our story

What makes our story unique is that it is rooted in a lifelong passion for safari and the wilderness. Marc’s journey began in the late 1970s when, as a teenager, he spent holidays with his family and friends in private mobile camps in the Maasai Mara. Those early adventures were nothing short of magical, sparking a love for Africa’s game parks and a deep appreciation for experiencing nature in comfort, yet in its most authentic form.

In 2004, Marc and his wife Mia transformed this passion into a vision and founded Intimate Places by taking on the lease of Mount Meru Game Lodge & Sanctuary. Their goal was simple yet powerful: to share Tanzania’s breathtaking landscapes and wildlife through warm hospitality and truly personal safari experiences.

Two years later, fate brought Peter into their story. At the time, he was driving a lorry for a company specialising in mobile camps; work that gave him both practical bush experience and an undeniable passion for safari life. By good fortune, Marc and Mia employed him as a resupply driver for the lodge, a role he carried out with dedication throughout 2006 and much of 2007. When Intimate Places took the decision to expand into luxury mobile camping, Peter’s enthusiasm was immediate. His hands-on experience, reliability, and love of the wilderness made him a natural partner in this new chapter.

At the time of receiving their very first camping guests, Marc was unexpectedly called to Europe following the passing of his father. Peter stepped forward and volunteered to manage the camp in his absence. Despite the difficult circumstances, he rose to the challenge and when Marc returned, he was delighted to be greeted by glowing reviews from both the tour operator concerned and their clients.

From that moment, momentum grew quickly. More bookings followed, and Peter’s role evolved from Camps Supervisor to Camps Manager, and eventually to Operations Director of the company. To this day, Marc laughs that he has never managed the day-to-day operations of a mobile camp. Peter has always been the man on the ground. As Marc puts it, “while I may have taught Peter a great deal about hotelkeeping generally, he too has taught me a great deal about managing the logistics of running mobile camps!”

Through their strong relationship, Marc invited Peter to become partner in the ownership of Intimate Places. A philosophy that has always been important  for Marc and Mia is to invest in both the economy and the people of Tanzania. They take pride in having created a Tanzanian-run and partially Tanzanian-owned mobile camp business. Staying true to this vision, Intimate Places works with locally sourced materials and continues to employ and empower local staff thereby ensuring that every guest’s experience supports the people and communities who make Tanzania so extraordinary.