Action-Packed wildebeest Migration, chimpanzees, big five, and river safari Ultimate Wilderness Explorer 19 Days in the Serengeti and Southern Parks of Tanzania—Limited to 6 Participants - Diamond or Gold
ITINERARY - DIAMOND STYLE (see Gold below) USA / EUROPE: You are on the first leg of your journey to East Africa! Day 1—Kilimanjaro / Arusha: Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro Airport you will be transferred to Arusha about 45 minutes west. Tonight you stay in a 5-star lodge set in a coffee plantation on the outskirts of Arusha. We planned a short safari briefing and welcome drinks! Overnight: Arusha Coffee Lodge. Day 2—Northern Serengeti (BLD): We transfer you early to Arusha Airport about 15 minutes away. You will board a comfortable bush plane and fly a very scenic route to the northern Serengeti.  Upon arrival you will be met by your safari guide and transferred to your camp after a short game drive. The northern Serengeti is beautiful and the hilly terrain varies from grassland to bush. With Kenya’s Masai Mara National Park to the north, this area is part of the greater Mara-Serengeti eco-system and the big wildebeest herds move back and forth in search of better grazing and water.  Overnight: Serengeti Under Canvas. Day 3—Northern Serengeti (BLD): Tanzania's oldest and most popular national park, the Serengeti is famed for its annual migration, when some six million hooves pound the open plains, as more than 200,000 zebra and 300,000 Thomson's gazelle join the wildebeest’s trek for fresh grazing. Today we explore the area around our camp, looking for cats and other wildlife. We return to camp in the late afternoon. Flushing toilets, en-suite showers, sumptuous cuisine served on fine china—you will love the intimacy of our camp and the nightly camp fire!  Overnight: Serengeti Under Canvas. Day 4—Northern Serengeti (BLD): The famous Mara River flows through the northern Serengeti to its delta in Lake Victoria. After heavy rains, the river is treacherous claiming the lives of thousands of wildebeests and zebra every year. Our game drives today will focus on the areas north of the Mara River and along its banks where huge crocodiles bake in the sun. Large families of hippos populate every pool and their noisy grunts are quintessential Africa! With a bit of luck we may see large herds of wildebeests!  Overnight: Serengeti Under Canvas. Day 5—Katavi National Park (BLD): After breakfast, your will be transferred to the airstrip for a 3-hour bushplane flight to Katavi where your new guide will be waiting! Katavi National Park remains one of the greatest wildlife experiences of Africa. Miles from anywhere, rivers groan with hippopotamus and crocodiles, and massed on the plains are the last great herds of buffalo in East Africa, up to 1000 head! The park is Africa at its most wild -- unadulterated bush settings, spectacular views, and rich wildlife. Your luxury tented camp is nestled in the trees about 30 minutes from the airstrip. Overnight: Chada Katavi Tented Camp. Day 6—Katavi National Park (BLD): It is during the dry season, when the floodwaters retreat, that Katavi truly comes into its own. The Katuma, reduced to a shallow, muddy trickle, forms the only source of drinking water for miles around, and the flanking floodplains support game concentrations that defy belief. An estimated 4,000 elephants might converge on the area, together with several herds of 1,000-plus buffalo, while an abundance of giraffe, zebra, impala and reedbuck provide easy pickings for the numerous lion prides and spotted hyena clans whose territories converge on the floodplains. The river may be almost dry with every pool packed with hippos and crocodiles. It is a stunning scene. Your guide can arrange a 2-3 walk along the dry river bank - very exciting to see the crocodiles and hippo up close! Overnight: Chada Katavi Tented Camp. Day 7—Katavi National Park (BLD): Katavi’s most singular wildlife spectacle is provided by its hippos. Towards the end of the dry season, up to 200 individuals might flop together in any riverine pool of sufficient depth. And as more hippos gather in one place, so does male rivalry heat up – bloody territorial fights are an everyday occurrence, with the vanquished male forced to lurk hapless on the open plains until it gathers sufficient confidence to mount another challenge. Today starts with a morning game drive then after lunch your safari vehicle is packed with camping equipment and you will set off for a remote area of the park for an exciting overnight under stars! You will be accompanied by a camp guide, a chef, camp crew and a park ranger - armed and well-trained to handle any emergencies. Once at your camp site, the crew will prepare your mobile camp while you enjoy a late afternoon walk or game drive in the area. This evening you will have a romantic dinner under the stars next to the warmth of your camp fire. This is what a safari is all about. Your home tonight is "fly tent" - basically a large mosquito net under the stars!  Overnight: Chada Katavi Fly Camp. Day 8—Katavi National Park (BLD): You wake early and a warm bush breakfast is served before your early morning safari walk. It takes about 2-4 hours and you will normally follow the shoreline of dry swamp. Buffalo, hippo, giraffe, zebra and even cats are commonly encountered.  You will be walking in a line with your armed guide in front and the armed ranger bringing up the rear. While the walk is safe, the whole team must remain vigilant and noise must be kept to a minimum. Your guides will mostly use hand-signals to tell you when to stop and where to look!  Your vehicle will meet you at the end of the walk and you will return to the main camp for lunch, a shower and a siesta! In the late afternoon it is time for another game drive along the wildlife-rich river. Overnight: Chada Katavi Tented Camp. Day 9—Mahale National Park (BLD): You can sleep in this morning because the hour-long flight to Mahale departs around noon. Please wear sandals and short pants or skirts today because you may be stepping into the water at the beach when you arrive! Mahale Mountains look like the backdrop for a Tarzan movie! Green and lush and steep. You arrive at a small airstrip at the edge of the park and board a comfortable boat for a hour-long cruise to camp. This is chimpanzee country and for the next three nights you will a guest in their incredible jungle. Famous for containing some of the last remaining wild chimpanzees in Africa, Mahale was gazetted in 1985, covers an area of 1 613 km² and is located about 128 km south of Kigoma town on the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika. The western boundary of the park protects an adjacent 1.6 km wide strip of Lake Tanganyika’s waters. Overnight: Greystoke Mahale Camp. Day 10—Mahale National Park (BLD): The land in and around Mahale is the traditional homeland of the Watongwe and Waholoholo tribes. Japanese primate researchers began exploring along the shore of Lake Tanganyika, south of Kigoma as early as 1961. In 1965, the researchers established their first camp, ‘Kansyana’, in Mahale and began habituating chimpanzees. Your chimpanzee briefing takes place during breakfast while the trackers are out searching for them.  Then, with water bottles and cameras in hand your small group departs with your guides on a quest to see the chimpanzees in the wild! The hike can be long and steep. It rarely rains, but it can be very hot and humid in the jungle. Once found, you are allowed an hour with the chimps. On most hikes you can expect to be back at camp in time for lunch. In the afternoon you can go fishing, relax on the beach or participate in other water and bush activities. Join your fellow guests for sundowner drinks at the beach bar while watching the sun sets! Overnight: Greystoke Mahale Camp. Day 11—Mahale National Park (BLD): The terrain is mostly rugged and hilly, and is dominated by the Mahale Mountains chain that runs from the northwest to the southeast across the park. The highest peak (Mount Nkungwe) rises to 2 462 m above sea level. This morning you will visit the chimps again and in the afternoon the camp managers will take you on a long boat ride to see hippos and crocodiles in the clear lake water. You return at sunset, as the setting sun highlands the incredible mountains behind your camp. Dinner is on the beach tonight - an incredible evening amongst friends. Overnight: Greystoke Mahale Camp. Day 12—Ruaha National Park (BLD): You may have time for a quick morning visit to the chimps if they are not too far away. Then it is back to the boat for the ride to the airstrip around noon. The flight to Ruaha takes about 3 hours where you will be met by your vehicle and guide for a completely different adventure! Second only to Katavi in its aura of untrammeled wilderness, but far more accessible, Ruaha protects a vast tract of the rugged, semi-arid bush country that characterizes central Tanzania. Its lifeblood is the Great Ruaha River, which courses along the eastern boundary in a flooded torrent during the height of the rains, but dwindling thereafter to a scattering of precious pools surrounded by a blinding sweep of sand and rock. After the game drive from the airstrip you arrive at your camp right on the banks of a dry river.  Overnight: Mwagusi Tented Camp. Day 13—Ruaha National Park (BLD): A fine network of game-viewing roads follows the Great Ruaha and its seasonal tributaries, where , during the dry season, impala, waterbuck and other antelopes risk their life for a sip of life-sustaining water. And the risk is considerable: not only from the prides of 20-plus lion that lord over the savannah, but also from the cheetahs that stalk the open grassland and the leopards that lurk in tangled riverine thickets. This impressive array of large predators is boosted by both striped and spotted hyena, as well as several conspicuous packs of the highly endangered African wild dog. This morning you will go on a 4-hour safari walk with armed guides and rangers. After lunch the game drives will focus primarily on the NE areas of the park towards the river.  Overnight: Mwagusi Tented Camp. Day 14—Ruaha National Park (BLD): Ruaha's unusually high diversity of antelope is a function of its location, which is transitional to the acacia savannah of East Africa and the miombo woodland belt of Southern Africa. Grant's gazelle and lesser kudu occur here at the very south of their range, alongside the miombo-associated sable and roan antelope, and one of East Africa's largest populations of greater kudu, the park emblem, distinguished by the male's magnificent corkscrew horns. A similar duality is noted in the checklist of 450 birds: the likes of crested barbet, an attractive yellow-and-black bird whose persistent trilling is a characteristic sound of the southern bush, occur in Ruaha alongside central Tanzanian endemics such as the yellow-collared lovebird and ashy starling. It is time to look for cheetah and wild dogs - our game drives will take us in all directions as we search for cats and the elusive dogs. Tonight's dinner is a surprise - set in the dry dry river bed with candles and lamps it will make for an unforgettable evening under the African sky.  Overnight: Mwagusi Tented Camp. Day 15—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): Located in south-east Tanzania in a remote and little-visited part of the country, the Selous Game Reserve is Africa’s largest protected wildlife reserve and covers more than 5% of Tanzania’s total area. It’s rivers, hills, and plains are home to roaming elephant populations, the area’s famous wild dogs, and some of the last black rhino left in the region. Due to its remote location, and because it is most easily accessible only by small aircraft, the Selous Game Reserve has remained one of the untouched gems of Tanzania’s national parks and game reserves, and offers visitors a chance to see a wild and expansive Africa far from paved roads and curio shops. Your noon flight to Selous takes about 80 minutes. Upon arrival you will be met by your vehicle and guide. Then it is a leisurely game drive to your spectacular lodge on the edge of the Rufiji River where you will arrive in time for a late lunch! We have reserve suite rooms for our guests.  Overnight: Sand Rivers Suites Day 16—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): The Rufiji River Delta is a striking feature of the game reserve. It connects the Great Ruaha River with the Rufiji River and not far from the park boundaries empties out into the Indian Ocean along the Tanzanian Coast. The Rufiji River is the largest water catchment locations in the region, and as such, is home to a plethora of varied water and bird life. Along its shores, opulent hippos sleep languidly in the mud and sun themselves, mouths wide open, as the river passes by. Crocodiles are also common along the Rufiji’s riverbanks, their amour plated skins the only rough edges in the rivers incessant flow. Morning game drives will take us inland to the lakes and in the afternoon you will enjoy an exhilarating boat ride on the Rufiji where you will meet the huge crocodiles at eye-level!  Overnight: Sand Rivers Suites Day 17—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): One of the more historic protected areas in Tanzania, the Selous Game Reserve was named after Frederick Courteney Selous, a British explorer and hunter in East Africa who wrote a book about the region and his travels, and was tragically killed in land now named after him during the First World War. In 1905, when few people in East Africa thought of land conservation and the preservation of wildlife for posterity, portions of the area were earmarked for a hunting reserve. In 1922, the land area was increased and named after Frederick Selous. From then until 1975, when the current boundaries were delineated, the Selous Game Reserve increased steadily in allocated land. These days, tourists flock to the north of the reserve, while large portions of the south are still reserved for hunting. Today is another exciting day as we pack the boats and vehicles for an exciting night of fly-camping on the banks of the river in an remote area. The camp setup is very similar to the fly-camp in Katavi. You will be accompanied by armed rangers, guides and a camp crew. Overnight: Sand Rivers Fly Camp Day 18—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): Stiggler’s Gorge, where the Great Ruaha River meets the Rufiji River, is a breathtaking example of the diversity and spectacular scenery along the game reserve's waterways. Your fly camp will be close to this area and you will explore the gorge before returning to the lodge in time for lunch. In the late afternoon, you will do another exciting game drive to the lakes area in search of cats and wild dogs!  Overnight: Sand Rivers Suites Day 19—Dar es Salaam Airport & flight (BL): This morning is at leisure before we transfer you to the airstrip with a picnic lunch for your 10am flight. Sadly it is time to say goodbye to Selous. If you booked a safari extension, you fly to your next destination where new adventures await! Otherwise, you have a very scenic 40 minute flight to Dar es Salaam Airport. Dayrooms, etc can be arranged at extra costs. EUROPE / USA / Others: You arrive home with lifelong memories of your safari!
ITINERARY - GOLD STYLE USA / EUROPE: You are on the first leg of your journey to East Africa! Day 1—Kilimanjaro / Arusha: Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro Airport you will be transferred to Arusha about 45 minutes west. Tonight you stay in a 5-star lodge set in a coffee plantation on the outskirts of Arusha. We planned a short safari briefing and welcome drinks! Overnight: Arusha Coffee Lodge. Day 2—Northern Serengeti (BLD): We transfer you early to Arusha Airport about 15 minutes away. You will board a comfortable bush plane and fly a very scenic route to the northern Serengeti.  Upon arrival you will be met by your safari guide and transferred to your camp after a short game drive. The northern Serengeti is beautiful and the hilly terrain varies from grassland to bush. With Kenya’s Masai Mara National Park to the north, this area is part of the greater Mara-Serengeti eco-system and the big wildebeest herds move back and forth in search of better grazing and water.  Overnight: Flycatcher Serengeti Camp. Day 3—Northern Serengeti (BLD): Tanzania's oldest and most popular national park, the Serengeti is famed for its annual migration, when some six million hooves pound the open plains, as more than 200,000 zebra and 300,000 Thomson's gazelle join the wildebeest’s trek for fresh grazing. Today we explore the area around our camp, looking for cats and other wildlife. We return to camp in the late afternoon. Flushing toilets, en-suite showers, sumptuous cuisine served on china—you will love the intimacy of our camp and the nightly camp fire!  Overnight: Flycatcher Serengeti Camp. Day 4—Northern Serengeti (BLD): The famous Mara River flows through the northern Serengeti to its delta in Lake Victoria. After heavy rains, the river is treacherous claiming the lives of thousands of wildebeests and zebra every year. Our game drives today will focus on the areas north of the Mara River and along its banks where huge crocodiles bake in the sun. Large families of hippos populate every pool and their noisy grunts are quintessential Africa! With a bit of luck we may see large herds of wildebeests!  Overnight: Flycatcher Serengeti Camp. Day 5—Katavi National Park (BLD): After breakfast, your will be transferred to the airstrip for a 3-hour bushplane flight to Katavi where your new guide will be waiting! Katavi National Park remains one of the greatest wildlife experiences of Africa. Miles from anywhere, rivers groan with hippopotamus and crocodiles, and massed on the plains are the last great herds of buffalo in East Africa, up to 1000 head! The park is Africa at its most wild -- unadulterated bush settings, spectacular views, and rich wildlife. Your luxury tented camp is situated in the best wildlife area in the park for 24-hour game viewing - about 5 minutes from the airstrip. Overnight: Flycatcher Katavi Camp. Day 6—Katavi National Park (BLD): It is during the dry season, when the floodwaters retreat, that Katavi truly comes into its own. The Katuma, reduced to a shallow, muddy trickle, forms the only source of drinking water for miles around, and the flanking floodplains support game concentrations that defy belief. An estimated 4,000 elephants might converge on the area, together with several herds of 1,000-plus buffalo, while an abundance of giraffe, zebra, impala and reedbuck provide easy pickings for the numerous lion prides and spotted hyena clans whose territories converge on the floodplains. The river may be almost dry with every pool packed with hippos and crocodiles. It is a stunning scene. Your guide can arrange a 2-3 walk along the dry river bank - very exciting to see the crocodiles and hippo up close! Overnight: Flycatcher Katavi Camp. Day 7—Katavi National Park (BLD): Katavi’s most singular wildlife spectacle is provided by its hippos. Towards the end of the dry season, up to 200 individuals might flop together in any riverine pool of sufficient depth. And as more hippos gather in one place, so does male rivalry heat up – bloody territorial fights are an everyday occurrence, with the vanquished male forced to lurk hapless on the open plains until it gathers sufficient confidence to mount another challenge. Today starts with a morning game drive then after lunch your can have a siesta before the late afternoon drive. Overnight: Flycatcher Katavi Camp. Day 8—Katavi National Park (BLD): You wake early and a warm breakfast is served before your early morning game drive to a different section of the park. You will normally follow the shoreline of dry swamp. Buffalo, hippo, giraffe, zebra and even cats are commonly encountered.  You will return to Camp for lunch, a shower and a siesta! In the late afternoon it is time for another game drive along the wildlife-rich river. Overnight: Flycatcher Katavi Camp. Day 9—Mahale National Park (BLD): You can sleep in this morning because the hour-long flight to Mahale departs around noon. Please wear sandals and short pants or skirts today because you may be stepping into the water at the beach when you arrive! Mahale Mountains look like the backdrop for a Tarzan movie! Green and lush and steep. You arrive at a small airstrip at the edge of the park and board a comfortable boat for a hour-long cruise to camp. This is chimpanzee country and for the next three nights you will a guest in their incredible jungle. Famous for containing some of the last remaining wild chimpanzees in Africa, Mahale was gazetted in 1985, covers an area of 1 613 km² and is located about 128 km south of Kigoma town on the eastern shore of Lake Tanganyika. The western boundary of the park protects an adjacent 1.6 km wide strip of Lake Tanganyika’s waters. Overnight: Flycatcher Mahale Camp. Day 10—Mahale National Park (BLD): The land in and around Mahale is the traditional homeland of the Watongwe and Waholoholo tribes. Japanese primate researchers began exploring along the shore of Lake Tanganyika, south of Kigoma as early as 1961. In 1965, the researchers established their first camp, ‘Kansyana’, in Mahale and began habituating chimpanzees. Your chimpanzee briefing takes place during breakfast while the trackers are out searching for them.  Then, with water bottles and cameras in hand your small group departs with your guides on a quest to see the chimpanzees in the wild! The hike can be long and steep. It rarely rains, but it can be very hot and humid in the jungle. Once found, you are allowed an hour with the chimps. On most hikes you can expect to be back at camp in time for lunch. In the afternoon you can go fishing, relax on the beach or participate in other water and bush activities. Join your fellow guests for sundowner drinks at the beach bar while watching the sun sets! Overnight: Flycatcher Mahale Camp. Day 11—Mahale National Park (BLD): The terrain is mostly rugged and hilly, and is dominated by the Mahale Mountains chain that runs from the northwest to the southeast across the park. The highest peak (Mount Nkungwe) rises to 2 462 m above sea level. This morning you will visit the chimps again and in the afternoon the camp managers will take you on a long boat ride to see hippos and crocodiles in the clear lake water. You return at sunset, as the setting sun highlands the incredible mountains behind your camp. Dinner is final celebration - an incredible evening amongst friends. Overnight: Flycatcher Mahale Camp. Day 12—Ruaha National Park (BLD): You may have time for a quick morning visit to the chimps if they are not too far away. Then it is back to the boat for the ride to the airstrip around noon. The flight to Ruaha takes about 3 hours where you will be met by your vehicle and guide for a completely different adventure! Second only to Katavi in its aura of untrammeled wilderness, but far more accessible, Ruaha protects a vast tract of the rugged, semi-arid bush country that characterizes central Tanzania. Its lifeblood is the Great Ruaha River, which courses along the eastern boundary in a flooded torrent during the height of the rains, but dwindling thereafter to a scattering of precious pools surrounded by a blinding sweep of sand and rock. After the game drive from the airstrip you arrive at your camp near the banks of a dry river.  Overnight: Flycatcher Ruaha Camp. Day 13—Ruaha National Park (BLD): A fine network of game-viewing roads follows the Great Ruaha and its seasonal tributaries, where , during the dry season, impala, waterbuck and other antelopes risk their life for a sip of life-sustaining water. And the risk is considerable: not only from the prides of 20-plus lion that lord over the savannah, but also from the cheetahs that stalk the open grassland and the leopards that lurk in tangled riverine thickets. This impressive array of large predators is boosted by both striped and spotted hyena, as well as several conspicuous packs of the highly endangered African wild dog. Today's game drives will focus primarily on the NE areas of the park towards the river.  Overnight: Flycatcher Ruaha Camp. Day 14—Ruaha National Park (BLD): Ruaha's unusually high diversity of antelope is a function of its location, which is transitional to the acacia savannah of East Africa and the miombo woodland belt of Southern Africa. Grant's gazelle and lesser kudu occur here at the very south of their range, alongside the miombo-associated sable and roan antelope, and one of East Africa's largest populations of greater kudu, the park emblem, distinguished by the male's magnificent corkscrew horns. A similar duality is noted in the checklist of 450 birds: the likes of crested barbet, an attractive yellow-and-black bird whose persistent trilling is a characteristic sound of the southern bush, occur in Ruaha alongside central Tanzanian endemics such as the yellow-collared lovebird and ashy starling. It is time to look for cheetah and wild dogs - our game drives will take us in all directions as we search for cats and the elusive dogs. Overnight: Flycatcher Ruaha Camp. Day 15—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): Located in south-east Tanzania in a remote and little-visited part of the country, the Selous Game Reserve is Africa’s largest protected wildlife reserve and covers more than 5% of Tanzania’s total area. It’s rivers, hills, and plains are home to roaming elephant populations, the area’s famous wild dogs, and some of the last black rhino left in the region. Due to its remote location, and because it is most easily accessible only by small aircraft, the Selous Game Reserve has remained one of the untouched gems of Tanzania’s national parks and game reserves, and offers visitors a chance to see a wild and expansive Africa far from paved roads and curio shops. Your noon flight to Selous takes about 80 minutes. Upon arrival you will be met by your vehicle and guide. Then it is a leisurely game drive to your spectacular lodge on the edge of the Rufiji River where you will arrive in time for a late lunch! Overnight: Impala Tented Camp Day 16—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): The Rufiji River Delta is a striking feature of the game reserve. It connects the Great Ruaha River with the Rufiji River and not far from the park boundaries empties out into the Indian Ocean along the Tanzanian Coast. The Rufiji River is the largest water catchment locations in the region, and as such, is home to a plethora of varied water and bird life. Along its shores, opulent hippos sleep languidly in the mud and sun themselves, mouths wide open, as the river passes by. Crocodiles are also common along the Rufiji’s riverbanks, their amour plated skins the only rough edges in the rivers incessant flow. Morning game drives will take us inland to the lakes and in the afternoon you will enjoy an exhilarating boat ride on the Rufiji where you will meet the huge crocodiles at eye-level!  Overnight: Impala Tented Camp Day 17—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): One of the more historic protected areas in Tanzania, the Selous Game Reserve was named after Frederick Courteney Selous, a British explorer and hunter in East Africa who wrote a book about the region and his travels, and was tragically killed in land now named after him during the First World War. In 1905, when few people in East Africa thought of land conservation and the preservation of wildlife for posterity, portions of the area were earmarked for a hunting reserve. In 1922, the land area was increased and named after Frederick Selous. From then until 1975, when the current boundaries were delineated, the Selous Game Reserve increased steadily in allocated land. These days, tourists flock to the north of the reserve, while large portions of the south are still reserved for hunting. Today is another exciting day as we search for big game in the beautiful park. Overnight: Impala Tented Camp Day 18—Selous Game Reserve (BLD): Stiggler’s Gorge, where the Great Ruaha River meets the Rufiji River, is a breathtaking example of the diversity and spectacular scenery along the game reserve's waterways. Today you will do two more exciting game drives to the lakes area in search of cats and wild dogs!  Overnight: Impala Tented Camp Day 19—Dar es Salaam Airport & flight (BL): This morning is at leisure before we transfer you to the airstrip with a picnic lunch for your 10am flight. Sadly it is time to say goodbye to Selous. If you booked a safari extension, you fly to your next destination where new adventures await! Otherwise, you have a very scenic 40 minute flight to Dar es Salaam Airport. Dayrooms, etc can be arranged at extra costs. EUROPE / USA / Others: You arrive home with lifelong memories of your safari!