Pick up from your lodge/hotel in Arusha area (we can help arrange this lodging for the previous night if desired). If you are interested and it is open, we can arrange a visit to a local primary school which is great fun and an opportunity to “give back” by donating school supplies. Your first day safari park may vary depending on the season, availability and preferences – either Tarangire National Park or Lake Manyara National Park. Tarangire is especially great July through October and known for large herds of elephant, you can overnight at Sangaiwe Tented Lodge  (or private safaris you might upgrade to Tarangire River Camp, Whistling Thorn Camp, Osopuko Lodge or Tarangire Sopa Lodge). If you choose Lake Manyara, which means less driving as it’s right on the way to Ngorongoro, you’ll overnight at Country Lodge, Bougainvillea Lodge, or Octagon Lodge in Karatu village unless you upgrade to other options. Enjoy your first game drive in safari vehicles whose tops can be opened for better viewing. Picnic lunch boxes in the park.

All meals included starting with lunch today.

Depart Tarangire area in the morning and drive about 2-3 hours to Ngorongoro Crater, or depart Karatu village and drive about 45 minutes to Ngorongoro Crater. Spend the day exploring the Crater – a large, intact volcanic caldera with many resident animals. There are open plains, lakes, and small forests in this self-contained ecosystem. Many animals can be seen here year-round, including the elusive Rhino. Overnight at Rhino Lodge near the Crater Rim.  Please note availability at Rhino Lodge can be very tight, and there is nothing else near or on the Crater Rim in similar price range.  If Rhino is full, drive back to Karatu village to overnight at Country Lodge or Bougainvillea Lodge there, outside the park.  Other options at higher cost but on the Crater rim/inside the park include Ngorongoro Wildlife Lodge, Sopa Ngorongoro Lodge, and Ang’ata Ngorongoro tented safari camp.

Transfer to Serengeti, game drive en route. The entire drive from the Ngorongoro Crater rim, descending the Ngorongoro Highlands on the vast Serengeti Plains, is a game watching opportunity. You’ll see bright spots of color where people of the Maasai tribe herd their cattle and goats in the Ngorongoro Highlands – often right alongside wildlife herds. Then, as you enter the Serengeti National Park borders, villages end and wildlife roams even more in abundance. Overnight at our classic safari camp, or at times we may use Kisura or Kenzan tented safari camp, Seronera or Lobo Wildlife Lodges, Ndutu Lodge, depending on time of year and possibly on preferences.