| AWARD
WINNING EAST AFRICAN SPECIALIST Hoopoe Safaris
won The Conde Naste Eco Tourism award in 2004 as best
ecotourism company in the world! This was a terrific
accolade for the company as well as for all East Africa
and Africa itself - the first time such an esteemed
honour has gone to an African Tour Operator!
BACKGROUND
Hoopoe Safaris was founded in 1988 by Peter Lindstrom
and Steven Laiser. Peter was born and raised in Kenya
and has a lifetime of experience in hospitality and
is a dedicated conservationist. He has permanently settled
in Tanzania. Steven is a Maasai who grew up in Arusha
and became prominent in the national parks service,
rising to the rank of senior ranger of Tarangire National
Park before embarking on a career in tourism.
Hoopoe has become a leading East African safari outfitter,
which together with its sister outfitter, “Kirurumu
Under Canvas” is dedicated to the protection of
the environment by supporting effective community partnerships
and sustainable tourism projects.
A fast growing population and pressure on dwindling
land resources add up to a formidable challenge. Conventional
conservation practices are failing to halt a decline
in wildlife and environmental degradation, but Peter
feels that lately a shift has been made in the right
direction & The Community Based Tourism is gaining
acceptance as a means of poverty reduction in remote
areas. The model is one where the community assumes
a responsibility to guard against alternative land use,
such as agriculture and charcoal manufacture, and to
prevent poaching. The income that the communities earn
from tourism, improves schools, & clinics and improves
safe water supplies. This formula provides an unequivocal
win-win situation for all parties concerned.
Peter is passionate about preserving the precious
nature with which East Africa are so well endowed and
has the experience to be pragmatic in the quest for
a sustainable future for his East African home and its
rich wildlife and outstanding natural beauty.
Hoopoe owns and manages Kirurumu Tented Lodge perched
on the edge of the Rift Valley overlooking Lake Manyara,
has become a landmark on the safari circuit. Kirurumu
is used by a wide range of safari companies around the
world. The lodge merges with the landscape and was designed
to be of minimum impact to the environment and has become
a haven of peace for both for its guests from abroad
and also for its creatures great and small that now
have a safe refuge. Birdlife in the lodge grounds as
increased dramatically over time and it is a bird watchers
paradise.
In earlier years as specialist in providing creature
comforts “Under Canvas” Hoopoe provided
The Getty Foundation a camp supporting the important
scientific work that was being conducted by Mary Leakey
at Laetoli , where the early hominid footprints of Australopithecus
afarensis were discovered. Today Kirurumu Under Canvas
has seasonal luxury mobile tented camps in Serengeti,
Ngorongoro and Tarangire National parks, positioned
to be at the right place at the right time to see wildlife
in abundance. Hoopoe is proud to be the preeminent luxury
camping outfitter in East Africa.
In the Mount Kilimanjaro heartland bordering on Amboseli
National park in Kenya a permanent Tented camp –“Hemingway’s”
is an important community based conservation project
involving the local Maasai where Hoopoe puts in practice
what it preaches and the company and a Maasai village
have established a successful conservancy, now part
of a larger Wildlife Management Area. The Amboseli-Kilimanjaro
heartland and ecosystem is one of the most important
refuges for the Elephant amongst many other species.
GUIDE BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
"Hoopoe is one of the most highly
regarded companies… I can recommend them without
reservation to anybody.”
- Philip Briggs, The
Bradt Travel Guide Tanzania
"This company has
been consistently well recommended by a number of travellers."
- Michael Hood, Footprint
East Africa Handbook
“ This is a well-established
company with an excellent reputation, top-notch vehicles
and equipment, and keen, committed staff."
- Geoff Crowther, Lonely
Planet, East Africa
"A very experienced,
nature-loving team."
- Elke Frey & David
Kyungu, Nelles Guide, Tanzania
DRIVER
GUIDES, lodge and camping staff
The guide on your safari is an ambassador of the company
and the country and our guides are outstanding both
for their knowledge of the natural history of the areas
we visit but also in relating the culture and history
of their home . They aren’t only there to make
sure the vehicle works and to choose the right direction
but also to become friends and tohelp make sure that
every detail of your journey goes as smoothly as possible.
Each Hoopoe driver/guide must successfully complete
our own rigorous training course, that includes class
and field work. The course has become the envy of other
safari companies and are the product of many years of
teaching by Peter and colleagues , including chosen
wildlife researchers all sharing their knowledge and
enthusiasm for greater understanding of what makes the
natural world tick.
Following matriculation from this course,
driver/guides must return to classroom& field at
least once a year for refresher training. Within a few
years, a Hoopoe driver/guide has become an incredible
instructor, not only a driver. They are skilled not
only as gamespotters but also in recognizing the flora,
fauna and bird life of East Africa, but can discuss
questions of geography, geology , climate, politics,
history and the customs of this wonderful land. Moreover
our guides are chosen for their ability to get on with
and relate to people.
 
There are more than 100 warm and unique individuals
in the Hoopoe family of East Africa, and they include
those wonderful people staffing our flagship property,
Kirurumu, as well as the extremely hard working camping
staff, mechanics, bush chefs, logistics experts and
clerical staff. We think of each and every one as a
member of a grand team, that without that single individual,
would be that much less appealing. We pride ourselves
on cultivating, training and retaining the finest individuals
in the tourist industry of East Africa and most have
served the company for many years.
 
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