Last fall a friend and I were sitting in my living room discussing what items were on our bucket lists and of course an African safari was one of the top items. We decided that we were going to go and not put it off any longer!
We did our research and found ADS had all of the items we were interested in. We knew we wanted a private safari and ADS had so many great reviews that we knew they were the company for us. I talked to Dawn and she sent us both information packets and that sealed the deal! We booked our trip for September 2017.
I can’t believe how smoothly everything went from beginning to end. We were met at the airport by Matius, he took us through the VISA process in a snap and we were on our way to the African Tulip with Joseph and young Joseph in a matter of minutes!
We were met at the hotel by the manager, Anui Sharma who made sure everything was perfect for our two night stay. We took the next day off and went on a city tour to relax and get ready for our safari. The following morning Joseph and Joseph took us to the Arusha airport for our flight to Kogatende.
Upon our arrival we were met by our guide Claude who immediately took us on the beginning of our marvelous journey. We saw elephants, zebra, gazelles, topi, the wildebeest crossing, lions and numerous birds before we arrived at our first stop at the Mara River Camp. We received a warm welcome which was the case at every stop we made. ADS knows how to take care of their clients! Claude made sure we had the best seats in the house!
The next day we saw the wildebeest crossing again; saw the first of our four leopards and cheetahs. What beautiful animals they are and Claude had the patience to sit and watch the animals until they moved and we were able to take wonderful photos. He always made sure we had the right angle to get the best photo.
I have a Canon Rebel T6 and I used my 75-300 telephoto lens. I highly recommend taking a telephoto lens on your safari. I saw many people using their phones and I’m afraid they will be disappointed when they get home at the quality of their photos. I am just a novice when it comes to photography but Claude made it easy to get the good shots.
I’ve read so many testimonials people have written about their guides but I think we had the best! It’s great that everyone that travels with ADS thinks his or her guide is the best, that just shows you that everyone of them are fantastic.
We wanted to see as many baby animals as possible and we saw a lot even though it wasn’t the season for babies. We saw a baby jackal which was super cute! Baby lions, elephants, wildebeest, giraffes and even a teenage rhino.
I can’t say enough about what a fantastic trip this was, there just aren’t enough words. If anyone asks about booking a trip to the Serengeti we tell them there is only one company to use, African Dream Safari. If you are lucky enough to get Claude as your guide, tell him the two ladies from Montana say hello!
Sandi H.
Bozeman, Montana
Safari Dates: September 02, 2017 to September 11, 2017
We planned the Safari for several years and researched a lot where to go. Finally concluded to go to Tanzania Serengeti. Called several travel agents, finally got a good deal with Costeco travel.
We used ADS got our plans to go to Tanzania late Aug 2017. Left Washington DC on Ethiopiaian Airlines to Kilimanjaro. After reaching Kilimanjaro airport met with our guide Mohammad and drove to Arusha lodge for night rest. The lodge is very good. N TX morning we started our Safari trip.
We have our game drive van with six people (four us) and two couple from New York. The age group ADS fixed was superb. My adult boys enjoyed with New York couple in a sane age group. Our game driver Lucas is excellent. He is extremely knowledgeable in animals and birds. You ask him anything about birds, he will tell you like a walking GM encyclopedia.
We stated our Safari in Tarangire National Park. Where we saw almost all kind of animals. A thrilling experience to see animals close to your van in their natural habitat. No animal will come close to your van.
Stay inside the parks is a thrilling experience. These lodges are open to animals. The guards at lodge warn you about animals come close to the lodges in the night. The Security is superb in the night. The rangers are in high alert and if you go out in the night, they will escort you.
The rooms are well planned with mosquito nets and running hot n cold waters. They warn you not brush your teeth with tap water. They provide bottle water. The food is great. No problem for vegetarians.
We covered three parks in this trip. Tarangire, Serengeti and Ngorongoro National parks. We took Balloon ride in Serengeti. A new experience and recommends one must experience this fabulous ride over Serengeti plains.
We liked Ngorongoro where we saw lots of animals including big fives. We saw Flamingoes flying. There are no words to describe the trips. One should wetness and feel this unique life time experience
Overall ADS and Leoard Tours did a great job arranging this dream come trip to a reality.
My son and I took this trip two years ago and it was absolutely the best journey we could have chosen. I am a giraffe lover and they made sure that I saw my favorite animal within minutes of our trip to our safari flight. Would suggest this WDS to everyone. It was a dream from start to finish.
Love your photos! We had Claude for our safari in April and agree he was absolutely awesome!
We had Claude as our safari guide and yes, he was a gem. We were so pleased with ADS…..they could not have taken better care of all of us, especially my husband who was 89 at the time!!!!
What is the best time of year to see lots of baby animals and the usual times for the “great crossings”?
Love seeing all these pictures and reading about everyone’s adventures…