Accommodation: Chada Katavi – safari tents, Greystoke Mahale – thatched bandas

Destinations: Katavi National Park – Western Tanzania, Mahale National Park, Western Tanzania

Activities: 4 x 4 Game drives in open vehicles, guided walking safaris, chimpanzee trekking, boat trips, swimming, snorkelling, kayaking, fishing, forest and beach walks

Arrive: Kilimanjaro International Airport
Depart: Kilimanjaro International Airport.

What to expect from this 8 day Discover Western Tanzania:

Isolated, unspoiled by tourists and seldom visited, Western Tanzanian Parks are true wilderness areas. It provides those, eager enough to make the journey, a thrilling taste of Africa as it must have been when the first adventurers set foot upon it.

Chada’s Flood plains of thick reeds and dense waterways are home to a huge population of hippo and varied birdlife. In the woodlands to the west, forest canopies shroud herds of buffalo and elephant. The park is also home to the rare roan and sable antelope species. Spend the days of your Tanzania safari driving or walking through the magnificent Katavi National Park

When at Greystoke, venture out into the forest, to observe and commune with chimpanzees, as they groom, wrestle and forage across the leafy floor and spend the afternoon exploring the clear waters of Lake Tanganyika offering over 250 species of cichlid for those keen on fishing, snorkelling or kayaking.

Days 1 - 4: Katavi National Park

Depart on your charter flight from Arusha airport at 08:00 to Katavi National Park (Thursday departure). You will arrive at noon and after a short transfer from Ikuu airstrip you will arrive at Chada Katavi for lunch on your Tanzania vacation.

Tanzania's third largest national park – Katavi National Park - was established in 1974 covering an area of 2253 square kilometers. Katavi immortalises a legendary hunter, Katabi, whose spirit is believed to possess a tamarind tree ringed with offerings from locals begging his blessing.

Chada Katavi is situated in the core of Katavi National Park and sits on the edge of the wide Chada plain, perfectly positioned for panoramic views. Hidden in the trees are six guest tents, with fine wooden furniture, and large comfortable beds spread with crisp white Egyptian cottons. The tents are large, romantic and airy with shade netting windows to allow the cool breezes through.

Chada's knowledgeable Tanzania safari guides will lead you on exhilarating 4WD game drives which may take a whole day to explore areas of Katavi National Park. You will enjoy a delicious picnic lunch on a full day out in the bush. Exciting walking safaris, which are always accompanied by an armed game scout, are filled with excitement.

Watch rare roan and sable antelope, normally skittish and shy, graze openly on the plains. Discover another side to the bush and wildlife as your guide teaches you about the flora and fauna of the area.

Katavi's main features are the watery grassy plains to the north, palm-fringed Lake Chala in the south-east, and the Katuma River. Katavi boasts Tanzania's greatest concentration of both crocodile and hippopotamus.

Days 5 - 7: Mahale National Park

After your last morning game drive, you will depart for the airstrip. Flights to Mahale depart at 12:20 on a Monday, so there is sufficient time to relax and enjoy your last morning at Chada.

Once you arrive at the airstrip in Mahale National Park there is a 90 minute dhow (boat) trip down the lake to reach Greystoke Mahale. You arrive at camp in time for a delicious lunch and your first look at the waters of Lake Tanganyika overshadowed by the wild, jungle-draped peaks towering above the shore: the remote and mysterious Mahale Mountains.

The focal point of Greystoke is the bar and dining area rising up from the sand and loosely modelled on traditional Tongwe architecture. The mess stands out on the beach and is a thatched Tongwe chief's hut. The upstairs area, with its cushioned rare books and specialist primate library, has four decks that look out to every point of the compass, and are the perfect vantage points to sit and appreciate this incredible place.

Your Tanzania safari accommodation is in six exotic wooden bandas looking out across the beach. The interiors are fashioned from seasoned dhow timber. The adjoining bathrooms are accessible via a short boardwalk behind the banda.

Mahale Mountains, like its northerly neighbour Gombe Stream, is home to some of Africa’s last remaining wild chimpanzees: a population of roughly 800, habituated to human visitors by a Japanese research project founded in the 1960s.

Tracking the chimps of Mahale is a magical experience. The guide's eyes pick out last night's nests - shadowy clumps high in a gallery of trees crowding the sky. Scraps of half-eaten fruit and fresh dung become valuable clues, leading deeper into the forest.

While chimpanzees are the star attraction, the mountain slopes support a diverse forest fauna, including readily observed troops of red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys, and a kaleidoscopic array of colourful forest birds. Other activities include fishing, kayaking on the lake, sundowners and beach dinners under the stars.

Days 8: Return Flight to Arusha

After a full morning game drive with picnic on your Tanzania safari, you arrive at the airstrip in time for your departure at 13:45 to fly back to Arusha arriving late afternoon.

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