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Ruaha · Tanzania

Jabali Ridge

Eight rooms built into a granite kopje above Tanzania's wildest big-cat country

Safari Lodge ★★★★★ Ruaha National Park, southern Tanzania Seasonal opening
The setting of Jabali Ridge
Location image, not the property. Richard Mortel from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

Jabali Ridge is built into a granite kopje in Ruaha National Park, the enormous and still lightly visited reserve in southern Tanzania. The eight rooms are slotted between boulders and baobabs, each reached by a walkway, each open-fronted to a view across miombo woodland towards the Great Ruaha river.

Ruaha's reputation rests on predators. It holds one of the largest lion populations in Africa, with unusually big prides, along with a significant African wild dog population, leopard and cheetah. The park also sits at the meeting point of eastern and southern African species, so greater and lesser kudu, sable and roan all appear alongside more familiar game.

The lodge keeps things comparatively simple and contemporary - a pool cut into the rock, a spa treatment room, a shaded deck for long afternoons - and the emphasis stays firmly on guiding. Walking safaris, night drives in the surrounding area and fly-camping trips are offered, and the remoteness means vehicle traffic at sightings is minimal.

At a glance

What to expect

  • 8 open-fronted rooms
  • Rock-cut swimming pool
  • Spa treatment room
  • Game drives in Ruaha
  • Guided walking safaris
  • Fly-camping expeditions
  • Full board with house drinks
  • Airstrip transfers