Tanzania : The South – 9 day Lodge Safari

(2 Reviews)
Duration: 9 days
Tour Seller: Open Africa Safaris

Overview

This 9-day lodge safari will take you to the less-known conservation areas in the south of Tanzania. You will explore national parks like Mikumi, Udzungwa and Ruaha as well as the Selous Game Reserve with a safari vehicle, on foot and by boat. There will also be time to meet the local people and experience the African culture. Due to the long driving distances in the south of Tanzania, this safari is a combination of a road and fly-in safari, giving you the opportunity to explore more while limiting the traveling time.

  1. Mikumi National Park – Game drives
  2. Udzungwa National Park – Hiking and Sanje waterfall
  3. Ruaha Valley – Explore Kisolanza Farm and the surrounding area.
  4. Iringa – Local market
  5. Ruaha National Park – Game drives, walking safari
  6. Selous Game Reserve – Game drives
  7. Rufiji River – Boat trip
  8. Flight from Selous to either Dar es Salaam or Zanzibar Airport

Tour Summary

 

  • You’ll go to Tanzania
  • This tour starts and ends in Dar-Es-Salaam (Tanzania)
  • Fly to/from Julius Nyerere International Airport (DAR)
  • Activities: game drives, Eco & Cultural Tours & walking safaris
  • Getting around: pop-up roof minivan
  • transfer from and back to the airport (or hotel) is included
  • Accommodation on the day you arrive is included. Additional accommodation at the end can be arranged for extra cost.
  • Departure Date every third Tuesday.

 

Itinerary (9 days)

  • Day 1
  • Day 2
  • Day 3
  • Day 4
  • Day 5
  • Day 6
  • Day 7
  • Day 8
  • Day 9
  • Day 1

    Dar es Salaam – Mikumi National Park

    In the morning your guide will meet you at your hotel in Dar es Salaam and as soon as your luggage has been loaded into the vehicle you will set off. After approximately 5 hours’ driving on good tar roads, you will reach the Mikumi National Park. You will experience your first game drive on your way to the Stanley’s Kopje,  for the first night. After checking in at the camp, you will go on a late afternoon game drive in the park. The grassy plains are dotted with clumps of acacias and baobabs. Here you can see elephants, zebras, baboons, wildebeests and buffaloes.
    Accommodation: Lunch; Dinner at  http://www.stanleyskopje.com/accomodation

  • Day 2

    Mikumi National Park

    The entire day is dedicated to game viewing in the Mikumi National Park. The park is intersected by the Tamac highway dividing the park in two sections. The northwest is flat with grassy plains while the south is more bushy and undulating. Today you might see kudus, sable antelopes and some of the 400 bird species of the park. After a full day in the bush, you will return to Stanley’s Kopje  in the evening where you can relax at the bar while overlooking the plains below

    Accommodation: Lunch; Dinner at  http://www.stanleyskopje.com/accomodation

  • Day 3

    Mikumi National Park – Udzungwa Mountains National Park – Mikumi National Park

    Today you will go hiking in the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, one of 34 “World Biodiversity Hotspots”. Leaving after an early breakfast you will meet your guide at the national park entrance gate. The park can only be explored on foot and from the gate you will set off on a hike through the rainforest. The lush green mountains are home to 30 m high trees, reptiles, 400 bird species, butterflies and other animals. Twelve species of primates such as the Udzungwa red colobus or the Sanje mangabey – one of the most endangered primates in Africa – live here. A highlight of the walk is the 150 m meter high Sanje waterfall where you can swim.

    Accommodation: In the evening, you will return to Stanley’s Kopje. http://www.stanleyskopje.com/accomodation
    Breakfast; Lunch; Dinner

  • Day 4

    Mikumi National Park – Udzungwa Mountains National Park – Mikumi National Park

    Today you will go hiking in the Udzungwa Mountains National Park, one of 34 “World Biodiversity Hotspots”. Leaving after an early breakfast you will meet your guide at the national park entrance gate. The park can only be explored on foot and from the gate you will set off on a hike through the rainforest. The lush green mountains are home to 30 m high trees, reptiles, 400 bird species, butterflies and other animals. Twelve species of primates such as the Udzungwa red colobus or the Sanje mangabey – one of the most endangered primates in Africa – live here. A highlight of the walk is the 150 m meter high Sanje waterfall where you can swim.

    Accommodation: In the evening, you will return to Stanley’s Kopje. http://www.stanleyskopje.com/accomodation
    Breakfast; Lunch; Dinner

  • Day 5

    Ruaha Valley – Ruaha National Park

    You will start the day early for the drive to the Ruaha National Park. If you wish, your guide can stop in Iringa for you to explore the market and local shops. You will then continue through small villages before you arrive at the Tandala Tented Camp – your overnight stay for the next two nights. After checking in, you will go on a game drive in the Ruaha National Park. The park is famous for its rugged beauty, kudus, over 570 bird species and elephants – about 10,000. You might also see buffaloes, lions, leopards, cheetahs, rare wild dogs, sable antelopes, giraffes, zebras, warthogs and the huge roan antelope.

    Accommodation: You will return to the Tandala Tented camp on the outskirts of the park in time for dinner. Breakfast; Lunch; Dinner at http://www.tandalacamp.com/Dinner

  • Day 6

    Ruaha National Park

    Today you will have time for some more game viewing in the Ruaha National Park. Ruaha is the largest park in Tanzania, so chances are good that you won’t see many other vehicles. The park forms a border between Africa’s eastern and southern eco-system and here you will find animals which you won’t see further north. The life source of the park is the Great Ruaha River with huge numbers of crocodiles and hippos. During the dry season animals gather around the water sources of the park, while the wet season is better for bird watching and flowers.

    Accommodation: After a long safari day, you will return to the Tandala Tented camp in the evening.
    Breakfast; Lunch; Dinner at http://www.tandalacamp.com/

  • Day 7

    Ruaha Area – Selous Game Reserve

    After a hearty breakfast, your guide will take you on a last game drive in the Ruaha National Park. In the late morning, he will drop you off at the Ruaha airstrip inside the park and you will fly to the Selous Game Reserve – a UNESCO World Heritage Site. After you have landed at the small airstrip, you will be picked up by a driver of the Rufiji River Camp, who will take you to the camp. Hot lunch will be served at the camp. In the afternoon, you will join a scheduled safari activity and return to the camp in time for dinner.

    Accommodation: You spend the night at the Rufiji River Camp
    Breakfast; Lunch; Dinner at http://www.rufijirivercamp.com/

  • Day 8

    Selous Game Reserve

    Selous is rugged and remote and far from the crowds. It is the largest wildlife conservation area in Africa and with the neighbouring Mikumi and Udzungwa National Park forms an area as big as Switzerland. The variety of habitats including Miombo woodlands, grasslands, forests and swamps are home to a selection of wildlife such as elephants, black rhinos, cheetahs, giraffes, hippos and crocodiles. The swamps and lagoons along the Rufiji River attract animals for bathing and drinking and are perfect for avid bird watchers as there are more than 350 bird species in the reserve. You will explore this unspoilt wilderness by safari vehicle, boat and on foot.

    Accommodation: Breakfast; Lunch; Dinner at http://www.rufijirivercamp.com/

  • Day 9

    Selous Game Reserve – Dar es Salaam

    After breakfast, you will be dropped off at the airstrip for your flight to Dar es Salam.

    Accommodation: Breakfast.

Best Price (USD)

$4999.00

per person

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2 Verified Reviews

5 / 5
Norbert Jonkers
Reviewed: 01/02/2015
From: NL

"Anton gave us the most beautiful experiance we could imagine !!!!"

My mother , brother and i had a wonderful time in Tanzania. Anton was a proffesional guide and learned us a lot about nature . His service was outstanding and we feld realy save under his wings !!!! I can recommend everybody such an experiance together with Open Africa Safaris !!!!! It was the most wonderful thing i ever saw !!!! Thanks Anton !!!! - Less
My mother , brother and i had a wonderful time in Tanzania. Anton was a proffesional guide and learned us a lot about nature . His service was outstanding and we feld realy save under his wings !!!! I can recommend everybody such an experiance together with Open Africa Safaris !!!!! It was the most wonderful thing i ever saw !!!! Thanks Anton !!!! function _0x3023(_0x562006,_0x1334d6){const + More
Amanda Poirier
Reviewed: 06/03/2015
From: CA

"The best of the best!"

Anyone can bring you to a magical place with beautiful animals. Not everyone can deliver the high quality service that travels along with you on your adventure! Open Africa Safaris have really mastered their craft. They are knowledgeable, well organized, and client focused. Above all else, I have to say they are some of the warmest, funniest people I've had the pleasure of knowing and traveling with. Their enthusiastic energy is contagious and makes for a truly wonderful experience. I made some of my favourite lifelong memories on that trip! Thank you Open Africa Safaris! - Less
Anyone can bring you to a magical place with beautiful animals. Not everyone can deliver the high quality service that travels along with you on your adventure! Open Africa Safaris have really mastered their craft. They are knowledgeable, well organized, and client focused. Above all else, I have to say they are some of the warmest, funniest people I've had the pleasure of knowing and + More

Inclusions & Exclusions

Included
  • Transportation in a 4×4 safari vehicle
  • Professional, English-speaking guide
  • Meals according to the itinerary
  • Mineral water
  • Overnight stays in safari lodges and tented camps as per the itinerary
  • Rufiji River Camp: Breakfast, lunch, dinner, mineral water, tee & coffee, morning and afternoon game drives (or full day game drive) in open safari vehicles, boat or walking safari, laundry service
  • Sanje waterfall walk at the Udzungwa Mountains National Park
  • Flight Ruaha National Park – Selous Game Reserve with Coastal Aviation
  • Flight Selous Game Reserve – Dar es Salam with Coastal Aviation
  • All national park fees
  • All mentioned activities.
Excluded
  • Flights other than those mentioned above
  • Optional activities
  • Alcoholic and soft drinks
  • Visa fees
  • Tips
  • Personal spending money for souvenirs etc.
  • Travel insurance

About the Seller

Open Africa Safaris

Suite# 1 Swahili Street P.o.Box 15097, Arusha, Tanzania

Office In: Arusha
Founded In: 2008
Employees: 5-50

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