When we landed in Tanzania our guide Danny was waiting for us outside baggage claim at the airport. He would be our guide for 9 days, from our airport arrival to our airport departure, all day, every day, and he was GREAT! We saw all the ‘big’ animals we wanted to see and many more.
We got to see ALL the ‘big’ animals with Danny, many of them quite close. He worked well with the other Access guides so if they saw something they could call Danny in, and vise versa. Such good memories of the animals we saw. From the initial elephants and giraffes we saw on our walking tour, to the baby elephant trumpeting, to the cheetahs and leopards, to the 30-lion strong pride we saw on our final driving day. And it wasn’t just the big animals Danny knew about. He could tell you what bird you were looking at, tell you about the trees and flowers, etc. We didn’t talk much about bugs, but I’m sure he knows all about those too. 🙂
On our last day we were going to look for more big cats and weren’t having a ton of luck. One of our daughters said she really wanted to see a couple more elephants and giraffes before we left so Danny pivoted. We started making our way toward more elephant/giraffe territory, and in the meantime we came across 30+ lions sunning themselves on rocks and in the grass. They had cubs too that our girls though were so cute. So awesome, plus it wasn’t long before we saw elephants and giraffe too.
We can’t say enough good things about Danny. He helped make our trip truly something we’ll remember forever.
“Every detail was meticulously planned and perfectly suited to our needs. It was obvious that Karen paid careful attention to how we prefer to experience travel and matched us with a guide who perfectly suited our style. Barney was incredibly professional and let us set the tone and pace. He is an outstanding guide in so many ways; he quickly read us and we bonded immediately. Throughout the journey it was obvious that Barney is well respected by the other guides and they often follow his lead because he knows where to go and how to find the animals. He is also an incredible photographer–I got to a point where I just handed him my phone and he meticulously captured our trip. With no exaggeration, our 8 days with Barney were life changing and we think of him each and every day.
While we requested clean and comfortable accommodations with private baths, every place we stayed far exceeded our expectations. Nyikani and Mara Mara were the standout favorites. I have spoken with folks who were unsure and had reservations about the food that would be provided. We ate incredibly well–food was more than plentiful, very good to extremely delicious, and the soups were the best I have ever eaten. Service was consistently exceptional.
Honestly, we can’t say enough positive things about our experience and have been recommending Access 2 Tanzania and Barney to all we can.”