Luxury Safari

Luxury safaris in Tanzania

A luxury safari in Tanzania with us means a private vehicle and guide, fewer long drives, and lodges chosen for where they stand as much as for how they look. These are the properties our most comfortable Tanzania itineraries use today.

Luxury safaris across Africa

Outside Tanzania we build the same kind of trip around a few places where the lodges and the wildlife are both exceptional:

• South Africa: private reserves where rangers can drive off road to follow leopard. The 9-Day Ultimate Luxury Safari combines Leopard Hills in Sabi Sand with Madikwe Hills in malaria-free Madikwe.
• Kenya: the 10-Day Kenya High-End Safari uses Angama Mara on the Mara escarpment and Governors' Camp on the Mara River, with Amboseli for elephants below Kilimanjaro.
• Botswana: the 6-Day Okavango Delta Fly-In Safari reaches water camps in the Okavango Delta by light aircraft, with mokoro trips through the channels.

What a luxury safari in Tanzania includes

Every safari we run is private unless you ask for a small group departure, and on a luxury trip that is the starting point. You get your own Land Cruiser with a pop-up roof, and your own guide. Our guides speak fluent English, and many also work in French, German, Spanish, Portuguese or Italian.

The vehicle matters more than it sounds. Nobody else decides when you leave camp or how long you stay with a sighting. If the light is good and the leopard has not moved, you stay.

Camps and lodges

Expect an ensuite bathroom with hot water, a proper bed and a private veranda. The best camps stand where the animals already move, so elephants and zebra may pass close to your tent, and you can hear lions at night. Most parks are unfenced.

Meals and extras

Meals are covered for your whole stay. Lunch is usually a picnic between game drives, and a breakfast or dinner in the bush can be arranged. Many camps will lay on a private candlelit dinner for a honeymoon. Tell us about dietary needs early so the camp can plan for them. A hot air balloon flight over the Serengeti at dawn is an optional extra.

Flights between parks

Light aircraft are what separate a luxury itinerary from a long road trip. Flying between the Serengeti and the crater saves most of a day on the road. Bush flights have luggage limits, so we brief you on packing before you travel. The 10-Day Tanzania Luxury Sky Safari is built around this.

Where to go on a luxury safari in Tanzania

Most luxury itineraries start in the north, where the parks sit a short flight or a few hours' drive apart.

Serengeti

The Serengeti is where most of the budget goes, because the best camps are few and well placed. Central Serengeti has resident game all year, including big cats. The north is the base for the Mara River crossings, and our 10-Day Exclusive Serengeti Safari is timed for them.

Ngorongoro Crater

The Ngorongoro Crater is a short stop with a big return. Stay on the rim and you wake to the crater floor below you. Black rhino live here, which is rare enough to make the descent worth an early start.

Tarangire and the south

Tarangire is the place for elephant herds and old baobabs, and it works well as the first stop after Arusha. If you want fewer people still, Ruaha and Katavi in the south often feel more exclusive than the northern circuit.

Zanzibar to finish

Many guests end with a few nights on the coast. A private villa on Zanzibar makes a calm finish after early mornings in the bush. Couples can also look at our honeymoon safaris.

Best time for a luxury safari in Tanzania

There is no wrong month, but each one gives a different trip. The camps in the busiest areas fill early, so the season you want decides how soon you should book.

Nothing in the bush is guaranteed, and the herds follow the rain, not the calendar.

Luxury or mid-range: how to choose

The animals are the same in both. What you pay for is how close your camp is to the action, how private the trip feels and how few hours you spend in a vehicle between parks.

Luxury makes sense when

• you have a short time and want to spend it on game drives, not roads
• you want a camp in one of the few prime spots, such as the northern Serengeti for the river crossings
• it is a honeymoon, an anniversary or another trip you will not repeat soon

Mid-range makes sense when

• you have more days than budget
• you are happy to drive between parks
• you want to travel in the green months, when prices are often lower

A good mid-range safari still reaches the Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Tarangire and Lake Manyara, and a mobile camp on the migration route can feel close to luxury. Our blog compares the two in more detail: luxury Tanzania tours against mid-range.