Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge

Lake Manyara Serena Safari Lodge takes its cue from the birds. Swooping curves shape its buildings and bright frescoes trace the migration patterns of the hundreds of species that visit the lake below.

The lodge sits high on the Mto wa Mbu escarpment, where the Great Rift Valley falls away to the flamingo-fringed shallows of Lake Manyara. The national park spreads out beneath you, and the heated infinity pool makes the most of the view between game drives.

Meals in the Flamingo Restaurant, styled on a traditional Maasai boma, come with lake views from the terrace, and much of the produce is grown in the lodge’s own garden. The escarpment doubles as a dining room too, with breakfast cooked on the cliff top and sundowners around a campfire as the light turns rose-gold over the water.

The lodge also takes part in the community-run Mto wa Mbu Cultural Tourism Programme. Stroll through the village with a local guide before lunch in a clearing among the banana plantations, or stay closer to home with Swahili, cooking and watercolour lessons.

ACCOMMODATION

Rooms are set in whitewashed, two-storey rondavels with conical thatched roofs, spread along the edge of the cliff. Each has its own veranda. Inside, the blue of the lake and the pink of its flamingos run through the décor, a handwoven rug hangs behind the bed and the furnishings draw on traditional Maasai beadwork. Triple, family and connecting rooms suit families, and some rooms are adapted for guests with limited mobility.

Set slightly apart, the Losimingori Suite has its own private access, a separate sitting room, a marble bathroom and a balcony overlooking the infinity pool.