15 Days Fly-in Southern & Western Tanzania Safari

On arrival at the Dar es Salaam International Airport, you will be welcomed by one of our representatives from Safari Desire who will transfer you to your first hotel within Dares Salaam Central Business District. Relax at your hotel depending on the time of arrival. Overnight at Dar es Salaam Serena Hotel. Booked on Bed and Breakfast.

Very early morning breakfast at your hotel, then you will be transferred to Dar es Salaam Airport where you will take a morning flight to Nyerere National Park’s Mtemere Airstrip (a forty five minutes domestic flight to Nyerere (former Selous). Pick up on arrival at the airstrip and transfer to your lodge or camp with your first game drive on the way.

You will check-in and settle in before having your lunch at the lodge or camp. In the afternoon you will have a boat ride on River Rufuji as a way of relaxing and having an introduction to this great wildlife habitat. You will expect to encounter some hippos, crocodiles and if lucky spot other animals coming to drink at the river, including elephants, various types of antelopes, as well as various birds during this ride.

In the late afternoon you will head back to the lodge or camp for relaxation and later dinner and overnight. Overnight at Serena Mivumo River Lodge. All meals included.

Over the next two days, (Day 3 & Day 4) you will explore the vast Nyerere National Park which was nicked out of the vas Selous Game Reserve a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  The vast park will be explored on an open sided Safari land cruisers customized specifically for comfortable safari game drives and game viewing.

The greater Selous Ecosystem is among the largest untouched wilderness on the African continent, and it’s comprised of large plains, forests, rivers and lakes all of which serve as wildlife habitats.

During the game drives you will explore all these habitats as you search for Africa’s Big Five animals and the other different wild animals that live here among which are: lions, zebras, elands, impalas, buffalos, bushbucks, elephants, oryxs, crocodiles, waterbucks, hippos, sable antelopes, klipspringers, pukus, duikers, giraffes, greater kudus, Lichtenstein’s hartebeest, as well as the occasional leopards and spotted hyenas, not forgetting the largest thriving population of the endangered wild dogs. Rhinos on the other hand, can only be seen within the southern part of the game reserve. There will be great opportunities for photography.

Those of you enthusiastic about bird watching, well the Selous will not disappoint you at all. There are very many bird species found here some living within the forest, the river banks as well as in the swampy areas.

Typical day at Selous involves a morning and afternoon safari game drive with a break between for hot lunch and some rest at the lodge or camp. Apart from safari game drives in the jeep, you will also have one session of walking safari in the Nyerere National Park. Overnight at Serena Mivumo River Lodge. All meals included.

On the morning of Day 5, you will enjoy one final breakfast  at your lodge or camp in Nyerere National Park (Selous) before being transferred to the airstrip where you will catch a one hour and a half flight to the remote Ruaha National Park. Pick up by your lodge / camp guide who will transfer you to your accommodation with your first chance to spot animals along the way. On arrival at your accommodation, you will go through a short briefing by the camp manager who will explain to you about your program for the next 3 days as well as what to expect and what is included in your safari package in the Ruaha National Park.

After lunch at your lodge / camp and some rest, you will head out for your afternoon safari game drives in Ruaha which will continue until dusk when you will be taken back to your lodge or camp for  dinner and overnight. You may sit around the campfire in the evening as you sip your favorite drink and share stories. Dinner and overnight at Asanja Ruaha Camp. All meals included.

During the next two days you will be participating in the safari activities offered inside Ruaha National Park, which will be offered as a shared safari together with the other residents of your lodge or camp. Private safari activities are also available at an extra cost for exclusive safari jeep use.

The Ruaha National Park is a less popular and hidden safari destination within southern Tanzania with a rich diversity of flora and fauna. You will get a more secluded safari experience compared to that in the more tourist crowded parks in northern Tanzania.

You will spend time exploring this well-kept natural wildlife habitat as you search for different wild animals, birds and learn more about the flora. There will be half day game drives with a few hours break to return at your accommodation to freshen up and have a nice hot lunch before setting out for the afternoon game drive.

Safari game drives and walking safaris are included in the package but there are also other optional activities such as night game drives and the exciting and very rewarding hot air balloon safaris which will cost you extra (not included in this safari cost). Please let us know in advance when booking your safari if you need these extra services for prior reservations.

Ruaha National Park boasts of one of the largest buffalo and elephant populations in East Africa, and an outstandingly big number of big cats and predators within its boundaries. It’s believed that the second largest population of lions in the world is found in Ruaha. Ruaha also has a large number of cheetahs, leopards and the endangered African Wild-dogs are also found within this park.

Ruaha  National Park also has a large number of birds species with more than 570 different bird species recorded.  The park lies within the transitional zone where the southern and eastern ecosystems over-lap, and therefore it supports a remarkably diverse blend of habitats that support very big numbers of bird, animal and plant species.

Overnight at Asanja Ruaha Camp. All meals included.

Say goodbye to Ruaha National Park with lots of memories!. Check out after an early breakfast and transferred to teh airtsrip for your flight to Katavi National Park further towards the West of Mainland Tanzania. This will be a shared chartered flight because there are no scheduled flights currently in this route. This flight therefore should be preferably on a Monday.

On arrival at the airstripin Katavi, you will be picked up by the lodge / camp guide who will drive you to your accommodation where you will spend the next three nights, with game viewing opportunity on the way to the camp.

On arrival at your camp you will go through the program of the next three days with the lodge / camp manager who will explain for you what you expect during your stay, and what is included in your package.

After lunch and a couple of hours relaxation, you will set out on your first afternoon game drive. On an open sided safari landcruiser you will be led by a professionally trained and experienced safari guide who is a resident of the lodge and park, a fact that places him at an added advantage to know the best locations to spot animals.

Your afternoon game drives will continue until late afternoon when you will be taken back to your lodge and camp for dinner and overnight. Overnight at Katavi Wildlife Camp. All meals included.

Over the next few days (9 & 10), you will be able to explore this game park on morning and afternoon game drives. The number of wild animals living within Katavi National parks is very remarkable with some specialists alleging that perhaps it can be matched up to that of the Ngorongoro Crater in northern Tanzania.

The park is known as one of the destinations with the highest number of hippo and crocodiles in Africa. The large population of hippos which is estimated to be over 600 depending on the time of the year is seen hibernation in the hippo pool a sight that cannot be seen anywhere else across the continent.

In Katavi National Park it is normal to witness up-close sights of lions fighting with the huge buffaloes as they try to hunt them down. There is also a large number of elephants living here, in addition to zebras, waterbucks, giraffes, hyenas, topi and leopards in addition to the very rare wild dogs. Game viewing here is definitely very rewarding. Very few tourists visit Katavi every year and that makes safari in Katavi National Park a  unique and authentic experience. You almost have the whole park for yourself. Apart from safaris on a 4×4 safari jeep, Katavi also allows for walking safaris guided by armed ranges provided by Tanzania National Parks Authority, who are also trained naturalists.

Overnight at Katavi Wildlife Camp. All meals included.

After breakfast in this morning you will be transferred to the airstrip for your morning flight which will take you further west to the Mahale National Park. On arrival at the airtsip in Mahale National Park, one of the guides from your lodge / camp will pick you up from  the airstrip and transfer you to your accommodation. On arrival at your lodge you will be taken through the the next 3 days program by your lodge/camp manager. The afternoon will be spent with a forest walk or a chimp trek if time allows. you will then relax for sundowners at the lodge and later dinner and overnight at a lodge. Overnight at Mbali Mbali Mahale Lodge. All meals included.

For the next 3 days you will enjoy hiking the verdant hills of this park as you search for the different wildlife but mainly the Chimpanzees which are found only in Mahale and Gombe in Tanzania.

There are a number of different animals living within this national park among which are: chimpanzees, hippos, crocodiles and occasional leopards.  Several primates call this park home. Many primates live within the forests, and you expect to spot them swinging from one tree branch to another, hear their echoing cries as they call to each other in what is their unique ways of communication. Primates living within the forests of Mahale include; the red tailed monkeys, yellow baboons, colobus monkeys, and the black and white colobus.

The trek to see the chimpanzees depends on the time of the year you visit although on average it takes about two (2) hours.  There are also a number of bird species living within the forests which makes it a good destination for birding.

In the afternoons you will have a chance to unwind on the quiet beautiful beaches with white sand, or sail in the traditional dhows, or kayak on the lake, before returning to your accommodation for dinner and the overnight.

Overnight at Mbali Mbali Mahale Lodge. All meals included.

Today will be the final day of our 15 Days Safari. You will have a final breakfast in Mahale Mountains National Park before being transferred to the airstrip. There you will catch a flight to Dar es Salaam International airport where our Safari with us will end.

The flight can be arranged to Arusha instead of Dar es Salaam, incase you wish to head north for more safari game drives in the prominent parks of the Northern Tanzania Safari Parks like Ngorongoro and Serengeti National Parks.