Tanzania can truly claim to be the home of the "safari" since the word is Swahili for a journey. And there's no better place to enjoy the enriching wildlife experience than Tanzania. The country's game viewing experiences are widely regarded as the best in Africa.

It's the place to see seemingly endless herds of wildebeest and zebras trekking across the plains on their annual migrations-followed by the predators, lion, leopard, cheetah and hyena. It's elephant country, boasting some of the largest populations in the world. And it's home to chimpanzees, now so rarely seen in the wild.

Tanzania boasts beautiful beaches- hundreds of miles of palm-fringed sands; its lakes are huge and bountiful wit fish; its cities are relaxed and friendly; its islands, Zanzibar, Pemba and Mafia live up to their exotic images. Yet this, the largest country in Eastern Africa, is untouched by the holiday making hordes of mass tourism.

The remains of one of the earliest humans were discovered in Tanzania, so the country can lay claim to the title, "The Cradle of Mankind." The Ngorongoro Crater is the largest crater in the world, a vast amphitheatre teeming with game; while the snow-capped majesty of Mount Kilimanjaro inspired Hemingway to write a novel.

It was in Tanzania that Stanley uttered those famous words, "Dr Livingstone, I presume" when he traced down the Scottish explorer after a long trek into the interior. Indeed, Tanzania was a magnet for several Victorian explorers who made epic journeys of discovery in search of the source of the Nile.

Today's visitors are able to explore the country with none of the hardship but all of the adventure of those early pioneers. The lodges and tented camps are small but luxurious and each has its own distinct character, providing a tailor-made and personal service- the perfect bases for unforgettable safaris!