Guestbook

We rented a defender 24th of February until 7th of March 2015. rnAt first, we were not sure whether it is wise to selfdrive tanzania. Daniel (from Tanzanian Pioneers) helped us a lot planning our trip. (13 days) so when we arrived in arusha, we were pretty confident that our adventure would turn out great. rnrnWhen we picked up our car, Nathan (from Serengeti Select Safaris) was awesome! He took so much time explaining every important detail of the car and the roof tent. The car was ready to go and clean. Tools for a worst case self repair and documents for the police were complete. Clean sheets were provided. We highly recommend renting a GPS as well since it can get very tricky finding way. Nathan supported us with a prepaid cell phone, explained were the water and fuelstation are and how we are supposed to act when getting stopped by the police. (We got stopped 4times, no problem, a few words swahili like jambo and suri and a polite smile break the ice) rnrnOur route: rn- Arusha NP, 2 nights (very nice, great to start so close, good to get to know the park sign in, don't underestimate this gem)rn- Lake Manyara NP, 1 Night NP Campsite, 1 night Panorama Campsite (great views, good food) rn- Serenget NP, 3 nightsrn- Ngorongoro CA, 1 nightrn- Tarangire NP, 1 night NP campsite, 1 night lodgernrnCamping: rnWe camped at the public campsites and in february there were only very few people. Nice to try special campsites once but in general it feels quite wild already on the public ones. In Seronera are a few less crowded options. Simba campsite on NCA is awesome! With our airy roof tent and a glas of wine we just felt like spending the night in the nearby 1000$ Ngorongo Crater Lodge:-) rnrnLodge:rnWe spent the last night at tarangire safari lodge. We can highly recommend it. Great views. Nice food. Luxurious:-) Really cool end of the trip after camping.rnrnCar: rnFor 2 person one car is good, for 3 people it would be quite tight. It used around 10lt Diesel. The car was in good shape and i think 1$per km is a really good deal if you keep in mind, that the car is used heavily. Unfortunately a rear shock absorber broke driving down NCA Crater. Hakuna matata. We just called Nathan and he sent us a spear absorber to the next lodge. Great service. It helps a bit if you have a basic mechanic knowledge. Dust is a bit a challange. It just gets in no matter how hard you try not to. It is important to cover and seal everything or you will be cleaning your stuff a lot. rnrnTent: rnAbsolutely great. Very airy. Almost like sleeping under the stars of the savanna. We felt very safe even with lions wandering around the car! Slept like a baby.rnrnRoads: rnIn general quite fun to drive! Only the direct road NCA to Seronera can turn out horror! You will either feel like in a shaker hoping that your teeth stay in or you drive so fast that its smoother but then it is like driving on ice! Quite dangerous. Nathans tip: drive past Endulen. Really an adventure. In a good way we felt completly lost in the wild. That is what you want to feel:-) may be worth to spend extra time to take back the same long, dusty overland path/road from Nabi via Endulen to NCA.rnrnAnimals: Great on Selfdrive. You do not just see them. You really have the time to feel them and be part of their habitat. No one is pushing you to drive on. It is all up to you. Do not worry about seeing less animals then on guided tours. Just be patient and use the morning and the evening hours. You can also ask the rangers about wildlife spotting.rnrnDear Daniel and Nathan, thank you very much for letting our adventure come true. We can truely recommend Serengeti Select Safaris and Tanzanian Pioneers!rnrnAfter all Nathan summed it up quite well: It is an adventure. No one can guarantee that you will have no troubles. But it all depends on your attitude. If you kindly overlook a bit dust here and there then you truely will feel like you are about to be part of one of the last adventures on earth.