Lake Masek Tented Lodge — Hotel in Arusha

Wow. It was 4 years since our last visit to Lake Masek Tent Camp. We raved about our last visit so much 2 of our family members (both girls) wanted to join us this trip. Last time we were here in February, when the big herds are around, but this time we were arriving in late September and I told the girls to expect a great camp but not too many animals around at this time of year. Boy was I wrong. The camp was as great as ever (but some of the staff we loved, including the great cook Virginia, had moved on to other camps) but the current Masai staff were outstanding. They upgraded their table service but the wine & beer are still NO CHARGE. Food is great, tents are top of the line great, service is terrific, including coffee brought to our tent in the am on request. We still think this is one of the best tent camps in Africa and this was our fifth trip to both East and South Africa. Your game drives here are special because you don't see the mob of other vehicles. You are almost always the only ones in the area and this trip our driver found us a FIRST! We were lucky to spot 3 Cheetahs (Mom & 2 kids) out hunting breakfast. We followed them for 2hr to a herd of Antelope. Our driver Livingstone (who we always use in Tanzania) found the perfect place to wait and 30min later we watched & filmed a complete Cheetah chase and bring down from only 50 meters away. It lasted only 19 seconds, covered about 400 meters and was breathtaking. We have spent a total of over 7 months on our African trips and have never seen a full chase from beginning to end. All my friends who have watched the video are astounded. The two girls have reminded me constantly about my statement error "we would not see many animals." On top of that we found a lot more. Now I really rave about Lake Masek Tent Camp. Try and get a tent close to the dining room or it can be...

Wow, wow, wow!||I am not sure if I can fully express how much we loved our stay at this lodge. It was the absolute highlight of our 12 day Safari and I am so glad we stayed for 3 nights (would have stayed longer if we could). ||The tents are big and good. A bit dated but nice and we especially appreciated the netted off area outside your tent were you could read on a sofa and still be safe from mosquitos. ||But the highlight is the location with the view over Lake Masek as well as the staff and food. In no other lodge have we felt how much the people love working there and working together as in this lodge. This made for a very special feel and we were able to relax from the minute we got there. They were always there for us with a smile and the hospitality we felt from every member of staff was something that was quite extraordinary (we have stayed in Lodges where it was completely different!). ||Also as I said, the food was equisite and we especially loved happy hour from 6pm to 7pm where you could get a drink and some nibbles for free and just enjoy sitting outside. ||We saw many beautiful birds, Dik-Diks (and in our tent there lived a family of tiny bats, we loved this!) and one day we even saw a Hippo quite close. During the night the zebras would come up to the tents to eat and you could sometimes hear lions roar during the night. ||The whole Ndutu area was very beautiful as well and we loved seeing all the animals and especially the Great Migration with all the young animals. ||We can highly recommend this place and if we ever come back to Tansania, Lake Masek Tented lodge will be at the top of our list of places to...

Stayed for 2 nights at the camp which overlooks a beautiful lake with abundant wildlife everywhere... that being said... no swimming in the lake unless you want to be a Hippo lunch :). Use the beautiful swimming pool instead...||The villas are really nice - large king canopy bead with mosquito netting as is standard. Writing desk, purified water (hot + cold), coffee / tea station, claw foot bathtub and two sinks... Tents have outer and inner zippers and no critters tried to get in... but you will hear them!!! Also had an outdoor shower.||First night I had a group of impala or gazelle camping underneath the villa to get out of the rain - making grunting or gnawing sounds - I bumped my foot on the bed to get them to quiet down... very entertaining. Zebra ran by by tent in the AM... from dusk until dawn the Masai will escort you back and forth to the common areas to avoid running into a hippo or other friend... fun.||The Pros:|Location!!!|Comfortable Beds|Great Pool + View|Excellent Staff + Service|Wildlife all around... |The Masai :)|Good beverages||The Cons:|Intermitent Wifi...|Hot water seemed to dissipate from late evening to dawn = possible due to use of solar power...|The food was good, but not great.|Outdoor shower was very...