Few camps in Lake Manyara National Park sit this far from the northern game-drive circuit. Manyara Green Camp is one of them, standing on the banks of the Endabash River directly beneath the waterfall where the water drops off the Rift Valley escarpment. This is the quiet southern half of the park, the part most day-trippers never reach, where forest closes in around the tents and the gorge below carries animals between the escarpment and the lake basin.
From the raised decks, the sounds carry across the gorge: bush babies
In the dry months, when the Endabash is one of the few water sources for miles, the gorge draws real numbers of elephants and buffalo. They come down to drink often within sight of camp, moving through the riverbed in the evening and long after dark. From the raised decks, the sounds carry across the gorge: bush babies, hyenas, and the low rumble of elephants somewhere below.
Morning and afternoon game drives run through Lake Manyara National Park, joined by night drives and by walks that range from short tracking outings along the shore to longer routes climbing the escarpment. That emphasis on walking runs through most of what happens here, and it shows in how much of the park a guest comes to know on foot rather than through a windscreen.
Guests canoe on Lake Manyara when the water levels allow
Beyond the vehicle and the trail, the days open out. Guests canoe on Lake Manyara when the water levels allow, and cycle on the approach to the park. The treetop walkway carries them eighteen metres above the forest floor. Cultural visits to the village of Mto wa Mbu can be made on foot, by bicycle, or by tuk-tuk. Together this gives the camp one of the broader activity lists available from a single base inside a Tanzanian national park.
The camp takes its position from the river itself, sitting at the foot of the Endabash Waterfall rather than out on the open, more heavily visited plains to the north. Jean du Plessis founded Wayo Africa, the operator behind the camp, and the result is a small base built around one stretch of river. The escarpment rises behind, and the semi-dry riverbed runs past the mess tent as the main channel for the wildlife moving through the gorge below.
Eight tents stand on raised wooden decks scattered along the edge of the riverbed, set back into the forest for privacy. Each one opens to the gorge through gauze walls and ceilings, with a retractable weatherproof cover that lets guests watch the stars from bed. The interiors are simple rather than lavish. The beds are comfortable, the en-suite bathrooms run to flush toilets and hot bucket showers, and every tent has a private veranda. Solar power and rainwater collection keep the camp’s footprint light on the land.
It is unfussy cooking, made well, and eaten in good company under the escarpment
Meals are hearty, three-course affairs built around bread baked fresh each day. They are taken communally in the mess tent or set out along the riverbed and among the rocks, with drinks by the firepit as the light goes. A dedicated chef works from produce bought at nearby farms and markets, and the dining tent doubles as the camp’s bar. It is unfussy cooking, made well, and eaten in good company under the escarpment.
Lake Manyara supplies the wider picture beyond camp. There are tree-climbing lions and sizeable populations of elephant and baboon, hippo and giraffe, and flamingos gathered on the soda lake below the escarpment. The southern position gives an early start on the day’s game viewing, well before vehicles arrive from the northern gate. Evenings return to the sound of the waterfall and the forest, and to the chance of an elephant working its way down to the water somewhere in the dark.
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accommodation
Eight tents stand on raised wooden decks along the edge of the Endabash riverbed, set back into the forest, their gauze walls and ceilings opening onto wide gorge views and a retractable cover drawn back for stargazing from bed. Each has twin or double beds, an en-suite bathroom with flush toilet and hot bucket shower, and a private veranda.
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activities
Morning, afternoon, and night game drives run inside Lake Manyara National Park, alongside walking safaris that range from shoreline tracking to escarpment hikes. Guests also canoe the lake when water levels allow, mountain bike on the park approach, cross the eighteen-metre treetop walkway, and visit Mto wa Mbu village on foot, by bicycle, or by tuk-tuk.
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conservation
The team behind the camp partners with Children in the Wilderness, running school eco-clubs and conservation education in villages on the park boundaries, with support for sustainable farming and vocational training. The camp itself runs on solar power, rainwater collection and plastic-free operations, built from reclaimed timber, with staff drawn from local communities and produce bought from nearby farms.
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 on your international flight, then reach Lake Manyara either by road along the northern safari route or by a short light aircraft hop to the Lake Manyara airstrip, followed by a transfer down into the quiet southern half of the park where the camp stands on the Endabash River. We build the flights and transfers in so the day joins up without long waits.
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 timings, we can arrange a private charter, typically a Cessna Caravan or Pilatus PC-12, direct to the Lake Manyara airstrip. 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.
It depends on what you want to see. For classic dry-season game, come between July and October, when thinning bush and shrinking water draw elephant and buffalo down to the gorge near camp and the tree-climbing lions are easiest to find. The trade-off is flamingos, which are at their lowest then.
For flamingos in numbers and the fullest birding, come in the green season and accept the April and May mud. Tell us which of those matters most and we will point you to the right window, and set it into a wider northern circuit with Tarangire, Ngorongoro and the Serengeti.
It can suit families who like the outdoors, with walking, canoeing when water levels allow, cycling and the eighteen-metre treetop walkway giving children more to do than drives alone. It is a low-impact tented camp on the edge of a gorge, so the setting asks for a bit of care with younger ones.
Tell us the children's ages and we will confirm what the camp can set up and whether it is the right fit.
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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