Tanzania safaris - reputable companies

[pawcards]

We're trying to book a safari but there are so many lovely websites - do they really deliver what they offer? Does anyone have any recommendations for a Lodge/tented campsites safari company in Tanzania, that will actually book what you hope for.

[Hgrove]

I went to Kenya and (on a separate trip) Sri Lanka with a company, www.somak.com, they go to Tanzania as well, and I was entirely happy with them on both occasions. And no, I do not work for them. The trip to Kenya was our honeymoon, 1993, and Sri Lanka was 1995 or 1996.

[jno]

there are plenty of tour operators like Somak and Sunvil that book safaris. The important thing is for you to work out just what you want for yourself. What sort of price you want to pay, what animals you'd most like to see, what sort of accommodation (luxury/roughing it, mobile or fixed tents, big hotels or small lodges etc), what sort of sightseeing (walking/driven), what time of year (because animals aren't necessarily in the same place all the time) etc. Tanzania has plenty of open grassland - good for game-spotting - but much less tourism infrastructure than Kenya, for instance. In general, brochures try to explain the different things you choose from, but don't be afraid to ask travel company staff. Often smaller operators are more specialist and know the places better. You could look at www.aito.co.uk for some of these.