Cannot recommend Peak Planet highly enough. Worked with them to plan an adventure that included Mt Kilimanjaro, a safari and s few days to unwind in Zanzibar with three friends. From start to finish, they were phenomenal.
Several months of research and interviewing other tour companies, brought me to the conclusion that booking with Peak Planet made good sense. From their helpful and timely responses to every conceivable question on email, to their many useful videos and articles, Peak Planet made planning, training and packing for this trip painless.
Their commitment to safe and ecofriendly trekking and to safety was in stark contrast to many other companies on the mountain. It was excellent. The equipment was solid. The food was amazing – Chef Mr Francis was a genius. We had fresh vegetables and meat at every meal. The soups were restaurant quality and even the box lunches were great. The fresh popcorn for a snack with tea was a highlight and made even the tiredest of trekkers smile.
The porters and guides were phenomenal. They even walked out to meet me with hot tea and lunch on the long descent from the summit as I was going more pole pole than anyone might have guessed possible. They made sure I had the encouragement and the energy to complete the longest day. Peak Planet works with KPAP and is committed to fair treatment of porters – and it shows. We were provided with a skilled and exceptional crew.
Guide Davis deserves more than special mention – he was nothing short of amazing. And I would encourage anyone worried at all about summiting to make the decision to go with Peak Planet and Davis. He will most definitely help you find your way safely up and safely down. He got me to the top and no one was more surprised by that than me. Between he and assistant guide Justin, our group found our unique pace and it got me up to all three “peaks”. He never doubted we could all do it – and he did not shy away from the hard decision to have two of our party go down early due to illness.
The claims about being the best on the mountain are true – I saw a lot of examples of other options, and they confirmed that Peak Planet really is an exceptional company to trek with.
After walking down the mountain (and peeling off a few layers of KT tape and showering for about two hours), I reunited with the rest of the group and hopped into a safari jeep with Livingstone and started our four days of safari. As with all other aspects of the trip, the attention to detail and the planning was excellent. The standard accommodations were amazing, the food was excellent and the views were stunning. From the Tarangire, to the Crater all the way to the Serengeti we bounced over a lot of rough roads to be within arms reach of lions, elephants, gazelle, warthogs, giraffes, hippos, and even the cheetah. We missed the leopard, but not for lack of effort on the part of the guide. Livingstone was an apparent master at finding the animals – and getting us so close that no zoom lenses were required. He was an encyclopedia of information and answered every one of our questions with good humor and knowledge. After four dusty days we were treated to a lovely evening and stay at Researchers Rest in Arusha – and it was an idyllic way to end a lovely week.
Our final leg was a few days at the beach and although Precision Air did their best to slow our roll into Zanzibar, we still had a marvelous time at the exceptional Fumba Beach Lodge – arriving just in time for sunset and happy hour. Again, Peak Planet’s attention to detail, responsiveness and attentiveness made everything easy and left us free to enjoy the adventure.
From start to finish, Peak Planet offered the highest level of service and commitment to providing a wonderful experience for all of us. Five stars at least.
