6-Days Mid-Range Tanzania Safari

Customer Reviews

• K

  KathyLouden

  · March 25th, 2019
  TRIP OF A LIFETIME WITH VIEWPOINT ADVENTURE SAFARIS – CANNOT BE COMPARED Our trip to Tanzania and Zanzibar was beyond wonderful. When planning our trip, we researched companies and decided to use Viewpoint Adventure Safaris based on the fact that it was a local company. I am so glad we did. We were very fortunate to have Idi as our guide, who is the director and owner of Viewpoint. It was fun to plan our trip knowing that I was talking to Idi, who was right there at his office desk in Arusha. But, another thing that was nice was that we also had a US contact. One of the things that impresses me about Idi is the fact that he’s been a guide for 27 years and he still has the passion of a new guide. He was just as excited as we were (well…..we may have been a bit more excited…LOL), to see the beautiful animals. He went to school to be a guide and has personally trained the guides who work for him. Idi knew most of the guides we crossed paths with, or they knew “of” him. His reputation certainly was excellent among his peers. There is so much to know…..animals, their behaviors, their habitats, the plants, the birds, the people working at the lodging facilities, on and on. There’s more to learn about people, which cannot be learned from a book. Idi knows people and how to work with them to be sure they get what they want from their vacation. Another thing that I must say is that Idi is a genuinely beautiful person, inside and out. We are very fortunate now, to be able to call him our friend. Our trip was fantastic. We saw the Big Five in the first 2 days. I believe this is partially based on the fact that we gave ourselves time. Through Idi’s knowledge of the animal’s behaviors and his direction, we took time to wait for things to happen – such as the black rhino, of which we initially only saw a hump of his back through the grass. Then that black rhino actually stood up. It was amazing. Then we barely spotted a leopard up in a tree. Because we had time to sit and wait, we got to see that unbelievably beautiful animal climb down from the tree – right in front of us. On another day, another leopard was walking through the grass, Idi parked our truck “just so”, and that guy walked over and sat down right in front of our vehicle. This was so unbelievable. I could go on and on, but just know, Idi said we needed to take “time”, we did, and we had an amazing adventure. The accommodations throughout were perfect. The Serena Lodge at the Ngorongoro Crater was beyond beautiful….a structure laden with stone, right on the edge of the crater. The staff there was wonderful too. A tented camp is a must on this trip. It is an experience not to be missed. We spent three nights at the Tanzania Tented Camp and I cried when we left. Only because the experience and the people touched me so much, I thought this may be my last time to see them. But, in reality, who knows….we may be able to go back there someday. We had to leave Idi, which was impossibly hard since this trip was so life changing. There’s no way to say goodbye to someone who’s impacted you so. So we didn’t….we said “See you later”. We traveled to Zanzibar at the end of our game drive experience to relax on the beach for a few days. Gold Zanzibar was the most beautiful resort I’ve ever stayed at. The room was so comfortable, the food was wonderful, and the beach was beyond words. This is a review, not a book, so I’ll just end by saying Idi and Viewpoint Adventures made this such a special trip. Genevive in the office was so helpful and still emails to say “hello”. From beginning to end these people took care of us and helped us with whatever came along. When we got to the airport, Delta had issues with the plane so we lost one day of our trip due to missed connections. Idi was right there to rebook the initial part of our accommodations and make sure once we finally got there everything went smoothly. When we got to Zanzibar, we decided to change some local flights. Idi was right there to do that for us and make any changes we needed. Now that the trip is over, Idi’s working with us with our Travel Insurance company to recover what we lost due to the airline’s issues. This was way more than just a trip. The experience and the people at Viewpoint Adventures will be with us forever. The guide and the peace of mind that you will be taken care of is so important in a trip like this. The other tour companies had trucks on the same roads we were on, parked in the same lots we parked in….it means something in who you choose to book with. I’m so happy we chose to book locally – and that we picked Viewpoint Adventures Safaris. I’d do it again in a heartbeat!!
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  Viewpoint Adventures Safaris Ltd commented on this review

  Thanks very much Kathy for your positive review and please say hi to My friend Jeff Again remember you have a second home in Tanzania please your most welcome , Regards Idrissah m. Mshana
  
  Trip date: October 2018