Dorobosafaris Omdömen 4

We are a family with three teenage daughters and have already been on safari in Tanzania. This time we planned a trip off the beaten path: as little as possible by car, as much as possible on foot, from the mountains to the coast. Dorobo was recommended to us by Tanzanian friends. We had high expectations, and Dorobo far exceeded them. They planned the trip perfectly and booked beautiful accommodations where we were often the only guests. Our two Tanzanian guides shone with expertise, humor and warmth, and we experienced unforgettable moments with them. The highlights of the trip included the hike in the forest on Mount Meru, the visit to the magnificent Mkomazi National Park and, of course, the seven-day walking safari in the Serengeti. Discovering the ecosystem of the Serengeti on foot in a mobile camp is a unique experience that hardly anyone except Dorobo offers. We saw countless mammals and birds, and even in close proximity to elephants, buffalo or lions, we always felt safe thanks to the calm competence of our guide. If you want to experience Tanzania's unique wilderness more intensively and exclusively than on the usual trails, Dorobo is highly recommended.

Dorobo Safaris gave three generations of my family the trip of a lifetime. They took such care of us, in perfect alignment with the care they take designing itineraries with respect for the people, plants and animals of East Africa. Our trip included walking and driving to spot the full menu of wildlife and take advantage of our guides' extraordinary base of knowledge, and their patience in answering the gamut of our questions. It included camping interspersed with three lovely lodges, and delicious food. We spent time enjoying the company of two different indigenous tribes. The trip definitely still lives in the minds and hearts of the kids, ages 6 through 10, as well as their elders. How lucky we were to have found Dorobo.

This was a wonderful trip with a remarkable company that is devoted to sustainability, cultural sensitivity, and wildlife education. Our guides were a member of the Peterson family who has lived in Tanzania most of his life and is fluent in Swahili, and a Masai woman who is already a skilled and experienced guide, with excellent scientific wildlife knowledge and unmatched cultural knowledge of the Masai and Hadza communities. For four of the days of our week-long tour, we did not see another tourist -- we were out in the deep bush of the Manyara ranch, then visiting a Masai boma, then camping in Hadza territory in the Yaeda Valley and learning from the Hadza about their unique way of life (one of the last true hunter-gatherer communities left in Africa), a magical environment with more huge baobab trees than I thought could possibly exist on earth. Camping with Dorobo is just the right balance of simplicity and comfort -- great food at all meals, beautiful campsites with amazing views, wall tents and portable showers and dug outhouses with zippered enclosures. Hyenas and lions making themselves heard as night fell, and we were among them in our little tents. The grandkids had a great time, and our guides gave them plenty of room to play and fool around, but when it came to being quiet on a game walk or watching a group of lions ogling some zebra, they were properly quiet and attentive. Dorobo had done a great job with the itinerary, mixing cultural tourism with the Masai and Hadza with more typical animal watching, and mixing the camping nights with stays at some pretty spectacular more luxurious places, including the Tarangire Lodge, which pitched its "spectacular view" -- and that turned out to be a huge understatement (a huge cliff patio overlooking a river gorge with large elephant and Cape buffalo herds convening along a river that looked like the Garden of Eden must have looked). Dorobo's knowledge of the communities they visit and their cooperative relationships with them made the anthropological parts of the safari even better than the excellent animal-learning parts.

Had an absolutely wonderful week-long trip with Dorobo Safaris. Our group ranged from 6-72 years old, and we managed to see all the wildlife, interact meaningfully with Maasai and Hadzabe groups, eat delicious food, and spent time both in beautiful safari lodges and camping in the wilderness. I can’t imagine any other company provides as much immersive an experience of the Tanzanian wild. It was perfect for our kids, who got time to play, enjoy the pools while we were at lodges, milk a goat, make bead necklaces, make arrows, and practice archery, among others. It was also a treat to get them on several walking trips in the bush, which would not have been possible with every tour company because they were so young. The guides were expert, friendly, and fun, and provided whatever we needed right when we needed it. That included planning the trip in advance around our needs, and altering the schedule as needed in the fly. I cannot recommend meeting with the Hadzabe enough, they even let us forage and go on a hunt with them. Plus, Dorobo has a long history of helping local groups retain land use rights, which is increasingly important given Tanzania’s rapid development. This was my second trip with Dorobo (last in 2014), and I might come back for a third!