5 Days Tanzania Safari, Lake Manyara – Serengeti – Ngorongoro – Tarangire

After breakfast you leave Arusha and drive to Lake Manyara National Park, a trip of about a hundred and twenty kilometres that takes roughly two and a half to three hours. The park sits right at the base of the Great Rift Valley escarpment, and the wall of the valley makes a fine backdrop as you arrive.

Manyara is compact but rich, and a full day game drive gives you time to work through its different habitats. In the cool groundwater forest near the gate you find troops of baboon and, overhead, plenty of birds, while the open areas beyond hold elephant, buffalo and giraffe. Down at the lakeshore, hippo wallow in the shallows and flamingos gather in the soda water in their thousands. The park is also known for its lions, which are often seen resting up in the branches of the acacias, though a sighting is always a matter of luck rather than a promise.

In the late afternoon you head up to Karatu for the night. Dinner, breakfast and lunch are included, and you stay at Eileens Tree Inn.

After an early breakfast you set out on the longer drive to the Serengeti, around two hundred kilometres that takes five to six hours with game viewing along the way. The road climbs through the scenic Ngorongoro highlands before descending into the southern reaches of the Serengeti, and the change from green highland to open plain is striking.

Wildlife viewing begins as you make your way toward the Seronera area, in the central part of the park where the Seronera River holds water through much of the year and keeps a rich concentration of animals close by. This is good country for lion, and the river lines and woodland give you a chance at leopard as well, along with the plains game that gathers wherever there is water.

Following lunch you enjoy an afternoon game drive across the savanna before heading to camp. Meals through the day are included, and you spend the night at Serengeti House of Nature.

Today is set aside for a full day exploring the heart of the Serengeti, with drives that follow the wildlife rather than any fixed route. Your guide plans the day around where the animals have been moving, so the plan stays flexible and you go where the action is.

Depending on the time of year, you may catch different phases of the Great Migration as the herds of wildebeest and zebra track the rains across the plains. Between the grazers you look for the predators that shadow them, lion out on the open ground or resting on a kopje, leopard along the wooded rivers, and cheetah scanning from a rise. None of it is guaranteed, but a whole day in the park gives you the time and the space to be rewarded. For those who want a different view, an optional hot air Balloon Safari at dawn can be arranged, drifting over the plains as the sun comes up.

All meals are included today, and you return for a second night at Serengeti House of Nature.

You start the day with an early game drive while the plains are still cool and busy, then come back for breakfast. From there you gradually make your way out of the Serengeti, keeping your eyes open for last sightings as you cross the southern grasslands.

The route carries you through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, where more wildlife viewing is possible as you climb back into the highlands. This is shared land where Maasai herders graze their cattle alongside the wild animals, and the mix of open country and the first views of the crater rim make for a scenic afternoon on the road.

In the late afternoon you reach your lodge near Karatu, set close to the crater rim with long views over the surrounding highlands. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are included, and you overnight at Ngorongoro Wild Camp, resting up for an early start into the crater.

After breakfast you drive up to the rim and descend into the Ngorongoro Crater, a protected floor packed with wildlife inside its steep walls. The short grass plains hold dense numbers of buffalo, zebra and antelope, resident lion prides work the open ground, and there is an outside chance of spotting the black rhino that shelter here. The crater is one of the surest places in the country for close, steady game viewing.

After a mid day break for lunch you climb back out and drive on to Tarangire National Park for a short evening game drive. Tarangire is a different landscape again, wide and dry, and it is famous for its large elephant herds and the ancient baobab trees that stand across the plains. The late light is a fine time to be out among them as the animals move to drink.

Breakfast and lunch are included today. Accommodation is not included at the close of this itinerary, so onward plans from Tarangire can be arranged to suit you.