Travel stories

Tanzania Photo trip – Vera

On February 14, 2025, a group of photography enthusiasts, led by photographer Krijn van der Giessen, left for a 9-day photo trip through Northern Tanzania. Vera likes to talk about it in her travel story.

We had good information in advance from both Krijn and Explore Tanzania so we had a lot of anticipation. Before the photo trip, Henny and I left a little earlier together with 2 ladies from the photo group. After arriving in Tanzania, we spent the night in a lodge in the middle of Arusha. We went on a canoe trip on Lake Duluti and from there we were taken to the super fun lodge African Amini Hillside Retreat. With what an enthusiastic welcome and care we were. Highly recommended! We went for a walk with the guides Ezra and Joshua and visited projects, the lodge contributes to this development of a school, the Dr Cristina hospital, a sewing workshop, all in all a super day.

On day 4 of our stay we were taken to the accommodation where the rest of the group would arrive in the late evening hours. Day 5; the group is now complete. A good breakfast and a briefing from Krijn about the settings of the camera because yes, now the photo trip is about to begin. We meet the drivers/guides: Benson and Simba. On to Lake Manyara. On the way also a lot to see Maasai village and the Maasai too of course. Simba tells a lot about the life of the Maasai. In Lake Manyara a nice lunch with already spotted a lot of beautiful birds after lunch looking for the “big game” that’s what we come for. We see giraffes, elephants, warthogs, monkeys and even the buffalo and a lot of beautiful birds. After a long day arrived at Greencamp Lake Manyara. Whow wow how cool is this. A beautiful tent with sliding roof so you can see the starry sky. The tent is surrounded by monkeys. We really sleep between the wildlife so exciting.

Every day early on the road for beautiful sunrises and enjoy what we encounter. Then back for breakfast and to look at photos, sort them out. In the afternoon time to recover from all the beauty and at the end of the day on the road again.

Day 6: on the way to the Serengeti, Simba tells us a lot about local life in Tanzania. After seeing a lot of wildlife again, we arrived at Green Camp South, another beautiful lodge. The next day we set off again before breakfast at 6 am. After all, we came here to take pictures, haha. We saw beautiful zebras with young, wild animals and heyenas. The afternoon safari was a hit, Benson and Simba knew that there had to be a leopard with a young one nearby. After some searching, they found the leopard in a tree. AMAZING! We were so lucky that a pride of lions were chilling out a little later. I couldn’t believe my eyes and sometimes forgot to take pictures.

Day 9 a morning safari and in the afternoon a game walk with 2 guides. That was beautiful. The guide managed to captivate us again with his stories, zebras, elephants, giraffe, impala, and a buffalo. Day 10 was the morning to never forget. Benson and Simba found lions having breakfast, what beautiful animals and for dessert we had … 3 cheetahs eating a wildebeest. What a delight that was. With the exception of the rhino I had noted down the big five! Vultures and hyenas were also sitting near the cheetah to devour the leftovers.

Now on to the Ngorongoro Crater, a volcanic crater in a grey-green world full of animals. Another experience and there I saw a rhino with a calf in the distance. My big five is complete. We were so “full” with all the things we had seen the past few days that we decided to go to the last accommodation. On this last day we had a tour of a banana plantation and we also visited a small market and a woodcarving company where we scored some souvenirs.
We were taken to Mto Mwa Mbu by Tuk Tuk. There we were treated to the last lunch that was prepared by a Tanzanian lady. This was also wonderful. Unfortunately the fantastic trip has come to an end and we were taken to the airport with a few thousand photos and a head full of great memories.
With thanks to Krijn and Explore Tanzania. Partly because of you, Tanzania has conquered my heart.