We had an amazing experience, and we attribute the joy, success, and adventure of the trip to our guide (and now friend for life), Joachim.
From picking us up at the airport, Joachim was extremely attentive to our needs, telling us “your wish is my command”, and he went above and beyond to deliver on that message. He was consistently checking in to make sure we had everything we needed. He has great communication skills – speaking very clear English, but more importantly, doing an excellent job communicating the agenda, park and animal facts, etc. Joachim would make sure we understood our options and explained the different choices we had throughout our days, but we loved that we ultimately were always in control of our schedule and activities with his sage advice.
Joachim is also extremely knowledgeable about all things Tanzania, African culture, the various parks and reserves, and of course, the animals. He is clearly a student of the trade – often referring to what is stated in guidebooks about animals and also imparting his own experience and knowledge. We learned so much about so many different birds and animals! He was also a master navigator of all the areas/parks we visited. We were often stopped by other drivers to help with directions (to which he always offered help) and always knew we were in good hands when a new exciting sighting came over the radio that he would be able to navigate to it quickly and safely.
We found the big 5 in just two days, and then from there, Joachim helped us tick all our other wishes off – Cheetahs? Check – we saw 6. A huge group of elephants? Check – we saw over 20 cross a river together. An epic river crossing for the great migration? CHECK. We saw a “National Geographic worthy” crossing. He spotted a lioness in a tree from over 50 yards away and the same day also found a sneaky lion on a quick view of his tail! He also was very attentive to making sure we got the best camera angles possible for our photos and suggesting shots for us to take.
Overall, we had the trip of a lifetime and we can’t thank Joachim enough for his part in that. He made us feel safe and cared for.
“Karen was very helpful in planning our trip and we could not have asked for it to turn out any better. Going to Africa on a Safari had been on my bucket list since I was in high school. And they went over and above to make my dream come true. It was the most amazing trip I have ever been on. I love the way they set up our campsites from primitive to luxury. I loved every camp we went too. The first and second was a little scary from time to time hearing the roaring, screaming and chatting throughout the night from the elephants, lions, zebras and hyenas. I would not have changed one thing about the trip. And then when we got to Zanzibar at The Baraza Resort it was absolutely beautiful and the staff was over the top very friendly and was there to take care of us the entire trip. We felt like kings and queens. We went into Stone Town one day and really enjoyed that tour, and of course shopping. I would definitely recommend them for your trip to Tanzania.”