No doubt, planning for your safari tours in Tanzania is an exciting experience, but at the same time can also be quite challenging. Among the many things you’ll have to decide is whether you will be traveling with a personalized itinerary or go on a pre-set group joining tour. If you’ve never gone on safari before, you’re probably wondering what the difference is. In this article, we take a deeper look at each and give you a clearer picture to help you make an informed decision.
A personalized safari is the ultimate experience. Everything is customized to suit your style and travel preferences with a smooth flow of safari activities. Though it can be a bit more pricey compared to a pre-set group safari, the freedom and flexibility to do things at your own pace certainly make a tailor-made safari a worthwhile experience. Here’s what to expect:
YOUR CHOICE OF ACCOMMODATION
With a tailor-made safari, you get to choose what kind of accommodation you’d prefer at any time during your trip. For instance, if you’ll be visiting different national parks in Tanzania, you could choose to stay at a lodge in one park, a luxury tented camp in another and a mobile camp in the next. The choice is yours – whatever your desired comfort and privacy level is.
PRIVATE SAFARI VEHICLE WITH PERSONAL DRIVER GUIDE
With a tailor-made safari, you are pretty much guaranteed more immersive game drives and overall safari experience since you’ll have your own vehicle and personal driver guide. All our vehicles are equipped with pop up roofs so you can take in the scenery unfolding before you even while on the move. Plus, you get to enjoy a more personalized and comprehensive tour since your guide will always be on hand to focus exclusively on your wants and needs, and answer all your questions about the various landscapes and wildlife that you’ll come across in the African bush. They will feel like family at the end of your trip!
FLEXIBLE ITINERARY
This is one of the biggest advantages that a tailor-made safari has over group safaris. The choice of which national parks or game reserves to visit and how to spend your day is totally up to you. Choose the activities you want to do and adjust your itinerary according to your preference. You get to decide when to go on game drives, when to eat, what time you wake up, which wildlife parks to visit, and the time you spend at each location. Nothing compares to this level of freedom and flexibility.
ADD-ON SAFARI EXPERIENCES
This ties back to the flexibility feature of tailor-made safaris. You get the chance to enhance your safari experience with additional activities like night game drives, walking safaris or special romantic dinners. These events are usually exclusive to only tailor-made safaris. The drawback of a tailor-made safari is that it’s at the higher end of the budget range of the average traveler. But given its many advantages, it’s more than worth it. It is the experience of a lifetime that many guests will cherish for the rest of their lives.
Pre-Set Group Safaris
Group safaris, as the name suggests, are when you travel with a group of people who are booked for the same safari itinerary. Here’s what to expect:
SHARED ACCOMMODATION
Lodges and camps are usually shared on group safaris so there is not much privacy unless you pay extra for a single room.
LESS FLEXIBILITY
On a group safari, the itinerary has to be somewhat rigid since it caters to multiple people with different interests. In order to manage expectations, group safari activities have to be fixed and it’s usually a case of you’re either in or you’re out. You will need to get up when everyone else gets up in the morning and once it’s time to leave a particular spot or once one of you has spent enough time with a particular animal and wants to move on, the entire group will have to follow along or risk arguments. You will be spending the bulk of your day sharing a safari vehicle and have to rotate seats during game drives in order to ensure fair wildlife viewing and to avoid drama.
BUDGET-FRIENDLY
Due to its affordability, budget travelers usually opt for group safaris as this would allow them to split the bill on necessities like your guide services, fuel, meals and accommodation during the trip. Many solo travelers are also looking to connect with other like-minded travelers on group trips. Although group safaris are often sold as a cheaper alternative, the cost of group safaris is usually comparable to you traveling with family or a group of friends you already know.
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Given the two scenarios above, which would you rather go for? Of course, the answer depends on various factors like pricing and whether you want to meet new people, but if you are like most travelers, then you’d probably cherish your privacy, flexibility and undivided attention of your driver guide.
At Sababu Safaris, we exclusively offer personalized safaris. We know too well the appeal of enjoying your tour at your own pace and comfort, so we take the time to understand exactly what you want and craft the perfect itinerary for you. But we also aim to take the experience up a notch by providing an array of thrilling and enriching activities outside of game drives. For instance, you can sign up for a cooking class and sample Tanzanian delicacies or go with us to remote villages to distribute solar lights to a family living without electricity.
We are committed to transformational and sustainable travel, and we invite you to come and see for yourself how your safari trip with us can not only change your life but also positively impact the lives of many community members. Create your tailor-made dream safari with us today by calling +1 914-207-4426 or through our contact form or sending an e-mail to info@www.sababu-safaris.com.
