10 Days Tented lodge safaris

On arrival at Kilimanjaro Airport you will be met by our guide, who will drive you to your lodge in Arusha

Distance: 130 km

Time/road condition: about 3 hours on mostly paved roads.

In the morning your guide will collect you in Arusha and you begin your drive to Mto Wa Mbu, where you will spend an hour or two wandering around this busy town. You’ll learn more about the life of the Masaai and the 100 or so other cultural groups living in this area (some in traditional huts). We visit plantations, local craftsmen, taste banana beer in an authentic bar and amble past the many market stalls with local produce. Lunch is served by a cheerful Tanzanian “mamma” who will delight you with tasty local dishes. Then it’s on safari in Lake Manyara National Park and afterwards, drive to the lodge outside the park. Most animals are making their way down to the river for a much-needed drink … and at this time of day, the famous Manyara lions could be spotted in the trees!

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Distance: 80 km

Time/road condition: 2 hours, mostly sandy, bumpy roads.

An adventurous route to a very special area: magic Lake Natron. Off the beaten track and away from the masses. The route takes you through the cultural home of the Maasai. On the way, you pass Engaruka, an archaeological site of a Stone-age settlement, as well as majestic Ondonyo Lengai, the only active volcano in the Great Rift Valley. Lake Natron will fascinate you with its colours varying from pink, lime green and red, this due to the concentration of minerals … and possibly the flamingoes! It is an almost surreal and breathtaking landscape which will leave you in awe!

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After lunch, a Maasai guide will lead you along the ridges of the lake to the source of the Engaresero River. If rain has fallen up in the Rift Valley, water streams over the escarpment, forming waterfalls and streams of sparkling clear water which one can swim in. After this refreshing swim, we walk back to the Tented Camp from which you can see the Ol Doinyo Lengai.

Distance:  220 km

Time/road condition: 7 hours, mostly on gravel and bumpy roads. A long day but beautiful trip.

Before breakfast, we drive to the lake for one more time for a short walk with a Maasai guide will take you for a walk along the shores of the lake to see the lake and Flamingos at sunrise. After breakfast, we leave with filled lunchboxes and head for North-East Serengeti. Leaving the cliff ridges behind we drive through a majestic landscape, regularly meeting local residents and their beautiful cattle on our way. The moment you enter the Serengeti at Klein’s Gate, the landscape changes dramatically into endless savannah with huge herds of grazing animals… and the large carnivores which follow them!

Our route follows the migration of the animals on the plains along the shores of the Mara River. Crocodiles are waiting for wildebeest who risk the crossing. With good planning and a bit of luck, you will be witnessing a spectacle that is hard to put into words. Watching a crossing and hear all the noises is a very impressive experience that you’ll never forget! This is also the area where you can be quite sure to see a hunter like a hyena, cheetah, lion or leopard. If you’re lucky you might even spot a leopard climbing in a yellow acacia tree!  This part of the Serengeti has beautiful sceneries and you can drive here for hours without seeing another car.

Dinner and accommodation

Distance: 140 km

Time/road condition: approximately 4 hours but combined with a game drive it can take 7-8 hours. It also depends on the condition of the roads many of which are gravel and corrugated.

After an early breakfast and with packed lunch, we depart for Central Serengeti. This is actually a full day game drive as we spend a large part of the day on safari in the Lobo reserve. This is a remote area of Serengeti, somewhat off the beaten track. A less visited area but you will experience the real wilderness with rocky outcrops. A beautiful drive through a magnificent changing landscape. You will stay in a socially responsible ecolodge, using electricity and hot water (24/7) from solar panels and working with Swiss hospitality standards and quality, following strict environmental, health and safety guidelines.

Distance: 160 km

Time/road condition: 3 hours, sandy and bumpy.

After breakfast depart for a game drive in the famous Ngorongoro Crater. We wind our way down into the caldera, with the most breathtaking views along the way. Armed with your guide’s years of experience and his ‘eagle-eyes’, we might even encounter rhino. The chance of seeing an active pride of lions at close quarters is high on the list of possibilities. During the picnic lunch at the Hippo Pool, you will enjoy all the sights and sounds of the ‘laughing’ hippos enjoying a wallow in the cool water and a mud-bath. Optional: A visit to a Maasai Boma where you will experience how semi-nomadic communities continue to live according to their age-old traditions.

Distance: 150 km

Time/road condition: 2 hours, mostly paved roads.

After breakfast depart for the next accommodation in Tarangire National Park. After a hot lunch, it’s on safari in this amazing and relatively quiet park with spectacularly massive baobab trees and gigantic herds of elephants. Tonight you will stay in a hidden gem right next to the Kwakuchinja Wildlife Corridor, that is used by the animals to go from Tarangire to Lake Manyara. It’s a small camp, run by the people of local Maasai villages and definitely something out of the ordinary safari experience. This is where nature, culture, and conservation come together in the heart of wild Africa. The camp has spacious canvas tents under permanent grass-thatched ramadas. Each tent has an en suite bathroom with a flush toilet and a hot shower in real bush style: before you take a shower, the staff will fill your water tank manually with hot water. 10% of your stay is dedicated to projects in the local community. Optional at additional cost: upgrade to a semi-luxury lodge.

 full day

Observing elephants and many other species of wildlife near the (dry bedding of the) river. Drive to Larmaku Swamp, a large swamp where you can find elephants and other animals, cooling down in the water and sheltering for the sun in the shadow of the acacia trees. Regarding encountering wildlife we can not guarantee anything, but the chance that you will see large herds of elephants in this park is 99,9%.

Dinner and accommodation

Distance: 120 km

Time/road condition: Approximately 3 hours to a lodge or the airport in Arusha, about 4 hours (160 km) to Kilimanjaro International Airport. Depending on your itinerary, we will drive you to a lodge in Arusha, the Arusha Airport (for domestic flights e.g. to Zanzibar) or to Kilimanjaro International Airport for your return flight home. Late checkout is optional for additional charges.