Tanzania is home to many of the wondrous sights that are associated with the great continent of Africa. From the vast Serengeti, to Mt. Kilamanjaro, to the Great Rift Valley, every sight and dignified person you encounter is a reminder of how big this world really is. If your timing is right, you’ll see first-hand the Great Migration as 3 million antelope make their away across these plains – a must-see for any game watcher. Between sightings of the Big 5, get spoiled at our first class restaurants and accommodations including a Masaai mud-and-stick style lodge, ensuite luxury tent and private island paradise. Your itinerary is full of bucket list activities including safari drives, exploring the impressive Laetoli Footprints, endandgered species sightings at the Ngorongoro Crater, and the ultimate secluded escape on the private island of Azura Quilalea off the Mozambican coastline. On land and on the sea, each once-in-a-lifetime experience is one your will carry with you in your heart for years to come.
Sample Itinerary:
Day 1: Arrival Legendary Lodge, Arusha
Welcome to Tanzania! Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport you will be greeted and transferred by private vehicle to Legendary Lodge in Arusha. This attractive little town is situated beneath the towering peaks of Mount Meru and Kilimanjaro. Arusha, renowned as the safari capital of Tanzania, offers a plethora of attractions and adventures. It has numerous first-class restaurants, bars and markets to browse, and is the ideal place to spend a relaxing day before embarking on a safari. Not-to-be-missed is the Arusha National Park (in Ngurdoto Crater), the National Natural History Museum, the Laetoli Footprints (set in volcanic ash, dating back 3,500,000 years) and the beautiful coffee plantations, which dot the landscape.
About Legendary Lodge
Spend 1 night at Legendary Lodge. A hidden gem nestled in coffee plantations at the base of Mount Meru, the lodge features the original colonial farmhouse and 12 private cottages tucked within verdant, tropical gardens and surrounded by a working coffee farm. Enjoy a soothing massage or facial at the on-site spa, or work out at the nearby recreation center with full gym, steam room, pool, tennis and squash courts, and running track. Yoga classes are also available. Accommodation is in a 1 Bedroom Garden Cottage with ensuite facilities, and includes all meals and non-premium beverages. Cottages have private verandas and magnificent views of Mount Meru. Each has a lounge with fireplace, king-sized bed, and satellite television. Ensuite bathrooms include a tub, shower and full range of amenities. All cottages come with a complimentary minibar and fruit basket. Wake-up calls are accompanied by a cup of freshly brewed coffee or tea, followed by a buffet of fruits, cereals, pastries and full English breakfast.
Days 2 – 4: Ngorongoro Crater Lodge
Enjoy an early morning game drive and a tantalizing breakfast before being driven back to the airstrip for your scheduled Tanganyika Flying Company flight to Manyara Airstrip. Upon landing you will be met by a representative who will drive you to the lodge. The Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area, within the Serengeti, is home to more than 30,000 protected animals. It is an area of spectacular beauty and excellent game viewing, a unique safari destination in Africa.
The Ngorongoro Crater, once a gigantic volcano, is the largest intact caldera in the world. Some maintain that before it erupted, it would have been higher than Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. Today, having collapsed and eroded, it is an extensive highland area with the famous 600-metre deep Ngorongoro Crater as its focal point.
Nearly three million years old, the ancient caldera shelters one of the most beautiful wildlife havens on earth. Fresh springs and a large soda lake quench the thirst of all inhabitants. Black rhino are protected within its rim, giant tusked elephants wander the forests, black-maned lions stalk the grasslands, and flamingos crowd the soda lakes.
About Ngorongoro Crater Lodge
Spend 2 nights at &Beyond Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. The lodge is located on the edge of the world famous UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Ngorongoro Crater. Surrounding the lodge, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area spans 8,300 square kilometers, stretching from the Rift Valley to the Serengeti. The design follows the Maasai mud-and-stick manyatta (homestead) style. The Ngorongoro Crater Lodge is without doubt one of the most architecturally spectacular safari lodges in Africa. Accommodation is in a Suite with ensuite facilities and includes three meals daily, soft drinks, house wines, local brand spirits and beers, teas and coffees, scheduled safari activities, refreshments on game drives and laundry.
Days 4 – 7: Serengeti Under Canvas
Depart by road to Manyara Airstrip for your scheduled Tanganyika Flying Company flight to &Beyond Serengeti Under Canvas. Serengeti, which means “endless plains” in Masai, is undoubtedly one of the world’s most celebrated wilderness areas and is an ongoing source of inspiration to writers, filmmakers and photographers. It is Tanzania’s oldest game reserve, renowned for the part it plays in the annual Great Migration, when an estimated 3 million antelope migrate to Kenya’s Masai Mara Game Reserve. This epic, seasonal journey is a deeply moving experience and a wonderful photographic subject. Here visitors to the park can roam its sprawling plains on exhilarating game drives or hop into a hot-air balloon ride for an once-in-a-lifetime wilderness adventure. The Serengeti National Park is also home to the Olduvai Gorge, where groundbreaking archaeological discoveries have been made, as well as the breathtaking Ngorongoro Crater.
About Serengeti Under Canvas
Spend 3 nights at &Beyond Serengeti Under Canvas, a luxurious semi-permanent tented camp that moves around the Serengeti bringing guests within range of the massive herds of the Great Migration. This is the ultimate in luxury camping, complete with a private butler service, chandeliers, silverware, crystal, ensuite facilities and comfortable beds with fluffy duvets.
Experience a classic Tanzanian safari in spectacular solitude and soothing comfort – with only the canvas walls of your tent separating you from the wonder of the Serengeti. Carefully positioned for close proximity to the wildlife herds of the Great Migration, the camp provides the ultimate viewpoint for this amazing animal spectacle. With only 9 tents nestled at each private campsite, you’ll enjoy the indulgence of complete comfort combined with the authenticity of nights spent in the African bush. Accommodation is in an ensuite Tent and includes all meals, scheduled activities, laundry, soft drinks, house wines and local brand spirits and beers, and return airstrip transfers.
Days 7 – 9: Azura Selous
Enjoy a lunch to go provided by Serengeti Under Canvas. You will be transferred to the airstrip for your Coastal Aviation flight to Lower Selous (via Dar es Salaam) to Azura Selous.
Secluded and off-the-beaten track, Selous offers visitors a slice of undisturbed wilderness, teeming with a spectacular array of fauna and flora. It was declared a World Heritage Site due to its dramatic landscapes and great diversity of wildlife. The Selous Game Reserve is one of the only big game reserves to allow hiking, offering wildlife enthusiasts the chance to explore Tanzania’s pristine landscapes on foot. This is a superb and extremely exciting safari experience, in Tanzania’s largest conservation area, and should not be missed.
Enjoy 2 nights at Azura Selous. Located on the Ruaha, it has 13 luxurious air-conditioned stone and canvas rooms looking out onto the river. The main area of the lodge is on a few levels all centered around the best infinity pool to be found in the Selous, with a terrace and restaurant with views over the river banks where hippos and crocodiles can be spotted. Accommodations are in a Luxury ensuite Tented Room and include all meals and drinks (except for champagne), laundry, transfers to/from Sumbazi airstrip and shared activities that include walking, game drives, fishing and boating (when the river is high enough).
Days 9 – 13: Azura Quilalea
You will be transferred to the airstrip for your Coastal Aviation flight to Pemba Mozambique via Dar es Salaam Airport, and transferred by helicopter to Azura Quilalea.
Dotted along the Mozambican coastline are 32 idyllic islands that make up the Quirimbas Archipelago. Here a plethora of marine life, ranging from turtles and dugongs to whales and dolphins, and a thriving coral reef beckon to diving enthusiasts. The magnificent Quirimbas National Park offers nature lovers the opportunity to explore a vast expanse of enchanted forest. The Quirimbas boast enormous cultural and historical value. The islands represent a cultural melting pot of Portuguese, Arabian and African influences, while historic landmarks such as the old fort on Ibo Island tell tales of slavery, pirates and the ivory trade. Quirimba Island is home to the Gessner family, who has lived there since 1936. The family settled on the island and created a flourishing coconut plantation, which they continue to farm to this day.
About Azura Quilalea
Relax for 4 nights on this private island. This is paradise for lovers of marine life, with snorkeling and scuba diving straight off the main beach. With just a few guests on the island at a time, you will be the only people snorkeling and diving here, and as a result the plethora of sea life on view is spectacular.
There are some amazing dive sites in the surrounding waters, with walls and drop offs for the more adventurous. They have humpback whales from July to November, nesting turtles from November to April, and pods of dolphins in front of your villas year round. There is also kayaking through extensive mangroves on nearby Sencar Island, sailing on traditional Mozambican dhows, and some fantastic deep sea fishing.
On land, enjoy exclusive picnics and romantic candlelit beach dinners, island walks to view the giant baobabs, cultural trips to nearby Ibo Island, and relaxing treatments at the spa. Accommodations are in a Kusi Villa with ensuite facilities, and include all meals including main beach dinners, local beers and spirits, selection of house wines, soft drinks, tea and coffee, water, sunset cocktail of the day, butler service, baobab walking trails and use of snorkeling equipment and kayaks. Kusi Villas have prime beachfront locations and views, air-conditioning and fans, large bathrooms with indoor and outdoor showers, hammocks and private shaded decks with daybeds.
Day 13: Departure
You will be transferred to the airstrip for your scheduled charter by helicopter from Azura Quilalea to Pemba Mozambique, where you will connect to your Coastal Aviation flight from Pemba Mozambique to Dar es Salaam Airport.
Dar es Salaam is Tanzania’s largest and busiest city. It is the country’s most important business and commercial hub and is situated right on the Indian Ocean. It is the main port of call for most visitors, as it is an ideal location from which to access both the wilderness areas and the beaches of Tanzania and Zanzibar. Most visitors en route to the better-known Tanzanian attractions are surprised by the charm of this unassuming city and find themselves yearning for more days to explore its hidden secrets. Must-see attractions include the beautiful beaches of Kunduchi, Mjimwena and Mbwa Maji, Dar es Salaam’s spectacular harbor and the local markets.
Upon arrival at Dar es Salam Airport, you will be warmly welcomed and transferred to the city center for dinner (meals and drinks for your own account), before you are transferred to Dar es Salaam International Airport for your departing flight.
