5 Days Best of Northern Circuit Budget Safari in Tanzania

My Girlfriend and I booked the "5-Day Group Tour Tarangire, Manyara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro." Although this was a budget tour, we got the luxury experience! It was very convenient having the airport shuttle pickup and drop off included as well as nights stay before and after the safari. Geoffrey assisted in arranging the tour and payment. It's a 10% deposit that we sent via bank transfer and the rest paid upon arrival. We even were allowed to leave any luggage and personal items that we did not need during the Safari in his office. We had an experience of a lifetime and had an amazing time thanks to our Safari Guide and Driver Salehe and chef Buga. You're Safari is only going to be as good as your tour guide, and Salehe in second to none. He has been a Safari guide for over a decade and was a pleasure to talk to the entire trip. I learned that he has been a Safari tour guide for over a decade and has even been on safari's as long as 45 days. Our Safari consisted of 2 other couples and he was constantly informing us about the daily activities we would be doing and the wildlife we should expect to see. He wanted us to ask questions if we had any so it would be a better experience for all of us. What I liked most about Salehe was not only his knowledge and history of the wildlife and parks, but his ability to communicate with the other safari tour guides. We were able to see a Rhino and a lioness during her hunt. We also got to see 2 different cheetahs in the Serengeti and in the Crater because of his driving skills. We also got to see plenty of Elephants that came within 2 meters of our car and even 5 male lions that were relaxing on the ground. It is a little hard to spot the big 5 in the dry season but we managed to see the elusive Rhino and Leopards among many other animals. Salehe is a master Safari Guide. I cannot give enough praise to our chef Buga! Buga kept everyone fueled up with his delicious cooking. It's been almost 2 weeks since our Safari and I am missing his crepes, soups, vegetable side dishes, and chicken/beef entrées. He truly is a magician in the kitchen. My girlfriend and I are going to attempt to remake some of his soups and avocado salad. He also taught us some swali phrases which was great to know. We have already made up our minds about coming back to Tanzania again in a few years to do another Safari and tour some new items and we will 100% request that we get Buga and Salehe. I cannot recommend the team at Meru Slopes more and you should be excited to book with them if you want to have an unforgettable Safari experience!

We just returned from a 5-day budget camping safari in the Serengeti, Ngorogoro Crater, Tarangire, and Lake Myanara with Meru Slopes. The experience exceeded expectations! We couldn't recommend it enough. Working with Geoffrey ahead of time to book the trip and arrange payments, transportation, and lodging was seamless. When we arrived at the Arusha airport, a driver was there to pick us up and take us to the Meru Tourist Inn for the night before we began our safari. While by no means a luxury accommodation, it was perfectly adequate for a night or two, with hot water in the shower, a decent bed, and a working tv, plus having an unobstructed view of Mount Meru from the room was a bonus. Note that the hotel is located in the heart of Arusha city center so it is fairly loud with city noise (honking cars, people yelling, religious chanting, goats) all night, but it didn't bother us (especially after 2 days of travel from the U.S. to get to Tanzania). The safari experience itself was amazing. Our guide and driver, Salehe, was the best! He was friendly, personable, attentive, and incredibly knowledgeable. He knew all the right places to take us to see the Big 5, and so much more, and has an amazing eye for spotting wildlife. Even when our car had some mechanical issues, he handled the situation calmly and with ease and ensured we did not miss out on anything while it was being repaired. Both his driving and his ability to navigate the parks was top notch. I am very grateful we were paired with Salehe for our trip! Our chef, Buga, was exceptional! Every meal was unique and delicious. We noticed other safari groups had boxed breakfasts or lunches, but our meals with Meru Slopes were always prepared fresh and served hot, even when we were having meals out on the game drives. Buga is an incredibly talented chef, and served us some of the best food we had while traveling in Africa. In fact, we loved some of his dishes so much that we asked him for his recipes at the end of the 5 days so that we could remake them when we returned home (though I'm sure they won't compare to his)! On top of being an incredible chef, he was also always smiling, attentive, and funny. At the end of our safari, we were returned to the Meru Tourist Inn for another night, and the following morning, Geoffrey was kind enough to have the driver take us to our next hotel in Arusha rather than the the airport, as we were staying one additional night in the city. Overall, we HIGHLY recommend Meru Slopes Tours & Safaris, and especially recommend Salehe and Buga as guide and chef!

Meru Slopes were fantastic from start to finish. I booked the 5 day budget safari with them and had my expectations exceeded at every step. Communications with Geofrey before arrival were easy and comprehensive, airport pickup and accommodation before and after the safari were exactly as promised and the trip itself was superb. Our driver and guide, Jacob, was very professional, entertaining and extremely eagle eyed, identifying wildlife before we could even pick them up with binoculars. I don't think he missed anything during our game drives and he made sure we got every last minute possible out of them whether starting at dawn or ending at sunset. Our "stomach engineer" Moshi was also excellent, making sure we always had plenty of quality food (including vegetarian options if preferred). Based on my experience, I strongly recommend Meru Slopes and I hope to be back with them for future trips.