In 2020, we decided to visit Africa but when Covid hit, we put everything on hold. Last September (2024), we received a newsletter from African Dream Safaris which had been one of the tour guides we did look at. We decided to talk to them and see what was possible within our budget. We began working with Dawn to plan out the itinerary. She was very accommodating and answered all of our concerns and requests. The process was smooth and productive. We decided to proceed with the trip and scheduled May 2025.

During the time up until the departure, Dawn would provide information regarding vaccinations, visas, packing, money, etc. Everything was covered thoroughly and timely. Everyone at ADS we had contact with was helpful and responsive. They used WhatsApp as their messaging tool and set up a group chat to give us immediate communication if anything came up.

In fact, during our stay at the Sametu Camp, we wanted to stay an extra night and reduce the Lion’s Paw visit by one day. At 5 pm, we reached out to Dawn to see if that was possible and within 2 hours she had everything rebooked and finalized. That’s great customer service!

May finally arrived and we landed at Kilimanjaro Airport in Arusha. When we deplaned, ADS representatives were waiting for us. They handled getting through immigration and retrieving our luggage. The VIP lounge access to expedite the immigration process is a welcome benefit after traveling over 20 hours.

We just had to fill out one form and talk to the immigration officer for 5 minutes. They then brought us to meet our ADS driver, Stanley, who took us to the Arusha Coffee Lodge. When we got to the lodge, Joseph. another ADS rep was waiting for us. The hotel staff welcomed us with delicious cold coffee and Joseph took care of getting us checked-in and then briefed us on tomorrow’s schedule.

The Arusha Coffee Lodge is very beautiful! The restaurant and bistro were excellent, The room had fresh flowers and special touches including a french press coffee pot with fresh ground beans and plenty of safe water to drink. After flying for 14 hours with an 8 hour layover in Doha, then another 5 hours to Arusha, it was a welcome spot to recharge.

We stayed there for the night and in the morning, Joseph and Stanley took us to the local Arusha airport for the flight to the Grumeti Air Strip which is in the western part of the Serengeti. It was perfectly organized by ADS with Joseph turning us over to Grace who managed our check-in process and boarding passes. The plane which only holds 12 passengers was very smoothly and took about an hour.

We landed at the Grumeti Air Strip and we were met my our guide for the week, Ferouz. Ferouz was great! He had so much information and his eye for finding animals, birds, butterflies, plants.. you name it, was amazing. We called him Eagle Eyes. Once our luggage was retrieved, the safari tour began.

Our first stop was the Grumeti River where hippos, baboons, monkeys, birds, crocodiles, and Monitor lizards were there to view. We spent the rest of the afternoon, driving to various areas where many animals were visible and we got many beautiful photos just in the 1st few hours.

We arrived at Lahia Lodge late afternoon and just in time for a rain storm which was the only rain we experienced during our stay. They informed us, as all of the lodges did, that we had to call the desk to have someone accompany us from our room to the main area especially at night.

The expansive view of the Serengeti from our balcony was incredible with a view of the animals grazing. The food and service at Lahia’s restaurant was great.

The next morning we headed out to the Serengeti and saw more of the migration which was one of the more incredible sights we saw, although it’s so hard to pick out anyone thing. Hundreds of zebras, wildebeests, antelopes, and impalas just walking and walking… sometimes grazing, there seemed to be no end.

That afternoon, we came upon a herd of at least 76 elephants, we spent so much time there. They were by a watering hole and just grazing and interacting with each other, there were many babies and young ones. We saw a few other herds of elephants on our trip over the next few days.

We saw lions, lionesses and cubs sleeping, playing, hanging out in trees, we saw hyenas having their morning breakfast of an antelope carcass. We saw a leopard sleeping in a tree and a nearby there was a Cheetah in a field.

Ferouz made sure that we saw everything we wanted. Every night at dinner we would go over the plans for tomorrow.

Ferouz also set up some very special events for us. He and some of the staff took us up a mountain to see an incredible sunset. They provided appetizers, wine, champagne, etc. What a special sunset that was.

After Lahia Lodge, we traveled east to the Seronera valley for 2 nights at the Sametu Camp which was our favorite of the 3 lodges we stayed at. The rooms were gorgeous. The walls were canvas, but it didn’t feel like a tent at all. Our backyard was a savanna and we heard the calls of the animals all night.

The sunrise was beautiful and the night time skies were incredible. The black night with thousands of stars including the Milky Way.

The last night, we had a special bush dinner with a huge bonfire, they sang to us in Swahili, it was so much fun! Ferouz danced and sang with them. That was another highlight of the trip.

After Seronera Sametu Camp, we drove southeast for three hours to the Ngorongoro Crater. On the way, we stopped to visit the Maasai people. The Maasai people were so welcoming! It was interesting to see how they still live in these modern times. This was another one of our highlights.

At the entrance to the Ngorongoro Crater, the Park Rangers noticed that we had a flat tire, I guess that’s no surprise with all of the erosion and bumpy dirt roads we traveled over. Poor Ferouz changed the tire while we had our lunch. We then continued to the Lion’s Paw Camp which is located at the edge of the crater. This lodge was truly magical.

The ride up to the lodge was like going through an enchanted forest. It was so dense with trees and so different from the dry, dusty areas in central Serengeti.

The Lion’s Paw was great and being in the mountains, it was very cold. An electric heating blanket and hot water bottles are provided as part of the nightly turn down service. It was quite an experience. The restaurant was first class and the staff danced and sang for us.

The next day, we went back down to the crater. We saw lions rubbing against our jeep and some sleeping in the dirt road. It is so beautiful inside the crater with all the different birds including flamingos and we finally saw the rhinos.

Ferouz saw some tiny dots in the distance and somehow he knew they were rhinos and he knew how to get to them! We saw a mother and a baby! What a sight to see! After we left the crater, we headed back to Arusha for one more night before we headed back home.

We have to thank everyone at ADS, especially Ferouz and Dawn, but also everyone at the ADS and the camps and lodges that we had contact with. I can’t imagine having used any other company for this trip of a lifetime for us.

Thank you so much!

Tom and Laura D.
Benbrook, Texas
Safari Dates: May 24, 2025 to May 31, 2025