5 Days Best of Northern Tanzania Safari

Tour Overview

This action-packed 5-day Tanzania safari will give you a chance to see how Lake Manyara attracts numerous colonies of pink flamingos; the daily life in the natural reservation of Ngorongoro Crater; and reveal the secrets of the vast savannahs of the Serengeti valley. You will surely see the Top Five most dangerous animals in Africa (elephant, buffalo, leopard, rhino and lion), as well as giraffes, hippos, cheetahs, zebras, ostriches, jackals, mongooses and many other species. But Africa This safari also provides a splendid adventure; the chance to see the Great MIgration of wildebeests in the Serengeti valley.

Full Itinerary

Day 1: ARRIVAL

The group arrives at Kilimanjaro Airport (JRO). Participants are met by a representative of Nanyori Tours LTD and transferred to a hotel in Arusha.

Day 2: ARUSHA – LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL PARK

In the morning after breakfast (around 7:30 AM) your safari guide will arrive at the hotel and inform the receptionist that he is waiting for you. After meeting up with your driver you will travel to Lake Manyara National Park, and by 10:00 AM you will already be on your first safari!

The entire territory of this park is cut through with ground water streams that provide a favorable environment for plants and, in addition, for a multitude of birds (including pink flamingos) and African forest animals.

Around lunchtime you will visit the Maji Moto hot springs and the driver will provide you with personal lunchboxes. After this stop the safari will continue, and by evening you will be transferred to a hotel located on the edge of the Ngorongoro volcanic crater.

Day 3: NGORONGORO CRATER

On this day it is best to leave the hotel as early as possible so you can see the variety of animals that are only active during the morning hours; breakfast will be packed in lunchboxes specifically for this purpose. At 6:30 AM you will set off for Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and after about an hour you will already be inside the crater.

Ngorongoro is one of the most famous and interesting of Tanzania’s national parks because here you can find the greatest number of different animal species per square kilometer. You will have the chance to see buffalo, elephants, lions, wildebeests, zebras, hippopotamus and feline species such as caracals and servals. The luckiest travelers might even see a rhinoceros, an animal whose numbers are rapidly declining.

By lunch time you will arrive at the lake side, where you will be offered lunchboxes, after which the safari will continue, ending in a few hours with a transfer to Serengeti National Park.

On your travels you will also visit a memorial dedicated to two West German researchers, Bernhard and Michael Grzimek. It is them we have to thank for Northern Tanzania National Parks having survived till our times in its current natural state. You can read their full story in the book “Serengeti Shall Not Die” which can be found on Amazon.com for USD 10–25.

In the evening you will be transferred to a hotel in the center of the Serengeti valley.

Day 4: Serengeti National Park

The entire day is dedicated to game viewing in the Serengeti National Park. The areas that you visit will depend upon where the migrating herds are. Predators usually follow closely behind the trekking animals and include lions, leopards (in the acacia trees) and cheetahs. During the short rainy season in November and December the herds move from the hills in the north to the plains in the south. During the longer rainy season from April to June they return up north. 

As the migration is completely dependent on the yearly rainfalls, the location of the herds may vary from year to year but your guide will know where to locate the animals and where to see them best. You will spend another night at the Camp.

Day 5: Serengeti National Park – Karatu – Coffee Walk

On your outward journey to the park gate, you will enjoy some more game viewing before you leave the Serengeti National Park in the early afternoon to continue your journey to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. As soon as you reach the edge of the Ngorongoro Crater, you will see the giant caldera below – a breath-taking view. 

You will leave the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and drive to Karatu in the Ngorongoro highlands. Here you will join a walk in the coffee plantation to learn more about the cultivation and processing of coffee. You will spend the night at one of the three beautifully located Lodges.

Day 7: Karatu –
Arusha

After a leisurely breakfast, you will travel back to Arusha where you will arrive around midday. You will be dropped off in the city centre or at the airport.

Lake Manyara National Park, Serengeti National Park, Ngorongoro Crater