The far eastern plains of Serengeti National Park, out in the Soit le Motonyi area, are big-cat country, and Olmara was built for little else. Eight tents, and a single purpose. The short grass holds dense herds of gazelle and other small antelope, and where the prey concentrates the predators follow. Lion, cheetah, leopard and serval all work this ground.
The short grass holds dense herds of gazelle and other small antelope
Soit le Motonyi was closed to visitors for close to two decades to protect its cheetahs, and the effect lingers. Vehicle numbers stay low, sightings run long and unhurried, and the plains feel genuinely quiet. Few properties operate across this stretch of eastern Serengeti, and here the cats behave as if no one is watching them. It is a rare kind of space, and the whole camp is arranged around it.
The camp puts its weight behind guiding. Its Tanzanian guides are career men who read the ground and know cat behaviour by instinct, and they were recruited and trained to work this particular stretch of plains, not the busier ground further west. A sighting runs as long as it needs, not cut short by a radio call. That patience is the philosophy the whole place is built around.
A sighting runs as long as it needs, not cut short by a radio call.
The same instinct carries into the kitchen and the tents. Resources go into guiding, vehicles and good, fresh food rather than spa treatments and swimming pools. Bread and pastries come out of the camp ovens, the meals are wholesome and generous, and the comfort is quietly considered. Superfluous frills are not the point here, and the camp reads better for their absence.
Eight tented suites stand within an ancient grove of acacias, looking out over open grassland and the Ngare Nanyuki river valley. Each has a net-draped king bed, a lounge cove and a writing desk, with soft carpets over teak floors and a full bathroom behind the canvas. Three of the tents carry stargazing platforms, reached by a gentle staircase, where a bed can be made up under the open sky. Dinner can be laid out there too, lit by lanterns, with nothing between the table and the Milky Way.
Short grass supports the grazing herds and gives cheetah the open running room they hunt in, while the acacia belts and rocky kopjes along the valley give lion and leopard cover to stalk from and dens in which to raise their cubs. That combination of open ground and edge cover, backed by a healthy prey base, explains the density of predator sightings in this corner of the park. Klipspringer hold to the kopjes, elephant, giraffe and zebra cross the flats, and spotted hyena move through after dark.
Lions call close to camp, hyena whoop across the dark, and long silences fall in between.
Open 4x4s go out morning and afternoon, crossing the Soit le Motonyi plains, the Ngare Nanyuki valley and the woodland edges, the guides tracking cats and staying with them long after a sighting has been ticked off. On foot, a secluded river valley of fig-covered kopjes and hippo pools opens up, walked with an armed guide and open to ages twelve and over. Fly-camping extends the immersion overnight in the bush. Balloon flights lift off from Seronera at dawn and end with breakfast laid out on the plains.
The camp runs entirely on solar power, its canvas structures set among the acacias, not imposed on them. Vehicle numbers stay low across this ground, and by evening the plains are left to themselves. Lions call close to camp, hyena whoop across the dark, and long silences fall in between. Mornings can bring giraffe and zebra grazing within sight of the tents. Time with predators here runs unhurried, in a corner of Serengeti National Park that most vehicles never reach, and that is the whole point of coming.
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accommodation
Eight tented suites under canvas, set in an acacia grove with plains views. Each has a net-draped king bed, lounge cove, writing desk, soft carpets over teak floors and an en-suite bathroom with shower, twin basins and flushing toilet. Three suites carry rooftop stargazing platforms for sleeping under the sky. Solar-powered throughout.
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activities
Morning and afternoon game drives in open 4x4s track lion, cheetah, leopard and serval across the eastern Serengeti plains. Guided walking safaris in a river valley are open to ages twelve and over, led by an armed guide. Fly-camping, dawn balloon flights from Seronera, bush meals and stargazer-deck dining round out the days. Night drives are not permitted inside the national park.
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conservation
The camp runs entirely on solar power with a deliberately light footprint, its canvas structures set among the acacias. It lies within Soit le Motonyi, closed for close to two decades to protect its cheetah population.
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.
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You fly into Kilimanjaro International Airport on your international flight, and from Arusha nearby we put you on a light aircraft to a Serengeti airstrip such as Seronera, before a game drive out to the remote eastern plains where the camp stands, from where a game drive brings you to camp. We build these connections into your itinerary so the timings line up 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. For timings of your own, we can arrange a private charter, typically a Cessna Caravan or Pilatus PC-12, timed to your international arrival into Kilimanjaro. 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. The Serengeti sits below 1,800 metres, and current UK guidance from TravelHealthPro treats all of mainland Tanzania below that height as a malaria area. The cooler nights at this altitude reduce the risk compared with the coast, but they do not remove it, so the camps provide screened tents, nets and repellent, and antimalarial tablets and covering up after dark remain 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.
The Serengeti is warm by day, usually in the low to high twenties, and cooler at night and in the early morning, often in the mid-teens, so dawn drives in an open vehicle feel cold.
Pack light layers with a fleece for early starts, in neutral colours, plus a wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses and good sunscreen. If you travel in the green season, add a light waterproof; the long rains of March to May are the wettest stretch.
Olmara is not really a migration camp, and it is better for it. It sits on the far eastern plains in the Soit le Motonyi area, ground closed to visitors for close to two decades to protect its cheetahs, and it is built around resident big cats rather than the moving herds. Lion, cheetah, leopard and serval work this quiet corner year-round, vehicle numbers stay low, and sightings run long and unhurried.
That means the game rewards you across the year rather than in a single season, so come whenever suits your wider trip and give the cats time by staying three nights. If it is specifically the river crossings you want, we would place you at a northern camp instead and tell you plainly why.
It can suit older families who are keen on wildlife, with guided walking safaris open to ages twelve and over led by an armed guide, and three of the tents carrying rooftop platforms for sleeping under the sky.
It is a focused big-cat camp rather than one with family facilities, so tell us the children's ages and we will say honestly whether it fits.
The Serengeti has patchy coverage that is better than Tanzania's remote south and west but far from guaranteed. Expect wifi in the main area of camp, often slow, and some mobile signal that comes and goes and disappears out on the plains.
It suits messages and email rather than calls or streaming. Tell us if you need to stay reliably reachable and we will confirm what this camp currently offers before you travel.
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our approach
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Whether by phone or in person, we work with you directly to shape something that is considered, personal, and expertly delivered.
