Serengeti Under Canvas | Serengeti National Park One Of Tanzania’s Best Safari Lodges

I walk outside my canvas tent, feeling a thrill as I see the endless vistas of rolling grasslands stretching before me. I can’t believe I’m here, finally, in the Serengeti. As the aptly named Serengeti Under Canvas moves with the Great Wildebeest Migration from the south, there’s every chance we’ll witness it first hand, which would be the experience of a lifetime. I look out over a small bluff with several flat-topped acacia trees ahead of a small river, and imagine thousands of wildebeest thundering across it. Just being here is a dream come true.

I feel a slight breeze brush across my skin, which causes our tent’s chandelier to tinkle merrily. I walk back into our large, Bedouin-style tent (apparently the lodge has the largest mobile tents in Tanzania) and hug myself in glee. This is safari camping as I’d imagined it – along with some creature comforts like a double bed with crisp linen and fluffy blankets, crystal glassware and a floor draped in Indian rugs. There’s also a sitting area with a daybed inside, should we manage to tear ourselves away from the incredible outdoors. I love the his-and-hers open-air showers (en-suite, yet still completely private). Despite them being bucket showers, they somehow don’t make me feel like I’m roughing it at all. I simply tell our butler Joseph when we’re ready and he fills the hanging canvas bags with some 20 litres of hot water each, which is more than enough to have a proper wash. A few hours later and we’re sitting inside the open-air mess tent, enjoying cocktails as we tell stories of our safari adventures. The sight of over a million wildebeest moving steadily over the rolling savannahs, a grey mass separated occasionally by the tan flanks of Thomson’s gazelle, will forever be engraved in my mind. We couldn’t have experienced such a spectacular congregation and diversity of large mammals anywhere else.

For me, this was a truly authentic safari experience in the heart of Africa. Despite the modern luxuries of butlers, gourmet food and outstanding service and guiding, at the end of the day we’re camping out in the wild, with nothing separating us from the great outdoors other than a canvas flap. It’s a thrilling feeling of merging with the environment. We slept to the sound of grunting ‘gnus’ and woke to the sound of birdsong, feeling safe with a loud horn next to our bed in case of emergency. What makes it even more special is knowing that respect for the land, animals and people is rooted in the camp’s ideology; staying here means living in harmony with the environment. And, like the myriad wildebeest and zebra that cross the Serengeti plains, Serengeti Under Canvas migrates too, to ensure we witness this unbelievable natural spectacle up close.

• Luxurious semi-permanent tented camp that moves across the Serengeti. Features 18 Bedouin-style tents (including one family tent) split across two separate, intimate campsites.
• Mobile camp that follows the Great Wildebeest Migration, private vehicles available (additional cost) and flexible schedules.
• Game drives, stargazing, hot-air ballooning (additional cost), Lake Victoria day trip (additional cost) and Olduvai Gorge and Shifting Sands tour (additional cost).
• Children over six years are welcome, and babysitting and WILDchild activity programme is available. Children aged 6–12 can participate in game drives at lodge manager’s discretion. One family tent, and daybeds in other tents for children under 12.

• Not only do African safari lodge prices shift with the seasons, they also change based on your length of stay, room type, travel party composition, special offers, if your trip involves stays at sister lodges – and for more reasons besides.
• It’s worth noting that depending on your itinerary, your lodge cost will make up about 75–85% of your total safari trip cost.
• Our safaris are tailor-made to match your personal safari dream, we’d be delighted if you’d allow us to create a bespoke proposal for you.  Simply enquire now – our quotes are complimentary and obligation-free.
• However, to help you get an idea of safari lodge prices we’ve created three safari-lodge categories with various price ranges, to find out more click here.