At the southern end of Lake Manyara National Park, ten suites stand on stilts among the branches of an ancient mahogany forest. The Great Rift Valley escarpment rises behind the trees, and elephants sometimes move through the dappled glades below the decks, unhurried and close enough to hear. It is the only permanent lodge set within the park’s boundaries.
elephants sometimes move through the dappled glades below the decks
Reaching the lodge is part of the pleasure. You arrive by game drive from the northern gate, threading the length of the park with wildlife along the way, into a southern reach that most day visitors never bother to find. That leaves the forest and its lions, its elephants and its birdlife largely to the handful of guests who stay here, in a quiet the north of the park rarely knows.
The park runs along the base of a 600-metre escarpment, folding soda lake, groundwater forest and woodland into 330 square kilometres. This is country known for its tree-climbing lions, and for the birdlife that gathers when the water rises. Flamingos, pelicans and storks work the shallows below the escarpment wall in a spectacle that shifts with the season.
This is country known for its tree-climbing lions
Game drives run twice daily in open vehicles, and the southern position means few others share the roads. As the only lodge inside the park, it runs night drives under a special concession, turning up aardvark, bat-eared fox and other creatures the daylight never shows. Guided forest walks, a treetop boardwalk and a sleepout under the stars extend the ways to read this landscape.
Built from local timber and makuti palm thatch, the suites are lifted into the canopy so they rest above the forest floor rather than dominating it. Each opens onto a private viewing deck angled into the branches, with an en-suite bathroom that pairs an outdoor shower and a generous bath, and large windows giving onto the greenery. The main areas are open-sided, soaring spaces hung with local artworks and tactile fabrics, arranged around an outdoor forest boma lined with traditional dugout canoes. The whole place is built to disappear into the trees.
Dinner rarely happens in the same place twice. Meals appear in the open boma beside a log fire, on the viewing deck, or as a picnic and sundowners along the shores of Lake Manyara. The cooking draws on Pan-African tradition and fresh local ingredients, and an interactive kitchen lets guests watch the chefs at work. Then evenings settle into the sounds of the forest, birdsong fading, leaves shifting, the occasional movement of elephants somewhere in the undergrowth.
It suits guests looking to slow down as readily as those chasing wildlife
A massage sala waits for tired muscles after long game drives, and there is a swimming pool for the heat of the day, but the forest itself does much of the work, filtering the light green and close. It suits guests looking to slow down as readily as those chasing wildlife. A larger family suite makes room for children, and the WILDchild programme gives younger guests their own way into the forest and its creatures, so the days move at whatever pace the family chooses.
Cultural life here centres on the surrounding communities. A bicycle ride through the village of Mayoka and visits to Mto wa Mbu bring guests into contact with local life and the Maasai who live around the park. Since July 2022, the lodge’s conservation partner has worked with Tanzania’s national parks authority to clear invasive plant species and restore indigenous grassland inside the park. Related projects have supported local schools and funded tertiary education bursaries for students from nearby communities.
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accommodation
Ten treehouse suites raised on stilts among ancient mahogany trees, built from local timber and makuti thatch. Each has a private viewing deck into the canopy, an en-suite bathroom with an outdoor shower and a large bath, and windows opening onto the forest. One larger family suite accommodates families with children.
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activities
Twice-daily game drives in open vehicles, with few other vehicles this far south. As the only lodge inside the park, night drives run under concession for nocturnal species such as aardvark and bat-eared fox. Guided forest walks, a treetop boardwalk, a starlit sleepout, birdwatching, and lakeshore picnics and sundowners round out the days.
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conservation
Since July 2022, the lodge's conservation partner has worked with Tanzania's national parks authority to clear invasive plant species and restore indigenous grassland within Lake Manyara National Park. Related work has funded school facilities and tertiary bursaries for students from nearby communities. Bicycle visits to the village of Mayoka support local livelihoods.
Get in touch and let’s start the conversation. An initial consultation helps us understand what you’re looking for, whether that’s specific experiences, luxury touches, or marking a special occasion, and from there we’ll guide you through what’s possible so you can decide if we’re the right fit.
You fly into Kilimanjaro International Airport, then reach the park by light aircraft or road. The last stretch is the good part: you drive in from the northern gate, so the arrival doubles as a game drive down to the far south of the park, a quiet reach most day visitors skip. We build the flights and the transfer in so it all works in a day.
Seats are shared and the exact departure is fixed the day before, once the airline sets its routing, so the final timings firm up close to the day. If you would rather set your own schedule, we can arrange a private charter instead, typically a Cessna Caravan or Pilatus PC-12, timed to your international arrival. Luggage is soft bags only, with a weight limit of around 15 to 20kg depending on the airline, which we confirm with you before you pack.
Yes. Lake Manyara lies low beneath the Rift Valley wall, well below 1,800 metres, and current UK guidance from TravelHealthPro treats all of mainland Tanzania below that height as a malaria area. Screened tents, nets and repellent help, but antimalarial tablets and covering up after dark are the real protection.
Health advice can change from year to year, so we always ask you to confirm the current position with a travel clinic or your doctor before you travel, and to take the usual care against bites after dark.
This is warm northern-circuit country: comfortable days in the mid to high twenties and cooler mornings and evenings beneath the Rift Valley wall. The long rains of March to May bring real mud.
Pack light layers with a fleece for early drives, in neutral colours, and add a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses and good sunscreen. A light waterproof is worth having in the green season.
For dry-season game, come between July and October, when the forest and lake edge draw elephant herds and the tree-climbing lions are easiest to find. For flamingos in their thousands and the fullest birdlife, come in the green season and accept the April and May mud.
As the only lodge set inside the park, it also runs night drives under a special concession, turning up aardvark, bat-eared fox and other creatures the daylight never shows, whatever the season. It sits naturally on a northern loop, and we will balance the nights across the whole trip.
Yes. One larger family suite is set aside for families with children, and the treehouse setting up among the branches, the forest walks and the boardwalk give younger guests plenty beyond the game drives.
The suites stand on stilts in the canopy, so tell us the children's ages and we will confirm the room and how the lodge sets it up.
The northern circuit has better coverage than Tanzania's remote south and west. Expect wifi in the main area of camp, which can be slow, and patchy mobile signal that comes and goes and drops out on drives.
It is enough for messages and email rather than calls or streaming. Tell us if you need to stay reliably reachable and we will confirm the current setup before you travel.
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