Ruaha and the Rufiji

Nobody is here. That is the point. Ruaha's lion prides run to twenty and more, and they hunt buffalo in daylight because the sand river is the only water left. You walk, because you are allowed to. Then you fly east and swap the vehicle for a boat, drifting the Rufiji past crocodile the length of the tender while African skimmers cut the surface. Evenings are fly-camped on a sandbank, mattress out, no canvas, no other lights on the horizon.

Best months

June to October. The southern circuit dries hard and game concentrates on the Great Ruaha and the Rufiji channels. Ruaha holds around a tenth of the world's remaining lion and is where miombo woodland meets East African acacia. Nyerere National Park, carved from the northern Selous in 2019, is at its best from July when the sand rivers empty.

-7.7000, 34.7000

Ruaha National Park

Day by day.

• Day 1 Dar es Salaam

  Arrive on the coast

  Julius Nyerere International arrival, short transfer to a coastal hotel in Oyster Bay. Rest, repack into 15 kg soft bags, and brief with your guide on the southern circuit ahead.

• Day 2 Ruaha National Park

  Fly inland to the Great Ruaha

  Auric Air Dar es Salaam to Msembe airstrip, roughly two hours with one stop. Transfer to Jabali Ridge, eight suites built into a granite kopje. Afternoon drive on the sand river.

• Day 3 Ruaha

  Sand river lion in daylight

  Full day working the Great Ruaha and Mwagusi sand rivers. Buffalo herds in the hundreds draw very large prides. Greater and lesser kudu, sable and roan in the miombo behind camp.

• Day 4 Ruaha

  Walk the miombo edge

  Morning walking safari with an armed guide, tracking on foot through combretum woodland. Afternoon at the Mdonya sand river for leopard and wild dog. Fly-camp option on a river bend.

• Day 5 Ruaha

  Remote west and a night drive

  Move to a classic tented camp under sausage trees. Full day pushing west toward Mdonya Old River, an area few vehicles reach. Night drive on the park boundary where it is permitted.

• Day 6 Nyerere National Park

  Cross to the Rufiji

  Light aircraft Msembe to Siwandu airstrip, roughly 90 minutes. Transfer to Sand Rivers Selous on the Rufiji. Afternoon boat safari past crocodile, hippo pods and skimmers.

• Day 7 Nyerere

  Lakes, channels and the gorge

  Morning boat through the Rufiji lake system, Tagalala and Manze, then a walk to the hot springs. Afternoon drive toward Stiegler's Gorge for the escarpment views and wild dog dens.

• Day 8 Nyerere

  Sleep out on a sandbank

  Full day mixing boat, foot and vehicle. Evening fly-camp on a Rufiji sandbank with bedrolls under mosquito nets, dinner cooked on coals, hippo calling all night.

• Day 9 Departure

  Fly the Rufiji back to the coast

  Coastal Aviation Siwandu to Dar es Salaam, roughly 45 minutes. Connect to international departures, or a 20-minute hop to Zanzibar for a beach extension.

What the price actually covers.

From USD 11,275 per person sharing. Permits, park fees and charter legs are inside that number, not added at the end. International flights and visas are not.

• Ruaha and Nyerere park fees plus 18% VAT

• Boat safari permits and Rufiji fly-camping fees

• Armed ranger fees for walking safaris in both parks

• Auric and Coastal Aviation charters on all three legs

• Private guide, sole-use vehicle and all camp beverages