East Africa: Kenya and Tanzania (August 2007)

East Africa 2007

(including United Arab Emirates [Dubai], Kenya [Nairobi, Masai Mara], Tanzania [Serengeti, Zanzibar, and Dar es Salaam])




Reviews

Emirates Business Class

Complimentary Chauffeur Service:

JFK: At JFK, Emirates uses Boston Coach (www.bostoncoach.com) for their transportation. Vehicles were comfortable (Towncars and Cadillacs), drivers seemed knowledgeable. Upon arrival at JFK, business and first-class passengers who used the chauffeur service are met at the car by an airline representative, who supervises the removal of your luggage and assigns it to porters who take you right to the appropriate counter. Our only issue was that service is provided within a 60-mile radius (we live about 90-miles away), and we were not even able to pay for the additional routing. Instead, we drove our car and parked within the 60-mile radius in order to use the service. There wasn’t much of a hassle, and it was well worth the service that we received upon arriving in the car at JFK.

Dubai: We also used the chauffeur service in Dubai to get to/from our stopover hotel. Even if you have made your reservation previously, find the Emirates “room” (counter) after claiming your luggage and request your car. There wasn’t more than a 3-minute wait. Upon arrival back in NY, again find the Emirates representative after claiming your bags to reconfirm your transportation (not more than a 2-minute wait).
Nairobi and Dar es Salaam: No chauffeur service available.

Lounges:

JFK Lounge: Fabulous! The best food we’ve had at an airline lounge (e.g., filet mignon, shrimp cocktail, Asian foods). Good restroom facilities, comfortable chairs and couches for lounging, full range of self-service beverages, lots of staff.
Tip: Wait in the lounge until you are called for boarding, then you’ll breeze right onto the plane without having to wait at all. I got a bit antsy, since we were still (uncalled) in the lounge 20 minutes before take-off, but they really seem to know what they are doing.

Dubai Lounge: Business class lounge was good; probably the first class lounge is better and more comparable to the combination lounge at JFK. There are upper and lower floors. The upper floor seems used by smokers, primarily, because that’s where the smoking area was. There are computer terminals (free internet access) in the smoking area, a small food/drink service area (there is a much larger area downstairs), several TVs, and small restroom facilities (larger facilities available downstairs).There are flight boards throughout the facility, and the usual announcements are made. Wait in the lounge until you are called. The boarding procedure at the Dubai Airport takes a long time, so it is best not to go until you are called; there are multiple security checkpoints before boarding the plane, and it takes a long time if you try to clear with the larger number of coach passengers (again, I got antsy waiting).

Dar es Salaam Lounge: The Tanzanite Lounge is rather poor, but still preferable to waiting in the general boarding area. It is air-conditioned, and has free drinks and some limited hot snacks, as well as restroom facilities. Think of someone’s basement, with dark leather couches, the Tanzanian versions of “Dogs Playing Poker”, and that’s the Dar priority lounge. At least there WAS a lounge.

Equipment:

Boeing 777-200 (JFK to Dubai and Dubai to JFK): Excellent! We had the nearly lie-flat slumberette beds in business class. We saw the first class seats on our flight from Dubai to JFK, and they had the in-seat mini-bars (not sure if they had the enclosed “pods” or not. Definitely what I aspire to on my next flight!) These seats enabled my husband and I to get some actual sleep for the first time ever on an international flight, so it was worth the ticket price (used the American Express Platinum buy 1/get 1 free deal). Service was good, but not exceptional (service was better on the return than the outbound). The ICE entertainment system kept us busy when we weren’t sleeping--there were too many movie, TV, music choices to mention. The food was quite good. Three meals were served on the transatlantic flights: dinner (three entree choices), snack (three choices), and breakfast (three choices), accompanied by cocktails and various wines. There were additional snacks (e.g., sandwiches, fruit, chips) available in the galley whenever you liked. Meals are followed by a cart with desserts, cheeses, fruits, chocolates, and coffee/port/cordials. The cabins and bathrooms were kept clean. There were plenty of amenities available whenever one desired in the lavatories (e.g., toothbrushes, paste, razors, shaving cream, moisturizer, perfume/aftershave). Hot towels are passed out before/after all meals. There is a good selection of magazines and newspapers. Blankets, pillows, socks, eyeshades are provided, as well as noise cancelling headphones. There are separate amenity kits handed out for men and women, with the usual toothbrush, paste, comb, razor, deodorant, lotion, lip balm, etc. The business class cabin is large; if possible, request the smaller front cabin (behind first class) with just two rows, instead of the larger cabin with approximately six rows. The seating configuration is surprising for a business class cabin (2-3-2), but with the upgraded seats with the privacy panels and the amount of space between rows, even the middle seat in the middle configuration would be rather good. The middle bulkhead seats had the same large (I think it was 19” monitors) as the other seats; however, the bulkhead seats in the 2-seat side configuration had smaller (17” monitors) that pulled out from the armrests. Not only were the screens smaller (although who needs a 19” screen on the plane??), but they must have made the seat width slightly narrower (although the seats are wide enough for you to sit sideways or with one’s feet Indian-style for variation). There were NO laptop power ports at the seats--my only minor complaint about this aircraft. There is a neat nighttime starry sky displayed on the roof of the cabin during sleeping times.

Airbus 320 (Dubai to Nairobi and Dar es Salaam to Dubai): This aircraft is poor in comparison to the 777. We had problems with the entertainment system on all of our flights, but especially on this aircraft where you must request small cassette tapes to watch movies. It seemed rather archaic, and my first tape got stuck in the arm of the seat and was not fixable. On another flight, we were unable to remove the GUI directional information from the monitors, so it was difficult to watch a film unimpeded. The screens were smaller (less than 15”), and the seats not nearly as comfortable. The screens really ARE GUI, but you need to press so hard that it causes movement to the seat of the person in front of you. The business-class seats were certainly preferable to economy class, but they weren’t very wide, so you were unable to turn to either side to achieve a comfortable position for sleeping. Socks and eyeshades were provided, but no other amenity kit. Blanket, pillow, and noise-cancelling headphones also distributed. One meal was served; no dessert cart was seen in business class. We compared this flight to a first-class domestic flight in the United States: better than coach, but certainly not international business class (even though we flew internationally). The aircraft had the same 2-3-2 configuration. Our flight from Dubai to Nairobi was changed from a 3-class to a 2-class piece of equipment after booking.

Bottom Line: We would definitely use Emirates again, especially on the transatlantic portion! They allowed us a multi-night stopover in Dubai free of charge, and we were supposedly able to claim Continental (or alternately United) miles for our flights, which will be more usable to us in the future instead of Emirates miles (but we still haven’t received our miles, even a week after the completion of our itinerary, or even for the first outbound leg, which took place three weeks ago). We should each receive enough miles for a free domestic ticket in the US (about 25,000 each), or to use for upgrades. Emirates participates in the American Express Platinum buy 1/get 1 free program, although you are purchasing the first ticket at a higher business class (refundable) rate rather than the lowest business rate that you can find online (but it still saved us money).

Airports:

JFK: We used the new Terminal 4, which even has its own website (www.jfkiat.com). There really isn’t much to do within security in the terminal, so we spent our time in the lounge. You cannot smoke anywhere within the airport, including in the Emirates lounge.

Dubai: Huge airport, with about 4 floors (website www.dubaiairport.com)). It’s nearly all duty-free shops, the largest we’ve ever seen. They resemble grocery stores, with many cashiers lined up, each running a separate conveyor belt/cash register. All the usuals are for sale (e.g., liquor, cigarettes, perfume, jewelry), but also less frequently seen items like TVs, blenders, and other household appliances. Passengers walk through the airport with their luggage carts (which resemble shopping carts) piled high with duty-free. There are smoking rooms and other stations throughout the airport, including in the Emirates lounge. In August of 2007, there was NO visa required for US citizens who were on a 96-hour stopover in Dubai (or for transit passengers). Emirates passengers with a layover of greater than 4 hours are entitled to a meal in specific restaurants. There are separate lounges for business and first-class passengers.

Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta (International): We didn’t spend much time there, but the airport seemed older in style (website www.kenyaairports.com/jkia). The few shops and restaurants that we saw were small and cramped. But to be fair, we didn’t spend enough time there to make an accurate comment. We got visas for Kenya before leaving the States, and we were glad when we saw the line at the airport (not that you need to rush anywhere, unless you’ve got a connecting flight). The visas were about $50 each USD for single-entry, and we paid another $50 USD each for the service who got them for us (see A Briggs at www.abriggs.com).

Nairobi Wilson (Domestic): Wilson is the domestic airport in Nairobi (website www.kenyaairports.com/wilson). We flew on SafariLink (website www.safarilink-kenya.com), but it seemed that all airlines operated similarly. Each airline has its own small building, where you must go to check in and check luggage. The SafariLink building has a small snack bar and restrooms. There is no smoking inside, but it’s not a problem outside. You are then mini-bused to the small airport facility from which you will fly. Once through security, there are two duty-free shops and restrooms, but they are in separate small buildings. There is a small waiting area with seats, but there are many more passengers than room to comfortably wait. We have used other domestic airports before, and this didn’t resemble anything we had previously seen, whereby you could pull up to the doors an hour before your flight, find your appropriate airline counter, check in, and have a quick wait in a shop or coffee bar. There was no problems with it; it just wasn’t what we were expecting. There is a small window for customs/immigration, which you’ll need to use if flying from the domestic airport to Tanzania or another country (this was fast and easy, and the staff from SafariLink led us by the hand through the steps). There is no coffee shop in the main departure area, but I believe that one of the two shops sold cold drinks and packaged snacks. There is regular security here, and our bags at the SafariLink “terminal” WERE weighed.

Kichwa Tembo Private Airstrip: I think that this was a paved (macadam) runway, surprising for being out in the middle of nowhere. We flew on a rather large plane between Wilson and Kichwa Tembo, probably holding about 50 passengers, having a restroom, and even a flight attendant who served hard candy and bottled water. This plane was much larger than I had imagined it would be, but the planes would get smaller from here on in. There is no formal airport building, only a small round seating area with a bench and covered by a roof (but open on the sides). There are no bathroom facilities at this airstrip; no running water; no electricity. We were met by staff from Bateleur, and greeted with a wonderful champagne welcome (including crystal flutes). It was a great beginning to our safari, and we would soon grow accustomed to the unbelievable luxury of the CC Africa lodges and staff! It was immediately apparent that we chose the best company for our safari (although we did not book through CC Africa itself). Luggage is NOT weighed here, and there is NO security.

Kilimanjaro International Airport (KIA): Our flight departed Wilson late, and therefore arrived in Kilimanjaro late (probably by about an hour) (website www.kilimanjaroairport.co.tz). We flew Regional Air from Kilimanjaro to the Crater (Lake Manyara Airport). Since our flight was full, we did not need to stop in Arusha en route to the Crater, although some flights may if there aren’t enough passengers for the direct flight. Kilimanjaro is a “real” airport, but still very small. I only saw one snack bar inside, several bathroom facilities, and (joy!) an indoor/outdoor smoking area near the departure gates. There were a few shops outside of the security area (I saw some fake designer bags in the windows). The staff at Kili were great--and also led us by the hand through baggage claim and luggage recheck. There was no wait at the visa window, although we had gotten our visas before leaving the US ($50 USD each, plus another $50 each for the service). There is regular security here, and we were not allowed to take liquids on board with us. Luggage was not weighed, even though there were facilities.

Lake Manyara Airport: This is an actual airport, but teeny-tiny. The runways are paved (macadam). There is a small departure area (think grandma’s basement, complete with velour sofas) where you can smoke. There is a building across the parking lot with crafts and souvenirs. There is a bathroom building nearby, which even had toilet paper, soap, and running water on my arrival (but none of those on my departure, so it seems variable). People were quite nice. There was nowhere to buy drinks or snacks (which isn’t a problem if you use CC Africa, for they won’t let you go hungry or thirsty for a moment and always pack you a to-go bag with a sandwich, small dessert, fruit, nuts, and drink box; sandwiches were delicious!). Luggage was not weighed, and I did not see any facilities.

Arusha Airport: This is a CUTE little airport, with everything that you need: tiny coffee bar, several small shops, snack bar/coffee house, decent restrooms. There is no problem smoking here, since everything is indoor/outdoor. There is a security scanner and X-ray machine, but it was no problem taking liquids on board. Luggage was not weighed, and I did not see any facilities (although we transferred through). I would fly through this airport anytime!

Zanzibar International Airport: This is a small airport, but very traditional (website www.zanzibar-airport.com). It is indoor, and semi-air conditioned with chiller machines. Oddly, there is no restroom after passing through security, but it wasn’t a problem to go back out if necessary. There is a restaurant (?called the Palm Tree Terrace?), but again, it was prior to security so not really accessible. There are two shops inside (one duty-free with lots of books), one that sells drinks and snacks. There is NO smoking inside this airport. There was even a priority lounge (I guess for first class passengers flying internationally), but it had NO amenities other than being blocked off from the masses (no services inside). We flew Coastal Air from Zanzibar to Dar es Salaam, and since we arrived at the airport early, they put us on an earlier flight, so we only spent about 20 minutes waiting (it would be tough to spend 1+ hours here constructively). This was the only airport where we needed to pay a departure tax, which was $5 USD per person for flying domestically (I think it was $30 USD for international). They took dollars for the fee. All the check-in counters are almost at the curb (so outside), and those flying Kenyan Air looked the most harried.

Julius Nyerere International Airport (JNIA) in Dar es Salaam: For one of the country’s two main international airports, this was surprisingly disappointing. Helpful Hint: Use a porter! It will be $5 or $10 well spent. They greeted us at the car door, whisked us through special security line, waited to grab bags, and then deposited us at the airline check-in counter (even though no one knew at that time that we were business class). There were shops outside, but the inside security business takes a bit of time, and I wouldn’t linger outside too much. The ”regular” security line was quite long, and there were at least two other security checkpoints inside. We weren’t allowed to take matches on-board, and they screened our bags heavily. Our luggage was weighed (with the meat-hook type devices, not digitally). There are a few nice shops inside security, along with a snack bar. There are a good variety of souvenirs, and reasonably-priced. Another airport where it’s difficult to spend 1+ hours, though. The priority Tanzanite Lounge was disappointing (see my other review for Emirates), but still better than waiting with the masses. The airport is not air-conditioned except after passing through the final security scan just before boarding, where there were chillers. There were bathroom facilities (though small for the number of people waiting), but there was NO smoking allowed inside (even though it seemed sort of an open-air building). I wouldn’t jump at the chance to fly through here again, unless it really fits my schedule well--just disappointing for an international airport.

Tours:

Desert Safari (Sandboarding and Dunebashing in Dubai) with Hormuz Tours (website www.hormuztourism.com) Hormuz was extremely responsive to my e-mails (unlike many other companies in Dubai), and they offered the exact tour that we wanted at a reasonable rate. (I think we paid $40 per person, excluding gratuity for a private tour.) I did NOT want to take the afternoon desert safari that included dinner at a bedouin camp, which was what most companies offered. The driver picked us up at our Dubai hotel for the hour drive to the desert. The drive is fairly interesting, with lots of construction projects along the way (they are building Dubailand: Dubai’s version of DisneyWorld, scheduled to open in 2010, I believe.) The road conditions were excellent. We actually left the emirate of Dubai in order to dune bash in Sharjah. The car (SUV) was comfortable, and the driver was friendly. We stopped at a small store just before dune bashing so that the driver could deflate the car tires in preparation for dune bashing. The store sold cold drinks, small souvenirs, and had restroom facilities (which we did not use). Dune bashing was really scary! We definitely should have signed a release waiver, and worn helmets. There isn’t much preventing the vehicle from flipping over on the soft dunes (they are really powdery--not hard-packed like the sand that we drive on in the beaches in the US), because you are going at a high rate of speed up and down some serious hills. It was fun, but I almost wanted to turn back several times because I couldn’t get the idea of flipping out of my head. We saw some camels being herded in the desert. The sandboarding was tough--not quite like skiing, and we’ve never actually snow boarded, so we can’t make a comparison. Going down is fun, but when you fall, the sand is burning hot! And you’ve got to walk back up any hill that you board down. If you’re worried about sandboarding, you can always just sit on the board and go down on your butt. But you do have to come back up after the fun.

Kudos for Kennedy! Waymark Safaris in Nairobi (website www.waymarksafari.com) As everyone online gushes, Kennedy is a great guy! He gave us a tour of Nairobi, including Kenyan Wildlife Services for the “cheetah hug” (highly recommended!), the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage, Langatta Giraffe Center, Karen Blixen Museum (we didn’t feel that this sight had any particular merit for us personally, and wish we had saved the time and entrance fee). Our tour also included the Utamadumi Craft Center (with optional lunch at Verandah), and the Bomas of Kenya, but we really only wanted to see the cheetah, ellies, and giraffes, so we went back to the hotel early. We paid for the whole day anyway, about $70 per person, excluding gratuities to the KWS guide, Kennedy, and the entrance fees to the sites. I think the entry fee for each site was approximately $10 USD per person; the Karen Blixen Museum was the only sight that required Kenyan shillings rather than USD. Kennedy, being the great guy that he was, agreed to change some money for us (I can’t believe we weren’t more prepared, but most of our trip was prepaid months ago). The other amazing thing that Kennedy did for us: My husband and I each bought a Tilley hat for our safari. My husband used his hat on a previous vacation, but mine was brand-new. We took the hats on our day tour with Kennedy (but didn’t use them), and proceeded to leave them in the back (luggage area) of his SUV. We didn’t even realize it until 9:00 pm that night (the night before our departure on safari). Kennedy offered to drive the hats to the airport for us, but we really didn’t expect to get them back, especially after seeing the unique airline building/departure terminal setup at Wilson. The minutes kept ticking by, and just when we had given up hope, an airline representative brought the hats out to us. We gave her a tip to give Kennedy, since we couldn’t go back out through security. We are unbelievably grateful to him! It was nice to meet since a kind and good-hearted person on our first full day in Africa.

Balloon Safari (from Bateleur Camp in the Masaai Mara)
This was the only part of our trip that didn’t go as planned. We were awoken at 4:00 to prepare for a 5:00 am departure to the ballooning site. After an hour’s drive, we reached the take-off spot, where we received a briefing from an incredibly funny balloon pilot and were offered hot drinks. It was a wet morning, so they started blowing up the balloons with fans in order to dry them off. Then several test balloons (regular helium balloons) were sent up, but it was determined that it was too windy to fly that day. I’m sure they would have done everything possible to send those balloons up, since at $435 per person x 40 people (2 balloons each held 12 passengers, and 1 balloon held 16 passengers) meant a lot of missed money that day (although our travel agent has promised us a refund, we are still waiting for it over three weeks later). The balloon safari was run by Governor’s Camps (www.governorscamps.com). We were back at our camp by 7:00, in time to take the morning game drive (I think the balloon company called the camps to make sure they waited for their guests). Our game drive that day turned out to be excellent, so it was a good consolation for the missed balloon experience. We tried to rebook for the next day, but there was no space available. As long as you heart won’t be broken if you can’t go, it seems like a great experience. Just seeing the little that we did, it’s something that we will try to do again in the future (even if it’s in the US).

Masaai Village (from Klein’s Camp in the Serengeti)
We paid $40 total for my husband and I to visit this village. The money goes directly to the family whose house you visit. We went late in the afternoon (probably arriving around 4:30 pm), and we got to go inside one of the small bomas. There were three teeny-tiny rooms, if you could call them that: the mother’s bed, the father’s bed, and a small common area where there’s a fire and where simple meals are eaten. I think that the children sleep in the father’s bed when he is not there, for when the father does visit and spend the night, the children are sent elsewhere (men have more than one wife, and all wives live in the same cluster of bomas). The most astounding part of the house is that half of it is taken up by a cattle pen filled with calves. This is to keep them warm and safe. Despite the close quarters, I thought that the house and pen were neatly kept and did not smell. Amazingly, the animals were absolutely quiet while we were inside--there was no “mooing”, and had I not seen them through a tiny window, I wouldn’t have even known that they were inside right next to me. The local women all rush to the area in hopes of selling their crafts (mostly beadwork and carved wooden objects; there were no textiles or paintings, which I was interested in buying). Prices seemed fair. The tour is a good opportunity to see the local people (or rather, the women and children). We also visited the newly-established clinic and passed both the primary and secondary schools and the town center (surprisingly, there was a satellite dish, and people were dressed in traditional Western clothing). Some Masaai seem to adopt modern conveniences when they choose to (we saw D cell batteries on the mother’s bed), but for the most part, they live an authentic lifestyle and it’s worth seeing.

Stonetown (in Zanzibar, Tanzania)
We took a 2-hour tour of Stonetown before leaving the island of Zanzibar. We stayed at the Palms, which was a 1-hour drive each way to Stonetown, so rather than give up half a day of relaxation for the tour, we decided to leave for the airport a bit early and see it en route. (This was a wise choice, for while it was a nice tour, it was quite hot and not worth giving up our luxurious post at the Palms.) We saw the main sites: synagogue (closed after noon on Fridays for services), House of Wonders, Old Slave Market, Anglican Church, Roman Catholic Church, markets (meat, fish, spice, vegetable), ampitheatre. We used a Unicef guide, who charged $20 per person, probably a bit steep, but he did manage to steer us to all the proper places in a short amount of time. The passageways were narrow, and we certainly would have gotten lost. Our map wasn’t very good (Stonetown was much larger than we envisioned). I didn’t see any of the hotels that I had considered staying at for one night (we looked at Emerson & Green, Sultan’s Palace, Serena Inn), but in retrospect, it was a bit noisy and crowded and wouldn’t have suited us.

Hotels:

Link to My Review of Dar al Masyaf (at Madinat Jumeirah)

Link to My Review of the House of Waine (Nairobi)

Link to My Review of Bateleur Camp at Kichwa Tembo (Masaai Mara, Kenya)

Link to My Reivew Ngorongoro Crater Lodge (Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania)

Link to My Review of Klein’s Camp (Serengeti, Tanzania)

Link to My Review of The Palms (Bwenjuu, Zanzibar)

Link to My Review of the Kilimanjaro Kempinski (Dar es Salaam)


















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