K & T Classic Safari - Tips from January, 2022 Trip

OMG. This was an AMAZING trip!!! The numbers of animals we saw astonished us. We saw the BIG 5 multiple times including 3 sightings of 3 different leopards (one with a fresh kill), a cheetah mom and babies with a fresh kill, more of all the other big 5 animals than we could count, lots of baby elephants, zebras, giraffes, and several prides of lions with cubs. Hard to pick a favorite moment - maybe it was watching a pair of lions mating (that was interesting!!!), maybe it was going out with trackers and finding a lioness with 3 day old cubs, or maybe it was seeing a male lion majestically come through the woods into an open expanse of grass and roar and then spot 2 lionesses laying on the grass not far away responding with their roars. The guides spotted things we would have never seen and they were a wealth of info on animal behavior.

Weather - The weather was great. Low 80's during the day, maybe into the 50's at night. One day was chilly and it rained a bit but that cut down on the dust.

Accommodations - all were great but SWEETWATER is spectacular. Who knew? These tents have glass doors, double sinks, and a deck for viewing all the elephants, zebras, buffalo, etc that walk on by. We all wished we could have stayed at least another day just to relax, sit on our deck and enjoy the safari walking past our tent.

Rest Stops - Prior to going on this trip, I asked this forum contributors about peeing on safari. I was given what turned out to be excellent advice. Ladies, buy a Freshette on Amazon for $24, check out youTube videos on using an FUD, practice using it at home, and enjoy the trip! I only needed to use it once while "checking the tires" but I used it multiple times in gross rest rooms. It's a great invention. You should also buy a "pee cloth" - yes, that's what they're called. It's environmentally friendlier than toilet paper. I stashed the FUD, pee cloth and a small travel sized roll of toilet paper in a small zippered waterproof pouch that I hooked onto my belt loop with a carabiner. (You will need toilet paper in some of the rest rooms).

Vehicles - There will be LOTS of bumping around/up/down/sideways on dirt roads full of rocks. Buy a self-inflating seat cushion. I got Deerfamy cushions for my husband and me - $19 on Amazon. Can't say they really self-inflated but just a few puffs into the valve and they were ready to use. Super easy to deflate and store in their little bags and very lightweight. My husband thought I was a wuss buying these and didn't use his on the first game drive. He truly appreciated it on all subsequent outings! (These didn't come with instructions so be sure to google how to inflate/deflate).

Bugs - we didn't see many. Except in our hotel room at the Four Seasons. And we saw some tse tse flies on game drives out of the Four Seasons but we were told the ones in that area do not carry disease. They just hurt when they bite. Not sure if that's true but none of us were bit.

Binoculars - we have 5 pairs of binoculars and don't like any of them. I did some research and bought Nikon Monarch M5 8x42. Perfect!

Cameras - we used our iPhones - 11Pro Max. We got decent pix but a travel mate had iPhone 13 and wow, what a difference. And then, there was the photographer extraordinaire in our group with REAL camera equipment and the pix he was able to get are breathtaking!

Qatar Airlines - we discovered why they've been rated the best 6 years in a row. They are superb. They clean the bathrooms after every person uses them!!! The lie flat seats in business class are comfy. They give you PJ's!!! The flight attendants are super attentive. The food is good. Be sure to take advantage of the lounge if you stop in Doha. Doha airport at 1 in the morning looks like Grand Central Station. All the shops were open and everything was abuzz!

Travellers Health Surveillance Form & Pre-Payment of $10 Covid Test - This has to be done within 24 hours of arrival in Tanzania which creates a dilemma with timing. I figured I'd do this in Doha between flights and started the process on my phone. Nope. Did NOT work. For some weird reason, I had to do it on my iPad and it worked. But ... I couldn't print it. I suggest you use a computer in the Business Center in the lounge to complete the Surveillance form and pay for the test.

UK's Passenger Locator Form - also a pain with the timing and again a problem trying to print it. If you're landing in London for a transfer flight to U.S., (even if you're not staying in the UK), you need to complete this form on line. I did this on iPad at the Serena hotel in Nairobi (a beautiful property) but again couldn't print. I tried sending it to the hotel's email account but it wouldn't transmit. Had to use hotel computer to access and print the form.

Attestation Form - Supposedly the US requires this form for re-entry to the U.S. But nobody knows anything about it. Coming back from Iceland, the ticket agent had to complete it for us. Coming back from Africa, they asked for it, I said I didn't have it, and that was the end of it. We re-entered with no problem.

Assante to Tauck for crafting a truly unforgettable trip and for hiring the best tour directors! Shout out to Chris Mancini and all our driver/guides for doing a great job!