Tanzania Trip Report – Jill Romano March 2017 ( Northern Circuit)

BA Dulles to London/LHR to Nairobi

BA Lounge at Dulles – get there early as it fills up quickly. Buffet as well as option to use their dining room, with self service.

BA very strict at Heathrow re carry on allowances in all cabins and we had to repack and check one bag each ( took small roll aboard and duffle each which was no problem from SF to IAD or to LHR) Inflight, good service, food average.

Arrival Nairobi, meet by A&K Guardian Angel. Although not staying in Kenya we did obtain e-visas, just in case. Most pax had printed out a copy, we had a copy on our phones which was fine. Arrived at 845pm, connecting flight at 1020pm, and we had to nearly run for the flight, changing terminals in the rain after collecting our bags. Flew on PW, Precision Air or as they call it locally, “Please Wait”! Flight did not take off until nearly 1130pm.

Transfers/hotels in Arusha –

From JRO-Kilimanjaro Airport to Lake Duluti Lodge is about 45minutes to 1 hour or more depending on traffic and another 15-20 minutes further west to Arusha and Arusha Coffee Lodge.

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Charters flights are in/out of Arusha airport while the commercial flights are in/out of Kilimanjaro.

Lake Duluti Coffee Lodge ( stayed here pre/post tour)

http://www.dulutilodge.com/

The lodge is made up of 18 spacious contemporary African styled romantic chalets ideally positioned for maximum privacy and view inside a thirty acre active coffee farm located in a safe and exclusive area on the outskirts of Arusha. All chalets are positioned to face the coffee farm and each has a private deck with an amazing view of the ancient indigenous trees found in big number within the farm. . The lodge has been designed in a way that you will feel like you are staying at home rather than at a top end hotel.

Arusha Coffee Lodge ( first choice – but watch out for the monkeys!)

Arusha Coffee Lodge, a peaceful presafari retreat to relax and unwind. This exclusive, boutique lodge has been designed around the farms' original plantation homes, radiating the warmth and hospitality of the old colonial homes distinctive to the coffee plantations.

A&K Recomends:

Gold Level - Legendary Lodge and Arusha Coffee Lodge

Silver Level – Siringit Villa between the airport and Arusha, about 30 mintes

Bronze Level – Mt. Meru, high rise 130 rooms

They are building a Hyatt…should be some news later this year

Travel Season: Dec to Mar + Jun – Sept (April, May and Nov rainy season)

Charter flight to Lake Manyara and 2 nights at The Manor at Ngorongoro. We stopped in Mto Wa Mbu village, though I would not recommend it for most clients. Seeing the rice fields and banana plantations are interesting, but most clients just want to start their safari.

The Manor –

Located adjacent to the Ngorongoro Conservation

Area within the 1,500-acre Shangri-La Estate, The Manor at Ngorongoro is a luxury safari

experience fusing East African safari hospitality with old world Afro-European architecture

and decor. Your guest cottage features a private courtyard and deck, en suite bathroom,

indoor and outdoor fireplaces and fantastic views of the landscape, surrounded by

fragrant flowering gardens and age-old trees.

About 45 minutes to get to the crater, so the other options would be AndBeyond’s Crater Lodge and Sanctuary Ngorongor Crater Camp ( 10 tents inside the crater/caldera)

A&K Recommendations:

Gold Level – The Manor at Ngorongo

Silver Level – Gibbs Farm

Bronze Level – Accacia Lodge

Driving to the rim and down in to the crater is via switch back roads, about 1 hour. There is a small museum and information center – often you need to wait 15-20 minutes at the entrance for the final paperwork. Stunning first glimpse of vivid green of the valley floor against the bright blue sky and clouds. Along the route you see several Masi villages. Great game viewing: Zebra, Wildebeast, Elephant, Hyena, Hippo’s, and great variety of birds. In the distance a shimmer of pink across the lake – flamingos!

Ngorongoro Conservation Area is in northern Tanzania. It’s home to the vast, volcanic Ngorongoro Crater and “big 5” game (elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo, rhino). Huge herds of wildebeests and zebras traverse its plains during their annual migration. Livestock belonging to the semi-nomadic Maasai tribe graze alongside wild animals. Hominin fossils found in the Olduvai Gorge date back millions of years.

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Transfer to Lake Manyara airport for charter flight to Serengeti – note: for safety, ask for quote including 2 pilots. Arrival in to Seronera Airstrip – since Four Seasons came in, it’s been transformed to a slick, modern airport. ( otherwise it’s a 4.5 hour drive from Arusha, graded road, not tarmac…don’t recommend it!)

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We drove to Sanctuary Kusini Camp for lunch and a site inspection followed by a short visit to Migration Camp ( mobile tented camp that moves with the migration).

Spent next two nights at the Four Seasons Safari Lodge Serengeti. Built as a Kempinski – for someone looking for what is “familiar” to them in a FS or Ritz Carlton, with full services, several restaurant venues, full spa, over-size rooms and amenities, they will be very happy, but someone looking for a more authentic experience, no. High marks though for their Discovery center to learn about the Migration, Masi culture, etc.

Balloon flight on our last morning – recommend you suggest to clients to do this in the Masi Mara instead as there was little game viewing and they stop first for a champagne toast, then load everyone up in the vehicles and drive 20+ minutes to another sight for breakfast. Within the national park, there are restrictions as to where the balloon company can meet guests – so most clients expect to fly in and see their breakfast camp set up – and much more game viewing in the Mara.

Drive from balloon site out of the park up to the Grumeti Reserve and Singita Lodges: ( private concession )

Sasakwa Lodge: ( stayed here)

Singita Sasakwa Lodge is built in the style of a stately Edwardian manor house with nine private cottages and a villa, each with a private infinity pool. From the vantage point of Sasakwa Hill, panoramic views of the Serengeti plains merge with the horizon and provide a sense of immense space and freedom.

Sabora Tented Camp: ( site inspection)

An unforgettable East African experience, this intimate tented camp is modelled on a 1920s-style explorer’s camp in the middle of the game-rich savannah plains of the Serengeti. Evoking the elegance and romance of a bygone era, the nine tented-suites are lavishly furnished with antiques and Zanzibari treasures.

Faru Faru Lodge

Hidden away on the edge of the Grumeti River, Singita Faru Faru Lodge was inspired by a botanist’s camp, blending cutting-edge design with organic shapes and textures. The lodge has the carefree ambience of a Zanzibari coastal resort including nine stone, canvas and glass suites that have a quirky, artistic thread woven into every detail of décor

Serengeti House ( Will Smith was there…)

Situated on the lower slopes of Sasakwa Hill, Singita Serengeti House is a private-use retreat, with uninterrupted views across tree-dotted plains of the Serengeti. Refined yet comfortable interiors plus warm-hearted service, add up to a luxurious home environment in the bush. A cool neutral palette of subtle, sun-bleached colours mimics the Serengeti grass plains, bringing the outside in.

The reserve was created by the Tanzanian government in 1994 in order to protect the path of the annual wildebeest migration and the indigenous biodiversity of this vast and important ecosystem.

In 2002, the Grumeti Community and Wildlife Conservation Fund, a not-for-profit organisation, was granted the right to manage and conserve these 350,000 acres, for the benefit of Tanzania, Africa and the world. Four years later, Singita took over the management of the property, at the request of the concessionaire.

Then began the task of generating, via low impact tourism, the funds necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of the reserve through conservation and community partnerships.

Migration ( map located in the On Location folder)

Jan-Feb lots of babies, in particular wildebeest and zebra

April-May rainy, wet and muggy

June animals are mostly near the Grumeti Reserve in the NW

July peak areas around the Mara in Kenya

Sept-Oct southern Mara

Nov rainy season

Dec southern Serengeti

A&K recommended:

Northern Serengeti

Gold Level-Singita Mara River and Lamala Kuria Hills

Silver: Serengeti Bushtops and Buffalo Luxury Camp ( in Kleins concession)

Central Serengeti:

Gold Level:Serengeti Pioneer Camp and Four Seasons

SilverLevel: Namiri Plains

Brong Level: Kati Kati

Southern Serengeti:

Gold Level: Mwiba Lodge

Silver Level: Kusini

Charter flight out of Singita Sasaskwa air strip – 10 minutes from the hotel. Managed an early morning game drive ( 730am) and then a transfer to the flight. Luxury set up with a permanent tented bathroom and lounge. Flights to Arusha – about 2 hours and to Kilimanjaro 2 hours 15 minutes.

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During the trip we had an update from Paul Bauer Regional Managing Director East Africa & South Africa on the state of A&K owned, Sanctuary camps and lodges:

Sanctuary:

· Location, Location, Location

· Home from Home--part of family

· Expert guides, from the region

· Responsible tourism example: Chiefs solar and AKP, greatest success where lodges located

Presence both lodges and boats

· Example: Chiefs Camp-Location

· Local stones, art

· Takes in environment

· Focus on bedroom- for luxury

· Doubled size of rooms by adding pool, dining area and view on to flood plain

· Guests enjoying the rooms and staying longer with time to relax

· Kept main pool, amazing view and social meet other guests

· Dining - home away from home: individual tables but they can put together to dine with others

· Kids room Child minder, play station

· Wow moments-water high comes rich up to lodge

· Room with local maps, guides can show videos, maps etc and guest share photos (from interpretation room at FS)

· G Kent luxury suite

· 2 identical rooms to rest of lodge, possible to sell as 2 deprecate or one private villa

· Private dinning and private vehicle

· Kids 6+ only due to elephants in camp etc

· Off road at chiefs but no game drives

Sanctuary Experience:

· Star Beds ( tented area on the deck where bed can be set out under the stars)

· Food

· Guides

· Vehicles- camera boxes(Land Cruisers tho Rovers more comfy)

· Sundowners at Kusini on the rocks

· Bubble baths at Bain's

Expect the upgrades and renovations to take about 24-30 months to complete the project

Olonana-to be a premiere camp similar to Chiefs

"Premier and Classic" camps or similar wording, working out what they will do to distinguish

Uganda gorillas forest camp-Location! Re do entire guest area, will stay Classic

· Improve interior rooms

· One of only 2 in park

Tarangire can do walking safaris

Kusini focus on interiors and focus on views

Swala and the Boabab trees

· Improve guest area ex add bar to pool stemware (become premier) night game drive option

· BBQ in the bush- highlight

Ngorongor Crater camp

· 10 tents in the crater with three command tents

· Wooden floors

· Same footprint but higher with screens

· 2new : guest and dining tents

· Ready June 2018

Serengeti migration camp

· Good combo with Four Seasons

· 80% of time in the migration area

Botswana

· Game viewing has improved

· Seasonal and water levels depend on where animals are

· Stanley and Baines both water and land

· Stanley's kept same but add deck with great views and pool access

· Classic bots tents but will increase size and redirect view to face flood plains

· Water transfer between but use Baines as Honeymoon, water based

· Built out of recycled tin cans

· Star bar and Star beds

· Expend room decks

Chobe

· River often busy

· Share reserve with other camps unlike others on private concessions

· Game drives and boats on river more time to relax

· Place to slow down

· Not about game drives but good viewing

Zambia

· Susi and China

· Visa now for both countries and 5-10 min border crossing and Zambia side best views

· Tree house suites and amazing river views

· Focus now on outside areas larger

· AC

· 2 2bd villas 4 star Chuma Houses, great for families

· Interiors redone

· Walk with rhino unique experience, animals are used to daily walkers

Makayane

· Game viewing has really improved

· Malaria free

· Honeymoon and elderly

· Kids 12+

· 8 suites, lots of glass

· Very cold at night in winter so all have fireplaces

· JNB air and often stand alone as malaria free

· Some use instead of Kruger

· Ntl park but well managed concessions so rarely more than 2 vehicles in one area