Travel stories

A dream safari- and beach honeymoon

What an unforgettable trip!

After landing at Kilimanjaro Airport, we were greeted by our friendly Explore Tanzania driver and taken to the beautiful Rivertrees Country Inn in Usa River. Since we arrived in the morning, we had plenty of time to venture out to the village as well as enjoy the beautiful amenities of the inn. We walked to the village of Usa River to have lunch at a local market while taking in all the sights and sounds of the village. After lunch we returned to the inn to enjoy the pool, walk around the inn’s beautiful grounds next to the river, and enjoyed a delicious dinner that night at the inn’s restaurant.

The next morning it was time to start the safari! The following five days were filled with fun drives in the Land Rover with our friendly guide, animals, and relaxing evenings by the campfire!

The first day we drove to Lake Manyara where we saw elephants, baboons, plenty of giraffes, and our first lions! The flora and fauna of this park were astounding – I really loved the magnificent baobab trees here. That evening we didn’t have far to drive to our campsite – it was right next to the park! We stayed at Migombani Camp. We enjoyed a couple of beers at the pool underneath the incredible baobab tree with a stunning view over Lake Manyara park and its surroundings.

The following day we drove through Ngorongoro Crater park to the border of Serengeti National Park. Along the way, we stopped at the lovely viewpoint over the crater and passed by Massai villages. During the game drive we saw so many animals – giraffes, wildebeest, gazelles, ostriches, flamingos, 100s of zebras, and a family of lions up close! The feeling of seeing a lion so close you can look into its eyes is unforgettable. The drive across the land was impressive too – endless plains and blue skies.

We stayed at Kati Kati tented camp the next two nights. It was, perhaps, one of our favorite places we stayed while in the bush. The people were so kind and friendly, the food was delicious, and the environment around the camp was stunning.

The next two days were spent in the Serengeti and filled with game drives, spotting animals up close and enjoying picnic lunches with a view. The highlight was definitely seeing a cheetah mother with her four cubs and having lions right next to our Land Rover! The fact that we could open up the top of the Land Rover and stand up and look around was perfect for viewing the animals.

The last day of our safari was spent at Ngorongoro Crater. The night before we slept at Rhino Lodge which was inside Ngorongoro Crater park and not far from the entry gate. This made it perfect to get up early and head down to the crater before very many people arrived. Plus, we got to enjoy the beautiful sunrise. I never imagined seeing so many animals living so close together in one place. We even spotted a rhino here, which we were told is quite rare!

The safari was an incredible experience and we hope to do it again one day. We were sad to say ‘goodbye’ to our fun guide, but also excited for the next half of our trip.

At the end of the afternoon, we drove to our final accommodation in Northern Tanzania – Olerai Lodge. What a gem this place was! Again, such friendly staff, a bartender who made tasty cocktails, a very spacious room the size of an apartment, and beautiful grounds! We even enjoyed breakfast with a few monkeys here.

The next day we were picked up and taken to Arusha Airport to catch our flight to Zanzibar. The following days were filled with relaxing at the beach, scuba diving and enjoying dinner at small local restaurants nearby our hotel. We stayed at the Zanzibar Pearl and the view from the upper-level oceanfront room was like looking into paradise.

Thank you, Explore Tanzania, for organizing an unforgettable honeymoon for us!