Deeper AfricaReviews of deeperafrica.com

We usually make all of our own travel arrangements but, between regularly changing COVID-19 regulations on a country-by-country basis and because we're new to Africa, we opted to get some help for this 1st-time trip. We worked with a few different, highly-recommended outfitters during our research phase. Karen of Deeper Africa spent hours with us answering questions, making suggestions and setting expectations. Obviously, we settled on Deeper Africa: 12-days in Tanzania (visiting Tarangire NP, Ngrongoro Crater and 2 places in Serengeti) and 6 days in Rwanda (gorillas). Africa is all and much more than we expected. Thank goodness for Deeper Africa’s Sultan who was our guide in Tanzania. He got us safely through 1000+ Land Cruiser miles on mostly hard, rough tracks while continuously answering our questions about wildlife, conservation and Tanzania. His knowledge is bottomless. And his eyesight. Sheesh. He could spot stuff off the track that took us 5 minutes to find with binoculars. Inspite of being mostly arms-length due to COVID-19, Sultan still set us up with a few personal interactions with locals: buying a kanga, getting basket-on-head lessons just outside a small village, negotiating at an outdoor market for beans and bags (its a photography thing). In the process, we got a sense of the friendliness of the people of Tanzania. Again, in spite of COVID concerns. Equally worth mentioning is our Deeper Africa Rwandan guide, Nuuru. Nuuru worked as a gorilla guide during his university internship and, as a result, has a more personal connection to the park rangers and the gorillas than we were expecting. He really enhanced our gorilla experience. He also enhanced our Rwanda experience, answering any and all questions about the country before, during and since the genocide. And we learned, in great detail, how marriages are traditionally arranged even as Rwanda clearly exists in the 21st century. All in all, a fascinating exposure to a very unusual country. Finally, we can not ignore how smoothly our travels unfolded thanks mostly to the extensive groundwork laid by Deeper Africa. Rather than fussing with paperwork and scheduling, everything was handled for us and couldn't have been less stressful. That is something we could get used to.

We are pretty experienced travelers, but without doubt, this was one of the most amazing trips my wife and I have ever taken. Deeper Africa planned our trip with 6 days of jeep safari in the Serengeti in Tanzania, and two days of gorilla trekking in Rwanda. The organization and planning (with all of the increased requirements and craziness over Covid and a total of 5 tests that needed to be coordinated from before we left until we arrived home) with support and accessibility both in the US and on the ground after we got there was awesome. The lodges we stayed at, although seemingly in the middle of nowhere, were as nice as any luxury hotels we have stayed at, with unbelievable views and warm and hospitable staff. Food was great. I'm running out of superlatives to describe this trip, which exceeded our expectations and truly was a once in a lifetime experience. Most importantly, the guides were knowledgable, personable, and skilled. We give our highest recommendation to John Mndolwa, whose expertise, patience, and understanding of the Serengeti and its inhabitants brought us face to face with adventures that you just could not imagine were real. Every day, we said that the next day could not possibly be as good as what we just experienced . . . and were blown away when the next day was even better. Thank you to Karen and her staff at Deeper Africa for making this the trip of a lifetime. Deeper Africa is definitely the way to go for the ultimate safari experience!

Karen and her entire team from the office staff to the guides were incredible! They helped us create the perfect 3-week itinerary, including 3 different countries, that beyond exceeded our expectations! Karen and the staff spent hours and hours with us before we left for our trip answering all of our questions and helping us prepare. You can count on them for anything before, during, and after your trip! They are a wonderful and caring company that truly want you to have the best trip you possibly can, And work really hard to deliver it. We had strict dietary needs, and Karen called every single camp to make sure the food allergies were known and taken care of. And there were no issues on the trip with the food! We work in the medical field and were worried about covid, But an African safari is actually the perfect socially distanced vacation! We saw more animals than people in our entire 3 weeks. Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda were all very strict and all the camps we stayed at really followed safety guidelines. I was never worried about covid once, And we were able to just sit back and enjoy the amazing game viewing that we saw! David, Albert, and Joseph were incredible guides, and went above and beyond to get us exceptional game drives. We were so close to rhinos, elephants, lions, cheetahs, zebras, wildebeest, giraffes, and buffalo It was incredible. And in one week in Tanzania we saw seven leopards! I was never scared once, the guides are really great! We couldn't have asked for a better trip, and would not consider any other company other than deeper Africa. We spoke with multiple companies prior to booking, and deeper Africa was definitely the most caring And really spent the most time with us. I would definitely go back to Africa and I would only use deeper Africa! They do a wonderful job, and you will not be disappointed! Call them once and you'll see what I mean!

After the agenda was set but before departure, Deeper Africa was helpful with any questions I had, even including those about the visa and travel insurance. I was met by my guide at the Kili airport, a day before anyone else arrived, and from then on I had no questions that went unanswered! Ombeni was so professional and knowledgeable and kind and fun. I can't imagine a Tanzanian safari not being one of the most amazing experiences ever but I also realize that Deeper Africa and Ombeni made sure that everything went to smoothly and somehow that we saw just about everything we wanted to see!

Our Deeper Africa tour guide John was fabulous! He got us up early and was a master tracker of the animals and their behaviors. We were able to see absolutely everything we wanted to see thanks to his hard word, expertise and determination. Plus, John was a sincerely nice person who we now count as a friend.

If you’re planning a trip to Africa there is only one call you need to make and that is to Deeper Africa. Karen and her entire team plan the perfect travel experience based on your interests. The level of customer service can not be surpassed! On a scale of 1-10, there are a 12!

Deeper Africa gave us an experience beyond our wildest dreams. We absolutely loved the itinerary created after owner, Karen Zulauf listened well to what was important to us. We chose private guides and boy, are we glad we did! Thanks to them both we had over-the-top and up-close animal encounters. Both David and Abiaz had extensive experience in the field as trackers and/or rangers before becoming guides. And we had a lot of laughs together. In Kenya guide David Siloma was not only 100% professional and deeply knowledgable about wildlife but he also knew how to position his vehicle for prime photo opportunities. His determination to find every animal including the elusive leopard was wonderful. His kindness to us included arranging a surprise gourmet lunch on the Mara to celebrate our honeymoon. In Uganda guide Abiaz Rwamwiri introduced us to Bosco at the Kibale Forest who is an expert teacher and chimpanzee guide. In the Bwinde Impenetrable Forest Abiaz was extraordinarily patient when I took a very long time to climb back up the mountain after seeing those magnificent mountain gorillas. We enjoyed hearing Abiaz tell us about culture and politics in his beloved country as well. Deeper Africa has very well maintained vehicles. When we saw what other tourists had we were especially grateful for the comfort and reliability of our land cruisers. The entire staff in both the US and in East Africa took very good care of us including making sure camps provided excellent meals for our vegan diet. The camps and lodges were both extremely beautiful and comfortable. Honestly we could not have had a more fulfilling trip. We are deeply grateful to Deeper Africa.

Great experience! Nathan was a fantastic guide in Tanzania, both knowledgeable and personable. All of the camps were fantastic and their guides were also amazing!