In appreciation for all the beauty and inspiration Tanzania has given us, it is time to GIVE BACK. When guests choose Africa Dream Safaris, they have effectively partnered with our front-line efforts to improve the lives of the local people and conserve the precious wildlife that make their home here. And it is WORKING! Here are just a few ways our partnerships are helping to make a difference.
From the moment we made our reservations, to the time we arrived in Arusha and even after, Africa Dream Safaris provided a high quality safe adventure beyond anything we could have imagined. Even several months later, we all agree that we still can’t believe what we experienced during our 12 days safari.
At Africa Dream Safaris we do things a bit different than everyone else, including one way we are letting everyone know about the Serengeti. We have our own unusual representative out their strutting his stuff promoting Tanzania and the Serengeti in the dog show world!!
Approximately 5 miles north of Seronera, the flowing Seronera River and Orangi River converge to form a deep pool of water called the Retina Hippo Pool. Although hippos are common throughout all the rivers in the surrounding area, the deep pool at Retina is certainly the best spot in the Serengeti to view these enormous and fascinating animals. Retina Hippo Pool is also a great spot to see other animals including crocodiles, baboons, impala, giraffe, elephants and topi.
Margaret and I wanted a big celebration for our 25th wedding anniversary and we eventually settled on a ten day Tanzania Safari created by Africa Dream Safaris. We wanted luxury as well as game drives and so ADS selected the most stunning lodges for our trip. There were no issues with altering the trip to make it exactly how we wanted it, but what we didn’t realize is that the whole trip would be far better than we’d even imagined!
Although our trip officially started at the Arusha Coffee Lodge, for us it began with a flight from Arusha to the north west Serengeti – and even on this flight we saw Zebra and Ostrich on the edge of the runway!
Russell, our ADS driver, met us when we landed, and drove us to our first lodging at Bushtops Serengeti. But this first drive was through the beautiful Serengeti, seeing Zebra, Giraffe, Hippos, Wildebeest, Buffalo, and even Lions; so even before we’d “arrived” we’d had an amazing drive.
Our second days drive took us temporarily into Kenya and offered our first views of Elephants. At first we saw one Elephant in the distance; then later a family group very active just yards away!
Throughout our Safari, this kept occurring – we’d see a great view of animals, and later a better view, and then even better still. Multiple times our view went from needing the provided binoculars, to being so close that a phone camera took National Geographic quality photos!
On our third day we transferred from the North East Serengeti to Central, at the Elewana Pioneer camp. Here our lodging was more tented but still very luxurious with king size bed, private shower, electric lighting…
The transfer drive was amazing as we drove through typical Serengeti plains, to more forested areas, hilly areas – and all the time seeing a constant variety of animals including our first Leopard, again just a few feet from the road. We were stunned too by the sight of eight Lions in a tree.
The Pioneer camp offered very fast internet too, giving a chance to share our experience with friends and family.
Another day, another drive – our first Cheetahs, Baboons trying to chase a Leopard from it’s tree, a pride of 16 Lions, and Elephants on top of rocks!
Our next lodge was Singita Faru Faru in the private Grumeti reserve, which forced us to separate from Russell and the ADS vehicle, and switch to the lodges transport. This change meant sharing the vehicle with other people, being unable to stand for the best views; but instead the vehicle was able to go off the roads which gave our very closest views of animals.
In the Grumeti reserve we also took an interesting walking tour, and an early morning balloon ride which included flying over a herd of more than 100 Elephants.
From Grumeti we flew to Manyara and met back with Russell who drove us to our last lodging at the incredible Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. We clearly had saved the best for last as this lodge has amazing cottage style rooms, constant friendship from the staff, and spectacular views of the crater!
Our drive into the Ngorongoro Crater was exhilarating and once again there were game views almost everywhere. We saw our only Black Rhino view here, rather too distant for good photos but with a calf to make the view more special. Also here we saw our only kill – a “cackle” of Hyena trapped and drowned a lost Buffalo calf but then a nearby Lion pride moved in and took over the kill, dragging it from the water.
Our final day driving from Ngorongoro back to Arusha detoured through the Lake Manyara Park for final views of Zebra, Buffalo, Elephants, Baboons, as well as hundreds of Pelicans.
Other than the end of our trip, there really were no negatives. We’d been concerned before we left USA about insects / bites, about how distant our views would be, about weather / temperature. None of these were an issue.
Insects were almost non-existent on the game drives and lodgings, except at Singita Faru Faru where they were very noticeable at dinner – the choice was lights that attracted them, or darkness with no way to see what you were eating! For some reason many flying insects also got into our room, though the net around our bed kept them from being too annoying.
Temperatures were perfect; during the hot day time the canopy of our ADS vehicle kept us shaded – at night because our Lodgings were all 4,000-5,000 feet altitude, temperatures dropped to very comfortable low 60s or even 50s. On our early morning drive at the Grumeti reserve we definitely needed the provided blankets.
As for the views, almost all animals were seen at least some of the time less than 50 feet from the vehicle – and some views were much closer. I was very pleased with my Nikon Coolpix P900 camera with it’s 2000mm equivalent maximum zoom, but I was also very pleased with the video and photos I was able to take from my iPhone, sometimes.
Our two days at the Singita lodging gave us a flavor of what Safari trips are like from companies other than ADS. With ADS, Russell was our personal driver and guide; he took us where and when we wanted and was a constant friend, providing a major enhancement to our vacation.
We would have been less thrilled with having to share our drives, obey set times and have less control over our days. Additionally, the experience of driving rather than flying from one lodging to another seemed to be a significant benefit in being able to see the changing terrain from one part of Serengeti to another.
Thank you Michael for creating our special trip, and Russell for making it so wonderful!
Ian and Margaret C.
Winter Garden, FL
Safari Dates: November 28, 2016 to December 7, 2016
P.S. It’s hard sometimes when watching a Safari program on television to get a realistic idea of what a Safari drive is like. So here I’ve put together a few videos taken during our trip, using just my iPhone (so these views are close to the truck, not zoomed in from far away!) You can see that the terrain is sometimes grass plain, sometimes more full of trees, sometimes no animals visible and sometimes you have to stop because the animals are blocking the road!
Driving in the Serengeti: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXkr2o-6gW4
Our safari to Tanzania exceeded our expectations! It was a life changing experience and one that we will never forget.
As 2017 comes to an end, we can’t help but look back on this adventurous year with such gratitude to our guests who have chosen us as their host to experience the wonders of Tanzania. With countless safari moments to revisit, it’s fun to look back and select some of our favorites to share with you.
Our safari began, as so many others have described, with arrival at Kilimanjaro airport and a swift and easy passage through customs and arrival at Mount Meru Resort in Arusha. The following day we were treated to a tour of Arusha with an informative, detailed running commentary by Mathias and Joseph about the city, its people, and industries. We also toured the Cultural Heritage Center that holds a vast collection of paintings, carvings, and jewelry.
If you are reading this review then you are probably looking for a Safari company to provide your dream trip to Africa. Look no further Africa Dream Safari is the place to sign up. From beginning to end your every desire and whim will be taken care of one hundred percent of the time.
This was the only trip where the experience exceeded our expectations. And we are pretty seasoned travelers. Russell was an exceptional guide. I called him the animal whisperer. He must have eyes in the back of his head! His sense of humor was greatly appreciated and his patience with novice African travelers was great.
The last animal we saw on Wednesday evening was a lone buffalo. Arnold, our guide, commented that was odd, as they are usually in a group. We woke early and noticed some buffalo tracks outside our tent. Heading out at sunrise we passed by two huge hippos staring at each other and we wondered how that confrontation was going to play out. The sun was rising and we headed onward into the Serengeti.
Arnold noticed some action to our left and he headed in that direction. There were about seven lions digging into a very large buffalo, the cubs almost disappearing into the stomach. We parked about 20 yards from the scene and watched the drama of the lionesses chowing down and keeping an old skinny male from even a bite.
We looked into the sky to see my nephew and friend flying overhead in a balloon. After many photographs and about an hour of viewing we went on to continue the game Drive that included seeing wildebeests and Zebras crossing the Mara River, elephant families roaming and a lone giraffe trying to reunite with her family across a stream.
At midday we headed back to camp and passed by the lion kill from the morning. There were different lions from the same pride going after the meat, still keeping the old guy away.
After lunch we headed back out to find a lone young lion guarding the kill from the circling hyenas and jackals and vultures waiting their turn.
At dusk we saw a few lions stripping the ribs of meat and cracking bones. The old lion finally had his turn.
The next morning we headed out to go to the next camp and passed by the kill scene; all that was left were the horns, a piece of skull and a few vertebrae. We regretted not watching the actual kill which we figure happened about 4am before we came upon it, and the cleanup by the hyenas, jackals and birds.
What an amazing experience to witness and realize that this happens every day on this planet. Being the only humans to witness this as well as being so close to the action was unbelievable.
I’m attaching some photos of our experience from start to finish.
Jill U.
Carbondale, Colorado
Safari Dates: October 23, 2016 to November 1, 2016
My wife and I and two friends visited Tanzania in September and October for 2 weeks this year. We chose ADS on the recommendation of friends and were really happy we did. We have been traveling to Africa for nearly 30 years and this turned to be one of our best trips.
Our trip with Africa Dream Safaris was truly a once in a lifetime experience that exceed all of our expectations. Having been recommended by friends, we had heard great things about ADS, but were not aware of just how great of a decision we had made. The private experience of ADS is one that cannot be substituted by a group safari, or any other company.
From the get-go, ADS made sure the trip was tailored to our liking, from the number of days to the exact locations we would visit. Throughout the trip, our guide would modify the number of hours we spent out every day, and would search for things we preferred to see. This is something that you would not be able to receive with other companies that give safaris in a group fashion.
Furthermore, our guide, Willy, and every staff member we encountered throughout our journey was extremely friendly and welcoming. Willy would answer our many questions, whether regarding the migration patterns of wildebeests or the typical size of a group of elephants. Willy was not just a passive guide, but rather was as excited as we were to encounter a lion hunting a warthog, and would wait for hours as we watched a giraffe give birth. He was invested in finding as many animals and rare sightings as possible, and worked extremely hard to make sure we had the best experience possible.
ADS ensured that every penny of our trip was worthwhile, and if we were to do it again, we would choose ADS one hundred times over!”
Thanks again for an amazing experience. We look forward to sharing our stories with friends and family and recommending ADS to any friends interested in a safari experience.
Sheridan B.
San Jose, California
Safari Dates: August 16, 2016 to August 23, 2016
I thought it would be interesting to share a collection of safari photos mainly from the Serengeti National Park showing just how close one can get to the big game (lion, cheetah, leopard, elephant and giraffe) in Tanzania. Sometimes a large zoom or telephoto lens is not at all necessary and a small pocket size camera is actually more advantageous.
From the moment we stepped off the plane in Kilimanjaro and walked across the tarmac to the airport, we knew we had made the right choice in Africa Dream Safaris.
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