Back in 2015, my wife and I embarked on our first safari with Africa Dream Safaris. It was a trip of a lifetime for both of us. So in 2023 we started to plan for our second safari after my retirement. Because of our first experience with Africa Dream Safaris, we reached out to Dawn to begin planning our September 2024 safari, which would include our daughter, son-in-law and our nine- year old granddaughter.

My wife and I were really looking forward to experiencing the safari through the eyes of our granddaughter. However, we were both a little nervous the second safari would not live up to our first experience. Boy were we wrong. A new experience on this safari was the VIP service in getting through immigration and customs at the Kilimanjaro Airport, which was quite helpful after 20 hours of travel.

We reached out to Dawn to start the planning process and were quickly reminded of why we loved ADS. While we picked a different route, Dawn led us to the right lodges and provided us with all the things we needed to do to be prepared for the trip. All of the lodges were wonderful in location, furnishings, staff and food. Each lodge was extremely attentive to our granddaughter.

Dawn recommended Russell to be our safari guide and he was absolutely phenomenal. He spotted so many animals we would have missed…five leopards including a baby, nine cheetahs including four adorable cubs, countless lions with cubs, a wildebeest crossing with crocodiles in action and so many more beautiful animals and birds. I was most impressed with how he anticipated the animal’s behaviors which allowed me to get some amazing photographs.

Every time our granddaughter had a question, Russell had the answer. Her questions ranged across the entire ecosystem – animals, birds, plants, termite mounds and the changing Maasai culture.

I will forever remember the tears on my daughter’s face and the expression on my granddaughter’s face when we encountered our first parade of elephants.

In the evening, at dinner, we would sit and talk about the top experiences of the day. But what we all experienced is how abundant the Serengeti is and how lucky we were to be able to experience it as a family. As we were leaving the Serengeti, our granddaughter stated she will miss Russell most of all.

We will be back…

Jim and Ali W. and Family
Avon Lake, Ohio
Safari Dates: August 31, 2024 to September 08, 2024