Tribes Travel

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Tribes Travel, 12 The Business Centre, Earl Soham, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP13 7SA, UK

Tribes Travel

The art of travelling with respect

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Oldonyo Lengai from the trailHiking on the floor of Empakai CraterLunch break in a canyonMasai guide in the crater highlands

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Journey through Maasailands

A week which offers the perfect combination of traditional game viewing and off the beaten track hiking in the spectacular volcanic scenery of Northern Tanzania's Great Rift Valley.

Starting with vehicle based game viewing in Lake Manyara National Park and Ngorongoro Crater, you continue for 3 days hiking through the crater highlands to Lake Natron, a remote and wild site at the foot of the active volcano Oldonyo Lengai. Hikes include Olmoti Crater, Empakai Crater and across the rift to Oldonyo Lengai. This area is all home to the Maasai people and you will hike with them and visit their villages along the way, learning about their pastoral, nomadic way of life. The trail from Empakai to Acacia Camp follows cattle tracks and passes through Nayobi, a small village which is a trading centre for teh local community. Towards Natron the last piece of the trail follows the ancient Maasai trading route to the foot of Lengai - for years Maasai on the lower plans have traded goods with those in the highlands.

On the last part of the main hike down to Natron, you stop for lunch in the shade of a dramatic canyon, temperatures around Natron can be very high. Whilst camping at Lake Natron you can take walks to the lake shore to see flamingos and other bird life, meet the local Maasai people and walk to waterfalls - great for cooling off on a hot day - take a shower in the waterfall!

This safari consists of mainly camping, in private camp sites in remote areas. You will have your own vehicle and guide with extra porters and staff for the days without vehicles on the hikes.

Accommodation: One night tented lodge, four nights dome tents (Adventure Camping) and one night in basic lightweight flycamping. On the night at Acacia Camp before the donkey trek, there will not be enough water for a shower - staff will provide you with warmed water in a jug with a wash stand at your tent.

At Lake Natron it is possible to upgrade the accommodation to Ngare Sero permanent Tented Camp, ask us for price details.

Tailor made to suit.

Trip information

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Included

All meals, services of a private guide / vehicle; all camping equipment and camp staff; all transfers; game viewing and park fees; local concession fees; guided walks and armed rangers; drinking water, tea and coffee.

Not included

Drinks, tips, laundry, items of a personal nature.

Is it for you?

This trip requires a good general level of fitness for the hiking section and the walls down to Empakai Crater are quite steep, but not technically difficult.

Best time

Can be done at any time of year but avoid the main rains April - May for the hiking sections as visibility is poor and trails slippery.

Getting there

There are daily flights from the UK into Kilimanjaro airport. We can add on the coast or other parts of East Africa if you would like, please ask us for a quotation.

Weather and highlights

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    • Jan
    • Feb
    • Mar
    • Apr
    • May
    • Jun
    • Jul
    • Aug
    • Sep
    • Oct
    • Nov
    • Dec
    • Sunny with Cloud
    • Sunny
    • Heavy rain
    • Heavy rain
    • Rain
    • Sunny with Cloud
    • Sunny
    • Sunny
    • Sunny
    • Sunny
    • Rain
    • Sunny with Cloud

Min Temp

    • 13
    • 14
    • 15
    • 16
    • 15
    • 13
    • 12
    • 12
    • 13
    • 14
    • 14
    • 14

Max Temp

    • 30
    • 34
    • 30
    • 25
    • 25
    • 25
    • 25
    • 30
    • 33
    • 35
    • 35
    • 35
  • Fascinating geology and scenery at Lake Natron
  • Hiking trails with camping in remote parts of the Rift Valley highlands.
  • Fantastic game viewing in Lake Manyara and Ngorongoro Crater
  • Visit the homes of the Maasai people and learn about their culture as you travel.
  • Stunning views of Oldonyo Lengai, the active volcano which is the Maasai's 'Mountain of God'.

 

Itinerary

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Duration: 6 nights / 7 days

  1. Day 1   You will be picked up from Kilimanjaro airport by your private safari vehicle and drive to Lake Manyara (about 2.5 hrs) where you will enjoy game viewing with a picnic.  Manyara provides great game viewing all year round. Overnight tented lodge with amazing views over the rift valley.
  2. Day 2   Game viewing in Ngorongoro Crater where animals include huge herds of zebra, wildebeest and buffalo, hippos, many prides of lions, cheetah, leopard, elephant and the endangered black rhino.  In the afternoon you will have a walk at Olmoti Crater (with a ranger) and overnight at nearby Nainokanoka Special Campsite.
  3. Day 3   Today you hike to Empakai Crater in the Ngorongoro Highlands with a ranger through the lush forest leading to the crater floor about 1500 feet below. Thousands of flamingos line the shore. The walk around the lake takes approximately 3 hours, and the total trek is from 4 to 5 hours.
  4. Day 4   Donkeys will carry your light bag (for one night only), plus the sleeping bags and sleeping pads to the next campsite. We hike along the rim of the crater, and walk down into the small village of Nayobi, a center of trading center for the local community. Continue on a cattle trail downward into scrub-woodland and groves of yellow barked Acacia (Fever Trees). The private campsite is set under acacia trees, with a stunning view of Lengai. (Light weight Fly-camping).
  5. Day 5   Today you continue steeply downhill to the foot of Lengai. We stop midway to eat lunch in the shade of a canyon. At the base of the escarpment, you are picked up and driven over to a private campsite at Lake Natron
  6. Day 6   Spend the day at Lake Natron, enjoy walks to the lake shore to see the flamingos and other bird life in the area, visit the local village and take a hike to the waterfalls.  This area is fascinating with it's volcanic scenery, hot springs, streams and archeological history. 
  7. Day 7   You will be driven back to Arusha, a drive of about 3-4 hours and dropped at the airport or your hotel of choice for onward arrangements.

Pricing guidelines for Tanzania

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We hope the following will give you a rough idea of costs. These are quoted per person based on twin share for two people, without international flights but including internal flights. We’ve used good standard accommodation throughout. There are nearly always ways to spend more money than we’ve suggested (!), but these prices show a good and realistic range for each type of trip.

International flights will add from about £600 to £800 depending on the season and route (unless the airlines have special offers). Tanzania can combine easily with other East African countries.

For each accommodation on this website you will find an indication of the price. The bands are based on the price per person per night at peak season and are represented by the following values for this country:
£

  £50 to £150

££

  £150 to £300

£££

  £300 to £500

££££

  £500 to £800

£££££

  Over £800

For a specific personal quote based on any tailor made itinerary you have in mind, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help you.

  • Example tripPrice per person
  • 1 week high quality safari in the northern circuit (eg with Ngorongoro, Serengeti, Manyara, Tarangire ...)Between £2500 and £3500
  • 2 week southern Tanzania safari and Zanzibar holidayBetween £3000 and £4000
  • 1 week stay on an Indian Ocean island (Zanzibar, Mafia, Chole, Pemba)From £1000 +
  • 1 week Kilimanjaro climbAround £1500
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Your reviews

Read what our clients think of the places they've been with Tribes. Here are the most recent reviews.

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  • This is not directly related to the organization. I expected to reach the summit of Kilimanjaro and I did it. I expected then to see a lot of animals ...

  • Great holiday for a party of four adults.

  • Truely amazing experience and a great team. Our guides were the best, so calm and reassuring. It was an experience i will never forget please pass on ...

  • The trip exceeded all our expectations. Travelling to remote destinations enables game watching to be conducted at leisure without lots of other vehic...

  • We were extremely satisfied with all aspects of the holiday and we are very grateful for all the effort put into by all concerned.