Itinerary

1. Day 1: Arrival in Arusha

   • Upon arrival at the Airport, you will be met by your driver/guide and transferred to the Lemala Hamerkop House for dinner and overnight. Settle into your accommodation, ready to start your safari proper in the morning.

2. Day 2: Arusha to Tarangire National Park

   • You have a hearty, satisfying breakfast at your hotel after a restful night, and then you head out to explore the Tarangire National Park, a birdwatcher’s paradise. With over 550 different species of birds, Tarangire has the most breeding species of any one location in the world in its marshes. It’s impossible to leave if you love birds. There are hundreds of migratory birds to see, including the striking flocks of yellow-collared lovebirds, the rufous-tailed weaver, the northern pied babbler, and the red-and-yellow barbet (pictured above; you’ll recognize him immediately!).

     Amongst the birds you can sit back and watch the parade of animals for which Tarangire is famous: these include the stately elephant, powerful lion, giraffe, graceful impala, cheetah, mongoose, buffalo, and baboons.

     After feasting your eyes on this glorious park’s diversity, you’ll head off and reach the Nimali Tarangire in the late afternoon.

3. Day 3: Lake Eyasi, Hadzabe & Datoga Tribes

   • After breakfast, you’ll depart for Lake Eyasi, The Hadzabe Tribe is the only tribe in Tanzania that speaks with a click AND remains hunter-gatherers to this day. With a population of roughly 1300, they live in the protected area so they can maintain their historic ways. They don’t speak English or Swahili either, which we found fascinating.

     After that, you’ll drive over to the Datoga Tribe, where you’ll sit with the wives and learn how they grind corn for their daily meals. You will be able to talk with them for a while via their guide and hear about their lives as they are so happy living in these simple huts, with no internet, no running water, and no modern luxuries.

     The men work as blacksmiths, and you can buy some pretty bracelets from them at the end of your tour. They make the perfect souvenirs! After your time there, late in the afternoon will proceed to

     Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge for dinner and overnight.

4. Day 4: Crater Hike then Serengeti National Park

   • After breakfast in the morning, we’ll head to the Serengeti National Park. We travel along the edge of the Ngorongoro Crater, so if you’re lucky, you might spot an unusual animal while traveling. The Serengeti, Tanzania’s oldest and most popular national park, is recognized for its yearly herd migration and constantly expanding wildlife population. It is also a world heritage site and was recently named one of the Seven Wonders of the World. We are going to have a picnic on one of the kopjes, or outcroppings of rock. Our game drive will venture further into the Serengeti National Park. After the game drive, we will proceed to Serengeti Migration Camp by Elewana for dinner and overnight.

     Optional Activities: Crater hikes.

5. Day 5: Serengeti National Park

   • An exciting experience awaits you wherever you look, as you awaken to the stunning pink and apricot African dawn in the heart of the Serengeti, a haven for avian and animal fans. There is a lot to see today, especially if you are visiting during migration season, so make sure you eat a hearty breakfast. The Great Migration of wildebeest and zebra, an amazing and well-known phenomenon, takes place in the Serengeti. However, you will still get up close and personal with a wide range of animals, including more than 70 species of large mammals, even outside of migration season. Within a few feet of your jeep, you will witness lions, leopards, elephants, cheetahs, and water buffalo. But there are others. The Serengeti is home to many other animals that are equally fascinating and beautiful.

     This is a dizzyingly active ecosystem and you’ll also marvel at eland, antelope, and Grant’s gazelle; hyenas and crocodiles; monkeys and baboons as well as hippos and rhinos. Birders will spot hundreds of bird species, both endemic and migrating from Eurasia. After a heady day enjoying the wildlife, relax with a drink while you watch the sunset and wait for your delicious dinner to be served at Serengeti Migration Camp by Elewana. Eat up – you’ve another amazing day tomorrow so you’ll need your strength!

     Optional Activity,

     Rise early for an unforgettable hot air balloon safari, followed by breakfast

6. Day 6: Serengeti to Ngorongoro Highlands (by road)

   • Having breakfast at your lodge or camp in the Serengeti, you will drive across the park on your last day. You will stop at Naabi Hill Gate to stretch your legs while your guide completes the necessary paperwork to allow you to enter the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCAA). After seeing some wildlife along the way, you will drive up the Malanja Depression. If you’d like, you can stop at a Maasai village to learn more about the customs and culture of the well-known Masai tribe of Tanzania and Kenya.

     You might also visit the Olduvai Gorge, a significant paleoanthropological site where Drs. Louis and Mary Leakey noticed fossils of the hominid Australopithecus Boisei, assisting the theory that a hominid—the Nutcracker Man—roaming the plains of Ngorongoro and Serengeti some 1.5 million years ago.

     Both Activities Masai Village & Olduvai Gorge an extra cost and are optional.

     You will check in at a lodge in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area for relaxation, dinner, and overnight.

     Overnight in Ngorongoro Lions Paw.

7. Day 7 (Ngorongoro Crater tour)

   • On this day, we will descend early in the morning to increase your chances of seeing animals like Black Rhinos, which can be very elusive during the day. They gather in rows along the roadside to graze but later seek refuge in forests like the Elerai Forest, which is found at the base of the Ngorongoro Crater, from the scorching African sun.

     Ngorongoro Crater a UNESCO World Heritage site and a Biosphere Reserve is the only place you can spot the Big Five in one day with a little bit of luck. You expect to see lions, leopards (very elusive too), Buffalos, Black Rhinos, elephants, cheetahs, Thompson Gazelles, Hartebeests, topis silver-backed jackals, caracals, and many more animals. Over 500 bird species have been spotted and recorded in the Ngorongoro too.

     Later in the afternoon, you will check in at the Neptune Ngorongoro Luxury Lodge which you will live to remember for a long time.

8. Day 8: Ngorongoro Crater to Arusha

   • In the morning after breakfast will depart from the hotel as and go for a game drive in the Ngorongoro Crater. We will enjoy a delicious picnic lunch inside the crater. Millions of years ago the crater was a massive volcano and specialists reckon that it would have been taller than Mount Kilimanjaro. The lofty composition of the crater encourages the animals to remain within the walls. This is advantageous for someone who aspires to spot each representative of ‘the big five. The blooming fauna and flora within the crater are simply remarkable and undoubtedly the reason the Ngorongoro Crater is ‘Africa’s Garden of Eden’. Storks, geese, and flamingos are always close to the Soda Lake. Your guide will use his impressive skills to locate hidden animals.

     Your trip will come to an end and you will be transferred to the Airport for your departure flight.

     Alternatively, continue to your booked hotel for an overnight stay at Arusha.

     End of tour.

     We hope you’ve had an unforgettable experience with us in the heart of Serengeti National Park. Safe travels, and we look forward to welcoming you back for more adventures in the future!