SLOW SAFARI TANZANIA, 1-13 FEB, 2024

What is a Slow Safari™?

Gone is the hectic wildlife photography safari where you are constantly moving from camp to camp every 2-3 days. Gone is the constant repacking, driving, flying to get to the next destination, only to have to move again to make way for the next group of travellers.

Our "Slow Safaris™", to hand-picked destinations in Africa, will allow you to stay in one camp for anywhere up to 10 nights (or more), allowing you to immerse yourself in one place — to get to know the movement of the animals and the rhythm of the bush — to have the luxury of, let's say, being able to follow the progress of a young lion cub as it gets to know ITS environment.

The "Slow Safari™" is comfortable — you will have your own space where you can unpack and spread out. You can afford to take the day off…if you want to. Our vehicles are spacious with plenty of room for cameras. The use of time is ours to plan the way WE want it.

Ndutu
Our exclusive Intimate Places Mobile Camp moves into the Ndutu woodland on the Serengeti Southern Plains between December and March as the wildebeest herds arrive in preparation for giving birth—it's here that they find the phosphorous rich grasses that they thrive on. This is a time of plenty for the animals and action is never far away at this time of year as the wildebeest cows drop their young. The Intimate Places Mobile Camp is located in the mature acacia woodland of Ndutu so as to be in prime location for this epic event.

The luxury mobile safari camp caters exclusively for our group. The camp not only offers one of the best chances of finding the wildebeest migration away from the crowds, but is also superbly comfortable with first class food. It's also one of the best ways to access to some remote and little visited areas of the Serengeti ecosystem that are well out of reach of the permanent safari lodges. The small crew of 4 - 6 Tanzanians who run the operation are friendly and efficient and look after your every need down to the smallest detail. In cold months you'll even find a hot water bottle in your bed when you turn in.

While walking is a possibility in some parts of the Serengeti, the emphasis here is predominantly on game drives and witnessing the migration and resident game in the company of one of the Intimate Places outstanding guides. You will have private vehicles and guides throughout the safari. This means you have full flexibility in planning your safari activities with your guide to suit yourselves. The Intimate Places Mobile Camp supplies lavish picnics to be taken on all-day game drives, so you can choose to stay out all day some times, and return to camp for a lazy lunch and siesta on others.​

Daily Itinerary

Day 1:Feb 1, 2024 – Arrive Arusha
Upon arrival at Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) in Arusha and after clearing immigration, you will be met by an Intimate Places Mobile Camp representative for your private road transfer to Rivertrees Country Inn.

O/N Rivertrees Country Inn
Rivertrees lies nestled in the foothills of Mount Meru, in view of Mount Kilimanjaro. This peaceful country estate combines old-world ambience, African country elegance, excellent farm cuisine, personal service, and genuine warmth from your hosts. The inn offers tranquility enhanced with contemporary conveniences, ideal for rejuvenation following stressful overseas travel or deep relaxation after a long safari or strenuous climb up Mount Kilimanjaro or Mount Meru. There are eighteen individually styled garden rooms, two hidden cottages, and the River House—a secluded thatched cottage on the Usa River. Fresh country meals are served in the restaurant, the gardens, the pub, near the river, and in the beautifully restored farmhouse with its warm ochre colors and cherished family antiques.

Day 2 - 12: Feb 2-12, 2024 – Arusha/Ndutu
This morning you will have a private road transfer to Arusha Airport (ARK) for your light aircraft flight* to Intimate Places Mobile Camp in the southern Serengeti’s Ndutu region. 
* Luggage is limited to 15kg per person in soft-sided bags.
* Flight is currently scheduled to depart Arusha at 11:00am and arrive at Ndutu at 11:45am. There may be stops en-route.

For the next 12 days we will explore this region of the southern Serengeti. We will be in private vehicles so we will be able to go wherever and whenever we please. We also will have permits to enter the Serengeti National Park for 4 days.

The Serengeti
Stretching from northern Tanzania to southwestern Kenya are the plains of the legendary Serengeti. In the native Maasai language, Serengeti aptly means “Endless Plains.” Unlike other parts of the Africa, the Serengeti managed to avoid European colonization due to the fierce tribes of Maasai that roamed these lands since ancient times. While they were known as fierce warriors, the Maasai actually had an aversion to eating wild game and subsisted almost exclusively on their domesticated cattle. But the rinderpest epidemic and droughts of the late nineteenth century devastated the populations of both the Maasai and the indigenous wildlife. By the mid-twentieth century, drought and fires (both natural and human-caused) reduced forestation across the plains and further encouraged the growth of grasses. But as the populations of the plains game rebounded in the after 1970, native Acacia trees have begun to recapture some territory. As host to the largest mammal migration in the world, the Serengeti’s diverse ecosystems are today home to more than just great herds of blue wildebeest. Innumerable gazelle, zebra, and buffalo also graze the grasslands along with notable numbers of elephant and giraffe. Not far behind the migrating herds are the Serengeti’s predators, most notably lion but also including leopard, cheetah, jackal, hyena, aardwolf, and serval cat.

O/N Intimate Places Mobile Camp
Intimate Places Mobile Camps are mobile luxury mobile camps which are only ever set up for your own private and exclusive use. They are never shared with anyone else and this enables us, with each booking, to concentrate all of our efforts on your specific needs and wants. The camp is staffed by private chefs, private butlers and private tent attendants, all of whom are on call to look after you and your group for the duration of your stay with us. Camp sizes may vary between one accommodation tent for two people up to a maximum of fifteen accommodation tents for a maximum of thirty people as required. Because our camps are for private use, we are able to tailor the services we provide to your specific desires. Hence, the menus served during the course of your stay, the drinks available from our well-stocked bar, the types of beds made available in your tents and even the distances between one tent and another are all discussed and agreed with you during the planning stage of your camp. All Intimate Places Mobile Camps have a fully equipped kitchen with a gas fridge, freezer, oven and stove. 

Day 13: 13 Feb, 2024 – Transfer to Arusha for flights home
This morning you will transfer to the airstrip for your light aircraft flight* back to Arusha (ARK). You will have a private road transfer back to Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) where you will connect to your departing commercial flights.

* Luggage is limited to 15kg per person in soft-sided bags.
* Flight is currently scheduled to depart Ndutu at 10:55am and arrive at Kilimanjaro at 12:30pm. There may be stops en route.

Arrival, Departure & Visa

Weather 

The best times to visit Serengeti National Park are from January to February or from June through September. January is fairly warm in Tanzania, with the temperatures ranging between 26-30ºC. The sun is up early in the morning for about 10 hours on an average. The weather is slightly humid if it rains, which is rare during January.

Language

Tanzania is an East African country and Swahili is the nation's official language. English is widely spoken, and other languages spoken in the country are the native tongues of various ethnic groups. The ethnic languages are mainly of Bantu and Nilotic origin. These languages have various levels of growth, and 58 of 126 are considered to be in vigorous use, 18 are developing, some are dying, and three languages have become extinct. Most of Tanzania's population is fluent in their mother tongue and one other language, mainly Kiswahili. The general population has considerable knowledge of English, but their fluency in Swahili is more noticeable.

Currency

The currency of Tanzania is the Tanzanian shilling (shilingi in Swahili). It is written as TZS and can be sub-divided in 100 senti. The symbol of the Tanzanian shilling is TSh.