March of 2024 brought to reality a trip that was close to 10 years of dreaming, talking and planning. We covered the Central and Southern regions of the Serengeti, Crater highlands and the Rift Valley…nothing was left out. Finding words to adequately describe the experience has proven to be hard since all our descriptions seem to fall short of the real deal.
Returning to Africa was on our bucket list. We are two women over the age of 60. We wanted a private safari for wildlife and bird viewing. We booked the African Dream Safari, 12 day Hemingway Tour and were assigned a personal representative, Sharon. Sharon, Russell our guide and African Dream Safari exceeded our expectations in every way!
We have recently returned from our second safari with Africa Dream Safaris (ADS) and all I can say is it was truly a trip of a lifetime! Admittedly, I was reluctant to return to the Serengeti after our trip with ADS in 2018. I was concerned that it might be a let down the second time around as our first trip was an amazing, life altering experience. My wife Donna has a certain persistent way about her and lucky for us we returned! My skepticism couldn’t have been more wrong as Sharon pulled out all the stops to deliver a truly amazing experience.
Our Africa Dream Safari was an amazing trip. From our arrival at the airport to our departure we felt welcomed and cared for. Our guide Alex was wonderful, with an educational background (PhD) in wildlife ecology, years working for Serengeti National Park, and experience supervising a group of safari camps.
This was our second trip to Tanzania with Africa Dream Safaris (our first safari was in October 2021). We were wondering if a second safari might be boring but every day proved to be a new and exciting adventure. Our guide Fazal knew where the animals would be hiding, and even found a family of bat eared foxes and a very rare caracal!
I wanted to express how appreciate I am, and others I am sure, for all of the time and consideration given to our group, especially since it was extended to us because of Covid. That in itself speaks volumes about the quality and commitment of Africa Dream Safaris.
On arrival in Kilimanjaro airport, we were met by escorts and facilitated through customs. I think I may have sent some worrisome signals about what ADS was getting into with us when one of my first acts was tripping over a step and doing a total face plant in the reception area. All around hurried to my rescue and fortunately the only damage was to my dignity!
Our African safari was the best mistake of a lifetime. We were planning on going in February of 2024, but our information arrived with a 2023 itinerary. One look and we were hooked. Dawn our safari planner got a call the next day and our plans were becoming a reality. Dawn helped us with every detail, answered all questions and helped with all the paperwork.
We had been looking forward to this trip for a long time, having booked two years in advance and then delaying a year due to Covid concerns, so by the time we got to Tanzania our anticipation had been growing for three years. And to be honest, so had our anxiety over travel to a strange place during strange times.
I think it is important to start off by telling you what my wife and I are not. We are neither professional photographer’s nor are we professional writers getting paid or compensated for this article. What we are is just the average couple that wanted to go on safari in Tanzania and after careful research choose Africa Dream Safari’s to guide us on our adventure!
Starting out before daylight (our Choice), we looked back and witnessed the first glimmer of the sun setting the morning sky over the Serengeti on fire…It was in that moment that I knew we were in the right place with the right people to help us on our journey. This is but a handful of the 4000 plus photos we took.
Thank you for an experience I will always remember and treasure. I am struggling to find the words to express my profound gratitude to our guide, Emmanuel, who I am convinced provided the best safari experience anyone could ever have. All the ADS staff, as well as the staff at the different lodges, showed us tremendous kindness and took great care of us. They made everything easy – from picking us up at the airport, quickly moving us through customs and covid tests, getting us from one lodge to the next, catering to our food preferences, and answering our endless amount of questions.
I grew up in Wyoming, and it seems like most of my childhood memories are outdoors. Our family vacations almost always featured the camper and hiking boots over hotel rooms and large crowds. We’ve always enjoyed the nature of Wyoming (and Colorado, where I live now) and thought it was one of the best reasons to live here.
My parents and I, and especially my Dad, have always talked about how amazing it would be to go on an African safari and see a whole new wilderness. My parents recently retired and decided it was high time to make that dream a reality. And I, despite being an adult with a child of my own now, somehow lucked into becoming their third wheel.
For over six years, my really great teacher friend had told me about her amazing safaris to Africa…how close they got to the animals like no other company, and ‘check out these amazing photos of the cheetah on their jeep from a few years ago.’ In turn, I was in awe of course, but the worries were there….what would I do with my two children? Would I have to get shots? What about the expenses?
On the second day of our safari in March of 2019 I asked my wife, “How do you like our vacation?” “It is not a vacation, it is a lifetime experience!” she replied. The next 13 days totally verified how true that statement was. All of our senses filled us with wonder, joy and extraordinary new memories throughout the trip.
Our Safari trip with Africa Dream Safaris far exceeded our expectations. From the time we arrived in Arusha to the time we completed our tour we felt well taken care of. With the careful logistical planning that ADS provided, we were able to breeze through customs and immigration and it was a comforting feeling to have an escort that we could trust.
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