Recommendation: We went on safari with Kambona in Feb. 2008 after he had been highly recommended to us by friends. We were extremely grateful we listened to those recommendations.
Kambona's concern for meeting our needs was exemplified with him meeting us personally at the airport upon our arrival in Arusha and it continued throughout our trip. All the accommodations that he had arranged for us were perfect, including the Wilderness campsite in the Serengeti. He showed great knowledge of the many animals and birds that we encountered on safari and always gave us ample time to observe them. We really appreciated his discussions in the evenings about the habits and interactions of the many animals we saw.
We highly recommend Kambona's skills as a guide, as well as his friendly and caring demeanor. He certainly made our safari a "trip of a lifetime".
Don and Carolyn Shelp
Madison, WI USA
2. Date:2011-08-15
mrm2gsm@sbcglobal.net
Hi Kambona,
It was really good to see you again. I hope your trip back home was safe and without incident. Seeing you again brought back wonderful memories of the 2 weeks we spent with you in Tanzania. Thanks to your efforts…we had the 'trip of a lifetime' and so many memories, pictures and stories.
Tops on our memories were the Serengeti because it is so vast with so many different animals and landscapes to view. Each game drive brought us new, interesting and unexpected experiences. The cheetah coming out of the foliage and crossing directly in front of us one early morning; the hunt for the leopard and sliding through the terrain at end of the day, the 4 lions in the tree at sunset near our tent camp..and hearing their hunting trip that evening; the cheetah cub leading its mother and 2 other cubs around us, the giraffes behind our tent every evening; the hyena leading us from camp each morning; the zebra leading the wildebeests…are just a sliver of the interesting game we came across.
The campsite in the Serengeti is an experience we'll never forget....the warm showers at days end in the back of our tent...the chef and the great food we had…the conversations at dinnertime and at the campfires. It was so much fun getting started each day because of the anticipation of more wonderful experiences to be had.
Ngorongoro crater was also such a unique experience…so many animals .and the black rhinos… in a 'Garden of Eden' setting. Lake Manyara and Tarangire parks provided different types of animal and bird experiences. Mary has many pages of the 2 elephants fighting and we all watched with excitement whenever the monkeys and the mongooses and the baboons came into view.
Each park had excellent bungalows or tent lodges for us and the food was very good everywhere we went.
We take several trips each year and the one to Tanzania really stands above the rest because of your preparation; knowledge; stories, background and easy mannerly . Also because you can see animals long before we do. So many times we were viewing animals off by ourselves – without the congestion of 4 to 6 land rovers or bus type vehicles filled with people trying to get a view or picture before the animals left the scene. What a difference!! One of my friends went with a tour to several of the same parks with a group of 4 bus type vehicles. He described much bouncing and dusty turns as each vehicle had to let the others try to get a view. Additionally, coordinating more people from one place to another wasted time and provided less time to see everything.
Needless to say, we highly recommend you to our traveling friends. Every time we look at our pictures, talk to friends about our trip or see you again in the States…we have nothing but outstanding memories --- thanks to you!
3. Gerald and Mary Miller
Madison, WI USA
3. Date: 2007-05-16 16:20:14
Roger Griggs ( griggsrog@aol.com / no homepage) wrote:
Roger Griggs
555 Hackberry Road
Frankfort, IL 60423 USA
griggsrog@aol.com
Richard Smith
520 Sauk Trail
Fontana, WI 53125 USA
richardsmith@att.net
February 16, 2007
Mr. Kambona
Ole Tirra
Guide/Operator
Africa VIP Travel
P.O. Box 10756
Arusha, Tanzania
Dear Kambona: We wish to
thank you for the wonderful trip to Tanzania which you arranged.
All the animals we encountered on the safari were just what we had
hoped to see. But it was the Kilimanjaro climb which really completed
the trip. The guides set exactly the right pace for us, and their
knowledge of the mountain, along with the quality of the support
we received, enabled us to make the summit as anticipated.
We were also
favorably impressed with your ability to use your local contacts
to help the other clients on the trip who needed to modify their
return on KLM. I am certain they could not have kept on schedule
without your assistance.
We hope to
see you in the USA in the coming year and would be willing at any
time to describe our experience in Tanzania to prospective clients
of yours.
Regards, Roger and Rick
4. Date: 2006-07-27 12:04:47
Tad Pinkerton ( tbpinker@wisc.edu / no homepage) wrote:
My wife and
I and another couple went to Tanzania in January/February
2006 for a trip with Africa VIP Travel. Three of us climbed Mount
Kilimanjaro and then the four of us went on safari to Lake Manyara,
the Serengeti, Olduvai Gorge and Ngorongoro Crater. While we were
climbing, my wife went to Tarangire and Arusha National Parks and
visited a rural school.
This was an
excellent trip in every respect. We had met our guide,
Kambona, when he visited Madison on two occasions prior to our trip,
and he was very responsive to our email questions prior to our
departure for Africa. For the climb, Kambona selected his assistant
guide, cook and our 16 porters from among people he knew in his
home
town of Arusha (they were mostly from his own Maasai tribe). Our
cook was also a licensed guide. Our pace up the mountain was steady
but slow, giving us plenty of time to adjust to the altitude. As
we
watched Kambona interact with other guides on the mountain, it was
clear that he was a respected senior member of that group. We had
excellent weather and took lots of good pictures, and all three
of us
made it to the top without any problems. However, we also knew that
Kambona had all the necessary equipment should any of us have
experienced a problem.
We stayed
two nights in a nice resort hotel prior to the climb and
another night after the climb, before starting on the safari.
Kambona and our driver were wizards at spotting wildlife, and I
believe we saw every kind of animal that we could have expected
to
see, including lions, leopards, a cheetah and rhinos. We found
ourselves in the middle of the huge wildebeest and zebra migration
in
the Serengeti. A highlight of the Serengeti was a three-night stay
in a tent camp where we had giraffe browsing the trees nearby and
heard lions during the night.
Kambona, the
other guides and our driver all knew the Latin and
common names of the flora and fauna and had may stories to tell
us
about their behavior.
I give each
of these activities five stars and my unqualified
recommendation--you won't find a better guide!
Caution: you
can find companies that offer these trips for less
money, but this is not a place to pinch pennies. The climb can be
dangerous if the guides and safety equipment are not top quality
and
the experience can be quite uncomfortable with poor tents and food.
Tad Pinkerton
Madison, Wisconsin
tbpinker@wisc.edu
Kambona is
one of those special individuals one runs into once in a great while.
He organized a wonderful African experience for us. Our trip included
a trek to the summit of Kilimanjaro and a jam packed safari. He
has a deep fund of knowledge and is a very fine naturalist. Each
day was well thought out. He demonstrated the flexibility necessary
to take full advantaage of changing situations. His selection of
porters for our Kili trek was excellent. He is very serious concerning
his responsibilities (excellent first responder training) and yet
has a marvelous sense of fun. We have considerable trekking but
have never come away from a trip feeling better about our guide
and the experience he shared with us. Kambona is a man of considerable
experience and integrity. We are highly recommending him to our
family and friends.
6. Date: 2005-11-23 16:39:49
Jill Karol Kusba ( jkusba@yahoo.com / no homepage) wrote:
In 2003 I
went on a nine-day Kilimanjaro hike with a large self-proclaimed
reputable safari company. They promised English
speaking guides and emergency safety equipment for the hike, which
they did not provide for the entire trip. They did not even own
the emergency equipment at the time of my hike that they promised
was available prior to the hike.
I ended up
being the only one in our group of six people to reach Glacier Camp
by way of the West Breach route. During the trip I had no symptoms
of altitude sickness.
The evening
of the seventh day at the Glacier Camp, I had an acute attack of
cerebral edema. None of the porters in my group spoke English or
knew what to do to help me. Serendipitously, another small group
of hikes lead by Kambona was also in Glacier Camp.
Kambona had
prior training in emergency high altitude treatments. With his knowledge
and appropriate use of oxygen and a Gamow Bag I regained consciousness.
Without his rapid response to my advanced symptoms I would not have
regained consciousness. There was no time to be carried down to
a lower altitude to reduce my cerebral edema.
I have known
Kambona now for two years. He is a noble and honest person. He guides
his hikers with great care and is totally conscientious. I call
him a “mother hen” the way he watches over and pampers
his hikes. He has an incredible track record with successfully guiding
people to the summit of Kilimanjaro and down again safely.
I strongly
recommend hiking with Kambona and his associates. He treats his
crew with dignity and makes certain they do not injure themselves
while working as porters for the hikers. His porters have appropriate
clothing, food and shelter while on the mountain.
I still recommend
Kilimanjaro as a tremendous outdoor experience, but Kilimanjaro
is more than a long walk up a big hill. It requires a great guide
with extensive training and appropriate safety equipment to make
it a safe and enjoyable trip.
Thanks to
Kambona I am able to write this letter of high recommendation
Jill Karol
Kusba, DVM 14350 W Capitol
Dr.
Brookfield, WI 53005
Office: 262 781 5993
careanimal@aol.com
