Salinero Serengeti

On the Seronera Valley Floor

Salinero Serengeti sits in the Seronera Valley itself, about 8 km east of the Seronera airstrip on one of the old Seronera special campsites, a couple of kilometers from the site of the park’s original Seronera Wildlife Lodge. The transfer from the airstrip is 20 to 30 minutes by safari vehicle, and the camp is surrounded on all sides by the central circuit rather than looking at it from a distance.

• No Commute to the Game: The Seronera River, Retina Hippo Pool, the Maasai Kopjes, and Makoma Hill are all within a half hour, so morning and afternoon drives can return to camp for lunch and a swim without losing game-viewing time.
• Big Cat Country Year-Round: The perennial rivers of the Seronera Valley hold resident lion, leopard, and cheetah in every month, which makes this one of the few places in the Serengeti that delivers in both the dry and green seasons.
• Migration Twice a Year: The herds move through the central Serengeti in May and June on their way north and again in November and December heading south.
• Full Days Within Reach: Moru Kopjes to the southwest and Sametu Marsh to the east are both comfortable full days from here, closer than from the lodges on the northern and western hills.
• Getting There: On our green season itineraries, guests fly directly into the Seronera airstrip and are at the camp within half an hour, then continue on to the eastern and southern Serengeti and the Ngorongoro Crater. On dry season itineraries, guests arrive by road from the North Serengeti, a long game-viewing day south through Lobo.

The camp is unfenced and on the valley floor, so wildlife traffic is constant: giraffe browsing the acacias, hyenas at dusk, lions calling at night, and the occasional leopard passing within sight of the decks.

The Big Cat Capital on Your Doorstep

Salinero Serengeti is in the middle of the Seronera Valley, so every region of the central circuit is a short drive and two of the Serengeti’s finest full-day destinations are closer than from anywhere else.

• The Seronera Valley: The valley takes its name from the Maasai word for the bat-eared fox, but it is better known as the Big Cat Capital of Africa. Its perennial rivers keep a huge resident prey population in place through every month of the year, which in turn supports the densest and most diverse concentration of predators on the continent. A single day’s drive here can realistically produce lion, leopard, cheetah, and hyena, with serval, caracal, and jackal in the supporting cast. The landscape is the quintessential Serengeti: endless golden savanna broken by ribbons of riverine forest, umbrella acacias, and granite kopjes where lions sprawl in the sun. The migration pours through twice a year, north in May and June and south in November and December.
• The Seronera River: The largest of the four green fingers that wind across the valley floor, lined with yellow-barked fever trees and sausage trees, is widely considered the best place in Africa to see leopard. A long-term study recorded one leopard per ten square miles along this river, one of the highest densities ever documented, and because the trees along the banks are relatively sparse, spotting a tail twitching from a sausage tree branch is a daily event rather than a lucky one. The riverbanks also hold the largest and most stable lion prides in the park, including the Seronera, Maasai Kopjes, Makoma Hill, and Campsite prides, studied continuously since 1966 by the Serengeti Lion Project. Hippo, crocodile, waterbuck, and reedbuck live along the pools.
• The Maasai Kopjes: A short drive east of camp, these towering stacks of two-billion-year-old granite stand like sentinels at the eastern entrance to the valley and are home base for the Maasai lion pride, one of the largest and most studied prides on Earth. The lionesses use the crests to survey the plains and the swamp below as an ambush site for prey coming to drink. The swamp on the south side is also the best place in the park to find the rare bohor reedbuck, and the rocks themselves teem with hyrax, mongoose, porcupine, and electric-blue agama lizards. Leopard and cheetah stage ambushes in the vicinity.
• Retina Hippo Pool: North of Seronera, the Seronera and Orangi rivers converge in a deep, swirling basin that is the hippo headquarters of the Serengeti, with roughly 200 animals huddled together. It is one of the few places in the park where you can step out of the vehicle: a natural viewing bank ten feet above the water puts you a few yards from the pod, close enough to hear the squabbles and smell the pool. Nile crocodiles bask on the far shore, elephant families drink along the quieter stretch to the west, and the riverine forest is busy with baboons, grey crowned cranes, lilac-breasted rollers, and kingfishers.
• Makoma Hill: The wooded hill on the western wall of the valley is one of the top highlights of the central circuit. The Makoma Plain between the hill and the river is a natural bottleneck for game moving between wet and dry season ranges, and the Thatch Kopjes in its center are the den site of the Makoma lion pride, famous for lounging in plain view and ambushing buffalo herds of 100 or more in the tall grass. Makoma is one of only eight places in the southern Serengeti with a resident cheetah population, its hyena clans are legendary for their feud with the lions, and a hidden track behind the hill leads to one of the best private bush lunch viewpoints in the park.
• Moru Kopjes (Full Day): Southwest of the valley, 45 square miles of smooth granite monuments and candelabra euphorbia trees rise out of golden grassland in what Kay Turner called the most beautiful scenery in the Serengeti. Moru is the park’s last stronghold of the black rhino, a population rebuilt from two survivors after a bull named Rajabu walked 70 miles from the Ngorongoro Crater to find them, and now numbering around 19 under round-the-clock protection. A short climb leads to the Maasai rock paintings and Gong Rock, a boulder that rings like a bell when struck. Lake Magadi draws flamingos and ambushing lions, elephants climb the kopjes, and in May the migration stalls here for the wildebeest rut. From Salinero, this is an easy full day with a picnic lunch.
• Sametu Marsh and Kopjes (Full Day): East of the Maasai Kopjes on the remote edge of the short-grass plains, Sametu is widely regarded as one of the top three highlights of the entire Serengeti, and few vehicles ever reach it. A cluster of granite island-kopjes rises from a flat sea of grass with a permanent spring-fed marsh at its feet, the only year-round water for miles and a magnet for cheetah, hartebeest, gazelle, and warthog. The kopjes are home to the Sametu pride, the largest lion pride in the Serengeti and the subject of Jeanette Hanby’s book Lions Share; the great-great-granddaughters of the original lionesses still hold the same rocks today. Salinero’s position on the east side of Seronera makes this the shortest run to Sametu of any central lodge, and in the green season the migration is often spread across the plains on the way.

In Camp

Giraffe in the acacias, hyenas on the edge of camp at dusk, lions calling after dark, and balloons drifting over the valley at sunrise are all regular sights from the decks.

Canvas Suites, Few by Design

Salinero Serengeti has six canvas hybrid suites, each a full safari tent on a raised deck with the furnishings of a lodge room inside.

• King Safari Tents: The flagship tents, with a king bed, an expanded living area with sofa and chairs, a large bathroom with bathtub and double sinks, an indoor shower and an outdoor shower under the acacias, and a private deck with a daybed and an outdoor bathtub.
• Twin Safari Tents: The same layout with two single beds, indoor and outdoor seating, and an en-suite bathroom with an outdoor shower.
• Families: Families take two tents side by side; ask us about the best pairing.
• In Every Tent: Minibar with complimentary water, tea and coffee tray, bathrobes, safe, desk, blackout curtains, mosquito netting, and a set of binoculars, sun protection, and trail boots to borrow for the stay. 24-hour power.

• Full Board with Drinks: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner with house wines, beers, and soft drinks, and a kitchen that handles special diets and custom Tanzanian dishes on request.
• Swimming Pool: A large pool with loungers overlooking the plains, a rare luxury at a camp this size.
• Spa: Massages and facial treatments in a dedicated spa tent.
• Gym: Air-conditioned, with treadmills, bikes, and free weights.
• Camp Bar: Wines from Chile and South Africa, cocktails, and spirits, served at the bar or around the bonfire.
• Bush Dining: Bush breakfasts and lunches on the plains, bonfire sundowners, and bush dinners under the stars.
• Balloon Safaris: Sunrise hot air balloon flights over the Seronera Valley launch close to camp and can be arranged with us in advance.
• Photo Safaris: Specialized photographic vehicles and guides available on request.
• Practical Comforts: Satellite WiFi in the main areas, laundry included, a small gift shop, 24-hour security, and staff escorts between the tents and main areas after dark.
• Open All Year.