Meet the Founder
Don Kassim.
Three Generations of Ground-Level Knowledge.
Fourth generation Arusha, Tanzania. Forty-six years of the Kassim family in Tanzanian safari. Don has been guiding personally since 1998.
Don Kassim grew up in Arusha, in the same house his great-grandfather built, watching his grandfather Bobby return from multi-week Serengeti drives with photographs, animal tracks drawn in the dust, and stories that could fill an evening. By the time Don was old enough to hold a pair of binoculars properly, he had already spent more mornings in the bush than most guides clock in a career.
He did not inherit a safari company. He inherited a way of seeing a place — and a responsibility to it. That distinction shapes every itinerary that leaves Arusha under the Bobby Safaris name.
Don guides personally, and he reviews every booking before it is confirmed. Not because the business is small — it is not — but because the reputation Bobby built cannot be delegated. The person who designed your safari should know what you were promised.
What Don Brings to Every Safari
Not a Concierge. Not a Travel Agent. A Guide.
Family Networks Across the Parks
Four decades of relationships with park wardens, camp managers, and conservation officers means Don knows which areas are behaving unusually — and how to adjust an itinerary in real time.
Route Knowledge That Doesn't Appear in Any App
The Kassim family has been running the northern circuit since 1978. Don knows which roads wash out in March, where the leopard litter was denning in 2019, and which kopje the cheetah favour on the Lamai Wedge.
Personal Accountability for Every Booking
Don reads every inquiry before it is confirmed. If something in the proposed itinerary is not right — a camp that has changed management, a route that does not make sense for the season — he will tell you directly, not through a coordinator.
Your WhatsApp Number, From Day One
Every confirmed guest receives Don's direct line before departure. If plans need to change en route, if weather closes a road, if you want a second opinion on whether to skip the crater for the Ndutu crossing — you text. You get an answer.
The Kassim Family Timeline
A Family That Happened to Run Safaris
Bobby Kassim — Don's grandfather — buys a Land Rover and begins driving visitors into the Serengeti from Arusha.
Don Kassim joins the family operation, bringing formal training and a new generation's perspective while honouring the approach that built the reputation.
The second generation of the Kassim family opens the Arusha office. Bobby Safaris becomes a registered operation, maintaining its direct-to-client model.
Don assumes full operational responsibility. The company transitions fully to ultra-luxury private itineraries — eliminating group departures and middlemen.
Bobby Safaris operates exclusively from Arusha, Tanzania. Don and two senior guides — each with over a decade with the family — personally conduct or oversee every safari departure.
Ready to Start Your Safari?
Don reviews every inquiry personally. You will speak with the person designing your itinerary — not a sales team.