Reviews of safaris to Ruaha National Park
505 holiday reviews from our travellers of holidays which include Ruaha.
Mr & Mrs D
London
"My Sep 2022 trip"
I visited Tanzania between 12 Sep 2022 and 24 Sep 2022
"Delayed two years but worth the wait, thanks to Jessica and Expert Africa for managing the covid chaos!
Our fourth visit to Tanzania as good as ever with two unique wilderness destinations and loved being truly off grid.
Qatar flights via Doha were the best route we’ve used." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari
Our fourth visit to Tanzania as good as ever with two unique wilderness destinations and loved being truly off grid.
Qatar flights via Doha were the best route we’ve used." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Ms F
California, USA
"My Sep 2022 trip"
I visited Tanzania between 9 Sep 2022 and 25 Sep 2022
"This safari was planned and booked in, I think, 2019. Like the rest of the world, we had to postpone it twice due to Covid. It was worth the wait. I especially loved Ruaha and Nyerere because they don't seem to attract as many tourists as the migration area. But, having said that, seeing the migration is mind blowing.
On our last day, the camp manager was telling us all about Asilia and their environmental policies. I am really impressed with this company and would not hesitate to recommend them and will definitely stay at their properties in the future. I hope they will consider expanding into Southern Africa...
I love Expert Africa! I will continue to use you whenever I travel to Africa.
I have had nothing but positive experiences with your company." Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 13 on a Tanzania safari
On our last day, the camp manager was telling us all about Asilia and their environmental policies. I am really impressed with this company and would not hesitate to recommend them and will definitely stay at their properties in the future. I hope they will consider expanding into Southern Africa...
I love Expert Africa! I will continue to use you whenever I travel to Africa.
I have had nothing but positive experiences with your company." Read full review: 16 nights in Africa; 13 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mrs G.& Mr H.
Moelln
"My Sep 2022 trip"
I visited Tanzania between 3 Sep 2022 and 25 Sep 2022
"It was a very good planned trip. We always felt safe and everything (each transfer, each flight and also the lodges ) worked well. The drivers were only three times a little bit too late, but there were always people around who cared about us.
The ideal length of your stay should be 4 nights in one lodge. So you have the opportunity to see a lot of different animals. On some days we only saw birds and on the last day of our stay in the lodge we saw the lepard. If your budget will allow you 4 nights, we hardly recommend that.
We also loved the different parcs we visited. Every parc is different in landscape and animals which you can spot easy." Read full review: 22 nights in Africa; 21 on a Tanzania safari
The ideal length of your stay should be 4 nights in one lodge. So you have the opportunity to see a lot of different animals. On some days we only saw birds and on the last day of our stay in the lodge we saw the lepard. If your budget will allow you 4 nights, we hardly recommend that.
We also loved the different parcs we visited. Every parc is different in landscape and animals which you can spot easy." Read full review: 22 nights in Africa; 21 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Ms K.
United Kingdom
"My Aug 2022 trip"
I visited Tanzania between 31 Aug 2022 and 12 Sep 2022
"We had high hopes/expectations for our trip, and they were thoroughly exceeded! We loved every minute of it, and both camps, although different, were spectacular in their own ways. We hope this is not our last trip to Africa!"
Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs G
London
"My Aug 2022 trip"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 29 Aug 2022 and 13 Sep 2022
"The trip was fantastic- Expert Africa made it effortless for us! Jessica Plumb (contact at Expert Africa) was very knowledgeable and tailored the trip to our interests/budget. She was very responsive, answering all our questions and providing us with a detailed itinerary.
The safari lodges and accommodation were true to the description given by Expert Africa, and were consistently of high quality.
It was great to be able to enjoy the trip without having to think about internal flights and airport transfers, all of which was taken care of by Expert Africa.
Overall we had an incredible experience on our honeymoon and wouldn't hesitate to recommend Expert Africa!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
The safari lodges and accommodation were true to the description given by Expert Africa, and were consistently of high quality.
It was great to be able to enjoy the trip without having to think about internal flights and airport transfers, all of which was taken care of by Expert Africa.
Overall we had an incredible experience on our honeymoon and wouldn't hesitate to recommend Expert Africa!" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Nick & Kate
Sussex
"Spectacular river crossings and great game"
I visited Tanzania between 10 Aug 2022 and 23 Aug 2022
"This was a fabulous trip. We stayed in Arusha (pleasant overnight), and visited the Ngorongoro Crater (lots of game), Ruaha (fabulous lodge, sparser game, but still very enjoyable) and the Serengeti for the migration - awe-inspiring and spectacular river crossings.
The lodges were of very high standards, and the trip was comfortable, well-run and hugely enjoyable.
A special word must be reserved for the friendliness of the Tanzanian people - gentle, helpful, kind, considerate and well-mannered, extremely eager to do their best for you. It’s wonderful for veteran travellers like us to see how far the country has developed in so many ways since we were last here, and in particular to see how the Tanzanians themselves now occupy all the senior positions in camp management, guiding, and flying, doing so with their customary charm, efficiency and commitment to customer service." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 11 on a Tanzania safari
The lodges were of very high standards, and the trip was comfortable, well-run and hugely enjoyable.
A special word must be reserved for the friendliness of the Tanzanian people - gentle, helpful, kind, considerate and well-mannered, extremely eager to do their best for you. It’s wonderful for veteran travellers like us to see how far the country has developed in so many ways since we were last here, and in particular to see how the Tanzanians themselves now occupy all the senior positions in camp management, guiding, and flying, doing so with their customary charm, efficiency and commitment to customer service." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 11 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mrs K & 5
Maryland
"Working with Expert Africa makes it very easy and stress free. "
I visited Tanzania between 6 Aug 2022 and 16 Aug 2022
"Overall, our trip was great. We were definitely pleased with our choices of parks after hearing about the number of vehicles in Northern Tanzania. I don't think we every saw more than 5 around wildlife and sometimes went for hours without seeing anyone else.
Our biggest problems were with vehicles. We had a flat tire at Lake Manze on the way to the airport, a car that wouldn't start at the airport at Mdonya and another flat tire on the way to Bagamoyo. However, all were handled quickly with limited delays. We had a mix-up on arrival in Dar with a driver at the wrong airport, but we were able to take a taxi to the Slipway and worked out reimbursement easily.
Jessica was a pleasure to work with. She was able to answer all of our questions and concerns. We knew we made some different requests, such as our day in Bagamoyo (everyone should go for the art alone!) and wanting an alternative to Zanzibar.
We look forward to planning another trip in the next few years. Working with Expert Africa makes it very easy and stress free.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
Perhaps a questionnaire at the beginning of the booking process so we could indicate what is important to us in a safari. (Open vs pop-up vehicles, off road availability in parks, night safari availability, photographer friendly, etc.) This may have been offered on our first safari but I don't recall. I'm keeping a list of what we like in a trip, so each time should be even better." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari
Our biggest problems were with vehicles. We had a flat tire at Lake Manze on the way to the airport, a car that wouldn't start at the airport at Mdonya and another flat tire on the way to Bagamoyo. However, all were handled quickly with limited delays. We had a mix-up on arrival in Dar with a driver at the wrong airport, but we were able to take a taxi to the Slipway and worked out reimbursement easily.
Jessica was a pleasure to work with. She was able to answer all of our questions and concerns. We knew we made some different requests, such as our day in Bagamoyo (everyone should go for the art alone!) and wanting an alternative to Zanzibar.
We look forward to planning another trip in the next few years. Working with Expert Africa makes it very easy and stress free.
Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:
Perhaps a questionnaire at the beginning of the booking process so we could indicate what is important to us in a safari. (Open vs pop-up vehicles, off road availability in parks, night safari availability, photographer friendly, etc.) This may have been offered on our first safari but I don't recall. I'm keeping a list of what we like in a trip, so each time should be even better." Read full review: 10 nights in Africa; 10 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Dav & Kay
Manchester
"Definitely the holiday of a lifetime"
I visited Zanzibar and 1 other country between 23 Jul 2022 and 6 Aug 2022
"We had the most amazing time, definitely the holiday of a lifetime. We feel incredibly lucky that we were able to go on this trip, and would love to plan another adventure in the future with Expert Africa.
We felt that we got the best of everything, from hotels, food and service to individual guides and practically private planes, we were treated like royalty and will have treasured memories for a long time to come. We haven’t been able to stop telling people about our experience.
We are so pleased that we went with the Red Colobus Monkey suggested itinerary as it was just the most wonderful holiday. Thank you.
We thought it was the most amazing holiday." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 7 on a Zanzibar holiday
We felt that we got the best of everything, from hotels, food and service to individual guides and practically private planes, we were treated like royalty and will have treasured memories for a long time to come. We haven’t been able to stop telling people about our experience.
We are so pleased that we went with the Red Colobus Monkey suggested itinerary as it was just the most wonderful holiday. Thank you.
We thought it was the most amazing holiday." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 7 on a Zanzibar holiday
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs B.
Holland
"My Jul 2022 trip"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 17 Jul 2022 and 31 Jul 2022
"Excellent - we loved our whole trip."
Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
Mr & Mrs J
Leeds
"My Jun 2022 trip"
I visited Tanzania and 1 other country between 21 Jun 2022 and 6 Jul 2022
"Simply wonderful from the moment we arrived in Tanzania.
Never been to Africa before and tents are not our usual accommodation - but this was an exceptional environment and we felt privileged to be so close to the animals we came to see 24/7." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 9 on a Tanzania safari
Never been to Africa before and tents are not our usual accommodation - but this was an exceptional environment and we felt privileged to be so close to the animals we came to see 24/7." Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 9 on a Tanzania safari
Overall trip
Excellent
505
reviews of Ruaha by travellers since August 2007
Overall rating by our travellers
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Where 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 Expeditions
In a remote corner of Ruaha, Kichaka is a private mobile camp focusing on superbly guided walking safaris.
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.
Kichaka Zumbua
Kichaka Zumbua is a small, luxurious camp offering on outstanding walking safaris in a remote area of Ruaha.
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.
Jabali Private House
Jabali Private House in Ruaha National Park provides luxurious accommodation for private groups booked on an exclusive basis.
Jongomero Walking
Fly-camping and walking safaris from Jongomero Camp give you the chance to explore remote safari areas in Ruaha National Park.
Asanja Ruaha
Asanja Ruaha Ndembo is a smart new safari lodge in a picturesque setting overlooking the Great Ruaha River.
