Laba Laba Out of Africa

Secluded in the Moru Country

Laba Laba Out of Africa Legend sits in the woodland southwest of Seronera on the way into the Moru Kopjes, about 40 minutes from the Seronera airstrip and deliberately set apart from every other camp in the area. It is between the Seronera Valley and the Moru Kopjes, on the ground the main body of the migration crosses on its way north in May and June, which is when we use it: the herds, the rut at Moru, and the quiet weeks before the summer season begins.

• • Moru at the Doorstep: The Moru Kopjes, with their granite monuments, candelabra trees, Maasai paintings, Gong Rock, and the park’s only black rhino, are a short drive from camp, and the camp arranges rhino tracking drives with the Moru rangers.

• • Seronera Within Reach: The Seronera River loops, Makoma Hill, and Retina Hippo Pool are under an hour to the north, so the big cat circuit is a comfortable half day.

• • Off-Road Permissions: The camp holds off-track driving permissions in its area, which is rare in the Serengeti and means your guide can close the distance for photographs.

• • The Road South: From camp the route to the Ngorongoro Crater runs past the Simba Kopjes and across the long grass plains to Naabi Hill and Olduvai Gorge, a full-day game drive.

• • Getting There: On our green season itineraries guests fly into the Seronera airstrip and game drive 40 minutes to camp, then continue south to the Crater. On dry season itineraries guests arrive by road from the North Serengeti via Seronera.

The camp is unfenced and guests are escorted by Maasai askaris after dark. Lions are the resident neighbors, and the Moru rhino patrol vehicles are a regular sight on the tracks.

Rhino Country With the Big Cats Next Door

Laba Laba Out of Africa Legend sits between the two great game areas of the central Serengeti, with Moru and its black rhino to the south and the Seronera Valley to the north. In May and June the herds are moving through both.

• • Moru Kopjes: The most extensive kopjes in the park rise out of golden grassland a short drive from camp, 45 square miles of smooth granite monuments and candelabra euphorbia trees 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 surviving females after a young bull named Rajabu walked 70 miles from the Ngorongoro Crater to find them, and now numbering around 20 under round-the-clock protection from the Serengeti Rhino Project; the camp can arrange a tracking drive with the rangers. A short walk up one of the kopjes leads to the Maasai rock paintings and to Gong Rock, a boulder with circular holes that rings when struck. Elephants climb the kopjes, lions use the boulders as lookouts, and in May the migration stalls here for the wildebeest rut, when half a million bulls establish territories a hundred feet across and the noise carries for miles.

• • Simba Kopjes and Lake Magadi: On the road between camp and Seronera, the Simba Kopjes are the tallest granite formations in the park, rising sharply from the open plains. The resident pride uses the height of the rocks to track the migration from miles away, and it is common to find several lions draped over the flat tops of the lower boulders in the morning sun. Directly west lies the shallow, saline Lake Magadi, a good spot for flamingos in the glass-like water, with the monogamous Bohor reedbuck in the swamp along its edge and zebra, elephant, Grant’s gazelle, bat-eared fox, and nomadic cheetah on the surrounding plains.

• • Mbalageti River Valley: West of Moru, the Mbalageti is the primary artery of the northward migration, a lush fold in the hills where the biggest group of the herds congregates and stalls in May and June before the dry season pushes it on toward the Western Corridor. The concentration of wildebeest and zebra in this narrow corridor can be immense, the resident lions and hyenas of the valley feast on it, and the tall trees along the river are prime habitat for the Martial eagle.

• • The Seronera Valley: Under an hour to the north, the valley is 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 Seronera River: The largest of the 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, with one long-term study recording a leopard for every ten square miles. The riverbanks also hold the largest and most stable lion prides in the park, studied continuously since 1966 by the Serengeti Lion Project.

• • Makoma Hill: The wooded hill on the western wall of the Seronera 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, and the Thatch Kopjes in its center are the den site of the Makoma lion pride, famous for 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.

• • Sametu Marsh and Kopjes (Full Day): East of Seronera 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 permanent spring-fed marsh at the foot of a cluster of granite island-kopjes is home to the Sametu pride, the largest lion pride in the Serengeti and the subject of Jeanette Hanby’s book Lions Share. From camp this is a long full day with an early start.

In Camp

Lions calling at night, the Moru rhino patrols on the tracks, and in May and June the wildebeest columns moving past the camp on their way north.

Fourteen Vintage Tents on the Ground

Laba Laba Out of Africa Legend has 14 tents, set directly on the ground in the style of the old expedition camps and spaced far apart in the woodland.

• • Tent Suites (12): 35 square meters plus a 10 square meter covered terrace, with a king bed (or king plus a single for a third guest), vintage safari furnishings, and two bathrooms: an indoor shower, and an outdoor bathroom open to the sky with a copper bathtub and a second shower.

• • Family Tent Suites (2): The parents’ room is the same as a tent suite, with a connecting children’s room of 29 square meters with a king and a single bed, its own indoor shower, and a zinc basin for vintage-style baths. Sleeps three to five.

• • In Every Tent: Organic cotton satin linen, organic cotton gauze bathrobes, Healing Earth organic toiletries, ceiling fans, hairdryer, safe, international and USB charging sockets, and fresh filtered water. Hot water is brought to the tent on request rather than piped, in keeping with the camp’s style.

• • Children: Welcome from age five.

• • The Mess Tent: A central lounge and dining tent that opens fully onto the plains with 360-degree views, furnished in leather, rattan, and crystal, with a gramophone and English floral china for afternoon tea.

• • Organic Dining With Drinks Included: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner from an organic kitchen, served in the mess tent or on the terrace, with house wines, beers, spirits, and soft drinks included from a bar that also stocks premium labels.

• • Vintage Land Rovers: Private game drives in restored classic Land Rovers with a dedicated guide, half or full days with a picnic lunch, and off-road driving permissions in the camp’s area.

• • Black Rhino Tracking: Special game drives with the Moru rangers to find the Serengeti’s black rhino, at an additional cost.

• • Walking Safaris: Guided walks from camp with a guide and an armed ranger.

• • Balloon Safaris: Sunrise balloon flights from May 15 to October 31, arranged with us in advance.

• • Sundowners and Bonfire: Sundowners on the plains with Maasai guards, and evenings by the fire.

• • Practical Comforts: Charging in every tent, laundry service, and Maasai askari escorts after dark. No pool, no spa, no WiFi advertised; this is a camp for switching off.

• • Sustainability: CarbonScored certification and an organic supply chain.