Lodges & partnersKogatende Northern Serengeti (Mara River)
Ten canvas tents rebuilt in the far north each June, ten minutes from the Kogatende airstrip and a short drive from the Mara River banks.
About
Siringit Migration Camp is a mobile camp, taken down and rebuilt twice a year to stay with the wildebeest. From the first of June to the end of October it stands at Kogatende, in the far north of the Serengeti, within reach of the stretch of the Mara River where the herds gather on the banks and eventually cross. The camp is about ten minutes from the Kogatende airstrip, which matters here, because the north is a long way from anywhere by road and almost everyone arrives by light aircraft.
The river is the reason to be here. From around July the herds build up along the southern bank in numbers that are hard to describe, and the crossings happen when they happen, which can be a morning of waiting followed by ten minutes of chaos. Crocodile lie in the river below the crossing points and lion wait in the scrub above them. Between crossings the northern plains hold resident game of their own, and the country is more broken and green than the south, with rocky ridges and riverine woodland.
There are ten tents at the Kogatende site, hand stitched in Tanzania and raised on wooden platforms, each with a sitting area, a private veranda and an en suite bathroom with a double vanity, hot water on demand and a flush toilet. Power and hot water are solar. There is a dining tent, a lounge tent with books and board games, and a fire outside. Two tents interlink to make a family unit. Menus are built for the collection by a chef with a Michelin background, and a full day at the river usually means lunch packed out with you.
It suits travellers whose trip is built around the crossings, photographers, and couples who would rather be in a small camp than a permanent lodge. It suits families through the interlinked tents. It is less suited to anyone wanting a pool or a spa, because a camp that moves twice a year carries none of that.
Kogatende is effectively a fly in destination. The flight from Arusha takes about an hour and a half, often with a stop or two on the way, and the drive from Arusha is a full day and then some, which is why it is rarely sold as a road transfer.
Signature experiences
Waiting on the bank with the herds building above the water. Nobody can promise a crossing on a given day, but this is the stretch of river and these are the months when they happen.
On a full day at the crossing points the camp packs a proper lunch rather than sending a box, so you can stay out rather than drive back and lose the afternoon.
Everything here folds and travels, from the furniture to the tents, so the camp stands where the herds are that season rather than where a building happens to be.
Gallery
Room types
A hand stitched canvas tent on a raised platform, with a sitting area, a private veranda and an en suite bathroom with a double vanity, hot water on demand and a flush toilet. Made up as a double or a twin, and the camp publishes its own rate for one guest in a tent. Two tents interlink to make a family unit.
At a glance
Best time to visit
Best months: June to October.
Location & access
Kogatende Northern Serengeti (Mara River)
About 3 hours in total. Roughly 45 minutes by road from Kilimanjaro International Airport to Arusha Airport, about 1 hour 30 minutes in a light aircraft to Kogatende airstrip, often with a stop or two on the way, then about 10 minutes by road to camp. Bush flights carry a soft bag limit of around 15 kg.
Kogatende is a fly in destination. By road from Kilimanjaro International Airport it is a very long day, well over twelve hours through Arusha, Karatu, the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and the length of the Serengeti, and it is not normally sold as a road transfer. Guests who drive the northern circuit usually drive one way and fly the other.
On the map
1.601° S, 34.888° E
What's included
Frequently asked
The Kogatende site stands from the first of June to the end of October. For the rest of the year the camp is either packed down or standing at Ndutu in the south for the calving season.
Ten, all to the same standard and all en suite. Two of them interlink to make a family unit.
By air. The flight from Arusha to Kogatende airstrip takes about an hour and a half, often with a stop on the way, and camp is about ten minutes from the strip. The road from Arusha is a full day and more, so it is rarely used.
Nobody can promise one. The herds gather on the Mara River banks from around July into October and cross when they choose, sometimes after hours of waiting and sometimes not at all on a given day. Three nights gives you a fair chance of several mornings at the river.
Yes. Children of all ages are welcome under their parents supervision. Children from six to seventeen pay half the adult rate when they share a tent with an adult, and children under six sharing with adults are accommodated in a cot at no charge. Two tents interlink for a family.
Full board, which is breakfast, lunch and dinner, along with laundry, wireless internet, the one percent Tourism Development Levy and VAT. Camping fees and park entry fees are paid at the gate, and game drives and transport are itemised separately in your trip price.
Power and hot water are solar, and there is wireless internet in camp. The far north is remote and the connection is not something to rely on, so tell anyone at home that you may be hard to reach.
Unfenced, with security on site through the night and a member of staff to walk you between your tent and the dining tent after dark. Game moves through camp, and hyena and lion are often audible from bed.
No. A tent takes two adults, and one child may share with them. The camp prints no rate for a third adult, so we do not sell that shape rather than guess at a price.
It is the same camp in a different place. Kogatende is the Mara River crossing season in the north from June to October. Ndutu is the calving season in the south from January to March. Each site has its own rate.
What's nearby
A short drive from camp. The herds choose their own places and their own hour, so most guests give it a full morning.
The country between the Mara River and the Kenyan border, quieter than the southern bank and good for resident game between crossings.
Balloons fly from the Kogatende area in season, following the river at first light.
Nearby
The Kogatende Northern Serengeti (Mara River) guide: where to stay, when to go and how to get there.
View : Every lodge we work with in Kogatende Northern Serengeti (Mara River)
Plan this stay
Build your bespoke Tanzania safari with our team. Real lodge rates and itemised pricing throughout.
Opens for stays from 1 Jun 2027
