Africa Safari Lake Manyara, Tanzania

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Located in Lake Manyara, African Safari Lake Manyara is ideal for those visiting Lake Manyara National Park and makes for an excellent overnight en route to Serengeti National Park.

When I stayed at the property in July of 2024, it was dealing with the aftereffects of rainy season flooding. Parts of the property and some of the tents were still underwater. The roads were extremely rutted (the most of any I traveled on in Tanzania or Zanzibar) and there was construction of new tents taking place on the property. All these factors, combined with a few others, make it a property that I wouldn’t rush to stay at again unless I got some on-the-ground intel that the situation had improved. It wasn’t by any means a terrible stay, but it was my least favorite while on safari.

How to Get to African Safari Lake Manyara

The most common way to get to African Safari Lake Manyara is to drive from Kilimanjaro International Airport (KIA), which takes about 45 minutes. Alternatively, you can fly into Arusha Airport (ARK) and the drive from Arusha to Lake Manyara takes about 2 hours.

Rooms at African Safari Lake Manyara

African Safari Lake Manyara is billed as a luxury glamping accommodation and it has spacious, though a bit dated-looking, tents. The tents sleep three and have ample storage and a large luxurious (for a tent) bathroom. My shower had hot water with decent water pressure, which is impressive in a tent! There is electricity in the tents, but the lighting is minimal, making it quite dark in the evening. And this should go without saying because it’s a tent, but there is no air conditioning.

Something that bothered me about the tents was the “lock” situation. Each tent had a zipper that went to the ground and you were given padlock keys to lock it. However, with the way the velcro attached the door flap to the floor of the tent, the padlocks were effectively useless because someone or something (I’m looking at you, vervet monkeys that were wandering the property) could get into your tent if they chose to. As a solo female traveler, this wasn’t my favorite setup and, in addition, the tents are close enough together that I could hear my neighbor snoring. So there’s that. I will also note that my bed was rock hard, the pillows were mushy, and the comforter was stained.

Resort Amenities

The resort has a beautiful pool with a lake view and satellite WiFi is available in the reception and in the dining area of the property.

The vervet monkeys that hang around the property are a delight and I appreciate the staff walking guests back to their tents when it’s dark out in an abundance of caution due to the animals.

Dining at African Safari Lake Manyara

There is one dining area at African Safari Lake Manyara. Dinner was served buffet style and was delicious! There was a decent variety of food and the staff was very attentive. Breakfast was memorable for the fact that one of the monkeys tried to abscond with mine! I don’t recall the meal being particularly good or bad, so to me that means it was fine, but nothing to write home about. There is also a bar located near the reception area, which serves poolside drinks and acts as a gathering spot before dinner.

Price

Prices start at around $200 per night, depending on the season.

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