Your flight lands at Kilimanjaro International Airport, where our meet and greet staff will be waiting for you as you come off the plane, before you go through customs. From there it is a private road transfer of roughly 90 minutes to your lodge on the edge of Arusha.

You stay in a quiet garden cottage with a swimming pool close by, so there is time to shower, swim and recover from the long journey before the safari begins. Meals are not included tonight, so dinner is arranged directly with the lodge at your own pace.

After breakfast there is a short 15 minute transfer to Arusha Airport for your bush flight to Seronera, which takes about 35 minutes and gives you a first sense of the scale of the plains from the air. Your guide meets you at the airstrip, and the 90 minute drive to camp doubles as your first game drive across the eastern side of the park.

This is a remote corner of the Serengeti known for big cats, so there is every chance of a sighting before you even arrive. The rest of the day is yours to settle in, and all meals are included from here onwards.

The day starts early with a guided walking safari, which shifts your attention to tracks, birds, plants and the smaller details you never notice from a vehicle. Your guide sets an easy pace, so no particular level of fitness is needed. Later you head out by vehicle across the open plains that make this part of the Serengeti one of the finest big cat areas in the park.

In the evening you will meet with a cheetah researcher. This special experience is a rare chance to hear first hand how the work is done and why this area matters.

This is a private ceremony arranged for the two of you alone, held out in the wilderness to celebrate your marriage in the local tradition. Maasai dancers welcome you, and the celebration includes champagne, cake and flowers, followed by a bush dinner set up under the sky. Photography is not part of the standard ceremony, so bring your own camera if you would like your guide to take pictures for you.

A professional photographer and hair and make up can be added from the optional add ons if you would like the day fully covered. Around the ceremony, the day keeps the usual rhythm of a morning and a late afternoon game drive.

You leave camp before first light for the launch site and lift off as the sun comes up over the plains, drifting quietly with the wind. It is the one perspective a vehicle cannot give you, and the flight ends with a champagne bush breakfast laid out wherever you land.

Back at camp there is time to rest through the heat of the middle of the day. The late afternoon is spent on a game drive in search of lion, cheetah and the other resident wildlife of the eastern plains.

The morning begins with a 90 minute game drive transfer back to Seronera Airstrip, so there is still time for sightings on the way out. The bush flight south to Msembe takes about 2 hours 30 minutes and crosses a clear change of landscape, from open plains to the rugged, baobab dotted country of Ruaha.

A further 50 minute drive brings you to your lodge, where an infinity pool, a spa and a quiet library make the rest of the afternoon easy. Ruaha is one of the largest and least visited parks in Tanzania, so the pace here feels slower and considerably more private.

Walking is the best way to understand Ruaha, where the terrain is rugged and the bush is thick in places. You set out in the cool of the morning with a guide who reads tracks and signs as you go, at a pace that suits you.

The baobab hills and river valleys here are a striking contrast to the open Serengeti plains you left behind. Back at the lodge, the afternoon is free for the pool, the spa or a late game drive as the light softens.

The morning is given to a visit with the Hehe community, one of the most historically significant groups in this part of Tanzania. The visit is arranged privately, so there is time to talk, ask questions and see something of daily life rather than watch a performance.

You return to the lodge afterwards for lunch and a break through the warmest hours. The rest of the day is open for a game drive along the river corridors or simply time at the pool.

If the season and water levels allow, the morning can start with fishing along the Great Ruaha River, which is easy to try even if you have never fished before. A game drive follows through the river corridors, where elephant, buffalo and predators concentrate as the dry season advances.

In the late afternoon the lodge's signature Ruaha ritual massage is a good way to unwind before your last dinner in the bush. Your guide will happily reshuffle the order of the day depending on the heat and what you feel like doing.

Today is a travel day and a long one, beginning with a 50 minute transfer to Msembe Airstrip. The bush flight to Dar es Salaam takes about 2 hours 40 minutes, with a wait of roughly 1 hour 35 minutes before the short 20 minute hop across to Zanzibar.

A driver meets you on arrival for the 90 minute drive to the pier on the northern side of the island, followed by a 15 minute boat transfer over to Mnemba. You step off onto a small private island of sand, forest and clear water, where all meals are included and the safari pace gives way to nothing in particular.

The island is small enough to walk around at low tide, and the hours pass easily between the beach, the shade of the forest and the water. A spa massage can be arranged with the lodge, and yoga is available if you would like something gentle to start the morning.

All meals are included and served around your day rather than a set timetable.

The reef around Mnemba lies within a protected marine area and the water is exceptionally clear, so snorkelling straight off the beach is worth the whole morning. Kayaks and stand up paddleboards are available through the day, and PADI certified guests receive two complimentary dives.

Dolphins move through these waters and sea turtles are often seen in the shallows, so there is a good chance of both. The afternoon stays free for the beach, the water or a last swim before dinner.

After breakfast there is a 15 minute boat transfer back to the main island, followed by a 75 minute drive to Zanzibar International Airport. Departure timings are arranged around your international flight, so let us know your schedule as soon as it is confirmed.

Breakfast is the last included meal of the trip. If you would like to add a night in Stone Town or a few more days on the coast before flying home, we are happy to arrange it.