Adventure first, then rest. A week in the northern parks in your own vehicle, then three nights on Zanzibar with nothing to get up for.
Private1 / 8
Overview
Built for couples who want one trip that is both adventure and rest. A week of early starts, game drives and nights in the bush, then a few days on the coast where the only decision is when to swim.
Safari first, beach second. The safari asks the most of you and is easiest while you are fresh, and Zanzibar has its own international flights, so you leave from the beach rather than after a long drive.
A private bush dinner, a sundowner with a view or a bush breakfast can be arranged where the camp offers them. Not every camp does, so we never list them as included, and we never price your trip as if you will get an upgrade. Tell us early: the best small camps book out ten to twelve months ahead for June to October.
Highlights
Your own vehicle and guideNever shared, so the pace and the stops are yours.
Rooms chosen for twoA double or king bed, not twins, checked camp by camp rather than assumed.
Longer staysTwo nights in Tarangire and three in one Serengeti camp, so you unpack properly.
Three nights on ZanzibarThe coast you chose, with nothing to get up for.
Itinerary
An eleven-day shape. Days move, nights get added, and the coast can grow if the safari part was busy.
These are examples, and every journey can use any of them. Final choice depends on availability on your dates.
Met at Kilimanjaro International Airport and driven about an hour to a quiet lodge outside Arusha. Nothing planned: one night to recover from the flight before the safari starts.
Meal plan: B&BB&B: breakfast only. Half board: breakfast and dinner. Full board: breakfast, lunch and dinner (on safari, lunch is often a picnic in the park).
Tarangire is a park of baobabs and seasonal swamps along the Tarangire River, about two hours from Arusha. In the dry months the river is the main water for a wide area, so animals tend to gather along it, and it sees far fewer vehicles than the Serengeti.
Day 2
About two hours from Arusha, in the park by late morning, with a slow first afternoon among the baobabs and along the river.
Day 3
One full day along the river: out early and back to camp for a long lunch, or out all day with a picnic somewhere quiet.
Meal plan: Full boardB&B: breakfast only. Half board: breakfast and dinner. Full board: breakfast, lunch and dinner (on safari, lunch is often a picnic in the park).
About the Serengeti
The Serengeti covers almost 15,000 km² of grassland, rocky kopjes and river woodland, running north to the Kenyan border. The great herds move with the rains, which is why where you stay inside it depends on the month.
Day 4
Over the Ngorongoro highlands and down onto the plains, game driving to camp, or a short flight in instead. Three nights in one camp, positioned for your month.
Day 5
A full day on the plains with your guide, at whatever pace suits you both.
Day 6
A day with nowhere you need to be: a morning drive, the afternoon at camp, and out again for the last light. A dawn balloon flight can be added.
Meal plan: Full boardB&B: breakfast only. Half board: breakfast and dinner. Full board: breakfast, lunch and dinner (on safari, lunch is often a picnic in the park).
About Ngorongoro
The Ngorongoro Crater is the collapsed caldera of an old volcano, about 19 km across and 600 m deep, inside a wider conservation area where Maasai still graze their cattle. Vehicles go down to the floor for the day and come back up to the rim by late afternoon.
Today
An early descent to the Crater floor, before the vehicles build, and back up by early afternoon. The night is spent on the rim.
Meal plan: Full boardB&B: breakfast only. Half board: breakfast and dinner. Full board: breakfast, lunch and dinner (on safari, lunch is often a picnic in the park).
About Zanzibar
Zanzibar is an island off the coast, about an hour's flight from Arusha, with Stone Town's old streets on the west side and long white beaches to the north and east.
Day 8
A short drive to the airstrip, the flight to Zanzibar, and the transfer to the coast you chose.
Day 9
A day with nothing to get up for: the beach, the reef, or an afternoon in Stone Town if you want one.
Day 10
A last full day by the sea. A sunset dhow trip is easy to add, or nothing at all.
Nights 8–10 | Accommodation
Comfort
Comfort in Zanzibar: on request. Tell us what you have in mind and we’ll suggest options.
Meal plan: Half boardB&B: breakfast only. Half board: breakfast and dinner. Full board: breakfast, lunch and dinner (on safari, lunch is often a picnic in the park).
Today
Transfer to Zanzibar airport for your flight home.
Price
Pick a level to see its lodges and guide price.
Every level keeps the same vehicle, guide and route. Only the accommodation changes.
Where you stay at Comfort: En-suite tented camps and simple lodges, usually just outside the park gates. See the Comfort lodges
Guide price · Comfort
$3,600
per person
Based on 2 people sharing in low season. Your exact price depends on dates, group size and lodges, and is confirmed in writing before you book.
What your price covers, and what to budget for separately.
Included
Every park entry, conservation and Crater fee on the route, paid by us in advance. They are a large share of what a safari costs, and they are what fund the parks.
The lodges for the level you choose, with the meal plan shown on each day of the itinerary: full board on safari, and bed and breakfast or half board in town and on the coast. Prices assume two sharing; a room to yourself costs more, and the supplement is in your quote.
A 4x4 with a pop-up roof, used by your party alone and never shared. One English-speaking driver-guide stays with you from the first game drive to the last.
Met at Kilimanjaro airport when you land, and taken to your flight home at the end, whatever time it leaves.
Water in the vehicle on every safari day, so you never have to ration it on a long drive.
The flight from the mainland to Zanzibar, about an hour, and transfers on the island.
Not included
International flights. Flights to and from Tanzania are booked by you. We will suggest arrival and departure times that fit the trip.
Visa. Paid by you, usually online before you travel. Visa information
Travel insurance. A condition of travelling with us. It must cover medical treatment, emergency evacuation and repatriation.
Tips. Always your choice. As a guide, we suggest $30–50 per day per vehicle for your driver-guide, plus a little for camp staff. How tipping works
Personal spending. Drinks beyond water and what the camp serves with meals, laundry where it is charged, souvenirs, and optional extras such as balloon flights, quoted separately if you want them.
Private dinners and special set-ups. Can be arranged where the camp offers it, and only included when your quote lists them.
Packing
Less than you think, in neutral colours, and in a soft bag if any leg is flown. Bring a warm layer: early mornings in an open vehicle are cold, even when the middle of the day is hot.
Most nationalities need a visa: $50 for a single entry. US citizens pay $100 for a multiple-entry visa. Apply online before you travel to avoid the queue on arrival. Fees and rules change, so check with the Tanzanian embassy in your country.
For June to October, ten to twelve months ahead. That is when the best small camps fill, and they are the ones that matter most on a honeymoon. January and February need a little less notice. If you are closer than that, ask anyway and we will tell you honestly what is left.
Yes. Choose the Comfort level, which keeps the same private vehicle, guide and route with simpler camps, usually just outside the park gates. Or shorten it to nine days by cutting Tarangire. We would rather you did one of those than cut Serengeti nights or the coast.
Many do, but it varies from camp to camp and from season to season. Some will set up a private dinner or decorate your room; others offer nothing extra. We confirm in writing what each of your camps will do before you book, so nothing is left to hope.
Yes, before the safari. The climb takes six to eight days and leaves you tired, so the safari and the beach become the recovery. Never after Zanzibar: the trip should end with rest on the coast, not with a climb.
Quick enquiry
Ask about this journey
Send us a few details and a person on the team will reply personally, not a template.
Where to go next
The places this journey is built from, and the other shapes it could take.
Private1 / 8
