Let's talk about TANZANIA and how to pick a safari company!

 Let's talk about TANZANIA and picking safari companies!

As a previous Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology student in Tanzania, my studies taught me a lot about how tourism plays into the Tanzanian economy and why keeping money in Tanzania is important for continuing to support wildlife conservation efforts.

So I get lots of questions like....

Is tourism in Tanzania bad?

How do I pick a good safari company?

February 2023, I went back to Tanzania and dragged my partner with me. I wanted my partner to get the most authentic experience possible and truly EXPERIENCE Tanzania.

So firstly, is Tourism bad?

No, well, yes, well.... it depends. Much of Tanzania and many other countries in Africa have been exploited for raw materials (i.e. gold, minerals, raw goods, etc...) to make items we use today. Places like Serengeti and many of the famous national parks also have these precious items underneath them, but it is because Tanzania decided decades ago that they would need something besides the minerals to sustain them, the national parks were preserved.

Tanzania understood this a long time ago... that when the minerals ran out they would need something else to continue their economy, and that was... you guessed it, the animals!

Fast forward to, today and now you have SOOO MANY safari companies. Many of them foreign owned... meaning that the head office and CEO are located in Europe or Canada, or USA... not Tanzania. So what does that mean for the Tanzanian people...

It usually means that if you're spending $4,000USD per person the workers are only receiving $25 USD a day (that's right, you read it correctly) for their efforts. It means that so much of your hard earned money is going right back to developed worlds rather than staying IN TANZANIA where it could be used to build someone's house, send a child to secondary school, etc...

It also means that your drivers and guides are restricted on the experience they can give you since foreign owned safari companies are limited on gas they are allowed to use or may not be versed in wildlife at all. For example, if too many safari cars crowd a cheetah for too long, the cheetah cannot sleep during the day to get enough energy to hunt at night and could go hungry. It also means you might get a "point guide". A "guide" that doesn't actually have a lot of knowledge about the animals, only that they see them and can provide you 1 googleable piece of information about the animal.

Don't get me wrong, tourism can be a great thing, when used responsibly. When used for the purpose of learning and supporting people that can give back to the animals and people we're visiting.

So HOW do you pick the right safari company ?!

Firstly, are they foreign-owned or locally-owned? Not just employ locally but is their CEO located in Tanzania, lives in Tanzania and gives back to the Tanzanian community?

Here's another thing to look at... How much do they charge for safari? Foreign-operated companies have A LOT of fancy things to pay for Tanzanian-owned don't. So if you're getting quotes over $400USD per person per day for a budget safari (with everything included except airfare in 2023, tips, and alcohol) you could be getting A LOT better deal.

What about a luxury safari? Locally-owned companies likely won't charge you more than $800USD per person per day (even for a night at Four Seasons Lodge in 2023)!

Secondly, the next most important thing and what your money is really going towards after lodging and park fees... Your guide's knowledge and expertise...

Remember earlier how I said not all guides are trained in wildlife behavior or conservation... that they might be "point guides"... well that's fine if that's what you want... a guy with a radio to drive you to point A to point B to see animal 1 and animal 2.... 

But if you want someone that treats safari like an art form, you want a wildlife trained guide. For our safari we went with.... drumroll please.... my Wildlife Conservation and Political Ecology professor who also happened to be an ex-ranger, and now owns his own safari company: Stripes Africa Safaris! This means that we got the most authentic experience where my professor relied on his in-depth knowledge and training of animal dispersion, behavior and the national parks to find us the coolest and rarest sightings. He didn't rely on radios to find the Big Five and even the Ugly Five. Out of the 4 rhinos we got to see in the crater, my professor and his partner were the first to spot 3 of them which meant we got to observe them for around 10 minutes before any other safari cars came around to disturb the animals. It was also evident how much more we had learned compared to other safari goers. This was so special to us to not only see these animals but learn about the behavior we were observing!

Its also important to find guides that know the parks you want to visit, intimately. There were so many times that my professor brought us to areas he knew where certain animals frequented and used calls to encourage them out.

Lastly, you want a safari company that pays special attention to make your experience unique and memorable.

Prior to arriving Stripes Africa Safaris (info@stripesafricasafaris.com) made sure the safari car was packed with our favorite local beer (Safari!). They also made sure we got to wake up to the most beautiful sunrise at a campsite overlooking Lake Manyara.

When our second campsite at Serengeti was overbooked, my professor brought us to another campsite he knew the safari would continue when hippos, buffalo and hyenas decided to visit. When the hippo wandered near the bathroom, my professor was able to put our minds at ease by evaluating the hippos behavior and explaining to us why we were not in any danger.

He also made sure that if there was ANYTHING we wanted, he was there to provide. That meant getting Ugali and red bananas for my partner to try, as well as finding us an Authentic Maasai Boma to visit.

If all these reasons aren't enough to convince you on going with local safari companies, then here is the final cherry on top: Charity.

Many local companies are keen on giving back to their community as Tanzania has a very community oriented culture.

I hope this helps and I hope everyone gets the opportunity to experience Tanzania and love it as much as I do! 

Pro tip: bring a selfie stick on safari! You won’t regret it!

Safari Njema! (Safe Travels!)

Signed,

Hakuna Matata Traveler