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Day 1-3: Arusha Hotel (Half Board)
After a warm welcome at Kilimanjaro Airport, transfer to your hotel to relax and get ready for your safari!
Day 2 & 3: Tarangire National Park (Full Board)
Head off away from the main safari route of the northern circuit, to Tarangire National Park, a true wildlife gem known primarily for its vast elephant population and impressive baobab trees.
During the dry season (June to September) thousands of animals including elephant, buffalo, giraffe, wildebeest, kudu, and the rarely seen oryx migrate from the dry Maasai steppe to the Tarangire River in search of water.
Lion, leopard and other predators follow, so be sure to charge your camera battery as some unique memories are waiting to be made. With impressive landscapes dominated by baobab trees, an enormous elephant population and over 550 varieties of bird, Tarangire offers secluded game viewing and loads of game. Spend the days enjoying game drives, with picnic lunch included.
Day 4: Manyara & Ngorongoro Crater (Full Board)
Enjoy another morning game drive in Tarangire before heading to the highlands of Karatu, stopping on the way to view Manyara and the escarpment below.
The afternoon is spent in the Ngorongoro Crater, one of the natural wonders of the world. The volcanic caldera of Ngorongoro offers spectacular game viewing in the crater. We can almost guarantee you four of the Big Five will show up, as well as a rich variety of birds, all viewed against the backdrop of the thickly forested crater walls. Varied terrains and dramatic landscapes consisting of forest, grasslands and both freshwater and soda lakes make the Ngorongoro Crater a true marvel of creation.
NB. On some Essence of Tanzania itineraries, your crater visit may take place on day 5, in the morning. The timing of this activity will be confirmed by your guide when commencing this safari.
Day 5 - 7: Serengeti National Park (Full Board)
Continue onto the Serengeti, home to more than three million large mammals spread over vast endless plains. It is here that we may encounter the fascinating spectacle of the annual wildebeest migration, where one and quarter million wildebeest trek in columns of up to forty kilometers long in search of grazing, drawing with them plenty predators and numerous other species of game.
From January to March the herds can largely be found birthing their young in the southern area around Ndutu, before proceeding north through the centre and Western Corridor during June and July, eventually splitting to the west and north as they continue their way toward the Mara River. August to October sees dramatic river crossings which can only be considered Africa’s “greatest leap of faith”, before the herds return south in November to repeat this amazing instinctive procession all over again.
Overnight for 3 nights at one, or a combination of Serengeti Wilderness Camps (or similar) depending on the time of year.
Kukummi tip:
We highly recommend booking a Hot Air Balloon trip (optional extra).
A hot air balloon safari over one of Africa’s most famous and majestic national parks is not easily captured in words. The quiet of floating over plains, the exhilaration of climbing into the pink-blue of the early dawn on invisible currents, the breathless awe of peering over the basket’s edge at this vast swathe of wild Africa. Take off is at dawn and a champagne bush breakfast completes this must-do adventure.
Day 8: Arusha (Breakfast)
After breakfast, transfer to the airstrip for your return flight back to Arusha/ Kilimanjaro airport. It is an exceptionally scenic flight across the vast expanse of the Rift Valley escarpments and the highlands of Ngorongoro. (Depending on your preference, a road transfer is also possible) |
