Best Hotel Bets

The Best Safari Lodges

• Lake Manyara Tree Lodge (Lake Manyara National Park; tel. +27/11/809-4300 in Johannesburg; www.lakemanyara.com): The only lodge within the park, the super-luxurious Tree Lodge has 10 stilted spacious tree houses spread out in a mahogany forest; extras include outside showers and personal butlers to mix martinis. Picnic lunches can be arranged on the lakeshore, and Masai warriors walk guests home from the restaurant after dinner.

• Sasakwa (Serengeti National Park; tel. 028/262-2074; www.grumetireserves.com): Perched on top of a hill with awe-inspiring views over the Serengeti plains, this is one of the most luxurious lodges in the Serengeti. Suites have private plunge pools and Jacuzzis, and facilities and activities include a billiards room, a spa, balloon rides, archery, horseback riding, and game drives.

• Serena Kirawira Tented Camp (Serengeti National Park; tel. +254/020/271-0511 in Nairobi; www.serenahotels.com): The 25 spacious tents here are furnished in 1920s safari-style, with antiques, polished wooden floors, and Persian rugs. There are good views from its hilltop position in the Serengeti's Western Corridor.

• Mwagusi Camp (Ruaha National Park; c/o TropicAfrica, tel. +44/020/8846-9363 in London; www.ruaha.org): This is a small and remote camp with just 10 simple en-suite tents on the banks of a curve in the Mwagusi Sand River; there's a central thatch-and-reed lounge and bar. Dinner is eaten at long tables with the other guests and the excellent safari guides who have a deep affinity for the bush.

• Mount Meru Game Lodge (Usa River, 20km/12 miles E of Arusha towards Moshi; tel. 027/255-3643; www.intimate-places.com): Set in 82 ha (33 acres) of attractive gardens, and an ideal location to visit the Arusha National Park, this comfortable mid-range lodge has its own animal sanctuary, set up to accommodate orphaned and injured animals including eland, ostriches, waterbuck, zebras, and buffalo.

• Ngorongoro Serena Lodge (Ngorongoro Crater Conservation Area; tel. 077/253-7050; www.serenahotels.com): This large and established lodge can feel a little impersonal as it's popular with tour groups, but there's no denying its fabulous location on the lip of the crater from where you can spot the animals as dots on the crater floor. Lovely decor of wood and pebbles, and each luxury room has a stone balcony.

• Selous Safari Camp (Selous Game Reserve; www.selous.com): Located in prime game-viewing territory on a floodplain of the Rufiji River, guests can watch animals directly from the nine upmarket safari tents or from game drives and walks. Boats and fishing equipment are available.

The Best Beach Resorts

• Lazy Lagoon Island (off the coast of Bagamoyo; www.tanzaniasafaris.info): This private island luxury hideaway is just a 20-minute boat ride from the historical town of Bagamoyo. The reed-and-wood lodge with just a dozen rooms is set on a perfect swath of beach. At night, there's a great view of the twinkling lights on the mainland.

• Pole Pole Bungalow Resort (Mafia Island; tel. 022/260-1530 in Dar es Salaam; www.polepole.com): Pole Pole is a remote resort with just seven spacious bungalows facing a beautiful beach and the Mafia Island Marine Park. Rooms feature hardwood floors, Italian linens, and beds swathed in mosquito nets. Excursions to isolated spots around the island by speedboat are on offer.

• Chumbe Island (SW of Stone Town, Zanzibar; tel. 024/223-1040; www.chumbeisland.com): This award-winning eco-lodge on a private island features seven intimate and private bungalows made from natural materials, decorated with handmade furniture and colorful fabrics, and complemented by hammock-strung terraces. There's superb snorkeling along the nearby reefs, and the island can be explored on nature trails.

• Zanzibar Serena Inn (Stone Town, Zanzibar; tel. 024/223-3587; www.serenahotels.com): Wonderfully located in the heart of Stone Town's winding alleyways with fine views of the ocean, this hotel is in an authentically restored Swahili-style house with cool whitewashed arches, colonnaded balconies, carved staircases, and brass-studded doors, and it's stuffed full of antiques and Persian rugs. There are several excellent restaurants open to non-guests, too.

• Breezes Beach Club (East Coast, Zanzibar; tel. 024/224-0102; www.breezes-zanzibar.com): Breezes is a large 70-plus-room resort with chalets dotted along the beach beneath palms and decorated in traditional Swahili-style decor. There's a full range of facilities and activities from diving and windsurfing to beach volleyball and beauty treatments.

• Ras Nungwi Beach Hotel (Nungwi Beach, Zanzibar; tel. 024/223-3767; www.rasnungwi.com): This vast thatched resort on the beach features a combination of hotel-style rooms or individual chalets with air-conditioning, mosquito nets, and four-poster beds. Watersports include diving, deep-sea fishing, windsurfing, and boat rides by dhow.

• Fundu Lagoon (Pemba; tel. 075/478-9994; www.fundulagoon.com): This stunning remote resort in the southwest of Pemba Island is only reached by boat. It features 12 stylish ocean-facing tents covered by thatch and with their own plunge pools, plus an open-sided restaurant, infinity pool, and relaxing spa. Honeymooners will love the isolation.