Luxurious accommodation in the remote deep south of Ruaha National Park
Lounge, restaurant, bar, curio shop, and swimming pool
Just ten guest suites, each with a private veranda
Game drives, game walks, and fly camping
The camp offers expertly guided game drives, game walks, and fly camping. Please note, the minimum age requirement for walking in Ruaha is 16 years. This is one of Tanzania’s wildest parks, and one of our favourites!
The sprawling savanna, miombo woodlands, rolling hills, and abundant rivers and secondary water sources support a real wealth of wildlife. Ruaha may be missing rhino from the Big Five list, but all four other species – lion, leopard, elephant, and buffalo – are present in vast numbers, and big cat populations are particularly high. Smaller felines are common too, including cheetah, serval, and caracal, and the park is also home to the rare wild dog. The herbivore count features giraffe, wildebeest, zebra, and all sorts of antelopes!
And keen birders can look out for over six hundred types of feathery friend, not least raptors, waterbirds, and songbirds.
Jongomero’s game drives are fantastic for exploring Ruaha and seeing these species and more.
The area is not as famous for viewings as the Mwagusi region, but it’s ideal for travellers seeking really remote experiences of the park. Walks aim to instruct in the smaller lives here, such as plants and insects.
Fly camping is provided as an extension of the game walk, and involves two or three days’ hiking through the bush and one or two nights’ sleeping under the stars. This activity can be booked from 15th August to 15th November every year, and we highly recommend it as the most thrilling way to discover wild Ruaha!
*This property is unfenced and located in a wildlife area, so large and potentially dangerous animals do pass through. If you opt to stay here, always be alert when walking around the camp and request for a member of staff to escort you if you have any concerns. Any guest is escorted after dark as a matter of course.
The camp is accessed via 2 kilometres’ road transfer from the local airstrip. It has a fabulous location in the remote deep south of Ruaha, approximately 70 kilometres from the nearest safari property and spread out along the banks of the Jongomero river. The river flows mightily during the green season, and during the dry season it provides a wildlife corridor to a lot of big game.
Jongomero Camp’s communal lounge, dining area, bar, and shop are housed in a classic timber-and-thatch lodge.
This blends beautifully with the natural surroundings, and it’s divided into two spaces. In one, there’s the lounge, with comfortable sofas and armchairs around coffee tables, occasional tables for tea-and-coffee trays, and a few intriguing artefacts to add to the safari style. The camp’s bar is set up in a corner of the lounge, and it’s well stocked with alcoholic and soft drinks. In the dining area, chic separate tables are flanked by campaign chairs – this is usually the setting for light lunches, as breakfast tends to be enjoyed during your first activity of the day! Dinner is a lavish three-course meal, served in various places around the site. Guests can choose whether to eat with other travellers, or to dine privately. Jongomero also has a curio shop that’s great for souvenir items, and in the grounds there’s a refreshing swimming pool! There is even an open-air riverbed-view gym with high-quality Tenchnogym equipment.
Guest accommodation consists of ten suites.
Each is made up of a large canvas tent under a thatch roof, positioned on polished wooden decking. The interiors feature an enormous dhow wood emperor bed – 8 feet wide! – as well as bedside tables and lighting, a writing desk and chair, and some comfy floor mats. The palette is earth tones and a sandy shade of orange. En-suite facilities are set up behind the bedroom area – here you’ll find a flush toilet, twin washbasins on a stand with mirror, and walk-in shower. This space also contains a wood-and-metal storage unit, with plenty of room for clothes and other belongings. At the front of every tent is a shady veranda, where you can enjoy amazing views of the river and its inhabitants! Most tents have 180-degree views, and one has 270-degree views – very impressive. One extra bed can be added to each suite, for a traveler aged 18 years and younger.
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