great safari in n. Tanzania with "Destination Tanzania"
Aug 25th, 2009, 01:54 AM
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great safari in n. Tanzania with "Destination Tanzania"
Just a note to say that we had a absolutely super safari in Tarangire, Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorogoro parks/reserves this June/july 2009 with Destination Tanzania. We opted for a mix of tented lodges and camping. (3 nights Tarangire, 1 night Manyara, 4 nights Serengeti, 2 nights Ngorogoro, 1 night at Plantation lodge.)
It included a meeting with the guide and the co. rep. the night before the start, at the hotel in Arusha. The guide, Alex, is middle-aged and very experienced at his profession, but also still really enthusiastic about his job. His age (age still gets respect in Africa) allows him some leeway when dealing with the bureaucracy of getting in and out of the parks, highway patrols, etc. The officials know him from his long experience. Although he wears glasses, they really must be binoculars, as he was able to see up-turned sleeping lions and other animals and birds from 100s and 100s of meters away. He is really knowledgeable about the birds and carried a box of field guides to check on any that he was unsure of: birds, raptors, plants, mammals, park guides in his truck, along with bean bags for camera support and binoculars that he was more than willing to share with us. From years of being with avid photographers he was skilled at placing the vehicle at the correct angle to the light for photos, and was keen that we should get photos of animals reflected in water while drinking, evening silhouettes etc. He shut the vehicle off repeatedly in order to quietly roll into the perfect position for a photograph. We never had to take photos from a vehicle that was running.
The company kept us supplied with drinking water for the duration of the trip and they supplied an electrical inverter that converted nrg from the truck battery into elec. for digital camera batteries. The vehicle also is equipped with a 2-way radio so that the guide can be in contact with park officials and other guides to find out where there are the most recent sightings of big cats and their kills. And this is where the guide's long experience really pays off. The experienced guide will have good and trust-worthy connections with his peers. There were no troubles with the vehicle. The tent (for camping portion of the trip) was spacious, air mattress comfortable& my sleeping bag was warm--as needed up on the crater. The young cook, Samani, was friendly and really good in the noisy, chaotic kitchens that he works in at the campsites. He kept us warmed up with thick soups to start dinner and provided a variety of goodies in his lunch boxes. In total, the companies grasp of logistics was superb. There were no problems on this trip.
We had been on budget safari nearly 20 years ago in Kenya, and one of my main memories is of the long drives between the parks. I wanted to spend as much time as possible in the parks this time so we booked a slightly longer safari than most people might. The extra money for the extra days in parks was well spent.
We stayed 3 nights at Tarangire Tented Safari Lodge--man you could sit with a drink, in front of your tent up there on the ridge, and look at the view/animals in front of you all day.... (food is good, staff is organized with a breakfast buffet if you need quick getaway) But we elected to mostly drive around the park admiring the ever changing landscape, baobab trees and its multitude of animals. In addition to the usual sorts of animals we saw a serval cat being chased by impalas, and lions hunting and chasing wildebeest along the river banks there and a leopard on 2 dif. days. We also pre-arranged a walk in this park with one of the park rangers. He was very quiet and did not speak much except to whisper the names of the animals and birds that we saw--including a new born giraffe. If we could go again, I'd spend even more time in this park.
Next was to go to Lake Manyara. Again a beautiful and interesting landscape studded with a variety of animals. Along the lake at lunchtime we were able to watch as various animals came out of the shimmering heat/dust haze towards the water to drink. It was great to see so many dif. spp. together. Later we drove around the park on the small roads in the bush. Mostly we saw elephants, monkeys, many dif. birds and a few small dik-dik antelopes. We stayed at Kirurumu Tented Safari Lodge, well outside of the park. (very plush surroundings, another amazing view, but too far from the park to see a lot of game, unfortunately, staff are slow in the morning with breakfast if you are hoping for a quick getaway...)
Since we have 3 sci. degrees in our household we were keen to see Oldupai gorge and museum. I'm sure the guides are tired of stopping there, but the good ones use the time to keep up to date on where the animals are in the various parks, in addition to the usual gossip that we humans indulge in. We had seen the Zinjanthropus exhibit in Dar, so really appreciated seeing the site and museum. Lots of nice colourful birds under the lunch canopies as well.
We stayed at one of the Serengeti public campsites for 4 nights and would have loved to have been able to stay longer in this park. The campsites are fairly centrally located so from them you can drive off in a dif. direction each day if you wish. We visited the Lobo area in the north, Grumeti R., western corridor and various sets of kopjes (rock hills) on dif. days. We were able to see the tail end of the wildebeest migration during our time here, plus many, many lions (some in trees) and cubs, a cheetah, a leopard, a caracal cat from a distance and another serval cat. Of course we saw the various antelopes and all the other usual serengeti suspects. --hyena, elephants, ostriches, foxes, jackals, hippos, vultures, eagles. On our drive out of this park, with the cook, we came upon 2 youngish, but large male lions chasing a thompson's gazelle into the water from which they were too afraid to retrieve it. --crocodiles! The cook was thrilled to see all this action, dif. than his usual days around the camp and in the kitchen. In this day and age it is nice to see people enjoying their jobs.
The last stop was at Ngorogoro crater where we stayed at 2 nights at Simba camp site. Aptly named as there were lions hanging around just outside the gates. Apparently the noisy, nocturnal zebras there are a good thing. They are hiding from the lions amongst the lights and activity of the camp. If the zebras are not there, then maybe.... The camp facilities seemed to be undergoing some sort of renovations even though it was peak tourist season. One of the sets of washrooms was closed, meaning a long walk down the hill in the night time fog, that hopefully was thick with zebras and not lions.... Considering the price all those (around 100 the nights we were there) tourists pay for camping at this site, I think the gov't should arrange to do their renovations in off season.
We had arranged to go to Empakai crater for a walk down into it. This was a really good experience. The park guide/ranger for this walk was more informative about the landscape and animals and birds. Again, highly recommendable. The drive along the crater to Empakai is fascinating in itself.
We got into the Ngorogoro crater early in the morning at opening time so were able to see the sun slowly warm up a very chill landscape. Here the animals were much more thickly furred than in the other parks. We managed to see one of the park's rhinos although she mostly wanted to lay down in the grass. The guide thought she was bothered by the wind in her ears--makes weird noises that disturbs an animal that relies on its sense of hearing. Again we saw lots of lions in this park. Nice to see trucks full of local school kids taking in their country's natural heritage.
It seems the last stop on a safari trip is to place the guests in a very plush farm lodge to wash off the dust from the trip. We stayed at the Plantation Lodge. The more budget conscious could probably skip this portion of the trip, but then they would miss a very memorable shower.
Back in Arusha we met again with the Destination Tanzania co. rep. Since there had been absolutely no problems with the whole trip it was a pleasant meeting. We would have absolutely no reservation about recommending this company to anyone for a safari trip. They were extremely professional right from the initial email contact and then throughout the whole trip. The price seemed to come in the middle of the quotes we received and they seemed to catch on fastest to what we wanted in the way of a tailor made trip. It was worthwhile to pay, above the bottom quotes that we received, for their logistical expertise.
Next day we went back to Dar es Salaam (11 hours on the Scandanavia bus) in order to start the next safari in the southern parks.
It included a meeting with the guide and the co. rep. the night before the start, at the hotel in Arusha. The guide, Alex, is middle-aged and very experienced at his profession, but also still really enthusiastic about his job. His age (age still gets respect in Africa) allows him some leeway when dealing with the bureaucracy of getting in and out of the parks, highway patrols, etc. The officials know him from his long experience. Although he wears glasses, they really must be binoculars, as he was able to see up-turned sleeping lions and other animals and birds from 100s and 100s of meters away. He is really knowledgeable about the birds and carried a box of field guides to check on any that he was unsure of: birds, raptors, plants, mammals, park guides in his truck, along with bean bags for camera support and binoculars that he was more than willing to share with us. From years of being with avid photographers he was skilled at placing the vehicle at the correct angle to the light for photos, and was keen that we should get photos of animals reflected in water while drinking, evening silhouettes etc. He shut the vehicle off repeatedly in order to quietly roll into the perfect position for a photograph. We never had to take photos from a vehicle that was running.
The company kept us supplied with drinking water for the duration of the trip and they supplied an electrical inverter that converted nrg from the truck battery into elec. for digital camera batteries. The vehicle also is equipped with a 2-way radio so that the guide can be in contact with park officials and other guides to find out where there are the most recent sightings of big cats and their kills. And this is where the guide's long experience really pays off. The experienced guide will have good and trust-worthy connections with his peers. There were no troubles with the vehicle. The tent (for camping portion of the trip) was spacious, air mattress comfortable& my sleeping bag was warm--as needed up on the crater. The young cook, Samani, was friendly and really good in the noisy, chaotic kitchens that he works in at the campsites. He kept us warmed up with thick soups to start dinner and provided a variety of goodies in his lunch boxes. In total, the companies grasp of logistics was superb. There were no problems on this trip.
We had been on budget safari nearly 20 years ago in Kenya, and one of my main memories is of the long drives between the parks. I wanted to spend as much time as possible in the parks this time so we booked a slightly longer safari than most people might. The extra money for the extra days in parks was well spent.
We stayed 3 nights at Tarangire Tented Safari Lodge--man you could sit with a drink, in front of your tent up there on the ridge, and look at the view/animals in front of you all day.... (food is good, staff is organized with a breakfast buffet if you need quick getaway) But we elected to mostly drive around the park admiring the ever changing landscape, baobab trees and its multitude of animals. In addition to the usual sorts of animals we saw a serval cat being chased by impalas, and lions hunting and chasing wildebeest along the river banks there and a leopard on 2 dif. days. We also pre-arranged a walk in this park with one of the park rangers. He was very quiet and did not speak much except to whisper the names of the animals and birds that we saw--including a new born giraffe. If we could go again, I'd spend even more time in this park.
Next was to go to Lake Manyara. Again a beautiful and interesting landscape studded with a variety of animals. Along the lake at lunchtime we were able to watch as various animals came out of the shimmering heat/dust haze towards the water to drink. It was great to see so many dif. spp. together. Later we drove around the park on the small roads in the bush. Mostly we saw elephants, monkeys, many dif. birds and a few small dik-dik antelopes. We stayed at Kirurumu Tented Safari Lodge, well outside of the park. (very plush surroundings, another amazing view, but too far from the park to see a lot of game, unfortunately, staff are slow in the morning with breakfast if you are hoping for a quick getaway...)
Since we have 3 sci. degrees in our household we were keen to see Oldupai gorge and museum. I'm sure the guides are tired of stopping there, but the good ones use the time to keep up to date on where the animals are in the various parks, in addition to the usual gossip that we humans indulge in. We had seen the Zinjanthropus exhibit in Dar, so really appreciated seeing the site and museum. Lots of nice colourful birds under the lunch canopies as well.
We stayed at one of the Serengeti public campsites for 4 nights and would have loved to have been able to stay longer in this park. The campsites are fairly centrally located so from them you can drive off in a dif. direction each day if you wish. We visited the Lobo area in the north, Grumeti R., western corridor and various sets of kopjes (rock hills) on dif. days. We were able to see the tail end of the wildebeest migration during our time here, plus many, many lions (some in trees) and cubs, a cheetah, a leopard, a caracal cat from a distance and another serval cat. Of course we saw the various antelopes and all the other usual serengeti suspects. --hyena, elephants, ostriches, foxes, jackals, hippos, vultures, eagles. On our drive out of this park, with the cook, we came upon 2 youngish, but large male lions chasing a thompson's gazelle into the water from which they were too afraid to retrieve it. --crocodiles! The cook was thrilled to see all this action, dif. than his usual days around the camp and in the kitchen. In this day and age it is nice to see people enjoying their jobs.
The last stop was at Ngorogoro crater where we stayed at 2 nights at Simba camp site. Aptly named as there were lions hanging around just outside the gates. Apparently the noisy, nocturnal zebras there are a good thing. They are hiding from the lions amongst the lights and activity of the camp. If the zebras are not there, then maybe.... The camp facilities seemed to be undergoing some sort of renovations even though it was peak tourist season. One of the sets of washrooms was closed, meaning a long walk down the hill in the night time fog, that hopefully was thick with zebras and not lions.... Considering the price all those (around 100 the nights we were there) tourists pay for camping at this site, I think the gov't should arrange to do their renovations in off season.
We had arranged to go to Empakai crater for a walk down into it. This was a really good experience. The park guide/ranger for this walk was more informative about the landscape and animals and birds. Again, highly recommendable. The drive along the crater to Empakai is fascinating in itself.
We got into the Ngorogoro crater early in the morning at opening time so were able to see the sun slowly warm up a very chill landscape. Here the animals were much more thickly furred than in the other parks. We managed to see one of the park's rhinos although she mostly wanted to lay down in the grass. The guide thought she was bothered by the wind in her ears--makes weird noises that disturbs an animal that relies on its sense of hearing. Again we saw lots of lions in this park. Nice to see trucks full of local school kids taking in their country's natural heritage.
It seems the last stop on a safari trip is to place the guests in a very plush farm lodge to wash off the dust from the trip. We stayed at the Plantation Lodge. The more budget conscious could probably skip this portion of the trip, but then they would miss a very memorable shower.
Back in Arusha we met again with the Destination Tanzania co. rep. Since there had been absolutely no problems with the whole trip it was a pleasant meeting. We would have absolutely no reservation about recommending this company to anyone for a safari trip. They were extremely professional right from the initial email contact and then throughout the whole trip. The price seemed to come in the middle of the quotes we received and they seemed to catch on fastest to what we wanted in the way of a tailor made trip. It was worthwhile to pay, above the bottom quotes that we received, for their logistical expertise.
Next day we went back to Dar es Salaam (11 hours on the Scandanavia bus) in order to start the next safari in the southern parks.
Aug 25th, 2009, 03:51 PM
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Thanks for the report of your successful trip. I'd like to know more about the public campsites you used.
How many nights at each?
How far away from neighboring tents?
Why did you choose this option?
How were the shared facilities?
Were there bucket showers with warm water?
Was it noisy at in campground with people noise?
Thank you!
How many nights at each?
How far away from neighboring tents?
Why did you choose this option?
How were the shared facilities?
Were there bucket showers with warm water?
Was it noisy at in campground with people noise?
Thank you!
Aug 25th, 2009, 11:54 PM
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Atravelynn
4 nights in serengeti public sites (forget the name/number but in the center of the park, near to the petrol filling station.)
2 nights in public Simba camp at Ngorogoro crater (up on the ridge) These are campsites run by the parks/reserves that they are located in.
In both public campsites the neighboring tents end up being close to yours. The serengeti site we were at is actually not that big. So has more people arrive, the more they have to fit into available space. In some cases the tent ropes overlap in space. At Simba campsite there is more space, but people do seem to crowd together. eg. tents less than 5 meters/15 feet apart. However, those lions waiting just outside the campground gates probably had a lot to do with that. The noise did quiet down by 10:30 or 11:00 pm so you could sleep alright. But people and guides get up early,early (pre-dawn) and make some noise, including firing up of safari vehicles prior to start.
We chose to camp because of cost--the tented lodges are just too expensive in these 2 parks. Plus we did want some camping. As well, the lodges in these 2 parks have decidedly mixed reviews on the various travel sites. That said I think the camping costs are quite high. But basically, if you want to see stuff in this day and age you have to pay to do it.
Shared facilities? hmmm, less than stellar. At the Serengeti site there was only 3 or 4 squat toilets for women and men at this site. 2 showers for both genders to use. 4 working sinks. The parks people buy poor quality concrete to set the sinks into and then wonder why they fall off the wall. Distinct lack of mirrors to arrange your face in. In summer the water temp. would be fine. In winter you are relying on solar heating of a black water tank on the shower bldg. roof. Best to shower immed. when returning from a game drive,when water is warm from the day. The facilities were cleaned once a day. Not enough, given that western/European women do not know how to properly use squat toilets. (I have no comments on the men's facilities). Simba site on the crater was worse as one of the toilet/shower blocks was under renovation and there was more people staying there. (approx. 100) The available block was a 200 m walk from the kitchen area. It was newer, with choice of toilet or squat. Lots of gasps from those showering, no doubt that would be the solar "heated" water. For all the tourist dollars going into these campsites, I think the facilities could be a bit larger, and better constructed.
Be sure to take some face/hand cream. All the water in n.Tan & s. Kenya is quite alkali. Even after you have rinsed off the soap you will still feel slippery from the alkali water. This in combination with lots of wind and sun left my face peeling off after a few days.
The only "bucket showers" we had were on the safari we took in the southern parks after this one. The second safari was with a dif. company. But there were warm bucket showers at the "Authentic Tanzania" camp in Ruaha park in the south.
Personally I did not find "people noise" to be a problem at night. Mostly things got quieter and quieter as the evening wore on. People are paying money to see animals early in the morning. They are not there to drink beer and party to all hours, so they soon quiet down. But I live at sea level and find the altitude of these parks tiring so I fell asleep by 9:30pm most nights. (& normally I don't go to sleep until after midnight). I was woken many nights on this trip by lions, hyenas and zebras though.
Hope this helps.
4 nights in serengeti public sites (forget the name/number but in the center of the park, near to the petrol filling station.)
2 nights in public Simba camp at Ngorogoro crater (up on the ridge) These are campsites run by the parks/reserves that they are located in.
In both public campsites the neighboring tents end up being close to yours. The serengeti site we were at is actually not that big. So has more people arrive, the more they have to fit into available space. In some cases the tent ropes overlap in space. At Simba campsite there is more space, but people do seem to crowd together. eg. tents less than 5 meters/15 feet apart. However, those lions waiting just outside the campground gates probably had a lot to do with that. The noise did quiet down by 10:30 or 11:00 pm so you could sleep alright. But people and guides get up early,early (pre-dawn) and make some noise, including firing up of safari vehicles prior to start.
We chose to camp because of cost--the tented lodges are just too expensive in these 2 parks. Plus we did want some camping. As well, the lodges in these 2 parks have decidedly mixed reviews on the various travel sites. That said I think the camping costs are quite high. But basically, if you want to see stuff in this day and age you have to pay to do it.
Shared facilities? hmmm, less than stellar. At the Serengeti site there was only 3 or 4 squat toilets for women and men at this site. 2 showers for both genders to use. 4 working sinks. The parks people buy poor quality concrete to set the sinks into and then wonder why they fall off the wall. Distinct lack of mirrors to arrange your face in. In summer the water temp. would be fine. In winter you are relying on solar heating of a black water tank on the shower bldg. roof. Best to shower immed. when returning from a game drive,when water is warm from the day. The facilities were cleaned once a day. Not enough, given that western/European women do not know how to properly use squat toilets. (I have no comments on the men's facilities). Simba site on the crater was worse as one of the toilet/shower blocks was under renovation and there was more people staying there. (approx. 100) The available block was a 200 m walk from the kitchen area. It was newer, with choice of toilet or squat. Lots of gasps from those showering, no doubt that would be the solar "heated" water. For all the tourist dollars going into these campsites, I think the facilities could be a bit larger, and better constructed.
Be sure to take some face/hand cream. All the water in n.Tan & s. Kenya is quite alkali. Even after you have rinsed off the soap you will still feel slippery from the alkali water. This in combination with lots of wind and sun left my face peeling off after a few days.
The only "bucket showers" we had were on the safari we took in the southern parks after this one. The second safari was with a dif. company. But there were warm bucket showers at the "Authentic Tanzania" camp in Ruaha park in the south.
Personally I did not find "people noise" to be a problem at night. Mostly things got quieter and quieter as the evening wore on. People are paying money to see animals early in the morning. They are not there to drink beer and party to all hours, so they soon quiet down. But I live at sea level and find the altitude of these parks tiring so I fell asleep by 9:30pm most nights. (& normally I don't go to sleep until after midnight). I was woken many nights on this trip by lions, hyenas and zebras though.
Hope this helps.
Aug 26th, 2009, 11:52 AM
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Thanks for your report! Can you tell me a bit more about the Empakai crater walk? How far is it from Simba campsite? How long was the walk and what game did you see?
Will you be posting a separate report on southern Tanzania? I'd love to read about that part too.
Will you be posting a separate report on southern Tanzania? I'd love to read about that part too.
Sep 2nd, 2009, 11:28 PM
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We pre-booked the Empakai crater walk as part of the safari. I forget if we first heard about it as an option through this co. (Destination Tanzania) or another co. (of the many) that we had considered. For us it meant staying an extra day at the Ngorogoro crater area since we were in the Simba campground which is some distance from the start of the Empakai crater walk. (1 1/2 hr drive approx. ?? I forget, plus it took a bit of time to pick up the park ranger/guide.) Destination Tanzania arranged ahead of time that we would pick up a park ranger to go with us down into the crater. The ranger we had was a good guide (as this was his initial 1st choice in career choices). His English was quite good, so he was able to explain a bit about the birds, plants and insects (huge ant nests in trees--what story there) that we saw. Basically you drive along the rim of the Ngorogoro crater, then down in thru. the next crater (all very, very scenic) and on to Empakai crater. We had a packed lunch with us, so we carried that down into Empakai. The trail down was well maintained, although a bit steep in a few small parts. The sides of this crater are all forested. At the bottom, which you can see thru. gaps in the greenery on the way down, is another alkali lake. The edges are white with salt dust. It had some (100s) flamingoes and ducks (10's) (teals?) when we were there. There was some foot prints and droppings from hyenas. The whole place looks like part of a the film setting for a King Kong movie. Definitely worth seeing. It is a steep walk back up, but your choice to take it slow or race to the top. The park ranger/guide more than earned his tip.
Sep 3rd, 2009, 05:03 AM
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I visited Empakai too.
Here's a major tip for anyone who's thinking of doing this too: visit one of the Maasai Boma's en route from North gate to Empakai. Better yet; take a boma located a bit away from that "main road"(*).
You'll be very surprised how real Maasai life is (compared to the fake Maasai settlements between Ngorongoro and Serengeti).
A word of warning though; I understand you want to help these people, but please try to keep natural balances in mind.
Anyway, we had the greatest fun when we offered them a football. All the kids came out to play and we had a great game. Yup, they beat us.
Ciao,
J.
(* OK, just tyre trails that barely see 10 vehicles a day, but you understand what I mean).
Here's a major tip for anyone who's thinking of doing this too: visit one of the Maasai Boma's en route from North gate to Empakai. Better yet; take a boma located a bit away from that "main road"(*).
You'll be very surprised how real Maasai life is (compared to the fake Maasai settlements between Ngorongoro and Serengeti).
A word of warning though; I understand you want to help these people, but please try to keep natural balances in mind.
Anyway, we had the greatest fun when we offered them a football. All the kids came out to play and we had a great game. Yup, they beat us.
Ciao,
J.
(* OK, just tyre trails that barely see 10 vehicles a day, but you understand what I mean).
Sep 20th, 2009, 04:37 AM
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We contacted Destination Tanzania over the internet. Their contact office is in the USA. The money for the trip went to a Tanzanian bank account---I think there is a general clearing site for many dif. safari co.s. with bank accts. for each dif. co. ...? We had no trouble sending money for 2 dif. safaris (with dif. co.s) in Tanzania this past June-Aug. The Amer. connection seemed to ensure logistical expertise and good quality camping equipment and a superior vehicle. We were really comfortable, well fed and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.
Sep 20th, 2009, 09:27 AM
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Ruadh, I suppose you spoke to Innocent Lyimo in the US. I recently booked my trip through him for early feb 2010 and am very excited to be there...his reviews and feedback were top notch from all the ex-customers I contacted.
He did mention Alex to me as my potential guide...glad to hear great feedback on him.
KK
He did mention Alex to me as my potential guide...glad to hear great feedback on him.
KK
Sep 20th, 2009, 11:36 AM
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how much gear are you allowed to carry?
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Oct 6th, 2009, 12:26 AM
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Hi TigerPhotog and joycejohnson
Yes we were in contact with Innocent Lyimo in the USA. He is primarily the reason we chose Destination Tanzania from a potential list of about 8-10 companies. He very quickly caught on to what we wanted for our safari. (as much time in parks as we could afford to make up for the time driving in between parks.) He made a few suggestions for the schedule and answered our questions as promptly as the time zone differences and his business schedule allowed. We were really pleased with the service. In Arusha we were met by his younger brother (who is a veterinarian) and the guide Alex.
There were not really any baggage allowance beyond what was reasonable. They preferred that we carry our stuff in soft-sided bags (back-packs or duffel bags) for ease of packing the stuff into the vehicle. We were of course restricted by the air allowance which for us was actually 35 kg--more than I would be able to carry since we were on and off buses, ferries, etc. for other parts of this holiday. My "personal" bag was bigger than some people's might be as I was carrying a small set of watercolour painting gear--paint tray, brushes, pencils, water cups, etc. which all fit into a tupperware box. But I also carried small sketch books and postcard size paper in blocks. (this is in addition to film- camera and 40 rolls of film) Since the two of us had the truck/tour to our selves there was no problem fitting ourselves into the vehicle along with the guide, Alex's stuff and then the cook's stuff when he joined us as well. That said I am now disappointed that I left my so-so zoom lense at home in lieu of the w/c equipment. Some of my photos would have turned out better with the larger lens. Good thing my husband got the whole trip on his digital camera. It gives amazing close-ups.
Yes the whole trip was an amazing adventure. Although I must say Africa has changed a lot since we were volunteer teachers traveling through it back in the early 90's.
Yes we were in contact with Innocent Lyimo in the USA. He is primarily the reason we chose Destination Tanzania from a potential list of about 8-10 companies. He very quickly caught on to what we wanted for our safari. (as much time in parks as we could afford to make up for the time driving in between parks.) He made a few suggestions for the schedule and answered our questions as promptly as the time zone differences and his business schedule allowed. We were really pleased with the service. In Arusha we were met by his younger brother (who is a veterinarian) and the guide Alex.
There were not really any baggage allowance beyond what was reasonable. They preferred that we carry our stuff in soft-sided bags (back-packs or duffel bags) for ease of packing the stuff into the vehicle. We were of course restricted by the air allowance which for us was actually 35 kg--more than I would be able to carry since we were on and off buses, ferries, etc. for other parts of this holiday. My "personal" bag was bigger than some people's might be as I was carrying a small set of watercolour painting gear--paint tray, brushes, pencils, water cups, etc. which all fit into a tupperware box. But I also carried small sketch books and postcard size paper in blocks. (this is in addition to film- camera and 40 rolls of film) Since the two of us had the truck/tour to our selves there was no problem fitting ourselves into the vehicle along with the guide, Alex's stuff and then the cook's stuff when he joined us as well. That said I am now disappointed that I left my so-so zoom lense at home in lieu of the w/c equipment. Some of my photos would have turned out better with the larger lens. Good thing my husband got the whole trip on his digital camera. It gives amazing close-ups.
Yes the whole trip was an amazing adventure. Although I must say Africa has changed a lot since we were volunteer teachers traveling through it back in the early 90's.
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hup234
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