Who you are dealing with
A Tanzanian operator, run from Arusha.
TALA Certified. Founded by Joseph Mwakasege and Cosmas Mushi in 2025.
Since 2025
Named after the cat almost nobody sees.
African Golden Cats Safaris was founded by Joseph Mwakasege and Cosmas Mushi, two Tanzanians who had spent years guiding other people’s trips and wanted to run them properly: their own crews, their own vehicles, and a price you can read line by line.
The African golden cat is one of the least photographed cats on the continent — forest-dwelling, nocturnal, and gone before most people register it was there. It is a fair standard for the trips we build: the sightings and moments that are hard to arrange, not the ones on every brochure.
We work the northern circuit out of Arusha, the southern and western parks, both Kilimanjaro and Meru, and the coast. Where we do not have first-hand knowledge of a route, we say so.
“A safari is logistics before it is romance. Get the logistics right and the rest takes care of itself.”
Joseph Mwakasege · Founder & CEO
What we hold to
Four things we will not trade away.
Safety is not an upsell
Guides trained in first aid, vehicles serviced before every departure, and an agreed evacuation route for each trip — in the parks and on the mountain.
Park fees paid in full
Conservation and concession fees are itemised in your quote and paid to the authorities in full. No undercutting the parks to win a booking.
Tanzanian crews, fairly paid
Our guides, porters and cooks are Tanzanian, employed on fair terms, and carry loads within the porter weight limits set for Kilimanjaro.
Straight answers
If a route will not work in your season, your budget or your fitness, we will tell you before you book rather than after you arrive.