From Zanzibar: 2-Day Saadani Safari with Flight & Lodge Stay

Saadani is the only national park in Tanzania where the bush runs straight into the Indian Ocean — and this is the only overnight trip that lets you do a classic game drive, a boat safari, and swim in the ocean, all within the same two days. It also starts in the early afternoon, so there’s no need to wake up in the middle of the night for an early hotel pickup like most safari departures — you leave Zanzibar around 1:00 PM, well rested and ready.

A short scenic flight (about 15–20 minutes) takes you straight to the national park, where your first game drive begins the moment you land and runs until around 7:00 PM. Keep an eye out for elephants, lions, giraffes, buffaloes, zebras, wildebeest, warthogs, and a wide range of antelope and birdlife. Afterwards, wind down with a bush sundowner before dinner and your overnight stay at Saadani Safari Lodge, right on the beach on the park’s southern border.

Day two starts early, and it’s worth it: a morning game drive from 6:00 to 8:30 AM, when the park feels like it’s waking up right along with you and wildlife is at its most active. Back at the lodge for breakfast, then it’s on to a very different kind of adventure — a boat safari along the Wami River from 10:00 AM to noon, drifting past hippos, crocodiles, and plenty of birdlife along the banks. Lunch is served at the lodge around 12:30 PM, and you’ve got free time until 2:00 PM to make the most of it — by the pool, on a bike along the ocean, or in the water for a swim at the lodge’s beach.

At 2:00 PM, it’s time to head to the airstrip for your flight back to Zanzibar, landing around 3:30 PM. If you’ve selected the hotel transfer option, we’ll take you straight to your hotel; if not, we’ll say goodbye at the airport.