Africa Dream Safaris was delighted to host Philip Briggs and his wife Ariadne Van Zandbergen for a 15-day safari. Philip was in Tanzania doing research for the latest editions of the Bradt Tanzania Travel Guides. Philip Briggs is the author of the prestigious and well-respected BRADT Travel Guides. Philip’s published works include Bradt Guides to Tanzania, Northern Tanzania Safaris, and East African Wildlife, as well as many several other books about Africa. Many loyal fans follow Philip’s travel advice and recommendations very closely when planning their own dream safari vacations. And rightfully so…Philip has traveled extensively in Tanzania for many years and offers an unparalleled perspective from which to judge any African Safari company. So, needless to say we were thrilled when he came back with a glowing review for Africa Dream Safaris!
“Since I started writing guidebooks to Africa in the early 1990s, I’ve been on several dozen safaris all over the continent, including at least 15 in northern Tanzania, most of them accompanied by my wife Ariadne Van Zandbergen, a professional wildlife photographer. Our two trips with African Dream Safaris rank up with the best of them.
In terms of personal enjoyment, we appreciated ADS’s policy of staying away from the more crowded circuits, of using small intimate camps rather than large impersonal lodges, and the superb design of their stretch 4x4s – which come complete with a fridge for chilled drinks throughout the day.
On a professional level, we know that the long working hours involved in wildlife photography often tire our driver-guides. But not the hard-working driver-guides supplied by ADS, who were energetic and enthusiastic throughout those days when we were out from dawn to dusk, and always willing to put our requirements first.
Importantly, the driver guides-were always keen to carry packed breakfasts so we could be out during that magical first hour of daylight – the best time to see lion and other predators on the move, in golden morning light that adds great warmth to photographs. ADS’s work ethic is reflected in the sheer number of great photographs we got from our safaris with them – so a big thank you to Michael and the ADS team.
The last image is a patas monkey which is very rarely seen in Serengeti. We had quite a good shoot with a troop of them. As usual there were plenty of great cat sightings, but I was particularly pleased with the honey badger that seemed unusually relaxed.”
Sincerely,
Philip Briggs and Ariadne Van Zandbergen
Philip Briggs is the author of Bradt Guides to Tanzania, Northern Tanzania Safaris, and East African Wildlife, as well as a dozen other books about Africa. Please visit bradtguides.com for more information. Ariadne Van Zandbergen is a travel and wildlife photographer specializing in Africa with work published in hundreds of books and magazines and has her own photo library. Please visit africaimagelibrary.com for more information.
