Best hotels in Tanzania

Open during the peak of the migration action, from June to November, Mara Under Canvas is the perfect place from which to explore the remote reaches of Tanzania’s oldest and most renowned national park. Located in the most northern section of the Serengeti, this well-appointed mobile camp is set in a relatively open plain with sporadic acacia growth breaking up the golden grassy view. Simple comfort steers the focus towards what lies beyond the camp - the awe-inspiring natural phenomenon of the Great Migration.

Kia Lodge is located in north-east Tanzania close to Kilimanjaro International Airport. Known affectionately as 'the door to Tanzania', it's a large lodge that embodies the African spirit, set on a hill among rolling savanna plains against the iconic backdrop of Mount Kilimanjaro itself. The lodge has the atmosphere of a safari camp, with winding paths leading to individual thatched chalets that provide a warm reception or final goodbye to this beautiful country.

Lemala Kuria Hills is an elegant lodge that lies in the heart of the main corridor of the annual wildebeest migration. In a landscape dominated by the large boulders and koppies (or kopjes) of the Wogakurya Hills, near the Mara River in Tanzania's northern Serengeti, the lodge offers well-designed comfort and unrivaled sophistication. Each glass-fronted tent is tucked between boulders, offering complete privacy and panoramic views of grasslands and tree-lined watercourses. With its fine wildlife sightings, crisp decor and warm staff, this is a camp you'll have trouble leaving.

An adventurous camp where you'll walk beside the Great Migration and sleep under the stars.

Should you have your eye on a walking safari in the Serengeti, you need the best in the business. Wayo Africa has spent 25 years earning their stripes as Serengeti experts and thanks to their love of conservation, have also earned exclusive walking rights. In the safe and seasoned hands of Wayo's guides, you'll journey where no 4x4 can go, tracking the Great Migration on foot and discovering the fascinating microcosms of the Serengeti. There is zero light pollution to hide the constellations, a sight you can fall asleep to from your sheer, star tent.

Rhotia Valley Tented Lodge is located deep in the farmlands of the Ngorongoro Karatu region of northern Tanzania. It's the long-term project of two Dutch doctors who saw the beauty and need of the community, and built a camp to serve both tourists (particularly as a conference venue), and the local children by means of an orphanage and a school. A stay here is a lovely break from the early mornings on safari and it's a good base from which to explore the surrounding area, including the infamous Ngorongoro Crater (which might require an early morning start!). It's a simple but intimate and totally charming lodge, and impressively, 20% of the nightly rate is donated to the children's home and other related projects.

In a hidden corner of the wildlife-rich Seronera region, this brand new camp channels the golden age of African exploration with a thoroughly modern conscience. Strategically positioned to offer both prime game viewing and blissful seclusion, the tents are spaced far enough apart that you might fancy yourself the only souls for miles - until a passing elephant reminds you otherwise. This is the Serengeti as it was meant to be experienced: raw, beautiful, and with just the right touch of understated elegance. In a landscape where wildlife thrives year-round, you'll find yourself transported to the legendary early 20th-century safaris, complete with all the comfort but none of the colonial pomp.

Perched on the eastern rim of the legendary Ngorongoro Crater, Lion's Paw enjoys the kind of location that leaves seasoned safari-goers speechless. 15 luxury suites sit amongst a gathering of red-thorn acacia trees and the views across the crater - or should we say, one of Africa's most spectacular wildlife amphitheatres - are sensational. What really sets Lion's Paw apart, however, is its proximity to the crater entrance. A ten-minute drive will take you to the park gates, meaning you're almost always the first onto the crater floor each morning. Add attentive Maasai team and an elephant called John who pops round for teatime, and you've got total crater magic.

Nyikani Camp is a seasonally mobile camp that makes its way around the Serengeti in hot pursuit of the annual Great Migration – arguably the greatest wildlife spectacle on Earth. Join the camp on its Ndutu leg in the southern Serengeti, which becomes blanketed with short grasses after the November/December rains. For 4–5 months, wildebeest, zebra and antelope (trailed by predators) congregate in their thousands to graze and calve. Ndutu lies in the rich Ngorongoro Conservation Area, so there's plenty to see year round, and new Nyikani Camp's hillside setting is a lovely place to take in the sights.

One of nature's most awe-inspiring spectacles is the Great Migration, when herd upon herd of wildebeest cross the East African plains in search of fresh pastures. Following ancient routes, they linger in the southern Serengeti to give birth to newborns that are miraculously able to run as fast as their mums within 48 hours!. That's where Ang'ata Migration Ndutu Camp comes in, a well-priced migration camp that straddles the short and long grasses the animals feed on. With its excellent staff and simple, temporary structures, the camp is just the place to view the action of the migration in the south first-hand.