Rivertrees Country Inn | Hide & Seek Luxury Travel

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Coffee failed here, on a plantation on the lower slopes of Mount Meru outside Arusha, and Martina Trappe, who had come to the farm with her firstborn and stayed, did the practical thing: she converted two bedrooms in the farmhouse and began taking in travellers. The inn grew from there, until it reached the river. Among the places we know on this road, it is the one people are sorriest to leave. The coffee is gone. The habit of looking after people, which the coffee paid for first, is not.

Plan your journey

Location

The Usa River runs through the grounds, and the tall forest along its banks accounts for most of what you will notice. Black-and-white colobus are in those trees most mornings, the Kilimanjaro guereza with the long white tail, and blue monkeys with them. The same canopy keeps the insects about and the rooms shaded.

What the position buys instead is direction: the run to Kilimanjaro International goes east, away from the city and its traffic. The mountain is out that way as well, though it is something you get up for.

Rooms

Nobody drew a hierarchy here. The Farm House came first because it was already standing, and the first two rooms the inn ever let were bedrooms inside it. Everything else arrived outward from that house as the business grew, and reached the riverbank last.

The Farm House still reads as the family home it was, old portraits included, and its four en suite rooms each open to the outside by their own door. There is a great deal of veranda. Take one, or take the house.

Out on the lawns, the Garden Rooms are each furnished to their own taste. Several adjoin, in twos and in threes, and one configuration takes four. Rooms are matched to people by the reservations team, not assigned by category.

Two River Cottages stand apart in thicket above the bank, the only accommodation here conceived as accommodation, and it shows: terraces opening into forest, showers open to the sky, fireplaces that stop being ornamental in July.

The River House is genuinely a house. Two bedrooms, a living room, and a veranda wrapping round above the water.

Communal Areas

People who live round here eat at Rivertrees. The restaurant and bar are open all day, and the neighbourhood treats them as its own.

It is worth the wait. The food is excellent, and the herbs in the tea were picked in the garden. Coffee comes from the surrounding highlands, as it must, since the estate’s own crop is long gone. The wine list leans South African, with a couple of Tanzanian labels and the local beers on tap.

There is no dining room as such. You eat under the trees on the lawn, on the deck built out over the river, beside the fire indoors, or in the old Farm House.

The rest is what a country inn ought to have and no more: a pool, a bar, a library, a shop and a spa.

Activities

A guide walks the river at no charge, and that is the only activity happening on the property’s own ground. There is a bike ride as well, a couple of hours with one of the local guides, pitched at whatever legs you brought. Everything else is booked rather than run, and most of it means Arusha National Park, which is close. There are no lion in there, and that absence is exactly why you are allowed to walk in it and paddle across its lakes.

Bed & Breakfast

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When to go

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DRY SEASON

A brief dry interlude before the 'long rains' in March, April and May.

Tanzania’s proximity to the equator means that its temperatures remain fairly consistent throughout the year. The main variable is altitude, which varies greatly across Tanzania. With the exception of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, daytime temperatures are warm to hot throughout the year. Mornings can be cool, so we always recommend bringing a warm fleece, especially if you intend to visit an inland safari region.

There are two wet seasons in Tanzania. The first, known as the ‘long rains’, takes place between March and May, while the ‘short rains’ take place between November and December and are much milder. Exceptions to this are found in the southern and western safari regions, where there is a more continuous wet season from November through to May.

Choosing the best time for a safari in Tanzania ultimately depends on the experience you are seeking. Generally, the Northern Circuit parks (The Serengeti, Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Lake Manyara) are good year-round. Tarangire is an exception in the Northern Circuit; along with the Selous and Ruaha (Southern Circuit) and Katavi and Mahale (Western Circuit), Tarangire is generally at its best during the dry season. Saadani is best visited after the wet seasons, when the plains are well watered. Coastal and island destinations are at their best during the dry season, when the weather is sunnier and more consistent.

DRY SEASON

A brief dry interlude before the 'long rains' in March, April and May.

DRY TO WET SEASON TRANSITION

The beginning and end of the rains varies each year, but generally, this period is the wettest time of the year. Travel to and from lodges is potentially difficult at times. This wet season is often characterised by overcast skies and consecutive days of rain.

WET SEASON - 'LONG RAINS'

This period is the wettest time of the year, and is often characterised by overcast skies and consecutive days of rain. Travel to and from lodges is potentially difficult at times.

WET SEASON - 'LONG RAINS'

This period is the wettest time of the year, and is often characterised by overcast skies and consecutive days of rain. Travel to and from lodges is potentially difficult at times.

DRY SEASON