My African adventure with World Journeys began on the 27th of October, departing from Auckland. The brief was to be in Arusha, Tanzania by the evening of October 29th. Flying via Dubai, I used the transit time to have a pedicure at the spa bar in the terminal. I then met Tracey, a fellow famil participant, at the departure gate. The journey continued onto continued through Dar es Salaam to Kilimanjaro on progressively smaller aircraft. We reached Kilimanjaro late in the evening and a host from &BEYOND met us at the airport then embarked on a 90-minute drive to Arusha which was an experience in itself, with single-lane roads bustling with trucks, cars, motorbikes, and pedestrians. The air was thick with the scent of smoke from roadside fires used for cooking.
Arriving at the Gran Meliá Arusha felt like stepping into an oasis of calm. The hotel was modern and inviting, with a spa, fitness area, and a beautiful pool surrounded by outdoor lounging spaces. My two-night stay here was the perfect way to ease into the trip. I even treated myself to a Signature massage from a therapist fittingly named Happiness. The hotel’s unique touches, like its own coffee plantation and local craft shops, added to its charm.
The real adventure began on 30th October and we were off...on safari at last! A 40-minute flight in a tiny 11-seater plane where I kept an eye on the pilots with a front row view.
The short flight brought us to Lake Manyara, We were met by our driver/guides from &BEYOND at Lake Manyara Airport who plied us with chilled bubbles and snacks and we then set off on the 3 1/2-hour journey through the Lake Manyara National Park to our accommodation. where the excitement kicked in the moment we landed. After being greeted with champagne and snacks, we headed into Lake Manyara National Park. Roads were dusty and bumpy but the excitement of all the animals we started to see far outweighed anything else. The drivers, who were also our guides, were magnificent and could spot creatures at 200 paces! Baboons, monkeys, elephants, lioness and her cubs, bucks, wart hogs, water buffalos, herons, ibis. The drivers were amazing at spotting needles in haystacks! We even stopped enroute for a very scenic picnic lunch.
We were greeted at the entrance to &BEYOND Lake Manyara Tree Lodge by all the staff who were singing and dancing and offering cool, white towels – the towels were not white for long after we’d wiped off all the dust from our faces! Baboons were drinking from a trough around the swimming pool and I managed to squeeze in a quick dip in said pool before dinner which was very refreshing.
The treehouse-style lodges were raised off the ground and featured a lovely sleeping area, a big bathroom with outdoor shower, a lounge area with a well-stocked mini-bar and an outdoor deck. Once the sun has set, you cannot walk from your room to the main part of the lodge alone – you must be escorted by the “butlers”. The lodges have no fences and animals are free to roam through. We had dinner under the stars which was a very peaceful setting, even with all of the sounds of the night.
The next morning, we had a delicious breakfast, sharing the honey with the bees, and set off back through the Lake Manyara National Park for another game drive. We were only 2 minutes out of the gate and came upon this bachelor (young male elephant). In fact, the morning was mostly about bachelors and baboons!
We then had a vehicle and driver/guide change at Lake Manyara. A bubbles and briefing followed with the &BEYOND team who were going to take us to the Ngorongoro Crater!
The trip up the crater road was brutal as very pitted and rutted with lots of traffic. Again, we were greeted with singing and dancing by the staff upon arrival at the &BEYOND Ngorongoro Crater Lodge. After a brief stop to admire our gorgeous, quirky rooms and to pick up our picnic lunch, we headed straight into the crater. Holy heck...what a place. Flamingos, jackals, elephants, lions sleeping in the middle of the track, black rhino, pelicans, grey crowned crane (National bird of Tanzania), buffalo, zebras, Elands, gazelles, antelopes, wildebeest....sublime! Giraffe are not found in the crater as the sides are too steep for them to navigate but we did spot them on the drive up to the rim of the crater along with Masai huts and villages.
We were back at the lodge before dusk, the vehicles have to be out of the crater by 6pm. Funnily enough, it was the three &BEYOND jeeps racing up the crater road and making the summit with 2 minutes to spare! The butlers had run hot bubble baths for us all. I chose instead to sit with a few others on the front verandah and watch the sun set over the crater. Once it was dark, we had to be escorted back to our rooms and lo and behold, the field outside our rooms was full of water buffalo and zebras!
The rooms of the lodge are designed in the shape of Masai huts and have amazing interiors. Richly decorated with dark panelling, fireplace, chandeleirs, minibars, art deco style radios that are UE booms, persian rugs, crystal glasses, fresh roses.
The weather had closed in overnight so when we woke the next morning, there were no views over the crater but luckily the clouds cleared away quickly. After breakfast, we were back on the road to Manyara Airport for our flight to Serengeti. The proprietors of the local shops at the airport were very persistent in getting you to grace their shops with your presence...not my game!
After our 50 minute flight to Serengeti, we met the &BEYOND team who were going to be our guides for the next 3 days. The drive through to &BEYOND Serengti Under Canvas was effectively a small game drive. Our guides asked us what we wanted to see and the unanimous answer was hippos and giraffes. Five minutes later, we were parked by the river and guess what, hippos in the river and giraffes on the other side! Surreal. We then moved onto hyenas, vultures, elephants and zebras.
More singing and dancing from all the staff welcomed us as we arrived at &BEYOND Serengeti Under Canvas. The camp moves four times a year to follow the migration, esnuring your always in the heart of the action. We were introduced to our butlers then settled in for lunch. Fresh supplies get delivered every 5 days and nothing is a problem. The more they can do for you, the better. The tents were absolutely gorgeous with everything you need; A mini-bar stocked with snacks, a comfortable daybed, an outdoor shower, a flushing loo, and even hottie bottles tucked into our beds.
The afternoon game drive had us following a couple of lionesses who had cubs but they keep them hidden during the day so we didn’t get to see cuteness (that day!). We also (well, our guide) spied a leopard who was eyeing up the dinner options. She too, had cubs but they were not on show.
As we were heading back to camp at nightfall, the guide radioed ahead to the camp to let them know who wanted a shower before dinner so that the butlers could get hot water into the shower buckets. We then met for drinks around the fire and enjoyed an outdoor dinner. A snake was on our path as we headed to the main tent for dinner which was exciting.
It was an absolutely brilliant afternoon with an early night as were were up early the next day for Hot Air Ballooning over the Serengeti! We clambered into the basket as it lay on its side and as the balloon filled, the basket slowly righted itself. This basket can take 16 pax and we had 10 in ours plus the pilot. Scenery was magical and we did spot some warthogs, giraffes, zebra, elephants and hippos as he took the balloon down and back up again. We were in the air for over an hour and the landing was very smooth. Champagne on arrival which is a tradition – there is a story to that – and then onto breakfast on the Serengeti plains.
On the drive back to camp, we went looking for crocodiles, which we were successful at and also added mongoose, monitor lizard and kingfishers to our sightings. We also saw more giraffes and hippos...
Back at camp, we finally had an hour to ourselves and most of us caught up on some sleep before we headed to lunch! Another 90 minutes of R&R followed before we headed out for the afternoon game drive...and we saw the lion cubs! Their antics kept us spellbound for the good part of an hour.
We rendezvoused with a couple of other &BEYOND trucks and were treated to drinks of choice while we watched the sunset. They really bring everything, the chairs, a full bar, buckets of ice, food – the works...all in the middle of nowhere! However, they then have to race back to camp as they are not allowed to have their headlights on in the National Parks and the sun sets quickly so all makes for a bit of excitement.
Once back at camp, bucket shower then a pre-dinner drink around the campfire and dining under the stars. Some pretty magical stuff!
The next morning, we took a packed breakfast and hit the road at 7am so we could get in a bit of a game drive on the way to the airport. It also meant we could take our time if we found...well, did we! First up giraffes and zebras - then we happened upon a consortia of four lions with a fresh Eland (biggest antelope) kill that two were feasting upon while the other two had already had their turn....we could tell by the size of their guts! Lined up ready to go were the hyenas, jackals and vultures.
Our guide Elias managed to get our truck stuck twice in a wee rocky crossing...luckily the other truck was there to tow us out. When the second truck did the crossing, they were up on two wheels! Created a bit of excitement of a different kind!
We then found the border marker between Tanzania and Kenya which was cool...I can kind of argue now that I’ve set foot in Kenya! A short 25 minute flight to Grumeti Airstrip on another tiny aircraft – flight departure times change all the time so you just go with the flow. The flight operators liaise with the lodges as they finalise, on a daily basis, the best way to get everyone where they are going.
&BEYOND Grumeti Serengeti River Lodge is a 5 minute drive from the airport and I know they depart from the lodge to pick you up when they see the flight coming in! Holy heck – what a stunning property. You walk down the entrance pathway (after being sung to by all the welcoming staff) straight into the lobby which then continues to the river where hippos galore go about their business. So entertaining and glorious.
We had time for a quick look at our rooms and a dip in our private pools, from where we could gaze at the hippos in the river. We then headed to lunch where we dined overlooking the antics of the hippos in the river near the public areas of the lodge. The rooms have a window where the butlers can deliver food and drink to you without entering your room.
We left at 430pm for our afternoon game drive where we saw more gorgeous giraffes, hippops, and 3 lionesses with 5 cubs. On the way back to the lodge, we were surprised with a drive to the top of a rocky outcrop for “Bubbles in the bush” sundowners. Guards with guns on duty! Lovely dinner back at the lodge and the hippos seranaded us all night. The next morning, most of us went on an early game drive in search of the elusive cheetah which was the main one left on our list to see. It was a lovely, cool morning of exploring the Serengti plains and while we did see a hippo making its way back to the river, no cheetah sighting for us. Plenty of warthogs, dik diks, zebras, ducks and birds and other animals though so we were happy.
Breakfast back at the lodge was exciting as one of the hippos was causing issues...we saw a lot of action with hippos coming and going from the river as they were being bellowed at. We could then relax until we saw the flight coming in and then it was into the trucks and out to the airstrip for our flight to Zanzibar.
Our safari was over. An absolutely wonderful experience. The staff at the lodges were so friendly and accommodating. Food was great quality and the difference between all four lodges and areas gave me a great overview and understanding of what being on safari is all about.
Arriving into Zanzibar was a bit of a shock...the heat, so many people and traffic jams! Ugh.
We stayed two nights at Zanzibar White Sand Luxury Villas & Spa. The area where this resort is located is a 90 minute drive from the airport and the sand is so fine and very white. Each villa has its own private pool, outdoor shower and butler service! The resort offers a roof top bar, snorkelling gear, SUP, kayaks, bicycles and is a 5 minute tuk-tuk ride from the local village shops. We did site inspections of a few resorts near White Sand Villas and then headed back into Zanzibar township for an inspection of the Park Hyatt, lunch and a walking tour of Stone Town.
Zanzibar was a great way to finish the trip. It was well worth experiencing Stone Town and the sights, sounds, smells and history of the walking tour.
Looking back, the highlight of the journey was undoubtedly the animals and game drives. The guides were phenomenal; great enthusiasm and as delighted as we were with each discovery. The &BEYOND lodges were incredible, I would have liked more time to enjoy these but that probably would have meant more calorie consumption...always a compromise! My only recommendation - take a good camera!
