Tours and Explorations
since 2009
Group Trips and custom Safaris - Led by brothers who love sharing places that have shaped them.
The 2027 Group Safari · October 12–23 is filling up now
The Why
We believe travel, when done right, has the power to expand our worlds, shake us from our ruts, and connect us deeply to each other and the earth. All safari companies will show you the Serengeti, but these trips are often consumed through a window. We invite you to come with us beyond the air conditioned window view into something more immersive, more powerfully wild, and more authentic. We do this by limiting our trips to 12 guests, relying on decades of relationships on the ground, and carefully crafting itineraries to go to our favorite places.
Transforming
A single adventure can impact your entire life.
Inspiring
Traveling sparks curiosity and cultivates wonder.
Grounding
Experiencing new places and meeting new people keeps us rooted.
Meet
Organizing and guiding since 2009
Jesse and Trevor grew up in the highlands of East Africa, spent their high school years on Portugal's Atlantic coast, and eventually found their way to California for college. Along the way, they built deep ties to people and places around the world and learned to move comfortably between the cultures and countries they have called home. They know what it means to chase adventure, and they design trips that blend outrageous fun, wild new places, and always, well made mixed drinks.
Jesse is a conservation ecologist with a PhD in interdisciplinary ecology and more than a decade of experience leading expeditions across East Africa, Central America, and the Arabian Peninsula. Trevor has been organizing trips and guiding groups in East Africa and Portugal since he was 19. After bikepacking across Europe and Mexico, backpacking through the Rift Valley, and motorcycling across much of East Africa, he is an expert at building adventures that are both distinctive and seamless. Together, they have traveled across six continents and lived long term on three, bringing the kind of insight you cannot find in a brochure and the kind of care that makes it feel like traveling with family.
When you travel with Old Mountain, you are not handing your trip to a company; you are joining an adventure with expert guides who are excited to share places and experiences that have shaped their lives. They will make sure you have what you need through every step and come home knowing you did it right.
Co-Founder
Jesse Borden
Co-Founder
Trevor Borden
The 2027 Group Trip:
Come experience a land we've called home
From the ancient traditions of the Hadzabe to the vast Serengeti plains, from the Ngorongoro Crater to the Mara River in the Northern Serengeti — this journey is designed around what Old Mountain believes is the very best Tanzania has to offer. Built by people who call Africa home, it's an epic, deeply considered experience you can feel confident in.
October 12 – 23, 2027
11
Days in the wild
4
Iconic regions
12
Seats available
I can't imagine a better opportunity than getting to go on a wild adventure that will stretch you, getting to do that alongside like-minded travelers, and being led by an amazing family who calls the area their home and knows how to make the most of the time spent adventuring.
Liz T. · Group Traveler · 2009
This journey reflects what we love most about Africa: being out in it up close, on the ground, under the stars, and falling asleep to the sounds beyond the tent. It also celebrates Africa's beauty from extraordinary, deeply comfortable places.
We'll be partnering with Dorobo Safaris, our primary on the ground operator, because they are rooted in this landscape and lead with a rare balance of expertise, respect for local communities, and genuinely soulful guiding. Together, we've curated the full spectrum - from tented walking experiences and community connection in the Manyara ecosystem to epic lodges, vast vistas, and unforgettable sundowners - so guests feel the true breadth of Africa.
Specific itinerary details are subject to change based on availability, travel dates, and group size.
Arrival into Tanzania
A Dorobo driver will meet you at the airport and transfer you to your accommodation on the outskirts of Arusha City for the night. Settle in, breathe the African air, and let the journey begin.
Overnight: Tumbili Lodge · 1 Night
Manyara Ranch
Enjoy a relaxed morning with trip orientations and getting to know your guides, before you begin your journey to the Manyara ecosystem, arriving at Dorobo Pioneer Camp on the ranch.
You will have two nights and a full day for Manyara activities. The area offers lots of flexibility — walking, game drives, and night drives. Maasai from neighboring communities will be with you in camp, acting as your local guides and hosts. There are options for visiting a nearby Maasai community to see how they live.
Overnight: Dorobo Pioneer Camp · 2 Nights
Yaeda Valley & the Hadzabe
Make your way out of Manyara and up through the Great Rift Valley, ending in the Yaeda Valley — home of the Hadzabe hunter-gatherers.
You will have a full day for Hadza activities. Hadza guides and hosts will be with you in camp, and you can visit one of the nearby Hadza camps to get a glimpse of everyday life — one of the last hunter-gatherer peoples on earth.
Overnight: Dorobo Pioneer Camp · 2 Nights
Ngorongoro Highlands
After a final morning in the Yaeda Valley, make your way up into the Ngorongoro Highlands. You will enter the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and travel along the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater to your accommodation for the night.
You will have two nights and a full day to explore the World Heritage Site — the Ngorongoro Crater — a natural amphitheater teeming with wildlife, including the Big Five.
Overnight: Lionspaw Lodge · 2 Nights
Into the Serengeti
Drop off the Ngorongoro Highlands and cross the short-grass plains as you make your way into the Serengeti. This will be a full day of wildlife viewing, exploring the diverse habitats and wildlife of the park as you go, arriving at Awali Serengeti Camp in the heart of the Central Serengeti.
Overnight: Awali Serengeti Camp · 1 Night
Northern Serengeti
Continue north through the Serengeti with a full day of wildlife viewing as you make your way toward the Mara River, where you will be based at Esirai Migration Camp for the next two nights.
You will have two nights and two full days to explore the Northern Serengeti. During this time of year, the migration of wildebeest, zebra, and gazelle moves through the region toward the Mara River, offering extraordinary wildlife viewing — and the chance to witness dramatic river crossings.
Overnight: Esirai Migration Camp · 2 Nights
Homeward
You will have a last couple of hours of wildlife viewing before catching a late-morning flight from the Serengeti back to Arusha. In Arusha, a driver will be waiting to pick you up and transfer you to Tumbili Lodge, where you will have a room to repack and freshen up. After lunch, you will be transferred to the international airport to catch your departing flight home.
Day Room & Lunch: Tumbili Lodge
Where you'll be sleeping
Night 1 & Day 11
Tumbili Lodge
Arusha
View photos
Nights 2 – 5
Dorobo Pioneer Camp
Manyara Ranch & Yaeda Valley
View photos
Nights 6 – 7
Lionspaw Lodge
Ngorongoro
View photos
Night 8
Awali Serengeti Camp
Central Serengeti
View photos
Nights 9 – 10
Esirai Migration Camp
Northern Serengeti
View photos
2027 Expedition
One itinerary, two straightforward ways to book. Reserve your spot at our standard flat rate, or book as a pair and receive our couple rate. Pricing is per person and all-inclusive for the full 11-day expedition, excluding international flights.
What's not included
Flat Rate · 2027
Standard Booking
For solo travelers or anyone booking independently.
per person, all-inclusive
Save your spotCouple Rate · 2027
Book as a pair
For two travelers booking together on the same reservation.
per person within the couple, all-inclusive
Save your spotPrivate expeditions tailored for you
Crafted around your interests and your pace
Not interested in traveling with a group? That is more than fine. Custom trip planning is one of our joys: getting to know you and helping craft an experience around your interests and your pace — that work has its own kind of reward for us. Whether you are on your own, with a partner, or bringing your own group, we are glad to help — and we will design around your budget, not the other way around.
100%
Tailored design
365
Dates we can plan for
1
Private party focus
How it works
Share your budget & vision
Tell us your timeline, group size, interests, and what you are comfortable spending. Every custom trip starts here — there is no one-size-fits-all price because there is no one-size-fits-all trip.
We design your itinerary
Jesse and Trevor craft a route around your priorities — lodges, walking, community time, migration season, pace, and more.
Review and refine together
You get a detailed proposal with transparent line items. We adjust until the trip feels right for you and your budget.
Travel with guides you trust
Same hands-on guidance as our group expeditions — expert, personal, and rooted in places we know deeply.
I would utterly and completely recommend Old Mountain. We wouldn't have known a thing about what we were doing, and they were so incredibly kind to build our itinerary. It was perfect — such an amazing trip. It's wonderful to have the inside scoop from people who have lived there, who know the culture, and who can open your eyes to so much more than what you could ever see on your own.
Susie E. · Private Trip Client · 2015