# A stroll through the Serengeti (Safari trip!) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 10, 2024, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396 "2024-02-10T15:18:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/1 "2024-02-10T15:18:53Z")
I just spent close to three weeks in Tanzania, on my latest trip of a lifetime. My travelling partner is a really good planner, but we opted to go with a National Geographic guided tour this time. It was pretty amazing. We flew into Arusha a few days early, in part because we wanted time to recover from the flight, and in part because it was waaay cheaper than flying in just in time. We were on Qatar Air, business class. (Did I mention it was my friend’s 50th birthday? Gotta do things in style for that!) We actually had a 14 hour layover in Doha on the way there, so we were able to get out of the airport and see the city a bit. Unfortunately, it was their holy day, and there wasn’t much activity. Still ,we had a very nice dinner at a museum, and wandered around a bit. Ended up going back to the airport and hung out in the lounge for a cocktail, then up to our hotel room for a few hours of rest. Showered, then got back on a plane. Our first day, we decided to climb the lower part of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Just to the first base camp. We were really lucky with weather - no rain, great visibility. We also did a town tour, and spent some quality time lounging by the pool watching the monkeys play. Then we met up with the tour group and got started. We went to Lake Manyara, and saw dozens of elephants. Ngorogoro Crater, where we started seeing a few lions, and lots of zebras and wildebeasts. Then the Serengeti with more and more of everything. Giraffes. Jackals. Cheetas. Elons. Impalas. Dikdiks. And so much more. One particularly muddy day, the trucks kept getting stuck. We were able to get two free and out of danger, and the trip leaders decided that we would leave the third behind. So we had to walk about a quarter of a mile, through the mud, in the Serengeti, to reach the other trucks. I’m glad my friend had her camera handy and got video of it. The NatGeo tour also includes lectures. We learned about efforts to prevent human/wildlife conflict. We met members of a local Maasai tribe. We met [Dr. Louise Leakey](https://explorer-directory.nationalgeographic.org/louise-nicol-leakey), who talked about the fossil history at [Olduvai Gorge](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olduvai_Gorge). We also visited the Gorge. At the end of the trip, we spent four days in Zanzibar, because we could. Visited the Freddie Mercury house. And beaches. And generally just relaxed. I’m still organizing my pictures, but once I have them on a good host, I’ll try to post some here. Happy to answer any questions, for those considering a similar trip or just curious! ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/2 "2024-02-10T15:37:29Z")
Brings back wonderful memories of our Tanzania safari in the 90s. Pretty much the same agenda. I don’t know how the road going in is now, but back then it was really bad; in fact, we broke an axle coming back out and had to catch a ride with another truck. Stayed at the Sanna Eco-Lodge and at the Ngorongoro Crater Lodge (which is stunning), then at a lodge on the Serengeti for New Years Eve (can’t remember the name of it, but there were wild cats (genets?) hanging around in the rafters). We also visited Oldupai (as the Maasai spell it) Gorge and a Maasai village. Highly recommended to anyone who can afford it. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/3 "2024-02-10T15:50:51Z")
Great report. Can’t wait to go on a safari once we retire. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/4 "2024-02-10T15:53:42Z")
We are planning a trip to the Okavango Delta before it disappears forever. If anyone wants a safari, no is the time. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/5 "2024-02-10T15:59:08Z")
Make sure you go during the dry season, or your animal viewing will be limited. During rainy season, the trucks are limited as to where they can go. We stayed at Mombo Camp in Botswana, which was terrific, as was King’s Pool, which sits on an oxbow lake full of hippos. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/6 "2024-02-10T16:00:38Z")
We were looking at the National Geographic trip. Anyone have any experience with tours, good or bad? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/7 "2024-02-10T16:05:15Z")
We went with Wilderness Safaris. Also, see the OP for NatGeo safari info. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/8 "2024-02-10T16:05:26Z")
FWIW, we were supposed to be in the dry season. It hasn’t really happened yet, so we had lush grounds. The mud only interfered a bit, > [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > We were looking at the National Geographic trip. Mine was Nat Geo. Well organized. We did the Great Migration excursion. 15 clients, one leader, one expert. Three trucks. They took care of luggage transfers, food, most drinks (including some beer and wine). Roughly 2-5 hours in the truck each day looking at animals. A little down time. Some lectures and other educational stuff. You can’t really do this type of trip on your own, so you’re going to end up with some local tour company. For something this big that could go very right or very wrong, I felt it well worth having the Nat Geo experience. We were technically with a company called Asilia, but it operated under the Nat Geo umbrella ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/9 "2024-02-10T16:08:15Z")
> [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](#): > > FWIW, we were supposed to be in the dry season. It hasn’t really happened yet, so we had lush grounds. The mud only interfered a bit, The Okavango Delta floods during the rainy season, and the river disappears during dry season, which means the trucks (and the animals) can access a larger area. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/10 "2024-02-10T18:37:41Z")
I’ll just post one of my favorite photos from a safari. Can’t wait to see the OP’s photos. [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/qN1Zfel.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/qN1Zfel) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/11 "2024-02-10T20:20:38Z")
> [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](#): > > Elons. Elands. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2024, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/12 "2024-02-10T23:35:27Z")
Yes, of course. My blame my fingers 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2024, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/13 "2024-02-11T11:42:12Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > > [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](#): > > > > Elons. > > Elands. Elands are beautiful, majestic African beasts. Elons are also African beats, but quite a bit less beautiful or majestic. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2024, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-stroll-through-the-serengeti-safari-trip/997396/14 "2024-02-11T14:18:30Z")
Glad to hear the positive review. We’re traveling to Kenya this fall. Expect to be thrilled.