andBeyond Grumeti Serengeti River Lodge

andBeyond rebuilt this lodge and reopened it in 2022. It overlooks an offshoot of the Grumeti River in the remote Western Corridor of Serengeti National Park, and hippos and crocodiles are often visible from the main area. The ten river-facing suites, more than twice their previous size, each have a terrace and a plunge pool filled with harvested rainwater, and there is an interleading family suite. The design takes cues from Maasai manyatta homesteads.

Days run on morning and afternoon game drives or a full day out, with an afternoon nature walk as an alternative to a drive. Hot-air balloon flights can be arranged at extra cost, and there are visits to the Lukungu community and drives to Lake Victoria to see fishing villages. The migration usually moves through the Western Corridor around June and July, so the lodge pairs well with a northern Serengeti camp later in the season.

The lodge suits families, thanks to the family suite and andBeyond's WILDchild program, and couples who want a river setting away from the central Serengeti. Outside the migration months the area relies on resident game, which is good for lion, hippo and buffalo but less dramatic than the herds. Being inside the national park, it does not have the off-road driving freedom of a private reserve such as Grumeti.