Asante Sana the Great Maningo!
Maningo was easy-going and fun to be around. He was skillful at spotting the wildlife, and extremely patient in waiting for certain behaviors (like lions coming together to mate!). He drove us in the various parks for many hours a day (often 10-11!), and worked to try to find cheetahs in particular, driving in remote regions of Tarangire. He drove quite slowly, searching for wildlife, which took some adjusting to, but when we had a long travel day driving from the Serengeti to Ngorongoro, he pushed the pedal to the metal! He’s a skillful driver on those terrible roads! Amongst all the rattling noises of the Land Rover, he distinguished a particular noise that was new, and took it to a mechanic in Karatu to have it checked. It turned out there was a part that had broken and needed welding. Thank goodness he followed his instinct, or we may have gotten stranded! We are very grateful to Maningo for an incredible experience.
“Excellent staff. Casey was extremely responsive in planning the trip. I had certain things I did and didn’t want to do, he tailored our experience accordingly (and with keeping our budget in mind). The trip was perfectly proportioned, mostly because of him. Our guide on the ground, Wilfred, spent 12 days with us. We couldn’t have asked for someone better. We became comfortable companions, easily sitting together in silence over long drives or telling stories during dinner. He didn’t wait for us to ask something, he anticipated our needs. When he saw we didn’t finish our lunch boxes, he asked us what we liked and didn’t like. He made sure to relay the information to the hotels and we finished out lunches going forward. He saw I had an itch to get into the Wildebeest migration. Even though it was far away and our chances of finding it could be small, he made sure it happened. The staff set everything apart, especially when we compared it to our tour companies we saw in the area.”