Day 1:
After breakfast drive to Longido to discover the Maasai Culture. Meet some of the local elders and the warriors on a brief tour of the village and they will express out how life is like for the family in their traditional home called Boma, which is made from mud and cow dung. In the early morning, women leave the Boma to fetch water and collect firewood. Young children play outside their homes and at a very early age takes care of goats, cows and lambs. Settle into your room. Accommodation in a basic guesthouse in the village. 2-3 hours of driving from Arusha.
Days 2.
After breakfast at the Camp or Guesthouse you will get ready for a full day walking trip at the Maasai Land and see the women leave the Boma to fetch water and collect firewood. Young children play around the mud houses and start at a very early age to take care of kids and lambs. In the area there is an abundance of colorful birds. The starling major, the red and yellow barbet, the masked weaver, the silverbill and the secretary bird are some of the special species to be seen. Longido is further well known for the presence of rare mammals that cannot be seen in any of the national parks. The plains and the slopes of the mountain form a refuge for the gerenuk, the lesser kudu and the klipspringer. Among other animals that live around Longido are giraffes, zebras, gazelles, buffaloes, mongoose and some silver jackals. Make Camp and Overnight Longido.
Day3:
Another early departure for the short drive to road head near Kimokouwa, where several Maasai Bomas are peacefully situated in the green “valley of wells”. From here we start the ascent of Longido (2629 meters) Guided by Maasai warriors armed with knives and spears we leave Kimokouwa in the early morning and follow narrow footpaths through a dense natural forest. After two and a half hours you arrive at the marvelous “dawa ya supu” (soup-medicine) viewpoint. From here you will follow trails created by buffaloes to reach the top in another two hours’ climb. With loud cries the Maasai warn the buffaloes that people are coming to avoid dangerous encounters. The views from the top are simply unbelievable. On clear days you can see more than 200 kilometers and all the mountains of Northern Tanzania. The descent of the steep mountain is another challenge. Late in the evening drive back to Arusha for a welcome shower, Dinner and overnight at the Hotel.
Note the following:
- If you like us to arrange your accommodations for the night (s) before and after Kili please let us know.
- If you are arriving at Julius Nyerere/Kilimanjaro/Arusha Airport or by a bus let us know so we can arrange meeting you on arrival to make things even smoother.
- We will be happy to know your travel plans so we can customize this itinerary or any other itinerary for you. We are a full service company.
- Click here for packing list. Camping and lodge safari have almost same packing list but in case you have questions let us know.
- This itinerary can also be extended (number of days and/or parks/activities) to cover other parks in the northern circuit, Kilimanjaro trek, Meru trek, Oldongo Lengai trek, Usambara Mountains, Zanzibar/Mafia/Dar beach holiday, Southern parks or western safari parks, or either way depending on your needs.