JAMBO! We’re home from Tanzania, and I’m still dreaming about the Serengeti! Pete and I just spent 11 incredible days with Singita, from the Mara River in the far north to the Grumeti Reserve. This trip was extra special for me because it was a return. My very first African safari was in Tanzania back in 2018 with my BTBE (Best Travel Buddy Ever) Ruth, and you can read all about it in Tanzania: Your Guide to an Amazing African Safari in the Serengeti. Eight years later, I got to share it with Pete to celebrate his birthday (a little early). Today on the blog, I’m sharing our full itinerary day by day, where we stayed, how we got from camp to camp, and all of my best travel tips so you can plan your own trip of a lifetime.
Planning Our Tanzania Safari
We booked everything through Singita Journeys, Singita’s in-house travel team. Our travel consultant, Stephanie Schwatlo, put together the most beautiful itinerary, with every flight, transfer and lodge in one place. You can even sync it to your calendar! If you’ve read my 14 day South African adventure, you know how much we loved Singita Boulders and Lebombo, so going back to them for Tanzania was an easy decision. If you have never been to Africa, I highly suggest an experienced travel agent. Our South Africa trip was planned and booked with Melanie Lake since it involved cities, tour guides, the wine country and safaris. On this trip, we met and made friends with Charlotte Frost, an expert international travel agent based in Copenhagen. We loved talking travel with her throughout our journey.
Our itinerary at a glance:
- October 19: Dallas to Paris (arrive next day)
- October 20: Paris to Kilimanjaro, overnight at Legendary Lodge in Arusha
- October 21 to 24: Fly to Lamai region, Singita Mara River Tented Camp (Lamai, northern Serengeti)
- October 24 to 27: Fly to Grumeti region, Singita Faru Faru Lodge (Grumeti Reserve)
- October 27 to 30: Drive to Singita Sasakwa Lodge (Grumeti Reserve)
- October 30: Grumeti Air to Kilimanjaro, then KLM overnight to Amsterdam
- October 31: Amsterdam to Paris, Paris to Dallas
Tanya's Travel Tip: There is no direct route from Dallas to East Africa. We booked with Air France/KLM for the route that would have the fewest connections on our dates of travel. Our layover in Paris was short and we utilized the Air France Concierge Service for a seamless transition both ways.
Day 1: Arriving in Kilimanjaro and Legendary Lodge, Arusha
Our Air France flight landed at Kilimanjaro International Airport in the evening, and a VIP meet and greet was waiting for us right off the plane. A representative walked us to the VIP lounge, where our Singita host helped with our luggage and the immigration process. After a long travel day, this was such a treat. No standing in lines! It's well worth the price.
From there it was about an hour and a half drive to Legendary Lodge on the outskirts of Arusha. The lodge sits on a coffee estate that’s more than 100 years old, with tropical gardens all around and only ten garden cottages. Our cottage had a four-poster bed draped in mosquito netting and a deep soaking tub, which was exactly what I needed. The lodge also has a pool, a spa and walking and running trails if you have more time than we did.
Tanya's Travel Tip: Plan on one night in Arusha. The bush flights into the Serengeti leave in the morning, so you can’t fly straight from your international flight into camp because you can't land on a small airstrip at night. Spending one night in Arusha also helps you acclimate to the time change. After a good night's sleep and a wonderful breakfast, you'll be ready for your adventure.
Singita Mara River Tented Camp
After breakfast, the Legendary Lodge team drove us 30 minutes to Arusha Airport for our two hour Coastal Air flight north to the Lamai airstrip. Once we landed, our Singita guide met us on the airstrip and drove us 45 minutes to camp. Your safari really begins on that drive. Keep your camera ready because you'll see plenty of zebras, wildebeests and more!
Singita Mara River Tented Camp sits on a bend of the Mara River in the Lamai Triangle, the very northern tip of the Serengeti, close to where the wildebeest cross during the Great Migration. It’s tiny, with only six tented suites, and it feels so private. Our tent had a bathtub looking right over the river below. We had an amazing guide - Peterlis Kibwana, who stayed with us throughout our entire itinerary. We also had a private vehicle our entire trip. This makes the safari experience truly intimate and special! He's the one that drove us to the Kenya/Tanzania border so we could get the two country picture. Peterlis is a seasoned safari guide who has been with Singita over 11 years.
In 2018, Ruth and I stayed at Singita Lamai for the Mara River crossings, and I still talk about them. This time, we got to experience the river from a whole new camp as its been updated a bit. This is glamping or luxury camping. Each tent has a hardwood floor, indoor plumbing and every amenity you need. This is a tented camp experience with no air conditioning. It was lovely to sleep with the cool evening breeze while listening to the sounds of nature.
The food at Mara is lighter and so fresh, with a bar-deli where you can help yourself to healthy snacks any time, mezze boards by the pool and tapas around the fire. Did I mention there’s also yoga, meditation and a gym-in-a-bag kit in your tent? Safari and wellness in one place.
Tanya's Packing Tip: Coastal Air and Grumeti Air both have a strict luggage limit of 15 kg (about 33 pounds) per person in a soft-sided duffel. No hard suitcases! See exactly what I packed in What to Pack for a Luxury African Safari. You can also bring a backpack. Pete and I each had a Patagonia duffel bag and a backpack.
Great recep of this stay with 20 pics in this Instagram post. Click HERE.
Singita Faru Faru Lodge
On day four, our guide drove us back to the Lamai airstrip for a 13 minute Grumeti Air flight. Yep, 13 minutes! We landed at the Sasakwa airstrip in the Singita Grumeti Reserve, a private reserve of 350,000 acres in the western Serengeti, and drove to Faru Faru Lodge.
I stayed at Faru Faru on my 2018 trip, so I couldn’t wait to show it to Pete. The lodge sits on the Grumeti River in front of a busy waterhole, and the animals come to you. You can sit on the deck with your coffee and just watch. The suites are light and airy with huge windows, an indoor tub, an outdoor shower and a little game viewing deck. The main lodge has two swimming pools, a firepit and a café-style bar that makes evenings under the stars so magical. The common areas have had a bit of a refresh since I saw them last. Larger, lighter and more airy. Inviting!
With a private vehicle, you set the schedule. Want to stay with a leopard for an hour? You can! Want to head out extra early for the best light for photos? You can do that too. We would defer to Peterlis every day on what we would set out to see. The Singita guides are experts and talk to each other so they know where to explore. It wa super special to see different lion prides daily. We found one pride with three lionesses and their nine cubs who were probably 2 months old.
Besides morning and afternoon game drives, Faru Faru offers guided walks, community visits, stargazing, birdwatching, a visit to the anti-poaching observation post, a spa and a fitness center. Hot air balloon safaris are also available at an additional cost. We would tend to relax by the pool or in our room during the afternoon heat. The rooms are so cozy and provided the best napping environment!
Tanya's Travel Tip: Go on every game drive! You never know what you will experience and you don't want to miss anything. The 5:30 AM wake-up call is early but the earlier you get out in the morning, the more activity you will see! Afternoon game drives are approximately 4:30 - 6:30 PM and end with a sundowner before heading back to the lodge for dinner.
Great recep of this stay with 20 pics in this Instagram post. Click HERE.
Singita Sasakwa Lodge
Our last stop was Singita Sasakwa Lodge, just a 45 minute drive away through the reserve. It’s built like an Edwardian manor house on a hilltop, with wrap around verandas, silver candelabras and antiques, and the most amazing views over the Serengeti plains. It’s more formal than the tented camps, so I was glad I packed a few dresses for dinner (they’re in my packing post). This is British Colonial style at its best and even offers High Tea every day at 3 PM. Heaven!
We stayed in a beautifully decorated one-bedroom cottage with a fireplace, a living room, French doors onto the veranda and our own plunge pool. Pure luxury! Sasakwa Lodge has tennis courts, a spa, a fitness center, a boutique and has 11 villas on property.
Again, we spent our days doing two game drives per day with Peterlis and exploring the Serengeti. I think we counted that we did 15 game drives in total and could have done more. Nature is fascinating and you truly see the circle of life while on safari.
On our last day, checkout was at 11:00 a.m., but we were welcome to enjoy the lodge until our afternoon flight. A last lunch on the terrace looking out over the plains is the perfect way to say goodbye to the Serengeti. We even got to enjoy one final English High Tea at 3 PM before we departed.
Tanya's Travel Tip: This area is kind of the hub of the Singita properties in the Serengeti. We got to tour the JOC and see the anti-poaching efforts that Singita is leading in the area. They also have an amazing K9 unit that helps with this effort. Singita's ethos is truly about pouring into the local community and giving back. It's one of the many reasons we choose Singita over and over again. While this might not seem like a travel tip, it's important to know WHO you are doing your safari with and what they stand for.
Great recep of this stay with 20 pics in this Instagram post. Click HERE.
Heading Home
We flew Grumeti Air from the Sasakwa airstrip back to Kilimanjaro (about an hour and a half). Our Singita host met us again at the Uhuru VIP lounge and helped with immigration and check-in, and you can relax there for up to three hours before your flight. We flew KLM overnight to Amsterdam. From there, we connected to Paris and then took the direct flight from Paris to Dallas. It's a 28 hour travel day!
Tanya's Travel Tip: If you’re flying KLM business class out of Kilimanjaro, you also have access to the Twiga Lounge in the main terminal.
Tanzania Safari Travel Tips
Here are my best tips from both of my Tanzania trips:
- Book early. Singita’s camps are small (Mara River has only six tents!), so plan ahead and book as early as you can.
- Pack in a soft duffel. Remember the 33 lbs limit on the small planes, and all Singita lodges include laundry, so you can pack less.
- Get your shots and paperwork in order. Check your visa requirements, make sure your passport is valid for at least six months, and talk with your doctor or a travel clinic about vaccines and malaria medication. I covered my full checklist in What to Pack for a Photo Safari Trip to Africa.
- Add a private safari vehicle. It’s worth it, especially if you love photography. We had the same guide with us throughout our three Singita properties.
- Bring US dollars for tips for your guide and lodge staff. A tipping guide is on the Singita website. They also accept credit cards.
- DO NOT drink the tap water. Stick to the bottled and filtered water at the lodges.
- Singita provides sunscreen and bug spray! You will need it - use it!
Was It Worth It?
YES! A thousand times yes. Going back to Tanzania eight years later, this time with Pete, was everything I’d hoped for and more. Singita takes care of every single detail, from the moment you land to your last lunch on the terrace, so all you have to do is soak it all in. If Africa is on your bucket list, Tanzania and the Serengeti should be at the very top. You'll see incredible wildlife, and with a little luck, the Big Five. What makes it extraordinary are the people at Singita. By the way, we loved going in October. Lower crowds and great weather.
Pete and I don't really give each other gifts anymore. We have everything we need. Instead, we like to "gift" experiences to each other. This is what he wanted to do for his big birthday coming up in December. Singita does a great job celebrating too. Every resort did something special for him whether it was a birthday cake and singing at dinner or a special sundowner celebration in the bush. They truly take it to the next level. He felt so special!
Have you been on safari in Tanzania? Is it on your bucket list? Leave me a comment below. I’d love to hear from you!
Hakuna Matata!
xoxo - Tanya and Pete
P.S. If you’re planning your own trip, start with my packing guides: What to Pack for a Luxury African Safari and What to Pack for a Photo Safari Trip to Africa.
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