Destinations: Tanzania, Burigi-Chato National Park and Gombe National Park
This 7-day Tanzania trip runs through Burigi-Chato and Gombe, linked so the travelling is done between the wildlife. Boat trips on the lake add hippo, crocodile and waterbirds to the game drives. Trails climb to waterfalls and viewpoints over the lake far below.
Day By Day
Day 1 Arrival At Burigi-Chato
You set out from Mwanza after breakfast and drive to Burigi-Chato National Park, the country changing as the kilometres pass, reaching camp with time to settle in and take a first look before dark. Lion and other predators are present in country you will often have to yourself. Boat trips on the lake add hippo, crocodile and waterbirds to the game drives. Burigi-Chato is a large, little-visited park in northwest Tanzania near Lake Victoria. You settle into camp as the light goes. Back at camp after dark, dinner is under the stars.
Rolling hills, miombo woodland and the shores of Lake Burigi give it a mix of habitats. Giraffe, zebra, eland, sitatunga and buffalo range across the grasslands and wetlands. The guide reads the tracks and the birds, and there is no rush to be anywhere. Late in the afternoon the light turns gold and the game comes back to the open ground. With a drink in hand you watch the day close over the bush.
Day 2 Game Drives In Burigi-Chato
A full day in Burigi-Chato National Park. You are out on game drives, out early while the light is low and the country is at its best, with the guide working the ground slowly and time to stop for whatever the day turns up. Burigi-Chato is a large, little-visited park in northwest Tanzania near Lake Victoria. Rolling hills, miombo woodland and the shores of Lake Burigi give it a mix of habitats. Giraffe, zebra, eland, sitatunga and buffalo range across the grasslands and wetlands. On most drives you will not pass another vehicle. Lion and other predators are present in country you will often have to yourself.
Boat trips on the lake add hippo, crocodile and waterbirds to the game drives. With a drink in hand you watch the day close over the bush. Back at camp, dinner is served under a sky thick with stars. Each time out turns up something new, and the pace is yours to set. You stop for coffee where the view is good and let the morning warm up.
Day 3 Game Drives In Burigi-Chato
A full day in Burigi-Chato National Park. You are out on game drives, out early while the light is low and the country is at its best, with the guide working the ground slowly and time to stop for whatever the day turns up. Rolling hills, miombo woodland and the shores of Lake Burigi give it a mix of habitats. Giraffe, zebra, eland, sitatunga and buffalo range across the grasslands and wetlands. Lion and other predators are present in country you will often have to yourself. Back at camp after dark, dinner is under the stars. Boat trips on the lake add hippo, crocodile and waterbirds to the game drives.
Burigi-Chato is a large, little-visited park in northwest Tanzania near Lake Victoria. Back at camp, dinner is served under a sky thick with stars. Each time out turns up something new, and the pace is yours to set. You stop for coffee where the view is good and let the morning warm up. Nothing is promised in the wild, which is what makes a good sighting count.
Day 4 Transfer To Gombe
A short morning out on game drives at first light in Burigi-Chato, then to the airstrip and a light aircraft for the move to Gombe National Park. The country changes on the way, and you reach Gombe in the afternoon. You head out tracking chimpanzees on foot as the light softens, a first look at the new ground. Chimpanzee trekking is the reason to come, following a habituated community through the forest. Red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys, and olive baboon share the slopes. An hour with the group is the permitted limit, and it is enough.
Gombe is the smallest national park in Tanzania, about 35 square kilometres of steep forest on Lake Tanganyika. It is where Jane Goodall began her chimpanzee study in 1960the longest-running of its kind. Trails climb to waterfalls and viewpoints over the lake far below. Each time out turns up something new, and the pace is yours to set. You stop for coffee where the view is good and let the morning warm up.
Day 5 Chimpanzee Trekking In Gombe
A full day in Gombe National Park. You are tracking chimpanzees on foot, out early while the light is low and the country is at its best, with the guide working the ground slowly and time to stop for whatever the day turns up. Red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys, and olive baboon share the slopes. Trails climb to waterfalls and viewpoints over the lake far below. Gombe is the smallest national park in Tanzania, about 35 square kilometres of steep forest on Lake Tanganyika. You climb back down through the trees to the lakeshore below.
It is where Jane Goodall began her chimpanzee study in 1960the longest-running of its kind. Chimpanzee trekking is the reason to come, following a habituated community through the forest. You stop for coffee where the view is good and let the morning warm up. Nothing is promised in the wild, which is what makes a good sighting count. The country is quiet here, and on most outings you have it to yourselves.
Day 6 Chimpanzee Trekking In Gombe
A full day in Gombe National Park. You are tracking chimpanzees on foot, out early while the light is low and the country is at its best, with the guide working the ground slowly and time to stop for whatever the day turns up. Trails climb to waterfalls and viewpoints over the lake far below. Gombe is the smallest national park in Tanzania, about 35 square kilometres of steep forest on Lake Tanganyika. It is where Jane Goodall began her chimpanzee study in 1960the longest-running of its kind. The forest is loud with primates once you are inside it.
Chimpanzee trekking is the reason to come, following a habituated community through the forest. Red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys, and olive baboon share the slopes. Nothing is promised in the wild, which is what makes a good sighting count. The country is quiet here, and on most outings you have it to yourselves. Your guide has the ground worked out, and knows where the day is likely to lead.
Day 7 Departure
A final morning tracking chimpanzees on foot before you leave, the best window of the trip for anything still on your list. You make the most of the early light, then your light aircraft flies you back toward Mwanza. Red colobus, red-tailed and blue monkeys, and olive baboon share the slopes. Trails climb to waterfalls and viewpoints over the lake far below. This 7-day trip links Burigi-Chato and Gombe, with the travelling done between the wildlife so your days stay on the ground that matters. Gombe is the smallest national park in Tanzania, about 35 square kilometres of steep forest on Lake Tanganyika.
It is where Jane Goodall began her chimpanzee study in 1960the longest-running of its kind. Chimpanzee trekking is the reason to come, following a habituated community through the forest. The morning is cool and the animals are moving, so the first hours out are the busiest. You carry a packed breakfast and stay out while the going is good. Around midday the heat sits heavy, and you rest in the shade before heading out again as it cools.
What’s Included
- All internal flights and road transfers on the route
- Full-board accommodation on safari as shown
- Game drives and the activities named in the day plan
- Park entry fees for the days shown
- Airport and airstrip transfers, drinking water in the vehicle
What’s Not Included
- International flights and any visa
- Travel insurance
- Drinks, tips for guides and staff
- Activities not listed and items of a personal nature
Why Would You Choose This Tanzania Safari?
This trip earns its place because the stops are nothing alike, and seeing them together makes each one land harder. Lion and other predators are present in country you will often have to yourself. Boat trips on the lake add hippo, crocodile and waterbirds to the game drives. Trails climb to waterfalls and viewpoints over the lake far below. Linking Burigi-Chato and Gombe in one route means you cover more of Tanzania than a single park allows, and the travelling between them is short. On 7 days you get range without the trip feeling rushed, the set-piece wildlife, the quieter corners, and the change of country from one stop to the next. For a traveller who wants variety over a single famous name, this is a strong, well-balanced way to see the region, and it works whether it is a first trip or a return.
Is 7 Days Long Enough for a Tanzania Safari?
7 days across Burigi-Chato and Gombe is a well-judged length, though it is a read of each stop rather than a deep stay. You get a full day or more at the main parks, enough to see the headline wildlife and still catch the quieter moments. It suits travellers who value breadth and do not mind moving every couple of days. What this length cannot do is exhaust any one park, the biggest of them could fill a week on their own, so the remote corners stay for another trip. If a single place is your priority, spend the nights there instead. And if you have longer, the route takes an easy add-on, whether that is more time with the wildlife or a stretch on the coast to finish. As it stands, this 7-day trip is balanced and full.
What Is the Total Cost of This Tanzania Safari?
What you pay turns mostly on the camps and the season. In Tanzania, park fees run from USD 35 to 70 per adult per day depending on the park, with the Ngorongoro Crater charged higher. As a rough guide, most trips of this length run from around USD 2,100 to 4,550 per person sharing, higher in the peak dry months and cheaper in the green season. Camp and lodge level is the big lever, from simple tented camps to the smarter river and bush camps, and a shared vehicle between four brings the per-person cost down. Tell an operator your dates, group size and the standard you want and it can be quoted to the figure.
