Makini Tanzania Safaris — Local services in Arusha

My experience with Makini Safaris was extremely disappointing, and I do NOT recommend them.

When I arrived in Arusha, I was told by Naomi from Makini — the evening before my safari — that my entire itinerary and two of my lodgings had been changed. It felt like this was intentionally left to last minute notice as the lodging I was switched to were NOT the equivalent of what I actually paid for, so I felt jipped. This was incredibly unprofessional to alert me last minute. As a solo traveler who had paid thousands of dollars and flown halfway around the world, I should have been informed well in advance, not blindsided at my hotel lobby the night before. If a lodge genuinely cannot accommodate a guest, the company would know months in advance. Reservations exist for a reason. Instead, I was forced into a last-minute “switcheroo,” which I later learned also happened to other travelers, though to a lesser extent. It gave the entire experience a “scammy” feeling.

The consequences of this were significant: • I ended up traveling with two different safari companies (Makini and Serengeti African Tours which I guess are both owned by the same company) and multiple groups, rather than having one consistent guide as planned. • My days in the parks were often cut short — not entering until 9–11am and leaving by 2–3pm, even though parks open at sunrise when wildlife viewing is best. Meanwhile, I saw other tours leaving the lodges hours earlier. • I lost valuable time in the Ngorongoro Crater, which was one of the highlights I had most looked forward to. • I spent half of some days being shuttled around to pick up and drop off people at various lodges — pure chaos. They put 3 groups together in the same safari vehicle, even though we had paid for different safari experiences, and we all stayed at different lodgings so most of the time in the day was spent picking people up and dropping them off. This also meant I had to unexpectedly tip several more drivers, which I hadn’t budgeted for.

The safari vehicle itself was another issue. It was tiny, specifically the vehicle for Makini. I am 5’3” and NEVER have problems with legroom, even on planes, but I could not sit comfortably in the back seats. The only tolerable spots were the front two rows which were taken by others.

To be fair, the guides themselves were excellent and deserve recognition separate from the company: • Machete (with me for my day 1 in Lake Manyara): friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive. He never rushed us, explained the landscape and wildlife in detail, and even repaired our safari vehicle in under a minute when the starter failed. He went out of his way to make sure we didn’t miss key sightings. • Laurence (Serengeti African Tours, subcontracted due to Makini’s changes and with me for 4 days): patient, kind, and did everything possible to salvage the mess created by Makini. He worked the radio, stayed in contact with other guides, even helping other guides when they broke down, and tailored the drives to the animals we wanted to see. Unfortunately, his hard efforts were undermined by Makini’s poor planning and scheduling.

In the end, I felt taken advantage of — whether because I’m American or traveling solo. I still visited the parks listed in my original itinerary, but the way it was handled left me shortchanged and deeply frustrated. The itinerary is NOT conducive to maximizing the potential to have an enjoyable trip.

Bottom line: the guides are wonderful, but Makini Safaris as a company is disorganized, unprofessional, and unreliable. If you want the trip you actually paid for, I recommend booking with a different more...

So we decided very last minute to take a big trip to see out 2021 once and for all and after reading a few reviews I picked three Safari companies to reach out to.

Lucas at Makini Tanzania Safaris was not only the most responsive but also the most proactive njjin tailoring a program to meet our needs and timetable. Within three days (including a 10 hour time zone difference) we had the whole thing planned and booked. Payment is easy with a few ways to pay and so we packed our bags and headed off.

When we arrived Lucas met us at the airport and took us to our hotel for the first night. There he explained how the next week would look and, that if it was ok with us, he would like to change around the order of the days so as to have the best chances of seeing the Migration. This was based on information he had just got from his guides in the field. I loved this approach and of course we bhn at the hotel by our guide and travel companion for the next week. Douglas packed us up and we chatted about what we were doing for the day and we headed off.

Now to describe Douglas as a great Guide would be like describing Albert Einstein as a decent math teacher. He is amazing, truly phenomenal!!!!!

Douglas is friendly, funny, smart, incredibly knowledgeable about every aspect of this part of the world and all the creatures who call it home. But the best thing is he has eyes that can spot a Leopard hidden high up in a tree from 200m all while driving by at 50kph. Unbelievable!!! Oh and did I mention he speaks 11 languages?

Our experience with Douglas and Makini Tanzania Safaris will stay with us for a lifetime, it really couldn’t have been better and way exceeded my expectations.

We saw and experienced more than we could ever have hoped for and although I know a large amount of luck is involved when looking for animals in the wild, having a guide like Douglas supported by a company like Meru slope tours Safaris really does make a difference.

If you want to know you have put your trust in the right company for your...

Great experience! I plan a lot of my own trips, but a safari, accommodations, park permits, and transportation all seemed daunting. I researched multiple companies and landed on Makini because they communicated clearly and quickly, and also were reasonably priced. I communicated with Naomi, their travel specialist, via WhatsApp. She answered all my questions and sent detailed itineraries. They booked our domestic flights, cars, accommodations, and excursions. All of them turned out to be fabulous! I would recommend their services.

Our tour guide, Raymond, was great. He knew right where to go to see all the animals and had a book we could reference to learn more about what he was telling us. Our nine-year-old filled a book with the names of everything we saw. Accommodations were above my expectations. We stayed at Land of Nature Camp, Olmorijo Camp, Misako Luxury Camp, Motto Cottages, and the Gran Melia Arusha.

Highlights: Seeing so many animals up close (see pictures) Excursion to Serval Wildlife (not pictured) Raymond's Safari driving :) Zebra stampede coming through Misako Luxury Camp (we felt safe, staff escorted you to and from tents). Food!

Some things I didn't know before safari. You are not allowed to get out of the jeep during the safari. This is for safety reasons. I recommend booking a private experience so you have the space to yourself and can walk around inside the jeep and stand to look out the roof more comfortably.

At the more remote camps, you cannot leave your accommodations without an escort. Again, for safety.

There is a lot of driving! We spent 10-12 hours in the jeep every day. You can do less, but we wanted to see everything. Raymond was a champ!

I give Makini Tanzania...