filter by month
Looking for inspiration on where to travel next?
Visit our trip chooser to explore your options and find inspiration for your perfect African adventure
Inspire meWhere to stay in Ruaha
Our suggestions for safari camps in Ruaha National Park
Mdonya Old River Camp
Designed with simplicity in mind, Mdonya River Camp focuses on a great wilderness experience rather than creature comforts.
Mwagusi Safari Camp
Mwagusi is a long-established, permanent, tented safari camp, on an attractive bend of the seasonal Mwagusi River.
Kwihala Camp
Kwihala is a permanent tented camp in Ruaha National Park, offering a high level of comfort and guiding in a natural setting.
Ikuka Safari Camp
Upmarket and stylish, Ikuka Safari Camp is set high on an escarpment with spectacular panoramic views over Ruaha National Park.
Jongomero Camp
A stylish and luxurious camp in a remote part of Ruaha, Jongomero offers excellent guiding and service in a remote, wilderness area.
Kigelia Camp
Kigelia is a stylish tented camp, set amid a grove of sausage trees, and combining a simple set-up with comforts and luxury.
Kichaka Zumbua
Kichaka Zumbua is a small, luxurious camp offering on outstanding walking safaris in a remote area of Ruaha.
Ruaha River Lodge
In a lovely location beside a rocky river, the unpretentious Ruaha River Lodge is the largest and most economical camp in Ruaha National Park.
Jabali Ridge
One of Ruaha's most luxurious camps, Jabali Ridge nestles among kopjes and baobabs, with beautiful views of the surrounding area.
Usangu Expedition Camp
Usangu Expedition Camp is a seasonal camp in the Usangu Wetlands – a remote and enchanting part of Ruaha National Park.
Jongomero Walking
Fly-camping and walking safaris from Jongomero Camp give you the chance to explore remote safari areas in Ruaha National Park.
Jabali Private House
Jabali Private House in Ruaha National Park provides luxurious accommodation for private groups booked on an exclusive basis.
Asanja Ruaha
Asanja Ruaha Ndembo is a smart new safari lodge in a picturesque setting overlooking the Great Ruaha River.
