Good location from which to visit Crater as well as for short walks, biking, village visits
Guide Price: From: $175 To: $375
More than the sum of its parts, Gibb's is somewhere to duck out of the safari world briefly and enjoy the highland air, great food and the incredibly welcoming people who run this little place. A good choice if you're looking to avoid the large lodges at Ngorongoro, but still want quick access to the Crater floor.
Gibbs Farm is a small working farm a short distance from Karatu close to the Ngorongoro Crater and Highlands. Set right at the edge of the forest reserve just below the rim of the crater itself, its a short drive from Lake Manyara National Park and from here you can be on the Crater rim within the hour, with another hour until you're on the Crater floor. You could easily spend 3 nights here to really make the most of everything that Gibb's has to offer. The farm is totally organic and has a huge and wonderful vegetable garden that supplies the lodge. They grow and export coffee and are self suffient with most meat. Gibbs also have a nursery growing indiginous trees to replant to stop erosion and counterbalance the charcoal trade. Trips around the farm are encourged and you can actively take part in some of the daily farm life.
The other huge bonus for Gibbs is their their wonderfully spoiling African Living Spa. They have an expert Masai who knows all the local plants and herbs that are used for healing in Africa. If interest you can have a special consultation and then a wonderfully relaxing massage and treatment. Gibb's also offer interesting walks into the forest behind the Farm or a walk from the Farm up to the Ngorongoro Crater rim (for which you need to be fit). You can mountain bike from here as well. Gibb's is definitely one of the longest established 'hotels' in the area and a place where managers and staff alike take enormous pride in the excellent food and service.
The accommodation has been upgraded and the rooms are huge, all have fires or wood burning stoves and snappy new bathrooms. There are a number of small sitting rooms and verandas as well as plenty of space to sit under the shade of the beautiful indigenous trees, so there is always a private spot to escape from other people. Gibbs have a pretty much access-all-areas philosophy, so if you are interested there'll be someone who'll be happy to show you around; you can take tours of the coffee farm and the extensive vegetable gardens or just sit and take a break from the pace of your safari.
From: 175 To: 375
Good location from which to visit Crater as well as for short walks, biking, village visits
AWAITING INFORMATION
Karatu is an area of fertile coffee and arable farms on the south eastern slopes of the Ngorongoro Crater. The area sits at about 7500 ft above sea level, often with it's head in the clouds, and feels lush, green and in stark contrast to the dry floor of the Rift Valley a short distance to the east. The town of Karatu itself lies on the Ngorongoro - Manyara road, but most of the small lodges that we'd recommend in this area are set in the midst of farms quite some distance from the town itself. We'd often recommend one of the lodges in Karatu, over and above the Crater Rim, as a place from which to visit the Ngorongoro Crater. The downside to this is clear - you won't be waking up to look down into the Crater from your bedroom window. However, there are plenty of upsides to staying in Karatu if sacrificing crater views isn't a deal-breaker for you. Read more?
Tanzania safaris rival a safari any other country in Africa in terms of sheer wilderness, formidable landscapes and volume of wildlife. At Natural High, we have travelled all over the country, worked in some of its best Tanzania safari camps and lodges and flown all over as bush pilots so we feel qualified to venture such opinions. Read more?
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Catherine's long experience of, and enthusiasm for Africa, makes her a mine of travel information. Add to the mix her vivacious character and inscrutable attention to detail and there are few people you'd rather have plan your holiday.
At Natural High, we've had long experience putting together trips in Africa that really work. Whether it's intimate bushcamps in out of the way places, or a private lodge in one of Africa's top-billing wildlife areas, light mobile camping or remote island escapes, we know there is a lot to choose from. We're absolutely confident that we can recommend the right places for you.
