This ten-night route runs north then out to sea, linking four contrasting parts of Tanzania. It opens on the North Dolly wildlife estate below Mount Meru near Arusha, moves to the Burunge corridor between Tarangire and Lake Manyara, then into the Serengeti to follow the migrating herds, and closes on Mnemba Island off the northeast coast of Zanzibar.
You travel by road and light aircraft, walking and riding where there are no predators, driving and tracking where there are, then trading the plains for reef and tide. Accommodation ranges from a nine-room estate lodge to a four-tent private camp, a mobile tented camp that moves with the herds and a twelve-banda island retreat.
Your first morning is spent on the North Dolly wildlife estate, watching zebra and antelope drift across the grass below Mount Meru, thirty-five minutes from Kilimanjaro International Airport. There are no large predators here, so you explore on foot with Maasai trackers and on horseback, drawing close to grazing wildebeest, eland, kudu, impala and gerenuk. Mama Simba is a nine-room lodge; six garden cottages stand alone across the estate, each with a wood-burning fireplace, a freestanding copper bathtub and a private terrace turned towards Meru.
A private drive brings you to the Burunge Wildlife Management Area, the community-run corridor that links Tarangire and Lake Manyara. Your group takes the whole camp, so the days follow no fixed schedule: you walk with Maasai guides who read the tracks and point out medicinal plants, and after dark the spotlights pick up genets, owls and smaller carnivores the parks reveal less readily. Tarangire's elephant herds and baobabs are a drive away, and Lake Manyara adds tree-climbing lions and flamingos. Forest Chem Chem has just four canvas tents raised on platforms beneath fever trees and mature baobabs, understated and light on the ground.
These days are spent in a mobile camp that relocates three times a year to follow the wildebeest and zebra across the Serengeti. From December to March it sits on the Ndutu plains for the calving; by mid-year it shifts west toward the Grumeti, then north to the Mara River. Where you stay depends on the season, and the herds are often close enough to graze between the tents and call through the night. Laba Migration Camp opened in 2024 and holds up to 22 guests; its mess tent reads like a natural-history study, filled with rare books, fossils and meteorites, and there is a tented gym with Technogym machines.
After the plains you reach the coast, crossing to a private island about 3 km off the northeast of Unguja. There are no jetties, so you wade ashore, leave your shoes at the door and let the tide set the day. The reef within the surrounding marine conservation area supports around 600 species of fish, with green turtles, three species of dolphin and, between July and September, seasonal humpback whales passing through the deeper water. Mnemba holds just 12 open-air bandas and a maximum of 24 guests, each built without doors or windows beneath casuarina trees, with a private beach lounge and a personal sala.
Ed Charles, BBC Producer
Fitzroy are true specialists in accessing the wilderness. They know where to go and importantly, when to go there. Highly recommended.
01 of 11
tanzania
Ten nights across Tanzania, from a predator-free estate near Arusha to the Serengeti migration and Zanzibar's reef coast.
01 of 13
tanzania
Eleven nights linking the Ngorongoro rim, the herds of the Serengeti and chimpanzee tracking at Mahale.
01 of 14
tanzania
Ten nights across Tanzania, from the eastern and southern Serengeti to chimpanzee trekking at Mahale on Lake Tanganyika.
rated five stars by our clients
our approach
Every journey starts with a conversation. We take the time to understand your vision before we start planning.
Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.
Every journey starts with a conversation. We favour a direct, personal approach: understanding your vision before anything else.
Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape a journey that is both thoughtfully considered and expertly delivered.
Get in touch to start planning yours.
