We recently returned home from our safari, having planned for over a year with Casey as our consultant & advisor. He made recommendations, but was always open to our input and requests about possible changes. As icing on the cake, Willy Philemon was our assigned guide and we can’t imagine having this trip of a lifetime with anybody else in the driver’s seat!
We began the adventure in Arusha. The initial plan was to go to Mt Kilimanjaro & view the Materuni Waterfalls. Willy took the initiative to touch base with Casey about altering the itinerary because the weather was unfavorable in that area & instead we went to Arusha National Park for our first game drive!
Willy made this trip of a lifetime even more phenomenal than we could have imagined. His extensive knowledge of nature helped us to better appreciate the environment & wildlife we encountered. From animals to birds to plants and even insects we learned so much! I won’t list the many animals that we saw, but one day we were lucky enough to see a leopard in a tree. With Willy’s patience, we waited quite a while, because as he predicted at sunset the leopard would move (& it did) so we were able to get the ‘money shot’! One day, he pulled over after spotting a dung beetle rolling a ball of dung!
We can’t go on without mentioning his amazing (& safe) driving ability, in the crazy traffic in Arusha to the rutted muddy roads in the Serengeti. Willy’s ability to locate the animals & then position us in the best locations for viewing & photos was more than appreciated. His consideration for our safety, as well as that of the wildlife was commendable.
With four of us traveling together, Willy always made sure that we took everyone’s needs & desires into account!
Thank you to Access2Tanzania, Casey & Willy!
“A2T is a first-rate safari company who really listens to get a handle on what you want from a safari/trip to Tanzania and works hard to provide a final itinerary within your budget, even if it takes multiple drafts. We appreciate that they are relatively small, and focus just on Tanzania, so they know their product really well. An added plus for us is how ethically they manage their business — they employ their guides all year round and will not use guides from the outside — if a time period fills up and all guides are assigned, then it is full. It was important to us that A2T uses some of its resources to help the Tanzanian people through Project Zawadi. It is even more impressive to understand just how much of a priority this project is to the owners now that we have visited. We can’t imagine travelling with any other company.”