Day 1 - Arriving in Tanzania

Scenic Safari Flight and Park Transfer

Soaring across Tanzania you gasp at the wilderness below. It stretches uninterrupted, on and on and on across Africa. Savannah appears scorched, clumps of woodland attract elephants, and the sheer enormity brings freedom to the soul.Tanzania is fabulous when seen from above. Every single safari flight is a scenic flight, a chance to marvel at the scenery below. You will touch down in remote national parks, where the runway must be cleared of elephants or buffalo. Then fly on some more. A safari flight is also the best way to combine different parks without wasting time. So you can see and do more on your safari. And you don’t need to spend eight hours bumping along a hot and dusty road instead.

Day 2 - Lake Manyara

Lake Manyara Game Drive

Lake Manyara is a fabulous introduction to the African safari experience. Raucous baboons hoot from the trees, literally thousands of them battling over the same forest. Elephants greet you with a trumpeted call. Giraffe tower over the trees. Lake Manyara is a short drive from Arusha and a classic first stop on Tanzania’s Northern Circuit. You can do a game drive here at any time of day and encounter a stunning collection of species. Admire buffalo and gazelle for the first time. Drive past a lake filled with hippos. Discover tree-climbing lions, perhaps a dozen snoozing in the same tree. For a first day on safari it’s fabulous.

Day 3 - Tarangire

Tarangire Private Concession Safari

Unlike South Africa and Kenya, Tanzania does not have many private concessions. Tarangire is one of them, a place where you can enjoy a more exclusive safari.Access to private concessions is heavily restricted and there are strict rules on vehicles per animal sighting. So on this safari you can have all the elephants and herds to yourself. Less people and vehicles makes the landscape more attractive to reclusive animals, such as leopards. So you can see more, as well as getting closer by going off the trails. This Tarangire concession safari can be tailored to your interests, with a mix of drives and walks, along with evenings overlooking a popular waterhole.

Elewana Tarangire Treetops Safari Lodge

With treehouses connected by wooden boardwalks, deep inside Tarangire National Park, Treetops is one of Africa’s most inspiring lodges.The treehouses overlook a waterhole. All day and night you can watch the animals come to drink, especially the abundant elephant herds. The actual suites are comfortable and spacious, not quite as big as some in Tanzania. But luxury comes from the experience here. You are completely immersed in the wildlife world, every moment of the day.

Day 4 - Tarangire to Ngorongoro

Tarangire National Park Game Drive

Tarangire, landscape of baobabs and elephants, land of safari surprise and intimate encounters. Somehow, this incredible national park remains overlooked by most people coming to the north of Tanzania. Which means it will be quieter for you. Elephants move in massive herds, sometimes 50 of them marching past your vehicle. Leopards and cheetahs hide in high grass, hunting a myriad of antelope species. There are so many zebra you will stop noticing them. Explore Tarangire with an expert guide, on a game drive that can be tailored to your wildlife interests. Either loop around the highlights in half a day, or go off the main tracks for a day of safari excitement in elephant country.

Day 5 - Ngorongoro Crater

Ngorongoro Crater Game Drive

A lion pride greets you amid the morning mist. An elephant says hello, its tusks curling above your vehicle. Buffalo huff and puff as they march along. Now a hippo. And another. More than ten of them wade about a lake. Next a rhino, one of the few in East Africa, elegant and graceful as it marches around. You are in Ngorongoro Crater, one of the true wonders of the world, one of Africa’s ultimate safari stops. Over 30,000 animals congregate in the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera. They represent all the major species (bar giraffe) and you can get exceptionally close on this game drive.

Days 6 & 7 - Serengeti

Serengeti Multi-Day Game Drive Safari

Grass, everywhere. Lions lounging in the grass. Wildebeest scattered for miles across the grass. Zebra huddled together, a black and white mass contrasting the grass. Welcome to the Serengeti, where there are more large wild mammals than anywhere else on the planet. It’s an enormous grasslands so you can’t come for one day. On this multi-day safari you will follow the predators, as they follow gazelle and wildebeest across the magnificent site. Expect to see big cats multiple times each day. Plus giraffe, buffalo, elephants and more. You can’t leave your private vehicle in such dangerous territory but you can spend two to three days immersed in the greatest safari destination of all.

Serengeti Mobile Camping Wildebeest Migration Safari

Close to 2 million mammals migrate around the Serengeti grasslands, mostly wildebeest, zebra and Thomson’s gazelle. A mobile camping safari will place you centerstage in all drama and charm. Because where there are herds there are also predators. The animals are continually on the move to fresh pastures, so you need to safari in the right place at the right time. And that’s difficult because the animals move due to increasingly unpredictable weather.Enter a mobile camping safari. The luxurious camp moves with the herds, so you can be guaranteed of the best possible vantage points for the great wildebeest migration. Yes it is safe. And it’s seriously thrilling.

Meet a Traditional Maasai Community

A Maasai tribe comes out to greet you. The men spring up and down, in a show of jumping prowess. The women sing and dance. Colours invite you into the bomas, simple houses constructed from locally sourced materials. Once inside you can explore more of the Maasai’s culture and lifestyle. These people have lived amid lions and elephants for millennia and their story is so iconic.A visit like this will be easy to incorporate into your safari, so you can combine local culture with all the animal spotting.

Days 8 & 9 - Grumeti (Serengeti)

Serengeti Walking Safari in Grumeti

The Serengeti is home to wildlife’s greatest show, the rumble of wildebeest and zebra on their annual migration. Animals carpet the grasslands throughout the year. Elephants and giraffe dominate the horizon and you’re never too far from lions.Thomson’s gazelle hop around and hippos fill the rivers. Now you can walk in this landscape, as well as do game drives. It’s very safe to walk here. Remember, the Masai people have herded their animals across this landscape for centuries, so they know how to avoid lions. With Masai guides you will walk in the Serengeti, an intimate safari experience dominated by endless herds and close-up encounters. It’s only possible in Grumeti, a private concession to the west of the national park.

Serengeti Horseback Safari in Grumeti

From the camp you can hear the drumroll of hooves. Wildebeest and zebra are everywhere, marching on the migratory route. And you can join them on horseback. Galloping with the herds you become part of the landscape. This is the Serengeti and yes it’s lion country as well, but with expert trackers and good guides you can traverse the ancient grasslands on horseback. Grumeti is a private concession to the west of Serengeti National Park. It’s the only place in Tanzania to do a horseback safari and you must be an experienced rider. To gallop with the great wildebeest migration is an experience beyond what words can conjure.

Day 10 - Departure