Inspiration for your own tailor-made trip
Ruaha & Nyerere National Parks, Zanzibar
100% customisable for you
Your two-week adventure in Southern Tanzania begins today. Head to the airport, whizz through security and make your way to the lounge, where you can relax with drinks and nibbles before boarding. Your overnight flight to Tanzania is indirect, so you’ll switch planes en route, most likely connecting in Nairobi or Dubai.
Wheels down in Dar es Salaam, where you’ll be met and privately transferred to your hotel for the night.
The rest of today is deliberately low-key: a chance to reset after the flight, grab a decent meal, and get some sleep before your adventure starts in earnest tomorrow.
Time to get your safari head on. This morning you'll be collected from your hotel and taken to the airport for your light aircraft flight to Ruaha National Park. You’ll be scooped up as soon as you land, and driven to your camp for the next four nights, tucked deep in the wilderness.
Unpack and settle in before heading out on a late-afternoon game drive. Ruaha’s wonderfully rugged terrain is home to (deep breath) huge herds of elephants, large prides of lions, leopards, cheetahs, hyenas, wild dogs, giraffes, buffalo, hippos, zebras and much more, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities for fantastic sightings.
As darkness falls, head back to base for drinks around the campfire, followed by a hearty African feast in the dining room, as the sounds of the night play out around you.
Another day, another game drive… well, two actually. Start the day by heading into the bush on a walking safari, where, accompanied by an armed guide, you'll get to grips with Ruaha’s finer details. A slower, more focused way to explore, you’ll have time to spot tracks and learn about the smaller creatures and vital plant life that game drives often overlook. Ruaha’s majestic birds are a big part of the story, so keep your binoculars handy.
After lunch back at camp and some leisurely time spent relaxing by the pool, it’s time to set off on an evening game drive. As the light softens and the heat dips, Ruaha’s predators become more active, so prepare for drama in the dusk.
Prepare for a sleepover that you’ll never forget, because today you’ll set out into the bush for a fly camping safari (only available in the mid-August to mid-November dry season). For those not in the know, fly camping means sleeping out under the stars with little more than a comfy mat and a mosquito net between you and the elements. Safari pared back to its purest form.
With your guide, head out on foot to find the perfect patch of wilderness to call home for the night. Your guide will pitch camp, rustle up a sublime supper… and leave you in ‘heart-thumping, alone in the bush’ privacy. Don’t worry, they’ll still be close enough to ensure you’re not mistaken for a midnight snack…
With no walls between you and the sounds of the night, fall asleep counting constellations and the odd shooting star…
Don’t bank on a lie-in. Ruaha doesn’t so much wake up as launch into a full-volume concert: birdsong, whoops, roars and rustles all compete for top billing (best alarm clock ever). Still, there’s no rush, so lie back and enjoy every note, before heading back to camp with your guide. After a late breakfast, spend a few unhurried hours basking by the pool.
Later this afternoon, head out for your final game drive here. Ruaha’s renowned for its high concentration of predators, from huge prides of lions, leopards, and cheetahs to smaller cat species like serval and genet, so watch out for swishing tails of all sizes. Back at camp, settle in for your final night, swapping stories over dinner and reliving highlights from last night's sleep-out.
This morning, pack up and fly onwards to Nyerere National Park, a bona-fide UNESCO World Heritage site situated south-east of Ruaha. Once again, the journey is all part of the adventure: after another short, light aircraft flight, you’ll be met and bounced through the bush by 4x4 to your camp. Remember to keep a look out for animals en route: Nyerere’s inhabitants couldn’t care less that you’re not on an official game drive.
After checking in, the pace is set to ‘easy’. Order a cool drink from the bar and head out to the veranda to watch wildlife sauntering past as the sun falls beyond the horizon.
Spend the next two days exploring Nyerere National Park on early morning and late afternoon game drives interspersed with downtime back at camp (pool time included, naturally). The largest protected game reserve on the continent, Nyerere boasts all the Big Five, plus cheetah, giraffes, black rhinos, seriously impressive birdlife and more wild dogs (approximately 1,300) than anywhere else on the planet. Your camera is guaranteed a good work-out.
For a magical final night, swap the usual game drive for a sundowner cruise by pontoon through the Rufiji River delta. The largest delta in East Africa, the Rufiji’s scenery alone is spellbinding, but add a shifting cast of wildlife paddling in to drink and magnificent birdlife wheeling overhead, and it becomes pure safari poetry in motion. So, sit back, enjoy the ever-changing view and another aperitif or two, raising a toast to a cracking trip so far.
Pack up your hiking boots and have your sandals at the ready: it’s time to trade the bush for the beach. After two short flights via Dar es Salaam, touch down on Zanzibar Island, greeted by blinding white sand, azure blue water and palms rustling in the breeze. After the muted tones of the savannah, you’ll feel like you’ve landed in a technicolour postcard.
With no early game drives on the horizon, the next four days can be as languid or active as you wish. Laze with swims, sunbathing and long beach walks, book a pampering spa session and linger over poolside cocktails. If you’d rather dial up the pace, you can also enjoy kitesurfing, deep-sea fishing or a snorkelling trip to meet the mesmerising marine life living just offshore. End your final night in style with a private beach dinner, toes wiggling in icing-sugar sand as the sky turns from peach to ink.
Sadly, it’s time to bid paradise goodbye and head for home. After one last breakfast by the sea, you’ll be transferred back to the airport for the short flight to Dar es Salaam, where you’ll board your indirect flight back to the UK. Depending on routings and connections, you’ll arrive home later today or tomorrow morning, together with enough photos and memories to keep the thrill alive… well, at least until the next adventure calls.
Each of our trips is entirely tailor-made with originality, quality and cultural immersion in mind. Our team of destination specialists will craft itineraries based on your tastes, using their first-hand knowledge and the help of our in-country team of Concierges and guides. All trips are accompanied by a wide range of additional services, including a 24-hour helpline, the Original Travel app, fast-track airport services and much more.
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Our team of destination experts will get to know you and your unique requirements for your holiday
We work with you to build an ultra-personalised holiday itinerary with your choice of accommodation, experiences and activities
All of our holidays include little extras designed to make a big difference to your trip, from fast-tracking you through airport check-in and security to our network of local Concierges
