Balloon over the Serengeti
Lift off before first light and land to breakfast on the plains. Booked early — the good mornings sell out months ahead.
Day Tours
A short list, chosen carefully.
We would rather suggest three experiences worth reordering a day for than thirty that fill a brochure. These are the ones travellers write to us about afterwards.
Private bush dining
A table set under an acacia at dusk, lanterns lit, your camp team nearby. Suited to anniversaries and proposals.
Coffee Tour · Day Trip
Spend a day in the foothills of Mount Meru with a local farming family. Walk through the coffee and banana gardens, learn how the beans are harvested and cleaned, then roast, grind and share a fresh cup together.
Arusha City Tour · Day Trip
A half or full day in our home town: the central market with its fruit sellers and spice stalls, the cultural heritage centre, coffee houses and the streets below Mount Meru — walked with someone who lives here.
Serval Wildlife · Day Trip
A conservation sanctuary near Arusha where rescued and hand-raised animals live in open country. Walk among giraffe, feed the eland, and meet the white lions in the care of the team who raised them.
Hadzabe Cultural Experience · Day Trip
A full day with the Hadzabe community around Lake Eyasi — learn traditional hunting, tracking, wild foods and songs through a genuine cultural encounter, not a staged performance.
Maasai Cultural Experience · Day Trip
Visit a traditional Maasai village near Arusha, meet local families, learn about beadwork and daily life, and share songs and stories arranged through long-standing relationships.
Day trip · Arusha
Coffee, from garden to cup.
A Day in the Highlands of Mount Meru
A full, unhurried day with a local farming family in the foothills of Mount Meru. Walk the coffee and banana gardens, pick ripe cherries by hand, and follow the beans through pulping, washing, drying and sorting. Then roast them over an open fire, grind them by hand with a wooden mortar, and sit down together for a cup you made yourself — usually accompanied by a home-cooked lunch and a great deal of laughter.
Highlights
- • Meet a local coffee-farming family
- • Harvest ripe coffee cherries by hand
- • Follow every stage from cherry to bean
- • Roast and grind the traditional way
- • Share a freshly brewed cup together
- • Home-cooked local lunch in the garden
Duration: Half Day or Full Day
Location: Mount Meru foothills
Starting Point: Arusha
Direct income for the family who host you — and the best coffee you will drink in Tanzania.
Day trip · Arusha
Meet the city behind the safari.
Our Home Town, Walked With Someone Who Lives Here
Arusha is more than a place to sleep before the parks. Spend a morning or a full day in the city we come from: the central market with its fruit sellers, spice stalls and fabric traders, the cultural heritage centre, small coffee houses, and the streets that sit right beneath Mount Meru. We walk at a local pace, stop where it is worth stopping, and explain what you are looking at.
Highlights
- • The central market and its morning trade
- • Cultural heritage centre and local art
- • Tanzanian coffee houses and street food
- • Fabric, spice and Maasai bead markets
- • Views of Mount Meru from the city
- • Honest context on daily life in Arusha
Duration: Half Day or Full Day
Location: Arusha city
Starting Point: Your Arusha hotel
A gentle first or last day — ideal for arrival jetlag or the day before you fly.
Day trip · Near Arusha
A close encounter at Serval Wildlife.
Rescued Animals, Open Country, Real Care
A conservation sanctuary a short drive from Arusha, where rescued and hand-raised animals live in open, carefully managed country. Walk among giraffe, hand-feed eland, and meet the white lions alongside the keepers who raised them. Every animal here has a story, and the team tell them honestly — this is a slow, gentle day, and a good one for families and photographers alike.
Highlights
- • Stand eye to eye with giraffe
- • Meet the sanctuary's white lions
- • Hand-feed hand-raised eland and antelope
- • Hear each animal's rescue story
- • Learn how the conservation work is funded
- • Unhurried time for photography
Duration: Half Day
Location: Usa River, near Arusha
Starting Point: Arusha
Especially loved by families travelling with children.
Day trip · Lake Eyasi
Hadzabe Cultural Experience
Discover Tanzania's Hunter-Gatherer Heritage
Step into the traditional world of the Hadzabe people around Lake Eyasi, one of Tanzania's most fascinating Indigenous communities. Spend time with local Hadzabe guides and learn how they have traditionally lived in close connection with nature.
Highlights
- • Meet the Hadzabe community
- • Learn traditional hunting and tracking
- • Discover wild foods and useful plants
- • Experience traditional songs and dances
- • Explore the beautiful Lake Eyasi surroundings
- • Learn about a unique culture and way of life
Duration: Full Day
Location: Lake Eyasi
Starting Point: Arusha
A genuine cultural encounter where you don't just visit — you learn, connect and experience.
Day trip · Arusha & Surrounding Areas
Maasai Cultural Experience
Discover the Spirit of the Maasai
Step into the world of the Maasai and discover a culture deeply connected to community, traditions, livestock and the natural environment. Visit a traditional Maasai village, meet local families, learn about their daily life and traditions, and enjoy traditional songs, dances and stories.
Highlights
- • Visit a traditional Maasai village
- • Meet local Maasai families
- • Learn about their traditions and daily life
- • Discover traditional beadwork and crafts
- • Enjoy Maasai songs and dances
- • Learn about the importance of cattle
- • Experience the warm hospitality of the Maasai
Duration: Half Day or Full Day
Location: Arusha & Surrounding Areas
Starting Point: Arusha
More than a visit — a chance to connect with the people, traditions and spirit of Tanzania.
Day trip · Serengeti
Balloon over the Serengeti
First Light, From a Thousand Feet Up
Collected from camp in the dark, at the launch site as the burners are lit, and airborne as the plains turn gold. You drift low over rivers, herds and acacia woodland for around an hour, then land to a full bush breakfast set out under a tree, sparkling wine included. It is the one add-on travellers tell us they would book again without hesitating — and the good mornings sell out months ahead.
Highlights
- • Pre-dawn pick-up and launch briefing
- • Around one hour of flight over the plains
- • Wildlife and, in season, migration herds from above
- • Champagne bush breakfast after landing
- • Flight certificate and unmatched photography light
Duration: Early morning (approx. 5 hours door to door)
Location: Central or southern Serengeti
Booking: Reserve months in advance
Best paired with an anniversary, a proposal, or simply a morning you want to remember.
From the field
Mornings that are worth the early alarm.
Also arranged
Quieter additions.
- Respectful cultural visits
- Every community encounter is arranged through long-standing relationships, led by local hosts and paced so no one feels like a spectacle.
- Photography focus
- Guides who understand light, position and patience — and a vehicle you can shoot from properly.
- Coast & reef days
- Sailing, snorkelling and Stone Town walks, paced for the end of a long journey.
- Conservation visits
- Anti-poaching units and habitat projects, visited where our presence genuinely helps.
Plan with us
Tell us when you can travel. We'll tell you where the good light is.
Every itinerary is drawn by hand in our Arusha office — routing, pacing, camps and honest budget ranges. One conversation is usually enough to know whether we're the right fit.