FAQ's

  Superlative Guide - Leonard Mangena was a fabulous guide for our safari in Tanzania. He had superman vision and could find wildlife that we totally missed -- all the time. He speaks both... read more French and English and know the names and habits of wildlife like a college professor. He could answer our many, many questions without difficulty and it was so pleasant to spend the days with him seeking out incredible nature scenes. Our memories and photographs are rich: the elephant family moment, Mom and baby giraffe snugggling together, and lions lying on their backs, feet in the air, plus leopards, cheetah and more exotic birds than I could possibly count. I can't imagine a better guide than Leonard. Seek him out and tip him well.

  Southern circuit family trip - We, as a family of 2 adults and 10 years old daughter, spent six days at the Southern circuit tour prepared by Otto. Our main target were mammals and because... read more of limited time we included in itinerary Mikumi NP, Udzungwa mountains and the Nyerere NP (formerly part of Selous game reserve). The trip was very well organized. Unfortunately because Otto had some health issue he was not able to join our tour. We spend almost all the trip with driver/guide Whiteman, who was professional and nice guy. Whiteman did the trip enjoyable even for our daughter what could be challenging sometimes.
At Mikumi NP we spent 3 nights at Camp Bastian (app. less than half an hour from park gate) and this accommodation we could absolutely recommend. Huge family chalet, very nice pool for refreshment and delicious food in restaurant. The park itself is surprisingly nice. We did not expect breathtaking experience, but the park is quite rich in animals and we enjoyed two days of our visit. Highlight was leopard, also elephants, giraffes, zebras and several species of antelopes are common.
Udzungwa mountains is worth to visit. It is different safari experience, because of possibility to walk. The trip to the waterfall is half day trip including swimming at two places. It is very good for primates. We stayed at Hondo Hondo camp, what was beautiful place – yellow baboons, blue monkeys, Angolan colobus and red colobus could be seen even in the camp as well as banded mongoose.
Selous was at the beginning disappointment. Currently the construction work for new hydro energy plant are realized and the main road through the park is busy with trucks, what has huge influence on animals there. So after visiting Mikumi NP the presence of animals in the accessible part of the park seems to be low. On the other hand this place was excellent for predators! In our two days we saw 3 lions, group of hyenas enjoying freshly killed eland and group of African wild dogs. Originally the agreement for our accommodation was one night in Selous tentend camp and second night inside the park in Lake Manze Camp as we prefer to stay inside the park – to have chance to spot some nocturnal animals. Finally we stayed both nights at Selous tented camp and it was excellent choice! Unfortunately (or fortunately for us) we were the only guests at the camp. The manager was very polite and food was excellent. Tents were clean and located in beautiful environment at the bank of the river. As a bonus was suni and elephant shrew observation in the morning close to the camp. So highly recommended!
Our experience is probably significantly influenced by current COVID situation worldwide so we met very few people inside parks. And the camps were sparsely occupied too. So for us this was great advantage.
Generally I could say:
- The trip was very well organized and I could recommend Otto for organization of Tanzania safari. If we came back, we would definitely ask him for other trip.
- Our guide Whiteman was excellent accompaniment and we would like to use his service in the future if possible.
- All the camps/lodges recommended by Otto were excellent choice.
- I could recommend Mikumi and Udzungwa for sure. If I knew the situation on Selous, I would probably accept the proposal of Otto for choosing Ruaha instead of Selous, but because of predators the Selous was at the and not a real disappointment.

  My friend and I went with Otto to Mikumi park for a three day Safari. We would definitely recommend the experience. Otto knows all the best places and has a... read more broad knowledge of the animals and Tanzanias culture.

  The Trip of a Lifetime - I cannot race brought about Otto and our safari experience. It was the trip of a lifetime and our family will never forget our experience.

Otto is... read more just amazing, his passion about Tanzania and the animals is really a wonderful character trait. Otto doesn’t just take you on game drives, he teaches you about the animals, the ecosystem, and Tanzanian culture/history.

There are so many safari companies to choose from, but Otto’s company is smaller and focused on working with sustainable lodges/camps and Tanzanian owned businesses. We really loved that we could visit Tanzania and also support local business owners and the community. Otto and his team have excellent communication and will listen to all your inputs when crafting the perfect safari experience.

The safari was incredible - we saw all of the Big 5 and more. We wouldn’t have changed anything about our itinerary. The scenery and seeing the animals in their environment is truly special and Otto goes out of his way to make sure you have an authentic experience.

With all the choices for safari you can’t go wrong if you book with Otto. Should we get the chance to return for another trip we will absolutely book with Otto, and we will recommend him to all our friends and family.

  Unique safari experience - We warmly recommend booking Safari with Otto. The contact in advance was uncomplicated and he was always available for questions. We did a 3 day safari at the Nyerere National... read more Park. We later learned that you can also go there by plane, however we recommend taking the car at least in one direction as it offers you an impression of Africa outside the big cities or touristic spots. Besides, there are a lot of fruit stands on the way where you can buy delicious and locally grown fruit. We loved Otto's calm way of explaining and the huge knowledge about African Wildlife but also about the people and the country. There was no question he could not answer.
All in all, we were very happy about the tour, Otto was an excellent guide and we can't imagine anything which could have been better at this trip!

  Mikumi - Otto is a verry Good guid, he can tell you everything about the nature and the animals. He knows everything about Tanzania. We had the best Tanzania trip ever!

  Wildlife viewing guided tour - Experiencing Ngorongoro conservation wildlife with Raja was an informative, fun, memory filled treat

  Amazing safari experience - In total we did a four day trip with transport to and back from Dareasalaam. The driver was punctual and overall the trip was very pleasant. As soon as we... read more arrived in the Camp in Mikumi we were informed that our guide for the next day is waiting to discuss the details for the safari. The guide was super nice and spoke English well. In total he had 22 years of experience and thanks to him we managed to see 20 lions in total 🦁.

All together we really enjoyed our experience and we would definitely recommend Ottosafari - good price for a good service ☺️

  It was one the best trip. Team is amazing. We spent full two days in the park with excellent guide and unbelievable moments. Highly appreciated and recommended

  Excellent and authentic Safari Experience in Southern Tanzania - We experienced a personal safari (8n / 9d) with Otto in Selous Game reserve and Ruaha National Park. Otto is a very reliable and friendly Safari guide with a great... read more knowledge about the wildlife and the parks.

Even though we went in the "green season", we had many great sightings, due to Ottos excellent wildlife spotting capabilities and knowledge of the parks. Also we always started very early in the morning and the afternoon game drives always lasted until dusk. We saw all the common animals like elephants, hippos, zebras, giraffes, lions, monkeys and even the very rare wild dogs.

Moreover Otto tailored the trip to our needs and wishes, both during the planning of the trip and also during the safari itself. The bush camping is a very basic experience, which brings you as close to nature as possible, something we will never forget. Even though the bush camping is a bit thrilling at first, we always felt secure and very well taken care of. Plus food and beverages were always provided in large amounts and very good quality. We also liked the choice of lodges during the transfer days.

What we especially liked about going on safari with Otto, is the very authentic experience he provides, as he works together with local people whenever possible.

I wrote an extensive trip report on safaritalk, which should give a good impression, what to expect from a safari with Otto. All in all we can highly recommend him, if you enjoy an authentic and basic close-to-nature experience. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.