Testimonials 2018

Joris D. (Nov)
[Mbahe Farm Cottages] We had a great 2 days, hike was great, weather couldn’t have been better. I have only heard good feedback from the group, food was good, location something they had never experienced, in a good way! Jump in the cold water equally refreshing and good!  It was great, period! Thanks!

Erin M. (Oct)
We had an amazing time; the SENE team took such good care of us. And thank you for calling my mom after our summit attempt; she’s so nervous anytime we’re travelling outside of Canada, it was much appreciated.

Mary D. (Oct) 
Everyone is excited that we summited. The weather definitely turned bad. We were so happy we went up a day earlier than planned. Felix was awesome. It was nasty coming down the day after, but we did it. I was having some issues with my stomach and hip/knee. John carried my pack for 2-3 days and he and David took me at my own pace beyond everyone else. I couldn’t have done it without them!

Thanks for all your help too! The lunch today with the whole group was awesome!!!

Ladi L. (Oct)
Dear Simon: We have safely arrived home with all our luggage (and your coffee and honey).  We will forever cherish the memories of your kindness and hospitality which made our trip an experience of a lifetime.  We look forward to an opportunity to have you and your family visit us in Vail. Asante sana!!

Shelley M. (Sep)
We had the most amazing time travelling with Sene and would definitely recommend the company to friends and family who intend on travelling to Tanzania.  Joseph and Temba were super guides, very knowledgeable, friendly and accommodating.

Melanie H. (Sep)
Arrived home on Sat. and already reflecting on what we all feel was the trip of a lifetime. I plan to email this feedback and describe the joy and meaning that this adventure has brought to us. Paschale – a wonderful and generous guide.Tim, thank you for your patience, and for choreographing a magnificent itinerary for our trip. We all plan to recommend SENE to any Aussies that we know who are planning a trip to Africa.

Jeff R. (Sep)
Team R are safely (and somewhat sadly) back in Sydney. We want to thank you and your team for a wonderful experience which was flawlessly executed. Joseph, Temba and Abraham at the farm were charming, eager to share their knowledge and were very helpful. Temba’s care with the grandchildren was exemplary. The choice of accommodation and length of time spent at each stop was perfect. The Mara Mara tented accommodation set a standard of luxury that would be hard to beat.

We did debate the use of plastic drinking bottles. As we are all becoming aware of the harm that  these do to the environment, we thought that it would be worth investigating the use of re-usable bottles. Possibly on arrival each guest could be given their own bottle which is re filled each night, with some large back up container in each vehicle. Camel-Back make a large insulated bottle which could be personalised at the start of each trip.  (We probably used about 100 bottles on this trip). Its just a thought, not a criticism but we thought that the type of  person using your company would appreciate a better solution.

We really enjoyed the stay at Simon’s farm, but did not realise how far a trip it is from the airport, possibly this is something you could make your customers aware of, just so that one is prepared. Our guide at this stage was Emanuel, he was not as communicative nor as helpful as the rest of the SENE team we encountered. The trip from the airport passed many interesting sights and insights into Tanzanian life, it would have made the three hours shorter if we had someone who could have imparted some information as we travelled.

These are not complaints, just observations that you may wish to be aware of.

We had a thoroughly delightful time and would not hesitate to use your company again and also will strongly recommend you to anyone expressing an interest in Tanzania. Best wishes and thank you again for a job well done.

Sean F. (Sep)
Thanks for everything. I had a great trip.

Saradhi S. (Aug)
Finally recovered from our Kilimanjaro experience of a lifetime. Seriously something I will treasure forever. I haven’t posted anything on social media yet, but will be sure to give SENE a tag and a shout out when I do. Your entire team from beginning to end was truly amazing and a lifesaver. I specifically wanted to give my main man Frank Temu a shout out. He did such a great job keeping my morale high, checking on me after my dad had to go down, and has a great taste in music 🙂 I really feel he would make a great head guide in the near future. Much appreciated for all your help, and will definitely recommend SENE to any of my friends looking for an amazing Tanzanian adventure!

Gavin L. (Aug)
We had an absolutely amazing time and couldn’t have better things to say about SENE, our guides, and everyone else we interacted with over our two weeks in Africa.

Tracy C. (Aug)
I wish that our on the hike experience with SENE lived up to the pre/post hike scenario. Our guide left a lot to be desired. With the amount of advance notice we had for our hike I wish that our guide had been as carefully selected as other aspects of our trip/planning and support. We were repeatedly having to fend for ourselves with regard to our experience and in times where we might be sore/injured or sick there was very low tolerance for that. We both had third degree sunburns and severely blistered (likely something that the guide might have suggested that as individuals not used to being so close to the equator we might take extra precautions). We were repeatedly lectured about our pace, over dependence on hiking poles and significant time where our lead guide was more keen to socialize with friends than hike along with us.

Danielle S. (Aug)
Thank you so much Tim, we had an incredible time in Tanzania, Kenya, at the school and on Safari! It was an incredible trip from start to finish and we are thankful for all of your organization and proper handling of our itinerary each step of the way! Paschal is a wonderful person, as was everyone we met on our journey, truly amazing and we will not forget a single person who contributed to a memorable family holiday. One that my kids will remember for their entire life, nothing like the first time in Africa!

Brian F. (Jul)
I wanted to let you and Simon know how grateful I am for the once-in-a-lifetime experience SENE provided. I had an awesome time and appreciate all of the work that Augustino, John, and the whole crew provided. I have been asked countless times about how hard the climb was and I am very honest in my reply: my part of the trip was easy because I simply had to walk up the mountain. The team made it easy for me. I really do mean it when I say I appreciate everything they did for me.

I could write you a novel, but I want you to know that I enjoyed every facet of the trip, from the staying at the awesome, comfortable cottages, to the food, to the climb, and to the views (and the hot shower after getting off the mountain!). I also enjoyed getting to know some of the crew (though I wish I could have got to know all of them). I appreciate each of them that took the time to talk to us about where they were from, their family, etc.

The only part of the trip that was slightly uncomfortable was the tipping process at the celebratory lunch. I will first say that I had absolutely no problem tipping the crew. I struggled mightily with the amount to tip. I wanted to provide every member of the crew with something extra. I did not feel that I could provide a tip to some but not others because I recognize that each member of the crew had a hand in getting me to the top of the mountain. (Ziggy carried my bag, Emanuel carried Kyle’s and helped us reach the summit, Robson cooked amazing food, Colorado did a great job serving our food, Damien (Moidembe – which I know spelled wrong) assisted with cooking, Antone carried water, Nelson carried supplies, etc. I wish I remembered everyone’s name, but I know they all contributed mightily.)

Ultimately, I did my best in allocating the cash that that I brought among the entire crew, and while I distributed all of the cash that I brought, I still didn’t feel like it was enough. Again, I appreciate all of their hard work and hope that what I was able to give was sufficient (and impactful). That said, it was uncomfortable sitting at a table with the crew watching Kyle and I as we tried to determine how much to provide to each member. Even after we came up with an allocation, I was not comfortable pulling out a large sum of money to distribute (especially since the larger bills needed to be broken down into smaller bills). We asked Augustino (and the SENE representative – I cannot remember his name) if it was acceptable to get change for our bills and to provide the tips to SENE the following morning. They did say that was acceptable, but I do feel like the crew was somewhat disappointed with not receiving a tip that day. I do hope that I didn’t offend any member of the crew and I do hope they fully understand how much I appreciate all of their help.

I hope this feedback is helpful to you, Simon, and SENE. I am happy to discuss in more detail if you would like and I would be more than happy to provide how exciting, amazing, awesome, well-run, organized, etc. my experience with SENE was. I certainly did not go wrong with choosing SENE as my guide to the rooftop of Africa.

Christopher C. (Jul)
It was a wonderful trip and experience from start to finish. Great itinerary; perfect balance of activities. The highlight of the trip for me was meeting all of the SENE guides and porters and cooks and getting to know everyone. That made the hiking portion and summit experience both doable and rewarding. And, Willie was an excellent driver and guide. We enjoyed his company very much.  We will certainly recommend SENE (as it was recommended to us) in the future.

Ted L. (Jul)
Don’t hesitate to choose SENE.
(Ted also noted some disappointments: “The number of people on Kilimanjaro–next time I might look for a quieter route. Safari menu same as climb menu.” Ed. note: Ted climbed via the Machame route and had a standard camping safari.)

Marty F. (Jul)
What a great adventure we had! I have a hundred nice things to say about the SENE Tanzania team. Felix did an amazing job of varying the climb schedule so that he could ensure that a 14, 16, and 17 year old got to the summit. You know as well as I how difficult that is!

I would recommend one thing to all of your clients that would make summit day a bit easier, Kahtoola microspike crampons. There’s a lot of snow at the top, I was really surprised. As ultrarunners we’ve been using these for years and they’re amazing. Although [our group] were fairly efficient on the slippery ice and snow even without the kahtoola’s, folks on other teams were having difficulties and I would expect some of your other clients who haven’t traveled much on snow/ice might have issues. Incredibly, we observed a team in climbing boots and regular crampons, way overkill. The kahtoolas are lightweight insurance against someone taking a hard fall at the top. I suppose maybe all the snow at the top might go away in the Tanazania summer? Felix said it was the most snow they’ve seen in sometime.

Leni K. (Jul)
Dear Simon, Felix, Joseph and Tim –
A HUGE thank you for a fantastic vacation! I cannot say enough positive things about our entire experience.
Start to finish – SENE is in a class all by itself in terms of just about everything: attention to detail, safety, knowledge, kindness, professionalism, service, and inspiration – WOW!
I will happily and wholeheartedly recommend SENE from here forward and hope we can return again before too long!
Our kids keep thanking us for such an amazing experience and we keep having to tell them it’s SENE they need to thank 🙂
We had an awesome time on the climb and enjoyed all of the crew – Felix is such a rock star and I swear his summit crew sang to us the last 1500-2000 vertical feet of our climb! Menasse and John took such good care of us. And the food (we want Kiplet to write a cookbook!) – what can I say, but YUM!
We all couldn’t get enough of touring Simon’s farm – that place is incredible and it was so generous of him to spend the entire day with us! I loved getting to meet his boys and Tara too – what a lovely family.
And then there was our Adventures with Joseph 🙂 We all loved having Joseph as our guide – he is incredibly knowledgeable, patient, intuitive, full of great stories and has a great sense of humor. We could not believe all the animals we saw during the safari – I don’t think we could’ve asked for a better outcome.
We all left feeling a bit of sadness, not because our vacation was over, but because it felt like we were saying goodbye to family.
I truly hope we are able to remain in touch with everyone. Thank you for taking such good care of all of us. Both S and R are so proud of their accomplishment of summiting Kili and they are already talking about when and how they can visit again. S wants to find a way to do service work too.

A deep THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for memories that will last a lifetime.

Mark R. (Jun)
I want to first off say “Ahsante Sana!” to you and all the staff at SENE for making our safari truly an unforgettable experience!
Our guide Gerald was such a pleasure to be with the entire time, with his vast amount of experience on all the wild life, locations and everything in general!
We will never forget all the amazing things we did and saw throughout our journey!
I have been extremely busy from the day I returned home, so I haven’t had time to post any reviews yet, but I assure you I will.
Everything you put together on our itinerary exceeded our expectations from the locations we traveled, the accommodations we stayed at, the food and the activities we did!
Truly an experience we will all remember for ever!
I will definitely recommend SENE to all my friends that want to do a safari, which will be several after the pictures we have shared of our experience.
Again, thanks for everything and making our safari the best we could have ever imagined!

Charles B. (Jun)
Thanks for a great trip. Definitely memorable and the SENE team treated us like kings.

Dan B. (Jun)
SENE’s professionalism, service, and competent and friendly guides and support staff provided a fabulous once in a lifetime experience climbing Kilimanjaro. Their knowledge of the mountain and region, jovial and friendly leadership, and professional attention to our safety and summit success gave us confidence every day of the hike. I whole-heartedly recommend SENE for any who would like to reach the summit.

Séverine. B (Jun) 
Poa Nathalie (On ne sait si ça s écrit comme ca 😀 ). Nous sommes plus que ravis de notre séjour en Tanzanie. On vous a déjà donné nos excellentes impressions sur Félix et la ferme Mbahe. On a adoré la suite du voyage et le safari.  Rickson est un super guide et une belle personne. Chaque jour a été une expérience différente et unique, du parc ngorongoro à la rencontre avec une famille Masaai. Les lodges étaient vraiment très biens : très propres, spacieux, rien à redire pour le personnel. Même si elle était différente, la nourriture était excellente partout.
Nous avons déjà prévu de vous recommander au parrain de Damien et à sa tante qui prévoient un voyage prochainement en Tanzanie.
Merci pour tout.

Linda B. (Jun)
Quick email but the student visit was fantastic! Simon was his usual charismatic self. And the SENE staff from chef to waiter, guide to porter were fabulous!

Craig  S. (Jun)
Great trip. Still can’t believe it really happened. Sene was great each step of the way.

David  G. (May)
Hello Nathalie,
It was an amazing trip.  The entire SENE team was sensational.  The climb was planned superbly.  Pickup at the airport was effortless and smooth.  The ride to Mbahe Village was a ton of fun where we were pleasantly greeted by friendly porters as we made our way to the dining room and cottages.  The food was great.  I so appreciated the hospitality and oversight.  The next day, our lead guide reviewed all our gear and made a few wise recommendations about what to leave behind.  The planning list provided in advance was quite complete, so there were no omissions.
The crew continually amazed us on the mountain.  It was a fantastic and well-orchestrated effort.  We miss them!
The 6-day safari was wonderful as well.  Excellent planning.  Our driver did a fantastic job.
Thank you so much for a great experience!

Jane W. (Mar)
It is rare in life that reality exceeds our fantasies. That was certainly the case for me on my recent Safari with SENE. Everything from the initial communication from Simon through the excellent planning our custom itinerary and personal advice and assistance by Tim to the fantastic safari tent camps made the adventure effortless. But our guides made our adventure the most fun and magical imaginable. Gerald and Pascali must be the best guides in all of Tanzania… so much expertise, knowledge, patience, wisdom , humor, and winning personalities! SENE is the best!!![/ale_testimonial]

Adam S. (Mar) 
Asante Sana. I had a fantastic time in Tanzania!  We witnessed a complete elephant funeral on the Serengeti!  Gerald, mine and Jane’s driver, was great!  He was always a couple steps ahead and put us in prime viewing/photographing position every time.
I plan on looking into SENE for a Kilimanjaro climb in the future.

Brian J. (Mar) 
It was fascinating to learn about the farming practices and community around Moshi. Running along the forest border was lovely, especially around the deep gorge and thin waterfall.

Kristen G. (Feb)
Tim,
Thanks so much for the kind note! We had an amazing trip and came home with many wonderful memories. We’ll definitely be singing the praises of SENE to anyone who will listen!
Thanks especially for your helpful emails and patience with our never-ending questions. We appreciate your guidance along the way!
Please convey our thanks to Simon and the amazing crew we worked with – other Tim, John, Arnold, David, and Joseph especially.
Asante sana!

Ed B. (Feb)
We can’t begin to thank you and the SENE crew enough for making our trip a “trip of a lifetime.” Truly what an epic adventure and we cannot thank all the great people at SENE who helped. And as far as Emily and I having to go down, it’s all good in my book. At least we were on the playing field and in the game. We have a great crew to thank including our guides Tim, John and Arnold. When Emily had chest pains, they were very attentive and made sure we were taken care of immediately. And as for the other supermen who help cook, clean, porter and more – we are forever grateful. And lest we not forget Wilson and Lenny and all the great people at the farm. In addition, Emily and I want to thank Maureen and Timothy from the home office for all they did to make sure we were comfortable in Moshi after the climb. Lastly big shout out to our safari guide Joseph. Wow, does this guy have eagle eyes or what??? He could pick out things that none of us would ever have been able to see. And his driving skills, especially in the rainy weather, were outstanding. And also that he had a year of mechanics school under his belt gave us extra confidence on our trip.

Rest assured I will be recommending and posting about SENE in the social links below. And as Kristen said, thank you for all the helpful emails and patience with our never-ending questions. You are invaluable to the SENE organization and many people rely on your good work.

Onward and upward we go Tim – and thanks to you – we really did!

Joan C. (Feb)  (14th trip) 
Fabulous as always. The workers are the best–the same familiar faces. Could not do our trip without Felix. The ladies loved his hikes through the waterfalls and the village.

Curt H. (Jan)
I want to tell you that our trip was outstanding.  It was extra special with Simon able to join us.  It was so successful that I am considering another trip in 2020.