Tarangire and Lake Manyara 3 Day Camping Safari Extension

Most people think of wild animals when they think of a trip to Africa, and to see some of the world-famous species of African wildlife in their natural surroundings is an opportunity not to be missed. Safaris using game lodges can be expensive though and for those wishing to have a more natural experience or on a budget, we offer this alternative safari option. The Tarangire and Lake Manyara 3 day camping safari uses tents in designated campsites just outside two excellent wildlife watching destinations - after all, the animals are just the same!

Tarangire and Lake Manyara National Parks have very different characteristics and are both excellent parks for a safari experience providing a broad range of sightings, plus being closer to Arusha they minimise time spent travelling as much as possible.

At the end of your trek/walk, you are transferred by road to your hotel (generally the Impala Hotel) in Arusha for a very welcome hot shower, and to enjoy a relaxing overnight stay including dinner and breakfast. The next morning you leave the hotel after breakfast and transfer to Kigongoni campsite at the edge of Tarangire National Park. This is about a 3-4 hour drive so we will arrive in time for lunch and spend a couple of hours in camp before going into the park for our first game drive in the afternoon.

Tarangire National Park is 2,600 sq km and consists mainly of grassland savannah and acacia woodland. As with all parks, the numbers of game are greater in the dry season, with the greatest concentrations occurring in the June to October period. The park has lions and leopards, a great variety of birdlife, and much plains game including zebra, wildebeest, oryx, eland, and a large number of elephants. We have game drives in Tarangire National Park on the first afternoon and again on the next day in the morning, leaving Tarangire around midday to drive to Mto wa Mbu.

At Mto wa Mbu, we stay at the Jambo campsite on the edge of Lake Manyara National Park, where we will have lunch and can relax for a couple of hours before an afternoon game drive in the park. Lake Manyara National Park covers around 330 sq kms, and around two-thirds of which (in the wet season) is the lake itself. Whilst a small park, it is very varied in habitat, wildlife and birds, and sits in a beautiful setting below the western escarpment of the Great Rift Valley. It is probably best known for its tree-climbing lions, but more obviously noticeable are the vast numbers of baboons - believed to be the largest concentrations of baboons in the world. Elephant, giraffe, wildebeest and buffalo are common, and the watery environment ensures plenty of hippo and birdlife, including flamingos, pelicans, storks and egrets.

As an optional extra, we can offer a guided night game drive in an open game drive vehicle inside Lake Manyara National Park (in fact, you will probably be the only vehicle in the park!). This is the only national park in Tanzania where you can enjoy game viewing at night, and see nighttime behaviour and the many different nocturnal animals that are not seen during the day (for example leopard, hippo, civet, porcupine, bush baby, genet). Under the stars of an African night sky, the sights and sounds are a real treat for the senses. This very special night game drive lasts around two to two and a half hours, but the national park does charge a relatively high additional park fee, which is included in the price below. If you are interested in the night game drive experience, please Contact Us or show this clearly on your booking form.

As another optional extra, we can arrange a scenic canoeing safari inside Lake Manyara National Park. The two to two and a half hours guided canoeing safari on the lake is in stable, two-person canoes, enabling you to experience a much closer and personal look at nature. The wildlife to be seen generally includes fantastic water-birdlife (from close-up on the water at bird height!), hippos and buffalos. This unusual type of safari is a highly recommended trip and gives a totally different game viewing experience. However, it is only available when the water level in the lake is high enough (generally around the April to July period), and timings mean it can only be done instead of a game drive. If you are interested in the canoeing safari, please Contact Us or show this clearly on your booking form so we can check its availability.

We stay overnight in camp at Jambo camp, and the next day, after a very light early breakfast, we have a final game drive in Lake Manyara National Park. We return to camp in the late morning for brunch, after which we drive back to Arusha for a dayroom at our hotel, before leaving in the late afternoon for the airport for the overnight flight home.

This Tarangire and Lake Manyara 3 day camping safari includes transfer to and cost of Arusha hotel on dinner, bed and breakfast basis; all travel, food, accommodation, national park fees and guiding services on safari as detailed above; return to Arusha, use of hotel/lodge dayroom, and transfer to Kilimanjaro airport. On safari we use comfortable two-person tents in designated campsites with washing and toilet facilities. We are looked after by our guide and cook who make camp and prepare all the meals whilst on safari, leaving us to take in our surroundings and remember the sightings of the day!

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