Wild Tanzania Safari

8 days—Wild Tanzania Safari

$4000-8000 USD

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Safari summary

Wildlife Viewing in Tanzania: Selous Game Reserve

Types of Transportation: Land Cruiser, Bush Plane

Active Options Included: Walking Safari, Bird Watching

About this tour

	Tour type	Custom, tailor-made, private
	Main focus	Game drives
	Activity level	Moderate activity
	Best months	July, August, September, October
	Countries	Tanzania
	Parks	Nyerere (Selous)

Fine details

Safari highlights

Boat, canoe, dhow, kayak, mokoro safari
Walking safari—with armed guard

Itinerary

Day 1

Day 1 Travel day International flight

Day 2

Kruger | Nyerere (Selous) | Ruaha

Day 2 Beho Beho Selous Game Reserve Swimming pool available Coastal Bush Flight Departs Dar es Salaam bush airport @ 8:30 am Arrive Selous bush strip @ 9:15 am Selous Game Reserve in southern Tanzania is one of the largest game reserves in the world at 55,000 sq kms (21,100 sq miles) of protected land. This vast area represents five percent of the land mass of Tanzania. It is the same size as Ireland or Switzerland. The reserve is drained by three mighty African rivers, the Rufiji, Kilombera, and Great Ruaha as they flow to the Indian Ocean. You’ll see the rivers snake across the horizon as you fly in over the reserve. Only the northern section of Selous is developed for tourism, but even this area is huge and wild. You experience true wilderness in Selous. Teddy Roosevelt’s account of his 1909 safari in Selous, led by Frederick Courtney Selous, is recorded in his book, African Game Trails. The reserve is named after Selous. He was a big game hunter and early conservationist. He was killed in the Selous while fighting for the British in the First World War. Selous is buried close to Beho Beho. Beho Beho will meet you at the bush strip (Beho Beho International Airport) and bring you into camp. Get yourself checked in to your banda. If you have time you’ll enjoy relaxing and watching the view out of the front of your cottage. There are always elephant and hippo wandering in the gorge below your banda. At lunch you’ll meet guides Walter Jubber, Heribert Mardai, Onno de Rover, and Salum Mpapa, as well as Karin Kruger. Karin is in charge of the kitchen and all the great food you will be served at Beho Beho. While you are at lunch make sure you locate the water hole. (More on that later!) Walter runs the show so he will counsel with you each evening about your activity schedule for the following day. You’ll be able to craft your safari to your particular interests. Each day at Beho Beho you’ll have the opportunity to choose from a number of activities. There is Land Cruiser wildlife viewing, walking safaris, and boating safaris on nearby Lake Tagalala. Plus wildlife mentoring from some of the best guides in Tanzania. You can also visit the World War I battlefield where Selous fought the German soldiers with the British fusiliers. He was shot dead by a German sniper beneath Sugar Mountain. Enjoy your afternoon in the bush. The sun sets pretty close to 6 pm each evening. (You’re close to the equator.) You’ll be walked by one of the guides from your banda back to the main camp area for drinks and dinner. Lest you think the wildlife viewing is over, think again. There are visitors to the water hole pretty much every evening. Lunch, dinner, and overnight at Beho Beho Camp.

Day 3

Ngorongoro Crater | Nyerere (Selous)

Day 3 Beho Beho Days at Beho Beho start early as this is the best time to see the tremendous array of both big and small game that inhabits this area of the Selous. Beho Beho was the first camp to be established in the Selous and consequently was placed in one of the game rich areas of the reserve. There is a diversity of habitats with plains, riverine forests, savannah, lakes, and scrub bush. That means a wide diversity of species and some of the best game viewing in the reserve. The richness of wildlife is explained by the dry miombo woodland that covers large portions of this part of the reserve. The leaves shed by the moimbo form a surprisingly complex food chain creating an ideal habitat for large mammals. There are an estimated 750,000 mammals in the reserve, including the world’s largest populations of elephant, crocodile, buffalo, hippo, and wild dog. Antelopes abound with sizeable populations of impala, bushbuck. waterbuck, sable, eland, Lichtenstein’s hartebeest, and greater kudu. You’ll see two species of wildebeest, both the black bearded gnu and the southern, Nyasa wildebeest. Plus lots of zebra and giraffe. You may spot bush babies, spotted genet, and mongoose at night. Lions, in large prides, are often seen. Leopards, despite their considerable population, are more elusive thanks to their preferred habitat. Cheetah and hyena are occasionally seen, but the real highlight is wild dogs. Wild dogs are the rarest of Africa’s predators, and they have found one of their last refuges in Selous. Some research suggests that there are at least 800 wild dogs in Selous, three times the concentration of anywhere else in Africa. Selous accounts for almost half of all the elephants in Tanzania. Selous’ elephant population suffered greatly in the 1980s when oil prospectors cut roads into the bush and inadvertently allowed poachers easy access into the bush with vehicles. Selous’ elephant population continues to recover from these devastating effects, with many young calves being born. You’ll have some great elephant viewing while you are at Beho Beho. Black rhino in the reserve have been poached almost to extinction. The population has dropped dramatically from an estimated 3,000 in the early 1980’s to fewer than 150 today. The few remaining Selous rhino remain hidden in the dense thickets and are rarely seen. Conservation efforts have increased the population. If you enjoy birding you will enjoy your time at Beho Beho. Beho Beho’s bird count is now at 244 species. The Selous was declared a World Heritage Site by the UN in 1982, but the number of visitors is still fewer than 5,000 a year and this lack of mass tourism ensures that those who do visit the Selous enjoy a true wilderness experience. This is really the bush. Don’t expect to tick off species as you might do in Ngorongoro Crater. Wildlife viewing in Selous requires patience; it is what gives it its charm. It is different and simply stunning. Make sure you take some time to look up and view the great star show that unfolds once darkness sets in. The southern constellations are brilliant and the Milky Way luminous. Breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, sundowners, dinner, and overnight at Beho Beho.

Day 4

Day 4 Beho Beho Visit Lake Tagala for an unforgettable day. You’ll be wildlife viewing on the way to the lake. You’ll board a game viewing boat with swivel seats and a sun shade to meander around the shores with binoculars and camera at the ready. Lake Tagalala has the highest concentration of crocodiles in Africa with huge pods of hippos bobbing up for breadth and sinking silently under the water. They are far from silent when they feel that their private space is being invaded and their loud calls echo across the lake. Enjoy an ‘alfresco breakfast’ before visiting the Hot Springs for a 3 refreshing and rejuvenating dip in the mineral rich waters before returning to camp in the early afternoon. Beho Beho has been owned by the Bailey family for over 40 years. It is their home in the bush. They visit several times each year and leave the camp to guests for the rest of the year. The camp reflects their taste for comfort and style, their delight in superlative guiding, and their attention to detail.Breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, sundowners, dinner, and overnight at Beho Beho.

Day 5

Nyerere (Selous)

Day 5 Beho Beho Track the wild dog pack while you are on safari. There were 21 at last count. Wild dogs need to roam vast areas and here in Selous they have boundless woodlands and savannahs in which to roam. Wild dogs hunt in packs and they pursue their prey in a long open chase. Nearly 80% of all hunts end in a kill. Lions, the top predator, have a kill rate of only 30%. Members of a pack vocalize to coordinate their movements. Dogs make an unusual chirping or squeaking sound, similar to a bird. Breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, sundowners, dinner, and overnight at Beho Beho.

Day 6

Day 6 Beho Beho Tonight you’ll be sleeping out in the Beho Beho’s Tree House. The Tree house is perched alongside and within a giant ancient leadwood tree overlooking a dry river bed. The tree house has a proper double bed swathed in mosquito netting and an ensuite bathroom complete with a flush toilet. You can choose to sleep under the stars or under the cover of a canvas pavilion as the bed comes complete with wheels, nice bed linens, and a comfortable duvet. The Tree House is guarded and guided by one of Beho Beho’s guides who hosts a camp fire dinner. Breakfast, lunch, sundowners, dinner and overnight at the Tree House.

Day 7

Nyerere (Selous)

Day 7 The Oyster Bay Day Room Dar es Salaam Swimming pool available Breakfast at Beho Beho. Beho Beho will be a place you want to return to. Morning bush flight Depart Selous bush strip @ 9:45 am Arrive Dar es Salaam bust strip @ 10:20 am Pick up at the Dar bush airport by a driver from Oyster Day Hotel. He’ll transport you to Oyster Bay in time for lunch on the verandah. Oyster Bay is on the Indian Ocean coast in the ambassadorial district of Dar. This contemporary small boutique hotel is relaxing and comfortable. There is a small swimming pool and time for swimming. You’ll have time for some shopping at the Oyster Bay shopping centre, which is just next door, and time to shower and pack for your evening flight. After dinner we’ll get you to the international airport for your international flight home.