Legendary Serengeti Mobile Camp | Best Tanzania Safari Lodges

Legendary Serengeti Mobile Camp | Serengeti National Park One Of Tanzania’s Best Safari Lodges

Moving between the north, south and west Serengeti throughout the year, a stay at Legendary Serengeti Mobile Camp – one of Tanzania’s best safari accommodation options with just 11 tents – guarantees viewings of the Great Wildebeest Migration, including wildebeest calvings, river crossings and hundreds of thousands of animals in the grass plains.

The place

After a delicious dinner at a private table in the mess tent – which has its own lounge, dining area, bar and library – we sit around the fire with the other guests, sharing stories of the various safaris we’ve all been on over the years. The crackling of the flames does little to dispel the sense of solitude here, this feeling of being out in the wild. Surrounded as we are by Serengeti grasslands, with a sky that’s covered in a dazzling array of stars, it truly feels like we’ve discovered the spirit of Africa at Legendary Serengeti Mobile Camp … in a way that’s different to permanent safari lodges. Soon, we’ll be tracking the Great Wildebeest Migration from our own private vehicle, secure in the knowledge that we’re in exactly the right place to witness it firsthand.

Soon, we’ll be tracking the Great Wildebeest Migration from our own private vehicle, secure in the knowledge that we’re in exactly the right place to witness it firsthand.

The room

Ready for bed, we’re escorted back to our suite by a Maasai guard. We’d left the tent’s sides open, but unseen hands have carefully closed everything up after leaving our tent brightly lit with hot-water bottles heating our bed. Each half of the camp (which is split into two independent sites for intimacy) faces opposing directions, and the natural habitat ensures privacy. As I brush my teeth, I admire the dark wood basin stand that dominates the en-suite bathroom, thinking how the hot-water bucket shower doesn’t detract from the luxurious comfort at all. Our bed awaits us, a plush king-size draped in mosquito nets and 100% cotton linen, surrounded by Persian rugs. Tired, but excited to be here, we talk late into the night, enjoying the night-time entertainment: the howl of a hyena, the roar of a lion and the quick flits of light from passing fireflies. Waking to dawn light, I’m lured up by the smell of freshly brewed coffee. After our breakfast buffet, we set off on a game drive to track the migration. Legendary Serengeti Mobile Camp offers one of the closest encounters with the wildebeest, because they change locations three times a year to ensure they’re always in the right place at the right time. Just a few kilometres away from camp and we see them, thousands of wildebeest, with herds of Thomson’s gazelle, zebra, eland and impala in their wake, chasing the rains and grasses on their loop of the Serengeti-Masai Mara ecosystem. It’s truly a privilege to be here.

Each half of the camp (which is split into two independent sites for intimacy) faces opposing directions, and the natural habitat ensures privacy. As I brush my teeth, I admire the dark wood basin stand that dominates the en-suite bathroom, thinking how the hot-water bucket shower doesn’t detract from the luxurious comfort at all.

Our bed awaits us, a plush king-size draped in mosquito nets and 100% cotton linen, surrounded by Persian rugs. Tired, but excited to be here, we talk late into the night, enjoying the night-time entertainment: the howl of a hyena, the roar of a lion and the quick flits of light from passing fireflies.

Waking to dawn light, I’m lured up by the smell of freshly brewed coffee. After our breakfast buffet, we set off on a game drive to track the migration. Legendary Serengeti Mobile Camp offers one of the closest encounters with the wildebeest, because they change locations three times a year to ensure they’re always in the right place at the right time. Just a few kilometres away from camp and we see them, thousands of wildebeest, with herds of Thomson’s gazelle, zebra, eland and impala in their wake, chasing the rains and grasses on their loop of the Serengeti-Masai Mara ecosystem. It’s truly a privilege to be here.

What sets it apart

A mobile safari camp with three different locations throughout the year (north, west and south Serengeti), this lovely lodge ensures we have a front-row seat to the Great Wildebeest Migration. However, this doesn’t mean any compromise on comfort: the service is first rate, the food fresh and delicious, and our tents the epitome of old-world elegance and charm. I love the feeling of exclusivity here; with our own private vehicle we have the flexibility to arrange our own schedules on a whim, and we can choose to dine in- or outdoors. Superb.

At a glance

Mobile safari camp with a total of 11 tented suites split across two independent sections, each with their own dining and lounge areas.
Private concession (Maswa only), private dining available, private vehicles and flexible schedules.
Game drives, night drives (Maswa only), cultural visits, walking safaris (Maswa only), bush dining, picnics, bush sundowners (Maswa only) and hot-air ballooning (additional cost).
Children welcome and babysitting available (additional cost). There are no family tents but each tent can accommodate triples. Children may join safari activities at the lodge manager’s discretion.

Mobile safari camp with a total of 11 tented suites split across two independent sections, each with their own dining and lounge areas.
Private concession (Maswa only), private dining available, private vehicles and flexible schedules.
Game drives, night drives (Maswa only), cultural visits, walking safaris (Maswa only), bush dining, picnics, bush sundowners (Maswa only) and hot-air ballooning (additional cost).
Children welcome and babysitting available (additional cost). There are no family tents but each tent can accommodate triples. Children may join safari activities at the lodge manager’s discretion.

Prices

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.

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.

When to Go

This is a wonderful time to visit northern Tanzania, with the vegetation initially lush after the rains, but then dying back, making the wildlife that much easier to see. Temperatures are cooler (although the days are warm and sunny). With the wildebeest herds assembling to make the perilous crossing of the Grumeti River, this is the busiest time of the year here. Tarangire is a great option now, with locally migrating wildlife concentrating along the Tarangire River, or take in the tree-climbing lion and beautiful seasonal waterfalls at Lake Manyara.

The long dry spell between the rains sees the vegetation cycle being repeated: lovely green grass immediately after the rains subsequently starts to wither. As food and water become scarcer, game concentrates around waterholes, making wildlife viewing particularly easy in January. Wildebeest calving in January and February on the southern Serengeti short-grass plains means a glut of kills – it’s the best time for predator action. Away from the Serengeti, this is an ideal opportunity to see resident game in the Ngorongoro Crater and at Lake Manyara, and birders will enjoy spotting migratory species.

These are perhaps not the ideal times to visit northern Tanzania as they represent the two peaks of the wet season – the long rains in April and May; the short rains in November. This does mean however that you’ll be sharing the game reserves and national parks of northern Tanzania with far fewer people, and there’s still plenty to see. During the long rains, the Great Wildebeest Migration moves north in the Serengeti, through Seronera towards the Western Corridor, while in November the herds return from the Masai Mara.