Little Chem Chem
Little Chem Chem Is A Luxurious Tented Camp Located In A Private Concession Bordering Tarangire National Park.
Little Chem Chem is located in the 20,000 hectare privately managed Burunge Wildlife Management Area, which stretches between Lake Manyara and Tarangire National Park. Whilst sister lodge Chem Chem, located on the Lake Manyara side of the concession, is very suited to a more relaxed and luxurious stay, Little Chem Chem is ideal if you wish to combine a high level of exclusivity and comfort with a more traditional game viewing focus. The camp’s location enjoys the best of both the private concession with a wider range of activities offered, while being able to access Tarangire National Park. The camp itself is very comfortable, with high levels of service and food, and it has a lovely outlook over Lake Barunge. Little Chem Chem is a perfect base for a relaxed and exclusive exploration of the Tarangire area.
Rooms
Accommodation is provided for a maximum of 14 guests in six luxurious tents, all built at ground level with views out across the plains. Each stylish tent has a portable air conditioning unit, standing fans, mosquito nets, hairdryer, fridge, coffee machine, USB charging facilities and power points, “gym-in-a-basket”, en suite plumbed facilities (flush toilet, vanity, indoor and outdoor showers) and is very comfortably furnished with a small outside verandah, safari chairs and loungers. One of the tents is a family tent including two en suite rooms linked internally
Central Areas
The central areas of the camp are spread out between three separate tents to offer guests flexibility and privacy as required, with all meals served individually. There is a swimming pool and to the left of the central area, there is also a small spa tent.
Facilities
Wi-Fi – Yes
Power for Charging – Yes
Swimming Pool – Yes
Habitat and Wildlife
Little Chem Chem is located in the the 20,000 hectare Chem Chem-Burunge Wildlife Management Area between Lake Manyara and Tarangire National Park. The concession is bisected by the main Arusha to Dodoma road with sister lodge Chem Chem Lodge being located on the Lake Manyara side of the concession, and Little Chem Chem being on the Tarangire side of the concession, bordering the north west edge of Tarangire National Park and close to Lake Burunge.
The Burunge Wildlife Management Area is part of the Kwakuchinja Corridor, a vital area for wildlife linking Lake Manyara and Tarangire National Parks. When Chem Chem first established itself, the land had suffered many years of poaching, over-grazing, deforestation and illegal settlements. Chem Chem began a journey of restoring the area through conservation and community empowerment.
Tarangire is one of the more recently established wildlife sanctuaries, a 4,160 sq. km National Park which is often overlooked by travellers in their quest to see the Ngorongoro Crater and Serengeti. In the dry season (July to October), the Tarangire River is the main water source in the region and it attracts large concentrations of animals. The nine distinct vegetational zones within the park include savannah, woodland, riverine grasslands and the swamps in the south-eastern section. In the northern section, great baobabs dominate the undulating countryside – very picturesque.
The area supports a wide diversity of animals including elephant, buffalo, giraffe, lesser kudu, lion, leopard, wild dog, Grant’s gazelle, wildebeest, Coke’s hartebeest (kongoni), zebra, eland, waterbuck, dik dik and reedbuck. On rocky outcrops, keep a special lookout for rock hyrax and klipspringer. Tarangire is also one of the few places in Tanzania where oryx can be seen. The park has long been associated with the Tanzania Bird Atlas and a phenomenal 550 plus species have been recorded with a good cross-section of species found in the various habitats. Tsetse fly do occur in Tarangire and can be particularly bad during the wetter periods (November to March).
Activities
Whilst the camp borders Tarangire National Park, the flexibility offered in the private concession means that most activities take place outside the park. These include game drives (by day and night), sunset drinks overlooking Lake Burunge, guided walks and community visits just outside the concession, led by the local Maasai. Day time game drives in Tarangire National Park are also offered and hot air balloon safaris are possible at additional cost. Game drives are in open vehicles with a private guide and vehicle for each booking. Guests at both Little Chem Chem and sister camp Forest Chem Chem can use the sunken photography hide or the raised viewing platform built around a baobab tree, both which overlook a watering hole on the concession and which add an extra dimension to wildlife viewing.
Seasons
Little Chem Chem is open from mid-May through to the end of March each year, though game viewing in Tarangire is best from late June to October.
The camp accepts children from the age of eight years and the family tent sleeps up to two adults and three children in two bedrooms that are internally connected.
The Burunge Wildlife Management Area is part of the Kwakuchinja Corridor, a vital area for wildlife linking Lake Manyara and Tarangire National Parks. When Chem Chem first established itself, the land had suffered many years of poaching, over-grazing, deforestation and illegal settlements. Chem Chem began a journey of restoring the area through conservation and community empowerment and wildlife is slowing returning to the area, including healthy populations of elephant and giraffe.
Chem Chem Association is a non-profit organisation which serves as the vehicle for wildlife protection and restoration and rural community upliftment in this crucial ecosystem. Conservation initiatives include the support of a joint anti-poaching team and the setting up of mobile anti-poaching camps that move through the protected wildlife area on foot and by vehicle to patrol and protect wildlife.
In 2023, the Chem Chem Association embarked on an ambitious African conservation project to establish the Joint Monitoring and Protection Centre (JMPC) in collaboration with the Tanzanian government. The first of its kind in Tanzania, the JMPC oversees all conservation activities within the Kwakuchinja Wildlife Corridor (Corridor), providing essential protection and monitoring capacity through its digital infrastructure. Its impact extends far beyond the Corridor’s boundaries, as the JMPC is set to serve as a hub for integrating and centralising all conservation data in Tanzania.
Chem Chem’s community empowerment projects aim to uplift communities through alternative income-generating pathways, education, and social initiatives — ultimately improving people’s lives and incentivising the conservation of wildlife. Within the local area the association supports several educational initiatives including upgrading local public school infrastructure, providing educational materials, donating a school bus and providing inspiring and engaging environmental education to students across 10 villages.
In partnership with Hand in Hand International and Hand in Hand Tanzania, the association provides entrepreneurial and financial training to community members across local villages, providing them with the tools they need to start and grow small businesses. The impact of this initiative includes the launch of 2,077 small businesses and the creation of over 3,000 jobs, which in turn increases income for the local communities by 30%.
Guests staying in any of Chem Chem’s lodges contribute to local community development and conservation initiatives through the nightly conservation and community fees. Guests can also choose to get directly involved by visiting the local school, take a guided village tour and learn more about the local culture and supportive work being done.
