3 days, private, starts and ends in Arusha
Serengeti & Ngorongoro Crater
The Serengeti is a long drive from Arusha, so on a three-day trip we suggest flying in. You land on an airstrip near your camp in about an hour, and your guide is waiting with the vehicle.
You spend your time on game drives and in camps with proper beds, good food and real quiet at night. We drive out through the crater highlands so you still get a morning in Ngorongoro.
Times and drives are approximate. Your guide adjusts each day to the weather, the wildlife and you.
A morning transfer to Arusha airport for your light-aircraft flight to the central Serengeti. Within an hour you’ve swapped city traffic for endless grass, and your guide is waiting at the airstrip with the vehicle, roof up and cold drinks in the cooler. The game drive starts right away. The Seronera valley is the Serengeti’s wildlife-rich centre, where the river keeps the trees green and the animals close. Lion prides rest on the kopjes, the granite outcrops that break up the plains, and leopards drape themselves over sausage-tree branches. We reach your luxury tented camp for a late lunch and a rest, then head out again in the late afternoon. The evening is a hot shower, dinner by candlelight, and the sounds of the Serengeti at night: hyenas whooping, perhaps a lion calling far away.
An early coffee at camp and out before sunrise, when the cats are still active and the light is soft and gold. Your guide chooses the area based on that week’s sightings and the season. From December to March the herds are calving in the south, and from July to October the action is in the north. In the central Serengeti the resident game is excellent all year: lions, cheetahs on the open plains, elephants, giraffes, and big herds of buffalo and topi. We stop for a bush breakfast under an acacia, and in the heat of the day you can go back to camp for lunch and the pool, or stay out with a picnic. The afternoon drive ends with sundowners on a kopje, watching the sun set over the plains.
A last dawn drive in the Serengeti, then we drive out across the plains and up into the Ngorongoro highlands. We descend into the crater for a game drive focused on the animals the Serengeti may not have shown you, above all black rhino, which are more easily seen here than anywhere else in Tanzania. Lunch is at the hippo pool on the crater floor. In the afternoon we climb out and drive back to Arusha, arriving in the early evening. If you prefer, we can arrange a charter flight back from the airstrip near the crater instead.
We quote per person, based on your group size, season and accommodation level. Send an enquiry and you’ll have a full price within 24 hours. There’s nothing to pay until you confirm.
We quote with and without the flight. Driving is cheaper but costs most of a day each way.
Most days start between 6:00 and 6:30, because the first hours after sunrise have the best light and the most active animals and birds. We usually take a picnic lunch in the park or return to camp for a midday rest, then head out again in the late afternoon. Parks close at sunset, so evenings are at the lodge.
Yes. Every trip is private, so we can add days, swap parks, change the accommodation level or slow the pace. Tell us what you’d like, and we’ll send a revised plan and price.
A 4x4 safari vehicle with a pop-up roof for viewing and photography, charging points and a window seat for everyone. The vehicle and guide are yours alone for the whole trip.
Send an enquiry and we’ll reply within 24 hours with a tailored itinerary and a full quote. Once you’re happy, we take a deposit to confirm, with the balance due before you travel. We’ll give you the exact terms in writing.
Just tell us. Lodges and our camp cooks regularly cater for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, halal and other diets.
2daysTwo days is enough for a real safari if you pick the right parks.
5daysIf people ask us for the classic Tanzania safari, this is usually what they mean: all four northern-circuit parks, a lodge every night, and enough days in the Serengeti to settle into it.
6daysAn extra day changes the whole feel of a safari.
Tell us your dates and the birds or animals you most want to see. We’ll reply within 24 hours with a route and a full quote.
