Day 1 Arrival – Arusha,Tanzania
Arrive at Kilimanjaro International Airport where you will be met by Top Story representative outside custom area. Transfer to your lodge in Arusha where you will stay before you start your Classic Tanzania Safari the following day.
The Lodge is located within a working coffee plantation on the western edge of Arusha town.Arusha coffee Lodge is an excellent place to relax at the start of your Tanzania safari holiday. Depending on your time of arrival, the plantation is a great place for an afternoon stroll and all guests at the lodge should try a freshly brewed cup of coffee for a taste of its produce.
Arusha Coffee Lodge
Day 2 Arusha – Ngorongoro Conservation Area
After a leisurely breakfast, drive (4 hrs) to your exclusive tented camp on the rim of the Ngorongoro Crater, arriving in time for lunch. The road from Arusha to the crater has breathtaking views, as you approach the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.
Ngorongoro Crater which is located 190 KMS west of Arusha holds the record as the world’s largest intact volcanic caldera, and is home to some of the densest populations of big game in Africa.
You will be staying at the luxurious Lemala Ngorongoro Camp which is strategically located at the entrance into the crater. Lemala camp is a semi-permanent luxury wilderness camp nestled within an ancient acacia forest near the rim of the Ngorongoro crater. One of the advantages of staying at this camp is that, Its location is far from the more mainstream hotels and lodges further along the crater rim.
The small, intimate nature of the camp itself, makes for a peaceful stay with authentic bush ambiance. The camp itself comprises just nine luxury safari tents each equipped with solar lights, flush toilets and a traditional bucket shower.
Lemala Ngorongoro Camp
Day 3 Ngorongoro Conservation Area
Get the best experience of your life when depart for the crater floor, using the nearby access road to descend quickly into the Ngorongoro crater valley floor some 600m below. You can reach the crater floor in a relatively short time, enjoying the convenience of less traffic whilst descending into the crater, as well as the luxury of longer and significantly higher quality game drives once you are there.
Ngorongoro is arguably the best spot to look for some of the continent’s largest old elephant bulls – the natural sanctuary provided by the surrounding crater walls means it is home to some of the longest tusks you will see on safari. Ngorongoro Crater floor supports the densest concentration of predators in all of Africa and is also renowned for its population of black rhinos, and sightings are reasonably reliable – a poignant rarity in East Africa these days. It is also an excellent spot for birdwatchers – with large flocks of flamingo and other water birds usually resident or passing through, as well as a significant number of birds of prey.
Day 4 Ngorongoro – Serengeti National Park
Today, after an early breakfast, you will depart Ngorongoro and transfer to Manyara airstrip (2 hrs 30 mins drive) where you will board a scheduled flight to the Serengeti. Yur flight time and destination will vary depending on the season – as our next destination is a semi-nomadic camp that moves several times a year to follow the migration.
The camp’s location is dictated by wildebeest Migration. From December to April, the location of Serengeti Safari Camp is Ndutu area, this is near the southern Serengeti plains where the herds of wildebeest mass during their calving season. In the months of May and November the camp occupies a spot near Moru, in central Serengeti, as the herds move through this picturesque area typified by rocky outcrops and known for its localized population of black rhinoceros. In June and early July, the camp will move to an idyllic spot in the ‘western corridor’ as the herds start to march northwards and cross the Grumeti River. The camp moves its base to further north From July to October, near the Mara River. Wherever our destination, our journey will be to a nearby airstrip, where we will be met by our private guide and vehicle and transferred to camp for the next three nights of adventure.
The camp itself is a beautiful take on the classic mobile safari camp – with traditional Meru-style canvas tents, comfortably kitted out with large beds, hand-crafted wooden safari furniture, en suite bathrooms with eco-flush lavatories with hot and cold water provided and a traditional bucket shower – possibly the most refreshing way to wash the Serengeti dust off at the end of an exciting day of game drives.
We will enjoy lunch at the camp, followed by our first game drive across the Serengeti plains.
Day 5 Serengeti National Park
Game drive in the Serengeti, the next two days will be spent exploring the Serengeti for some of the exceptional wildlife viewing this destination offers. After breakfast at camp, we can embark on our game drive. Having a private guide and vehicle allows us the chance to set our own agenda, and we can either make shorter forays away from camp in the morning and afternoon, or spend all day out on the game tracks to enjoy wildlife viewing from dawn until dusk.Dinner & OvernightSerengeti Safari Camp
Day 6 Serengeti National Park
Serengeti Safari Camp, Tanzania, Photo by NomadToday, we enjoy more game drives, searching for predators, following the migratory herds, or enjoying some of the world class birding available in the Serengeti – the choice is ours.
Our vehicle will be equipped with anything we may need for our times on the plains – onboard we will find soft drinks, snacks and biscuits, a bush picnic and tea and coffee making equipment. There will also be a selection of wildlife and other reference books, maps and a pair of binoculars for our use while on safari, in addition to the services of our knowledgeable and experienced safari guide.
On our return to camp at the end of each day, we will be welcomed with hot showers and ice-filled sundowners – and we can relax around the campfire swapping tales of the day with other guests, creating some wonderful memories.
Day 7 Serengeti National Park – Loliondo
Walking safari in Tanzania. On this morning, we will have an early start and depart Serengeti Safari Camp with a picnic lunch for our drive to a Maasai-owned community reserve in Loliondo. The reserve is located on the eastern boundaries of the Serengeti National Park, yet comprises a significant part of the greater Serengeti-Mara ecosystem, and that sense of distant horizons and open spaces is what permeates the memories of anyone lucky enough to stay in this vast wilderness.
The drive between Serengeti Safari Camp and Nduara Loliondo will take between 3 to 5 hrs, depending on the season, as this is another camp which moves on an orbit to follow the migration. Nduara moves just twice a year, from Piyaya in the south to Ololosokwan in the north. It is a unique ‘yurt’ wilderness camp, the only one of its kind in Tanzania, with large, Mongolian style accommodation and mess tents, furnished with brightly coloured textiles, sheepskin and leather. Yurts may stem from the central Asian steppes, but are well suited to the nomadic lifestyles of the Maasai tribesmen living in this wild and un-crowded part of Tanzania, and Nduara provides a fitting place from which to experience the traditions of this proud and ancient tribe Overnight at Nduara Camp
Day 8 Loliondo
Staying at Nduara after time spent exploring Ngorongoro and the Serengeti is a great way to get out of the vehicle and explore the bush in a more active way. Of course, the game drives here can be amazing, with the wildlife that migrates through the reserve not paying heed to any national park boundaries. But the real joy lies in discovering Africa in other ways: taking a walking safari through the bush, guided by a professional Maasai guide; enjoying visits to the Maasai community and learning about their proud traditions of cattle, nomadism and fighting; or by simply sitting with ice-cold sundowners, on rocks still warm from the African sun, as we watch the another glorious sunset over the Serengeti.
Day 9 Loliondo
Walking safari in Loliondo,Tanzania. Photo by NomadToday, on our last full day exploring this unspoilt corner of the Serengeti ecosystem, we can enjoy more walking safaris, game drives or Maasai activities. We can also experience the excitement and novelty of a nocturnal game drive – an activity which is not allowed in the national parks but can be conducted safely in this private reserve under the supervision of our expert Maasai guides. A night game drive offers a greater chance of seeing predators on the hunt, or perhaps the opportunity to catch a glimpse of some rare nocturnal species, such as an aardvark, pangolin, porcupine, serval or civet cat. Overnight at Nduara Loliondo
Day 10 Loliondo – Departure
After breakfast, we will transfer to either Lobo or Ndutu airstrip (depending on the time of year and the location of the camp), carrying a picnic lunch, and depart on our scheduled flight to Kilimanjaro International Airport, arriving around lunchtime for our international flight departure home later today.
Meal Plan: Breakfast, Lunch