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Conservation-focused luxury travel company andBeyond has announced its andBeyond Grumeti Serengeti Tented Camp in Tanzania’s Western Corridor will undergo an extensive rebuild and rebrand as andBeyond Grumeti Serengeti River Lodge.

Originally built in the 1990s, andBeyond Grumeti Serengeti Tented Camp was flooded in April 2020 after the Grumeti River burst its banks. The new lodge is slated to reopen on June 6, 2022, and sustainability will be key to its rebuild.

The new lodge will include a 130kWh solar system, which will allow it to run on 80 percent renewable energy. All hot water systems will also be replaced with new, energy efficient ones. Wastewater from the laundry will be recycled for other use and rainwater will be harvested for the swimming pools, while new technology will also be installed to monitor underground water levels and ensure borehole capacity is not exceeded.

The new lodge will use the existing footprint of the former structure to redefine the tented camp look in a form that will least impact the natural landscape. The main guest areas will form a single arc that will follow the contours of the river, creating a series of sitting and dining areas, providing shelter from the environment while retaining a wide open and natural feel.

Guest suites will more than double in size from the previous build, and feature deep baths and indoor showers, as well as extensive outdoor decks with private plunge pools. The rebuild will also bring a new family suite featuring an additional attached bedroom.

All buildings will be constructed from lightweight steel frames clad in canvas and sustainably sourced local hardwood. This will allow them to float over the landscape without the need for heavy concrete foundations and slabs, in keeping with andBeyond’s ethos of touching the earth lightly.

The form of the buildings will draw upon the manyattas, or circular homesteads, of the nomadic Maasai, which can be found across the plains of the Western Serengeti. While the color palette for the interiors will take inspiration from the tribe’s beaded necklaces and the kitenge fabrics found throughout Tanzania’s Great Lakes region.

For more information, visit andbeyond.com.