8-Day Western Circuit: Saanane, Rubondo & Gombe Stream

A member of the Gip Adventure team meets you at 08:00 at Julius Nyerere International Airport in Dar es Salaam, at Kilimanjaro International Airport or at your hotel, and checks you in for your domestic flight to Mwanza, Tanzania's lively city on the southern shore of Lake Victoria.

On arrival at Mwanza Airport you are met again and driven to your lakeside resort at Ilemela – a tranquil hideaway close to the city, often called the gateway to the Serengeti, with stunning views over the shoreline of Lake Victoria. The kitchen serves local cuisine and light gourmet dishes alongside a continental-style breakfast.

Settle in and, as the afternoon cools, enjoy an evening walk along the shores of the lake, which can be arranged on request. Dinner and overnight in Mwanza.

After a hearty breakfast, at around 08:00 you transfer by boat to Saanane Island National Park, a 15–20 minute crossing from Mwanza. Tanzania's smallest national park lies just 2 km south-west of the city centre and covers 2.1 km² – it was once only 0.5 km², before neighbouring Chankende Island was added.

This little park has plenty to offer, with a wealth of plants and animals, fine views and the great lake all around. Highlights include wildlife viewing, boating, photography, swimming, canoeing, fishing, rock hiking, birding along the shoreline, walking on the designated trails and picnicking.

Enjoy a picnic lunch on the island and a short spell of game viewing on foot along the designated trails, then continue onwards to your lakefront camp on Rubondo Island, a place that immerses you in a unique ecosystem barely touched by people. Dinner and overnight on Rubondo.

After a warm breakfast at around 08:00, set out for a full day of exploring this magnificent island, with a picnic lunch and a shorter afternoon excursion before returning to camp for dinner.

Rubondo is Africa's largest island national park. The evergreen main island covers 240 km² and measures 28 km from north to south and 10 km from east to west, while the park as a whole, protecting 11 smaller islets, spans 457 km². Together with Saanane, it is one of only two national parks in Lake Victoria.

Wildlife includes sitatunga (marshbuck), bushbuck, genets, hippos and the tiny suni antelope, along with a great variety of birds – grey parrots among them – and the park's emblem, the African fish eagle.

A second full day on Rubondo leaves time for its most popular activities: a boat excursion around the islands, a canoe trip along the forested shoreline, a walking safari or a morning of sport fishing.

Rubondo enjoys a pleasant climate and fine beaches for swimming. As the sun goes down, enjoy a sundowner by the water before dinner and the night at your camp.

Today you leave Lake Victoria behind and travel west to Gombe Stream National Park on the shore of Lake Tanganyika, 16 km north of Kigoma. On arrival, settle in to your lodge in Gombe, where all meals and accommodation are provided.

Gombe is one of Tanzania's smallest parks, covering 56 km² and rising to about 1,524 m. It is a narrow, mountainous strip stretching some 16 km along the eastern shore of the lake and running about 5 km inland to the peaks of the rift escarpment. Dinner and overnight in Gombe.

Small as it is, Gombe is known worldwide for its prolific primates – most notably the chimpanzees, which have been studied here continuously since 1960. Chimpanzee trekking is the main activity, and today you head into the forest with your ranger to spend time with one of the communities.

The park is rich in other wildlife too, with more than 35 mammal species, around 250 bird species and many reptiles. In the afternoon, swim, fish or walk along the lakeshore. Dinner and overnight in Gombe.

Your final full day in Gombe offers hiking to the park's famous waterfalls, scenic views from Jane's Peak and more time with the chimpanzees if you wish.

Later, enjoy birding, boating or a canoe trip on Lake Tanganyika, and a last evening on the shore as the sun sets over the water. Dinner and overnight in Gombe.

After a warm breakfast at around 08:00, you are transferred to Kigoma airstrip for your domestic flight to Dar es Salaam or Kilimanjaro International Airport, connecting with your international flight home.

This itinerary can be extended into Tanzania's northern or southern circuits or to Zanzibar, and can also be quoted with budget or mid-range accommodation – just let us know.