Classic East Africa

With only 10% of Amboseli National Park utilized by most safari vehicles, combined with Elewana Tortilis Camp’s unique location on the western edge of the park (most lodges are outside of the eastern gate of the park), guests can enjoy an almost private Amboseli. We also have private gamedriving within our own 30,000 acre Kitirua Conservancy, which is the western part of the Amboseli ecosystem.

Elewana Tortilis Camp boasts an elite fleet of custom-designed safari vehicles, and highly-qualified guides with intimate knowledge of their "backyards".

Game drives are included in Game Package.

Elewana Tortilis Camp’s walking guides are Masai from the local community, who have been walking over these plains since childhood.

Take the time to leave the car behind and enjoy the small things – tracks, dung beetles, micro-ecosystems. The guides are happy to share their knowledge of the terrain, traditional uses of wild herbs and barks, and the Masai way of life.

Guided walks are included in Game Package.

“Sundowners” are a safari tradition – after a day of safari; stop, watch the spectacular sunset; traditionally with a gin and tonic in hand!

Sundowners are included in Game Package.

Enjoy the cool waters in the heat of the day!

Within the lush green gardens, the pool is shaded by palms and acacia Tortilis, and a haven for tropical birds. The swimming pool has bar service and board games.

Safari is also a holiday and a rest – a break from today’s frenetic lifestyle.

Tortilis Camp offers:
Massages – a wonderful way to ease the stress out of tired shoulders and backs.
Manicure and pedicure – compliment those tanned limbs!

Spa treatments are at an additional cost.

In the heart of Masai country, Elewana Tortilis Camp offers visits to local Masai homesteads. The Masai live in semi-permanent huts known as Manyattas and it is the role of the wife to construct the hut from cattle dung and grass. The families will show you round their home for a fee (payable separately, ask reception for details), and will want to take the opportunity to sell their traditional handicrafts – bargain hard!

Game drives are available as either shared experiences or private, utilizing our fleet of both open-air and enclosed 4x4 Land Cruisers, which are reliable, comfortable, and well-maintained. Each Land Cruiser is equipped with charging ports, onboard refrigeration, camera stabilization bean bags, vehicle recovery equipment, VHF radio systems, comprehensive guidebooks, first aid supplies, safety belts, and one pair of binoculars, which the guide uses for spotting, but which can be borrowed if the traveler did not bring their own. Most importantly, you’ll be accompanied by our exceptional guides who participate in biannual training programs with both in-house specialists and external instructors, ensuring expertly led wildlife encounters throughout your safari.

*All game drives are on shared basis unless you have requested and booked for them to be on private basis at an additional cost

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Game Drives in Ndutu Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

A hot air balloon safari provides an unparalleled vantage point for viewing the wilderness landscape. Drift peacefully above the expansive savanna, carried by gentle breezes across this pristine terrain. From your aerial perch, witness massive wildebeest migrations (in season), observe predators on the hunt, or simply absorb the breathtaking vistas stretching to the horizon. Your flight concludes with an extraordinary bush breakfast in the heart of the wilderness. For a truly once-in-a-lifetime aerial adventure, few destinations can match this spectacular setting.

Balloon Safaris Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Balloon Safaris Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Balloon Safaris Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Balloon Safaris Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Experience an enchanting evening at Lemala Ndutu with a private fireside dinner set beneath the breathtaking African night sky. Your table will be thoughtfully arranged beside a crackling campfire, with softly glowing lanterns illuminating your path through the mobile camp. The ambiance, adorned with candlelight and dancing flames, will evoke warmth and a bygone era as you dine under the brilliant stars above.
The enchanting melodies of Ndutu will provide a captivating soundtrack, with distant lion roars echoing across the migration plains, the calls of nocturnal birds, and the gentle whispers of the wind enhancing this magical experience. The flickering firelight creates an intimate cocoon while the vast Serengeti stretches endlessly beyond.

Lemala's attentive staff will be on hand to cater to your every desire, ensuring an unforgettable and comfortable dining adventure around your private fire. For your peace of mind and to enrich your authentic safari experience, a dedicated Maasai guard will be stationed nearby, allowing you to immerse yourself fully in this extraordinary fireside setting.

As the flames dance and sparks rise toward the star-filled sky, you'll dine in perfect harmony with the ancient rhythms of the African wilderness, creating memories that will last a lifetime.

Private Dinner Under the Stars Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Private Dinner Under the Stars Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Private Dinner Under the Stars Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Private Dinner Under the Stars Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

In Africa, sundowners aren't just drinks – they're a blessed tradition and cherished way of life, honoring the successful close of each day while bidding farewell to the magnificent African sun as she paints the sky in brilliant farewell hues. Sundowners offer delightful versatility depending on your day's adventures. Your experienced guide reads the day like an ancient script – if you've been blessed with extraordinary sightings and time is precious, sundowners can be seamlessly served in your vehicle while wildlife action continues around you. When the day allows for leisurely reflection, you'll pause at scenic spots for the full ceremonial experience.

Alternatively, enjoy nightly sundowners around the crackling campfire in front of the main lounge. This special time provides opportunity to relax, reminisce about the day's adventures, and enjoy cocktails with fellow travelers while watching the sun set over endless plains.

Sundowners form an integral part of your safari experience – beautifully simple yet profound. Nothing fancy, just pure homage to the setting sun and the day's wildlife encounters. Every sundowner is unique, dictated by the day's adventures and timing.

Sunsets and Sundowners Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Sunsets and Sundowners Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Sunsets and Sundowners Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Sunsets and Sundowners Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Tanzania creates unforgettable family memories, with wildlife encounters that captivate children and create moments parents will treasure forever. The wonder in a child's eyes upon spotting their first lion, towering giraffe, or gentle giant elephant is truly priceless. Lemala Cubs provides specially designed experiences for our youngest explorers aged 12 and under, introducing them to the enchanting world of the African wilderness. These engaging, educational activities inspire the next generation of conservationists while demonstrating the vital importance of protecting Africa's magnificent wildlife. Meanwhile, parents can enjoy peaceful moments knowing their children are happily engaged in meaningful adventures that will shape their understanding of the natural world for years to come.

Lemala Cubs Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Lemala Cubs Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Lemala Cubs Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

Lemala Cubs Credit: Lemala Camps and Lodges

The cornerstone of a safari experience at Serian is that each group has their own open-top safari vehicle, and their own dedicated guide and spotter. The freedom this grants you is key to getting the most out of your stay: go where the day takes you, without the limitations of fixed schedules, or fitting in with other peoples’ plans. Nothing but personal desire need dictate what you do.

Our vehicles are specially customised to be a climbing frame, and a photographer’s extra tool. They are comfortable, able to handle the terrain, and cover the distance…. And were designed for sun, rain, wind, and above all, the feeling of having as little as possible separating you from what’s out there.

Our guides and spotters are intimately familiar with these special places, so they know all its secrets and the ways the animals interact with it, from the subtle changes of the seasons, to the stages of an animals lifecycle, to the flora that sustains it all – they are the key that can unlock it all for you.

Although ‘Walker’ really is Alex’s surname, being born to such an identity turns out to have been a self-fulfilling prophecy. Spending his childhood days out on foot with his father’s trackers, then turning this into a full-time career as soon as he possibly could, Alex’s passion is walking, and it is without a doubt his preferred method of accessing the bush.

Walking safaris epitomise the golden chance to get away from the trails and beaten tracks, and immerse in the environment in a way that the noise and speed of vehicles don’t permit. Once you slow down, there’s a whole world that you never noticed before. The beauty of walking is that it engenders an appreciation of an ecosystem’s sheer perfection: every tiny element has its place, and plays its role.

Stripping away the layers between you and an untamed setting beckons forth your primal instincts: your hearing, sight and smell all sharpen in response – and your appreciation of what you perceive is heightened as a result.

At Serian, we walk in our own private conservation area – a strictly no-vehicle zone that only we have access to. Here, you are likely to have close encounters with elephant, buffalo, hippo as well as more rare species like Chandler’s Mountain Reedbuck, klipspringer and oribi.

We employ scouts whose job it is to patrol the area and look out for snares, and walking in their company yields an insight into the land from the point of view of someone who roams it every day and knows it intimately.

For so many, the definition of a night drive has come to be a quick scan around with spotlights en route back to camp after sundowners. For us though, it’s an exploration of the enigmatic nightlife that we are oblivious to as we sit around the dinner table and proceed to bed. Nocturnal creatures emerge, the heavens are festooned with stars, and the landscape mutates into a whole other world by the light of the moon.

Take a flask of soup and a picnic dinner, and set out with a spotlight: if nothing else, the solitude and silence by starlight is reason enough in itself. Using red-filtered bulbs to avoid dazzling the animals, scan the plains for that pride of lion looking ready to hunt.

Once you’ve spotted them, switch to infrared floodlights, and watch the scene unfold through our infrared cameras. This is as close as you’ll get to invisibility, watching the wildlife without the fact of your presence affecting it.

An early morning departure from Serian will see you at your launchpad. Suspended in a basket beneath the balloon's canopy, you float over the plains and above the forest alongside the Mara River, checking out hippos, crocodile and elephant from high above.

The flight time is generally in the region of one hour and ends with a champagne breakfast in the open grassland within the reserve. An unbeatable start to the day!