Remarkable, extraordinary… This trip to Tanzania was designed and tailored for us by you and our friend.
A varied, complementary programme — in terms of sites, accommodation, pace, and the people we met…
We went from one discovery to the next, each more exceptional than the last, guided by our own guide, who was himself exceptional in his kindness, good humour, and the way he answered every one of our questions.
An intergenerational trip, ranging from 6 to 70 years old, united by curiosity, by family and friendship ties, and by personal stories that formed the bedrock of genuine values.
Arusha… the national parks of Tarangire, Manyara, Ngorongoro and the Serengeti, Olduvai… the Tanzanian and Maasai peoples.
The safari could begin — the stage was set…
Tarangire National Park, with its cohesion, scale, and harmony, gave us our first sightings of African big cats and our first baobabs. Cameras were out in force!
What a sight! And what a view, too, from the lodge where we had lunch.
Herds of elephants, giraffes, baboons, impalas, wildebeest, zebras… accompanied us to our final destination of the day…
An extraordinary, remarkable sunset — unforgettable moments, topped off with the “must” of particularly comfortable tented accommodation.
The next day, we continued through Tarangire with a scene of hungry lions on the hunt, elephants, giraffes… before heading to Manyara National Park, with a short stop along the way
at a Maasai market where we mingled with the local people for some purchases.
Manyara National Park, with its lush vegetation, elephants, hippopotamuses and other baboons… the lake was almost dry, but the drive had worked up our appetite for a stop at a lodge.
A change of plan in the afternoon: we swapped the 4×4 for mountain bikes. Passing through a banana plantation, we visited a traditional house and an ebony-carving “workshop”
where Marius took his first lesson… Then on to the lodge for the evening.
What a sight, and what a view — magical once again. The children had only one thing on their minds: diving into the pool before dinner.
The next day was Sunday, and we set off to discover the Ngorongoro Crater — a choice destination, a landmark in itself, where we planned to picnic inside the famous crater. Another world entirely.
There was plenty of laughter between Nathalie, Isabelle, and the students from a Tanzanian tourism school we met along the way, swapping photos — and then came the shock of the view and the descent into the crater, where we rediscovered our travelling companions: lions, wildebeest, zebras, but also flamingos along the edge of the salt lake at the bottom of the crater — a majestic sight.
A new stop in the evening at Olduvai camp, where we were welcomed by Maasai guides who led us once again to admire a superb, magical sunset before dinner at the camp.
The stop at Olduvai allowed for a change of pace, a kind of pause in the journey — a short morning drive off-road through the savannah in the 4×4, watching the migration of wildebeest and zebras. In the late afternoon, our Maasai guides led us, after an hour’s walk across the savannah, to a herd of around thirty giraffes that the children approached to within 5 metres.
The evening ended with a visit to a semi-settled Maasai village — a wonderful encounter and exchange with the local people. By nightfall, we made our way back to camp by torchlight.
And then came the Serengeti: savannah stretching as far as the eye can see, herds as far as the eye can see, lions, a leopard, hippopotamuses, ostriches, giraffes… hyenas…
The dust, the sunburn, the sun cream, the tracks going on and on. Damas, our guide, kept the suspense going for further discoveries — Maasai herders tending their livestock…
All this leading to the ultimate highlight: camping deep in the savannah. The comfort, the warm welcome, the shower, and Malo’s birthday that evening will go down in family history…
And then? The vast expanses of the Serengeti in search of cheetahs, a lion feasting on a wildebeest… the chorus of hippopotamuses….
Time to pack up and head back to Arusha on the African tracks at breakneck speed — we all wanted to make the most of this last day, to look, to take it all in, to soak up as much sun as possible before heading back to Paris, where it was zero degrees!
A remarkable, extraordinary discovery of Tanzania, without a single false note — perfect organisation, a trip that exceeded everyone’s expectations.
Well done, Aurélie — well done, Étendues Sauvages…
And above all, well done to Nathalie, who invited me to take this trip with her and my grandchildren.
It was simply wonderful, and we encourage those close to us who weren’t there to go on a photo safari in the days to come.
Jean-Yves H (February 2013).
