Jun 19, 2023
Out of this world - I typically don't leave reviews but Bright African Safaris was simply amazing. The representatives picked me up from the airport in Arisha and really treated me like I was family. We ate food, not from a box, but real food that was prepared. We ate vegetables, rice, fruit, and some meat portions. We drank coffee afterward, all provided by the company. The guide was really relaxed and took time to answer my questions and educate me on the sounds I was hearing. One night we slept in a village and I saw a giraffe when I came out of my room, about 15 feet away. I heard lions at night. That was really cool! The main tour guide was always on time and even had dinner with me since I was traveling alone. The team worked well together to the very end ensuring that I made it on the bus to Nairobi. The guide waited for the bus to leave. I can never repay this company for their level of professionalism and courtesy. When I return I will only take safaris with Bright African Safari!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jan 24, 2023
Outstanding Safari Experience with Bright African Safaris - This was my third safari with Bright African Safaris and they did an outstanding job as always. Salim was an excellent guide, helping us to see the Big 5, 100 lions and much more. Accommodations chosen were excellent. The food on the safari was fantastic, including hot lunches while out on game drives.
The value and quality provided by Bright African has always been excellent. I highly recommend them.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Oct 30, 2022
Amazing experience during my 6 days safari trip - I did a Safari trip with 4 more friends at the end of September 2022. We chose the local company "Bright African Safaris" based in Arusha for this adventure. Some friends of mine recommended the company when they did a very similar trip during 2021.
I would recommend this time of the year; this is not the peak season when the national parks are fully packed with visitors but still gives an excellent chance to spot all wildlife.
The experience before the trip (contacting them, understanding the different options available, etc.) and during the trip was amazing. Bright African Safaris allowed us to personalize our trip with visits to Tarangire National Park, Central Serengeti, North Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater. In addition to this, we did 2 hours walking safari at the top of Ngorongoro crater with a ranger.
The company's personnel picked us up at the Kilimanjaro airport at the beginning of the trip and drove us to Arusha airport at the end of the trip. We were satisfied with the accommodation proposed by the company.
Our driver for the safari days was Albert. He is a really experienced safari guide and helped us to have a better understanding of the African wildlife. I was very pleased with the animals we spotted during the trip. We got very good opportunities to see the animals from very short distances. I would also highlight that we witnessed the wildebeest migration crossing through the Mara River during our day in North Serengeti.
I will be recommending this trip and company to other friends that in the future will decide to look for a safari trip.
G Maya
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Feb 24, 2022
The best Safari! - eco-friendly, highly experienced locally-run company, amazing memories to last a lifetime - My fiancé and I had the most amazing Safari experience with Bright African Safaris and cannot recommend them highly enough. Salim was so helpful and so quickly responsive, and kindly enabled us to delay our trip when we had to postpone due to the pandemic. Well, it was worth the wait. We went for the standard option (one up from basic but not luxury, but it felt extremely luxurious to us!) We stayed for 4 nights, five days and we saw so much - all the animals we could have hoped to see and more, in Tarangire, Ngorogoro and the breathtaking Serengeti - including a huge male leopard so close to our vehicle. one day we ate our lunch right next to two mating lions! (In the vehicle of course). Our guide Rajabu was brilliant, so knowledgeable and an excellent driver including in some tricky driving conditions on one of the days. The accommodation and food was exceptional, our favourite was the Suenos lodge where we woke to the sound of hippos, elephants and lions roaring, could all eat together and chat with other travellers around a log fire - heaven. The tent has a four poster bed and en suite bathroom - but you still felt very close to nature. Every day Rajabu organised fresh, delicious lunches in eco-friendly non-disposable containers (we noticed many other companies were using throw-away boxes and plastic and we were very happy that we weren’t). A few of these lunches we’d be sat on fold out chairs with a table and tablecloth, silverware in the middle of nowhere, no other jeeps to be seen, surrounded by gentle zebras, giraffes and wildebeest. Mind-blowing. Rajabu even let us enjoy some fresh coffee that he prepared in a cafetière. At all times we felt completely safe and hygienic, we experienced no bites or illness. I also feel it’s important to say that there are a lot of foreign Safari companies but Bright African are local to Arusha, we really wanted to support a local, Tanzanian company and we couldn’t have had a better trip. Thank you Salim, Msangi and especially
Rajabu for memories that will no doubt last a lifetime.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nov 4, 2021
Highly recommend for the best safari adventure!! - Hamis, our tour guide, and Bright African Safaris were absolutely amazing. Extremely knowledgeable of all the plants and animals. He had a fantastic eye for spotting some hard to see animals and we were able to see the BIG 5!!! We even had a cheetah jump on the back of our safari vehicle!! Always courteous and friendly especially when we had a ton of questions. The food was amazing and Hamis made the extra effort to ensure delicious food for every meal. The trip went completely smoothly from the start to the end. Highly recommend to anyone and everyone…especially Hamis for a tour guide!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nov 4, 2021
Bright African Safaris is AMAZING! - I cant say enough good things about Bright African Safari tours, our safari guide Hamis, and the experience we had. From start to finish the safari and accommodation far exceeded expecations.
First off, our safari guide, Hamis, was AMAZING. The passion and knowledge he has for nature and wildlife was astounding. Throughout the entire seven day safari he enthusiastically shared information concerning the wildlife we came upon and the symbiotic relationships each animal has to others. He was truly a walking encyclopedia of Tanzania; from wildlife to culture to history and events. When he wasn't explaining things he was positioning us into the perfect position to get the best perspective for photographs/viewing. He was very aware of our intrest in each sighting and when it was best to move on. Im not sure if you can request guides, but if you can...ask for Hamis! He exudes positivity and the guy has an amazing personality.
Other highlights that Bright has over other outfits is their Land Cruisers seem to be newer or at least in better condition than others and the lunch that is prepared is actual meals/tables/plate wear, as opposed to box lunches that most all other companies provide. You eat lunch under the shade of trees and it feels very unique.
I can assure you there wasn't a single moment on safari where we weren't glad we went with Bright. They absolutely know what they're doing and have the clients best interest at heart. They genuinely care! We left the safari wishing it would never end and were elated to have seen the "Big Five" animals (and so so so much more) by the trips conclusion. I would highly recommend this safari to anyone who wants to maximize the animal sighting and parks there are to explore and hope you have as great of a time as we had.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sep 21, 2021
A Trip of a Lifetime! - We found Bright African Safaris on Trip Advisor - and they certainly lived up to all their high ratings.
Booking through Salim was easy and he answered our numerous. We booked our trip for 2020, but because of COVID, it got pushed to 2021. Bright African Safaris was superb at maintaining communication with us and allowing us to move our trip/deposit to 2021. Thank you Bright African Safaris for being so gracious and accommodating the pandemic!
We booked moderate luxury accommodations for our trip and all of them were excellent - beating our expectations (especially since the majority of camps/hotels were in the middle of nowhere). The food along the way was also fantastic!
Our safari guide was Hamis. He is EXCELLENT! If you can request him, do so. He is vibrant, fun, and doesn’t rely on other safari guides to find animals (which means you’re typically away from the crowds). Hamis is knowledgeable, safe, courteous and overall so fun! Our group (4 of us in our late 30s) became friends with Hamis - listening to music together and enjoying the drives between locations talking about Tanzanian cultures. We learned so much! Quite frankly, Hamis made our trip, hands down. We were so sad to leave him on our final day. We have his WhatsApp so…we can stay in touch!
A few suggestions for future safari goers:
1. Having a Safari Guide dedicated to your group only is worth it. I did a safari in Kenya with others as part of a large group - it gets tedious. Having a safari guide/car to yourself allows you to communicate scheduling changes to ensure you don’t get worn out seeing all there is to see. Downtime can become important on 6 plus day safaris. Also, it allows you to customize what you want to see - spending time finding the animals you’re interested in, etc.
2. Buy treats and snacks at local vendors along the way. This will keep your blood sugar up for the drives between locations - which include a free African massage (often bumpy roads). After all, you are in the wild!
3. Talk to your Safari Guide! Learning about one another’s cultures is not only enlightening, it forms a great bond between your group and your safari guide. We had dinner with our safari guide one night and it was wonderful getting to know him, how he grew up, his family traditions, etc. While all cultures are certainly difficult, I always find that we have so much in common as human beings - valuing family, traditions, food, loving one another, being loved, etc.).
4. Be patient on the game drives. We had at least 3 game drives where we didn’t see much for the first hour…and then BOOM…you see the most interesting cool things! (Lioness hunting, cheetahs jumping onto the roof of a safari vehicle, elephants and giraffes in arm reach of your vehicle, two black rhinos, and male lion sleeping 3 feet from your door, etc.)
5. Download music to play on the Bluetooth stereo in the car. It really makes the trip super fun!
6. Ask questions! Enjoy the sites the sounds along the way while asking questions! You can learn a ton about Tanzanian culture by looking around and asking questions - especially on drives between different locations/parks.
7. Remember English is not Tanzanians’ first language. That said, we had no trouble along the way communicating in English. I would suggest using easily understood words and simple sentences to avoid any misunderstandings - especially when setting your itinerary for the trip. It can avoid potential issues later on…
In summary, thank you Bright African Safaris for such a great trip filled with fun and learning! This was truly a trip of a lifetime - I’m already craving a sequel! Lastly, a very special thank you to Hamis for making our trip so enjoyable and adventurous!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sep 17, 2021
Experience of a Lifetime!! - The safari through Tanzania was easily the best experience of my life. I saw so much more than I expected to see and our driver, Hamis, made every day fun and exciting for us. The best part of the trip was interacting with our driver who made certain our game drives provided as much time as was needed to see what we could in a 7 day span. The hotels were beautiful, the food was excellent and the amazing animals of Tanzania do not disappoint.
I highly highly recommend booking a trip through Bright African Safari as you will enjoy the experience of a lifetime that they put together for you. I will certainly be recommending this company to friends and family and will likely return again in the future.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Oct 6, 2020
Bright African Safaris--A Top-Notch Provider! - Fabulous experience with Bright African Safaris! The team is extremely pleasant, professional and hard-working. My mother and I just returned from an 8 day, 7 night safari seeing Tarangire, Ngorogoro Crater, Lake Manyara, and Serengeti National Parks with our guide Salim, who was outstanding!
For others considering this tour operator, here are some of my reasons for providing a top recommendation:
(1) The team's main goal was providing the experience we wanted, and they were very flexible ensuring that we were taken care of. At the beginning of the trip we met with the team at Bright African's Arusha office. Everyone was very pleasant and accommodating.
Just one example of the operator's flexibility was when we decided that it would be better for my mother's potential back problems to fly round-trip to the Serengeti instead of driving on the bumpy road. Bright African quickly rearranged portions of our itinerary and booked the tickets for us. The flight over the Mara River was even an unexpected bonus since it occurred during the great migration and we had a great view.
(2) Our guide, Salim, made the trip. We saw every animal expected and more--highlights included seeing rare animals like black rhinos (one even in the Serengeti) caracal, leopards, cheetah, etc. We were only a few feet away from many lions including three tiny cubs, 30+ elephants when the herd crossed the road around our jeep, hyenas, several types of antelope, gazelles, etc. and of course baboons and monkeys. We watched a cheetah hunt (unsuccessfully) while a hyena and several lions watched, adolescent elephants were mock-fighting and then chastised by adults, a leopard dragged its kill out of a tree while another leopard dozed nearby, a young caracal cried for its mother, hippos ambled about, giraffe snatched bites of acacia before the leaves could turn bitter.... The sheer number of animals and birds in each park was amazing.
Salim is a naturalist with 15+ years of experience in these parks and it showed. At dinner we spoke with others who were very disappointed at seeing few animals when we had amazing encounters. The difference in our safaris was clearly due to their guides' inexperience. Salim could not only find animals but was also able to answer our numerous questions regarding them and the ecosystem. On a personal level he was always very pleasant and patient with us and others we encountered.
(3) Our comfort and preferences were a priority. We determined when to leave to start the day and when the day ended. The daily cooked lunches and ffreshly prepared hot coffee or tea and nicely lain tables were a definite contrast to other groups' boxed sandwiches. There was even a tented shade for the table if needed.
(4) Reasonable cost and excellent accommodations and transportation. After pricing many safari options we went with Bright African due to others' recommendations and their pricing. We weren't sure how it would turn out, but we were very happy with all of the lodges we used: Villa Maua, Marera Valley Lodge, Acacia Tented Camp, and the Acacia Coffee Farm Lodge. The jeep we had was in great shape--very clean and comfortable. All transportation had air-conditioning if needed (e.g., Salim knew areas heavy with tse-tse flies, so we would close the jeep's pop-top and windows and turn on the ac to prevent fly bites). I felt sorry for other groups going through these areas with windows down since the flies were definitely hitting the windows in large numbers!
I could go on, but definitely want to give kudos to Bright African Safaris for the top-notch job they did with our trip!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Oct 4, 2022
Correct organization, bad customer treatment - The driver, Albert, was disrespectful with me a couple of times (all of a sudden he told me that I was going to be fat in the future or that why I do not have friends in Africa whilst he has friends in Spain). For that reason, I believe I would have enjoyed even more this experience with another driver or another company. Hopefully others have a better experience with them.
Aside from that, it was a good experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
