Four small group tour itineraries. Four different ways to experience East Africa.
The Asilia Edit was never designed as a collection of destinations alone. Each itinerary has been carefully curated around a particular style of safari, with every included experience specifically chosen to reinforce the character of that journey.
Some moments unite every Edition. Morning game drives, exceptional guiding, meaningful conversations around the campfire, and the company of a dedicated host create the rhythm that runs throughout The Asilia Edit. But beyond these shared experiences, each itinerary offers something entirely its own.
Whether you’re drifting silently over the Serengeti at dawn in a hot air balloon, tracking chimpanzees through ancient forests, photographing nocturnal wildlife through thermal imaging, or walking alongside conservationists shaping the future of East Africa’s wilderness, every experience has been selected because it belongs exactly where it is. Here’s how each Edition brings its own story to life.
The Classic Edition
The East African safari, exactly as you’ve imagined it. The Classic Edition celebrates the experiences that have defined safari for generations. This is northern Tanzania at its most iconic, where every activity feels like another chapter in the story people dream about long before they arrive.
From Oliver’s Camp in Tarangire National Park, walking safaris reveal the bush from a completely different perspective. Leaving the vehicle behind encourages a slower appreciation of the landscape, where every track, bird call and scent becomes part of the experience.
As darkness falls, Tarangire becomes the only national park on Tanzania’s northern circuit where night game drives are permitted. Lions stir, genets emerge and porcupines wander the roads, revealing an entirely different cast of wildlife once the sun disappears.
The journey then continues to the Ngorongoro Highlands, where a visit with a local Maasai community offers something equally memorable. Rather than simply observing a culture, guests are welcomed into daily life, creating genuine moments of exchange that add depth and a human dimension to the safari.
Finally comes one of East Africa’s defining bucket-list experiences. As the first light reaches the Serengeti, a hot air balloon lifts silently above the plains, offering an unforgettable perspective of one of the world’s greatest wildlife landscapes before touching down for a bush breakfast. These are the experiences that have come to define a classic safari, and together they create the perfect introduction to East Africa.
The Untamed Edition
If The Classic Edition celebrates safari tradition, The Untamed Edition strips it back to its wildest form. This is an itinerary built for travellers who value discovery over predictability, where experiences feel less curated and more earned.
Nowhere is this more evident than at Usangu Expedition Camp. Here, night game drives are conducted using thermal imaging technology, allowing guides to locate wildlife with minimal disturbance. Rather than sweeping the bush with spotlights, guests observe nocturnal animals naturally, making for one of East Africa’s most unobtrusive after-dark safari experiences.
The sense of exploration continues with camera trapping. Each guest positions and sets their own remote wildlife camera before returning on their last full day in camp to discover what has passed unseen. It transforms guests from observers into participants, revealing a hidden side of the wilderness rarely experienced on safari.
Even the evenings embrace adventure. Whether sleeping beneath the stars in an open-air Star Cube at Usangu or retracting the canvas roof at Kokoko Camp, the boundary between camp and wilderness all but disappears. With almost no surrounding light pollution, the night sky above Ruaha National Park comes alive with stars.
The journey concludes on the waterways of Nyerere National Park. Boat safaris replace vehicles as the primary means of exploration, gliding between channels lined with hippos, crocodiles and extraordinary birdlife. It’s a complete change of pace and a reminder that some landscapes are best experienced from the water. Together, the experiences of The Untamed Edition redefine what a safari can be.
The Primate Edition
The Primate Edition steps away from the traditional safari altogether, venturing deep into ancient forests. Rather than following herds across open plains, this journey ventures into dense forests where patience, silence and anticipation become part of every encounter.
On Rubondo Island, guests track wild chimpanzees through tropical forest, listening for calls before catching fleeting glimpses high in the canopy. Every trek is different, making each sighting deeply rewarding. While there are other land and water-based experiences on offer from Rubondo Island Camp, it is the chimps that steal this show.
In Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, the experience reaches its emotional climax with mountain gorilla trekking from Erebero Hills. Few wildlife encounters rival the privilege of spending time with these remarkable animals in their natural habitat. And few natural habitats are as beautiful as this ancient forest.
The journey itself reflects the exclusivity of the itinerary. A private charter plane connects the destinations on the round trip from Kenya to Tanzania and Uganda, dramatically reducing travel time while allowing guests to maximise their time immersed in nature.
The Batwa Cultural Experience provides another important perspective. Guided by members of the indigenous Batwa community, guests gain insight into a way of life that has been shaped by the forest for generations. Together, these experiences create an itinerary unlike any other in East Africa.
The Signature Edition
The Signature Edition offers luxury with purpose, demonstrating that extraordinary safari experiences and meaningful conservation are not separate ideas – and strongest when experienced together.
Walking safaris thread through every destination, allowing guests to experience three completely different ecosystems on foot. From the grasslands of Naboisho Conservancy to the eastern Serengeti and Ruaha National Park, each landscape reveals its own rhythm when explored at walking pace.
Conservation also becomes something guests actively engage with. The itinerary begins in the Mara Naboisho Conservancy – a landscape that stands as one of East Africa’s most successful conservation stories and one that we helped pioneer alongside local communities. Whilst here, a visit to the Mara Elephant Project reveals the work protecting elephant populations and reducing human-wildlife conflict. At Namiri Plains, an evening with a Serengeti Cheetah Project researcher offers rare insight into one of Africa’s most celebrated predators. At Jabali Ridge, conversations with researchers from the Southern Tanzania Elephant Program bring another layer of understanding to elephant conservation.
All of this unfolds from three of Asilia’s flagship camps, where thoughtful design, exceptional guiding, swimming pools and spas create a safari that feels effortlessly luxurious without ever losing sight of the wilderness beyond.
Four journeys. Countless unforgettable moments
The experiences of The Asilia Edit aren’t simply activities added to an itinerary. They are the moments that define each journey. Whether you’re floating above the Serengeti at sunrise, listening for chimpanzees in a rainforest, sleeping beneath the stars in southern Ruaha, or hearing firsthand from the conservationists protecting East Africa’s wildlife, every experience has been chosen with purpose.
Because the best safaris aren’t measured only by the places you visit—but by the moments that stay with you long after you’ve returned home.
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