RECOMMENDATIONS

Those who have travelled with us have always had a good time. Read ahead what they say about us.

May 21, 2007 USA

We finally tallied all the bird species we saw, and there were 360.  We didn't come primarily to rack up an impressive count, but with Anthony, it is impossible not to!  He is obsessed with birds!  He knows the species, where to find them, and has incredibly sharp eyes.  But you already knew that.  If we were fanatical birders who needed a few African species to complete our list, we would pick Anthony as a guide.

 The Driver was an extremely good driver; as good as we've ever seen.  He is as safety conscious as possible in the varying conditions, and he is very easy on the vehicle.  He also knows birds, and spots more than his share of them even while driving.  He has a great sense of humor, and is never moody.

We would not hesitate to recommend Birding and Beyond to any serious birder who contemplates a birding safari to Kenya or Tanzania.  We think that the major strengths of your company lie in the fact that you know where the birds can be found, and have the right personnel to point them out to birders.  This is of great value to those working on their lists. 

Because of the travel and guide books we've authored and the promotional films we produced in various countries for an international adventure travel company, we have a readership and audience following.  If we can be of service to you as a reference, you have our permission to place our name and email address on your website.

 Sincerely
Don & Laurie Skillman

 Chezlark2@msn.com

FROM USA

We are now in London, on our way home, and we just wanted to let you know what a great time we had with Anthony our guide and Geitan our Driver . They made the trip a life experience that we will never forget, I do recommend Birding and Beyond strongly, based on the experience we had. I also wanted to let you know how much we appreciate the time and energy that you put into getting us the best rooms, the shower at the end of the trip, etc. Great Birds and photography from a wonderful team…

Jack Stephens

Email: jstephens62@comcast.net

FROM USA

Sorry I didn't let you know right away what a wonderful time we had with Anthony and Geitan. I needed to start back to a very busy schedule .We had a wonderful time and will be recommending Birding & Beyond and Anthony and Geitan in particular to all our birding friends and anyone wanting a typical birding experience in East Africa.
Here are the things that made our trip so enjoyable: Geitan and Anthony were interesting people, good conversationalists, very competent in both meeting our needs for food and comfort and in showing us birds and wildlife. I was nervous about the road hazards before coming to Tanzania, but Geitan is such a safe, competent driver that I was completely relaxed the whole week with them. Both of them have eyes like eagles and we saw over 200 species of birds! It was simply wonderful. The parks were very uncrowded and we saw plenty of game as well as birds in the one week duration we where on safari.

Deb Paulson

Email: DebP@uwyo.edu

FROM USA

I think about our trip every day and thought you might like to hear about our trip from someone who is NOT a birdwatcher.
It was so nice to see Anthony and Geitan at the airport after our long flight. I liked it that within a few minutes they taught us a few words in Kiswahili that we used throughout our visit. By the time we arrived at our lodge in Arusha, we knew that we would enjoy being with Anthony and Geitan for the next 17 days of our trip duration.

We felt very lucky to have Anthony and Geitan as our driver and guide. During our trip we saw many things that the average tourist does not see or experience. We were impressed to see that Anthony was always scanning the countryside for birds and mammals while Geitan managed to take the vehicle over very rough roads without jarring us too much. When Anthony spotted something he would wave his hand just a little and Geitan would stop immediately. They did a great job spotting animals and birds that were very difficult to see and would position the vehicle so we were in the best place to see them. Even though three people in our group are not bird watchers we felt that looking at birds greatly added to our appreciation of the wildlife in your country. After a while, looking at zebras and impalas can get to be a little boring, but there were always new and beautiful birds to see. Since trying to find the location where Anthony had spotted them could be a little challenging, it made it seem like we were hunting ourselves even though we did not leave the vehicle.
Tarangire Safari Lodge and Gibbs Farm were our favorite accommodations.
Our visits to the orphanage and the school also made our trip very special. It gave us an opportunity to meet the people of Tanzania who are not involved in the tourist industry and are trying so hard to give the children of you country better lives.

The most memorable part of our animal watching was seeing birds, cheetahs and lions hunt their prey. Geitan spotted our first cheetah and we watched it slowly approach it's prey.

Now I must tell you that the very BEST part of our safari was meeting and becoming friends with Geitan and Anthony. Not only are they very intelligent, professional guides who went to great lengths to make sure we were safe and having a great time, but we also really enjoyed their company and sense of humor. They became our friends and we miss them.
We are very happy to be references for Birding and Beyond.

Ellen O'Neill
Email: eon-s@comcast.net

FROM CANADA

March 15, 2005.

My wife and I had a two-week Birding safari with Anthony Raphael in Tanzania arranged by Birding and Beyond Safaris. This was my second time with Birding & Beyond after a trip in Uganda. On our 2 weeks Birding tour in Tanzania We had an excellent time seeing 429 species of birds including 12 endemics. The arrangements all went without a flaw, thanks to the diligence of Anthony, who is not only an expert birder and professional Guide but a very pleasant man to be with.

Keith H. Riding, MB BS, FRCSC
Clinical Professor, Department of Surgery, UBC.

B.C. Children’s Hospital,
ENT Department,
4480 Oak Street, Vancouver,
B.C. V6H 3V4.
Canada.

Email: kriding@shaw.ca

FROM USA

Jambo from hot Virginia.

We are extremely pleased with our wonderful trip to Tanzania. We had very high expectations for the trip and they were all greatly exceeded. Anthony was a great guide; Geitan, an excellent driver. They were positive, fun to be with and worked well together. In just over 2 weeks, we were able to photograph over 270 bird species as well as mammals. This number was double to any other international trip we have taken.
The accommodations were good and the people of Tanzania were friendly, gracious and delightful to be with.

We are looking forward to working with you again for a future trip to East Africa.

Asante sana,

Barb and Jim Leupold

Email: bjleupold@earthlink.net

FROM CANADA

I, along with my wife Joy, went on safari end of March - early April 2006 with Tony guiding the Tour in Kenya and Tanzania.The whole experience was wonderful. We saw many animals, including the Big 5. On our first day we saw a leopard up close. During the two weeks we also were able to identify at least 370 bird species. Our success was due to Tony. He is obviously a world class birder. Our trip was a great success highly due to Tony`s ard work and sense of humour throughout the trip. The choice of local guides was also very helpful. On one walk with Wilberforce in Kakamega Forest in Kenya, we identified a couple of species by call as they were too shy for us to see them. Wilberforce was an excellent local source of knowledge. Cliff in Baringo was excellent too, with the help of his little brother, Cliff was able to take us to nesting birds we would never had known existed without their local expertise. As we usually travelled at a slow speed than other comparable vehicles on safari, we were able to spot many birds as we drove. We cannot truly express how delighted we were with our whole experience. We would recommend your company to anyone wanting a first class birding/Safari experience in East Africa. Thank you so much.

Bill Simmons AND Joy Waite

Email: williamsimmons@shaw.ca

CANADA

FROM USA

With More than 400 bird species on the list, we couldn't have asked for anything more than we received…. Birding & Beyond has the best guides and drivers.....

Prof Shepard Krech III
Prof. of Anthropology and Environmental Studies
Dir., Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology
Dept. Anthropology,
Brown University
Email: krech@brown.edu

FROM USA

You may use my name as a reference for Birding and Beyond.
I am sure Older people (BiBi's, etc.) might be interested in knowing how older people fare on the safaris, Birding or non-Birders.

Jocelyn Baker
( BiBi Jo )

Email: osprey@hills.net

FROM THE NETHERLANDS
Everybody who has the intention to see wildlife in Africa: Don't hesitate, go ahead and make your arrangements with Birding & Beyond Safaris, much more especially to the birdwatchers. We highly recommend them together with Anthony W Raphael who was our excellent Bird guide and not to forget our driver Geitan Ndunguru who are top of the bill! From the first moment at Nairobi-airport till the end at the Tilapia hotel in Mwanza everything was arranged extremely well. Accomodation was very good, the food was excellent and Anthony and Geitan were very nice companions to us during the trip. In a reliable 4WD LandRover, my brother and I visited Tarangire NP, Lake Manyara NP, Ngorongoro Conservation Area and Serengeti NP. In five days seeing lots of Mammals and a bird list of over 250 NEW bird species! Without any doubt, you will get Good value for money! Anthony and Geitan, thanks again and good luck.

Ton and Kees Plug
The Netherlands
Email: tonplug@wanadoo.nl

FROM GERMANY
It is not easy to travel on your own in Kenya and Tanzania, but all problems can be solved by an arrangement with Birding and Beyond Safaris. Anthony organized for us a great trip of bird and big game watching. On our 19 days safari we visited KENYA AND TANZANIA, doing Kenya first.

Starting with our driver Simon, we visited the lakes Nakuru, Bogoria and Baringo. Then we made our way to Kakamega forest in Western Kenya, sampled lake Victoria and then into the famous Maasai Mara Reserve. At three of these places we had the very useful help of local bird guides.

After crossing the border into Tanzania, we were welcomed by Anthony in
Arusha. From here we started a camping safari to Tarangire, Serengeti, Ngorongoro and finally Lake Manyara National Park. Geitan was not only a perfect driver of the safari Landrover, but also an excellent bird and big
Game spotter!!!!!!!.
The meals from our cook Mafie were very good and absolutely astonishing under these camping conditions. We are very happy to having seen 369 bird species and the Big Five on the trip.
So thank you all again for an unforgettable trip to East Africa.
We will always wish to come back.

Regards,
Helga Koch and Dr. Ralf Eikhorst, ( Germany )
E-Mail: Ralf.Eikhorst@t-online.de

FROM MADAGASCAR 2006

Happy New Year and best wishes for you and all the staff of BIRDING & BEYOND SAFARIS!!

I was in the process of writing to you to tell you hat our tour went very well. Of course the heat and the dust didn't help but that is with nature. The last two days some rains started to fall and I hope they have continued and people can work their fields. In this very dry situation, going through the Serengeti's roads, twice, was a little hard. The stays at Speke’s bay on Lake Victoria provided some relief. Tony and Geitan are two true professionals in their tasks I must say this, they know the birds, they know the roads and they were very kind with us. So was Arnold as well the first two days. Tony was nice to accept a couple of changes in the program. Both changes on our program worked well for us; in Moshi we had the chance to meet with very interesting people doing work similar to ours here and we liked Moshi town very much. KIA lodge was excellent for birding (besides the gardens the open field behind was very active with Hornbills, Go away Birds, Coucal, several Shrikes and Herons), the food and accommodation were very good KIA lodge is 10 minutes away from the airport, a good place to arrive after a day of incoming flights. On the whole, we were very satisfied with the tour and hope to plan our next trip soon with Birding & Beyond.

Take care,
Jose Bronfman.
E-Mail: bronfman@wanadoo.mg

FROM USA
I heartily recommend Birding and Beyond Safaris to anyone interested in a
bird-oriented safari in Tanzania, or even for those not particularly focused on birds but who are simply looking for a high quality experience. Our safari group included people with a wide range of interests, but all of us had an excellent time. As the keenest birder in the group I greatly benefited from Anthony’s detailed bird-finding knowledge and the ability to find local specialties all along our route. Geitan demonstrated exceptional abilities as a game-spotter, whether finding large mammals or small birds.
Our cook, Stephen, provided us with varied, delicious and satisfying meals even in isolated campsites. And all of the crew were a pleasure to travel with, their relaxed and good-humored personalities making our safari an exceptionally enjoyable trip.

Best Wishes,
Jim Mountjoy ( Galesburg IL USA )

Email: jmountjo@knox.edu

FROM SWITZERLAND

I wanted to place on record how happy I was with the tour that you organised for me in Tanzania during September 2001.
The organisation was perfect and your expertise and good humor made it a wonderful week. I never expected to see so many new life birds after having been quite a few times to Kenya. Northern Tanzania certainly is an excellent region for bird watching!

With my best wishes for lots of success in the future,

Mike Bowman ( Geneva )
Email: bittern@freesurf.ch

FROM THE UK

Initially we intended to arrange an independent trip to Kenya but the
services offered by Birding and Beyond Safaris proved to be very competitive and so decided to make all the arrangements through Anthony.

Birding and Beyond Safaris arranged most of the accommodation prior to arrival as well as providing a safari minibus and driver, James, who proved to be excellent company and had a good knowledge of all sites visited.

I would have no hesitation in recommending Birding and Beyond Safaris, to anyone wishing to visit Kenya.

A full trip report can be found on www.surfbirds.com

Mark Sutton
United Kingdom July 2002

E-mail: marksutton2001@hotmail.com

FROM USA

I want to thank you for the great safari I had with you on a Camping
Safari in Tanzania and Kenya Lodge Safari. In the beginning I was
concerned because I knew you were a small business operator and it was
costing me more than I had expected. However, I was again totally
satisfied and am SO happy with the way the trip was planned in all. I had a
very knowledgeable Guide and a safe driver, and the cook on this
Camping Safari could get a job as a chef on the Las Vegas strip - no
question.
Anthony really knows his animals and Birds and all the background
information he gave me during the safari was so interesting. I really
enjoyed having him with me to spot the animals so the driver could
concentrate on driving, although he was also a good spotter. The driver in
Kenya was also quite good and I enjoyed staying in the lodges at Amboseli
and at the Masai Mara. So many people have asked me about my safari
and I will certainly recommend you. Thank you, for making my dream come
true.

All the Best,

JoMar Alwes
Email: JOMARA@cityofnorthlasvegas.com

FROM THE UK

A great wildlife safari with sightings of many birds and mammals. I would recommend anyone to use Birding and Beyond Safaris as their tour company whether they are interested in just seeing the big five or they are expert birders. Our tour was very good value for money and very well organized. I would recommend any body to travel to Tanzania as it is such a beautiful country with great wildlife! Thanks again to our Guide Anthony and our Driver Arnold.

Regards,

Tina and Raj

Email: r.d.mistry@btinternet.com

FROM USA
"A great safari with fantastic Animal sightings. Wonderful memories that will last forever. Best Guide, Best Driver, Best Food, Very Friendly People... Tanzania is a beautiful Country, I will always like to come back"

Evelyn Brakopp
Email: evelyn_brakopp@hotmail.com

FROM CANADA

We would like to thank you for everything you did for us while we were
in Africa.
We couldn't have asked for a more knowledgeable, helpful or cheerful guide
than Anthony. Even when you were under the weather with your cold, you
still kept up the great work. We enjoyed traveling with you, and the
drivers we had, we will always remember your kindness and expertise. You
all made us feel welcome and our memories will only be good ones. Both
Kenya and Tanzania were beautiful countries and our pictures are great.
You are an excellent ambassador for your country. We will continue to
recommend your services.

Thanks again for making our trip a memorable one.

Otto and Diane Peter
Email: petero@idirect.com

FROM THE UK

I am Happy to put something along the lines of “Thanks” for all you did
for me during my short trip to Kenya. Everything went really smoothly,
Peter my driver was great & I will definitely use you again next time
we're in Africa'.

Jenine Langrish.
Email: langrish@langrish.screaming.net