9 Days (Ndutu Migration) – Lake Manyara, Ndutu, Serengeti, Ngorongoro Crater and Tarangire

Itinerary

Day 1 – Arusha to Lake Manyara

Pick up at 8:30 AM from your hotel in Arusha and depart for Lake Manyara National Park with a picnic lunch for a full-day game drive. As you enter the national park, lush forests of Acacia and Mahogany trees begin to set the mood for what is waiting ahead. The game drive will go on till evening with a small break for a picnic lunch. During the game, drive and watch out for buffaloes, giraffes, impalas, baboons and blue monkeys. Another spectacle of Lake Manyara National park is the tree-climbing lions, however, spotting them is a game of luck. In the right season, you can see the shoreline turning pink with millions of flamingos flocking there. Post the game drive, you will head back to your camp/lodge where a delicious dinner awaits you.

Day 2 – Transfer to Ndutu (South Serengeti)

You will kickstart your day after a delicious breakfast, by about 8 AM. The destination for today is the Ndutu region which is a 3hr drive from your accommodation in Karatu. After about an hour commencing the drive, you will enter the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Ngorongoro) where you will notice the landscape changing from hilly forests to plain and green grasslands as you drive further. Once you reach Ndutu you will begin your day game drive with a convenient stop for your picnic lunch. Sweeping grasslands of the Ndutu cover the region which gradually fades into the Serengeti. Ndutu forms a part of the route for the annual migration of more than 2 million wildebeests and thousands of zebra, antelope and gazelle. During game drives at the right season between December and April, you will be able to see the fertile plains turn into calving grounds and nurseries for the great migration. The calving season attracts hordes of predators preying on vulnerable young wildebeest. Crested with Ndutu lake and Lake Masek, these waterholes offer plenty of wildlife game during the dry season. The Ndutu is also the home ground for 6 species of big cats – leopard, lion, cheetah, caracal, serval and wildcat. The action-packed game drive will end late in the evening by around 5 PM. You will now head towards your choice of accommodation, where a freshly prepared dinner awaits you. Ensure you get some good rest and recharge yourself for another eventful day.

Day 3 & Day 4 – Ndutu (South Serengeti)

Stunned by the previous day’s spotting of the migration, today you get another chance to view the beautiful wildlife spectacle. The Ndutu region is a part of the glorious Serengeti National Park as well as the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (Ngorongoro). You can either have a relaxed breakfast and depart for full-day game drives around 9:00 AM with packed lunch and return back to the lodge late afternoon around 6:00 PM. Or you can depart at 6:00 AM on an early morning game drive. Later return to the accommodation for breakfast and relax for a bit and depart on an afternoon game drive with packed lunch. Today you will be following the migration depending on its location. During game drives at the right season between December and April, you will be able to see the fertile plains turn into calving grounds and nurseries for the great migration. This season attracts hordes of predators preying on vulnerable young wildebeest. Watching the circle of life take its course will be an unforgettable experience etched for life. The action-packed game drive will end late in the evening by around 5 PM. You will now head towards your choice of accommodation, where a freshly prepared dinner awaits you. Ensure you get some good rest and recharge yourself for another eventful day.

Day 5 – Ndutu (South Serengeti) to Central Serengeti

The excitement for today will be quite high as you make your way into the most celebrated wildlife park in the world – The Serengeti. After finishing up a good breakfast, you will head out towards the Serengeti National Park and travel in the midst of the never-ending plain grasslands. Serengeti means endless plains in the local African language and watching the grassland stretch out as far as the eye can see and eventually merge with the sky at the horizon is an absolutely breathtaking view. With an overall land area of 14,763 sq Km, It puts our notion about the distance to shame. The Serengeti also houses the glorious “Big 5” (elephant, rhino, buffalo, lion and leopard). Along with the “Big 5”, a very pleasant sighting would be one of Africa’s most beautiful animals – The Impala. The Serengeti ecosystem supports the greatest remaining concentration of plains game in Africa. You must also look out for the Serengeti “Kopjes” which are massive boulders of granite standing in a sea of grass. They provide ample shelter to a large variety of flora and fauna. A picnic lunch will be done during the day-long game drives. The eventful day comes to an end with a heavy dinner and a good night’s rest in your accommodation.

Day 6 – Central Serengeti

You can either have a relaxed breakfast and depart for full-day game drives around 9:00 AM with packed lunch and return back to the lodge late afternoon around 6:00 PM. Or you can depart at 6:00 AM on an early morning game drive. Later return to the accommodation for breakfast and relax for a bit and depart on an afternoon game drive with packed lunch. You will explore the central portion of the Serengeti National Park today. The legendary Serengeti National Park is the most renowned safari destination for its incredible population of lions and leopards. The central portion of the Serengeti – known as the Seronera area is one of the richest wildlife habitats in the park. It features the Seronera River, which provides a valuable water source to this area and therefore attracts wildlife well representative of most of the Serengeti’s species. During the off-season of the migration, one must really look out for the many lion pride that thrive in this region. The interactions and survival of these lion pride provide an excellent game-viewing experience with all year round. Along with a picnic lunch during the full-day game drive, the day will come to a close by around 5 PM. The long day comes to an end with a heavy dinner and a good night’s rest in your accommodation.

Day 7 – Central Serengeti to Ngorongoro

After breakfast, you will have a morning game drive in Serengeti National Park. Later depart for Ngorongoro Conservation Area with a picnic lunch. Ngorongoro Crater is the largest collapsed volcanic crater in the world and has fourteen kilometres of isolated natural beauty. Ngorongoro Crater is surrounded by a ring of extinct volcanoes and the floor, dotted with watering holes, shelters some 30,000 animals. The eventful day comes to an end with a heavy dinner and a good night’s rest in your accommodation.

Day 8 – Ngorongoro Crater Tour (5 Hours) to Tarangire

After an early breakfast, descend to the crater floor for a game drive(5 hours). You can expect to see lions, elephants, Zebras, Hippos, Flamingos, Jackals, Rhinos Antelopes and many birds. The birds seen here include eagles, vultures, and flamingos in the Crater Lake, storks, bats, giant vultures, sacred ibis, kori bustard, blacksmith plover, long-necked heron and the cattle eagle. Post the picnic lunch at the beautiful Hippo pool, you will begin a steep ascend to the top exit of the crater. With a 2hr drive left to your accommodation in Karatu, the day will come to a close. Freshly made delicious dinner is kept ready for you at your chosen accommodation. All these days of the safari will have you quite tired and a good rest is essential. The next day you will begin the last leg of your safari.

Day 9 – Tarangire to Arusha

The final day of your safari will begin as usual by 8:00 AM after a luscious breakfast. The destination for today is Arusha to Tarangire National Park where you will have a half-day game drive. Tanzania’s third-largest National park is known for its majestic baobab trees that dot the landscape, dwarfing the animals that feed beneath them. The Tarangire River is the centrepiece of this park which is famous for some of the largest herds of elephants in Africa. Here you may see lion, leopard, cheetah, lesser kudu, buffalo, Oryx, eland, giraffe and zebra. By mid-afternoon, you will branch out and head towards Arusha where you will be dropped off at your preferred location by about 6 PM in the evening. With an incredible experience and loads of memories to cherish, this is the time you bid goodbye to your team.

Stay Locations

Day 1 – Karatu

Day 2 – Ndutu

Day 3 – Ndutu

Day 4 – Ndutu

Day 5 – Central Serengeti

Day 6 – Central Serengeti

Day 7 – Karatu or NCA

Day 8 – Karatu or Tarangire