Tailor-made N. Tanzania Safari Traveller Reviews

We had an excellent safari id two bush camps with good game viewing given the amount od grass and foliage making locating game difficult. A few days R & R at the end was good following the full on activities in the bush leaving little 'down time' Very enjoyable overall and well organised by Expert Africa.

Expert Africa went out of their way in organising the trip especially as one camp had to be changed at last minute due to flooding.

In January, 2016, I made what was probably my 30th visit to Africa since 1974. I have retained many land operators in many countries in West, Central, East, South, and North Africa. Expert Africa is exceptional. Highly professional, no pressure to buy anything - simply a profound concern for the traveler's happiness.

Expert Africa is first rate in every respect - exceptional service, fair pricing, and exceptional integrity.

I arrived in Ndutu the day before Valentine's day and was picked up by my guide at the air strip. I was a little concerned that I wasn't going to the right camp as all the guides approached people saying just the name of the camp they were from. I thought I had got it right, but I wasn't sure. I would have felt more relaxed if the guide had addressed me by name. We set off straight away for a game drive which was brilliant after being cooped up inside small aircraft for about 4 hours. I was asked what animals I would like to see and my request to see a cheater was met. A nice surprise on the way to the camp was that we stopped in the middle of nowhere to celebrate a 60th birthday with champagne and cake and other camp guests. This was a great way to break the ice and meet fellow campers. The staff were very attentive, topping my glass and plate up as soon as it was empty and bringing me a blanket when they saw I was shivering a little. I enjoyed a pre dinner drink around the camp fire and then dinner under the stars. I was little anxious on retiring to my tent that I would be cold as the temperature had dropped and the wind was getting up and I had not brought pyjamas or any thing warm. So I was delighted when slipping in to bed to find a hot bottle which kept me as warm as toast. The next morning I was awoken with coffee and heart shaped biscuits and a greeting of 'Happy Valentine's day'. It was 5am and the sky was star studded, it was mesmerising. We set off to the hot air balloon site, but as the sun began to rise so the fog descended. I was devastated when our pilot told us we would not be able to take off and he would have to cancel the flight. Then after 10 minutes or so hanging around despondently he shouted out 'all aboard' and we were off gliding higher and higher in to the sky, the fog of just minutes before a distant memory. The visibility was amazing. We saw some wild life, but just the feeling of floating in the sky over vast expanses of nothingness was incredible.We were in the air for an hour and a half and then landed to be offered cold champagne before moving on to our breakfast spot. A temporary kitchen had been set up in the middle of nowhere and our table laid under the shade of a tree. We were offered tea or coffee, fresh fruit juice, a selection of fruits, freshly baked bread and a full English breakfast plus more champagne nicely chilled. Once breakfast was over I was transported to join the rest of my group and although a little disappointed that I had missed seeing the birthing of many baby wildebeast, was consoled when we stumbled upon the migration, thousands of wildebeest as far as the eye could see. think this was my best Valentine's day ever. I would say to those travelling alone that although many people think of safaris as being for honeymooners they are perfect for single travellers. You never feel alone, you are treated like royalty and in the intimacy of the jeep all barriers are broken down. The next morning I had one last short game drive before catching my flight, I had no particular expectations, it was just nice to be out in the wild a few hours longer. Then an amazing thing happened, we came upon a lone baby wildebeest, only hours old with low life expectancy as easy prey for lions and cheaters. It attached itself to our jeep for protection and together with two other jeeps we tried to lead it to the safety of a herd of adult wildebeest. It followed behind us skipping and jumping, running fast until exhaustion took over and it all but gave up. We stopped to allow it to rest and got out of the jeep for a couple of minutes to stretch our legs. The little calf come up to me and began nuzzling my leg and butting me. At that point I knew if we didn't save it I would be heart-broken. We set off again, and then, in the distance, like coming upon an oasis we saw a small herd of male adults with one female. What happened next I will remember for ever. The herd saw the calf and lifted their heads standing stock still and alert, then in unison they began to canter towards the baby, surrounding it with the protection of their bodies. It played with the male adults butting them and being pushed over and then suckled on the female. We had done it- the baby was safe. I can without doubt say this has been the experience of a lifetime. If I were to give any advice at all to any one venturing on their first safari, it would be to have no expectations, don't go looking for anything in particular, just slowly meander through the bush, enjoy the wide open spaces and any animals you come upon and wait for the 'wild' to surprise you. I didn't see a 'birthing' but what I did see and experience was unique and unforgettable.

James was excellent from beginning to start. He even got the camp to agree to waive the single supplement for which I was very grateful. I would definitely use Expert Africa again and would ask for James.

I had the most fantastic nine night trip to Namiri Plains. I have a set of criteria that I look for when selecting a safari destination and started to research Namiri as soon as it opened. After a lot of research, I went there with (probably unfairly) very high expectations, but can say that they were all met and exceeded. For the location I want somewhere that is quiet in terms of numbers of tourists but with good wildlife. We rarely saw other vehicles apart from those from our own camp during the stay and more often than not, we were the first vehicle at a sighting. My prime wildlife target was cheetah. We were very quickly at the stage where I was looking at a new sort of cheetah behaviour rather than just cheetah. Twenty-one different individuals, many with multiple sightings and behaviour ranging from hunting brothers (complete start to finish), courting / mating couple, sub adult cubs playing, mothers with younger cubs (playing), a male escorting another male from his territory, every imaginable pose; certainly met the wildlife criteria. Also into double figures for different full grown male lions, again with multiple sightings of some. Countless females and different aged cubs. There were also all sorts of other excellent wildlife sightings as well including a newborn giraffe struggling to its feet for the first time and taking its first teetering steps. The gory, harsh side of nature was also represented by a lone hyena taking down a wildebeest calf. There was not a single day where you could not pick out at least one excellent highlight and normally multiple ones. I was also lucky that the rains had brought the main migration within easy game drive distance, weeks earlier than expected. For the camp I want something that I feel gives me a real bush experience but without any hardships you might associate with camping. Eight large, well spaced ground level guest tents with all the comforts you need but nothing “resort like” that would feel out of place, fits the bill perfectly. All of the staff were excellent – very friendly and attentive and quickly knowing you by name. Meals were communal which I like – allowing sharing the stories of the day and the food was very good – it was difficult not to eat too much. Dinner was preceded by drinks round the campfire and some nights all vehicles would meet up at a sundowner location outside camp. I had read about things like a hot water bottle provided at night and thought I would not need it – in practice it was very welcome. A good guide is an essential and I had an excellent one along with spotter. How they see some of the things they do still amazes me even after several safaris. He had a great knowledge and understanding of the wildlife along with a real empathy with the animals. Also the ability to position for the best sighting angles and just to spend lots of time observing and learning about the wildlife. I decided to stay at one camp for a longer period rather than the more usual move round every few days. I was delighted with this choice and could still easily have stayed longer – it allowed time to see things evolve – for example a pride of lions at the start had year old cubs looking in pretty poor condition. Several kills later you would barely recognise them as the same lions. As far as Asilia goes, I think they do a brilliant job – the things like using refillable water bottles and saving the shower water before it runs through hot (solar heated), all add up. The results of a particularly destructive storm were dealt with very efficiently. If I was looking for a new area, my first search would be to see what camps Asilia had in the area. So far I have only returned to one safari camp. Namiri Plains is now top of my list for a return visit. I would just love to go back and hope that I get the opportunity to do so.

All efficiently organised and airline enforced changes easily dealt with.

We had an amazing trip in Tanzania. We loved every part of it. We stayed in four camps operated by Nomad Tanzania, a Tanzanian safari company. We love their sustainable approach to tourism and nature.

Elizabeth Wollen, from Expert Africa, did an excellent job in organising our trip. She was very knowledgeable and kind. She was always great at giving suggestions. She managed to match and exceed our expectations. Everything worked perfect and smoothly.

We stayed in quality safari lodges in the Serengeti and saw amazing wildlife. We finished our holiday by spending four nights on Mnemba Island....sheer bliss!

Claire Scott at Expert Africa was professional, efficient, informative, knowledgeable, attentive, responsive. We couldn't have asked for more!

10 days in the Ngorongoro Conservation area and the Serengeti

Very helpful, accomommodating and knowledgeable in every respect

Travel with experienced and highly professional Asilia guide to Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater and Southern Serengeti, overnighting in luxurious tented camps in a wilderness setting. Abundant game viewing in varied habitats with a feeling of exclusivity. Excellent food, drink and service, wherever we went with outstanding customer care.

Pleasant and knowledgeable team who gave great and insightful advice to create a bespoke and memorable holiday. This was our third African safari adventure arranged with Expert Africa and could not recommend this operator more highly.