Reviews of safaris to Tarangire National Park

"The holiday was brilliant not just "very satisfactory"!

Martin Mollel, our driver really made the safari for us. He was very personable, very knowledgeable about the animals, very skilled at spotting them and a safe driver. He was very tactful and was very good chatting and playing with our children He was respectful of the animals. We felt safe and comfortable with Martin at all times.

We saw all the animals and many birds that Martin also knew about. We would fully recommend Martin for other clients.

Incidentally, on the jeep, it would have been good to have had a canvas cover that could have been put up above the roof openings to give some shade at times.

Thoughts on the parks:

Tarangire - A nice place to start, very quiet compared with the Serengeti we saw plenty of Elephants.

Lake Manyara - We only really saw baboons as animals in significant quantity. I would not recommend this park. It is more lush and so the animals are difficult to see. There are more prolific and variety of animals in other parks we went to. The lake has shrunk in size due to silting up and so the flamingo are just a pink band on the horizon many miles away. If there could be alternative access at the other side of the lake, then the flamingos would probably have been spectacular. I would miss this park out and make a more leisurely drive to Ngorongoro.

Ngorongoro - Specatcular scenery and the place to see Black Rhino. But there was much more - Lions Hyena etc etc. An early start is a must to see the animals before the crater gets busy.

Olduvai Gorge - unfortunately the compulsory local guide was quite old and difficult to hear and understand. He had a very strong accent and struggled to be heard above the wind. This was unfortunate as particularly for the children it could have been made very interesting if described and explained well Perhaps little information sheets that could be read before the visit would help understanding of what is being seen and its significance

Serengeti - we saw the migration which was excellent. There was a tendency in this park to see something and then find 9 other jeeps around. Sometimes with them edging very close to the animals. This seemed a bit circus like at times. That aside it was a good place to see lions and hippos, wilder-beast, giraffe and zebra etc etc

On arrival at Zanzibar, the baggage handlers ask you to identify your bags and then ask for tips prior to handing the bags over to you, which is not a very good introduction to Zanzibar. Also as the flight arrived 10-15 mins early, as we exited the airport, the transfer guy was not around and so we got mobbed by taxi drivers and other hawkers trying to get us to go with them and trying to take our bags. This was not very pleasant.

Eleanor Dunkels in London was always excellent always pleasant, helpful and informative. Her personal experience of the area was very useful. She was a pleasure to deal with.

Tips for other clients:

Don't wear blue. the TseTse flies really do get attracted to blue and give a nasty bite.

Make sure you do take some very good binoculars - a pair for each member of the group. Some of our pocket binoculars we took were woefully inadequate.

Wear wide brimmed hats that tie under the chin, otherwise they blow off

Long sleaved shirts are a good idea as its easy to get burnt with the open roof on the jeep." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 7 on a Tanzania safari

"Our trip was a once in a lifetime experience. One that will never be forgotten.

All the camps and lodges were different, as were the national parks and animal reserves. And we loved them all. We saw all the animals and birds in their natural habitat. Our guides were wonderful and very knowledgeable. WE were lucky that we had our own guide and jeep all the time, except for Lamai Serengeti. It made it easy for us to see all the animals in comfort. We have more Camps and Lodges to see in Tanzania.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

None, you have done a marvelous safari tour for us." Read full review: 39 nights in Africa; 34 on a Tanzania safari

"It was an amazing once-in-a-lifetime trip and excellently arranged and put together by Expert Africa.

In addition to the comments above our two safari guides, Fazo (at Tarangire and Ngorongoro) and Godwin (Serengeti) were so friendly, knowledgeable and outstanding at spotting animals. It was a privilege to be with them for our safari.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

On the whole it was very good. I did pay my deposit in early spring though and instead of receiving a reminder about the balance in mid-summer, I just got an email telling me I was late. It's true, I was late but a reminder that it was due would have sufficed.

I would not recommend Zanzibar Palace for honeymooners - there seem to be a couple of newer hotels in Stonetown that are a bit more modern and plush" Read full review: 15 nights in Africa; 7 on a Tanzania safari

"A brilliant trip with a few minor issues in the scheme of things. Very glad we chose Tanzania over Kenya as we got a crowd-free experience and really got “in amongst it”.

The Serengeti in particular is a stunning place and the large wildebeest crossing we witnessed was an incredibly dramatic and moving experience. Overall, we feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to have had this experience.

Organisation / communication from E-A was excellent throughout." Read full review: 18 nights in Africa; 12 on a Tanzania safari

"We were/are very pleased at your succesful efforts to change our dates etc.

Nairobi airport was not a good experience, both changing to fly to Tanzania and coming back from Rwanda. Talking to others, flying to Amsterdam and then with KLM to Kilimanjaro sounded much easier." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 8 on a Tanzania safari

"Detailed summary sent separately." Read full review: 12 nights in Africa; 11 on a Tanzania safari

"Wonderful!

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

No suggestions." Read full review: 14 nights in Africa; 13 on a Tanzania safari

"The trip was fantastic from start to finish. Dealing with Expert Africa, on the phone and via email was easy and efficient. From the minute we arrived in Kilimanjaro airport until the time we were delivered back there at the end of our stay, the local guides and tour reps (Asilia) were friendly, efficient, reliable and competent.

The locations, itinerary and planning were excellent. While two of the game parks (Ngorongo and Lake Manyara) were not as interesting (not much game, limited size) they were suitably short in duration. The more interesting parks (Tarangire and Northern Serengeti) had been allocated much more time and delivered a much more exciting experience. The accomodation was all excellent - the complaints we had were to do with our mental comfort level (or lack thereof!) in the more luxurious &Beyond camp. It was excellent, just not what fit our personalities.

The experience was more than we had hoped for and exceeded our expectations. It was truly memorable and we would not hesitate to recommend Expert Africa.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Knowing which locations offered free drinking water and laundry and which ones charged extra would be helpful." Read full review: 13 nights in Africa; 12 on a Tanzania safari

"Our second booking through Expert Africa and will use them again when we return to Namibia.

Have never had a even slightest problem with any of their bookings. There use of Asilia facilities and guides in Tanzania was the best to be had.

Suggestions to help us improve our trips or our service:

Avoid KQ if possible. The crater experience was only OK. Time would be better spent somewhere else at this time of the year. Perhaps the Mara." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 9 on a Tanzania safari

"I don't know about all the trip elements that our party lead planned with Expert Africa regarding the parks to visit, the side trips, and lengths of stay at each camp; however, after visiting the camps and parks, I would say that this could have been planned differently given the time of year. For example, 4 nights in the Tarangire with 2 nights of fly camping was too long. Three nights would been sufficient and 1 night of fly camping. Camping out is highly overrated after having done it so much in one's youth. The Ngorongora could have been skipped at this time of the year. The crater itself was a hughand windy dust bowl. We spent a day in Lake Manyara. What is there that the Serengeti doesn't have, other than blue monkeys and a rain forest? There is no lake to see, except at a great distance.

We met a number of tourists during the trip and they all said that the most memorable parks were the Serengeti and the Masa Mara. Bottom line, I believe there is where our trip should have focused on as first time visitors to Africa.

The Serengeti was the highlight of our trip." Read full review: 11 nights in Africa; 9 on a Tanzania safari