It Started in Africa
- Located In:
- Size:
- 20-50 employees (Founded in 2010)
- Member Of:
- IATA, TATO & TALA
- Tour Types:
- Custom mid-range & luxury tours that can start every day
- Destinations:
- Price Range:
- $2,603 to $9,543 per person per day (MXN, excl. int'l flights)
Reviews
Email Sophia | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
The good, the bad and the very ugly parts of It Started In Africa
I experienced a the good, the bad and the ugly parts of this company, It Started in Africa.
I was a solo female traveller and safety was a priority. I knew I could have paid less with other companies, but the BBC Travel logo really did stand out to me. A company with BBC Travel as a partner would surely have set standards and uphold a duty of care to it's travellers.
Let me start off with the good. I was partnered with Martin who was an experienced safari guide and he was such a kind and caring guide. We chatted and he would educate me on all aspects of the country, the landscape, the trees/plants and all the details of the animals. He also helped me learn all the names of the animals in Swahili and I was very grateful to have him as a guide.
The company who mans the emails responded promptly to emails and the trip was arranged and paid for within a week of my initial email query.
The BAD:
The night before departure from home to Tanzania, I received an email to inform me of a mis-booking at Ngorongoro Crater. My option was to go to another campsite (not their first line recommended) or upgrade to their recommended. It was quite stressful to think that I had to pay another further amount and my tour hadn’t even started. I paid it but really thought the company should have covered the full cost as it was booked 1 month in advanced and the night before flying out I had to respond and ensure it was booked. The company advised that it was the accomodation’s fault, but really, it should have been picked up on confirmation not reconcilliation, days prior to my tour.
My other bad part was on my 2nd last day in Arusha where I was no longer on safari with Martin and planned and paid $125USD for a coffee plantation tour. The company sent me off with a Driver and a guide named James. James kept questioning why I want to go on the coffee plantation tour and tried to persuade me to go to a Tanzanite tour (it was obvious he wanted to commission for tanzanite purchase). He was quite persistent & I had to be firm and say it was a coffee tour he was to take me to. He kept pushing me so I agreed with enough time after the coffee plantation tour I would go.
Instead of taking me to the half day plantation tour (included lunch at the plantation) that was 1+ hr away from Arusha (Moshi - tripadvisor has it rated well) he tried to do a dodgy self tour by the side of a road of a coffee farm. Understanding the tour (from other people I met along the way) and that a 30minute drive in traffic was not Moshi, I spoke up. James then proceeded to say I had to pay for that tour. I told him I have! They then drove me to this town at the foots of Mt Meru to a plantation, stopping and asking for directions along the road (this was not the one I was to visit) and I was asked to pay $51USD. After saying (again) I had paid, and knowing this is not the right place, I thought I was stuck in the middle of nowhere, feeling a unsafe and on my own with 2 men the company sent me off with who clearly have not taken me to the correct place, I will be quiet and go along with it. But after it clearly was not what I paid for, I asked to speak to Mathias (Manager of Arusha office). James kept ignoring my many pleas. After another 15 minutes, I got really mad and demanded it and refused to walk any further and pretty much had to raise my voice and have a meltdown-like tantrum until he eventually did. I spoke to Mathias and said I was not taken where I was suppose to be, it was 3pm, I have lost a day and would like to return to the office for a refund then back to my hotel. I told him I do not feel safe here - during this tour, a group of school children followed behind me stealing my water bottle which I happily said was fine, but they went to unzip my backpack and grabbed my hand and asked me for my watch as well. My guide James was walking 5-10m ahead intently listening and learning from the other tour guide. James continued to avoid taking me back to the office for a refund and insisted I continue the tour. I was stuck and just agreed to get it over and go back to the safety of my hotel. During the tour, James took photos of me on his phone. I was not happy about the whole unsafe situation I was in. I was walking with 2 men into farming land away from other people on a tour I did not feel was real. Luckily, the tour finished off, and they asked me to tip the guide. I refused as it was not the tour I paid for. On the drive back, James thought it was amusing to take more photos of me in the car - I was furious! I asked him to delete all photos of me and he tried to just delete 1. I was stern and said all. Whether he did or not, I do not know.
Eventually they returned me to my hotel (refused to take me to the office for a refund) & told me Mathias the manager, would meet me at the hotel. Mathias avoided me. My hotel manager overheard my terrible experience that evening (3 hours after my return) and contacted the company to ensure someone came down to chat to me. Without the hotel manager's persistence, I doubt anyone would have met me to apologise. A large, unfriendly, and unkept man arrived to the hotel and after explaining the events, he did not offer an apology. In fact I felt he was sent to intimidate me into submission. I stood my ground and he eventually got on the phone and let me speak to Bernard the Tanzania Manager for It Started In Africa. I had to explain the days events again, and I was quite fed up at this point so I told him that he needed to do the right thing and refund the money. I said I know he can refuse, but if his company was truly apologetic in sending me off with 2 men who cheated me of a tour I paid for, he would organise a refund. Eventually, Bernard assured me that they would refund me and that the following day Mathias would have the money in cash for me at the hotel for my airport transfer.
The ugly...
the following day, they made my guide Martin return to Arusha (from his home town 1 hr south of Arusha) to smooth it over. When I still wanted my refund they handed me 1/3 of the value. Another man was there also (to intimidate me?). They arrived 20mins late for my airport transfer and had to remind them the amount owed. Martin wrote it down and got on the phone to Mathias. After a drive to the office, Mathias finally met me. He handed another 1/3 of the value. I was still short! He made excuses that he wasn't told the amount. I knew my guide Martin called him up and said in Swahili the exact number (i learnt the swahili numbers). I confronted Mathias who did not expect me to know the Swahili numbers. Mathias returned with the rest of the money and then made an excuse that the person who organised the refund did it wrong - Mathias is the office manager! Who else would organise it? Another terrible lie!! 1 hour behind schedule we headed to the airport. Along the way, the other man in the car spoke in Swahili to Martin and laughed about me - I referred to the the guide and driver that day as cowboys, and this man repeated it and laughed. I did not find this professional sitting next to him while he made fun of me and gave me intimidating stares. My guide Martin did not respond, being the professional he was and knowing that I understand a few words of Swahili.
Later, I found my itinerary with the full amount breakdown and circled the value to be refunded in the car! They knew the amount to be refunded and hoped to get away with less. It was very upsetting that I had to deal with 5 different men who attempted to intimidate me and waste time to avoid a refund!
I was left in tears from the emotional experience.
It was truly a corrupt Arusha Office!
I arrived at the airport late and just made my flight - my luggage was not able to make the flight.
On return I wrote an email to the Europe base and they were not even informed of this incident and mishandling afterwards. Joao in customer relations did well in responding with an apology & a promise of a full investigation. I asked to see the report and was told this can take long to prepare. I really hope they investigate and learn from this incident and mishandling but I am not to know if they will actually follow this up. I acknowledge that a full refund was given for the extra night accomodation and day tour that I was cheated out of, and they refunded the extra amount I had to pay for the last minute change in accomodation.
Tanzania was a beautiful country and I would definitely love to return. But would I chose to go on tour with It Started In Africa? Definitely not!
I have written this review so that anyone who does go on tour with It Started In Africa - be careful!! Make sure you are aware of what you paid for and if you are cheated of any experience or tours you paid for, you get the refund!
If you are thinking twice about this company - do some further research! While on tour I came across the most popular Leopard tours, trek2kili, Abercrombie & kent etc
But if you chose to try It Started In Africa - do your research & be self aware!!
ES
Email AGUSTIN | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Danger of robbery, low reliability
We made a one week safari in December 2019 with this agency, 2 adults and 4 children. The quality of the different services was acceptable except for the age of the vehicle and the poor reliability of the information offered by e-mail when making the reservation. In our case, the "peculiarity" of the trip with 4 children and the need to ensure their well-being and safety was emphasized. Although we were repeatedly confirmed that everything was safe and according to the needs of children, the result was that what had to have been a dream trip became a nightmare. This agency does not care or take responsibility for the safety of its clients during the trip and as a result of this lack of responsibility they attacked us at knife point when we were with 4 children. The feeling of insecurity in areas outside the national parks resulted in the fact that we could not enjoy the hired trip. From what we have been able to find out, it is an agency that strives to provide rapid responses in the bidding phase with competitive prices, but once you are on the trip completely neglect the clients and their needs, being the most serious and dangerous the fact that they cannot ensure their safety. I would recommend being very careful with this agency, especially if you intend to make a trip with children. In case you have the trip hired, I would recommend having emergency telephone numbers for the Spanish consulate, as well as contracting private insurance with good coverage.
PE
Email Edith, Jorge, Denise and Heldy | 50-65 years of age | Experience level: first safari
It Started in Africa ¿An Option?
I write these commentaries because I believe that we have a responsability with other tourists who, as we did, organize their trips taking into consideration the opinions and commentaries of people in Tripadvisor and Safaribooking.com
I will try to be objective in my commentaries most of all because the experience we lived surpasses all inconveniences and obliges us to put things in their true dimension.
All coordinations were wonderful, Luis Gama as well as Joao Oliveira replied and answered all our questions promptly and clearly.
What did they offer us:
1 "Pickup/dropoff from Kilimanjaro airport":
We arrived to Kilimanjaro¨'s Airport on time, the van that was supposed to pick us up was not there, although we must state that they had arranged for someone to have a poster and explain to us that they were on their way to pick us up.
2. "All our vehicles are extremely well maintained 4x4 Land Cruisers with pop-up open roof":
It called our attention that the van was not as modern as others we had seen picking up groups of turists. The handles of the windows did not work and it was very difficult to open the windows. The door on the right side did not have an internal handle to open it so we always had to ask the guides to open and close the door for us.
The seat on the second row, on the left, was totally broken so it was imposible to go through a long journey without causing back pain. Because of our complains they changed the vehicle. This was worse because the transmition, the springs, the shock absorber and the two back tires broke. It was a miracle that it just added up to a big fright. I want to take this opportunity to thank the African Scenic and the group of young doctors of Hong Kong who so kindly helped us and transported us to our camp. Finally we went back to our first vehicle. They had fixed the seat but, apparently, the steer started to fail and we wondered if we would get to the airport in time for our flight
3 "You will have at your disposal, a pair of High End Large Binoculars (Nixon, Olympus of Bushnell) that will dramatically enhance your safari experience when compared to standard binoculars":
This made us think that each member of the group would have a pair of binoculars. It finally happened but only one pair could be considered "high end", the others were broken or you could not see clearly.
4. "All our safaris have unlimited mileage which means you will be able to do game drives for as long and far as you¨[would like within the parks operational hours": Complied
5. "All National Park entrance and camp site fees": Complied
6. "Accommodation as detailed": Complied to our total satisfaction
7. "All food-breakfasts, packed lunches and evening meals":
The lodges were responsable for our food and the chefs were very kind and prepared special meals according to our alimentary restrictions, if somebody could not eat from the buffet. We were surprised, however, to learn that they did not have our meal restrctions registered, This situation delayed our trip to the Tarangire National Park because we had to look for a restaurant where they could cook special meals.
8 "Bottled wáter and soft drinks": We could always find bottles of water but never soft drinks.
9. "Lonely Planet about Tanzania": In January they offered us that they could buy three of these books in spanish. We paid for them in advance. When we arrived, four months after, they had only two books in english. We understand that it may be dificult to find spanish version but they had four months to do it or warn us that they failed finding them. Finally we got a third book in spanish.
10. "Our guides, which are our real stars and the ones who can make the difference between a nice trip and a once in a lifetime journey that you will never forget for decades to come":
We had Frederick Isangya (Alfred) as our guide in spanish as well as Estomi as our driver. This was a plus as we were told that the presentations were in english and we observed that the driver was the guide in other safaris.
Frederick answered with certitude all our questions relative to the animals, their habitat and behavior. He complimented this information with literature that was in the vehicle and thus allowed us to learn more about this fascinating continent. He always fullfilled our expectations. Estomi is an excellent driver and thanks to his skills the accident we had had no mayor consecuences.
Frederick and Estomi, as the visible face of the Company, had at all times the best disposition to face and solve, in the best way, all the problems and inconveniences during the safari.
When they realized that an adequate lunch pack for one of the members of the group was missing they bought a box and searched for the special meal in a restaurant. They made the necessary coordinations with the Arusha office in order to find a solution to all the inconveniences that arose during the trip and never avoided the reponsability that "It Started in Africa" had towards us.
Conclusion
It Started in Africa did not comply with two fundamental things in order to make a safari successfull : i ) The maintenance of their vehicles and ii) the care of the special food we required.
¿Would we hire "It Started in Africa" again? We dont think so, although we must aknowledge that at all times, through their team, they faced all inconveniences. ¿Would we hire Frederick (Alfred) and Estomi? Yes with no doubt, they were extraordinary.
To finish I would like to state that the group had decided from the very start that nothing would ruin this marvellous adventure and that our motto, in spite of the problems, always was "Hakuna Matata"
I hope our commentaries may be of help to you
Email Cath | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: over 5 safaris
Disappointing ! Even more after It Started in Africa offered to pay me to remove my reviews.
My husband and I selected It Started in Africa as our tour organizer for a 6 day Mount Kilimanjaro hike mainly because of their outstanding reviews and classification on Safaribookings and TripAdvisor. We also chose them because they were very reactive and had a nice website. But our main selection criteria was their ranking on Safaribookings (number 1) and on Trip Advisor (number 10).
The hike itself was satisfying: the guides, cooks and porters were friendly and helpful, BUT our overall experience turned out not to be as good as expected, and there were a lot of “small” details that added together gave us the overall unpleasant feeling that we had somehow been “cheated” by It Started in Africa.
The main issues were:
1. No one was there to meet us when we arrived at Kilimanjaro airport. Sylvia, our tour manager, arrived approximately one hour after our flight had landed and explained that she thought we were arriving on the KLM flight and that she had not been made aware that we were on the Kenya Airways flight. My husband had send Joao all of our flight details, which he had acknowledged receipt of. And even if what Sylvia was telling us was true, she was still 30 minutes late for the KLM flight.
2. The hotel in Arusha (Raha Leo) which was sold to us as part of the package, and included in our contract, was changed at the last minute without us being informed or forewarned. When I checked the rating on Trip Advisor, I realized that the hotel that It Started in Africa put us in (The Torch) had a much lower rating than the hotel that had been sold to us. When reading other traveler reviews posted after our trip (and since then disappeared from Trip Advisor), I realized that we were not the only customers surprised in this way…..
3. As part of the contract, It Started in Africa was supposed to supply us with duvet liners and pillows – we never saw them. The mess tent was tiny and could barely hold our party of 7.
4. My husband was victim of food poisoning and he was so sick that he had to turn back and be evacuated from the mountain. The doctor that we saw when we returned to Joburg confirmed that his disease had nothing to do with altitude sickness but was solely due to food poisoning (most likely the chicken we were served during 3 consecutive days by the It Started in Africa cook). The evacuation until the park gate was organized diligently and professionally by Tanzanian Parks. But once at the gate, the car that It Started in Africa car had sent from Arusha was not there. It was actually our piece of luck, because the It Started in Africa representative in Moshi came to pick us up in order not to keep us waiting and he agreed with us that my husband was in no condition to withstand the 3 hour drive to Arusha. The guides and I had told Sylvia, our tour manager, a number of times over the phone that it made no sense to drive back to Arusha that day, and had requested to stop in Moshi for the night, but she had refused to listen, saying that “she had already booked a room at The Torch in Arusha”. The hotel in Moshi was much nicer than the Torch and we were able to get a good night’s rest.
5. From the beginning of the trip, until the very last day, we were under constant pressure from the chief guides (and from the tour manager on the first day), to leave generous tips to the guides and porters. This gave us the unpleasant feeling that the porters, guides, cooks, etc are so poorly paid by It Started in Africa, that they rely on customers’ tips to keep their staff happy. The documents sent to us before the trip gave clear guidelines about the tipping amounts to be given out and we all know how to read – so why be so insistent during the entire trip? It really made us feel as if we were a bunch of dishonest people who would walk away from our responsibilities, and impacted our relationship with the guides and porters.
6. The number of porters/guides/cooks, etc accompanying us during the trip was never clearly stated to us before the trip. We found out on the first day of the hike that 31 people would be accompanying our group of 7 people. I’m not against employing a large number of people, but I believe that It Started in Africa should have been transparent about this before we signed the contract – as this has an impact on the total amount of the trip (tips are substantial).
7. When we were done with the trip, we were put under a lot of pressure by Sylvia, our tour manager to write good reviews on the spot for them, with them looking over our shoulders. I refused to do it and said I would do it later, as I don’t like being pressured in such a way.
8. Our last night in Arusha was part of the package, and had been paid for and booked through It Started in Africa. When Sylvia told us we would be staying at the Torch again, we refused. Not the rat hole again! Especially considering how weak my husband was. She then suggested Kia Lodge by the airport and warned us that it would be more expensive. We were prepared to pay whatever additional cost there was to pay, as long as the hotel was decent, with water and air conditioning in the rooms. And we also asked if it would be possible for the three guys in our party who were flying out later that day to use our rooms to take a shower. Sylvia promised it all, dropped us off at the hotel reception, and then vanished (very quietly for once). Once she was gone, the hotel manager told us that it would not be possible for our 3 friends to shower (but they were welcome to drink at the bar and eat at the restaurant), and we found that there was no water pressure in our room, making it impossible to shower. And at bedtime, when we turned the air-con on, we found out that it did not work either….. The next morning, there was literally no water at all in the shower! 183 USD for a room with no water and no air-con (supposedly the It Started In Africa special rate, but when I double checked on Trip Advisor, I found the rooms to be sold at 177 USD)….quite pricy, don’t you think?
But here comes the worst part!
When we returned home, I posted a review on Trip Advisor and rated It Started in Africa as "average", considering the problems that we had and the un-kept promises. The next day, Joao, the Happiness Manager, sent me an email with explanations about what happened and offered to pay me 700 USD if I removed my post or upgraded it to Very Good. When I refused, he offered me 1000 USD. After he had my review forcibly removed from Trip Advisor, I posted another review explaining how he tried to bribe me, and I received a 3rd email offering me 2500 USD if I removed my second review. I also noticed that the other average reviews which had been posted on Trip Advisor at around the same time as mine had disappeared. I managed to contact another reviewer who confirmed that he was offered money to remove or upgrade his review.
I then realized why It Started in Africa only had very good and excellent reviews on the internet. It seems that they bribe unhappy customers to remove or change their reviews if they are not 4 or 5 stars. And I cannot help but wonder....how many people were paid in the past? And how many people, like me, selected It Started In Africa mainly because of their track record of excellent and very good reviews and were hugely disappointed? How much money is Joao going to offer me this time, to remove my review from Safaribookings.com? I systematically read travelers' internet reviews before I choose a hotel or a tour organizer. I also believe that it is of utmost importance that travelers who post reviews on these websites do it honestly, as others rely on them to make decisions and chose their tour operator, hotels, restaurants, etc. I could have accepted Joao’s 1000 USD and left it at that, letting other travelers believe that It Started in Africa provides top class service and that they are the best. Maybe they are great for a large number of travelers. But not for me, and I believe that it is unfair to other travelers to keep quiet about what is going on. It Started in Africa’s business practices are unfair and detrimental to all of the tourism industry professionals who work hard and with integrity to please their customers. It Started in Africa need to understand that you cannot hide your flaws forever by bribing customers, and that there are still some people out there who cannot be bought, no matter how much money you offer them. It Started in Africa's cheating attempts turned out to be the most disturbing part of this trip for me. Knowing after hand that others before me may have had a disappointing experience with It Started in Africa, but were paid to remove their reviews, gives me the very unpleasant impression that we were cheated voluntarily by It Started in Africa from the very start.
For this very reason, I would definitely not recommend this Tour operator!
ES
Email Carlos | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Great safari, terrible management
Our safari with "It Started in Africa" could not have started in a worst way... We had booked a 5-day safari in Serengeti and Ngorongoro (plus 2 nights in Arusha, one before the safari, and one after it). When we arrived at Tanzania we had to pay the remaining 60% of the safari. A driver took us from the airport to our hotel in the outskirts of Arusha and told us that a representative of the company would visit us at the hotel for giving us a briefing and for telling us at what time would the guide pick us the next morning.
At dinner time no one had appeared, so we sent an email to the company using the WiFi of the hotel. They apologized and told us that there was a problem with the person that had to visit us, but that the next morning at 8 a.m. the guide and a representative of the campany would appear at the hotel so we could pay the remaining amount directly to him/her and start our safari right at that moment.
The next morning only the guide appeared. No apology and no explanation given. He took us to the office in the center of Arusha and we payed the remaining amount. While we were at the office, I saw by chance that the accommodation that we had chosen for the Serengeti was not the same that was written on the paper that was given to our guide. We had chosen Serengeti Heritage Migration Camp (not the Serengeti Heritage Seronera Camp), but they had changed it for Ndutu Savannah Camp. When we asked why, the office employee just told us that "it was better". As Ndutu Savannah Camp was not even an option for accommodation when we booked the safari, we had no idea if this was true, so we had to accept it and continue the trip.
Based on our stay and the internet reviews, now I can say that Ndutu Savannah Camp was of similar category that the one we had chosen, and that the location was probably better. But we spent the whole first day thinking that we were being scammed, because no one had tolds us that our accommodation had been changed, and we only learned it by chance.
Our guide (Elia) was good but maybe not great. He is a polite and nice person, a careful driver and a very experienced guide. He always found the perfect spots for wildlife watching and he was probably more experienced than most of the other guides. Also, one day, while we were returning to our accommodation, he saw some lions and we stopped to watch them. After some waiting, we watched a hunting scene while he patiently waited. Finally, we arrived at our accommodation almost 2 hours later than the agreed time, and he never complained.
On the negative side, he is not the most talkative person. When he sees an animal, he usually just points at it and says one or two phrases. If you want to know some details, you always has to ask. Not a big deal for us, but may be for others. Also, on the Ngorongoro day, when we asked him about the lunch inside the crater (as was clearly written in the contract). He said that it was not possible because of the 6-hour permit (we have passed the entrance gate at 7:15 a.m. approximately, so we had to leave before 1:15 p.m.). We asked him to have our lunch in the viewpoint outside the crater instead, but he said that it was not possible either, because we had to leave earlier. After finishing watching the wildlife of the crater, we passed the exit gates at 11:50 a.m., with more than hour left before the permit expired, and we had lunch on our way back to Arusha. Again, not a big deal, but then, why does the company write it in the contract if there is no easy way for the guide to comply with it?
Before returning to the hotel in Arusha, we were taken to the office to fill a customer survey about the guide and the jeep, while the guide and one office employee looked over our shoulders. Not the most comfortable moment of our safari. Also, as we were in the office, we asked at what time would the driver pick us the next morning to take us to the airport. No one knew that we had already booked the transfer, even as it was written in the contract, so they arranged the transfer at that moment.
While we were accommodated at Ngorongoro, a manager (Silvia) called me by phone to tell us that he wanted to meet us in Arusha. We thought that maybe she wanted to explain to us the problems previously described. After arriving at the hotel in Arusha, our guide told us that she would visit us at the hotel. Again, at dinner time no one had appeared, so we sent an email to the company. They apologized again but no explanation was given. We left Tanzania the next morning but she did not appear.
IT
Email Marta | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
A safari to remember
Before settling for It Started in Africa I did a lot of research. The company was suggested by a friend, but I wanted to be careful in my planning and make the best quality-price ratio for such an important trip.
The turning point for me was the caring and helpful attitude of Bernard, the owner of the company, through the stages of the planning. We exchanged almost 50 emails in 5 months and I always received a quick and kind reply.
We chose a Five Days Safari with one day in Tarangire, one day in Ngorongoro Crater and 3 days in Serengeti. Since the Serengeti is immense, we thought of moving to Serengeti North for one day in the hope of seeing the animals crossing the river. Unfortunately, we were not warned that the journey from the Central Serengeti to the North would last between six and eight hours, spent entirely on the main road without taking advantage of the game drives.
The day after we decided to return to Central Serengeti earlier and after we explained to Aaron and Elia (our driver and guide) that we weren't pleased with how the last day went they did everything they could to make our safari the best experience possible. Elia and Aaron were super helpful and accommodated all our wishes: we followed only game drive routes to go back and saw beautiful settings and a lot of animals!
At the end of the safari, we saw 4/5 of the Big Five!
A special mention goes to our trip to Mataruni Village. On our first day in Tanzania, we arrived at 1 pm at Kilimanjaro Airport. They came to pick us up and organized a trip to the village, famous for its waterfalls and coffee plantations. Our guide was Abdul, the main organizer of the trekking on Kilimanjaro: he gave us a warm welcome to Tanzania and after the trip drove us to Arusha to start the safari.
To conclude, my advice is to read a lot about the places you want to see, and the best routes for the period you are planning to go and not be shy about asking a lot of questions.
I recommend this company. They are small but nice, the lodges and camps were very good and the price was competitive compared to others with the same offers.
Thanks It Started in Africa: it was truly an amazing experience!
KR
Email Mathew | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Great Choice for Tanzania Safari!
My friends and I wanted to travel with Tanzanians owned Company on our safari and decided to book with It Started in Africa Tours after reading many great reviews about them and their involvement in the local communities there.
We had such a great safari, many thanks to our guide Isack who is an excellent guide with many years of experience; and Bernard in their office for arranging our trip for us.
I would highly recommend It Started in Africa to everyone contemplating a trip to Tanzania.
FR
Email Rem Sigutta | 35-50 years of age | Experience level: 2-5 safaris
Worth Trip
We went for Ngorongoro Crater safari for a day. We saw different wildlife species like rare black rhino, bull elephant and many more. The trip was well organized and they did what they had claimed. Thanks It Started In Africa for such a beautiful trip.
Email Joe | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Easy to work with. Responsive to e-mails
Communication was easy. Service was good. We climbed Kili with them and had a great tour guide and team. They then helped coordinate our transfer for a safari in the Serengeti which was good. Guide was okay. Vehicle was a bit old but it was only my wife and I which was a great treat.
I'd recommend them and would travel with them again.
TW
Email Kate | 20-35 years of age | Experience level: first safari
Nice choice
Thanks to It started in Africa, we had the most memorable experience trip in Africa! They provide individualized itinerary and reply really soon. I can tell they really concerned what we need and what we asked. The last day, we forgot sending our post cards and left it in the lodge, they helped us send the post cards for free, so sweet! Highly recommend! Awesome!