Ultimate Tanzania

Arrival in Arusha

Welcome to Tanzania. Upon arrival in Arusha, a local representative will be waiting for you at the airport. You’ll transfer to your comfortable hotel with uninterrupted views of Mount Meru, the second-highest mountain in Tanzania after Mount Kilimanjaro. The rest of the day is free to relax ahead of your safari adventure. Overnight at Mount Meru Hotel (or similar).

Things to do:

Optional

Explore Arusha, the gateway to the north

Arusha & Tarangire

After breakfast, head off on a tour of Arusha National Park, dominated by a beautiful backdrop of Mount Meru. Although often overlooked, this park is filled with wildlife, alkaline lakes and waterfall-peppered forests. Game drives feel wild and untamed here. You’ll visit the volcanic Ngurudoto Crater and the Momella lakes, home to a wealth of water birds including flamingos, Egyptian geese, and fowls. Return to Arusha for lunch, then drive for 2.5-hours to Tarangire National Park. You’ll enjoy a game drive on the way to your lodge, which blends harmoniously with its surroundings amidst grassland and ancient baobab trees. Overnight at Tarangire Sopa Lodge (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

Discover Tarangire, land of elephants and baobabs

Tarangire

Today you’ll explore Tarangire, Tanzania’s sixth-largest national park. The landscape is a mix of woodland, lakes and swamps and is covered in striking baobab trees. Tarangire is most famous for its vast elephant population, but the park is also home to all kinds of animals, from herds of zebra, impala and gazelle to big cats and rare species like oryx, gerenuk and wild dogs. Also keep an eye out for the park’s tree-climbing lions. You’ll enjoy morning and late afternoon game drives, with time to relax at the lodge in between. Overnight at Tarangire Sopa Lodge (or similar).

Tarangire & Lake Eyasi

After breakfast, drive for 3.5-hours to Lake Eyasi, a scenic soda lake on the southern border of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. As well as flocks of great white pelicans and yellow-billed storks, the region is home to some of Tanzania’s most ancient tribes who cling to their centuries-old hunter-gatherer traditions. Here you’ll meet the people of the Nilotic-speaking Datoga tribe, visiting their homesteads and learning about their fascinating way of life. You’ll spend the night at a natural safari camp with simple thatched tents, on a 200-acre family-owned farm on the edge of the lake. Overnight at Kisima Ngeda Camp (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

Visit Lake Eyasi and its ancient Datoga community

Lake Eyasi & Ngorongoro

Today you’ll visit a local village to meet the nomadic Hadzabe tribe, who depend on foraging for plants and hunting small game such as squirrels to survive. You’ll learn about their history, culture and daily life, including how to use traditional handmade bows. You’ll then drive for 1.5-hours over the Ngorongoro Highlands to your lodge, located on the western rim of the Ngorongoro Crater. Enjoy lunch, with glorious views over the crater, followed by an afternoon of relaxation at the lodge. Overnight at Ngorongoro Serena Lodge (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

Crater rim views at Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge

✓  Included

Meet the Hadzabe community

Ngorongoro

Wake early for breakfast before descending 600 metres into the Ngorongoro Crater, an ancient volcanic amphitheatre that’s home to over 30,000 animals. Within the steep walls of this UNESCO World Heritage Site there’s the opportunity of spotting big cats, spotted hyenas, giant-tusked elephants or even endangered black rhinos who thrive here. Make the most of this unique location with a full-day game drive, including a lovely picnic lunch on the crater floor. Overnight at Ngorongoro Serena Lodge (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

Crater rim views at Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge

✓  Included

The Ngorongoro crater picnic

Ngorongoro & Central Serengeti

Leaving Ngorongoro after breakfast, drive for 3.5-hours to the world-famous Serengeti National Park, visiting Olduvai Gorge en route. This steep-sided ravine is one of the world’s richest and best preserved archaeological and paleontological sites. Stay in the heart of the Serengeti, in a lodge inspired by traditional African villages. The two-storey stone rondavels have thatched roofs, like a Maasai house. Spend the remainder of the day unwinding and enjoying panoramic views across the grasslands. Overnight at Serengeti Serena Lodge (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

Discover the Cradle of Mankind at Olduvai Gorge

✓  Included

Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge: the traditional African-style safari lodge

Central Serengeti

Today you’ll enjoy a full day game drive in the Serengeti, but first there’s the opportunity to take a thrilling hot-air balloon safari to gain a whole new perspective of the landscape. Wake early and watch as the balloon is prepared, then take flight and drift upwards as the sun rises. The bright pink-orange haze is visible for miles across the vast savannah, as wildlife roam below. After breakfast, head into the national park in search of the big cats, rhino, buffalo and giraffe that inhabit its vast open plains. Enjoy a delicious picnic lunch while admiring the monumental panorama and seemingly endless horizon. Overnight at Serengeti Serena Lodge (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

Spend a day exploring the world-famous Serengeti

✓  Included

Serengeti Serena Safari Lodge: the traditional African-style safari lodge

Optional

Fly high above the Serengeti on a hot air balloon safari

Central Serengeti & Serengeti Western Corridor

The Serengeti is broadly divided into four areas, with the annual great wildebeest migration passing through at different times of year. Today you’ll get to appreciate the vastness of the park on a leisurely 1.5-hour game drive on the way to the Serengeti’s famous western corridor. Arrive in time for lunch at your charming camp, with panoramic views of the Serengeti plains and the seasonal Mbalageti River. The afternoon will be spent on a game drive exploring a region boasting one of the highest densities of wildlife in the world. Overnight at Mbalageti Serengeti (or similar).

Serengeti Western Corridor

Head out on a full-day game drive in the wildlife-rich western corridor, close to the Grumeti River. A protected UNESCO site, the Serengeti offers sightings of the Big Five in their fast-disappearing natural habitat and front-row seats to the Great Migration. A picnic will ensure that you make the most of the incredible wildlife-viewing opportunities, only returning to the lodge in time for sundowners at the end of a memorable day. Overnight at Mbalageti Serengeti (or similar).

Things to do:

Optional

Witness the world’s top wildlife show: the Great Migration

Serengeti Western Corridor & Lake Manyara

After breakfast, drive for 4.5-hours via the Ngorongoro Conservation Area to Lake Manyara. The lake draws over 400 species of bird, from hornbills to herons, but is also a sanctuary for plenty of other wildlife. Hundreds of hippo wallow in its depths, egrets perched on their protruding backs, and a cacophony of animals grace its banks. Arrive at your rustic-luxe lodge in the late afternoon, with time for a dip in the rim-flow pool, with stunning views over Lake Manyara. Overnight at Lake Manyara Kilimamoja Lodge (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

See tree-climbing lions and 400 species of birds at Lake Manyara

Lake Manyara

Set off on a half-day game drive through Lake Manyara National Park, an impressive landscape mixing dense forest, small open plains, and lush waterside grasses. Search for buffalo, hippos, elephants, flamingos and the tree-climbing lions that the park is famous for. After lunch, visit the colourful market town of Mto wa Mbu which has been used as a trading post by local tribes for centuries. It’s the only place where you can hear the four major African language groups spoken in the same area. Learn all about the town, and its residents, on a guided tour visiting local homes, farmlands, a school and a church. Overnight at Lake Manyara Kilimamoja Lodge (or similar).

Things to do:

✓  Included

Experience real Tanzanian village life in Mto wa Mbu

Lake Manyara & Departure

Drive for 2 hours back to Arusha for lunch, then transfer to the airport for your return flight to the UK or onward travel.