Tanzania Lodge Safari

Jambo! Welcome to Kenya.

Your adventure begins with a welcome meeting at 6pm on Day 1.

You can arrive at any time as there are no activities planned until this important meeting; please ask the hotel reception where it will take place. If you can't arrange a flight that will arrive in time, you may wish to arrive a day early so you're able to attend. We'll be happy to book additional accommodation for you (subject to availability). If you're going to be late, please inform the hotel reception. We'll be collecting your insurance details and next of kin information at this meeting, so please ensure you have all these details to provide to your leader.

An arrival transfer is included on this trip. Please confirm your transfer by providing your flight details at least 15 days prior to your arrival and you'll be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel.

Nairobi - which takes its name from a Maasai phrase meaning 'place of cool waters' - has a cosmopolitan atmosphere. There are plenty of good bars and restaurants, while markets and shops have most things you could want or need, as well as various arts and crafts from the region.

If you arrive early, you can head out and explore the National Museum of Kenya, the Karen Blixen Museum (author of Out of Africa) or Bomas of Kenya where traditional homesteads of several Kenyan tribes are displayed in an outdoor village.

Included Activities

Complimentary arrival transfer

Optional Activities

National Museum, Nairobi - USD14.00

Karen Blixen museum, Nairobi - USD14.00

Bomas, Nairobi - USD10.00

Carnivore restaurant, Nairobi - USD35.00

Langata Giraffe Sanctuary, Nairobi - KES700.00

Nairobi National Park safari walk, Nairobi - USD20.00

Accommodation

Hotel (1 nt)

Depart at 8am in a public shuttle bus bound for Arusha, Tanzania (this is dependent on the group size; for larger groups we will take a private bus). Upon reaching the Tanzanian border at Namanga, proceed through immigration and customs before reboarding the shuttle.

All going well, arrive at Arusha in the late afternoon (310 km, approx 5.5 hrs drive).

Arusha is the gateway to some of Tanzania's most popular tourist destinations including the Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara and Mt Kilimanjaro.

After checking in to our hotel, drive to the small village of Tengeru (approx 14 km). Here, as the guests of a local family, there's an opportunity to learn more about the life of the local Meru community. Depending on the time and group interest, head out on a market visit, take a walk around the local area or see how the local coffee is produced - from the bush all the way to your cup.

Take the chance to look around Mama's small farm. If you are interested she will let you milk her cows, feed the chickens and maybe have a taste of the local lemongrass tea. A member of the family can talk you through their ingenious natural gas production system, based around cow poop. We then drive back to Arusha where we spend the night in the Impala hotel.

Included Activities

Local family farm visit and community walk

Accommodation

Hotel (1 nt)

Travel to Lake Manyara National Park (120 km, approx 2 hrs).

Lake Manyara National Park is renowned for its black-maned, tree-climbing lions and large herds of buffaloes and elephants, not to mention the flocks of flamingos and pelicans that can be found on the shores of the lake itself.

Game drive within the park during the morning before checking in to our accommodation in time for lunch. Take another game drive after lunch, returning in time for sunset and dinner. Situated on the edge of the western escarpment, our hotel has amazing panoramic views of the lake.

Included Activities

Game drives

Accommodation

Lodge (1 nt)

Travel via the Olduvai Gorge, an area famed for the fossilised remains of prehistoric man, before continuing on to Serengeti National Park, arriving in the late afternoon (190 km, approx 6 hrs). After passing through the gates, game drive to the lodge.

The wide, open plains of the Serengeti - green after the rains, brown and burnt in the dry season, and home to thousands of hoofed animals and fierce predators - are perhaps the quintessential image of Africa. Flat and rolling with long grasses and dotted with acacia trees, the plains get their name from the Maasai word Siringitu - 'the place where the land moves on forever'.

Game viewing in the Serengeti is amazing and as you camp out at night, don't be surprised to hear lions in the distance as you recount your wildlife sightings from the day. In normal circumstances, we would expect to see the Big Five during our stay in the Serengeti.

Our lodge is constructed around a rocky outcrop from glass and wood elements, perfectly blending into its surrounding. The lodge's 75 rooms afford stunning views over the Serengeti. Elegantly decorated in authentic traditional African style, the rooms are fully equipped with en suite bathrooms, shower attachments, bathtub and central heating system. King-size beds are provided with mosquito nets over the air vents. There are indoor and outdoor bars to enjoy.

For an unforgettable experience, you might like to do an optional sunrise balloon ride over the Serengeti. If you have pre-booked this activity (please see 'Important Notes'), you'll be picked up and driven to the launch site where you receive a safety briefing from your pilot and help inflate the balloon. You'll then float over the Serengeti as the sun comes up gaining an overview of the immensity of the Serengeti, seeing the abundance of wildlife in their early morning activity and sometimes descending to tree height for amazing wildlife photography opportunities. Upon landing, you'll be treated to a five-star bush breakfast before being returned to your accommodation.

You'll notice many Maasai villages in the region of the Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. While it's of course fascinating to visit different cultures, past experience has shown that these villages exist primarily as tourism businesses offering somewhat contrived performances of their traditional ways. You'll be charged an entry fee of approx US$20-35 and the Maasai will try very hard to sell souvenirs to you. While many clients still enjoy the experience, others have found it artificial and uncomfortable. We recommend our travellers bypass this activity as our Kenyan colleagues observe that it negatively impacts the Maasai culture and travellers' perception of this culture.

Included Activities

Olduvai Gorge

Game drives

Optional Activities

Balloon ride, Serengeti National Park - USD500.00

Accommodation

Lodge (2 nts)

Depart the Serengeti, making our way to the park boundaries while completing a leisurely game drive. Enjoy a boxed picnic lunch on the outskirts of the park where there's a great viewpoint. Travel on to the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater (70 km, approx 3 hours), located 2,250 m above sea level, and arrive in time for an evening glimpse of the crater from our lodge.

A huge, perfectly intact volcanic crater, Ngorongoro is home to some 30,000 animals including endangered black rhinos, lions, leopards, elephants, impalas, zebras and hippos. The crater floor offers excellent game viewing all year round and the photographic opportunities here are unrivaled.

The following day, after an early breakfast, we descend to the crater floor 600 m below the rim and spend half a day viewing the animals. In the late afternoon, we ascend to the top. Leaving the park, we drive to our lodge located on the edge of the Great Rift Valley.

Included Activities

Game drive

Accommodation

Lodge (2 nts)

Join the local community with a guided stroll around the farming areas - including visits to a kindergarten, milling machine, local homes and farmlands. This is a great way to have fun and find out more about the life of the locals. You'll also have the chance to look around the town and visit the local market. You may wish to indulge in a spot of shopping - wood carvings and local artworks are the specialities of this area.

Travel back to Arusha (140 km, approx 2 hrs).

On arrival in Arusha you'll be dropped at our finishing point hotel. No accommodation is provided for tonight, but we are able to book you additional accommodation in Arusha. Please ask at time of booking.

For those of you wanting to transfer back to Nairobi, your leader can help you to arrange a shuttle back to Kenya or to the airport in Arusha.

Included Activities

Village walk; market