Wild Tanzania & Gorillas

RIVERTREES COUNTRY INN

An intimate, family run guesthouse, Rivertrees Country Inn in Tanzania rests at the foot of Mount Meru near the Usa River. Equidistant from Kilimanjaro Airport and Arusha, the inn is positioned within ten acres of beautiful gardens. Planted by owner Martina Gerken-Trappe, the garden comes to life with an abundance of colorful exotic flowers. 

& Facilities

Blending old world charm with African country style and hospitality, accommodation at Rivertrees Country Inn comprises 18 individually styled garden rooms and two spacious riverside cottages with decking and a fireplace. The recently built River House contains two elegantly decorated bedrooms, which can be booked individually or exclusively. The inn has an on-site pool, and relaxing bar and restaurant. If you so wish, you can dine in privacy at the original house or on a quiet terrace with views across the river.

 Activities

Rivertrees Country Inn in Tanzania is perfect if you want to relax for a night or two prior to or following your safari. During your stay, you enjoy trips into Arusha National Park, visits to the nearby town, or you can simply relax prior to the more demanding leg of your trip.

OLIVER’S CAMP

The long established Oliver’s Camp has moved several times over the years but has finally settled in one of the most amazing sites in northern Tanzania’s Tarangire National Park. Lying in the center of Masailand, with views across a flood plain of Minyonyo Pools, a section of the Tarangire River, a stay at the camp gives you breathtaking vistas and close contact to the wilderness.

Accommodation & Facilities

Oliver’s Camp provides low impact accommodation with an authentic cozy style and outstanding personal service. You sleep in one of ten tents equipped with solid wooden furniture, soft linens and en-suite facilities. After a day of game viewing, relax with a drink in the dining room or retreat with a good book into the library tent.

Wildlife & Activities

During your stay at Oliver’s Camp, you enjoy guided walking safaris and mobile safaris that enable you to fly camp and spend a night under the stars. Your excellent guides help you encounter the vast array of birds and animals local to this part of Tanzania. This abundance of wildlife makes game drives in open 4x4s an exhilarating experience.

GIBB’S FARM

Brimming with colonial charm and character, Gibb’s Farm in Tanzania is an old farmhouse that forms the center of a working African farm. Positioned centrally between Lake Manyara and the Ngorongoro Crater, the farm enjoys amazing views across the coffee plantation and access to the forested Ngorongoro Conservation Area behind. Exquisitely manicured gardens look out across the Great Rift Escarpment.

Accommodation & Facilities

Eighteen airy chalets make up Gibb’s Farm Lodge. Each is quietly hidden amid a private flower garden and is complete with en-suite bathroom, inviting fireplace, and uninterrupted views which you enjoy from your secluded terrace. Meals at this Tanzanian farm are a hearty, homegrown affair using fresh, organic produce and served in the welcoming rustic dining room.

Wildlife & Activities

You are free to explore the vast floral and medicinal gardens, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area forest, and over 30 acres of surrounding farmland. If you want to extend your horizons during your stay then consider a tour of nearby Lake Manyara or Ngorongoro Crater.

SERENGETI SAFARI CAMP

Serengeti Safari Camp is a luxury mobile camp which moves throughout the Serengeti National Park to take advantage of the best area as the seasons change. From December to March the camp is situated in the south and from June heads into the central and northern areas.

Accommodation & Facilities

The camp comprises six elegantly furnished tents, one of which is a family tent with two bedrooms and an adjoining sitting area. Your tent has all modern ensuite conveniences including a traditional bucket shower and an eco-flush toilet. Meals are shared under the night sky or inside the dining tent. The staff at this small, friendly camp is available at all times to ensure you have everything you need.

Wildlife & Activities

Often, when people imagine African safaris, it’s the the wide open plains of the Serengeti that come to mind. The park is renowned for its wealth of resident game, including many predators, and the spectacle of the annual wildebeest and zebra migration. With the camp’s superb guides, you’ll have a front row seat.

KIGALI SERENA HOTEL

Located close to the heart of Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali, the Serena Hotel is a luxurious five star hotel a 15 minute taxi ride from the airport. It is ideal as a comfortable stopover for a night or two at the beginning or end of your Rwandan safari.

Accommodation & Facilities

Serena Hotel comprises 148 excellent en-suite rooms. You can choose between standard, deluxe, and superior rooms, as well as junior, executive and presidential suites. The hotel is fully equipped with modern conveniences as well as a lovely swimming pool, great restaurant and relaxing bar.

Activities

There is a poignant genocide memorial in Kigali, not far from Serena Hotel in Rwanda, which you are free to visit.

VIRUNGA LODGE

Perched high on a ridge, Virunga Lodge gives you inspirational views across the Virunga Volcano range as well as Lakes Ruhondo and Bulera. Just three hours’ drive from Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali, and an hour from the Ugandan border, Virunga Lodge is less than an hour away from the gorilla tracking in Parc National des Volcans (PNV).

Accommodation & Facilities

Virunga Lodge comprises eight spacious and luxuriously furnished standard ensuite cottages equipped with a private ensuite bathroom with flushing toilet, double vanity and showers with hot and cold running water. There are also two newly built larger deluxe cottages, Ibiyaga and Ibirunga, complete with their own sitting room and fireplace and a modern adjoining bathroom. Each cottage has its own secluded terrace, which enjoys views across the valley, lakes and volcanoes, as do the lounge, bar and dining room. 24 hour electricity is generated solely by solar panels. Please note that the pathways to and from the lodge are steep.

Wildlife & Activities

Rwanda’s Parc National des Volcans lies adjacent to national parks in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and gets its name from the string of volcanoes that lie within it. The park is home to half of the world’s remaining mountain gorillas. Tracking the resident gorilla families, made up of between seven and 35 members, is the focus for most visitors. When you are not watching gorillas, you can climb the Visoke or Karisimbi volcanoes (5-6 hours), track a troop of golden monkeys (2-3 hours), visit the remains of the Karisoke center (3-4 hours) founded by Dr. Dian Fossey, visit Iby’Iwacu cultural village, the Buhanga Sacred Forest, or Musanze Caves, or take a quiet walk around the beautiful villages near the lakes. Visits to the nearby Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project are also possible at additional cost.